The Art of Wag

by Susan C. Daffron

  Rob said, “Instead, I got to meet the cool dog. He was great. I’d love to have a big lovable dog like Linus, but I travel too much.”

  Tracy put the key in the ignition and turned to him. “Hey, if we get this contract, you can become a homebody and get your dream canine. Lots of dogs need homes, you know.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  Tracy went through the starting and begging routine and successfully convinced The Turd to move. They bumped their way down the driveway back toward town. It was time to get to work.

  Kat brought Roxy into the house and put her on the floor. “Okay Roxy, I know it’s part of your heritage, but don’t forget that we have the ‘no burrowing into the house’ rule.” Roxy wagged her tail, looking pleased that Kat had remembered her achievements.

  Mary came up the stairs and looked down at Roxy. “Oh, the little dog is back.”

  “Yes, Roxy is going to be here until Sunday afternoon. If you’d like to be her caretaker, that would be helpful, since I have to finish my article today and hand it in.”

  “No, I can’t. I have things to do.”

  Kat nodded. It had been worth a try. Her mother was on some type of mission and was not letting anyone in on what it was. Joel and Mary had moved into a largely silent detente. Kat just tried to stay out of the way. Her mother obviously was intent on finding something in this house, but she refused to say what it was. At this point, Kat was tired of asking. The good news was that Mary was a cleaning machine. The house was probably cleaner than it had been in thirty years. Maria wouldn’t be able to refer to it as Chez Stinky anymore.

  After the weather had improved and he’d gotten his chain saw back, Joel spent most of his time out in the forest cutting firewood. At this rate, they’d probably end up with fifteen cords of wood. At dark, he returned to the house dirty and exhausted, so he took a shower and retired to his office. Presumably he ate at some point, but Kat didn’t know when. She had barely seen him in the last few days, except when he was asleep. It had been a long, lonely week.

  Fortunately, before Joel had disappeared into the depths of the forest, he had moved Kat’s computer upstairs for her. If he hadn’t, she wouldn’t have had a prayer of finishing her article. All that was left was one more editing pass and she could hand it in.

  She sat down at the table in front of her computer and looped Roxy’s leash under a chair leg. “Sorry, but you’re not going anywhere. And your favorite caretaker has ditched you for the time being.” Roxy wagged once and curled up at Kat’s feet, settling in for her morning nap. Kat finished her article and sent it off to the editor. She stood up and stretched. Roxy did the same and Kat looked down at the dachshund. “We have learned that you don’t like the long walks. I’m definitely not carrying you through the forest again. So you are getting your own special walk first.”

  Kat picked up Roxy and took her out to the front yard. After about ten minutes of wandering, Roxy indicated she’d had enough of the great outdoors. They went back inside. Now it was time to muster everyone else for the big walkie.

  Kat picked up Roxy and carried her down the stairs to the hallway where the other dogs were enjoying their morning naps. Mary was still attacking boxes in the room formerly known as Kat’s office.

  Kat walked to the doorway, followed by a parade of yawning canines. Her mother was sitting on the floor, rummaging through boxes in the bottom of the closet. She clearly had not found the object of her massive quest yet, and she didn’t look pleased about it.

  Kat put Roxy on the floor and knocked lightly on the door jamb. “I took Roxy out separately since she can’t handle the long walk, but the other dogs really need some exercise. All that bad weather made them a little squirrelly. We haven’t reached canine equilibrium yet.”

  Mary sat back on her heels and wiped her hands on her apron. “I noticed.”

  “Could you watch Roxy while I take everyone for a long walk? Maybe you could keep her in here again on the bed? That worked out okay before and she seemed happy.”

  Mary sighed dramatically. “Fine. If you must do that, I’ll take care of her.”

  “Okay, we’ll be back in a little while.” Maybe a long while.

  Kat picked up Roxy and placed her on the bed. Having successfully handed off her charge, Kat got the other dogs ready for the walk amid great enthusiasm, cavorting, and expressions of canine joy. Maybe she’d go for a really extra-long walk. Everyone seemed enthusiastic about the idea of getting out of the house.

  She opened the back door and Linus and Tessa charged out. Lori leaped around them, performing great feats of border-collie acrobatics. Kat and Chelsey followed along more sedately to the trail that went into the forest.

  It was a crisp, sparkly fall day. The air was cool and the wind sighed through the trees. As her feet crunched through the twigs and brown fallen leaves, Kat smiled up at the brilliant blue sky. The article was off into the Internet ether and all was right with the world. Well, except for her mother still being there. A member of a flock of Canada geese flying overhead honked for emphasis.

  Kat felt her muscles relax as she walked along the trail, absorbing all the sights, sounds, and smells of the forest. After so much rain, it was good to feel sun on her face again. When the weather finally decided to behave, it was often stunningly beautiful and Kat wanted to drink it all in.

  She looked down at Chelsey, who was happily toddling along, her tail waving behind her. “Are we going to have a house guest forever?” Chelsey looked up with worried eyes. “I know. You’re right. This can’t continue. But you and I are the same as far as our deep dislike of confrontation. I hate starting something that’s going to make my mother angry, but I can’t have her rummaging through my house indefinitely. For one thing, I think Joel will move out. And none of us want that, do we?” Although Chelsey looked sympathetic, she didn’t seem to have any wisdom to impart. “Yeah, I know. It’s my fault this has gone on so long.” Chelsey’s ears cocked and she turned her head, looking ahead on the trail, where the dogs were now playing with Lady, who had emerged from an opening in the forest.

  Joel came down the hillside, stopped on the trail next to the group of dogs, and put down his chain saw. “I see you all decided to go farther afield than usual.”

  Kat scampered up to him with Chelsey leading the way. “Fancy meeting you here.” She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him hard. “It’s so good to see you. Even if you are coated in Kevlar.”

  He returned the hug. “You see me every day.”

  “Not lately. I just made a promise to Chelsey that I will talk to my mother today. Now I’m promising you too. I’ve been a wimp, avoiding what will undoubtedly turn into a huge, horrible fight. She obviously hasn’t found whatever mysterious thing she’s looking for. But it’s our house. She needs to go.”

  Joel released her and looked down into her face. “Way to be forceful.”

  “It all sounds good, but I haven’t done anything yet. I could still chicken out. I left Roxy with her.”

  He removed the hard hat and ran his fingers through his hair. “That’s a start. I guess our small yappy guest has returned?”

  “Yes. Tracy was with some guy named Rob. I guess it’s the guy she’s working with. He’s kind of cute, in a way.”

  “Oh really?”

  “Well, not to-die-for handsome like Jan’s boyfriend. Or like you.”

  He grinned. “Nice save.”

  Kat waved toward the trail. “You and Lady seem to be on the high road home. Are you done?”

  “No. But the chain saw ran out of gas and I forgot to bring the gas can with me this morning.”

  Kat took his hand. “We’ll escort you home.”

  “It’s always nice to have an entourage.”

  Kat opened the back door to the house and the dogs rushed into the hallway in a great furry flurry, followed by Joel. Kat bent down to remove the harnesses from Linus and Tessa.

  Mary ran out of the bedroom and up to Kat. “You hav
e to do something! I can’t find the dachshund!”

  Kat stood, glanced at Joel and looked back at her mother. “I thought you were going to make her another pillow fort.”

  Mary frowned and waved in the general direction of the room. “I did and she was happy for a while, but you were gone so long. She started trying to break out. I thought she might hurt herself if she tried to jump off the bed. She was being so good, so I just put her on the floor, so she could walk around a little.”

  Kat clenched the harness in her hands. Uh-oh. “I told you that she has a little problem with disappearing. She’s small, but she has a warped sense of humor.”

  Mary waved her hands in exasperation. “You have to do something. I’ve been looking everywhere.”

  Kat looked over at Joel. “We’ll help you look. Where did you last see her?”

  Mary turned and walked back into the bedroom. “We were right in here. I was working on organizing the shelves. She was right beside me. Then I looked around and she was gone.”

  Kat said, “Well, I don’t think she does stairs. Tracy and I carry her everywhere. So she’s probably down here somewhere. You didn’t open the door and go outside, right?”

  Mary shook her head. “No. I haven’t.”

  Joel said, “I’ll get a flashlight. Kat, maybe you could start pulling stuff out of the closet.”

  Mary wailed, “I just got it all cleaned up and organized!”

  Joel looked at her but said nothing, and then turned and left the room. Kat crouched down on the floor and looked under the bed. No eyes peered back at her. But it was remarkably free of dust under there. How bizarre. She crawled over to the closet, looking under the furniture as she crossed the room. She sat in front of the sliding door and began removing the boxes from the floor, in case Roxy was hiding behind something. “Come on Roxy. Not again. This is not cute. Really. I mean it.”

  Mary sat on the bed with her hands folded. “I can’t believe this. She was right there.”

  Kat removed a few more boxes. While her mother was preoccupied, it might be a good time to get this conversation over with. “I know you won’t tell me what you’re looking for Mother, but clearly you haven’t found it. Don’t you have things to do back at home?”

  Mary straightened. “Are you saying I’ve been a bother?”

  Kat stopped moving boxes, sat back on her heels, and put her hands on her thighs. “You hate my boyfriend, you hate my dogs, and the cats are afraid of you. No one has seen them in days. And to top it off, we can’t even stand to eat together. Why are you here?”

  “I thought Abigail had something of mine and I wanted it back.”

  Kat leaned back on the bedroom wall with her legs out in front of her and gazed up at her mother. “What is it? I spent a lot of time cleaning this place when I first moved in. If it’s canned goods, you’re out of luck. I threw those away.”

  “What? No. That’s disgusting. Anything canned would be spoiled by now.”

  “You have no idea.”

  Now Kevlar-free, Joel walked back into the room with a flashlight and his toolbox. He crouched down next to Kat to shine the light on the closet floor. “Did you see anything?”

  Kat turned and peered into the closet. “Nope.”

  “Hear anything?”

  “Nope.”

  Joel sat on the floor and pulled out some more boxes. “This built-in thing is attached, so at least she can’t be behind that.”

  Kat tapped on the wood. “Do you think she could get behind the drawers?”

  “I don’t think so, but I didn’t think she could get behind a cabinet either.”

  Kat sighed. “Roxy is very creative.”

  Mary said from behind them. “Why do you think she’s in there? She could be anywhere!”

  Kat said, “Because the door to Joel’s office was closed and there’s no place she can go in the hall. Unless you were digging in the storage closets again, that leaves this room. Roxy likes to get into small spaces. It’s her thing.”

  Mary said quietly. “No, I already went through those closets the other day. What can I do? I feel terrible.”

  Joel raised one eyebrow at Kat and moved a few more boxes. Kat said, “It’s okay, Mother. Joel will find her. He always does.”

  He touched Kat’s arm. “Maybe you could pull those drawers out?”

  Kat stood up. The built-in cabinet in the closet had three shelves and four drawers below them. Starting at the top, she pulled out the drawers and stacked them on the floor. The contents of the drawers were organized into neat little piles. Her mother had been busy. But no dog appeared.

  Joel got on his hands and knees and crawled into the closet. He shined the light in the corner under the row of shelves that ran up the side. “There’s a hole back here.” He laid down on his stomach and shined the light into the hole to get a closer look.

  Kat sat back down on the floor with a thump and put her face in her hands. “Oh no.”

  Joel started thumping his knuckles along the drywall at the back of the closet and was rewarded with a small yip.

  Kat dropped her hands and bowed her head. “What is wrong with this animal?”

  Mary stood up and walked over to the closet to peer inside over Joel and Kat. “Is she really in there? It’s okay, Roxy. I’m so sorry!”

  Joel backed himself out of the closet and sat next to Kat. He rummaged around in his toolbox and then looked at her. “Do you think you can convince Roxy to come out? If not, I have to shred another wall, you know.”

  “I know. I think I have bad karma.”

  He pulled a small saw out of the toolbox. “I think the walls have bad karma. If we live here long enough, eventually I’ll have to cut holes in all of them.”

  Kat moved around Joel, crawled into the closet, and laid on her stomach. She held a dog treat into the hole. “Come on Roxy. Lookie, it’s a treat! Don’t you want it? Come out and I’ll give it to you.”

  There was a lot of scrabbling and whining. Roxy seemed to be making an effort to leave and get the treat, but it wasn’t working. Kat crawled back out and looked at Joel. “Maybe she’s too long to turn around?”

  “I guess dachshunds don’t do reverse?”

  “Apparently, this one doesn’t. Maybe because she has three legs? I don’t know.”

  Joel sighed. “Okay. I guess I have to do it.” He grabbed the saw and laid on the floor and began cutting the drywall.

  Mary had been silently watching the proceedings. Suddenly, she bent down and pulled something out of the empty area where the drawers had been in the built-in cabinet. It was a stack of letters. She clutched the papers to her chest. “Oh my goodness. It’s them!” She ran over to the bed and sat down. “Abigail saved them after all. I knew she would.” She bent her head and began sobbing quietly.

  Kat stood up and walked over to her. “What is that?”

  Her mother looked up and wiped a tear off her cheek. “Letters. All the letters I wrote to Abigail. We corresponded for years. I told her all my hopes and dreams when I was a young girl. I miss writing to her so much. I just wanted to see the letters again.”

  Kat sat down on the bed next to her. “I had no idea. I didn’t even think you liked Aunt Abigail.”

  Mary wiped her eyes with a fingertip. “Oh, she was my favorite aunt. I could tell her anything. But after I had the huge fight with her friend, we only communicated in writing. I just couldn’t face her.”

  Kat put her arm around her mother’s shoulder. “I think I told you, I talked to Louise. She feels bad about your argument too. Maybe you should talk to her.”

  Mary sniffed. “Perhaps I’ll write her a letter.”

  A cracking noise came from the closet and Roxy ran out. Kat jumped off the bed, grabbed the little dog, and sat down on the floor with her, snuggling her in her lap. “Welcome back, Roxy! Here’s your treat.”

  Joel crawled out of the closet and put his tools back into the toolbox. Mary crouched down to pet Roxy. She turned to Joel. “Thank you.�
�

  He smiled. “You’re welcome. I’m glad Roxy helped you find what you were looking for.”

  Chapter 11

  Not a Mushroom

  After they returned from dropping Roxy at Kat’s, Rob and Tracy managed to get a few more screens designed before she went home and fell asleep. Her apartment felt quiet and dreary without Roxy’s small energetic presence. And she spent way too much time thinking about kissing Rob. Apparently, he had quite a few undiscovered talents. In addition to amazing lips, he was an absurdly fast typist, making Tracy wish she’d taken typing class in high school. She’d heard enough things about the typing teacher, Ms. Hightower, that she’d evaded that particular elective class. Ms. Hightower had always proudly proclaimed that touch-typing was the only way to type and the hunt-and-peck approach was slow. Now Tracy realized just how much slower it really was.

  The next day, Tracy got out of the clinic as quickly as she could. She grabbed a few things from her lonely apartment, walked down to the H12, and knocked on the door of Room 2.

  Rob opened the door. She walked by, threw her bag onto one of the beds, and handed him her coffeemaker. “Here it is. I hope you got coffee.”

  Rob took the machine and tilted it to the side to examine it. “Wow, I haven’t seen a Mr. Coffee like this one in a long time.”

  “Think of it as a cherished heirloom from the heyday of the Alpine Grove commune. With vintage harvest gold floral accents.”

  Rob put the coffeemaker on the dresser. “As opposed to a yard-sale reject?”

  Tracy sat down in front of the computer. “Very funny. I’ll have you know I found that when I excavated my apartment. My mother had it for years. It probably really did live at the commune.”

  Rob said, “You’re serious? There was a commune?”

  “Yes. My parents were card-carrying members. Except I’m sure they didn’t have cards. That would have been catering to the Establishment.”