grandkids.”

Giggling, Rebecca slipped her hand into his, feeling the wedding band on his finger. She would rather be here with him, surrounded by pirates, than in the poshest paradise on earth. “And we’ll never, everforget our wedding day.”

Meanwhile...

A short, stout figure in a blue trench coat and a straw hat was creeping towards Khan Towers. If anyone had looked closely, they would have seen that this strange-looking character had four feet.

“Are we there yet?” Molly asked for the umpteenth time. The air was oppressive under the coat.

“Almost,” Kit whispered, keeping his mouth movement to a minimum. He tugged the wide brim of the hat down further to conceal his face.

“I wanna see, too.”

“Not, now, Molly. Khan Towers is just across the street. Here’s a curb. Step down.” They crossed the street. “Curb. Up.” Furtively glancing around at the mob of pirates swarming around outside Khan Towers - none of whom was paying the least attention to them - the boy whispered, “We’re going in. Don’t say a word.”

Kit pushed against the revolving door. They were halfway through when the jacket’s sleeve lodged between the door and the doorway. Kit, unaware that they were caught, continued on. With a final tug, the cubs were unveiled.

“Oops!” Molly whispered as Mad Dog and Dumptruck pounced on them.

“Well, well, lookee what the cat dragged in - a couple of squirts. Whattsa matter? All dressed up and no place to go?” Mad Dog jeered, taking the hat from Kit’s head and flinging it across the room like a frisbee.

“Goin’ to a party?” Dumptruck flicked a beefy finger at Kit’s boutonniere.

Taking hold of Molly’s hand, Kit retorted in his best tough-guy voice, “Yeah, if you really wanna know, we were gonna crash Karnage’s party. Do you have a problem with that?”

Mad Dog and Dumptruck exchanged amused glances. “A coupla of puny babies like you, take on the captain?”

Both pirates snickered at the thought.

“We’re not afraid of you!” Molly shouted bravely.

Dumptruck and Mad Dog produced rifles and pointed them directly at the cubs.

In a small, faint voice, she said, “But we’re afraid of that.”

“What should we do with ‘em?” Dumptruck asked Mad Dog.

“Let us go?” Kit suggested hopefully.

“Yeah, let ‘em..vait a minute!” Dumptruck said, glaring at the nervy cub.

“Let’s take ‘em to the captain.” Mad Dog scooped a squirming, scowling Molly up. “He’ll know what to do.”

“So much for your stupid idea, Kit,” Molly said dolefully as she was carried to the elevator.

“I would’ve been easier to sneak in here if you’d stayed at home like I told you to,” Kit snapped. Dumptruck’s death-grip around his waist wasn’t exactly comfortable.

Molly stuck her tongue out at him. “It’s not my fault the coat got caught on the door.”

“Shaddup, brats!” Mad Dog screeched, clamping a hand over Molly’s mouth.

In the elevator, Molly fixed her questioning gaze on Kit. She was silently asking for a way to get out of this mess.

Kit mimed biting Mad Dog on the hand when the elevator doors opened.

Understanding his plan, Molly nodded slightly, determinedly.

“Stop wigglin’ around, brat!” Mad Dog said, shaking the little girl until she saw stars dance before her eyes.

When the elevator doors opened, the cubs simultaneously sunk their teeth into their captors’ hands.

“Ow!” Dumptruck screamed.

“Ouchie!” Mad Dog yelped. “Stupid kid!”

The children dropped to the floor. They ran - but not far or fast enough.

Just down the hall, they collided with Hal and Gibber. Molly kicked them both in the shins, causing them to hop around in pain.

“Get those kids!” Hal yelled, clutching his sore leg.

“This way!” Kit said breathlessly, dragging Molly away from the pirates. They sprinted down the wide, carpeted hallway, casting furtive glances over their shoulders.

However, they ran out of hallway and there were no doors or windows in sight. The only way out was to go back the way they came.

“Thatway!” Kit puffed, making a hasty U-turn.

Unfortunately, the pirates were waiting for them.

“Nowhere to run to,” Mad Dog sang with a triumphant laugh. He and Gibber held a tennis net stretched across the hallway. Dumptruck and Hal stood behind the net, ready to catch the unruly children after they were caught.

Kit assessed the situation in a glance. Giving Molly a ‘stay here’ look, he said impertinently, “I prefer to fly anyway.”

To the pirates’ amazement, Kit jumped on top of the net. Using the net like a trampoline, he leapt to a hanging light fixture right above his head. From beneath his shirt, he whipped out his airfoil and fanned it open with a click of a button. From his airy perch, he flung his airfoil at Dumptruck’s head.

The airfoil hit its target with a deafening ‘thwack’.

The unconscious Dumptruck keeled over like a ton of bricks into the middle of the net, pulling the two pirates holding its ends in with him. Mad Dog and Gibber flailed their limbs wildly in an attempt to escape from the net.

“Get down here, kid,” Hal growled, pointing his revolver at Kit.

“Oh, Mr. Pirate,” Molly sang sweetly.

When Hal turned around, she kicked him in the shins as hard as she could. He, hopping around, didn’t notice the net until he tripped over it. He, too, was tangled up in the net.

Kit dropped lightly to the ground. He scooped up his airfoil and ruefully examined the new dent in it before folding it and returning it beneath his shirt. Turning to the pirates, he said, “No, no don’t get up. We’ll find out own way out. You guys look like you’re all tied up.”

Molly giggled at his joke.

The cubs exchanged high-fives before hurrying away from the grousing and entangled pirates.

Meanwhile...

Baloo and Rebecca emerged from the cafeteria.

Baloo was examining the contents of the plate of food he carried. “Yuck! Who in their right mind would eat a cheeseburger with tomatoes, pickles, ketchup, mustard, an’ peanut butter?”

Rebecca smirked. “Who ever said Karnage was in his right mind?”

“Hm...I wonder what a burger with peanut butter would taste like,” Baloo mused. He had half a mind to take a bite out of the sandwich, but he thought better of nibbling Karnage’s food.

They rounded the corner, heading for the elevators, when who should smack into them but Kit and Molly. The cubs were headed for the same elevator.

“Ah! More pirates!” Molly shrieked.

The kids didn’t realize who the scruffy pirates were. Hand in hand, they took off like twin shots in the opposite direction.

When the big pirate said, “Whoa! Feather your props,” in a very familiar voice, Kit skidded to an abrupt stop. Molly slammed into his back.

“Baloo?” Kit said in disbelief, turning to look at the two ‘pirates’.

“In the fur,” Baloo chuckled. “What in blue blazes are you kids doin’ here?”

“Daddy!” Molly cried happily. She ran to him and hugged his legs.

“Didn’t expect ta see ol’ Baloo in this get-up, did ya?” The big bear lifted the eyepatch and winked at them.

Rebecca was more steamed than a steamboat. Frowning at them, she said, “I thought I gave you explicit instructions to stay with Wildcat.”

Molly dropped her eyes penitently. “We’re real sorry, Mommy,” she murmured, “but we felt safer with you.” To herself, she added,And we wanted to share the adventure, too.

“Are you okay?” Rebecca asked, looking the cubs up and down in concern.

“Yeah,” they sang in unison, grinning.

The smiles were wiped off their faces when Rebecca said angrily, “Good. You’re in big trouble, both of you. We’ll discuss this when we get home, but first we some food to deliver and a city to save.”

The four bears stepped into the elevator.

Outside Khan Towers

Shere Khan was not a man who was willing to sit back and watch the world pass by. He hadn’t amassed a fortune by being a passive onlooker. Likewise, he was not going to wait for someone to rescue him as Cape Suzette - most of which belonged to him - was pillaged by pirates.

The more he thought about Karnage’s audacity to take his building, the more furious Khan became. A strong hatred - stronger even than his hatred for Whistlestop Jackson - welled up inside of him. One thought pulsed through his mind - he had to purge the building of Don Karnage and his pirates by any means necessary. And, because he didn’t have anyone around to do it for him, he would have to get rid of them himself.

The tiger flicked out a razor-sharp claw. He painstakingly carved a hole in the glass large enough for him to enter.

On padded feet, Khan walked noiselessly across his sumptuously-furnished living quarters over to the elevator. He wrenched the doors open and peered down into the dark elevator shaft. The elevator car was stationed two floors down.

He grasped hold of the cables and slid down. He stealthily, lightly landed on top of the car just as it started to move upward.

Khan wrenched open the trap door in the elevator car’s ceiling and dropped into the car itself. Vaguely realizing that there were two pirates in the car besides himself, he pressed the ‘stop’ button, causing the car to be suspended between floors.

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