by Andrew Kole
Amos drove the Range Rover along the muddy dirt road under a constant drizzle that splattered the windshield. As the SUV rounded a curve, Amos spotted a small rock fall that had blocked the road and stopped the car.
“Why are you stopping?” asked Shuttleworth.
“I'm stopping so we can clear the rocks,” answered Amos. “The car can handle it,” Shuttleworth said.
“Maybe,” Amos noted. “But I don’t want to risk popping a tire. We still have a long way to go and it’s not like Triple A will send a tow truck out here.”
Amos hopped out, eyed Shuttleworth, and tossed him a sarcastic smile, “You’re not afraid to break a sweat, are you?”
Indy was next out, followed by Shuttleworth. For the next ten minutes, Amos and Shuttleworth tossed hefty rocks off the road into the ravine.
Pebbles, and small rocks continued to slither down the hillside, tumbling onto the road, but the two men were making progress. Suddenly, Indy heard something with his sensitive ears that his human partners couldn't hear. He immediately barked a warning, “Watch out, Boss! Get out of the way!”
Frantically Indy herded the men away from the car. Amos trusted Indy with his life and moved quickly but Shuttleworth was confused by the dog’s barking. Desperate to get him to move, Indy grabbed Shuttleworth’s sleeve with his teeth and tugged him away.
“Hey! What’s wrong with this dog?” demanded Shuttleworth. Amos looked up the hill and saw a boulder the size of a Mini
Cooper crashing down the slope toward them! “Look out!” Amos shouted.
Amos grabbed Shuttleworth and pressed him against the hillside. Indy flattened himself next to them. The boulder slammed onto the roof of the Range Rover, turning it into a puddle of metal and glass. As Amos, Indy and Shuttleworth watched with horrified fascination, the boulder bounced right off the roof of the Range Rover and continued on down the mountain.
“Don’t risk the car?!?” was all Shuttleworth could think to say, as opposed to thank you, Indy and Amos, for saving my life.
“At least we weren’t in it,” Amos noted.
Shuttleworth looked like he wanted to strangle Amos, but he ignored Shuttleworth’s glare and leaned down to pat Indy. “Good job, boy. Knew you still had it in ya,” Amos said, as Indy swelled up with pride.
Amos looked at Shuttleworth, “Bet you’re glad we brought Indy now, huh?”
Even Shuttleworth had to admit that Indy had saved their lives.
He awkwardly patted Indy's head. “Good job. And, uh, thanks.” Indy understood this was a significant breakthrough for
Shuttleworth. He gave Shuttleworth’s hand a big lick. “It’s my job.” Amos used a tree branch to pry open the rear hatch on the crumpled Range Rover and started hauling their camping equipment out of the car. He called to Shuttleworth. “Let’s go, city slicker.
Time to dirty up those shiny new hiking boots.”
Chapter 12
A New Leader
Bohdi woke with a start the next morning. He heard rustling outside like someone... or something... was getting closer.
Bohdi’s ears went up. He gave a low, warning growl. Then the rustling stopped and Bohdi heard something completely unexpected.
“I think there’s something alive in there!” Winnie said, trying to whisper but failing. Bohdi just about fell over at the sound of Winnie’s voice. Without another thought, he ran excitedly out of the cave.
Outside, the sopping wet Westminster dogs were terrified when they saw a bundle of fur flying at them. “It’s coming to get us!” squeaked Duke.
Bohdi pulled up short in front of the cowering dogs. “It’s me!
It’s Bohdi!”
The Westminster dogs blinked at Bohdi in shock.
“What are you doing here?” Lady Maya asked. “I thought you went downriver.”
“I did,” Bohdi said. “I thought you went up the mountain?”
“We did go up the mountain. Didn’t we?” asked Winnie, unsure.
“You definitely did not,” Bohdi said confidently. “We must have gone in a circle,” lamented Sandor. “I knew I should have taken command,” said Major.
Bohdi could see how distressed all the other dogs were at this thought. He tried to offer some comfort. “It was raining really hard. Anyone could’ve gotten lost.”
“That’s right!” said Major, “You got lost, too!”
“I’m not lost. I decided to take shelter because it was raining so hard.” Aldo perked up at the idea of shelter. “You know somewhere dry?” “Me too. I’d love to be dry,” said Piper, who was soaked to the bone. “We’d all love to be dry,” said Lady Maya, throwing a smile at Bohdi. “Follow me,” said Bohdi, and he led them into the cave.
Spencer and Taylor followed the wreckage down the side of the mountain, where the fuselage of the plane had cleared out the trees and basically everything else in its way.
“I can’t believe the destruction,” Taylor said.
“Do you really think the dogs could survive this?” Spencer asked.
“Let’s stay positive,” Taylor said. “Besides, they were in their crates. Those crates are pretty strong, so even if they got bounced around a lot, they should have been protected from the worst.”
They continued to walk until they crested a rise and saw the river spread out below them. It was pretty clear that the trail of destruction led straight to the edge of the water.
“I don’t see it,” Spencer said. “I don’t see the plane.”
Taylor looked down and realized he was right. Where the plane should have been, there was just a muddy indented spot on the riverbank.
It was like old times as Amos and Indy hiked purposefully through what was now a light drizzle. Indy looked back to see Shuttleworth limping and grimacing, but refusing to give into the growing pain.
Finally, Indy barked an alert, “Hey, boss, he isn’t doing so well.”
Amos didn’t understand the exact words, but he got the point. He looked back at Shuttleworth, shook his head, and stopped. “You’re limping worse than a three-legged dog,” Amos said, trying to lighten the mood as he threw a smile at Indy.
“Worry about yourself,” Shuttleworth grunted.
“We should take care of those blisters,” Amos added. Shuttleworth pushed past Amos, not willing to admit any weak-
ness. “We don’t have time to stop,” Shuttleworth said.
“It’s not gonna help our speed if your feet are too cut up to walk,” Amos said, as he spotted a huge fallen tree ten feet away. “Find a seat on that log and let me patch you up.”
Shuttleworth hesitated. He knew Amos was right, even if he hated to admit it. Indy nudged Shuttleworth with his head. “Don’t let your pride be your downfall.”
Shuttleworth looked at Indy and sighed. “Make it quick,” Shuttleworth snapped.
While Shuttleworth carefully took off his boots, Amos pulled a first aid kit out of his backpack. He then took out iodine, salve, gauze and athletic tape.
“Breaking in new boots is rough,” Amos said. “Yeah… I’m learning that the hard way.”
Amos looked at the nasty blisters on Shuttleworth’s feet and decided the best course of treatment was to pop them. Shuttleworth winced at the sting of the iodine, but didn’t make a sound. He wasn’t going to let this old guy know how much pain he was really in. Indy didn’t care about their feud. He licked Shuttleworth’s hand sympathetically.
“Newer isn’t always better,” Amos said, as he looked at Shuttleworth’s boots.
“You keep telling yourself that,” Shuttleworth retorted. But his reply was more out of habit than venom, and Amos wasn’t fooled.
“I will,” smiled Amos.
Shuttleworth watched Amos work on his wounded feet, then looked at Indy and his missing leg, and thought for a long moment.
“You know, I do have a heart, Hopton,” Shuttleworth said “What?” Amos asked, startled by the abrupt topic shift. “I have a heart,” Shuttleworth said. “I love my son.”
Amos could see the truth of the statement in Shuttleworth’s eyes. His tone softened and he smiled to himself. “I know. You wouldn’t be out here if you didn’t.”
The Westminster dogs lounged in the dry cave. The rain had stopped. Bohdi lay near the entrance, peering outside.
Aldo groaned. “I don’t want to walk anymore!”
“I can’t believe we’re basically back where we started,” added Duke.
“We should get moving soon,” said Bohdi. “We don’t know when we’ll get another break in the weather.”
“We will go when we’re good and ready,” sniffed Major imperiously.
“But...” Bohdi started to say, then sighed. He didn’t like Major’s automatic assumption that he was inferior just because he wasn’t a pure breed, but he was also too tired to argue.
Piper’s ears perked up. “What’s that?”
“What?” asked Aldo, his head swiveling around.
“That noise,” Piper said.
“I wasn’t done talking, Piper” insisted Major. “I think it’s high time we make it clear to this mutt who’s in charge here.”
The Westminster dogs were far more interested in what Piper was hearing than Major’s arbitrary judgments. They ignored him and listened for sounds.
Winnie cocked her ear and heard a high-pitched squeaking sound. “I hear it.”
“I don’t hear anything,” Duke said.
“Uh, what are those little wavy lumps up there?” Winnie asked, as she pointed to the roof of the cave with her nose.
Bohdi and the Westminster dogs strained their eyes, trying to see what Winnie saw. Sandor frantically shook hair out of his eyes, but he only caught glimpses of the things on the cave ceiling.
“Uh... Those are bats,” said Bohdi, as calmly as possible. “Bats!” shrieked Piper. “I hate bats!... Bats have rabies!” “Shush! You’ll wake them,” Bohdi whispered urgently.
But it was too late. Piper’s noisy outburst disturbed the army of bats and they took flight, heading for the opening to the cave. Unfortunately, the dogs were in the way.
“Run!” yelled Duke.
The dogs scrambled to their feet and flung themselves through the cave opening. Right behind them, hundreds of bats burst out of the cave and flew away, up the side of the mountain until they disappeared into the clouds.
The dogs stopped running, and tried to regain their breath.
“I guess we could go back in now. Since the bats are gone,” said Aldo hesitantly.
“I am never setting one paw back in that cave,” insisted Piper.
“So, what are we going to do now?” asked Winnie.
“We’re sticking together,” said Lady Maya firmly. “Splitting up didn’t work so well last time.”
Bohdi was actually very happy to hear Lady Maya say that, though he wasn’t going to admit that he had been lonely without her and the others.
“We tried looking for the plane. It didn’t work,” said Major. “Clearly the best thing to do is find shelter – other shelter – and wait to be found.”
“Maybe Major has a point,” said Duke. “I’m not that much of a hiker.” “You really just want to hope that someone comes to find us?” asked Lady
Maya, incredulously.
“We are very valuable dogs. Champions. People are looking for us,”
insisted Major.
“Maybe, maybe not. You place a lot of faith in people,” said Bohdi.
“People take care of us,” Winnie said, reminding Bohdi.
“Well, I’m sure none of you have ever been let down by humans. But let me tell you, you can’t rely on anyone but yourself. I’m not waiting here to be found. I’m getting myself out of here, and I suggest you all come with me,” Bohdi said, determined not to give in to false optimism.
“I agree with Bohdi,” said Lady Maya. “We can’t wait here, but I’m not leaving without my person.”
“Not this again!” said Bohdi.
“There is no way Spencer isn’t looking for me... for us. The crash had to leave a big trail for him to follow. And I’ll bet your person is with him. That makes finding them the fastest way to get back to people.” Lady Maya said.
The idea of not being alone out in the middle of no- where for a minute longer than necessary appealed to all of the Westminster dogs. They just weren’t convinced Lady Maya had the right strategy.
Major could tell the other dogs’ support for Lady Maya was wavering. He saw an opportunity to assert his dominance. “We tried it your way Lady Maya and we got lost,” Major said. “Now, we try the little mutt’s way.”
Bohdi was stunned Major actually wanted to listen to him. He was so shocked he had nothing to say, not even about being referred to as “the little mutt,” instead of his name. The Westminster dogs all stared at him.
“You can do it?” asked Piper.
“Get us off this mountain?” added Duke.
“And back to civilization, right?” asked Major ending the discussion.
Bohdi pulled himself together. “Yeah... Yes... If we follow the river downstream, sooner or later we will find people.”
“How are we going to follow the river?” Winnie asked, looking at the canyon in front of them with nowhere to actually walk along the river downstream.
“Yeah, we can’t swim,” added Duke. “At least I can’t.”
“That’s true,” Sandor said, reminding the others of their last river adventure.
“We can hike to the top of the ridge and head south. We don’t have to walk right along the river.” Bohdi explained. “We’re dogs! We have excellent senses of smell and hearing. We can listen for the water. We can smell the damp rocks. We can do it.”
“Not something we have much practice with, old chum,” said Duke.
“No harm in trying though,” snuffled Aldo.
“I guess we could try...” added Winnie.
“Yeah. We should try,” Sandor said in support of his friends.
“Then it’s decided,” said Piper. “Bohdi will lead us.”
Lady Maya was still reluctant to give up on Spencer. “But... but...”
Major gave Lady Maya a sharp, cutting look, “You might have been Best in Show, but you’re done calling the shots here.”
Major trotted off to join the others, pleased with himself for taking his rival down a peg, even if it did mean letting the scruffy mutt lead the way, at least for now.
Sadly, Lady Maya joined the rest of the dogs as Bohdi led them up the mountain through the trees, taking the ridge line so they were close enough to the sound and smell of the river that they had a guidepost. They had to take it pretty slow because of Piper’s little legs and Duke’s asthma.
Along the way, Bohdi helped each of the other dogs explore their doggy senses – Aldo discovered his nose really was powerful. He could even use his nose to figure out how fast the river was running based on the smell of the mud and rocks along the bank. Winnie turned out to have an excellent sense of hearing. Sandor could do a little of each even though his dreadlocks kept him from seeing much of any
thing. But he learned to hear when another dog pushed past a branch that was likely to slap back at his face or when the scrape of a paw over pebbles meant loose gravel up ahead.
Every once in a while, Bohdi looked back at a very disheartened.
Lady Maya who was trailing the pack and felt bad because she was the first one to treat him as an equal.
All in all, Bohdi was pretty happy with their progress. They had walked a few miles when he heard Aldo and Piper talking about a sausage-shaped rock, another that looked like a chicken-leg, and a third that looked like a big bone.
“You think all the rocks look like food!” Piper exclaimed.
“That’s because they do,” Aldo insisted.
“Everything looks like food to you,” said Duke.
“Not everything,” insisted Aldo. “I’m not ready to eat you... yet.”
“We passed some acorns a while back. Can we eat those?” asked Winnie. Aldo wasn’t sure. “I guess we could try. Where did you see them?” “Oh, it was when Lady Maya left,” said Winnie tranquilly.
Bohdi stopped in his tracks. “What?!?” Bohdi spluttered out. “Lady Maya’s gone?!?” He looked around and, indeed, there was no sign of her. “Where did she go?”
“I thought you all saw her,” Winnie said with a confused frown. “She left when we passed the acorns. She just took a left and headed up the mountain.”
“She must’ve gone looking for Spencer,” said Sandor.
“She’s going to get herself killed!” said Duke. “She can’t make it out there alone.”
“We should go back for her,” said Aldo firmly.
“Absolutely not,” said Major. “The mutt is taking us to civilization.
That is final.”
“You’re not in charge, Major,” said Piper. “You were the one who said that Bohdi should be in charge.”