Boomer, Page 2

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  Boomer and Rafe woke up in the hospital. They were covered with bandages and lay on their backs with their paws in the air. They had nothing to do. Rafe explained to Boomer that he had been in the hospital before, and Boomer explained to Rafe that it wasn’t his fault that Rafe had been in the hospital before. This led to a discussion of whose fault it was that Rafe was in the hospital again. Rafe said it was Boomer’s fault, and Boomer said Rafe would have to be pretty stupid to think it was anybody else’s fault. He, Boomer, had squashed Rafe like a bug, according to Boomer. Rafe replied that if Boomer had won the fight why was he lying on his back covered with bandages? Rafe wanted to puff out his chest but his bandages were too tight.

  Boomer thought about it. He wasn’t as keen as he was before the fight. Before the fight Boomer had never been beaten up. After the fight he had been beaten up. That was the difference. Anyway, it wasn’t the pussy-cat who had beaten him up. Boomer was pretty sure of that. The pussy-cat was already outside when Boomer was beaten up. Besides, the pussy-cat was just a pussycat and Boomer was a great big cat. Put them in a room together and guess who would get beaten up? Maybe he was attacked by a bunch of muscle-bound pussy-cats, or maybe the man or the woman did it. Whoever did it, Boomer didn’t like it. He didn’t want it to happen again. Boomer used to be a ferocious cat. Now he was a scaredy cat.

  Boomer was afraid to go back to the woods. There were wild animals in the woods, like mice. What if they ganged up on him and beat him up?

  Boomer and Rafe lay in bed and talked. After a while they made up and became friends. Rafe promised to take Boomer home with him.

  Chapter 4

  One day the woman arrived at the hospital. Rafe was cured. Boomer was cured too. A nurse tied bows round their necks and said they were ready to go home. Boomer cuddled up to Rafe and smiled. Instead of smiling back, the woman shook her finger at Boomer. Then she wrapped Rafe in a blanket and started for the door.

  Boomer howled and beat his head on the floor. He grabbed both his ears with his forepaws and yanked. Wah! Wah! Wah! Rafe howled as well. Boomer blubbered on the woman’s shoes and clutched her ankles. Rafe leapt out of his blanket and landed on the nurse. The nurse screamed.

  ‘I’m sorry for this disturbance,’ said the woman, ‘I brought them here together. I suppose I should take them both home with me.’

  So that is what the woman did. But not before she took Boomer aside and gave him a piece of her mind.

  ‘Rufus,’ she said, ‘if you don’t behave I’ll whup you. You know I will.’

  Boomer didn’t know what she was talking about. But he got the general idea. Boomer and Rafe were pals. Any time they weren’t pals any more it would be curtains for Boomer. That was the general idea.

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  Boomer and Rafe and the man and the woman lived together in the house. Boomer had a special place under the bed in the guest room. The man and woman built a new room on the back of the house for guests because Boomer wouldn’t let them use his room. Boomer had special food and poked Rafe with his elbow when he was cranky. Boomer was still Boomer. Except that he never whacked pussy-cats anymore. He and Rafe were friends. Sometimes Boomer dreamt about the old days. It was great fun to whack pussy-cats again. Of course it was just a dream. No one could blame him for that.

  About the Author

  John is a former Canadian foreign service officer and intelligence analyst now living in Vancouver, Canada.

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  Also available from John and Gertrude Whittaker:

  As if we didn't have enough trouble already, suddenly the great chicken shows up in Minnesota. First thing you know, a million lime egg chickens are marching on New York City. Can Beulah and Harry foil the great chicken or will he achieve world domination? One hair-raising episode follows another until Beulah and Harry finally hit on a plan. Just in time, too.

  Boomer lives by himself in the woods. He likes it that way. Boomer is a very unfriendly cat. He waits for silly pussy-cats to wander into the woods and then he whacks them. Whack, whack, whack. Boomer is happy whacking pussy cats, but what happens if Boomer gets whacked back?