Free Alice-Miranda to the Rescue by Jacqueline Harvey Page A

creature whimpered and burrowed into the folds.
    â€˜Are you hungry?’ Caprice asked. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a bread roll she’d saved from lunch.
    The pup sniffed the food, then turned its head away. Its high-pitched squeaks were growing louder and louder.
    â€˜Shush, be quiet or someone will hear you,’ Caprice pleaded. No matter how much she cuddledhim, his shuddering wouldn’t stop. ‘It’s all right,’ she cooed. ‘I’ll put the heater on.’
    Caprice placed the pup onto the threadbare couch and unwound the frayed cord on the electric heater under the window. She glanced around for somewhere to plug it in and discovered a socket just behind the old television set. Within minutes the coils began to glow.
    The girl sat back on the floor beside the pup, enjoying the warmth. ‘That’s better now, isn’t it?’
    The pup looked up at her with his big brown eyes. A few minutes later, his nose twitched and she felt around for the bread roll. Before long he’d gobbled it down and was crying for more.

    â€˜Hello Mr Charles!’ Alice-Miranda waved to the gardener, who was up a ladder trimming a hedge opposite the stables.
    â€˜Afternoon, girls,’ he called back.
    â€˜That’s exciting news about the dog show,’ Alice-Miranda said.
    The man grinned. ‘I don’t know if I’m excited or terrified, lass. I just hope that all those pooches get along.’
    â€˜It was fun when I went with my mum,’ Millie said, ‘although I do remember one very bolshy sausage dog that kept on trying to eat the tails of the big dogs. Eventually, this Great Dane turned around and opened his mouth and the sausage dog’s whole head disappeared.’
    Charlie cringed. ‘Oh, I don’t like the sound of this.’
    Alice-Miranda’s eyes widened. ‘My goodness, what happened then?’
    â€˜The dachshund’s owner screamed and people came running from everywhere. I remember the handler of the Great Dane just telling him calmly to spit it out. There was a horrible hoicking noise and out popped the sausage dog, covered in slime. It was gross but it could have been much worse, I guess,’ Millie said.
    â€˜It certainly could have,’ Charlie agreed.
    Following Miss Grimm’s thrilling announcement, the two girls had rushed to get changed into their jodhpurs and boots and Alice-Miranda had located the beautiful box of Fanger’s Chocolate that she’d bought for Miss Fayle and Mrs Sykes.
    â€˜Is Elsa around?’ Alice-Miranda asked.
    â€˜No, she’s busy with her studies today. I’ll feed the ponies when I’m finished here, unless you girlswould like to give me a hand. Millie, I could let Miss Grimm know that you’ve been awfully helpful and perhaps she’ll give you Sunday afternoon off,’ he said with a wink.
    The girl smiled. ‘Sounds like a plan to me. We’re on our way to see Miss Hephzibah and Miss Henrietta for half an hour, so we’ll take care of everything when we get back.’
    â€˜Rightio.’ The man waved goodbye and continued with his pruning.
    Millie charged into the stables with its smell of dust and manure, lucerne and molasses. ‘Hey, fatso,’ she called to Chops, who was dozing with his head over his stall door. She walked into the tack room and took the pony’s bridle from its hook on the wall.
    Bonaparte spotted his mistress and whinnied loudly.
    â€˜Sorry, Bony, no treats for you,’ Alice-Miranda said. She laughed as the pony shook his head up and down as if to disagree. The girl located Bonaparte’s bridle and grabbed her saddle too, taking them both over to the pony’s stall.
    There was a loud thump from upstairs.
    Millie looked up at the timber ceiling and frowned. ‘Seriously, are those mice having a party?’
    The girl hitched Chops’s reins to his saddle and left him standing in his stall