Collect all of Rascal’s adventures:
First published as Tramp: Racing Against Time by Puffin in 2004
This edition first published in Great Britain in 2015
by Egmont UK Limited
The Yellow Building, 1 Nicholas Road, London W11 4AN
Text copyright © 2004 Chris Cooper
Illustration copyright © 2015 James de la Rue
The moral rights of the author and illustrator have been asserted
First e-book edition 2015
ISBN: 978 1 4052 7533 0
Ebook ISBN: 978 1 7803 1673 4
A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library
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For my mum
CONTENTS
CHAPTER 4
CHAPTER 5
CHAPTER 6
CHAPTER 7
CHAPTER 8
CHAPTER 9
CHAPTER 10
CHAPTER 11
Winter had arrived and the days were at their shortest. By the time Rascal saw lights up ahead, it had been dark for a few hours. A small flame of hope sparked inside the dog at the sight of them – perhaps he’d find a place to rest and shelter from the cold there? But it was hard to keep that hope alive. As night had fallen, so had the temperature. The chill wind buffeted him, and the occasional flake of snow in the air hinted at even worse weather on the way. Pushing through his tiredness, Rascal continued towards the glow of the electric lights.
It wasn’t easy to be cold and alone like this again. The dog had been forced to delay his long journey several weeks earlier, when his back leg had been fractured by a car. Luckily for Rascal, Judy, a volunteer for the local animal shelter and a true dog lover, had taken him in. He had grown accustomed to being warm and well-fed at her house while his leg mended.
And yet, Rascal hadn’t been able to shake the restless feeling at the back of his mind. Judy was a great owner, but she wasn’t his owner. She was kind and loving to him, but she was that way with all dogs. That’s why Judy volunteered to act as a foster owner for any dogs from the shelter that needed special attention. Every time Rascal found himself relaxing and starting to enjoy life with Judy, an image of his old master, Joel – his true master – would pop into his mind, No, he knew he had to continue on his journey home, just as soon as he could.
At last, the day came when Rascal was taken to the vet’s and the splint on his leg removed. He touched the floor gingerly with his back paw. It felt good to walk on all fours once again, even if the muscles of the injured leg felt weak through lack of use.
It was time to move on.
Judy was sitting in her favourite chair with the newspaper when Rascal came up to her and pawed her knee.
‘You’re not looking for more food, are you?’ she asked. ‘I’ve never seen a dog eat as much as you did this morning!’
Rascal just looked at this woman who had shown him such kindness. In a rush he leaned forwards and gave her face a lick.
‘Get off, you great soppy thing!’ laughed Judy.
Rascal wandered out to the garden – out of Judy’s line of vision. He looked at the fence ahead of him. He had jumped over this fence once before, but that had been before his back leg had been injured. It might not be so easy now.
Rascal took a breath and charged towards the fence. As before, he sailed over. The instant he landed on the pavement on the other side, he knew that his status had changed. He was not a pet any more. He was a stray dog again, trying to find his way home.
The rest of the day was a blur of sore feet and aching bones and a growing emptiness in his stomach, as Rascal headed west. It didn’t take long to leave the town behind him, and then he was crossing open land. A large highway ran straight west, and he kept it in sight as if navigating along the banks of a mighty river.
Knowing that he must find shelter before he could give in to sleep, Rascal carried on long after the sky had darkened. And that’s when he saw the lights up ahead . . .