“Fire,” Steve said sitting up straighter in his bed. “That’s it. Fire!”
Duke popped his head up. His master was excited which sometimes meant good news. Duke watched as Steve leapt from the bed, clad only in his boxers and t-shirt, and rushed down the stairs. Duke hesitated for a moment as he hadn’t been beckoned and wanted to maintain his ‘Good boy’ status. ‘Good boy’ usually meant an extra scoop of food or a special treat. Both of these were things that Duke treasured.
Duke’s hesitation didn’t last for long, however. He stood up and, like Steve, rushed from the room and down the stairs. He followed Steve out the backdoor and toward the shed. Duke enjoyed the shed, but was rarely allowed to explore it. He sniffed around while his master was grabbing the items he was planning to use for the world’s largest barbecue pit. Duke scented a mouse and mounted a search for the rodent.
His search had proved unfruitful, but when he turned to look for his master he found that the man was gone. He heard the sound of the backdoor closing and ran from the shed, but it was too late. He sat down by the door, his tail wagging, waiting patiently to be allowed in. After a few seconds he let out a sharp bark, but Steve still didn’t open the door. Duke began to whine, but still his owner didn’t let him in.
The canine’s attention was soon captured by a squirrel which had dared venture onto Duke’s property. Duke wanted to go after it, but he still wanted to be a ‘Good boy’ so instead he continued to sit. It wasn’t long, though, before his desire of the chase was too much for the dog to overcome. He ran. The squirrel ran. The race was on. Duke disregarded the fact that the squirrel had already left his property. He followed it, tongue lolling from his mouth, and delivering an occasional bark. The chase ended when the squirrel’s fear was overcome by its cleverness and it ran up the nearest tree. Duke stood at the bottom of the tree, continuing to bark, warning the squirrel not to come back down.
Realizing he’d worked up a thirst Duke thought about returning to the house, but remembered his master had left him outdoors. The clear, blue water of the lake was not far off so Duke went their instead. He drank his fill of the refreshing water. With his thirst quenched the dog lay down in the cool grass. The buzzing of the insects relaxed him and he soon fell asleep.
The sound of sirens, though the dog didn’t realize that’s what they were, woke him from his slumber. He wasn’t sure why, but he felt he needed to return to the house. He sprinted for him as fast as he could run. He arrived to see ‘the woman’ kneeling beside his owner. ‘The woman’ had been around a lot lately and she made his master happy. His master looked hurt or sick. Duke was worried. There were many strangers gathered in the yard talking to each other and pointing toward the house. Oddly dressed men were spraying water on the house while others were running inside. Duke rushed to his owner’s side, whined once, and then began to lick his hand reassuringly. Steve patted the dog’s head.
“You’re such a good boy, Duke,” Steve said.
Many people think dogs don’t smile, but they do. And Duke did.
Hope this clears some things up for everyone. I know it did for me.
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