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“Yeah, we just escaped from the dungeon and walked all the way back here to warn Odelia, only to get captured again the moment we turned into our street!” said Dooley.

“So you’re telling us you were caught before, managed to escape this inescapable dungeon, and now you’re caught again?” He was giving us a mocking smile. “Sounds like a very likely story, right, fellas?”

“Yeah, very likely,” said a scruffy-looking cat with a scar over his right eye.

“But it’s all true! We have to escape now, or it will be too late!” said Dooley.

“Yeah, right,” said Milo. “And I’m a messenger from the planet Zortaugh and I’m here to bring you all everlasting peace, prosperity and all the cat kibble you’ll ever need.”

There were loud laughs at that one.

“No, I think what’s more likely is that you don’t like being caught, and you’re inventing stories to make yourselves look like the heroes,” said Milo.

“Dooley is telling the truth,” I said. “Practically all the cats of Hampton Cove are in that dungeon, and so is Chief Alec, along with other humans, and they’re all locked up.”

“Oh, so the chief of police is a prisoner, too, huh? This story just keeps getting better and better!”

“You have to believe us, Milo!”

“Oh, Maxie, Maxie,” said Milo, shaking his head. “I’ve always known you were something of a fantasist, but it’s sad to see you’ve started believing your own lies now.”

“Coming from a true fantasist that’s high praise,” I said, getting a little annoyed.

“Me? When have I ever made up a story? Never. So who’s the fantasist now?”

“So what is your explanation then? Why are we here? And where are they taking us?”

Milo shrugged.“It’s obvious, isn’t it? We’ve all been selected by The Cat Snax Company for the introduction of their new and improved formula. A special treat.”

“Yeah, we’re the lucky ones,” said another cat.

“You really think The Cat Snax Company is organizing this trip?”

“Of course! And I love it! I don’t know about you guys, but I feel truly blessed.”

“I’ll bet they’re taking us to Las Vegas,” said a short, red cat. “I love Vegas.”

“I think it’s the Bahamas,” said the scruffy cat. “Get ready for sun and surf, you guys.”

“This isn’t the airport shuttle bus!” I said.

“Yes, and we should know,” said Dooley. “We were on an airport shuttle bus when Odelia flew us all to England on Prince Dante’s private jet to meet Tessa Torrance.”

“Ooh, you were flown to England on Prince Dante’s private jet,” said Milo. “Aren’t you the lucky snowflakes. Don’t tell me you met the Queen?”

“And her corgis!” said the red cat, to everyone’s hilarity.

“How did you know?” said Dooley. “They were very nice, the Queen’s corgis. Well, not at first, of course, but once we got to know them better, Sweetie, Fr?ulein and Molly were really charming. They even warned us about the pins on those PBEs we got—PBE stands for Pet of the Order of the British Empire—the Queen gave them to us. But she didn’t use pins on us, of course. Her Majesty used nice ribbons. Very considerate. And painless.”

“I don’t see any ribbons around your necks,” said Milo. “Do you see any ribbons, guys?”

“No, we don’t,” said the red cat. “And not a trace of those PFCs either.”

“PBEs,” Dooley corrected him. “PBE stands for—”

“So I’ll bet you met the President of the United States, too, huh?” said Milo. “Oh, and the Pope, of course. In fact Odelia probably flies you around the world in your private jet so you two can meet all kinds of famous people. Rock stars, movie stars… pet stars.”

“Well, actually…” Dooley began, but I interrupted him.

“Forget it, Dooley,” I said. “Don’t you see he’s simply making fun of us?”

“He is?” said Dooley, sounding surprised.

I decided to leave Milo and his cronies to their Cat Snax Vegas dreams, and retreated into a corner of the van to confer with my friend.

“We have to escape, Dooley,” I said. “Once we’re inside that dungeon, our chances of escaping again will be slim to non-existent.”

“We could always try the cat pyramid again,” he suggested.

“We could, but they might be more vigilant now, and won’t let us trick them so easily.”

We searched around for an avenue of escape, but the van was obviously built to keep us in, not allow us to slip out.

“We have to be on our toes, Dooley,” I said. “Keep our eyes peeled. And the first chance we get we make a run for it, all right? We don’t hesitate, we run like the wind.”

“Like the wind, Max,” he said, a determined look on his furry face.

“Oh, one question, guys,” said Milo, who’d been entertaining the group at our expense. “Is it true that you met Bigfoot? Abominable Snowman? The Loch Ness Monster? Or is that just a rumor floating around? Help me clear this up. It’s important.”

More laughter ensued, and Dooley and I shook our heads at so much ignorance.

Dooley was on his toes, though. Literally. Ready to escape.

Chapter 26