Jessica and the 102 Dalmatians

chapter 4

"Paper, milady!" a maid called with a newspaper.

"Ah, yes, thank you." Chloe took it with a smile as she sat with Amber, Jessica, Atticus, and Darla in the foyer. It seemed as though Cruella had made the front page somehow.

"Wow, looks like that old bag Cruella got on the front page." Atticus said.

"Cruella de Vil?" Chloe took a look at the front page and skimmed through the article. "Why would they release that.... That..."

Beamer walked in, looking curious.

"It's not possible..." Chloe muttered, she seemed to be horrified of this happening. "The same Cruella who stole from my nephew?"

The three puppies overheard this and went to their uncle to tell him what they just heard.

"Cruella the Devil Woman?" Patch asked them. "Are you sure?"

"Do you remember her, Uncle Patch?" Dipstick asked.

"Yeah, do you?" Little Dipper added.

Patch sighed. "But of course I do! She took me, your parents, and our brothers and sisters away from our parents and she did it again when I was left behind in London when they moved to the farm!" he cried out. "It was terrible and now she's back!"

"Why on earth would they release that evil woman?" Atticus asked.

"It says here she was admitted for her spot obsession." Chloe read.

"Oh, yeah... Her niece Ivy and nephew Jackson got in a lot of trouble too after our London adventure," Darla said. "Does it say anything about them?"

"Well, for Jackson it says that he escaped?!" Chloe said.

"Escaped what?" Atticus asked. "He didn't go to prison!"

"Correction, Bella and Carlos de Vil sent their son to juvenile hall," Chloe explained as she read in the paper. "It also says that Ivy was sent to a reform school in Switzerland, but she's still there with no way out. It's possible Jackson could break her out for revenge."

Jessica's face paled at the mentions of Jackson coming back.

"It it says that they found his cell empty with a giant hole in the wall and that he was able to take out every single guard all by himself and then knock down an entire wall just by kicking it." Chloe said out of fear and shock.

"How could he do that!?" Amber cried.

Atticus thought back and remembered when Jackson drained him of his strength. "He must've injected himself with the strength Zeus gave me!"

"That monster!" Darla growled, not liking this one bit.

Patch whimpered, worrying his niece and nephews, he looked to them and smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry, guys.... Uncle Patch is just having a hard time now..."

Little Dipper and Dipstick comforted him while Oddball saw Jessica needed more attention and nuzzled with her for comfort.

"If he finds us, he'll want to finish what he started." Jessica said.

Chloe hugged the kids. "Don't worry, dears... I'll help you."

"Luv, may I have the paper now?" Kevin asked rather impatiently.

Chloe sighed, handing the paper to her husband. Kevin nodded his head, then went to sit, reading the paper and Beamer looked at it with him.

"I hope he doesn't find us." Patch said.

"We can only hope," Chloe tried to soothe her great-niece and her friends. "Jessica, would you like some water? You look very flush..."

"P-Please..." Jessica gulped.