The Lonely Lion Cub Read online

  Bella wriggled her ears and gave a goodbye grunt as she plunged back under the water.

  As they left the igloo, Zoe started to walk faster. She was about to reach the only enclosure that she didn’t like walking by. It was a warm golden plain, fringed with the long, green grass of the Kenyan savannah.

  This was the home of Leonard, the East African lion. He was a large, powerful animal with a beautiful mane. But he also had curved teeth that he liked to show off and could be very bad-tempered. Zoe’s mum said it was because he had been treated very badly by people. He had been captured by dangerous poachers back in Kenya and taken to a city called Nairobi, where he wasn’t given enough to eat or drink. Leonard was very lucky to be alive when Great-Uncle Horace rescued him.

  Zoe wasn’t scared of any animal but Leonard always made her a bit nervous. She had never even talked to him because every time she went near his enclosure he gave an enormous roar that even people that couldn’t understand animals would know meant, “GO AWAY!”

  Zoe saw Leonard lying down on a grassy mound, resting his head on his giant paws. Spotting Zoe and Meep, he growled at them before giving a huge yawn. Meep squeaked at the sight of his big sharp teeth and huddled against Zoe in fright.

  Zoe hurried past. She could feel Meep shaking and she gave him a quick hug.

  “It’s all right,” she whispered. “He can’t hurt you.”

  “He is a bit scary,” Meep admitted, jumping out of Zoe’s arms and scampering along the path in front of her. “But I bet that grumpy old lion couldn’t catch me anyway!” He raced away and Zoe followed him, laughing.

  The chatter and noise around the zoo were steadily growing. The gates were now open and the first visitors of the day were starting to arrive. One little girl with blonde plaits stared in amazement at Meep and Zoe walking along together, and tugged at her big sister’s hand.

  “Look!” she whispered. “A tiny monkey!”

  Zoe smiled at her. “Meep’s a grey mouse lemur,” she explained. “Meep, come and say hello.”

  Meep scampered up to Zoe and jumped on to her shoulder.

  The little girl shyly reached out her hand to stroke Meep’s tail, then jumped back and hid behind her sister with a giggle.

  “He’s so soft!” Zoe heard the little girl cry as they waved goodbye and continued along the path.

  Zoe stopped when they reached the penguin enclosure. One of the walls was made out of glass, so that visitors could see the penguins swimming and swooping underwater. But today the whole colony was perched on the rocks, squawking. They were all talking at the same time so Zoe couldn’t understand them.

  “What are they saying?” she asked Meep. “It sounds like ‘loon’.”

  Meep shrugged and gave a chattering laugh. “Loon! Loon!” he chirped, copying the penguins.

  “Peggy! Pearl!” Zoe called softly to the nearest penguins. “Are you OK? I can’t understand you! What does ‘loon’ mean?”

  But the penguins couldn’t hear her above the noise. Then Zoe spotted Will, the penguin-keeper, standing in the enclosure with a bucket of fish.

  “Hi, Will!” she called. “Here’s some special food for Poppy.”

  “Thanks, Zoe,” Will replied. “I’m going to have trouble getting her to eat though. She’s acting as strangely as the rest of them. They all seem really excited about something.”

  Zoe glanced at the penguins and wondered if she could distract Will somehow so that she could talk to them properly. But before she could think of a plan, there was another burst of noise. The penguins were all hopping up and down, flapping their flippers and staring up at the sky, squawking wildly.

  Will, Zoe and Meep looked up. Suddenly Zoe understood what the penguins had been saying. Not “loon”, but “balloon”! A huge rainbow-coloured hot-air balloon soared overhead. Underneath the balloon was a large wicker basket, and attached to that was a wooden crate. Meep squeaked in excitement and scrabbled up on to Zoe’s head, reaching his hands into the air.

  As the balloon floated over their heads, Zoe turned and ran back through the zoo, grinning.

  Only one person she knew travelled by hot-air balloon – Great-Uncle Horace!

  Chapter Five

  A New Arrival

  With Meep scampering in front of her, Zoe raced towards the wide clearing in front of the gift shop where the balloon always landed.

  “Goo’s back! Goo’s back!” the lemur chirped, his tail waving in excitement.

  Zoe knew that Meep had missed Great-Uncle Horace just as much as she had, and he wasn’t the only one. As she ran past each enclosure she heard brays and whinnies and squeaks of excitement. All the animals had spotted the balloon, and they knew what it meant! Great-Uncle Horace had helped every single creature in the Rescue Zoo, and they all loved it when he came home. Every animal was celebrating!

  Zoe was already thinking about the crate beneath the hot-air balloon. What animal could be inside? Zoe and Meep reached the clearing just as the balloon landed.

  A crowd of visitors had gathered in the clearing, and the air was filled with a buzz of curious chatter. All the zoo staff had rushed to greet Great-Uncle Horace as well, and to see what the new arrival might be. Even Mr Pinch was there, eyeing the wooden crate suspiciously.

  Lucy ran over to join Zoe. She hugged her daughter happily. “Thank goodness he’s back safely!” she smiled.

  There was a movement from the wicker basket as someone threw out a thick rope ladder.

  Zoe beamed as her great-uncle appeared. His old green hat was still perched wonkily on his head, and he was wearing the same sandy-coloured safari jacket with lots of pockets for storing things, such as a map, a pair of binoculars and a packet of his favourite custard cream biscuits. He was the cleverest person Zoe had ever met, and she was sure he knew more about animals than anyone else in the world.

  He waved at the crowd as he climbed down the rope ladder, and smiled when he spotted Zoe.

  “Hello, everyone!” he said. “Jambo! That’s Swahili for ‘hello’, you know. Sorry I’ve been away for such a long time. I’ve been to Norway. Did you know that reindeers are called ‘caribou’ in Norway? It must be very confusing for Rudolph. And then I got an urgent call from Kenya about a new animal for the Rescue Zoo!”

  The moment he reached the bottom of the ladder, Zoe ran to her great-uncle and threw herself at him. Great-Uncle Horace swept her up and whirled her around.

  “Zoe, my dear!” he cried, hugging her warmly. “It’s wonderful to see you. Look how much you’ve grown! And here’s your little partner-in-crime,” he added, as Meep leaped on to his shoulder and snuggled up to his beard. “Hello, Meep. I hope you’ve been behaving yourself.”

  There was a squawk and a flurry of blue feathers as a beautiful parrot sailed down and landed on Great-Uncle Horace’s shoulder. She pecked at Meep, who jumped into Zoe’s arms, chattering crossly.

  “Now now, Kiki,” Great-Uncle Horace said, tapping the bird gently on her curved black beak. “Meep was only saying hello to me.”

  Kiki glared suspiciously at Meep. Zoe laughed as the naughty lemur stuck his tongue out at the elderly bird. Although they both loved their owners, Kiki and Meep didn’t like each other very much!

  “Now, where’s our brilliant vet?” Horace continued, once Kiki was settled on his shoulder.

  Zoe’s mum ran over to hug her uncle. “Welcome home,” she said.

  “We’ve got so much to tell you, Great-Uncle Horace,” Zoe began. “The new panda enclosure was finished last month, and Su Lin loves it! The baby llamas are doing really well, and Bella the polar bear is getting so big.” Her words tumbled out in a rush, and Great-Uncle Horace laughed. Zoe felt as if she could have talked for days, filling him in on all the news from the zoo.

  “You really shouldn’t stay away so long,” Lucy scolded her uncle. “We didn’t know if you were ever coming home.”

  Great-Uncle Horace shook his head. “My dear, you worry far too much. I’ve just been so busy. I met
so many animals who needed my help, you see – especially when I arrived in Kenya. A truly amazing place.” He nodded at Zoe. “When you’re a little bit older, you must come with me. I think you’d love it.”

  Zoe grinned excitedly. She couldn’t wait to join her great-uncle on his amazing adventures!

  “Ahem.” Mr Pinch stepped forwards, clearing his throat as if he was about to make an important speech. “Mr Higgins. Now that you’re back, sir, there are some very urgent zoo matters to attend to. First of all, I would like to talk to you about the habits of some of the animals. The orangutans, for example—”

  Zoe looked from Great-Uncle Horace to the crate and back again. She just wanted to meet the new arrival! She hopped from one foot to the other impatiently. Great-Uncle Horace noticed her eagerness and smiled.

  “Ah, Mr Pinch,” he interrupted. “I’m sure you’re doing a splendid job of looking after the zoo without me sticking my old nose in.” He peered around through his binoculars. “Yes, yes. Everything looks to be under control.”

  Mr Pinch went very pink and beamed smugly. He puffed out his chest importantly and looked around at the staff to make sure they had all heard. Meep squealed with laughter, almost falling off Zoe’s shoulder.

  “Silly old Pinch,” he giggled. “He looks like one of the owls when they fluff up their feathers to stay warm!”

  Zoe spluttered with laughter. Cheeky Meep was right!

  “Now, you must all be desperate to meet the new arrival,” Great-Uncle Horace announced, patting the wooden crate. “I found this poor little fellow all alone in the Serengeti. The rest of his family had been captured by poachers.” He shook his head sadly. “Without anyone to look after him, he would almost certainly have died. I just had to rescue him.”

  Great-Uncle Horace nodded to the zookeepers standing in the crowd. Three of them cut away the thick ropes fastening the crate. Meep jumped up on Zoe’s head to try and get a better view. What could the new animal be?

  Great-Uncle Horace lifted up one of the sides of the crate and the crowd gasped. Zoe’s heart leaped. Behind her, she heard Mr Pinch groan.

  Inside the crate was a furry little animal with rounded ears, chocolate-brown eyes and a long tail with a brown tuft on the end. It was a fluffy, completely gorgeous lion cub!

  Chapter Six

  Zoe’s Promise

  The cub blinked nervously at the crowd. He opened his mouth to reveal a row of white baby teeth and gave a squeaky growl. His little paws trembled and he looked very weak and frightened.

  “Stand back, please!” Mr Pinch announced as the visitors pushed forwards to get a better look. “Make way for the vet.”

  Lucy knelt down slowly next to the cub. “There, there, little one. I’m not going to hurt you,” Lucy soothed as she examined the lion’s eyes, ears, teeth, tummy and paws. The cub shrank away, snarling as fiercely as he could. Lucy looked at her uncle. “You got to him just in time, Uncle Horace. It looks like he hasn’t eaten properly in weeks.”

  Zoe and Meep shared a worried look. The cub seemed confused and very scared. He kept turning his head from side to side, as if he was looking for someone in the crowd. Zoe desperately wanted to explain that everyone at the Rescue Zoo was really kind and wanted to help him. But she couldn’t talk to him in front of the crowd – she had to keep the animals’ secret.

  Zoe felt a gentle tug on her hair, and realised it was Kiki trying to get her attention.

  Great-Uncle Horace was standing next to her. Leaning closer, he whispered, “My dear, this little chap needs help. Will you promise to look after him for me?”

  Zoe stared at her great-uncle and then nodded. “I promise. I’ll try my very best to help the cub.”

  Great-Uncle Horace beamed at her. “That’s my girl, Zoe! I know you can do it.” He smiled brightly as Kiki nibbled his ear.

  “Right!” he announced. “Let’s see what’s been going on around here while I’ve been gone. I must say hello to all the animals straight away. First a trip to visit Charles, I think. I do miss that old fellow when I’m on my travels. Did you know, everyone, that giant tortoises like Charles can live to be over two hundred years old? Incredible!” Great-Uncle Horace waved to the crowd, winked at Zoe then strode off happily down the path towards the tortoise enclosure.

  Kiki spread her wings and soared across to Zoe from Great-Uncle Horace’s shoulder and circled over her head. Something light and soft floated down into Zoe’s hand. It was one of Kiki’s bright, beautiful blue tail feathers.

  Zoe tucked it safely into her pocket. Kiki was Great-Uncle Horace’s lucky charm, and it was almost as if the macaw was saying, “Good luck!” to her. Great-Uncle Horace had asked her to help the little lion cub – and she was determined to keep her promise.

  Once Great-Uncle Horace was out of sight, Lucy clapped her hands together. “Let’s get the cub to the zoo hospital,” she called. “He needs food and water right away.”

  A zookeeper brought over a special blanket, which Lucy wrapped gently around the frightened lion cub. She scooped him up and headed straight for the hospital, weaving her way through the chattering crowd.

  Zoe knew the blanket would keep the animal toasty warm and would also protect her mum’s hands from any scratches. She followed, with Meep scampering along beside her.

  “Ahem!”

  A bony finger tapped her on the shoulder. Zoe’s heart sank as she turned to see Mr Pinch glaring at her. Zoe noticed he still had a smudge of banana on his forehead.

  “And just where do you think you’re going?” he sneered.

  “I was going to the hospital—” Zoe began.

  Mr Pinch narrowed his eyes. “Young lady, the hospital is for zoo staff only. Whenever Horace brings back a new arrival, it creates lots of paperwork, and it’s up to me to keep the zoo running smoothly. So I will not have an unruly little girl and a cheeky lemur getting in the way!” he said, pointing at Meep.

  Meep squeaked crossly and made a very rude noise, as if to prove just how cheeky he could be.

  Zoe nodded sadly. No matter how helpful she tried to be, Mr Pinch always told her she was causing trouble. But as soon as Mr Pinch was out of sight an idea popped into her head.

  “Don’t worry, Meep,” she whispered. “With nasty old Pinch busy at the hospital, we can tell the other animals all about the new arrival.”

  Suddenly she felt much better!

  Chapter Seven

  Welcome to the Rescue Zoo!

  Zoe and Meep headed straight for the nearest animal enclosure – a warm, golden field dotted with wild apricot trees where the giraffe family lived.

  A little boy with curly black hair was standing on the wooden walkway leading to the fence, taking a picture. As Zoe stepped on to the walkway the youngest giraffe spotted her and trotted right up to the fence. The little boy gasped to see the beautiful animals so close, and Zoe smiled at him.

  “Did you know that all giraffes have a different pattern of special markings along their long necks and bodies, so once you get to know them all, you can tell them apart?” she said. “This one is Daisy.”

  “Cool!” the boy gasped.

  Zoe waited until the boy and his parents had moved on to the next enclosure so she could speak to Daisy without them noticing. She pulled her paw-print necklace out from under her T-shirt and held it against a small panel in the wall of the giraffe house. There was a click and the door swung open.

  The necklace wasn’t just a pretty piece of jewellery – the paw-print charm had a special electronic chip inside it which opened the gate to every enclosure in the Rescue Zoo. All the staff had paw-print-shaped passes that let them into the private areas of the zoo, and Great-Uncle Horace had had one made into a necklace especially for Zoe.

  As Zoe stepped into the giraffe house, Daisy galloped in though the huge door and ran around in a circle, swishing the tassel on the end of her tail.

  “So you’ve already heard the news?” Zoe chuckled, stroking Daisy’s velvety nose.

 
; The giraffe gazed at Zoe with huge, shiny black eyes and blinked her beautiful long lashes.

  “Yes, it’s a tiny lion cub!” Zoe said.

  “But he seems really unhappy. I wonder what we can do to help?”

  Daisy nibbled Zoe’s fingers very gently.

  Zoe laughed. “You’re right! Giving him some treats might help him settle in. He might like a bottle of warm milk to drink – we had to make sure Bella the polar bear had lots of milk when she was very small.

  I wonder if a blanket would help too?”

  “Mmm, blanky,” Meep agreed, burying his face in Zoe’s hair. “That will make the cub feel better!”

  Zoe giggled. “I know that’s what would make you happy, little Meep! Come on – let’s collect up everything we think will help him feel at home!”

  When Lucy arrived back at the cottage that evening, Zoe and Meep were waiting eagerly in the kitchen.

  “Mum!” Zoe called. “We’re in here. We’ve made a collection for the lion cub, to help him settle in.”

  They had carefully arranged the items on the kitchen table. There was a piece of tyre, a ball and a rope for him to play with, and a thick, cuddly blanket.

  Once Lucy had inspected everything, she kissed her daughter on her forehead. “I’m very impressed,” she said. “You’ll make a brilliant vet one day, Zoe – you certainly care about the animals enough! But I’m afraid the cub needs much more than a cosy blanket. He won’t eat anything, and it means he’s really weak. If things don’t change soon, he could become seriously poorly.” Lucy shook her head sadly. “We just can’t work out what the problem is.”