Stormy replied, “Randy told us. Actually, when we were smaller and could not run with you, Randy would read to us. He told us that he was practicing his reading so that he could speak and read better. Randy said it was fun to read to us because if he made a mistake, we would not make fun of him. He wanted Mike to be proud of him, since Mike had encouraged him to read and write stories.”
“So,” Sky added, “he read to us about the musk ox and how they live in herds.”
Then Stormy added, “It looks like he remembered them, and decided that the circle would be a great way to protect us tonight, especially with that Dylan boy out there.”
Son of a dog! Randy read to the pups. No wonder they had learned so fast. Mike told Randy to use his wits and I bet Mike would be very proud of how Randy was doing just that.
Before Randy crawled into his sleeping bag, Brownie told me that Randy repositioned the dogs. Fin and Christmas were the lead dogs. Brownie and Sky were in the swing dog positions. Ugly and Stormy came next. The next position was empty since Nitro was inside the circle and Tundra was in the basket. I figured Randy would team them together. Lakota, who was also in the circle, would run with me. I had a hunch that Doc would get to ride the basket home.
“Doc,” Randy said. “You are riding home in the basket tomorrow. I do not want to take a chance on hurting you if I have to run the team very fast because of problems. I know Mike is proud of you for racing this far with us. Thank you.”
Ugly told me that Doc just nuzzled Randy. “It is okay, team,” Doc said. “Randy is right. This was a very smart decision he made. I want to lead you across the finish line, but my musher and my team must come before what I want to do. Christmas and Fin will do a great job of getting you home and keeping you out of trouble if necessary.”
Doc continues to amaze me. He is a true leader, in additional to being great friend.
I heard Randy crawl into his sleeping bag, and then both Nitro and Lakota lay down near Randy, probably curled up to him.
It was a peaceful dream. I was lying on fresh straw with a gentle breeze keeping the mosquitoes from bothering me. That is, it was peaceful until Tundra's barking woke me. I stood up, as did every other dog in the team. I heard footsteps. They stopped. Ugly told me that first Tundra and then Doc were barking in the direction of the woods across the trail from us. There was someone or something out there. Let me rephrase that… someone.
“Who is out there?” a voice yelled. No, it was not Randy's voice; he was being very quiet. There was no answer. I heard the footsteps get softer as they faded away into the night. I told the team that whoever it was had left our area.
“Tunny.” It was Doc. “You did very good job young lady, warning us about the stranger in the woods. I bet you saved us.”
“You okay Tundra?” It was her mother, Christmas. “Oh yes, Momma, I heard someone or something walking towards us. I did not recognize the scent, so I knew it was not Musher Stan or Musher GB. So I started to bark.”
“As Uncle Doc said, you did a very good job. Now settle down Tundra, and get some rest. Tomorrow will be a big day.”
“Yes Momma, good night,” Tundra said. You knew she was just beaming with pride that her Uncle Doc and her mother told her she did a good thing.
The rest of the night was uneventful and I figured it was first light when Randy got up, fixed us some hot chow, and got the team and gear ready for the run home. We heard other teams talk about a dog and some equipment that were missing. I wondered if Tundra's barking saved us from an unexpected and unwanted visitor. I bet Randy's circle not only protected him and us, but also confused the visitor. The intruder would expect a stung-out dog team, not a circle of dogs.
We broke camp and started back down the trail. We now entered our racing mode. The trail was fast and we raced along at a good pace. The hours and miles melted away. None of us was tiring. We actually were getting stronger, anticipating the finish of this race.
Lakota told me that the trail was wide enough for two dog teams to pass each other. So when another team came up behind us, I was not surprised that Randy did not move over to let them pass. What did surprise me was that the musher stayed behind us and yelling insults at Randy.
Why would a musher not want to pass us, and continue to insult Randy? Dylan!! It had to be him. Wanting to cause trouble, and try to steal our equipment. Maybe even steal one of us.
This was becoming scary.
Randy slowed us down a bit to let the other team pass. Randy probably thought the other musher just wanted to pass. Randy did not know what Dylan looked like.
Doc told us that the trail narrowed about a quarter mile up the trail, and we had about 2 miles to the finish line. Either this team had to pass us now or else one of teams would be run off the trail.
I heard the other team pick up speed and Lakota told me that the team was coming up even with us. Lakota told me that the dogs on the other team were in bad shape. I heard the anger in his voice. He did not have to say it, but I knew they were abused.
Doc told us that the musher had a jiggle stick with a strap on it and he was swinging it at Randy! He missed, but took another swipe at Randy's head.
Doc told us that the strap wrapped around Randy's arm. Randy held on to the strap as he yelled, “Banshee”. We took off and the sudden jerk of our team pulled the other musher off his sled. Doc told us the trail was narrowing, but soon we were way ahead of the other team. Randy started to slow us down and I thought he was going to stop us so that he could help the other team's dogs. But we heard Musher Stan's voice yell to Randy. “Finish the race. I saw what happened and will take care of Dylan, his team and the missing dog.” Fin told us that Musher Stan was driving his team up behind us. He was following us down the trail
Fin and Christmas were doing a fine job of leading. Ugly was telling jokes to the pups and Nitro said, to no dog in particular, “Did you see what Randy did? Now that was a smart move.” Yes, it was a very smart move. Randy must have known that the strap would not hurt him since his storm suit would protect him from it. Randy held onto the strap and started to pull on it as he yelled for us to take off down the trail. The sudden forward movement, plus the fact that Dylan was probably off balance on his sled runners, caused Dylan to fall off of his sled.
We entered the finish chute and I heard Mike come up beside the team. “Whoa,” Randy called out, telling us to stop. We did, and Fin told me that Mike grabbed the neckline between Fin and Christmas and guided us to our staging spot. I smelled the scent of our truck; it was there waiting to take us home. After the race officials checked out our equipment, I knew Mike or Randy would gave us a snack and some water, before loading us into the dog box to go home.
There was a lot of commotion and I heard that Musher Stan came in with Dylan in his basket and Dylan's sled in tow. Musher Stan talked to Musher GB and told him what had happened on the trail. Musher Stan said that the missing dog was tied into Dylan's team and the missing equipment was in Dylan's sled basket. All of the missing equipment had the owner's name on it.
“Hmmm,” said Musher GB, “I think we need the troopers. Sounds like we have a thief. And it looks like he beat these dogs again.”
Good, the missing dog was found and the stolen equipment would be retuned to its owner. I was sure that the troopers would take care of Dylan.
After we got our snacks and water, we rested a bit while Randy told Mike about the race. Mike kept telling Randy how smart he was for using the circle, and glad that the magic word helped. Mike told Randy that the dogs looked great after the race and even Doc looked good. “I am glad you pulled him, Randy, I was concerned about him.” Mike said.
Then Mike said, “Okay, Let's get these critters back into the dog box and head on home. We have all had enough excitement for a while.”
Now, we have a routine for this. Mike or Randy takes off our harnesses and allows us to wander back to the truck. That is, all but me. I walk with Mike, right by his side. He gives me commands so I do n
ot bump into anything. I knew Randy would let Nitro and Lakota go next. Remember, we have a routine.
“Where is that punk that pulled my boy off his sled? I want to teach him a lesson,” a voice yelled.
We all stopped. Lakota told me that a very big human was blocking Mike's way to the truck. Nitro told Lakota to stay with him beside Randy, in case this human wanted to harm Randy.
Christmas told me that the man had a knife, and to be careful.
Mike nudged me with his knee as he moved back a step or two. This was trouble.
“Who are you?” Mike asked with a lot of calmness in his voice.
“I am Rufus Crawford, Dylan's dad, and I want to teach that punk a lesson.”
“Mister Crawford,” Mike said, “I do not believe you are going to teach anyone a lesson right now, especially that boy you keep referring to as a punk. I heard that your boy stole a dog and some equipment and was beating his dogs on the trail. Dylan attacked the boy by my sled and that boy only protected himself. I also understand that your boy is a lot bigger and older than the boy by my sled.”
“Lies, lies,” Mister Crawford said as he pushed Mike down. I jumped up to protect Mike and felt the knife slash me. I went down.
“Rivers!” Mike yelled as I heard Nitro and Lakota charge Mister Crawford. Christmas told me as I was laying in the snow that Nitro grabbed the hand with the knife in it so, Mister Crawford could not slash out with it, and Lakota knocked Mister Crawford down into the snow. Christmas told me that Lakota then put one of his big paws by Mister Crawford's throat and growled at the human. I could picture this in my mind. The human looking up into the face of a very big, growling and sneering dog who was very upset. I guess that is why the human stopped moving. Of course, having another very big, powerful and upset dog clamped down on your wrist does not leave you too much choice, does it?
I felt Mike's hand on the wound, pressing a cloth over it. I did not think it was too bad. I did not feel any pain. “Randy, please bring me the first aid kit,” Mike said.
“I already have it, Mister Mike,” Randy answered
I heard Randy kneel down beside me and start to help Mike.
“What happened here, Mike? It was Musher GB. Mister Crawford started to talk and said that the dogs attacked him and he only used the knife to protect himself.
“Not so.” It was Musher Stan. “I saw the entire thing. Mister Crawford pushed Mike down and slashed Rivers. The other dogs acted to protect Mike and Rivers. Look, neither dog has bit Mister Crawford. If they had attacked him, would they be acting the way they are acting now? One has the knife hand and the other is sitting on his chest. Sure don't look like a dog attack to me.”
I heard two more sets of footsteps approach and a familiar voice. “Mike, you need help?” It was Doctor Jim.
“Yes, Rivers was slashed by Mister Crawford. I do not think it is bad, but Rivers is bleeding a lot,” Mike said.
“Here,” Doctor Jim said. “Let me look at him. Nope, it is not too bad, but it needs a couple of stitches. It looks like it was a glancing blow. Bet this is one time Rivers was lucky to be blind. Since Rivers could not see the knife, he probably misjudged his jump. I can fix him up right here.” I felt Doctor Jim start to work on my wound.
Another voice spoke up. “I am Trooper Dan Martin. Looks like you had some excitement here. Who wants to start telling me what is going on?”
“I will,” said Mister Crawford, “just get these attack dogs off me.”
Trooper Martin said. “I think I want you to stay right where you are, sir. You have a knife in your hand and until I am ready to take it from you, that dog is doing a great job. My suggestion to you, sir, is to keep still.”
“Son,” Trooper Martin said to Randy, “can you tell me what happened?”
Randy told his side of the story, starting with the encounter he had with Mister Crawford's son Dylan out on the trail.
Musher Stan started to talk after Randy finished. “I saw it all, Trooper Martin, both on the trail, where Dylan started to hit Randy with a jiggle stick and then here, when Mister Crawford pushed Mike down and slashed at Rivers. Rivers was protecting Mike, who has a broken arm, and the two dogs on Mister Crawford were protecting Randy. I heard Mister Crawford yell at Mike that he wanted to teach Randy a lesson.”
“Mike,” Trooper Martin asked, “What do you have to say about this?”
“Nothing much that I could add, Trooper Martin. Stan and Randy pretty much summed it up. Mister Crawford threatened to harm Randy and I was not going to allow that to happen. Mister Crawford pushed me down as I blocked him from getting to Randy. That is when Rivers, who is blind, jumped up to protect me. Mister Crawford slashed at him and Rivers went down. The other two dogs were protecting Randy. I can assure you that if those two dogs were vicious or not under my control, Mister Crawford would be in very bad shape at this time. As you can see, Mister Crawford's hand still holds the knife, yet there is no blood where my dog has grabbed him.”
Trooper Martin asked. “Will your dogs hurt me if I take that knife from Mister Crawford?”
“No,” Mike replied.
“Mister Crawford,” Trooper Martin said, “I want you to let go of that knife. After I have the knife, the dogs will back off and you will get up. I strongly suggest that you do not make any rash moves. Do you understand?”
“Yes,” Mister Crawford snarled. “Get these attack dogs off me.”
Christmas told me that Trooper Martin picked the knife up, and Mike told Nitro and Lakota to go back to the team and sit. They did that.
When Mister Crawford got to his feet, Trooper Martin told him that he was under arrest, and asked him to put his hands behind his back.
“When do I get to tell my side of the story?” Mister Crawford demanded.
“You can tell it to the judge. I am arresting you for assault with a deadly weapon, threatening a minor and attacking the dog that you slashed.” Trooper Martin replied
“Wait a minute, I was defending my kid, because that Randy kid attacked him on the trail,” Mister Crawford yelled.
“Mister Crawford, I have your son Dylan under arrest for assault, dog theft and larceny, plus dog brutality. He confessed to all of the charges. By the way, when I ran his name against our computer, I noticed several outstanding warrants for his arrest for theft and truancy. Mister Crawford, there are several outstanding warrants for you also. With those warrants, plus what you have done here today, and with the testimony of these witnesses, you and your son may be going to jail for a long time. Let's go.”
Rest, Recuperation And Surprises
What an adventure this was for Christmas and her pups in their first race! When we got home, and settled, Mary had a big pot of great chow ready for us. She was concerned that I was hurt, but soon realized that I would be okay.
The pups made a big fuss over my stitches, and called me a hero. No, I told them, I only did what I was born to do, take care of my musher, and protect my human buddy. The real heroes were Nitro and Lakota. They risked their lives to protect Randy. Once Mister Crawford knocked Mike down, they were all that stood between Mister Crawford and Randy. Nitro and Lakota surprised me. They could have seriously hurt Mister Crawford, but only used enough force to stop him from harming Randy, or the rest of the team. Who would have thought that those two dogs would do such a brave thing? I know that Sandy, our Guardian Angel Dog, was helping us and guiding us to do the right things, the smart things. Maybe our team believes after all.
Mike and Randy came out of the big house. They were in the kennel and Randy was saying goodbye to us. He told us that it was time for him to get back to his foster home. We were all sad that he had to leave. Yes, we knew he would be back, but….
“What is your rush, Randy”? Mike asked.
“Well, Mister Mike, I have some chores to do and I have to get ready for school. Besides, I want to start writing a story about my first race with the team,” Randy said.
Mike replied, “I guess in all the excitemen
t, you forgot that there is no school tomorrow. It is a holiday.”
“You are right, Mister Mike, I forgot all about that. However, I still have chores to do,” Randy said.
“I am sure you do.” Mike said, “But why don't you sit with me and the dogs for a spell? I am sure they would love to heap some TLC on you. Besides I have something I want you to read.”
Now this was getting interesting. We all gathered around Randy and Mike. Stormy told me that Mike pulled a folded piece of paper out of his pocket and gave it to Randy. Randy unfolded the paper and started to read it.
“Would you please read it out loud, Randy? We know you read to the pups when they could not go on the trail. That was very smart of you, because practicing makes you better at something.”
“Uh, okay, Mister Mike,” Randy said, but I noticed the hesitation in his voice. Stormy told me that Sky went over to where Randy was sitting, sat next to him and gently howled two times. I knew Randy could not understand Sky, but Sky was howling encouragement to Randy. “You can do this, Randy, just read to Mike as you read to Stormy, Tundra and me.”
“And Randy,” Mike added, “Mike or Mary works. You can drop the Mister or Ms. We are your friends and hope you are ours.”
I bet that caught Randy off guard. He started to read in a clear voice. He read all of the words and did not stumble over any of them.
When Randy finished reading the paper, Stormy told me that Mike put his arm around Randy's shoulders and asked him if he understood what the paper meant.
“Yes Mike, it stated that you and Mary want to be my new foster parents.”
“That is correct, and you will notice that your old foster parents already have signed the paper agreeing to that. All that is left is for you to agree to that also. What do you say?” Mike asked.
What a shocker this was. Here was a young boy who we met in town a while back and … Oh, you want to know the answer. As Christmas would tell you, it is a no-brainer!!
“When can I move in?” Randy asked.
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