brown sprinkles off Gusâs Bug Boy suit.
Next, Lulu opened a tin of sardines to feed the two cats. Pepper, the ginger cat, came at once. She meowed and rubbed her back against Luluâs legs. She gobbled up her food straight away.
âPickles. Pickles,â called Lulu. âFishy time.â
Pickles didnât come. Lulu searched all the usual spots â on her bed, under the lavender bush, on the window seat, in Dadâs shoe cupboard. Asha padded along beside her, her nose twitching.
âPickles,â Lulu called again.
Rosie helped. Mum helped search as well.
Lulu went through to the vet hospital, even though Pickles didnât like visiting there.
âKylie â have you seen Pickles?â Lulu asked the vet nurse.
âNo,â replied Kylie. âSheâs due to have kittens, isnât she? Perhaps sheâs run away to make a little nest for them.â
Lulu frowned. She looked out the front window of the waiting room. The vet hospital was on a busy road. If Pickles had escaped out there, she could be catnapped or run over by a car.
Kylie smiled at Luluâs anxious face.
âDonât worry,â Kylie said. âWeâll find her. Iâll help you look.â
Lulu, Kylie, Rosie, Mum and Guslooked in all the likely places again. They tried lots of unlikely spots too. Jessie the dog was keen to help. She sniffed under the kitchen table and all around the base of the fridge. But Pickles was nowhere to be found.
âDo you think someone might have opened the gate?â asked Lulu. She looked at the high gate that separated the back garden from the side street. âCould Gus have opened it?â
âBug Boy didnât,â said Gus. âMaybe Jessie did?â
âOh, no,â wailed Lulu. She rushed to check outside the gate. But there was no sign of Pickles. Where could she be?
Chapter 9
The Washing Machine
Lulu checked under Rosieâs bed again. Pickles wasnât there.
âCome on, honey bun,â said Mum. âItâs getting late. Why donât you run and get dressed? Iâm sure I can find Pickles while youâre at school.â
âOkay, Mum.â Lulu dragged her feet. She was very worried about the tortoiseshell cat.
âAnd could you please put your dirtyuniform in the washing machine while I make your breakfast?â asked Mum. âThe loadâs all ready to go â just close the lid.â
Lulu quickly put on her fresh school dress and brushed her hair. She scooped the sandy uniform off the floor.
She carried it to the laundry and threw it into the open washing machine. Down slammed the lid.
Just for a second, Lulu heard a funny noise. Then came the sound of water filling the machine.
Lulu walked away, wondering about ideas for her mural design.
She thought about the funny noise again. It had been a mewling kind of sound. Why would the washing machine mewl?
Lulu stopped and turned. She raced back to the washing machine. She flung open the lid and the water stopped. She peered down. A loud meow came from inside.
There, nestled on the pile of dirty clothes, was a sodden Pickles. She was surrounded by six tiny, damp kittens.
âMum, Mum,â yelled Lulu. âIâve found Pickles. Sheâs had the kittens â in the washing machine!â
Mum came running. Rosie came running. Gus and Jessie came running.
âOh, my goodness gracious me,â said Mum.
Pickles stared at them and meowed. She looked as if she wasnât quite sure how she felt. Annoyed at being wet? Or proud of how clever she was? Pride won.
âYes, you clever puss,â said Mum. âWhat beautiful babies you have.â
Mum set to work. She pulled a pile of old towels from the bottom of the linen cupboard. Lulu helped her to line a bigwooden crate with newspaper and more towels.
A knock sounded on the front door. Rosie went to answer it and returned with Molly.
âMum asked if it would be okay