The Rightful Heir (30 page)

“What happened?” Her face looked so concerned.

“Well, my parents think he died of old age. He was already nine. But Pugsly—”

“Ha! Pugsly? I like that name!”

“Yeah, Pugsly was a good ol' dog.”

“Anyway, go on.…”

“I, uh…I think Pugsly was killed by a snake.”

Jessica almost crashed her bike.

“Whoa! Be careful!”

“Oh, man! A snake? Are you serious?”

“Well,
yeah, I have a hunch that's what happened.”

“How do you know this?”

“Just…a hunch, that's all.” He wanted more information about Mac and his brothers and sisters. “Where did your family get Mac from?”

“Hmm…I think at Pickrell Corner. There's a tire shop there and the owner was selling pug puppies.”

“The tire shop by Bonnie's Bait Shop?” Benjamin asked.

“Yeah, right across from it. So your dog was nine years old when he died?”

“Yeah.”

“Then he couldn't have been Mac's brother. But what if…he was Mac's dad?”

“Yeah, I guess that's possible.” Benjamin felt a warm sensation of joy.
But how many puppies did Pugsly have? Were any born before Mac or Jonah? We've still got to find out who was born first
.

They rode for miles. Benjamin tried his best to look like he was searching, but it was hard to take his eyes off the girl of his dreams, only a few feet away from him.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

B
Y EARLY AFTERNOON
Carol Biggs was wondering when Ben and his little
friend
would come back from their bike ride. She looked out the large front room window and saw them riding up the driveway, laughing.

“You know, if you stare at them too long you'll start worrying like
your
mother did,” Tom said behind her.

She returned a fake smile. “He's only a seventh grader,
Tom.”

Tom raised his eyebrows. “Ah, but you do know who that girl is, don't you?” Carol's curiosity made her face squint. “The Leon Summer Jubilee's Watermelon Queen!” He raised his arms up and stretched his fingers out, then wrapped his arms around her and gave her a great big hug. “Bwoohahahaha!”

“Tom, get away from the window!” Carol was annoyed but laughed.

Benjamin stopped his bike by the side of the garage. “Well, don't give up hope. I'm sure Mac will show up.”

His remark brought Jessica back to the reality. Her little dog was still missing. “I…I think I'm gonna start posting missing dog flyers around the area.”

“Yeah, you should do that!”

“Maybe I'll mention it tomorrow night in Leon, too.”

“Huh?” He feigned a puzzled look.

“The Harvest Home Festival's tomorrow night. I'm supposed to welcome everybody and kick it off. The Watermelon Queen does that every year.”

“Oh.”
Benjamin nodded dumbly, trying to act like he didn't know she was the prestigious Watermelon Queen, ogled by every guy in his class.

“Well, if I see anybody today I'll mention Mac's being lost.”
Perhaps I'll tell Mac himself!

“That'd be great, Ben! Thanks for all your help.” Her smile made him forget everything else. She was just within arm's reach.…

“I…uh…guess I should get inside.”

Then it happened! The impossible of the impossible! Jessica leaned over and gave him a small, quick kiss on the cheek. The autumn sun beat down on a face that, at that moment, was the reddest red imaginable.

Jessica hopped on her bike and fled. He was too stunned to notice the Watermelon Queen's face was also red. He didn't care. It was love!

R
OSCOE AND
C
LEMENTINE SAW THE TINY HEDGEROW
along the road, off in the distance. “Almost there everyone! We'll be eating soon!” They cheered. The pig and goat smiled.

Mac walked beside a family of gophers. In a couple of hours everyone would welcome him as their new king. On the other side of the crowd his brother Jonah was thinking the same thing.

B
ACK IN THE KINGDOM
everybody was preparing for the new residents. The old badger oversaw the operations. “Let's get more food on that pile!” The animals scurried in and out of tunnels with vegetables and fruits they'd gathered. They even emptied the surplus they had stored away in one of the smaller caverns to feed this large gathering. A squirrel ran into the hall.

“Can you see them yet, Dawson?” The badger looked stressed.

“I climbed to the tallest branch, but still no sign of them.”

“Keep
checking. They can't be much longer.” The animals in the cave had stopped working to listen. “Back to work everyone!”

B
ENJAMIN ATE HIS LEFTOVERS
for lunch while trying to avoid a barrage of questions from his mom about Jessica. He went to his room to see if the paint on the Trojan Pig had dried. He noted how surprisingly good it had turned out. He smiled with satisfaction as he ran his hand along the top of the barrel. “Now all I need is those fireworks.”

Then other thoughts crept in.
What if this is too phony for the snake? What would make the snake want to eat it? It looks okay, but it doesn't smell like a pig or sound
—”Aha!” He grabbed a shoebox in his closet and opened it. They were still there…his old longrange walkie-talkies. “Perfect!”

He opened the pig. It was pretty spacious inside. More than enough room for Jon's fireworks.
Maybe even Clementine could fit in here
. He laughed.
Naaah!
He turned on the walkie-talkies to see if they still worked. A high-pitched squeal battered his ears and he turned one off. “Okay, good.” He stretched out some duct tape and placed it over the top of the live walkie-talkie, then taped it to the inside wall of the barrel. “Oh, Clementine will really like this!” He closed the barrel and latched it tight. “Alright, let's give this a test run.” He smiled mischievously and picked up the pig.

Carol was in the living room reading a magazine. Benjamin sneaked into the kitchen and gently laid the Trojan Pig on the linoleum floor. He retreated back down the stairs and stood at the bottom, peeking around the corner. He turned on his walkie-talkie. “Mom!” he shouted. He heard her drop the magazine in her lap as she looked around.

“Yeah?” She waited to see what her son wanted.

“Help me! I'm stuck!”

Carol heard his muted yell coming from the kitchen.

“Hurry, please! I can't get out of this thing!”

She looked behind her through the kitchen opening but didn't see him anywhere. “Where are you?”

“I'm in the kitchen!
Hurry!”

She jumped up and ran into the kitchen but saw only the pig barrel in the middle of the floor. She hesitated. “Uh…
Ben?”

“Get me out of this thing!” the pig yelled.

“What's going on!?” Carol had started to panic when Ben yelled for help and she hadn't recovered. Benjamin covered his mouth with his hand so he wouldn't laugh as he crept up the stairs. She knelt beside the Trojan Pig in some confusion and grabbed hold. “What—how did you get yourself in this thing, anyway?!”

Benjamin quietly walked up behind her. “What are you doing, Mom?”

“Agghhh!” She screamed at his clear voice behind her and jumped. “Very funny,
Ben.”
She walked away with a red face.

Benjamin picked up the pig and patted it. “Yep, this thing will work just fine!”