The Treasure of Squeaky Toy Island, Chapter 8!

The Treasure of Squeaky Toy Island

Chapter 8

Walter looked down at the longship, and said, “Where do you think you're going?”

“We need to get back to port”, Ernie said. “Can you raise the bridge?”

“Port?”, Easy said. “I thought we were going to plunder-”

Ernie slapped a paw over Easy's snoot, and Walter said, “What did he just say?”

“Never mind”, Ernie said. “He's getting daft from lack of food and water. Can you raise the bridge?”

Walter looked at the signal, and said, “Not til the last train clears the circuit just east of here.”

“How long will that be?”

“Hard to say. He was doing about 15, so give it another three minutes.”

“Great. Just great!”

As soon as the last line was taught, Captain Snoopy and his crew dragged the heavy chest up on deck, and stood by as the last few inebriated souls made their way past the docks. When the coast was clear, Captain Snoopy led them down the gangplank to the wooden pier.

The gaslights still illuminated the street, but not a furry soul was in sight. The air was cooler now, and a fog was settling over the cove. Captain Snoopy crouched down and sniffed the wooden planking. He then pointed with his paw, and headed down the cobblestones, keeping his snoot low to maintain their path in the rapidly declining visibility.

They made their way past dark houses, offices, and warehouses, until the terrain finally gave way to sand and palm trees. The moonlight barely penetrated the fog, giving them perfect cover.

The road soon turned to sand, and dragging the heavy chest grew ever more difficult. When the were up to their knees in beach, Captain Snoopy said, “This is the spot, Matey's. Start digging.”

Frankie and Muffin set the chest down, and immediately dug their paws into the ground. It didn't take long before the kicked up sand gave them more cover than the fog.

The fog horn started sounding again, and they started singing, “Fifteen furs on a dead dach's chest, yo, ho, ho and a bag full of treats!”

It took about an hour to dig up enough sand to bury the chest. Carefully, they lowered the box into the hole, and kicked the sand over it with their hind paws. As soon as the last of the sand cleared, they found themselves in the grip of a dense fog that their lanterns couldn't penetrate.

Snoopy looked around, and said, “Oh my dog! If it rains again, the scent will wash away, and we'll never find our way back.”

Muffin removed her red bandanna, and said, “Here, Cap'n. Tie this to the tree, and we'll be able to find it when the sun comes up.”

“Good thinking.”

Captain Snoopy quickly tied the scarf around the tall palm tree, and said, “All right, Mateys, bear a paw. I'll buy ye all a drink of blue platinum at the Pug Ranch Tavern.”

Howls of joy reverberated through the fog. If they only knew.

Back on the longship, Ernie and Easy were standing by. Their hopes rose when the air horn gave one prolonged blast, then one short. The span lock motors rotated into full release, and then the bridge began its ascent. As soon as the span light changed from red to green, Easy grabbed the sweep oar. But Walter was waving his lantern horizontally.

They wondered why, until they heard the roar of a speedboat. It drifted through the open span, then throttled up, and sped away. Walter now moved his lantern vertically, and Ernie said, “Into the main ship channel.”

“You got it, Skipper”, Easy said. “What was that boat that just went out ahead of us?”

“That be the relief boat for Blue Platinum Island. There's a half-hour til midnight, when the watch changes.”

From the left hand seat in the speedboat, Penny looked aft, and said, “Did you see what ship that was?”

At the helm, Ruby said, “As long as it wasn't the Rawhide, I'm not worried. The last thing we need is for that husband of ours to catch us moonlighting as furmaids.”

“Captain Speedy said the Rawhide is already in. So if I know Frankie, he's probably home in bed by now.”

“That's if Captain Snoopy's released him yet. Who had the second watch tonight?”

“Tasha and Puddles.”

“Hope we didn't forget the Cheetos.”

“Or the beer.”

Penny looked back, and said, “We have plenty.”

“Yeah, but there's another problem. Look.”

Penny turned and said, “Fog.”

“I didn't mean that. Look up.”

Above their heads, a green flare exploded, lighting up the sky. Then, the water beneath them began to stir. They huddled close together, as the swirling grew into churning.