Waggit Forever Read Free Page B

acknowledged that scavenging in the Skyline End would be more dangerous and that there was no point in risking the safety of the whole team. Only the youngest and fastest dogs would be required to actually gather the food, which they would then bring back to a designated place halfway between the two ends of the park. From here other members of the team would ferry it back to the pipe. It would take longer and be more dangerous, but what alternative did they have?
    â€œWhere will the drop-off for the food be?” Waggit asked, ever the practical one.
    â€œWe’ll use the Goldenside,” Tazar answered him. “You remember the place where Tashi and his team lived before they were captured by the Ruzelas?”
    The dogs nodded. It was a large clump of bushes that formed a sort of leafy cave. Because it lacked a good escape route, the park rangers had found it easy to round up Tashi’s team during one of their periodic sweeps for strays. The only two dogs who had avoided being captured were Tashi himself and Wilbur, his evil lieutenant, who both happened tobe in the woods at the time.
    â€œIt was a stupid place to try to live,” Tazar continued, “but it’s more than enough protection to hide the food for a while.”
    â€œCan me and Raz be part of the scavengers?” asked Cal, who always found the Skyline End exciting and regretted the fact that they seldom went there now that they lived in the Deepwoods.
    â€œI expect you both to be the leaders of the scavengers,” Tazar assured them.
    Being the leaders of anything was a novel concept for the two friends, and they yipped with pride and excitement.
    â€œDo we get to give Waggit orders?” Raz asked.
    â€œNo you do not,” said Lady Magica, “and be careful. Remember what happened when Cal nearly got caught at the Skyline and cut his paw?”
    â€œAh, if they’re stupid enough to want to do it, let them, I say,” shrieked Alicia. “Somebody has to and it ain’t gonna be me.”
    â€œMommy Magica,” pleaded Little One, “can we be…”
    â€œâ€¦part of the scavengers?” Little Two finished off Little One’s sentence, as he often did.
    â€œAbsolutely not,” Magica insisted. “You’re far too young.”
    â€œMagica,” said Tazar, “look at them. They’re bigger than you and far stronger. They should be contributing to the team. Let them be part of it—they’ll be fine.”
    â€œVery well then,” Magica grudgingly agreed, “but on one condition: that I’m on the scavenging team as well.”
    Magica knew full well that Tazar didn’t have to ask her permission to assign Little One and Little Two to any duty that he wanted. Although she had cared for them like a mother since they were tiny, they weren’t her puppies.
    â€œNo,” said Tazar quietly but firmly. “You’ll be of more help organizing the transportation of the food.”
    â€œI don’t know,” muttered Gruff, “but it seems to me you’ll want one animal with a brain among the scavengers, ’cause there ain’t one now. Magica may be a bit mushy at times, but at least her head’s screwed on straight, which is more than you can say about the rest of them.”
    But Tazar was firm in his decision. Cal, Raz, Little One, and Little Two would be the scavenging party and would be supervised by Waggit; Lady Magica, Gordo,and Alona would be responsible for the transportation of the food from the Goldenside to the Deepwoods; Lowdown and Gruff would guard the pipe, and Alicia would do what Alicia always did—nothing. Tazar himself would coordinate the whole operation, moving back and forth between the Skyline End, the Goldenside, and the Deepwoods as necessary.
    â€œSo,” Tazar said with satisfaction, “we have a plan and we have our assignments. Now all we need is a little luck.”
    But the team would soon