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“Pickle, no…” Isla said helplessly, wondering what she ought to do. She couldn’t pick him up, not if he didn’t want her to, not with only one hand. She could probably pick up Silky, though, since she was so small. But, before she could grab Silky out of Pickle’s way, the big cat had surged forwards and smacked the kitten hard with a clawed paw.

Silky squeaked, rolling over out of his way. She hissed, trying to sound fierce, but she was so tiny it was obvious that she couldn’t really fight back.

“Stop it!” Isla yelled as Pickle went to whack the little kitten again. “No! Bad cat, leave her alone!”

Pickle hardly seemed to notice.

Isla jumped in between them and tried to flap her hand to shoo him away. Pickle hissed again, furious, and darted round Isla. But Silky had taken her chance and shot back into the cupboard under the stairs.

Isla slammed the door shut before Pickle could get in there after her– she couldn’t imagine trying to break up a cat fight inside a cupboard. It would be awful!

She glared at Pickle.“I know you don’t want her here,” she told him, “but that was just mean! She’s tiny! How could you be so horrible?”

Pickle ignored her. He went to sniff at the cupboard door, growling very quietly, almost as though he was saying nasty things under his breath.

“Now what do I do?” Isla muttered, eyeing him anxiously. She was only supposed to be here for a few minutes to check up on them. Mum and Dad didn’t even know where she was! But she couldn’t leave the two cats like this, with Silky shut in a cupboard and Pickle on the warpath.

She was stuck.

[Êàðòèíêà: img_26]

At that moment, the front door bell rang, followed by a loud knocking on the door. Isla bit her lip. She was pretty sure she knew who that was. She hurried to open the door and found her mum on the doorstep, looking panicked.

“Isla! You… I don’t know what to say! I didn’t know where you’d gone!” Her mum suddenly hugged her so tightly that Isla squeaked. “Don’t youever do that again! We couldn’t find you, and then I realized the key had gone. How could you just disappear? I told you I’d come with you as soon as Dad was back.”

[Êàðòèíêà: img_27]

“I promised Hailey,” Isla said, her voice muffled in her mum’s T-shirt. “I said I’d go at lunchtime and we’d already had lunch. It was nearly two o’clock, Mum!” She pulled away from the hug. “And I was right to be worried. The cats just had a massive fight. It was awful.”

“Silky and Pickle?” Isla’s mum looked around and saw Pickle sitting by the cupboard door, eyeing her curiously. “Oh no, are they OK? Pickle looks all right. Where’s Silky?”

“In the cupboard! Pickle was attacking her and she ran in there, so I shut the door to keep him away. But what do we do now?”

“Oh, Pickle…” Isla’s mum looked thoughtful. “Perhaps we could put him in the kitchen. Has he got somewhere comfy to sleep in there?”

Isla nodded.“His bed’s by the radiator. And he’d be able to go out through the cat flap – I think he’d really hate being shut in the house. Silky’s not been going out all that long. She probably won’t mind so much.”

“Yes, and it’s only until they all come back tomorrow.” Isla’s mum sighed. “Julie said that she thought the cats were starting to settle down together. I hope we’re doing the right thing splitting them up.”

“You didn’t see Pickle, Mum. He was so angry!” Isla assured her. “It might be OK if there was someone here to keep an eye on them, but not when they’re on their own.”

“I know. Don’t worry, Isla. It’s for the best. He still looks upset now. Pickle…” Isla’s mum crouched down and called to him. “Come on, sweetie. Leave the kitten alone.”

Pickle looked at her but he didn’t move, and Isla’s mum sighed. “I hope he’s not going to scratch,” she murmured.

“He wouldn’t!” Isla said, trying to sound reassuring. “He’s a nice cat…”

Isla’s mum scooped Pickle up gently, supporting him underneath, the same way Hailey did. Isla was a bit surprised – she hadn’t realized that her mum knew how to look after a cat. Pickle looked quite surprised too, but he didn’t scratch or hiss. He let Isla’s mum shut him up in the kitchen without complaining.

[Êàðòèíêà: img_28]

As soon as the kitchen door was closed, Isla opened the cupboard under the stairs. She was expecting Silky to pop out at once but there was no sign of the kitten. Isla crouched down to peer inside. She didn’t put the light on in case it scared the little cat, but she could sort of see in the light from the hallway.

“Is she all right?” Isla’s mum said.

“I can’t see her… Oh! There she is, behind the basket. The poor thing’s shaking…” Isla crawled into the cupboard a little way and picked up the kitten, cuddling Silky against her front. She felt so small, like a shivery little bundle of bones and fur. “Do we have to go back home just yet?” Isla asked her mum. “I don’t want to leave her like this.”