GERTRUDE"S BRAVE ESCAPE

Written and illustrated
by
Julia Edge
P U B L I S H E D B Y B L U E L I O N

To begin with Gertrude was happiest in Miss Dee’s work-room. It was piled high with half-finished hats,  feathers, ribbons, rolls of brightly coloured materials and boxes of artificial flowers, so she had no trouble
finding a place to hide.

It was not long before she realized she had nothing to fear and she soon discovered that feathers and rolls of ribbon made good toys. Laughing at her antics, Miss Dee watched as some of her favourite hat making materials ended up in shreds, but she loved Gertrude and the only thing that mattered was her happiness. As the weeks went by a whole new world opened up for Gertrude. She met all Miss Dee’s friends, but she liked visiting Mr Timms best. He lived opposite Miss Dee in a large flat above the book shop, and in the evenings played the violin in a famous orchestra. Some people considered him to be rather eccentric, but he and Miss Dee were very good friends, and when she and Gertrude went to tea he always remembered to give Gertrude a large slice of her favourite fruit cake.

Her steely gaze returned to Gertrude’s anxious face. “Unless you know your family name I cannot help you,” she barked. “Who are you, and where do you come from?” “My name is Gertrude and I come from the Dogs Home,” whispered Gertrude trembling.

TWhat are we going to do now?” she asked miserably. Gertrude was trying to decide which way they should go when she heard Vince and Bodger returning. They darted back behind the rubbish. “They’ve hidden somewhere around here,” said Vince, “and the obvious place is behind that pile of rubbish.” As they began moving the bags Gertrude frantically looked for a way to escape. here was a foul smell coming from a half empty plastic bottle just a few inches from where they were hiding. The fumes were affecting her throat and she wanted to cough, while her eyes were beginning to sting. She whispered instructions to Lady Jade and then cautiously reached out with her paw and pushed the bottle.