Cowboy Pug Page 2
The steward’s whistle blew.
‘The time to beat is one minute twelve seconds,’ the commentator informed the crowd. ‘Let’s see what these two can do.’
Pug gingerly wriggled round in the saddle so that he was facing the right way. Horsey picked up his hooves in a manner he hadn’t done since he was a young colt and cantered towards the first fence.
Pug could not believe it, nor could the crowd.
‘Safely over the first,’ said the commentator.
The next jump was a triple.
One . . .
Two . . .
Three!
The crowd were on their feet. They’d never seen anything quite like it.
Horsey gave Pug a nudge to make sure he was securely in the saddle.
‘Astonishing!’ the commentator cheered, wiping his glasses. He couldn’t believe what he was seeing. ‘Only one more jump to go – the water.’
The water?! thought Pug. Oh, no! Pug didn’t like water.
In his fear, Pug went to take an extra big bite of Horsey’s mane and dug his claws in to hold on. The shock spurred Horsey on and he sailed over the water jump like a true champion.
‘Hor-sey!
Hor-sey! Hor-sey!’ cheered the crowd, who were on their feet.
Horsey’s nose crossed the finish line.
‘One minute thirteen seconds! We’ve never seen a round like that before!’
The crowd went wild. Never had a team in second place been so popular.
Lady Miranda and Frank rushed into the arena to congratulate them.
Police Officer Maud had forgotten her disappointment at not being able to make an arrest.
Frank’s mum kissed Frank, which was quite embarrassing.
Running Footman Will and Running Footman Liam lifted Pug up on to their shoulders so everyone could see him.
‘Cow-boy Pug! Cow-boy Pug! Cow-boy Pug!’ they cheered.
The medal ceremony was very moving. Horsey received a nice rosette and Pug was given a shiny silver medal.
After the photographs Frank patted Horsey. ‘You’re not so slow after all, are you?’
Horsey whinnied and then playfully swiped Frank’s cowboy hat off his head. He did love hats.
Pug thought he’d burst with pride. Well done Horsey, he thought. But his thoughts were interrupted by an urgent cry.
‘Stop! Thief!’
Chapter 6
‘They’ve stolen Bert!’ shouted Frank’s dad.
Running Footman Will gave Lady Miranda a leg up and she joined Pug in the saddle. ‘Chaaaarge!’ she shouted as Horsey galloped after the trailer.
They caught up quickly and Lady Miranda leaped out of the saddle and on to the back of the trailer as it sped along. Unfortunately, her sleeve caught on the bolt of the door and it unfastened. The door swung open but Lady Miranda clung on.
Inside the trailer Bert the Bull looked angry. Steam was coming from his nostrils. He pawed the ground, snorted and then charged out of the back of the trailer.
The bandit driving the truck looked back to see what had happened.
‘Look where you’re going!’ the other one shouted as they crashed into a stack of hay bales.
‘You’re nicked!’ shouted Police Officer Maud triumphantly. Finally she’d made an arrest.
But the drama hadn’t finished yet. Terrible screams were coming from the tea tent. Bert was on the rampage! Tea drinkers were scattering and running for their lives!
‘Woof!’ said Pug.
Horsey knew immediately what he meant. He galloped towards the tea tent. As Horsey rushed towards Bert, Pug took the lasso in his mouth and flung it through the air.
It landed perfectly around Bert’s neck.
Pug jumped from the saddle and walked up to Bert.
Bert eyed Pug suspiciously.
Pug could hear Bert’s breathing, and his own heart was racing.
Bert was angry and Bert was big.
The crowd looked on.
No one dared say a thing.
And then Pug had an idea.
Slowly, and very carefully, he walked over to a nearby upturned tea trolley. After careful inspection he grabbed a Victoria sponge in his mouth.
A ribbon of drool fell from Bert’s lips.
Pug bravely dropped the cake at Bert’s feet.
Bert sniffed it.
Then he tucked in!
Frank’s dad grabbed the lasso. ‘I’ll take it from here,’ he said. ‘I’ve never seen anyone catch Bert so quickly. You’re a natural.’
‘Oh Pug, you’re a true cowboy,’ exclaimed Lady Miranda.
‘That was amazing!’ said Frank, and he offered Horsey a sugar lump.
‘These are for you,’ he added, pulling a bunch of flowers from his sleeve and offering them to Lady Miranda.
‘Thank you,’ she blushed, ‘but it was all Pug really.’
Pug gave her a big puggy kiss.
Back at No. 10, The Crescent, Pug and Lady Miranda settled down to tea. Wendy had made a fresh batch of jam tarts: Pug’s favourite.
Running Footman Will and Running Footman Liam were mucking out Pony’s stable.
‘Did you find a suitable horse, m’Lady?’ asked Wendy as she handed Pony a carrot.
‘Well,’ replied Lady Miranda between mouthfuls, ‘Frank decided that he actually quite liked Horsey and I didn’t want to split them up. Besides, I’m not sure being a cowboy is all it’s cracked up to be.’
She looked at Pug adoringly. ‘I won’t ever make you a cowboy again,’ she whispered in his ear. ‘I don’t think all that hay is good for you.’
Pug sighed contentedly. He liked being at home.
Lady Miranda gave him a little pat. ‘You’re such a good boy,’ she said.
Pug wagged his curly tail.
‘I’ll just have to think of something else you can be instead.’
A Letter from the Author
Howdy Partner!
I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about Pug’s adventures as a cowboy. He can be a reluctant hero at times, and left to his own devices he’d probably plump for an afternoon on the sofa, tucking in to a fresh batch of Wendy’s famous jam tarts.
Thankfully, Pug has Lady Miranda on hand to encourage him to discover the big wide world. She makes sure he doesn’t miss out on all the fun. Pug would do anything for Lady Miranda and she’d be lost without him.
A good friend will encourage us to do the best we can, make us brave when we feel afraid and take us on adventures we never thought possible. It just remains to be seen where Pug’s friendship with Lady Miranda will take him next!
Happy reading.
With love,
Laura x
© Red Rabbit Photography
Laura James’s love of storytelling began at an early age and led her to study Film and Writing for Young People at Bath Spa University. The adventures of Pug are based on the antics of her very own adventurous dogs, Brian and Florence. Laura lives in the West Country.
Églantine Ceulemans was born in Belgium where she spent her childhood devouring comics before moving to France to study illustration. As well as drawing, she loves riding her blue bicycle, cooking (which she is not very good at) and cleaning windows (which she is very good at). Églantine lives in Lyon, France.
Bloomsbury Publishing, London, Oxford, New York, New Delhi and Sydney
First published in Great Britain in May 2017 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
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This electronic edition published in 2017 by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
BLOOMSBURY is a registered trademark of Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Text copyright © Laura James 2017
Illustrations copyright © Églantine Ceulemans 2017
The moral rights of the author and illustrator have been asserted
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ISBN: 978-1-4088-6639-9 (eBook)
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Laura James, Cowboy Pug
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