Secondhand Dogs

by Carolyn Crimi

  “Well, yes, but Gertie is still at her nasty, nasty sister’s house,” Moon Pie said. “She’s not home.”

  “But that’s not true.” Decker cocked his head to one side. He hoped he looked concerned. He was not actually sure what concern looked like, but he hoped he at least managed to fake it well. “When I was in the shelter, a woman came by asking about a small pug.”

  Moon Pie’s tail wagged once. “What?”

  “Yes, yes,” Decker said. “She had a long white braid and big eyeglasses.” He considered saying how they made her look like a bug, but thought better of it. “She had something in her hand, too,” Decker said. “Could it have been”—he looked up at the ceiling—“a pirate hat?”

  “YES!” Moon Pie said. “Gertie had a long white braid and glasses and she liked to put me in hats! She loved that pirate hat on me!”

  “Oh, well, she’s looking for you!”

  “Really?” Moon Pie said. His tail wagged rapidly. “I thought she was still on vacation with her nasty, nasty sister! No one told me she was back!”

  “I bet she misses you quite a bit.”

  “You think so?” Moon Pie asked. He paused and tilted his head to one side. “But I don’t understand. Why did Miss Lottie take me, then, if Gertie wasn’t really gone on vacation?”

  Decker stared hard at Moon Pie. “I don’t think you want to know why,” he said.

  “Oh,” Moon Pie said. “But—”

  “Never mind about that, Moonie!” Decker said. He nudged Moon Pie with his nose. “I think Gertie is probably very worried about you. Otherwise, why would she be looking for you at the shelter? You don’t want her to be worried, do you?”

  “No!” Moon Pie said. “Not at all!”

  “Well then, you should be a good dog and go to her.”

  “Yes, yes, I should!” Moon Pie let out a small yip. He spun in a quick circle, then stopped. “But how?”

  “Oh, that’s easy,” Decker said. “You know that patch of trees in the back of the yard?”

  “Yes,” Moon Pie said. “But no one ever goes there.”

  “Well, I did,” Decker said. “And I found something very, very interesting. There’s a hole in the fence. You could fit through it easily!”

  “Really?” Moon Pie’s brow furrowed. “You think?”

  “I know it,” Decker said.

  “You think I could go tomorrow?” Moon Pie asked. His big eyes widened and his tail was still wagging furiously.

  “I don’t see why not. Just sneak out there when no one is looking.”

  “Oh,” Moon Pie said. His tail went limp. “I was sort of hoping that Gus or Tank could come with me.”

  “No, Moonie. You don’t need them. They would probably just say that you were too young to go, but I know different.”

  “I don’t know—”

  Decker narrowed his eyes. “Moonie, I happen to know that Gertie has been waiting for you for quite a long time. And you know what? Gus and Roo and Tank have kept quiet about it on purpose. I heard them talking. They want to keep you all to themselves.”

  “That’s weird,” Moon Pie said. “Why?”

  “I don’t know,” Decker said. “Maybe they’re bored. Maybe you’re their entertainment. Like a little clown. All I know is, they lied. And so did Miss Lottie.”

  “I guess you’re right,” Moon Pie said softly. “I mean, if you just saw Gertie at the shelter . . .”

  “Yes, I’m afraid it’s true. Gertie has been waiting for you. I saw her myself, big glasses and all, and she misses you, Moonie. She misses you a lot.”

  Moon Pie’s ears drooped. “I miss her, too.”

  “There, there,” Decker said. He gave Moon Pie a lick on the top of his head. It was all he could do to keep himself from gagging. “Go to her tomorrow and everything will be okay. Don’t tell anyone. Just slip out that hole and you’ll be on your way.”

  Moon Pie stood. “I’ll do it! I’ll do it tomorrow!”

  “Good for you, Moonie!”

  Moon Pie started trotting back down the hall, then stopped. He turned.

  “What if I can’t remember how to get there?” he asked.

  “Oh, you’ll know,” Decker said. “A good dog never forgets where his human lives.”

  Moon Pie’s ears lifted. “You’re right! I’ll leave tomorrow! Thanks, Decker!”

  “Of course,” Decker said. “And remember! Don’t tell anyone. They’ll just try to keep you here. Now off you go.”

  Decker watched as Moon Pie hopped back down the hall to the family room. He cocked his head to one side. Sniffed the air.

  “Cat, is that you I smell?”

  The house was silent.

  Decker sniffed harder. “Yes, yes it is.” His growl was low and menacing. “Better keep your mouth shut.”

  He started walking down the hall, stopping every so often to sniff at corners.

  “Because, cat, I have dealt with your kind before. And it wasn’t pretty.”

  Ghost

  Ghost listened from the shadows of the spare room as the new dog strutted down the hall. The white cat kept as still as possible.

  Decker had threatened him. Again. This dog was bold. And unlike the others, he was unpredictable. Ghost fully believed that he had hurt many creatures in his past. He could sense this about Decker the same way he could sense a storm was coming.

  Ghost could hear him lapping up water, then his big paws padding back down the hall. He paused outside the guest room.

  “I mean it, cat,” Decker said, before slipping into Miss Lottie’s bedroom.

  Ghost edged his way into the farthest corner of his under-bed home to think. He pulled Mouse into a one-paw hug and licked the top of his head twice quickly. Mouse, with his button eyes and string tail, soothed Ghost during times of turmoil.

  He had indeed heard the conversation between Decker and Moon Pie. He had even crawled out from his lair so that he could hear better. He knew Decker had lied to the small dog. Gertie was dead, and they all knew it. All of them except Moon Pie. It was silly to keep her death from him, but dogs were silly in many ways.

  Ghost didn’t feel one way or the other about Moon Pie. He was just another noisy dog in a house full of noisy dogs. And Moon Pie was younger and bouncier and noisier than the others. Without him, the house would be quieter.

  But Gus, well, that was different. Ghost liked the kindly terrier. And Gus would not want Moon Pie wandering around looking for his former human.

  Ghost nipped Mouse’s ear once. Hard.

  Gus had initiated the Truce. And he had left Ghost two Tiddle Widdle Chicken Bits by the door that morning, as promised. He and Gus had had interesting discussions about life at Miss Lottie’s, about the differences between cats and dogs, and about the oddness of people. They even had a silly, ongoing debate about which toys were better—tennis balls or balls of yarn.

  As much as he hated to admit it, Ghost was lonely, and Gus made his life less so.

  But more important, there was this new dog. Decker didn’t play by the rules of the pack. He would probably blatantly disregard the Truce, and without the Truce, Ghost was outnumbered. If all the dogs decided to listen to Decker, Ghost would have to find another home, and, well, he didn’t even like coming out from under the bed, much less going outdoors to look for a new abode.

  He licked Mouse’s head, thinking.

  He would do it. He would sneak into the family room, where the pack slept. Then he would quietly wake up Gus and tell him what Decker had said.

  Ghost poked his nose out and sniffed nervously. He slipped out from under the bed. He would have to be extra quiet around this dangerous new dog.

  He had explored the family room many times, but mostly when the dogs were asleep. Curling up under his bed day after day was boring, so he would investigate at night, being careful not to get too close to the sleeping dogs. He’d sniff at their food and bat at dangling things, like towels hanging over chairs or the string that pulled the shade down. But whenever
he explored, he kept a good distance from the dogs. Gus, he trusted, but the rest, well . . .

  There was no other way. He had to do this.

  He sprinted down the hallway, keeping close to the wall, until he was standing in the entrance to the family room. The room was completely still except for the occasional snuffle or snore. He wove in and around the coffee table legs. Ghost could see Gus’s scruffy silhouette in the dim light.

  He trotted toward him quietly, stealthily, barely making a sound.

  “Gus! Wake up! It’s that spooky-scary cat!” cried Moon Pie.

  Ghost froze. His muscles tightened. One ear twitched.

  Gus raised his head. “Huh?”

  Moon Pie started barking.

  “Moonie, what’s wrong?” Gus asked.

  “The cat!” Moon Pie said. “The spooky-scary cat is here! He’s here!”

  “Whaaa—” Gus asked, shaking his head.

  The next thing Ghost knew, Roo was standing up and barking. “WHAT’S GOING ON? IS THERE A FIRE? GUS, WHAT IS HAPPENING?”

  “I don’t know!” Gus said.

  “Why don’t you know, Gus?” Roo barked. “YOU NEVER KNOW!”

  Moon Pie scrambled to his feet. “Go away!” he barked. He moved closer to Ghost, his teeth bared.

  Ghost’s heart slammed against his chest. “Be quiet!” he hissed. “You’ll wake up the new dog!”

  But Moon Pie only barked louder. “You’re a sneak! That’s what you are!” He moved closer to Ghost, snarling.

  Ghost backed away. The dogs’ barking grew more and more frenzied. Once Ghost reached the doorway, he skittered out of the family room.

  “Moonie, Roo, quiet!” Gus barked. “Everyone, shush!”

  Roo and Moon Pie kept barking as Ghost scurried down the hall, slid under the bed, and curled up tightly with Mouse gripped between his paws. He could hear Miss Lottie’s steps, followed by Decker’s. Ghost held himself completely still.

  “What’s going on out here?” Miss Lottie said. The dogs stopped barking. Ghost heard Miss Lottie pour herself a glass of water. She heaved a sigh, then walked around a little while longer. “Okay,” she said finally. “Everyone looks fine now.”

  She walked back down the hall with Decker at her side.

  Ghost let out a lungful of air. Helping those silly dogs was too dangerous. They were on their own.

  Ghost Before

  He started life as Snowflake.

  New homes meant new names.

  Fluff (nah)

  Snowball (yawn)

  Marshmallow (never)

  Lily (!)

  Sam (almost)

  Until finally

  Lastly

  Perfectly

  Ghost (yes)

  It didn’t actually matter. He never came when he was called.

  Roo

  When Miss Lottie let them out for their morning pee, Roo waited until Decker walked out the back door first before following him into the yard. He was clearly the pack leader now, and she wanted to show him that she knew it.

  It was so, so obvious to her. She couldn’t understand why the other dogs didn’t see it. Gus had lost this battle. It was as simple as that. When Decker had bitten his own paw, Gus didn’t do ANYTHING.

  HE NEVER DID ANYTHING.

  Not when Ghost entered the living room the night before. Not when that rat got into the kitchen years ago. A RAT, for crying out loud! And Gus didn’t do a thing! He just waited for Miss Lottie to take care of it. Ugh!

  She was tired of the way Gus hesitated. Tired of the way he hemmed and hawed and waited until it was too late to make a good decision. Real leaders were decisive! They knew exactly what to do at all times! They didn’t hang back, waiting for someone else to do the leading.

  Gus was wishy-washy. Decker was confident. Strong. Brave.

  Decker was everything that Gus was not. Decker was a leader.

  Sure, biting himself was a strange thing to do. But Tank was such a bossypants, Roo couldn’t blame Decker for getting him in trouble. And what better way to teach Tank that Decker was in charge now? It was actually the perfect move. After all, Decker didn’t really hurt anyone but himself. It wasn’t like he was mean.

  The air had a wintery feel to it. Roo gave herself a shake. Next to her, Decker was sniffing a tree. She sidled up and sniffed it with him.

  “Winter’s on the way,” Roo said.

  Decker glanced back at her and then continued sniffing the tree.

  “I personally don’t mind winter,” Roo continued. “It’s better than summer. Summer’s too hot, don’t you think?”

  Decker didn’t seem to be paying much attention to her. Which was fine. As the new leader, he probably had bigger things on his mind than the weather.

  “How do you like Miss Lottie’s food?” Roo asked. “Are you getting enough treats?”

  Decker stopped suddenly. He turned to look at her. “Not really,” he said. “Maybe you should start giving me some of yours.”

  Roo hesitated. “Um, sure.”

  There was something about the request that didn’t sit quite right with her, but leaders, Roo knew, needed their strength. If an extra treat would help Decker keep up his stamina, she would give it to him.

  Decker sat. Roo quickly sat next to him. He was staring at Gus, so Roo did, too.

  Gus had moseyed over to the back fence. He was gnawing on a stick. Again. If there were an award given to dogs for rock-and-stick-gnawing, Gus would get one. It was probably his dog gift, although frankly, it seemed like a useless one.

  Of course, Gus was kind. He had helped her out a lot when she first moved into Miss Lottie’s. He had woken her up when she had nightmares and given her an extra treat when she got nervous about something. And she had been nervous. A lot.

  She wasn’t really that nervous anymore. Not with Decker in charge.

  Roo looked over at Decker and sighed. It felt comforting to have such a strong leader. She’d probably never be nervous about anything ever again.

  “I love it in the yard, don’t you?” Roo asked.

  Decker looked at her but didn’t say a word.

  He was thinking big, important thoughts again, for sure.

  Gus

  Gus had been saving the stick, which was just crumbly enough to be satisfying, for a special occasion. A birthday, perhaps, or maybe a Thanksgiving treat. But now he simply gnawed on it while watching Roo. Every hair on his body stood at attention as he watched her follow Decker around the perimeter. She had been doing it all morning. If Decker sniffed a tree, she sniffed a tree. If he held his nose up to the sky, she did the same. It saddened Gus, and it made him worry.

  And yet it didn’t surprise him that Roo was acting this way. Soon after Roo arrived, a rat had gotten into Miss Lottie’s kitchen, and Roo had frantically yelled at Gus to kill it.

  “DO IT NOW!” she had yelled. Rats—like grasshoppers, vacuum cleaners, snowmen, lawnmowers, bathtubs, clowns, and motorcycles—were one of Roo’s many fears.

  But when Gus had looked into that rat’s eyes, eyes that had pleaded with him, he just couldn’t. Instead, he had barked until Miss Lottie rushed into the kitchen. She grabbed her broom and calmly brushed the rat out the back door, as if she were sweeping up a dust bunny.

  Roo never looked at Gus the same way after that. In the span of a few minutes, their relationship had changed, and no matter what Gus did, he couldn’t change it back. He could never make Roo feel safe.

  And now Roo was ignoring him completely as she followed Decker to the stone birdbath. To follow another dog around like he was the pack leader was wrong, and Roo knew it.

  Tank stood in the middle of the yard looking helpless and lost. Miss Lottie didn’t trust him near the others yet, so she walked him on a leash while he did his business.

  She gave the leash a tug. “Time to go in, boy.”

  Tank glanced at Decker before scooting inside.

  Tank usually loved being in the yard. He would trot out happily, enjoying the good smells
in the air. He’d dig for no apparent reason and bark at the squirrels on the fence. This new Tank hadn’t even said hello.

  Gus got up, made one circle, then another. He could not get comfortable. Something was bothering him even more than Roo and Tank. There was also the incident with Ghost the night before. It had seemed as though Ghost wanted to tell him something. It must have been important. Ghost usually only talked to Gus if Gus spoke to him first. His evening trip to the family room just didn’t make sense.

  Gus made another small circle. Sniffed the air. Put his head back on his paws.

  What was it?

  He realized with a start what it was. He hadn’t seen Moon Pie in a while.

  A long while.

  Moon Pie

  Moon Pie glanced around the yard. Gus was too busy chewing on a stick to notice him. Roo was following Decker around. Tank had barely looked at him before being dragged back inside with Miss Lottie.

  Moon Pie casually sniffed at one of the bushes in front of the hole so that he could get a better look at it. It was a big hole—definitely big enough for him to escape.

  He could do it! He could slip through and go looking for Gertie! It would only take a second. He’d run off and find Gertie’s house and then he’d be back with her again.

  He could see it all in his mind’s eye. Gertie’s happy smile when she saw him. Gertie swinging him through the air again and feeding him popcorn and watching TV with him. His heart felt all thumpy at the thought of being with his old Gertie again.

  Decker gave Moon Pie a sidelong glance. He nodded and firmly wagged his tail once.

  Moon Pie knew what that meant. Now was the time. If he stood there any longer, he might lose his nerve.

  He darted into the thick patch of trees and bushes. A branch scratched his ear. It was all he could do not to yelp. He wiggled his way through until the hole was right in front of him.

  He paused. He could see through the hole to the alley beyond.

  What if he couldn’t find Gertie?

  What if he got lost forever and ever?