Zoobreak
Zoobreak is the sequel to Swindle, and the second book in what is in the process of becoming a series. (At this time, three books are in the works, and more could follow as time goes by.) Zoobreak is currently scheduled for release, according to amazon.com, on September 1st, and will be released in hardcover.
When Savannah's pet monkey is kidnapped, and found trapped on a floating zoo, Griffin Bing brings back together the team which last managed to steal back the Babe Ruth baseball card in Swindle. This time their goal is to recover Savannah's monkey, and strike a blow against the cruel person who kidnapped her.
But though Griffin has a plan, and has worked out many of the details, he'll learn the truth of the old saying about the best laid plans ... this one will involve more than any of the young freedom fighters might expect. Will the kids manage to free Cleopatra, or will they face the legal consequences they managed to avoid in the last book?
From the Book:
CHAPTER ONE
THE PEOPLE
VS.
MR. DRYSDALE (PERSON) AND CLEOPATRA DRYSDALE (MONKEY)
CLOSING ARGUMENT: Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the DEFENSE has shown that when Officer McElroy gave Mr. Drysdale a TICKET for UNSAFE DRIVING, this was NOT FAIR, because:
(i)Mr. Drysdale was not breaking any laws.
(ii)Luthor Drysdale (dog) was hanging his head out the window, which every dog does.
(iii)Everyone in Cedarville knows that Cleopatra always rides on the back of Luthor’s neck, whether driving in a car or not.Officer McElroy claims that Cleopatra could have fallen off, creating a TRAFFIC HAZARD. However, the defense has proven that capuchin monkeys are excellent GRIPPERS, and have been hanging off of tree branches, dogs’ necks, etc. for THOUSANDS of YEARS.
We therefore ask you, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, to return a verdict of NOT GUILTY so Mr. Drysdale won’t have to pay the fifty dollar fine.
Ben
Slovak looked up from the paper. “Do they have juries in traffic court?”
“Okay,
I’ll change it to ‘your honor.’” Griffin Bing was impatient.
“What about the reasoning. Perfect, right?”
Ben
wanted to agree with Griffin. Life was so much smoother when you did.
“I
guess so,” he said uncertainly. “But wouldn’t it be easier
just to pay the ticket?”
“Never!”
Griffin thundered. “There can’t possibly be a law against driving
around with a monkey piggybacking your dog! The whole thing comes down to that
cop saying it isn’t safe. Who do you think knows more about animals –
the cop or Savannah?”
No
contest there. Their fellow sixth-grader, Savannah Drysdale, was Cedarville’s
greatest authority on animals. In addition to Cleopatra and Luthor, she was
the housemate – she refused to call herself the owner – of cats,
rabbits, hamsters, turtles, a parakeet, and an albino chameleon.
Ben
looked distracted. “Listen, Griffin, I need to talk to you about something.”
“Later,”
Griffin promised. “I want to get this over to Savannah’s. I can’t
wait to see the look on her face when she reads our plan for her dad’s
defense.”
Wordlessly,
Ben followed Griffin down the street and up the Drysdales’ front walk.
You didn’t argue with Griffin when there was a plan involved. In this
town, Griffin Bing was The Man With The Plan.
Griffin
marched up to the house and rang the bell. Almost instantly, the door was flung
open and Savannah burst out onto the porch, eyes wild.
“You’ve
got to help me!” she cried.
Griffin
thrust the paper into her hand. “Don’t worry, we have a plan.”
Savannah
stared at the closing argument like it was written in Martian. “What’s
this supposed to be?”
“Your
father’s defense for the traffic ticket!”
“Are
you nuts?” Savannah wailed “Nobody cares about the ticket! Cleopatra
is gone!”
CHAPTER TWO
“Gone?”
Griffin repeated. “Gone where?”
Savannah
could barely contain herself. “Well, if I knew that, I’d go get
her back, wouldn’t I?”
“When
did you last see her?” Ben asked in kind concern.
“She
was puttering around the backyard, relaxing in the hammock and listening to
NPR. And when I came out with her plantains, she wasn’t there anymore!”
“You
mean you left her outside all alone?” Griffin said. “She probably
ran away.”
Savannah
was indignant. “Just because she’s a monkey doesn’t make her
a wild animal! Cleo knows where she lives. Something’s happened to her!
She would never just leave like this.” She wiped at watery eyes. “Poor
Luthor!”
Ben
was mystified. “If Cleopatra is the one who’s missing, why poor
Luthor?”
She
regarded him pityingly. “How would you like to lose your best
friend?”
Ben
assumed a stricken look and turned to Griffin. “I really need to talk
to you about something, man!”
Before
Griffin could respond, the door swung wide again, and out slunk Luthor.
Both
boys froze, poised for flight. Savannah might have thought her dog was the mildest,
sweetest creature on earth, but Griffin and Ben did not share her opinion. Luthor
was a large brown and black Doberman with rippling muscles and jaws as wide
as a small hippo’s. Not long ago, this animal had been a trained guard
dog, mean as they came. It had taken all Savannah’s skills as a dog whisperer
to bring him down to merely vicious.
But
they could see right away that Luthor was not himself. His taut athletic belly
practically dragged on the floor, and his face sagged with sadness. From time
to time, he would swipe at the back of his neck, as if feeling for the absent
monkey. His constant threatening growl had been replaced by a sad whimpering
sound.
“We’ve
got posters all over town,” Savannah went on. “I can’t leave
the house in case somebody phones. You’ve got to do this for me!”
Griffin
was cautious. “Do what?”
“I
thought of a few extra places we forgot to search the first time around –
places Cleo really likes. The jungle gym at Growing Minds Daycare; the blue
box behind the Chinese restaurant where they throw out the empty pineapple tins;
and the top of that shaky dryer at the Laundromat.” She stopped for breath.
“Take Luthor. He’ll be able to pick up Cleo’s scent.”
She
held out the big dog’s leash. They made no move to take it.
Griffin
gulped. “Are you sure this is a good idea?”
Savannah
patted the dog sympathetically. “The poor sweet baby needs to feel like
he’s helping. He’s so upset he can’t even eat.”
“Can
I get that in writing?” Ben asked nervously.
Dumpster-diving
behind the Mandarin Palace was a fragrant and sticky business. But Luthor had
no interest in licking the sweet syrup from the pineapple tins. Nor did the
Doberman pick up any trace of his lost monkey friend.
“This
is perfect,” Ben complained. “Hanging out in the garbage with a
killing machine! Does he even know what he’s supposed to be looking for?”
Griffin
held onto the leash with both hands, as if landing a fighting marlin. “Savannah
says when he picks up the scent, he’ll go practically go berserk.”
“And
that’s a good thing?” Ben squeaked. “I like him this
way – depressed, harmless. Let’s run him by the daycare and the
Laundromat before he gets his appetite back!”
“You
think I’m thrilled about this?” Griffin said irritably. “I’m
the one holding the leash. Look, Savannah’s our friend. You know how much
animals mean to her.”
Luthor
drooped beside the dumpster and emitted a yawn that opened his mouth wide enough
to accommodate a good-sized head.
“What
if the monkey just ran away?” Ben asked shakily.
“Of
course it ran away,” Griffin agreed. “But if Savannah needs to search
every inch of Cedarville before she admits that, we have to let her. Come on,
let’s hit the daycare before they empty out the Diaper Genie.”
There
was no sign of Cleopatra at Growing Minds. And at the Laundromat, two cats were
established atop the shaky dryer. No monkey.
Ben
sighed with relief. “Okay, now we take Luthor home, right?”
They
were halfway back to the Drysdale house when a sudden bark erupted from the
Doberman. The next second, the leash was wrenched from Griffin’s hand,
and the big dog was galloping across lawns and through flowerbeds.
“Savannah’s
going to kill us!” Ben panted as they pursued the runaway. “First
the monkey, now Luthor!”
“We
can’t lose him!” gasped Griffin.
By
the time they caught up with him, the Doberman was in such a state of excitement
that they didn’t dare go closer than twenty feet. The animal leaped about,
springing on powerful legs, an urgent high-pitched whine issuing from deep in
its throat.
Griffin
pointed. “What’s that in his mouth?”
Then
the dog was off again, barreling down the street at breakneck speed. He vaulted
over the gate at the Drysdale home and ran full-tilt into the front door. The
thud seemed to echo off every building in Cedarville.
Griffin
and Ben bounded up the walk just as Savannah appeared on the porch. Luthor deposited
an object on the mat at her feet.
It
was a blackened, squashed, half-eaten banana.
“Oh,
my God!” Savannah quavered. “Cleo’s been kidnapped!”
Griffin
was blown away. “It says that on the banana?”
“Don’t
you see? It was used to lure her out of our yard!”
Ben
chose his words carefully. “Yeah, but how do you know that isn’t
just a regular banana somebody dropped?”
“Are
you blind? Cleo’s scent is all over it! Why do you think Luthor’s
acting this way?”
“He’s
hungry?” Ben suggested feebly.
Yet
it was obvious that the Doberman was not eating his find. His intention had
always been to bring it to Savannah.
She
was devastated. “This is even worse than I thought! Cleo isn’t just
lost! She’s been abducted! I’ve got to update the police!”
She wheeled and disappeared into the house, Luthor at her heels.
“You’re
welcome,” Ben called after her.
Griffin
turned to go. “Take it easy on Savannah. This is her worst nightmare come
true. I even feel kind of bad for the mutt. Maybe he really is sad about losing
his friend.”
Ben
blanched. “Griffin, I have to go to boarding school,” he blurted.
“I
mean, you wouldn’t think a ravening beast could have feelings, but –”
Griffin pulled up short. “What did you just say?”
Ben’s
expression was tragic. “There’s this special boarding school for
kids with sleep disorders. I’m number one on the waiting list for the
next open spot.” Ben suffered from narcolepsy, a condition where he might
fall asleep suddenly at any hour of the day or night.
Griffin
was shocked. “But I thought that’s all under control! That’s
why you take those special naps during the day.”
“The
academy has the top experts in the country,” Ben explained. “They’ll
know things to try that a doctor in a little town on Long Island might never
even hear about.” He made a face. “At least, that’s what my
parents say.”
“But
you’ll be gone!” Griffin protested.
“Only
to New Jersey. I’ll be able to come home some weekends.”
The
pavement seemed to sway under Griffin’s feet. “That’s not
good enough! What’s the point of having a best friend if you only get
him ‘some weekends?’ Do you want us to end up like Luthor, dragging
around the house, lower than a caterpillar, barely able to scrape up the energy
to bite the cable guy?”
Ben
sat down on the curbstone, staring glumly at the scuffed toes of his sneakers.
“You think I want to go to that dumb school? But if my folks
say I have to, what can I do about it?”
Griffin
was offended. “How can you of all people ask me that question? First,
we come up with a plan …”
Copyright © 2009 by Gordon Korman, used by permission