I stopped listening for a second, because my brain was too overwhelmed to keep up. Mom and Mark must have gotten into a huge fight over that note. She said she was mad. Their last words to each other had been words of anger….
“‘I can’t tell anyone what I’m going to do. Not even Joe. I feel terrible for the lies I’m about to tell, but Joe is already in agony. He’d fall apart if he knew that Mark’s stubbornness ended his life, that his own wife could have stopped it, should have stopped it, and didn’t….’”
“Are you sure you don’t want me to stay?” I heard Hayley ask. Yes. Stay, Hayley. She’d stayed for dinner, sitting in The Dad’s seat. And after that, she’d read Cassie more of the book. Finally, the reading was done. At least for tonight. Woof. Listening to those terrible words made my head hurt. So did watching Cassie’s face. Her eyes leaked. Her face twisted. She looked like she’d been kicked. Over and over.
I leaned into Cassie, nuzzling her and licking tears away. “No, that’s okay,” Cassie said as she stroked my bad ear. “You should go. Dodge and I are just going to go to sleep.”
Hayley looked at us. She smelled like doubt.
“I’m fine,” Cassie said, trying to smile. But her mouth curled up like she was growling.
I looked at Hayley. She didn’t believe it. I didn’t believe it, either. Cassie wasn’t fine. That book made her feel terrible. Maybe I should have left it in the trash. Maybe it belonged there.
“Go!” Cassie barked impatiently. She was tired. And grumpy. “Really.”
“All right,” Hayley said quietly. She set the book down on Cassie’s desk. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
Cassie sighed. “Thanks,” she said. “Thanks for your help.”
Hayley squeezed my girl’s shoulder. “Anytime,” she said.
Cassie hid the book in a dresser drawer, put on her pajamas, and crawled into bed. I pulled Bunny out, circled, and settled in with a whump. Cassie’s hand fell into my fur. I chewed Bunny’s ear and waited for her to fall asleep.
It took longer than ever. When Cassie’s breathing finally changed, I tucked Bunny in. I licked the salt off Cassie’s cheeks and padded downstairs. I was really looking forward to getting out. Stretching my legs. Making my rounds. It had been too long.
My nose was quivering. Ready. Then I saw The Dad at the fridge. Just standing. And staring. This wasn’t suspicious. I’d seen it before. He did it when he couldn’t sleep. But it meant no rounds for now.
“Hey, Dodger,” The Dad said as he closed the food box. He ruffled my fur with one hand and fed me a piece of salami with the other. Mmm, salami. I loved salami. Salami was my favorite. The Dad loved salami, too, but not right now. Right now he didn’t love anything. He slumped at the counter. “I just don’t get it,” he said. “What is she hiding? Why is she hiding anything? I’m supposed to be her partner….” He trailed off and stared into space. He looked like Bunny — unstuffed.
Then, all of a sudden, he got up and left the kitchen. He headed for the stairs. Stopped. Changed his mind. Walked over to the closet. He pulled out a blanket and a pillow from the top shelf. This was suspicious. I’d never seen it before. The Dad always slept in his den with The Mom.
He spread the blanket over the couch. I whimpered. “Don’t tell,” he said. He crawled under the blanket and closed his eyes. I circled and dropped. Settled on the floor. Just for a while.
It took The Dad a really, really long time to fall asleep. Even longer than Cassie.
I woke with a jolt and sat up, panicked. I’d had a bad dream. A terrible dream. I’d been riding all over town in a patrol car, reading Mom’s diary over the loudspeaker — broadcasting secrets as the cruiser rolled down the street. The looks on the faces of the citizens of Bellport were horrible: disappointment, betrayal, disgust. And then there was Summer Hill’s expression: sheer delight.
I felt a hint of relief when Dodge’s ears and snout appeared over the edge of the bed, and the rest of his head followed. His eyes asked if I was okay. I patted him in response.
It was a dream, I told myself, shivering. At least the worst part anyway. It was barely light out, but trying to go back to sleep after my nightmare was pointless. I pulled on some clothes in the semidark, wondering if I could act normal around my family at breakfast. Making it through dinner had been really hard, and I’d had Dodge and Hayley there for backup. I wasn’t sure I could make it through another meal. I needed to make a quick break. Get out before I got caught up.
“I think I’m gonna head out early,” I told Dodge as we left our room. He lowered his eyebrows at me, which I tried hard to ignore. I didn’t need to add more guilt to my already heaping pile.
In the kitchen, I scooped kibble into Dodge’s bowl, giving him a little extra. Then I quickly scrawled a note to Mom. I was grabbing a banana when Owen ambled up from downstairs. So much for a clean break.
“You’re up early,” he yawned in my direction.
“Or late, depending on how you look at it. I haven’t been exactly sleeping lately,” I admitted.
Owen nodded. “Me, either.” He stood there in the kitchen, looking bleary and disheartened. “It’s gonna be okay, though, right?” He stroked the top of Dodge’s head.
I gaped at him in surprise. He was asking me? What did I know? Dodge gave me a sad chocolate stare, and I smiled weakly at both of them. “I sure hope so.”
Owen half nodded, then shuffled forward and opened his arms. Biting my lip, I stepped into them. Into a hug. We stood there for a few seconds in the kitchen, hugging, with Dodge nosing our legs. I couldn’t remember the last time Owen and I had hugged, and I felt myself tearing up. But I couldn’t cry. I had stuff to do. Besides, Mom could’ve walked in at any second.
The thought of seeing Mom made me pull away harder than I meant to, and Owen looked a little hurt. “I’ve got to head out,” I explained. “See you later?”
Owen shrugged, back to his teenager self, and opened the cereal cupboard. “Sure.” I gave Dodge a kiss good-bye. Luckily Owen dropped a few flakes of cereal on the floor, which distracted him while I left.
Outside, I tried to breathe and shake off all the family stuff I’d been carrying around, the way Dodge shook off water. But it was on me good, and I felt extra heavy as I got on my bike and started for school.
* * *
“I’m coming with you,” Hayley announced when classes were over. “No ifs, ands, or buts.”
I nodded as we walked down the school steps with Alicia. Hayley walked close, our shoulders practically touching. “You didn’t read the diary,” she reminded me quietly, her dark eyes full of empathy. “I did.”
“Yeah, but I know what it says,” I reminded her. “That’s almost as bad.”
Alicia put a hand on my arm when we got to the sidewalk. “I’m so sorry. About everything,” she said. “Is there anything I can do?”
“Got a magic wand?” I asked hopefully.
“You’re going to get through this,” Hayley insisted. “Chin up. Let’s head to the waterfront. The pups are waiting.”
“Pups?” Alicia asked. “What pups?”
“Some strays in the warehouse district,” Hayley explained. “Cassie and Taylor have been trying to rescue them.”
“Oh, the poor things!” Alicia cried. “I hope they weren’t mistreated like my Hugo was.” She shuddered. “He’s such a marshmallow. I can’t imagine what happened to him before . . .”
“You want to come with us?” I asked.
Alicia looked at her mom’s station wagon pulling up to the curb. “Can’t. Orthodontist appointment. See you tomorrow!”
We waved good-bye and hopped on our bikes, pedaling for home. We picked up Dodge, then burgers, and rode to the waterfront. Taylor was already at our spot with the crates. “They’re still here,” he confirmed as we parked our bikes. “But there’s no way I can get them out without you, Cassie.”
“You mean the burgers,” I replied, wagging the bag in the air before setting them down.
“I know exactly what you mean.” Hayley’s goofy grin made me remember how lucky I was to have friends like Taylor and Hayley and Dodge. I was the one who’d be lost without them.
Feeling a little more like myself, I reached for a burger. Only my hand closed on nothing. The bag was gone!
“Dodge, again?” Taylor said accusingly.
Dodge was wandering nearby sniffing, tail down, like he felt bad. But it wasn’t like him to steal food — especially the burgers. He knew what they were for, and that he always got at least one of his own. Plus this was the second time the whole bag had disappeared, paper and all. It didn’t add up.
“Dodge? You okay?” I asked as I gave him a scratch. He wasn’t acting guilty, but did seem … off. Distracted. And now we were out of bait.
“I could head back to the Smokehouse for more,” I offered.
Hayley dug around in her backpack and pulled out a batch of peanut butter bars sprinkled with caramelized bacon. “Do you think these would work?”
I got a peanut buttery bacony noseful and smiled. Dodge looked up from his wandering and licked his chops. Would they ever! The strays under the docks had probably been living off trash since they were puppies, and those bars smelled amazing. Hayley had mad baking skills — only a robot would be able to resist her treats. “They’ll work, all right,” I whooped as Taylor sat down to pull off his boots.
Three minutes later I was crawling under the loading dock, carefully cradling Hayley’s bars in my hand.
Up ahead, I saw something in the darkness. The glint of eyes. A stray pup! “It’s okay,” I told him — or her. “I’m not going to hurt you. I have a treat….” I held out a bar and a sloppy mouth gobbled it up. That was fast!
“Good dog,” I said in a soothing voice. “Now, where’s your friend?” I heard a whimper and felt a nose. Maybe the chow hound would follow me out from under the dock. Reaching for another bar, I scooted backward, luring him. The dog’s paws scraped along the ground. He was coming!
When we got to the edge of the dock, I squinted in the light and looked for the pup, expecting to have to encourage him the rest of the way out. Instead a large English bull terrier climbed right into my lap and scarfed down the other bar!
“Well, hello!” I said, getting a hand on his scruff. This wasn’t one of the timid black-and-white strays we’d been trying to catch. This guy wasn’t scrawny or shy at all. In fact, he was a little chubby … like maybe he’d been eating bags full of burgers! He gave me a friendly slurp. “I think we found our thief!” I told Hayley and Taylor. “This guy has some serious burger breath.”
“Oh my gosh,” Hayley exclaimed, squatting. “Look at him!” The terrier pooch scrambled out of my lap and into Hayley’s. He licked her face again and again, like he knew she’d made the bars and wanted to thank her personally. Taylor clipped a collar around the dog’s neck while he climbed all over Hayley. When Hayley stood up and he couldn’t reach her face, he hopped up beside her and licked her knees!
“I don’t think we need a crate for this guy,” Taylor said, laughing. “He’d follow Hayley anywhere!”
I had to agree. Hayley definitely had a new four-legged friend. A smile spread across my face as I watched the two of them. The burger burglar was a total sweetie pie! I looked around for Dodge — he’d probably want to meet the burger thief — but didn’t see his brown tail anywhere. “Dodge?” I called. “Dooodge?” No answer. Dog gone!
I knew I should stay. Cassie told me to, and I was trained. My head said: Sit. But my body said: Move it.
Maybe it was because I’d been fooled by the Burger Burglar again. Maybe it was because I’d been in the house too much lately. Or maybe it was instinct.
Whatever it was, I needed to sniff some stuff out. I got to my feet. S-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d. Shook. S-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d again, and padded silently away from the loading dock.
The pavement around the waterfront was in bad shape. The buildings weren’t much better. I passed several abandoned warehouses. Then Muffet’s Dumpster. I wondered if the spunky pup had any of the garbagey smell left on her and licked my chops.
My mind wandered as I sniffed. Seaweed. Oil. Bait. I was enjoying a noseful by the pier. Then, BOOM! A loud noise thundered in the distance, stopping me in my tracks. My good ear twitched. I shuddered.
This time my training said: Get back to Cassie. And my instincts said: Keep sniffing. Training won, and I took off at top speed. I was almost back to where I’d left my girl and her friends when I saw a shiny black car in the distance. I stopped. Watched. My eyes focused down the block and something whizzed by, moving fast. Greyhound fast. So fast I couldn’t exactly see who it was. But a moment later I could smell who it was — the scrawny dogs Cassie’d been trying to rescue.
Training and instincts went at it again. Get back to your post! said training. Follow those dogs! said instincts. I hesitated, but only for a second. I was a dog, and a dog loved a chase.
The pups tore up the street, weaving. I chased them in and out of alleyways. Buildings. It took all I had just to keep a bead on them. Then I lost them. Just for a minute. I slowed to a trot. My nose quivered. And I found them again! I took off straight ahead and saw them duck into a burnt-out building.
I sprinted inside after them. I smelled smoke. I screeched to a halt, my paws sliding across the floor. My hackles stood straight up. Oh! Not here. Oh dog, not here!
I whimpered as queasiness overtook me. The room whirled. A voice rumbled inside my head. Or outside of it.
“No, Dodge!” Mark’s voice. Mark? How could it be Mark? Mark was — “Bad dog!” he shouted. I whimpered. I couldn’t breathe right. I couldn’t see. I dropped low, my belly against the cold, grimy floor. I started to back out of the building. I had to get out. But the floor was tilting under my paws. I couldn’t walk straight. I couldn’t even crawl straight! Then Mark was back. I saw him in my closed eyes. Behind my eyelids.
“I’m taking this off,” he told me. He unstrapped the FIDO. The FIDO was on me, not Hero. He pushed a button on the screen and took out a tiny square of plastic. “To keep you safe. Well, safer.” He talked in a hushed tone. “They’re coming, boy. But we got here first. And we got what we need. Good boy. You did a good job. Now I need you to stay for a minute, Dodge. Stay!” His voice was serious. Mark disappeared in the shadows. I whimpered. I stayed.
I didn’t know how long I was in there or where the pups had gone. All I could hear was Mark’s voice, calling. Then ka-boom! The explosion repeated in my good ear. Over and over. Too many times. I whimpered, confused. What was happening?
My bad ear began to ring, drowning out everything else. I whined pitifully. I wanted to leave this place. Get out. But I couldn’t move. Mark had told me to stay. But Mark was dead. My head hurt. Nothing was clear. Nothing made sense.
Something touched my paw. A tongue? Yes, a tongue. I heard a high-pitched bark, from somewhere far away. I opened an eye. It took a long time to focus. A small white shape swam into view. A tiny dog was standing in front of me. Muffet! She’d broken out again. She made a begging sound and licked my cheek. I closed my eyes. She barked. And licked. And barked again. “Yip! Yip! Yip!” She kept yipping.
Then I heard a voice. “Dodge?” It was Cassie. My girl. Her footsteps were fast, running. She dropped to the floor. “Dodge, are you all right?” But she could tell. She could tell I wasn’t all right. I licked her hand weakly. More footsteps. Muffet barked and pulled on Cassie’s sleeve. “Dodge, we’ve got to get out of here. I need you to get up.”
Cassie grabbed my collar. I tried to walk, but the floor was still tilted. Cassie pulled me behind a burnt-out wall with Muffet. As we dropped out of sight, I saw two figures step into the warehouse.
Riley and Hero.
I pulled Dodge behind the charred wall,
my heart in my throat. I had no idea what was going on with him. He wasn’t hurt, but something was wrong — really wrong. I hadn’t seen him like this since he first came to live with us. Mom said he was still in shock back then, from the explosion. But what would make him go into shock now?
I inhaled sharply, cutting off my own thoughts, and peered over the low wall we were hiding behind just in time to see Officer Riley and Hero walk into the warehouse. We were hidden from view, thanks to Muffet. Not only did she alert me, she found us a place to take cover. Could Hero and Riley’s presence be making Dodge act so strangely? He was always on guard around them, but … I held on to my dog — my poor dog — and hoped they wouldn’t notice us.
Peering through a crack in the burnt-out wall, I saw that Officer Riley was dressed in street clothes. That probably meant that he was off duty, but Hero was wearing the FIDO. Again.
“Okay, Hero,” Riley said. “Search.”
Dodge whimpered slightly, and I held on tighter while Hero sniffed the air. “Rwoof!” He looked our way, and I froze. Hero knew we were here! Luckily Riley didn’t understand what Hero was telling him. He just repeated the same command, “Search!”
Next to me, Muffet squirmed. She wasn’t wearing her usual figure skating costume. She wasn’t even wearing a collar! I put my hand on her back and felt her trembling. All of us were jittery. We had to get out of there before Riley got Hero’s message. Only Hero and Riley were blocking the way out, and I wasn’t even sure Dodge could make it. He was shaking, and his eyes looked sort of weird and unfocused. Plus he’d barely reacted to Hero’s barks. It had to be shock.
Muffet nuzzled Dodge’s nose, then grabbed ahold of my sleeve and tugged me backward. I followed, crouching and coaxing Dodge along silently. Muffet walked ahead, looking back at us, and I saw where she was leading — another exit! I moved faster.
For a fleeting second I thought I saw the stray pups hiding behind a pile of rubble. But the dogs, if it was them, skulked away and this was no time to go after them. Priority one was to get away from Hero and Riley. Priority two was to figure out what was going on with Dodge.
Dead Man's Best Friend Page 8
