Free Adam and the Arkonauts by Dominic Barker Page B

crouched as close as he could to Sniffage’s ear and whispered something to him.
    â€˜Really!’ yelped Sniffage.
    Adam nodded.
    â€˜Yeah! Yeah! Yeah!’
    Suddenly the dog leapt out of Adam’s hands and charged madly across the lobby.
    â€˜Sniffage!’ shouted Adam.
    But the dog ignored him.
    â€˜Control your dog!’ shouted the receptionist.
    â€˜Sniffage!’ ordered the Doctor. ‘Come here!’
    But Sniffage was not listening to anybody. He bounded over to the armchairs and jumped up on the one next to the old man and licked his face.
    â€˜I say!’ said the surprised old man.
    â€˜Sniffage!’ shouted the Doctor.
    Having licked his face, Sniffage seemed to take a fancy to the old man’s newspaper. But not reading it. Eating it. He took a large bite out of a corner.
    â€˜I was reading that article,’ said the old man. ‘This really is too much!’
    But if it was too much, then it turned out that Sniffage only had more in mind. He leapt on to the table, upending the cup of coffee which sat there. Its contents landed in the old man’s lap.
    â€˜Miguel!’ cried Arantcha, rushing out from behind her desk. The burly, uniformed concierge rushed into the lobby. ‘Get rid of that dog!’
    Miguel, hampered only slightly by his extra-large tasselled lapels, which flapped into his face as he ran, dashed towards Sniffage. But Sniffage was not going to be caught so easily. He leapt into the pot plants, sending them toppling one way and then another, soil spilling in all directions.
    Meanwhile, Arantcha hurried over to the old man. ‘Señor Le Blacas,’ she simpered, ‘the hotel cannot apologise enough for this appalling incident. Allow me to immediately sponge your trousers.’
    The Doctor watched the scene in utter horror. He had always believed that animals, like humans, would behave reasonably if they were treated well, yet here was Sniffage, with no provocation, causing complete pandemonium. It was throwing his scientific theories into chaos.
    It was also throwing the lobby into chaos. Miguel’s pursuit of Sniffage was far from nimble, and any plant that Sniffage had neglected to topple over the concierge did instead as he desperately tried to get a hold on the crazy dog. Sniffage charged back and forth across the lobby, barking joyfully. This was even more fun than finding a dead smelly thing and Sniffage hadn’t thought there was anything more fun than that.
    Finally, however, the concierge, red-faced and with one torn tasselled lapel hanging awkwardly from his uniform, cornered Sniffage.
    â€˜Hah!’ he said triumphantly to the trapped dog. ‘Now I will kick you into the street like a –’
    But Sniffage took Miguel by surprise and sprang forward, straight at the concierge.
    â€˜Oh!’ Miguel shouted as Sniffage slipped through his legs.
    On the other side of the room, Arantcha was still tending to Señor Le Blacas.
    Adam followed Sniffage, slipping past the concierge while he was still cursing the dog for escaping. They fled down the front steps and waited round the corner for the Doctor to emerge from the hotel.
    Worse was to come.
    PHEEEEEEP!
    Officer Grivas, whistle in mouth, dashed down the street and up the staircase into the lobby. Inside, the concierge had a grip of iron on the Doctor’s right arm.
    â€˜Look, my good man,’ the Doctor was saying. ‘I’m very sorry, but it was all a complete accident and . . .’
    He spotted Officer Grivas staring at him and stopped talking.
    â€˜This man has disturbed the peace of a hotel lobby,’ Arantcha informed the policeman.
    â€˜Which piece?’ said Officer Grivas.
    â€˜All of it.’ She indicated the general chaos.
    The Doctor sighed. ‘I suppose I have earned another on-the-spot fine.’
    â€˜If the hotel had less than four stars you would be right,’ said Officer Grivas, advancing with an evil