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| 15. Wee Man McCann goes Walkies. Part 2. |
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Uncle Sid was running around in circles, chasing his tail. The professor was running around the courtyard, chasing her shadow. Ben Madigan pulled on his leather helmet and goggles, and sped off without a word.
***
Ten miles away on Magee's Island, Fergus gave his report to the Pete and Sean, just as Professor Dunlambert had done the previous day in Cairn Valley.
They listened quietly, partly because it was important to know what Fergus had found out about Wee Man McCann's condition, and what he done about it; partly because they were, actually, speechless, as were the firefighters and Sergeant McFerris.
It was fair to say none of them had ever seen a goose in a paramedic uniform, let alone one who could talk.
The whole thing made about as much sense as a white terrier chewing away happily on what looked like a wooden leg; or as much sense as today being twenty-seven and a quarter.
Then again, the talking goose did seem to know what he was talking ABOUT.
In no time at all, Wee Man McCann was lying flat on a spinal board. They'd strapped his head and his whole body down securely, just in case his neck or back were injured. They carried him carefully to the waiting Landrover.
Pete and Sean got in alongside him and put an oxygen mask onto his face. The firefighters bounced into the trailer and off they headed towards the port.
Sergeant McFerris radioed his control room to keep them up-to-date, and to find out if they'd had any reports about a strange goose.
Pete and Sean radioed Ambulance Control to keep them up-to-date and tell them that the strange goose had done a magnificent first-aid job.
The firefighters radioed their boatman to let him know they were on their way back down to the port, and to let Fire Control know about the talking goose in the paramedic uniform...
...And at exactly the same moment, everyone put their hands to their ears and listened to the replies - apart from Wee Man McCann of course: he couldn't move his hands that far.
FERGUS HAD BEEN RUMBLED!
Sergeant McFerris was suddenly in a hurry to get back up to the village. Until now, he knew nothing about a goose mascot jumping from a police plane over the Giant's Causeway. Now he just wanted to return to the scene, to find out if the strange talking goose at Earl's really was the same one.
He didn't mention it to the others.
But the tide had turned and was heading back out.
At the smugglers' port, the rescuers needed the sergeant's expert knowledge of the beach, as they struggled to carry Wee Man McCann over the sand to the waiting boat.
The firefighters wanted to get him and the paramedics to the ambulance quickly, so they could get back to Earl's to find out if the goose was the same one who'd been kidnapped during a golf tournament; a fact THEY knew nothing about until now, either.
And they, too, were keeping it to themselves.
Pete and Sean had a fair idea what all the whispering was about. They would have loved to find out if the goose in the paramedic uniform was the same one who'd gone missing from Moss Abbey.
But right now Wee Man McCann was more important.
On the other side of Magee's Island, parts of the rickety old road were above sea level again. Not all of it - just parts; but enough parts for a trike (with a rather anxious rider) to leap-frog across.
Once on drier land again, Ben rumbled along the country roads. Up the hill he hurtled, gathering speed all the way; towards the outskirts of the village, where just a hundred metres form Earl's, four elderly gentlemen stood talking. They seemed to be holding a bundle of leads each.
Ben squinted his eyes as the bright sunlight reflected off the medals on their chests. For a moment he could see very little. And before he realised, he was almost among them.
He swerved at the last minute, sending them jumping into the hedges to get out of his way. And even louder than the rumble of the trike's engine, was the squealing of the cats, as they pulled on the leads. Somehow the old soldiers just about managed to hold on tight enough to stop them getting away.
Up ahead, Fergus was fighting with the white terrier who wouldn't let go of Wee Man McCann's wooden leg. He was so busy fighting, in fact, that he couldn't hear Professor Dunlambert screaming in his earpiece; telling him he was in danger and that Ben was on his way to help.
The dog's owner was too busy on his mobile phone to take any notice.
'Sorry?' he said to the person on the other end. 'I can't quite make you out; it's very noisy up here.' And so it was, what with the dog growling, the cats squealing and then the rumble of the approaching trike.
Ben slammed on the brakes. He marched over to Fergus. 'Come on little guy, you're coming with me!' he said, pulling him away from the dog and the lump of wood they were fighting over.
He picked him up and tucked him under his arm as he hurried back to the trike.
Fergus kicked and screamed, trying to explain that they needed to take Wee Man McCann's wooden leg with them. But Ben couldn't hear him over the noise of the trike.
'Stop struggling,' he ordered. 'There's no time to waste!'
He opened the luggage box at the back of the trike and shoved Fergus inside. He pushed the lid closed and sped off again, glancing in his wing mirrors.
The stranger was still on the mobile phone; the dog was chewing on the wood.
Ben slammed on the brakes again, did a quick u-turn and made for the dog. He jumped off the trike.
'I think WE'LL be needing this more than you do!' he said pulling the leg from the startled dog.
He opened the luggage box and tried to drop the leg in beside Fergus. 'Here. You forgot something!' But there was no room. Instead he strapped it to his own back, forced the lid closed again and took off. He didn't notice the terrier jump up behind him; nor did he hear it scratching at the lid of the box.
And if he'd looked in his mirrors this time, he'd have realised the stranger wasn't on the phone any more: he was chasing after Ben, shaking his fist, shouting.
But Ben didn't see, or hear, any of that - he was too busy concentrating on Sergeant Jake McFerris' Landrover coming racing in the opposite direction; through the crowd of startled old soldiers and their cats. And As Ben pulled over to let Jake past, the terrier leapt from the trike and had an absolute ball. There was no holding the cats back this time.
Find out if Fergus and Ben escape all the attention in the next BLOG...Wee Man McCann goes walkies. Part 3...coming very soon.
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