Free Gatwick Bear and the Secret Plans by Anna Cuffaro

got married. We were living peacefully and happily on the highest of all the Italian mountain tops. We loved nature so much: the wild flowers, the smell of the rain... During the day we would go hunting for food: nuts and berries to store away; and in the evenings we would sit together and look up at the birds and the changing colours of the sky... Then, we started roaming further, as you do. Had we known that it is illegal to cross the border, we certainly would not have come here. One mountain looked like another to us. I don’t think we realised how far we walked that day. You can imagine our joy when we found this cave. Well, it was a ready-made home, somewhere we could settle down and have cubs. We didn’t want to start a family until we had a cosy home”.
    â€œSo, you don’t have any cubs?” Gatwick asked.
    â€œNo, unfortunately, we didn’t have any”, Mother Brown said. “As I was saying we moved and started by doing the place up. When daylight comes, you will see how much work has gone into decorating our new den. We even built a secret extension round the back”.
    â€œBut what happens when tourists visit the cave during the day? Don’t they see you?”
    â€œOh, no! We were always out of the den when the first little train arrived in the morning, and we came back here when the last train left”.
    â€œIt’s a lovely place, Mother Brown”, said Little Sister.
    â€œYes, well, we liked it here”, Mother Brown said. “We later found out that Swiss shepherds are very protective of their sheep. They thought we would kill their sheep. Really, they needn’t have worried because we don’t eat mutton or lamb. There are no protection laws for bears here. Every day they would comb the area but didn’t find us, until, this afternoon...” Mother Brown started sobbing as she spoke, “until... this afternoon... we were spotted by patrols. Someone shot him and took his body away. My poor, poor, Bertie, how could they do such a thing to him? Men are so cruel, so cruel”.
    â€œWe’re so sorry”, said the little bears together.
    â€œPlease, don’t cry, Mother Brown, you’ve got us now”, Gatwick comforted her. “You know, we don’t have a mother, so we must have lost her, or she lost us. That is, a family is made up of parents and cubs. I’m a cub, and Little Sister is a cub. You don’t have cubs, and we don’t have a mother. So logic tells me that you must be our mother and Bertie was our father”.
    â€œOh, Gatwick and Little Sister, this must be the saddest and happiest day in my life. I have lost a husband, but I’ve found two cubs to look after. Thank you, Gatwick. What you have just said is so true. Now that you’ve told me, I know I am your mother. Please call me ‘ Mama’”. She liked the sound of that. “Let’s get some sleep now darlings, I am so tired”.
    The three bears slept for a few hours. But soon, the sun started rising slowly in the distance from behind the mountains opposite. Gatwick woke up first, then he woke Little Sister and Mama. They had to leave the cave because the train would be coming up the mountain soon with its first load of tourists.

22  The Hideout
    Before leaving Little Sister admired the colour scheme of Mama’s interior design: lime-green and pink. What good taste Mama had! They left the cave, with what was left of their luggage. Gatwick went out first but he didn’t know where to go. “We need to hide”, whispered Mama Brown. “The hunters probably don’t know I exist but, if someone sees me and tells them, they will be after me. I know a place where we can go. It is a hard climb, but worth it. Nobody else, apart from Bertie and I, know if its existence. Or, should I say ‘ knew’ in the case of Bertie?” and she started sobbing again.
    â€œPlease, Mama, we love you dearly!” said