It was a long way to London. Strange drove fast and very badly, hurling the car about like a tiny boat on a stormy sea. Star felt travel-sick for most of the way and was glad she hadn’t eaten any breakfast. Spud felt tired but didn’t dare fall asleep.
After a while the sun rose and a pale, watery light filled the car, but it was still as dark as night for the pups in the bottom of the sack.
Eventually the car slowed, and soon it was stopping and starting, crawling through heavy traffic. They were off the motorway and on their way to the centre of London.
But what do we do then? thought Spud anxiously. What happens when Strange opens the sack and finds us?
Finally the car stopped and Strange got out of the driver’s seat and opened the back door. The pups tensed their muscles, hardly daring to breathe. Strange sat down and put on the black boots, then he picked up the hat and beard and put them on too, admiring himself in the car’s wing mirror.
‘Ho! Ho! Ho!’ he said, in a rather poor attempt to sound like Father Christmas. ‘Soon I’ll be a multi-millionaire!’
Not if we can help it, thought Star.
Finally, Strange picked up the sack and swung it awkwardly over his shoulder. The pups tumbled from left to right inside.
‘Funny, it feels heavier than I thought,’ muttered Strange. ‘Oh well, not far to go.’
He marched into the staff entrance at the back of the big store. The shop hadn’t opened yet but a few assistants were beginning to arrive.
Dave, the security officer at the door, looked up at Strange in surprise.
‘Oh, it’s you again, Santa!’ he said. ‘I thought you were upstairs already. Did you forget something?’
‘Yes, that’s right,’ answered Strange in as deep a voice as he could manage. ‘I had to go … er … to –’
‘I expect you left Rudolph on a double yellow line, didn’t you, eh?’ laughed Dave, who thought himself rather witty. ‘Here, hold the lift for Santa! You can’t expect the poor old bloke to climb all those stairs, can you? There you go, Mister Claus, fourth floor as usual. Have a nice day!’
Strange got out of the lift and walked through the toy department to Santa’s Grotto. There was no one about. The winding path into the grotto was beautifully decorated with trees covered in fake snow and little toy creatures – squirrels, deer and rabbits – peeping out between the branches, but Strange wasn’t interested in the décor. He was looking for his victim.
As he reached the centre of the grotto, a log cabin made to look like a gingerbread house, Strange dropped the sack with a thump.
Ow! Star put her paw over her mouth to muffle her surprised squeal. Luckily, Strange didn’t hear. He pushed his hand into the sack.
Shall I bite it? thought Spud, but it was too late. Strange had grabbed the baseball bat. The pups heard a single, sickening thud, followed by a groan and the sound of a heavy body slumping on to the floor. Strange had found the real Santa, crept up behind him and clubbed him over the head!
‘Now’s our chance!’ Spud knew they had to act fast. The two pups pushed their way out of the sack and looked around for a way out. Their eyes took a split second to adjust to the light. It was a split second too long.
‘What!’ Strange had seen them. ‘You two mutts in my sack! I recognize you from the other night too – you’re the ones who trampled all over my car! You little varmints!’
He raised the baseball bat again.
‘Run, Star! Run as fast you can!’ growled Spud. ‘I’ll try to hold him off.’
Spud turned and snarled at Strange, baring his teeth and barking ferociously. He looked fierce but he was still only a puppy; compared to Strange he was very small.
‘Don’t you growl at me!’ said Strange and brought the baseball bat down with a thwack. Spud dived out of the way just in time, then he turned and growled again.
Meanwhile, Star dodged out of the grotto and into a nearby stockroom. She hid, quaking, behind a paddling pool.
‘I’ll get you, you little devil!’ shouted Strange, a menacing sight in his jolly Santa outfit, wielding the heavy baseball bat.
Thwack! This time the bat grazed Spud’s ear. He reckoned Star had had long enough to get away. Now it was time for him to do the same. His back paws skidding on the shiny floor, Spud decided on a surprise tactic. Instead of running away from Strange, he ran towards him, hurtling through the gap between his black, shiny boots. Strange tried to reach down to grab the pup but was hampered by his big, padded tummy. He tripped over head first and ended up doing a perfect forward roll. By the time Strange was sitting up again, Spud was gone.
‘Stupid dogs,’ muttered Strange, feeling rather embarrassed now. ‘Getting in my way. I’m losing valuable time.’
Strange lifted the unconscious Santa under the arms and dragged him into the stockroom where Star was hiding. He tied him up with the rope and gag from the sack. Then he straightened his beard and marched out, locking the door behind him, just in time to take his place in Santa’s rocking chair in the grotto. The shop’s doors were open and the first customers were coming in.