Wishing for Trouble Read Free Page A

horned hat said. ‘Do not weep. What’s the use? We’re all doomed. There’s no hope. We may as well surrender, as I’ve been saying from the first.’
    The countess scowled. ‘Yes, there’s hope,’ she said crossly, ‘for hasn’t the wishing ring of Lyonessa returned just in our hour of need? We’ll be able to strike down all our enemies with sweating sickness and boils and lice and the pox …’
    Tim and Lach giggled.
    Emmy felt very sorry for the countess, and for all the people in the castle, who were looking sick and thin and frightened. ‘Couldn’t we use just one of the wishes to help the countess?’ she said. ‘We’ve got heaps left.’
    â€˜We could wish the bad guys were all back at their own castle,’ Ben suggested.
    â€˜That would be no use,’ the countess said. ‘Lord Dastardly would just come straight back and besiege us again. He’s wanted Castle Lyonessa for years. No, the only hope is for them all to drop dead.’ She saw their faces, and added, ‘Or for us to capture them all, and then send a message to my uncle, who would lock Lord Dastardly up in prison and make sure he never attacked us again.’
    The five cousins looked at each other and shrugged. ‘I guess we could do that,’ Nick said. ‘What we need to do is sit down and work out a plan.’
    â€˜Except I’m starving,’ Ben said, rubbing his stomach. ‘I can’t think when I’m so hungry.’
    â€˜I wish we’d come here after dinner, not before,’ Emmy said.
    â€˜I wouldn’t mind my sausage sambo now,’ Lach said sadly.
    The countess bit her lip. ‘I think we may have some rat stew left…’
    â€˜Urgh,’ Ben said. ‘Gross!’
    â€˜I wish we had some ham and pineapple pizza,’ Nick said longingly, and then, as a big round sizzling pizza suddenly appeared on the table before him, smelling absolutely delicious, he hastily added, ‘for everyone!’

It was amazing how much better everyone felt after ham and pineapple pizza. The countess alone ate four pieces, and her governess ate seven. Even the knight took off his helmet so he could eat too and was revealed as quite an ordinary-looking man with a hot, red face and hair that stuck up everywhere.
    Nick had been so hungry that he had not noticed the ring now glowing like a hot poker and burning him. But as soon as he finished his second piece of pizza, he realised and slid the ring off his finger and into the pocket of his shorts, so he could eat his third piece undisturbed.
    â€˜We have only six wishes left,’ Ben said quietly to the others. ‘Mine and Lach’s. Don’t you think we should work out what we want to do with them, before we go wasting any more?’
    â€˜We need to get back home!’ Lach said.
    â€˜We should save some of the wishes,’ Emmy said. ‘Imagine, we could wish we were on a desert island, with mermaids …’
    â€˜Or we could wish we were up in space, flying to the moon,’ Tim said.
    â€˜We could wish for more dragon gold,’ Nick said. ‘I’d like to have seen the dragon!’

    â€˜Can’t we just wish the ring had unlimited wishes?’ Ben said.
    â€˜I don’t think it’d work like that,’ Emmy said.
    The countess finished her last mouthful and leant back in her chair. ‘Most delicious,’ she said. ‘Chamberlain, please inform the head cook that I want ham and pineapple pizza for dinner every night from now on.’
    â€˜Yes, Lady Lyonessa,’ the chamberlain said, bowing low. ‘Though he’s already examined one closely and says he has no idea what strange ingredients have been used to make it. He has never tasted food like it.’
    â€˜I guess they didn’t have tomato and pineapple back in these days,’ Ben whispered.
    â€˜How can you not have tomato and