Mandy took a chance. "Downstream!" she suggested.

Cautiously they took that direction, peering through the undergrowth, along the path, under rocks in the shallows, everywhere. "Ruby!" they called gently. But Ruby chose not to reply.

The late afternoon sun beat down on their backs and caught the clear, swirling water with dimples of bright light. Mandy squinted her eyes for a sight of the black-and-pink runaway. Ruby was as big as a decent-sized dog now, she should be easy enough to spot. But they'd reached a bend in the river where it broadened. On the near bank was a pebbly beach for picnickers. And still there was no sign of Ruby.

"Should we turn back and try the other way?" Mandy asked.

James stood up straight and arched his back, stiff from all the crouching and searching in vain. "She has a pretty good head start on us now," he warned. It would be like going back and starting again.

Then a voice attracted their attention. "That's it, sit up nicely!" Its rich tones floated toward them from a secluded spot on the beach. "Good girls and boy; now you can have a lovely treat!"

Something told Mandy that this was a situation to investigate. "Mrs. Ponsonby!" she mouthed to James, and beckoned him forward.

"There, isn't that delicious! Yum, yum!" Mrs. Ponsonby crooned.

They saw her hat, a pink floppy one with a huge pink bow. They saw her broad back, in pretty floral pink. They saw a fine picnic spread out on a clean white cloth - sandwiches and doggy treats. There were Pandora and Toby sitting up on their hind legs, tongues hanging out. And there was Ruby, eyes gleaming, mouth chomping, patiently awaiting the next tidbit from the luxurious spread!

"We might have guessed!" James muttered. "Where there's food, there's Ruby!"

"She can smell it a mile off," Mandy agreed. But she watched with amazement as Mrs. Ponsonby selected a tasty cucumber sandwich and held it high in the air.

"Good girls!" Mrs. Ponsonby had scooped Toby up under one arm, but still she coaxed Ruby and Pandora. "Precious little friends! Such friendly girlies!"

Yuck! Mandy thought. She saw that Ruby's and Pandora's eyes were fixed on the sandwich. They sat bolt upright, mouths watering.

"Piggy's turn!" Mrs. Ponsonby said. Delicately she offered the sandwich to Ruby, who took it with a grin and swallowed it whole. "Good girl, Pandora!" Mrs. Ponsonby told her patient pet.

Mandy turned to James. "Amazing!"

"That's another couple of pounds she's gained, at any rate!" he grinned. And they stood up, confident that Ruby wouldn't run away again.

"Ah, hello, Amanda! Hello, James!" Mrs. Ponsonby glanced up as they approached. She acted as if there were nothing in the least unusual in giving a picnic party for a Pekingese dog, a mongrel, and a piglet. "Meet Pandora's new friend. A most affectionate little creature, and so well mannered!" She smiled down at Ruby.

Ruby cocked one ear and eyed them calmly. Mrs. Ponsonby fed her another sandwich. Gobble, and it was gone.

"Yes." Mandy smiled and fumbled for words. "As a matter of fact, we've already met," she said.

"Her name's Ruby," James offered. "We've come looking for her."

Mrs. Ponsonby looked crestfallen. "You mean you know her and you want to take her home?"

Toby wagged his tail and Pandora growled. Ruby snorted suspiciously.

Mrs. Ponsonby sighed. "Ah, well!" She flicked breadcrumbs from her lap. "All good things must come to an end, Pandora dear!" She leaned forward and scratched Ruby behind the ear. "Such a little charmer!" she cooed. Then with her free arm she grasped the piglet firmly around the middle, struggled to her feat, and calmly handed her over to Mandy.

"Thank you," Mandy said, still almost speechless. "We were really worried about her."

"No need to thank me!" Mrs. Ponsonby smiled. She set Toby down again, adjusted her hat, and straightened the creases from her dress. "The pleasure was all mine!" Then she looked inquisitively at them each in turn. "Where does Ruby live?" she asked. "Oh, of course, I expect it's at Graystones, where else?"

Mandy had been ready to answer, but Mrs. Ponsonby gave her no time. "Well, that's quite easy for us to visit, Pandora dear; not at all out of our way!" She came up with the Pekingese and mongrel at her heels and tickled Ruby's chin. "We'll see you soon, my pet!" she promised.

"Oh, no!" Mandy said, then stopped.

"Its' not quite that simple," James explained.

There was an awkward silence.

Mandy stared deep into Mrs. Ponsonby's round, powdered face. There was a puzzled, hurt look there. And suddenly everything poured out. "I'm sorry, Mrs. Ponsonby. Pandora can't visit Ruby because Ruby's not supposed to be there!"

Out came the tail of Mr. Gill's cruel death sentence, Brandon's loyalty to poor little Ruby, and the search for a safe hiding place. "We've had to hide her away in secret to save her life! No one knows she's there in the playpen except us - and now you!" Mandy finished. She felt Ruby nestle against her and settle down for a nap.

There was another pause as Mrs. Ponsonby took everything in. "I see!" she said. "And you helped to save Ruby's life?"

Mandy nodded. But now that she'd started to talk, there was no stopping her. There was something else she needed to explain. It was what bothered her whenever she thought of the Graystones pigs. What would happen to Ruby later on, even if they saved her life now? She could never talk to Brandon or even James about it. "The trouble is," she confessed to Mrs. Ponsonby, "we may have helped Brandon to save Ruby's life, but for how long?"

"What do you mean, dear?" Mrs. Ponsonby's face was the picture of concern.

Mandy glanced at James. She felt the tears well up. "Well, she lives on a pig farm. And we're helping to feed her..." Again she paused. "But it says in my mother's book that when the get to about a hundred and ten pounds, that's when they're ready for...I mean, that's when they're taken to..." But she couldn't finish the sentence before the tears came.

"Fifty-three days!" James said in a hollow voice. The numbers clicked inside his head. "That's how long she has! Less than two months!"

"Oh!" Mandy cried. She clutched Ruby closer to her.

But Mrs. Ponsonby's face had changed. "Oh, my dear, don't upset yourself!" she cried. "There's something I don't think you quite understand! Do you think that David Gill farms those pigs to send them off to slaughter?" She squeezed Pandora and they shared a little joke.

Mandy looked up. That had been her silent fear this last week - that Ruby would end up on the butcher's block. It didn't even bear thinking about!

Mrs. Ponsonby smiled kindly. "You have it all wrong, Amanda dear. Everyone in Welford knows that isn't the case! Ken Hudson tends many of those splendid creatures as show pigs. It's a small herd, just a hundred or so pigs, you see, and they make marvelous first cross animals for some of the less hardy indoor breeds - the Large White, the Welsh, the Landrace, for instance! He sells them for breeding!"

James stared at Mrs. Ponsonby. She was full of surprises today.

Mandy let the words sink in. "Are you sure?" she asked. "How do you know all this about pigs?"

The large lady came and patted Mandy's hand. "Listen, I've known Ken Hudson since we were children at school together. You pick up such a lot just from listening to him, you know. He's a marvel with pigs, poor man! He's missing them badly stuck inside with that broken leg of his!"

Mandy and James nodded.

"He's convinced that pigs are intelligent creatures, almost as clever as my Pandora!" she beamed. "They chose the Saddlebacks for Graystones because they're an outdoor breed. Many have a fine pedigree. They sell them for breeding. Believe me!"

Mandy did. She was overjoyed. She hugged Ruby and thanked Mrs. Ponsonby. She petted Pandora and beamed at James.

"Let's get back to the farm," James said. "And get Ruby bedded down for a good night's sleep!"

"And thank you, Mrs. Ponsonby!" You've made our day!" Mandy cried.

They sped back upriver. Ruby, happy to be carried, looked at the scenery with interest. Mrs. Ponsonby, Toby, and Pandora watched them go. "And don't worry, I won't give away Ruby's secret!" she shouted after them. "I'm sure she's going to make an absolutely splendid show pig after all!"