“Porky? Who does he mean, I wonder,” said Philip. “Somebody mad on birds, I expect. I’ll come to the cinema. I’d like to see the picture — it’s got wild animals in it.”
They went off to the cinema without seeing Jack again. He was home when they came back, reading one of the guide-books Mrs. Mannering had bought.
“Hallo! See Porky?” said Philip. He got a frown from Jack, and was puzzled. What was Jack up to? He changed the subject quickly, and began to talk about the picture they had seen.
“Now, to bed,” said Mrs. Mannering. “Stop talking, Philip. Off you all go — and remember, up at seven o’clock sharp in the morning.”
Everyone was awake long before seven. The girls talked together, and Philip and Jack chattered away too. Philip asked Jack about the night before.
“Why did you shut me up when I asked you if you’d seen Porky?” he said. “And anyway — who is Porky?”
“He’s that fellow called Hogsney,” said Jack. “We called him Porky. He left ages ago. He was always wanting to borrow Kiki, don’t you remember?”
“Oh, yes, Porky, of course,” said Philip. “I’d almost forgotten him. Jack, what’s up? You look sort of secretive!”
“Don’t ask me any questions because I don’t want to answer them,” said Jack.
“You’re being jolly mysterious,” said Philip. “I believe it’s something to do with Kiki. You kept putting us all off when we asked you what you’d done with her. We thought you were feeling upset about it, so we didn’t press you.”
“Well, don’t press me now,” said Jack. “I don’t want to say anything at the moment.”
“All right,” said Philip, giving it up. “I know you’re up to something, though. Come on — let’s get up. It’s not seven yet, but we can’t lie in bed on a morning as fine as this.”
They were all on the boat at just after half-past eight. Mrs. Mannering found their cabins. There were three in a row — a single one for her, and two double ones for the others.
Lucy-Ann was delighted with them. “Why, they are just like proper little rooms,” she said. “Jack, is your cabin like ours? Look, we’ve even got hot and cold water taps.”
“We’ve got an electric fan going in our cabin,” said Philip, appearing at the door. “It’s wizard — lovely and cool. You’ve got one too.”
“The water is only just below our porthole,” said Dinah, looking out. “If the sea got at all rough, it would slop into the hole!”
“It would be well and truly screwed up before that happened!” said Philip. “I’m glad we’re at the water-line — it will be cooler in this warm weather. I say, isn’t this super! I’m longing to sail off.”
They all went to see Mrs. Mannering’s cabin, which was the same as theirs, but smaller. Then they went to explore the ship. She was quite big, but not tremendous, and was white from top to bottom — white funnels, white rails, white sides.
Her name was on each of the white lifeboats, swung at the sides of the deck — Viking Star. Lucy-Ann read it a dozen times over.
“We shall have lifeboat drill tomorrow, I expect,” said Mrs. Mannering, joining them on their exploration.
“There are big sort of life-belt jackets in our cabin cupboards,” said Lucy-Ann. “I suppose you tie them round you.”
“You slip them over your head, so that half the jacket is at your front and half behind — and then you tie it firmly round you with the ropes on it,” said Mrs. Mannering. “You’ll have to put it on tomorrow for lifeboat drill.”
It all sounded very exciting. They went round the ship, thrilled with everything. There was the sports deck, where someone was already playing quoits with thick rings of rope, and two others were playing deck-tennis. “Fancy being able to play games like this on board ship!” said Dinah.
“There’s a cinema down below,” said Mrs. Mannering, “and a writing-room, and library and lounge, and an enormous dining-room!”
“And gosh, look — here’s a swimming-pool on the ship itself!” cried Jack, in amazement, as they came to a beautiful pool at one end of the ship, shimmering blue with water.
The ship’s siren suddenly hooted twice, very loudly Lucy-Ann almost fell into the swimming-pool with fright Mrs. Mannering laughed.
“Oh, Lucy-Ann — did it make you jump? It made me jump too.”
“What a terrific noise!” said Lucy-Ann. “My goodness, it’s a good thing Kiki isn’t here. If she began to hoot like that siren she’d be impossible.”
“Shut up, idiot,” said Dinah, in a low voice. “Don’t remind Jack we’re going off without her.”
Lucy-Ann glanced round for Jack, but he wasn’t there. “Where’s he gone?” she asked Dinah. But nobody had seen him go.
“He’s somewhere about,” said Philip. “I say, we must be sailing soon. Look — they’re taking up the gangways. We’ll soon be off!”
“Let’s stand at this side and wave to all the people,” said Lucy-Ann. She leaned over the rail and watched the people crowded together on the dockside below. They were shouting and waving. Suddenly Lucy-Ann gave a squeal.
“Look! Look! There’s somebody with a parrot just like Kiki! Honestly, it is. Where’s Jack? I must tell him. Blow, he’s nowhere to be seen!”
The engines of the ship had now started up, and the children felt a vibration under their feet. Lucy-Ann strained her eyes to look at the parrot that was so very like Kiki.
“It is Kiki!” she cried. “Kiki! Kiki! Good-bye! I’m sure it’s you!”
The parrot was chained to a young man’s wrist. Whether it was making a noise or not the children couldn’t tell because of the hullaballoo going on. It certainly was remarkably like Kiki.
“We’re off! We’ve moved away from the quay!” cried Philip. “Hurrah, we’re off!” He waved madly to every one. Lucy-Ann waved too, and watched the parrot. It was getting smaller as the ship moved away towards the open water. Its owner seemed to be having trouble with it. I was flapping its wings, and pecking at him.
Then it suddenly rose into the air — the chain parted — and the parrot sailed right over the stretch of water be tween quay and ship, screeching madly.
“It is Kiki, it is, it is!” yelled Lucy-Ann. “Jack, where are you! JACK!”
Chapter 3
EVERYONE SETTLES IN
DINAH, Lucy-Ann and Philip rushed to find Jack. The parrot had reached the ship, and they had lost sight of it. They were all certain it was Kiki, and Philip had a shrewd idea that Jack wouldn’t be quite so surprised about it as they themselves were.
Jack was nowhere to be found. It was most exasperating. They hunted for him everywhere, and at last Lucy-Ann thought of his cabin. “He might be there,” she said. “Though why he wants to go and shut himself up there just at the exciting moment when the ship is leaving Southampton, I really can’t imagine! And where’s the parrot? She seems to have disappeared too.”
They went down the stairs to the cabins and found their way to the passage where theirs were. They flung open Jack’s door and crowded in. “Jack! Are you here? What do you think we’ve just seen?”
They stopped in surprise at what they saw. Jack was sitting on his bed in the cabin, and Kiki was on his shoulder, making a curious crooning noise into his ear, pulling at it gently.
“Gosh!” said Philip. “So she found you. I suppose it is Kiki?”
“Of course, idiot,” said Jack. “What a bit of luck, wasn’t it? Old Porky brought her down to the quay to see me off, chained to his wrist — and she broke the chain and flew over to me! Came into my porthole too — brainy old bird!”
“Porky? The boy you used to know at school! Did you give Kiki to him to mind for you?” said Lucy-Ann, amazed. “But — how did she get down here.”
“I brought her in the car yesterday,” said Jack, putting one hand over his ear so that Kiki couldn’t nibble it. “She was in the picnic-basket I was carrying, as quiet as a mouse. I was terrified one of you would ask me to open the basket and get you out something to eat!”
“But I say — won’t Porky be upset to have her escape like that?” said Dinah.
“And how did she know you were here, if you were down in your cabin?” wondered Lucy-Ann. “Perhaps she heard me call her. That must have been it — she heard me yelling ‘Kiki! Kiki!’, broke her chain in her excitement and flew over — and by a lucky chance she chose your very porthole!”
“You’d better tell Aunt Allie all that,” said Jack, with a grin. “It makes a very fine story — better than mine!”