Chapter 2

Outside,it was raining as hard as rocks but with a rainbow.

Thunder covered the rainbow everyone ran home or went to a shop for shelter.Inside, Lottie heard a crash and a bang! She looked behind her then looks on the floor the broken glass, torn paper,

Spiders right next to me.To her shock Lottie realised that she was trapped!She thought for a moment or two…”The man will be here soon!”

Behind her, the creepy man -who has a knife in his pocket-glanced at Lottie.Lottie gasped…

…but at that second,something growled louder than thunder…There was a cat looking thing camouflaged into the pitch black.Not one but two bright yellow eyes appeared out from the darkness, whatever it was, burst past Lottie and stood between her and the man.

It was huge, huge and black.Lottie realised that she was standing beside a panther.It threw back it’s fury head:and growled.In that moment,the man fled.Lottie stood terrified.

The panther turned and sat down in front of Lottie resting it’s head on the floor.She saw that the panther had a wound.A strip of red jumped across her side.She had never seen a panther before.It smelled old and crusty.Lottie watched a pelt of black ripple against her back.

They stared intently at each other Lottie felt that she was sizing him up deeper and deeper her very being.But,her fear began to go and she held sniffed.Then she licked her hand with his thick tongue.Her eyes sizzled as if it was heated by flames.She would then see happiness but also a well of sadness…It was then she spoke.A low  deep voice “I need your help now!”she said slowly.”We must find the gate.”

Lottie stared back, his head nodded as if he understood.She knew in that moment she would do anything. “They will be back soon”

Said the panther in a calm voice, “So I must hide”.

Thirty minutes later,Lottie and the panther had slunk through the streets down to the old warehouse by the paddocks.No one dared to venture there. Rumour had it that the ghosts of Navvies haunted the building but the sumerer kingfishers flash across winters edge.The panther curled up in a dark corner and slept.Lottie kept watch.