Philip and the Angel (9781452416144) Read Online Free PDF Page A

for her own dinner.”
    “ Why are you whispering?”
    “ Shhh. You whisper, too. Don’t make her
growl again.”
    “ Then let’s go before she really gets
angry. I have to take Hansel home. He’s starting to wiggle ’cause
of the cats.”
    Emery and Philip stood up. Philip put the
cardboard back in place, and the two boys walked away.
    “ You know,” said Philip, “if we leave
them there, the people who come to pick up the cardboard aren’t
going to know about them.”
    Emery pulled Hansel away from a bush he
wanted to smell.
    “ You take Hansel home, and I’ll meet
you later.”
    “ Where are you going?”
    “ Never mind. I’ll see you later.”
Philip ran down the street. He knew he couldn’t leave those two
tiny kittens to be recycled along with the cardboard. He’d have to
do something, but he didn’t know what. Angel would know what to do,
and if she wasn’t home from the hospital yet, he’d wait for her.
This was an emergency!
     
     

Chapter Eight
     
    When Philip saw the car in the driveway, he
knew Angel was home from the hospital so he ran. He reached her
front door, took some breaths, and knocked. Angel’s mother opened
the door.
    “ Hi, can I talk to Angel?”
    “ Is that Philip, Mom?”
    Angel’s mother invited him in, and he walked
into the living room. Angel lay on the sofa in her pajamas with a
thin yellow blanket over her.
    “ Don’t talk too long, honey,” her
mother said. “You know Dr. Keating said you should
rest.”
    “ I am resting. Look at me.”
    “ Just not too long, please.” Angel’s
mother left.
    “ Angel, I found a cat family.” Philip
told his story. “What should I do with them? If I leave them there,
they’ll all get crunched when the recycle truck comes.”
    Angel had a serious look on her face. She
shifted uncomfortably. “You’re right. We can’t leave them
there.”
    Philip waited while Angel pondered. He could
hear her mother buzzing around in the kitchen. He recalled looking
down over the cardboard to see the two little kittens drinking
milk. They were so small. No bigger than his fist. He thought of
the two kittens who weren’t moving. Angel’s voice woke him up.
    “ You know the little shed behind my
house?”
    “ I know it.”
    “ You can bring the family there.
There’s even a hole in the back wall where the mother can get in
and out. You’ll need a box to carry the kittens.”
    “ What about the mother? She growled at
us when we got close.”
    “ She wants food. Go and buy one can of
cat food. If you look in the shed, you should find the old hamster
cage I never got to use. It’s big enough. Put the food inside the
cage, and when the mother goes in to get the food, close the door.
The kittens you can pick up and put in a cardboard box.”
    “ You should see how small they are.
Their eyes aren’t even open.”
    “ Helpless,” Angel murmured.
    “ Okay. How much is cat food?” Philip
reached into his pocket and took out three quarters.
    “ That’s enough,” said Angel. “And get a
paper plate to put the food on.”
    Philip started for the door. He stopped and
turned to Angel. “What about the two not-moving ones?”
    “ After you take care of the mother and
kittens you can bury those two. They should be buried.”
    “ Buried? In the ground?”
    “ No, in a chocolate pie, silly. You and
your friend can do it. Come back and let me know how you did. Oh,
wait. Come here.” Philip walked closer. “Don’t let my mom or dad
see you use the shed. Go through the yards from the other block to
get to the shed.”
    “ Okay. I’ll let you know.”
    Philip ran up the street to Emery’s house and
got his friend.
    “ Listen,” Philip said. “You gotta help
me.” He explained what they had to do.
    “ Okay, let’s go get the food,” said
Emery. “Wait.” He went back inside his house and returned with a
paper plate. “Two babies, you know. We eat off these a
lot.”
    “ Okay, put it in your pocket. Let’s go
get the