Pearlie's Pet Rescue Read Online Free Page B

beach as the big luxury ship,
President Grant
, sailed out of Darwin Harbour for Brisbane. On board were Dulcie, Mr Spiros and their families.
    Pearlie felt tired. She’d been awake most of the night having imaginary conversations with Reddy and telling him all the reasons he was wrong. Stupid Reddy. But he’s the only friend I have left in Darwin, she thought. She lay back in the sand and looked up at the gathering storm clouds, wondering what was to become of her. In three days’ time it would be Christmas and she had never felt so alone.

M UM roasted a magpie goose for Christmas lunch, but the air-raid sirens began to wail just as they sat down to eat.
    â€˜Quickly, to the trench,’ said Dad, lifting Joey out of his high chair.
    The trench was a new addition to their backyard. Dad had finished sandbagging it only days before in case Japanese warplanes attacked Darwin.
    The family had practised the drill many times, so Pearlie knew exactly what to do. She put Tinto into his pouch, placed Santa’s cage under the kitchen table, then went outside to comfort Rusty, who was howling like a wolf in a forest. He hated the sirens as much as Pearlie did.
    â€˜It’s all right, Rusty,’ she said, tying a rope around his neck. He followed Pearlie with his head down and tail between his legs.
    The Girls had already fled inside the chicken coop and all Mum had to do was lock them in.
    Before jumping into the trench, Dad gave Pearlie a stick, which she put in her mouth. She bit down on it as they had all been trained to do. This was in case of bombs exploding around you. It had been raining on and off for days and the bottom of the trench was filled with muddy water. She tried to coax Rusty to jump in but his body was rigid with fear. So she lay down on her back, cuddling Tinto to her chest and holding onto the end of Rusty’s rope so he couldn’t run away.
    The rain fell on Pearlie’s face and she closed her eyes, praying that she wouldn’t hear the drone of bomber planes. She wondered what Reddy was doing. His house didn’t have a trench. Where would he be sheltering? She hadn’t seen him since they’d had the argument and missed him not being around.
    When the all-clear siren sounded, Dad stood up first. His back was dripping with mud and so was Mum’s. Joey had mud splatters on his face, as if he had the measles.
    Pearlie couldn’t help herself and she began to giggle. Dad drew a moustache on his top lip with his muddy finger, which set Mum off giggling too. And all at once, things didn’t seem so terrifying.
    â€˜We’ll clean ourselves up and go back to our Christmas lunch,’ Dad said as he gave one more glance up at the sky.
    He brought buckets of water up from the well and poured them into a channel that connected to the trough in the kitchen, which Mum then heated up on the wood stove.
    Pearlie was first to wash. She peeled off her mud-soaked dress and dropped it on the floor. Then she stepped into a metal tub that Mum had filled. The water turned a deep chocolate brown. Tinto peeped over the edge, looking at his reflection in the water. He didn’t need a bath – only his face and hands were muddy, so Pearlie used a cloth to wipe him down gently.
    That was by far the most interesting thing that happened all day. It was the quietest Christmas Pearlie had known. Quiet, that is, until Reddy popped his head inside the back door.
    â€˜Merry Christmas, everyone!’ he said. ‘Mum baked a fruit cake and asked me to bring it round.’
    â€˜Come in, Reddy,’ Mum said and fussed about setting a place for him. ‘There’s plenty of goose left.’
    Reddy glanced at Pearlie. She was overjoyed to see him but didn’t want Reddy to know so she gave him a frown instead. Tinto was sitting on her lap and she felt him move. She knew he wanted to go to Reddy but she held him back.
    â€˜Ah, no thanks. I have to go,’ Reddy