2-Power Read online

  ‘But after we found the jewel thief you promised Patch could stay with us,’ cried Ella.

  ‘We never actually promised,’ said Aunt Joy. ‘We said we’d see how he behaved himself.’

  ‘No, you didn’t,’ said Ella.

  ‘If Patch goes, I’ll go too,’ said Sam.

  Aunt Joy looked quite unmoved by this threat. ‘That dog’s nothing but a big nuisance. He howls for ages after you’ve gone, then he races about the hotel getting under everyone’s feet.’

  ‘He’ll learn,’ begged Ella. ‘Give him a chance.’

  ‘Well, he’s running out of chances,’ sighed Aunt Joy. ‘All he does is cause me more work.’

  ‘But he loves you, don’t you, Patch?’ said Ella.

  Patch, who’d been leaping so enthusiastically over Ella and Sam, just stared at Aunt Joy, his tail not wagging even a tiny bit.

  ‘A dog’s been stolen, Aunt Joy,’ said Sam. ‘I said we’d put up this poster in case anyone has seen it.’

  Aunt Joy’s long, pinched face frowned. ‘All this fuss over a mangy dog,’ she sniffed.

  ‘We’re going to see if we can find him later,’ Sam went on.

  ‘Oh no, you’re not,’ said Aunt Joy. ‘For the first time in weeks we’re full up. In fact, just for tonight the restaurant is so busy we can’t fit everyone in.’ She rubbed her hands together excitedly. ‘We’ve got to have two sittings. And you’ll be kept very busy with all the washing up.’

  ‘Aunt Joy, would you mind doing the washing up, just this once?’ asked Ella. ‘We wouldn’t ask normally but we’re trying to find a stolen dog who’s probably feeling very scared…’

  ‘How dare you!’ rumbled a voice behind Aunt Joy. Uncle Mike’s huge, bloodshot eyes blazed at Sam and Ella. ‘I’ve been out since eight o’clock this morning handing out flyers to try and get us some more customers. We need them because you two are costing us a fortune. And how do you repay us? With rudeness and cheek! Well, neither of you is to step one foot out of this hotel tonight. Is that clear?’

  Neither Sam nor Ella answered him at first.

  ‘Is that clear?’ he thundered.

  ‘Yes,’ whispered Ella.

  ‘Yes,’ whispered Sam, even more faintly.

  ‘Now forget everything else and go and start your kitchen duties,’ said Uncle Mike. ‘You’re already very late.’

  Patch, not liking the way Uncle Mike was talking to Sam and Ella, gave a low growl.

  ‘And keep that dog out of my way,’ snapped Uncle Mike, ‘or you’ll be very sorry.’ He lumbered away, still muttering about the twins.

  ‘Now see what you’ve done,’ screeched Aunt Joy, and she went flapping after him.

  ‘They spoil everything,’ cried Ella. ‘And they couldn’t care less about Spike.’

  ‘Well, I’m still going to find him tonight,’ said Sam, ‘and I don’t care what they do to me.’

  ‘I wish there was some way we could get our chores over with really quickly,’ began Ella. ‘You don’t suppose we could use our special powers so we can work twice as fast?’

  ‘What an incredibly brilliant idea,’ cried Sam. ‘And why ever didn’t I think of it?’

  They charged down to the kitchen and, after leaving Patch outside with a bone, they quickly got online.

  The dishwasher was broken (it had been for several days) so Sam and Ella had to do all the mountains of washing up by hand. But today it was brilliant fun. Plates and cups were washed and dried before the twins knew what was happening. The best bit of all was putting the dishes away, though. They just sprang out of Sam’s hands and dived on to the shelves. Never had plates, forks and spoons moved so fast.

  Then it was Ella’s turn. She laughed in delight and exclaimed, ‘You’ve only got to give the tiniest tap to a plate and it just hurls itself away. And look how quickly we’re getting everything done…’

  Suddenly down her ear she heard Sam shout, ‘Stop! Stop now.’ His voice sounded so anxious she froze.

  Then she slowly looked round and saw Aunt Joy blinking and gulping at her.

  Whistling for Spike

  Ella glanced at Sam in dismay. The very last thing they’d wanted was for Aunt Joy and Uncle Mike to discover their secret powers. Aunt Joy didn’t speak at first. She just stood there with her mouth wide open. Then she gasped and gurgled and snorted, but speaking was still beyond her.

  Ella stepped forward, smiling innocently. ‘Hello, Aunt Joy, how’s things?’

  Aunt Joy finally managed to splutter, ‘What… what is going on here?’

  Ella, still smiling innocently, asked, ‘Whatever do you mean, Aunt Joy?’

  ‘The way you two were moving about,’ cried Aunt Joy. ‘It was as if you were all speeded up somehow.’

  ‘I’m very sorry,’ said Ella, ‘but I don’t understand what you mean. Do you, Sam?’

  ‘Haven’t a clue,’ said Sam at once. ‘Very sorry.’ Then they both smiled politely at her.

  Aunt Joy’s eyes stretched even wider. ‘But I saw…’ she began. Then she plonked down on a chair. ‘Get me a glass of water,’ she demanded. She gulped down the water so fast that she let out a giant burp.

  Ella put a hand over her mouth to stop herself from bursting out laughing.

  ‘I’ve been working far too hard,’ spluttered Aunt Joy, ‘that’s what it is… and now my eyes are playing tricks on me. Tell your Uncle Mike I’m going to rest for a while.’ Then she staggered out.

  Sam said to Ella, ‘That was quick thinking.’ He grinned. ‘Did you hear that massive burp Aunt Joy let out?’

  ‘They heard that two hundred miles away,’ said Ella.

  They both fell about giggling, until Sam declared, ‘Well, we’ve put away every single knife, fork, spoon and plate – so let’s go and find Spike now.’

  And they were both in such good spirits they completely forgot there were two sittings in the restaurant that night.

  They sped out of the hotel, with Patch gambolling excitedly beside them. It was drizzling with rain now and had got dark quite early, but Ella and Sam hardly noticed. They were still laughing about Aunt Joy when they reached the row of houses nearest the park.

  ‘Time to go online again,’ said Sam.

  They both closed their eyes and concentrated. A few seconds later they heard that familiar humming noise. A ripple of electricity rushed up Ella’s spine. Life was changing into something magical.

  No one could ever guess all the super powers she and Sam now possessed, thought Ella. Why, they could even hear what people were saying inside their houses – that’s how strong their hearing was now.

  They eavesdropped on one boy and girl having a massive row. ‘Never, ever go in my bedroom again – it’s private!’ the girl screamed.

  ‘Oh, just shut up and rest your brain,’ the boy cried back.

  Sam grinned. ‘They’re worse than you and me when we argue.’

  ‘Oh, we haven’t had a row like that for ages,’ said Ella. ‘And that’s the way I like it,’ she added softly.

  ‘So do I,’ Sam replied, even more quietly. Then he took out the dog whistle. ‘Now Spike knows this whistle very well and we’ve got to listen out for his bark, which Lauren says is more like a yap really.’

  He blew the whistle and then, to their total amazement, they heard a sleepy, muffled yap.

  ‘That’s Spike,’ cried Sam. ‘And he sounds half asleep. I bet that’s because he’s been drugged. He can hardly bark at all really, but our mega hearing picks up his little yelps.’ He looked at Ella. ‘So, what about that? – we’ve found Spike already. He’s in there.’ He pointed at the rather rundown house in front of them.

  ‘But why keep Spike drugged in there?’ asked Ella.

  ‘I’ll tell you why,’ said Sam. ‘They’re going to send a note to Lauren’s dad saying they’ve got Spike and, if he wants him back, he’s got to pay them a ransom.

  They’ll probably ask Lauren’s dad to leave the money under an oak tree at midnight – that’s wha
t dognappers usually do.’

  ‘How mean is that!’ cried Ella. Then she asked, ‘So what are we going to do?’

  ‘We could ring up Lauren’s dad…’ Sam began, but then he shook his head. ‘No, let’s get Spike out of there ourselves. I bet I could fight all the dog snatchers.’

  ‘Exactly how many do you think there are?’ asked Ella anxiously.

  ‘Oh, there’s probably a whole gang in there,’ said Sam airily, ‘but they don’t frighten me. Don’t forget, we’re mega strong now.’ And he started walking down the drive.

  ‘Shouldn’t we think about this a bit more?’ Ella called after him.

  ‘No,’ said Sam, and before Ella knew what was happening he’d already rung the doorbell. He turned round to her. ‘Why are you waiting back there?’

  ‘Because I…’ began Ella.

  But there was no time to say anything else. The door had already opened.

  Sam’s Mistake

  A sharp-faced woman peered suspiciously at them. ‘Yes?’ she demanded.

  ‘Have you got a dog here?’ asked Sam sternly, and without waiting for a reply he yelled, ‘Spike, come on, boy! Spike!’ Then he got out his whistle and started blowing on it.

  The woman stared at Sam as if he were mad. ‘Whatever is he doing?’ she asked Ella, who was hovering behind him.

  And then they heard a dog give a little yelp. ‘That’s Spike,’ cried Sam at once.

  ‘Who’s this Spike?’ The woman continued addressing all her questions to Ella.

  ‘We need to see your dog,’ said Ella; then she added politely, ‘if you don’t mind.’

  ‘No, I don’t mind,’ said the woman. She opened the kitchen door and an elderly spaniel shuffled forward, his tail swishing slowly behind him. He gazed mournfully around, then spotted Patch and gave another very sleepy yelp.

  ‘This is my dog,’ the woman said proudly. ‘He’s fourteen years old, that’s ninety-eight in dog years.’

  ‘He’s marvellous,’ said Ella. ‘And we’re very sorry to have bothered you.’

  The woman leant forward and hissed to Ella, ‘I’d take him home, if I were you.’ Sam was too busy turning bright red to reply.

  After the woman had closed the door Sam looked as deflated as a burst balloon. He waited for Ella to go on about how his plan had totally messed up and they’d found the wrong dog. But she just said, ‘Never mind, let’s try the next house.’

  Sam blew his whistle again. This time a black Labrador jumped up at the window and started howling. And then Patch joined in the howling too.

  ‘The trouble is, every dog can hear that whistle,’ said Ella. ‘And so…’

  ‘Yeah, all right,’ he snapped. ‘It was a very stupid idea, I know.’ He put the whistle away and sighed loudly.

  At that moment a car pulled up. ‘Hello there,’ said a familiar voice. It was Lauren’s dad. Sitting beside him was Lauren. ‘We’re having a drive around,’ he said, ‘just in case we happen to spot Spike somewhere.’

  ‘Any luck yet?’ asked Lauren, smiling hopefully at Sam.

  He lowered his head. ‘No, not yet,’ he mumbled.

  ‘Well, it’s a bit late for you two to be out now,’ said Lauren’s dad. ‘Jump in and I’ll give you a lift home.’

  Sam, Ella and Patch scrambled into the back of the car. Ella did all the talking. Sam just sat there, looking extremely fed up.

  After they’d been dropped off at the Jolly Roger Sam said, ‘I don’t want to go in yet. Let’s take Patch for a bit of a run around first.’ Darkness seemed to have settled over everything. And it was raining quite hard now. But Ella didn’t argue.

  The tide was out so the beach seemed really huge. Sam pulled a ball out of his pocket, and Patch began to dance about, barking excitedly. Sam threw the ball as far as he could. Patch tore after it. ‘Come on, bring it back to me,’ cried Sam. But Patch hadn’t quite grasped this part of the game yet. He just stood with the ball in his mouth, wagging his tail wildly.

  So in the end Sam raced over to him and threw the ball further down the beach. Patch galloped away. Sam smiled until he heard a voice bellow out of the darkness.

  ‘What on earth do you think you are doing? Come here at once.’

  Sam whirled round and saw Uncle Mike. He rushed back. He and Ella stood very close together while Uncle Mike roared, ‘How dare you both just run away! We had two sittings tonight.’

  ‘Oh no,’ groaned Ella, ‘we totally forgot about that. We’re very sorry.’

  ‘You forgot!’ cried Uncle Mike, quivering angrily while rain dripped down his face. ‘Do you have any idea how busy we’ve been tonight? Well, all the dishes have been left for you, and you’ll have to wash them up now.’

  ‘That’s fine,’ said Ella hastily. ‘We’ll clean them all.’

  ‘Of course you will. What a busy night it’s been for me, especially with your aunt having to rest all evening.’

  All at once Sam remembered Aunt Joy’s face earlier that evening and let out a loud laugh. He just couldn’t help it.

  This made Uncle Mike roar furiously, ‘Go back to the hotel NOW, you useless boy, or I’ll lock you out for the night!’

  Sam knew he would as well. And it wasn’t quite the weather for sleeping on the beach, so he scrambled hastily after Uncle Mike, calling to Ella to get Patch.

  ‘I’ve a few more things to say to you about your attitude, young man,’ shouted Uncle Mike. Sam sighed and settled in for a big lecture. He had just reached the hotel when a buzzing sound started up in his ear. This was a signal that Ella was trying to get a message to him. He cleared his mind and instantly heard a low, very wobbly voice.

  ‘Sam, I can’t find Patch.’

  The Dog Snatcher Strikes Again

  When Ella couldn’t find Patch she immediately began to tremble. But then she took a deep breath and told herself she must somehow keep calm – and think out what to do.

  First of all she had to go online. She stood listening intently for that buzzing noise that meant she was getting through. Immediately a new strength flooded through Ella. She was still talking to Sam when she saw a man on the cliffs. She called up to him. He looked round for a moment: a man in a big, bulky coat.

  Ella just wanted to ask him if he’d seen Patch. But instead the man started rushing away. This was highly suspicious behaviour, she thought. And Sam agreed.

  So Ella went after him, her heart beating furiously. The man was running quite quickly now, but she shot off like an arrow behind him. She’d never run this fast before – no wonder she felt giddy – but she was catching up.

  Suddenly he glanced round. He had a cap right down over his face so she couldn’t see him very well at all. But he wasn’t anything like the man the park keeper had seen – being very short and rather plump.

  Ella was sure he was carrying Patch under his jacket. ‘Patch, can you hear me?’ Ella shouted.

  And her sharp hearing caught Patch’s muffled bark.

  At the same time she could hear Sam urging her on: ‘Run faster! Faster!’ She felt very dizzy indeed now, as if she were on a merry-go-round that wouldn’t stop. And she was gasping, not because she was out of breath, but because her stomach had turned upside down.

  ‘Stop!’ screamed Ella at the man. ‘Dog snatcher! Stop!’ And she heard Patch barking again, as if telling her to hurry up and save him.

  All at once the man was just in front of Ella. She went flying towards him and her hand shot out. She’d just meant to tap him on the shoulder, but she’d forgotten her colossal strength right now. One push of her hand was enough to send the man reeling forward with a cry of shock.

  He fell down, groaning. Patch, seeing his chance, scrambled out of his grip and dashed over to Ella. She picked him up and hugged him very hard, while the man stumbled to his feet and, without looking back, half ran, half limped away.

  Ella crouched over as if she had stomach ache. The speed at which she’d been running had made her feel quite sick, but what did that matter now that s
he had Patch back? She quickly told Sam, ‘It’s all right. I’ve got Patch again,’ and cheering erupted in her right ear, while Patch was licking her face madly.

  Sam said he’d do all the washing up by himself so Ella could look after Patch. She carried the little dog into her bedroom and then put him down gently on the floor. But he didn’t run about as usual. Instead he looked at her and started to shake.

  ‘Oh, you really didn’t like being dognapped, did you?’ cried Ella. ‘I’m not surprised.’ Patch had his own basket, but tonight, so that he could smell Ella’s scent and know that he was completely safe, she let him sleep on her bed.

  He curled up beside her pillow. ‘Nothing bad’s ever going to happen to you again,’ said Ella, stroking him. ‘I’ll see to that.’

  Finally, Sam appeared from his marathon washing-up session. He crouched down and picked up a very sleepy Patch, while Ella started telling him in more detail what had happened. She was feeling rather proud of herself until Sam had to spoil it all by saying, ‘So you didn’t get a proper look at this dog snatcher? You let him get away from you.’

  ‘Well, he wasn’t the very tall, bald man Mr Westbury saw at the park. He was quite short…’

  ‘There’s a gang of them all right,’ interrupted Sam. ‘Shame you didn’t see his face, though.’

  ‘Oh, sorry,’ said Ella indignantly, ‘but that’s very difficult when he’s wearing a cap – and it was dark!’

  ‘If I’d been there, I wouldn’t have let that dog snatcher get away,’ Sam went on. ‘No, I’d have captured him.’

  ‘Well, at the time,’ replied Ella, ‘I was much more worried about Patch.’

  ‘I’m only saying you could have saved Patch and caught the dog snatcher.’

  ‘As you would have done,’ cried Ella.

  ‘Of course.’

  ‘Well, sorry to disappoint you, but I was feeling a bit sick from running so fast. I’ve never run like that in my life before. Also, I was very giddy.’

  ‘No, it’s OK, you did your best,’ said Sam in such a patronizing voice that Ella wanted to hit him.

  Then he asked, ‘Can you say anything else about this man you saw, apart from that he’s short and fat?’