Chapter 9
It was later that night in the rear gardens at Senator Cheatham’s mansion. Carter wore a black shirt with black pants while Sabrina the dog wore a black dog's sweater. Alvin stayed back at Sabrina’s house.
Carter and Sabrina the dog crouched behind a bush in the gardens. He pulled out a piece of paper, and looked at map showing the mansion’s floor plan that Alvin drew.
“Ready?” he quietly asked her.
“I’m ready,” she said quietly.
Carter placed a Bart Simpson Halloween mask on his face. He then placed a Lisa Simpson Halloween mask on Sabrina the dog’s face.
They gingerly walked to the rear of Senator Cheatham’s mansion.
Using the key Alvin gave Carter, he gained entrance to the basement of the mansion.
It was quiet as a mouse inside Cheatham’s mansion while Carter and Sabrina the dog tiptoed through the basement.
They quietly walked up the basement stairs.
Carter quietly opened the door and peeked inside the kitchen.
The coast was clear so they stepped inside the kitchen.
Carter glanced at his map while they tiptoed through the kitchen.
In Senator Cheatham sat in his den while he and Scarface, Senators Dewey and Howe sipped on some Chivas Regal Royal Salute scotch.
“I can’t believe you missed your mark,” Senator Cheatham said while he glared at Scarface who had some scrapes and bruises from his tumble down the concrete steps.
“I almost had them, but slipped on some green puke,” Scarface replied to defend himself.
The three Senators sniffed the air and their faces cringed at the awful smell that emitted from Scarface’s clothes.
“So that's what that awful smell is,” Senator Dewey said while he pinched off his nose.
Senators Cheatham, Dewey and Howe got up and moved away to the small bar on the other side of the room to get away from Scarface’s odor.
Scarface, who had his back to the doorway and puffed on a Cuban cigar, didn’t notice Carter and Sabrina the dog while they tiptoed down the hallway.
Carter and Sabrina the dog didn’t notice Scarface in the den because they were too busy looking at the map.
While Senator Cheatham and his buddies freshened up their scotch drinks, his cell phone buzzed. He looked at the viewfinder. “According to our police informant. Carter has a police dog as a partner. This dog hasn't reported to work, but lives at the Mutt Motel,” he read his text message.
Senators Dewey and Howe thought about the text message for a few seconds.
Senator Howe looked a little baffled. “If your Butler gave Remake the Pink Panther, how come he hasn't turned it over to the news people by now? I mean, the FBI would be crawling all over this mansion at this moment,” he told everybody.
They all pondered about his comment while they sipped on their scotch drinks.
Inside the office in Senator Cheatham’s office, Carter and Sabrina the dog tiptoed to the opposite wall from the bookcase.
Carter looked at Alvin’s instructions and pressed a button and a secret panel opened up in the wall. They both stepped inside the secret room.
Carter and Sabrina the dog saw the computer and bank of monitors in the secret room.
On the computer desk, Carter saw the “39 Steps for Creating a Corrupt Government” book with a bookmark for the page on the last step.
Carter got curious and opened up the book at the bookmark. He saw that step 39 called for making copies of evidence that would take all the crooked government officials down with you.
Carter closed the book and looked at the bank of video recorders behind him. He saw the video recorder with a “Office” label and pulled it out.
“I got it!” he said and showed it to Sabrina the dog.
He tucked the tape inside his shirt and they both left the secret room.
Carter and Sabrina the dog snuck down the hallway.
“Stop right there!” Scarface yelled out from behind them.
Carter and Sabrina froze, turned around, and saw Scarface at the end of the hallway standing with a streamer of toilet paper trailing behind him and his Glock in his hand.
“We’re in deep doo doo!” Sabrina the dog said.
Scarface installed his silencer on his Glock. He fired at Carter and Sabrina the dog.
A bullet zinged over Carter’s head.
Carter and Sabrina the dog turned around and high tailed it down the hallway.
Scarface fired his Glock again.
Another bullet zinged on the floor by Carter’s feet.
Carter and Sabrina the dog turned down another hallway.
More bullets ricocheted off the floor and walls while Sabrina the dog ran down the other hallway.
They turned and ran down another hallway.
They ran past the kitchen where Senator Cheatham stood making a pot of coffee while Senators Dewey and Howe waited.
Senator Cheatham saw Carter and Sabrina the dog and it took a few seconds for it to sink in that that was Carter Remake.
Senator Cheatham whipped out a 38 Special he had in one of his pants pocket. “Remake!” he screamed out while he ran out of his kitchen.
Carter and Sabrina the dog ran down that hallway while more bullets zinged on the floor and walls while Senator Cheatham and Scarface fired their pistols.
Carter and Sabrina the dog turned and ran down another hallway.
“Where the hell is the front door?” Carter cried out while they ran down that hallway and bullets zinged around their feet and paws while Scarface, and Senators Cheatham, Dewey and Howe were all shooting at them.
They turned down another hallway and saw the front door and bolted to it.
Carter and Sabrina the dog ran out the front door.
Carter ran out the front door.
Sabrina the dog stayed behind inside the mansion.
Outside the mansion, Carter started to run down the steps from the front door. He stopped when he noticed Sabrina the dog wasn’t by his side. He got worried while he looked around for her.
He heard some scratching on the front door. He rushed back and opened up the door. “Where were you?” he said the second he Sabrina the dog ran outside.
“Buying us some more time,” she said.
They ran down the steps and headed to the driveway.
Inside the mansion, Scarface, Senators Cheatham, Dewey, Howe and Scarface bolted to the front door.
The three Senators and Scarface slipped, their shoes went out from under them and they splashed in a huge puddle on the floor.
Senator Dewey sniffed the air. “Ewe!” he cried out and cringed knowing they all landed in dog pee.
They all got up with huge wet stains on their backsides and ran to the front door.
Outside by the front steps, Scarface, Senators Cheatham, Dewey, Howe saw Carter and Sabrina the dog while they ran down the driveway and headed to the front gate. They all took aim with their pistols and fired at the same time.
Bullets zinged all around the feet and paws of Carter and Sabrina the dog while they ran down the driveway.
Sabrina the dog suddenly dropped to the driveway.
Carter sensed she was hit and stopped. He turned around and saw her on the driveway.
He rushed over to her.
“Go Carter!” she cried out in a little pain
“No! I won't leave a partner behind!”
Carter picked up Sabrina, and ran to the gate while he carried her in his arms.
Back in Sabrina the dog’s house, Alvin vacuumed the living room carpet. There was a clunk, clunk sound while he sucked up numerous items from the carpet.
The front door slammed opened, which startled Alvin.
Carter entered the living room carrying a limp Sabrina the dog in his arms.
He rushed over and set her down on the couch.
He sat down and lovingly rubbed her head.
Sabrina the dog looked up at Carter with her tongue hanging out while she panted. “I'm so glad you made us wear a bullet proof vest.”
Carter removed Sabrina's sweater and looked at her bulletproof vest with four bullets impeded in it.
“Of course. Otherwise, this story would end too quick,” he said while he rubbed her head.
Carter removed the video tape from the inside of his shirt.
“We got the tape,” he said while he showed it to Alvin who rushed over to the couch.
A little while later, Carter, Alvin and Sabrina the dog sat on the couch and watched the TV where the video played from the VCR.
On the TV, they watched while Thomas Crown in his Halloween mask opened up the cash drawer in Senator’s den.
They saw something on his shirt and Carter paused the video.
On the TV, they saw “Thomas Crown – Rich Cat Burglar” embroidered on his black shirt.
The video played and they all watched while Thomas shoved bundles of cash into his sack.
They watched while Thomas shoved the bottles of Cognac into his sack.
They watched while Thomas shoved the Pink Panther into his sack.
Carter stopped the video. He got up off the couch and paced back and forth. “This feels so familiar,” Carter said while he paced some more while he thought about the burglar.
He snapped his fingers when it dawned on him. “Now I remember! My uncle would talk about a case he worked on in 1968. It dealt with a rich billionaire who was bored and became a cat burglar for kicks. His trademark was a Fred Flintstone Halloween mask. My uncle could never get the goods on this cat burglar so he got away. His name was,” he said while he paced around the room. Then he snapped his fingers when he remembered. “His name was Thomas Crown. That's it! Thomas Crown. He's back in business!”
“We find Thomas Crown, we find the Pink Panther,” Sabrina the dog said.
Carter, Alvin and Sabrina the dog high fived each other to indicate they’re going to track down Thomas Crown.
“Let’s go check the Internet for his address,” Carter said then he ran over to a computer desk on the other side of the room.