Read Online CHERUB: Mad Dogs by Robert Muchamore - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Robert Muchamore
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Lauren asked.
‘I guess … I don’t think there’s anyone on campus who won’t be there.’
‘It’s so sad,’ Lauren said, as she felt a lump in her throat. ‘Listen, I’ve got to take Meatball for his walk, but I’ll be back on campus within an hour. Maybe we can go and do the candle thing together.’
‘So will Meatball be on his own all night?’
Lauren shook her head as she sniffed slightly. ‘Ewart should be home with Joshua and Tiffany by the time I get back from walkies.’
‘Try not to worry,’ Rat said. ‘She’s in surgery now; they’re doing all they can.’
‘I’ll see you later,’ Lauren said, then shut the call off because she felt tears coming on for the third time that day. She hadn’t been this sad since her mum died. She looked enviously down at Meatball as he licked up the last of his food. She reckoned it would be nice to have nothing do but play, sleep and eat VeggyPet.
‘You greedy pig,’ Lauren said, managing a smile as she slid her hand along Meatball’s back. ‘How could a little dog like you eat that so fast?’
Meatball jumped up on Lauren’s leg as she picked up his lead. When he was a puppy Meatball used to make a big fuss about having his lead hooked on, but now he knew that it meant he was going for a walk and he sat to attention while she hooked it to his collar.
As Lauren slammed the front door and started walking down the patio, she noticed an oversized figure moving through the shadows on the other side of the wall. She froze when she realised it was the hulking figure of the legendary training instructor, Norman Large.
‘Oh it’s you ,’ Large said.
Following his heart attack seven months earlier, Mr Large had run off a lot of weight and slowly brought himself back to peak fitness. He lived with his partner and daughter in the house next door to the Askers’ and had spent the last hour pumping weights in his garage. His sweatshirt was darkened with sweat.
‘Hello, sir,’ Lauren said awkwardly. She’d once knocked Mr Large out after losing her temper during a training exercise and their relationship hadn’t improved since.
‘Where are you off to?’ Large said, trying to sound friendly. ‘Come over here for a minute. I’ve been hoping to bump into you at some stage.’
Although Mr Large had been on sick leave for half a year, he was still a member of the CHERUB staff and Lauren had to treat him with respect. But she hated the man’s guts and certainly didn’t want a full-blown conversation.
‘I’ve got to take Meatball for his walk and then I’ve got to get back to campus and do my homework.’
‘It’ll only take a minute,’ Large grinned, as Lauren reluctantly stepped across the dark patio, setting off the motion-sensitive light over the Askers’ garage door. ‘As you know, I’ve got to face a disciplinary panel before I can have my job back, because of the erm … unfortunate incident leading up to my heart attack last year.’
Lauren smiled acidly. ‘You mean the fact that you went to the pub and got hammered when you were supposed to be in charge of a bunch of kids.’
Large smiled awkwardly back. ‘Well that’s not really fair…’
‘Well you certainly didn’t look sober from where I was sitting.’
‘ OK , I was drunk on duty,’ Large admitted. ‘I know that you and I have never really gotten along, but you were the only senior agent who saw the state I was in before my heart attack that night. Your evidence could be the deciding factor in whether I get my job back after the hearing on Friday next week.’
Lauren enjoyed having some power over Mr Large. After all the times he’d bullied her and made her suffer, he was now reduced to begging her to lie on his behalf.
‘I won’t exaggerate,’ Lauren said firmly. ‘But I am going to tell the truth, which is that you’d had a skinful of beer and you could hardly walk.’
Mr Large changed the subject. ‘He’s a nice little dog, Meatball, isn’t
‘I guess … I don’t think there’s anyone on campus who won’t be there.’
‘It’s so sad,’ Lauren said, as she felt a lump in her throat. ‘Listen, I’ve got to take Meatball for his walk, but I’ll be back on campus within an hour. Maybe we can go and do the candle thing together.’
‘So will Meatball be on his own all night?’
Lauren shook her head as she sniffed slightly. ‘Ewart should be home with Joshua and Tiffany by the time I get back from walkies.’
‘Try not to worry,’ Rat said. ‘She’s in surgery now; they’re doing all they can.’
‘I’ll see you later,’ Lauren said, then shut the call off because she felt tears coming on for the third time that day. She hadn’t been this sad since her mum died. She looked enviously down at Meatball as he licked up the last of his food. She reckoned it would be nice to have nothing do but play, sleep and eat VeggyPet.
‘You greedy pig,’ Lauren said, managing a smile as she slid her hand along Meatball’s back. ‘How could a little dog like you eat that so fast?’
Meatball jumped up on Lauren’s leg as she picked up his lead. When he was a puppy Meatball used to make a big fuss about having his lead hooked on, but now he knew that it meant he was going for a walk and he sat to attention while she hooked it to his collar.
As Lauren slammed the front door and started walking down the patio, she noticed an oversized figure moving through the shadows on the other side of the wall. She froze when she realised it was the hulking figure of the legendary training instructor, Norman Large.
‘Oh it’s you ,’ Large said.
Following his heart attack seven months earlier, Mr Large had run off a lot of weight and slowly brought himself back to peak fitness. He lived with his partner and daughter in the house next door to the Askers’ and had spent the last hour pumping weights in his garage. His sweatshirt was darkened with sweat.
‘Hello, sir,’ Lauren said awkwardly. She’d once knocked Mr Large out after losing her temper during a training exercise and their relationship hadn’t improved since.
‘Where are you off to?’ Large said, trying to sound friendly. ‘Come over here for a minute. I’ve been hoping to bump into you at some stage.’
Although Mr Large had been on sick leave for half a year, he was still a member of the CHERUB staff and Lauren had to treat him with respect. But she hated the man’s guts and certainly didn’t want a full-blown conversation.
‘I’ve got to take Meatball for his walk and then I’ve got to get back to campus and do my homework.’
‘It’ll only take a minute,’ Large grinned, as Lauren reluctantly stepped across the dark patio, setting off the motion-sensitive light over the Askers’ garage door. ‘As you know, I’ve got to face a disciplinary panel before I can have my job back, because of the erm … unfortunate incident leading up to my heart attack last year.’
Lauren smiled acidly. ‘You mean the fact that you went to the pub and got hammered when you were supposed to be in charge of a bunch of kids.’
Large smiled awkwardly back. ‘Well that’s not really fair…’
‘Well you certainly didn’t look sober from where I was sitting.’
‘ OK , I was drunk on duty,’ Large admitted. ‘I know that you and I have never really gotten along, but you were the only senior agent who saw the state I was in before my heart attack that night. Your evidence could be the deciding factor in whether I get my job back after the hearing on Friday next week.’
Lauren enjoyed having some power over Mr Large. After all the times he’d bullied her and made her suffer, he was now reduced to begging her to lie on his behalf.
‘I won’t exaggerate,’ Lauren said firmly. ‘But I am going to tell the truth, which is that you’d had a skinful of beer and you could hardly walk.’
Mr Large changed the subject. ‘He’s a nice little dog, Meatball, isn’t
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