Page 36 - Book 3 - (barcoded)

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The Wylder Valley
'OK! OK!' the dog said, as he gave in. 'But we'll have to wait for a lorry to come 'cause the gates are locked. Go and hide and I'll give a couple of yaps when it comes. Keep your head down and do as I say.'
Willow waited ... and waited ... and waited. Finally, a lorry appeared. The driver stepped out from his cab to unlock the gates. Slim barked and the heron hurried across the road.
'In 'ere!' the dog snapped. Willow followed him through the gates. He looked across an open area with wire cages on either side of a well-kept lawn. He moved past the cages on the right-hand side and nodded to the sick animals inside.
A sheep said good morning. A young deer lay asleep on a bed of straw and beside it sat three rabbits, crunching carrots. He lost count of the animals cooped up in cages and crossed to the other side, calling.
'Badger, Badger. It's me, Willow. Are you here?'
A small voice came from a cage, and Willow peered inside. 'He's in the big one, up there,' whispered a young vixen, pointing along the pathway.
'Thanks,' said Willow. Two hedgehogs, with their noses pressed against a wire cage, followed his every move. Willow looked inside a large pen, full of clean straw. A powerful sound of snoring told Willow Badger was there. Willow coughed.
'Oh, Willow, how good to see you. Where am I?' Badger asked in a faltering voice.
The heron stooped down. 'You're in an animal rescue