Zoobreak (16 page)

Mr. Nastase pleaded guilty to receiving stolen goods, attempted theft, and reckless discharge of a tranquilizer gun. In exchange for his testimony against the stolen-animal ring, he avoided jail time and was sentenced to fifteen hundred hours of community service for a wildlife preservation group. His job, though, would be in the mail room. He was banned from ever having direct contact with animals again.

Thanks to her extensive connections with zoos and preserves around the country, Dr. Alford had little trouble relocating her newest tenants. The meerkat went back to its owners in Rhode Island. The loon and the duck got the okay to return to the park next to Savannah’s house. The loon in particular had become a neighborhood celebrity. The piglet and chicken, friends to the end, went together to the Queens County Farm Museum.

The squirrels and chipmunks were released into a wooded area. The hamsters, gerbils, mice, turtles, salamanders, and frogs were distributed to various pet stores. The beaver went all the way to a provincial park in Canada. The rangers there were amazed that it refused to cut down trees but instead built its dam by dismantling an old piece of furniture that had been dumped by the creek.

Darren’s owl escaped while being transferred to the Central Park Zoo and took shelter in the bell tower of St. Sebastian’s Church on First Avenue, where it eventually made its home. Hoo was on First.

The chuckwalla was adopted by a large beach resort in Aruba to star in their TV commercials as Chuck Walla, Party Lizard. They guaranteed a climate-controlled home, celebrity status, and all the flies he could eat. His sauna days were just beginning.

The deal had been set to transfer the prairie dog and ferret to the San Diego Zoo. But when their female ermine gave birth to an oversized litter, it was no longer feasible to introduce a new male into the habitat. The prairie dog was still welcome; Ferret Face had to stay behind.

Dr. Alford’s brow furrowed. Savannah would be upset. The poor girl felt guilty enough. To leave the ferret homeless would eat her alive.

And then the phone rang.

“How about these?”

Griffin tossed over another pair of pajamas, which Ben jammed into the suitcase.

“Why not?” he said listlessly. “It’s a sleep academy. I might as well be dressed for it.”

It was a moment both of them had been dreading. While Savannah, Melissa, Logan, Pitch, and even Darren had been basking in the relief of being off the hook for the zoobreaks, he and Ben had been looking ahead to something far worse. The fateful day had finally come. Ben was departing for the DuPont Academy.

Griffin checked his watch. “I thought you guys were supposed to be leaving around noon. It’s after two.”

“My folks got a call for a last-minute conference with the pediatrician. The school nurse is there, too.”

Griffin frowned. “That doesn’t sound good.”

Ben shrugged miserably. “I’m on my way to New Jersey. How much worse can things get?”

As if on cue, a car door slammed outside.

Ben took a deep breath. “This is it.”

Griffin took an even deeper one and resolved not to make an idiot out of himself.
It’s New Jersey, not the moon
….

“
Ow!!
”

“My dad!” Ben exclaimed in alarm.

The two ran out of the room and started down the stairs to Mr. Slovak’s aid.

An unidentified furry object came streaking toward them. It leaped on Ben, knocking him flat on his back on the first landing.

Ben gawked as the creature burrowed under his shirt and made itself comfortable.

“
Ferret Face?!
”

“Yeah, and he nearly bit off my finger!” Mr. Slovak complained. “In the future, keep him away from me.”

“Future?” Ben echoed. “There
is
no future. I’m going away to school.”

“Dr. Patterson and Nurse Savage noticed that your sleeping habits were improving,” his father explained. “When they found out about Ferret Face, they got an idea and ran
it by the experts at the academy. We give you back the ferret, and he keeps you awake during the day, which in turn makes you sleep better at night.”

Ben was incredulous. “And DuPont agreed to that?”

Mr. Slovak nodded. “They’re even sponsoring the trial. After six months, if this is working for you, then you won’t have to go to the academy.” He sucked on his finger. “And I repeat: Keep that monster away from me.”

Ben hugged the ferret protectively. “He’s not a monster; he’s my personal guardian angel!”

His father grinned. “Good news, Ben. Better than good. Mom and I are thrilled.”

The process of unpacking was much more joyful, and quicker, too. Ben ripped open his suitcase, dumped everything out on the floor, and set Ferret Face down to play in the soft clothing.

“All right, little buddy, go to town. You can even eat my socks. You’re the man.”

“It’s amazing how things work out,” Griffin observed. “This never could have happened without Operation Zoobreak.”

“True,” Ben told The Man With The Plan.
“But you have to admit that there are some times when even a perfect plan won’t help you. You need a miracle.”

“Like this,” Griffin agreed.

What neither said aloud was that the greatest miracle of all was the fact that the two best friends on the planet were lucky enough to be growing up as neighbors in the very same town.

Down the street, in the Drysdales’ yard, Cleopatra clung to the back of Luthor’s neck — the second-best friends on the planet, blissfully happy to be together.

Gordon Korman
’s last novel featuring Griffin Bing and his team,
Swindle
, was called “pure plot-driven fun from top to bottom” by
School Library Journal
and “scary, funny, and hysterical” by a middle school reviewer in the
Chicago Tribune
. His other books include
This Can’t Be Happening at Macdonald Hall
(published when he was fourteen); the trilogies Island, Everest, Dive, and Kidnapped; the series On the Run; and
No More Dead Dogs
and
Son of the Mob
. He lives in New York with his family and can be found on the Web at www.gordonkorman.com.