Free Lucy the Poorly Puppy by Holly Webb Page A

That’s all the summer holidays to play with them, and more.”
    Dad nodded. “Exactly. Of course we’ll miss them when they go, but it’ll be easier if we remember that they aren’t ours to keep.”
    “I won’t forget,” Lauren promised. “Oh, there’s Millie, Dad! Can you let me out here? I can walk up the road to school with her and her mum, can’t I?”
    Dad pulled up, and Lauren jumped out of the car, waving to her best friend.
    “Hi! How’s Bella? Have the puppies arrived yet?” Millie asked breathlessly.
    Lauren shook her head, then smiled. “Bella was being really funny this morning. She kept messing around with her bed as if she was nesting. There might even be puppies when I get home!” she said, swinging her school bag excitedly. 

    “You’re so lucky,” said Millie. “Mum, can we have one of Bella’s puppies? Pleeeease?”
    “Oh, Millie, you know I’d love one,” said her mum, hitching Millie’s baby sister Amy higher up on her hip. “But it just wouldn’t be fair to have a dog – I’m busy with your sister, and your dad’s at work during the day. A puppy would get lonely.” 
    Millie sighed. “I suppose so.”
    “You’ll be able to play with them when you come round in the holidays,” Lauren promised her. “And I won’t get to keep the puppies either. Dad was reminding me in the car.”
    Millie nodded. “Still, you’ll have weeks and weeks to play with them all. Oh, there’s the bell. See you later, Mum!”
    The two girls ran into class, and joined the crowd of children round Miss Ford, all begging her to open their goodbye present first.

Chapter Two
    Lauren usually spent ages chatting to all her friends at the end of school, but today she was desperate to see if the puppies had arrived. She dashed out into the playground to find Dad waiting by the gate. Millie chased after her.
    “Has Bella had the puppies yet?” Lauren gasped. She’d been running so fast she had to grab on to Dad’s arm to stop herself falling over.
    Dad steadied her, laughing. “Yes.”
    “How many?” Lauren squeaked excitedly.
    Dad smiled. “Guess.”
    Lauren frowned. “Five?”
    “Nowhere near. Ten!”
    “Ten puppies?” Lauren turned round to Millie, her eyes round with amazement. “Ten? That’s a huge litter!”
    Millie laughed. “You’ll have to think of ten names!”
    “That’s going to be tricky,” Dad said. Lauren gave him a worried look. He didn’t sound quite as happy as she thought the owner of ten puppies should. A sudden horrible thought hit her. Ten puppies was loads – it must have been such hard work for Bella, giving birth to so many. What if something was wrong with her? Lauren opened her mouth to ask, and then shut it again. She didn’t want to talk about something so scary in the middle of the school playground.
    Instead, she hugged Millie goodbye, and promised to email her a picture of the puppies later.

    But as soon as she and Dad were heading for the car, she grabbed his hand. “Dad, is everything OK?” 
    “What do you mean?” Dad looked at her carefully.
    “I just thought you seemed a bit worried – after you told us there were so many puppies. Is Bella all right?”
    Dad gave her a hug. “Bella’s fine. I mean, she’s exhausted, but she did really well. It’s not Bella…” He hesitated. “Lauren, one of the puppies is a lot smaller than the others. Mum and I – we’re not sure this one will make it. It’s such a tiny scrap of a thing, and when it was first born, we weren’t even sure if it was breathing. Bella had another puppy straight after, and she didn’t have time to lick the little puppy like she did with the others, or bite through its cord. I had to cut the cord myself, and I rubbed the little pup with a flannel to bring it round.” He shook his head. “It did start to breathe, but it’s not as strong as the other puppies, not by a long way.”
    “Do you think it might die, Dad?” Lauren whispered.
    Dad sighed. “I hope