Toad Away - Morris Gleitzman [19]
Limpy hoped she was saying, “What delightful pets you've both found, we must tell all our friends so they can get their own.”
But when the woman snatched Goliath from the little girl and flung him onto the floor, Limpy knew she probably hadn't said that.
The little girl burst into tears.
The little boy did too, and dropped Limpy.
The woman tried to run Limpy over with a trolley.
Limpy didn't let the army uniform slow him down, or the blow to the head he got from the floor, or his hopes of being a human pet.
He dodged the trolley and grabbed Goliath, who was looking pretty dazed too. Together they hopped around trailers and bags and human feet until Limpy saw a soft-drink machine and dragged Goliath under it.
“I'm never doing dress-ups again,” said Goliath.“Except for dressing up in mucus to attract slime slugs.”
Limpy felt the same way. As he struggled out of the combat pants, he vowed never to wear any sort of pet uniform again. For a start, they were too tight and too hard to get off.
Not as tight as high-heel shoes, though. Goliath was having to eat those off.
“Hurry up,” said Limpy. “So we can find Charm and catch the next plane to the Amazon together.”
Limpy peered out from under the soft-drink machine.
A lot of the humans had gone, including the little kids and their parents, but there were still plenty milling around.
Limpy's insides sank.
“How are we going to find Charm in this huge airport?” he said.
“Easy,” said Goliath, swallowing part of a shoe.“We'll round up all the humans and put them in a prisoner-of-war camp, and everyone who's left will either be an insect or an animal or Charm.”
Limpy sighed. Sometimes he wished Goliath's ideas weren't quite so daring. Or quite so stupid.
“I know,” said Limpy. “We'll find the part of the airport the planes to the Amazon leave from. That's where we'll find Charm.”
A horrible thought hit him.
In an airport this size, planes to the Amazon might leave from different parts. They might go to the wrong part and miss her.
Then Limpy saw something that gave him a fairly daring idea himself.
At a counter nearby, a human was speaking with her mouth close to what looked like a swamp reed stem with a seed pod on top. Her voice was booming out across the arrivals hall.
“Charm would be able to hear that,” said Limpy.“Even if she's up at the other end of the airport.”
Goliath looked embarrassed and patted his stomach.
“I'm sorry, that was a bit loud,” he said. “Shoes give me wind.”
Limpy and Goliath had to wait quite a long time in the waste bin under the counter.
“Mmmm,” said Goliath.“This sandwich is deliciously juicy.”
“It's a printer cartridge,” said a passing ant.
Finally the human at the counter was called away, and Limpy seized his chance. He hopped up onto the counter, dragged a box of luggage labels over to the swamp reed stem, hopped onto the box, and spoke into the seed pod in his clearest voice.
“Attention, Charm,” he said. “This is Limpy and Goliath. Don't get on the Amazon plane yet. We're coming with you. Meet us at the …”
Where would be a good place to meet?
“Rental-car counters,” said Goliath.
Good idea, thought Limpy. He knew what rental cars were. Most of the cars that tried to drive through the bush to remote picnic spots and got bogged in mud holes were rental cars.
“Charm, meet us at the rental-car counters,” said Limpy into the seed pod.
He looked around the arrivals hall. As he'd hoped, none of the humans were paying any attention. To them, his announcement had probably sounded like an electrical fault. But every other creature in the place was staring, curious and interested.
Good, thought Limpy. Now Charm will turn up in no time.
Charm didn't turn up.
Not even after a lot of time.
Limpy and Goliath searched the whole airport terminal, asking all the insects and rodents and sniffer dogs if they'd seen her.
None of them had.
“I don't trust those sniffer dogs,” muttered Goliath, glaring at the beagles.“One of them sniffed my bottom. I reckon they've captured Charm and handed her