LITMIR.BIZ

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away at me as I wondered where Hugo would go. He was still poorly, so he couldn’t have gone as far as the park and, besides that, he knew never to go there alone. There was a chance he could have gone to see Peg, I thought, but again, he had never been there on his own, and I knew that the times we had visited he hadn’t taken in the route as he had constantly yapped all the way there.

      A creeping sense of horror coursed through my fur as I started to imagine all the places he could have gone and all the things that could have happened to him. Just as I was imagining Hugo being eaten by a hungry pack of wolves, or abducted by a Cruella De Vil type, the house phone rang, interrupting my nightmare.

      ‘Oh you’re kidding, Mum,’ Gail gasped into the receiver, still jiggling Ben on her hip.

      There was a pause before she spoke again. ‘We’ll be right over, and again I’m so sorry.’

      I watched with interest as she hung up the phone and turned to Simon.

      ‘You’ll never guess what’s happened.’

      ‘I dread to think looking at the expression on your face.’ Simon grimaced, glancing up from his computer.

      ‘Hugo has just turned up at Mum and Dad’s,’ Gail explained with a sigh.

      Simon raised an eyebrow. ‘On his own?’

      ‘On his own,’ Gail confirmed.

      The family fell into silence as they contemplated this news leaving me to consider what I had just heard. On the one paw, I felt a huge wave of relief crash over me as I realised my little boy was now safe. But on the other what was Hugo thinking of? Fury ate away at me as I realised how little he had learnt since being under my charge. I had told him repeatedly never to go anywhere alone, but here he was not only disappearing before my very eyes but bothering poor Gail’s parents just as they had moved in.

      ‘But how did he get there?’ Jenny asked eventually, putting her phone down for the first time that morning.

      Gail looked pointedly at Simon. ‘I guess through that cat flap we’ve never got around to fixing.’

      ‘Ah.’ Simon winced. ‘Sorry, I’ve been meaning to mend that for ages. I will get on to it, I promise.’

      ‘It doesn’t matter now. All that matters is Hugo is safe,’ she sighed. ‘I said I’d go and get him, but I’ve got to get Ben down for his nap and then I said I’d take Jenny into town, to buy her some new shoes.’

      ‘That’s OK, why don’t I just go on my own?’ Jenny suggested.

      ‘Because you’re fourteen, young lady, and I’m not letting you run amok with my money!’ Gail admonished.

      Simon stood up and shut the lid of his laptop. ‘I’ll go then. Me and Perce can pick up the whippersnapper and while I’m there I’ll see if your parents need anything doing.’

      The relief on Gail’s face was palpable. ‘Would you? Oh thanks, Si, that’s such a help.’

      Simon grinned, as he walked across to his wife and kissed her on the cheek. ‘My pleasure,’ he told her, before turning to me. ‘Come on then, mate, let’s rescue Hugo before he destroys Doreen and Eric’s place like he does here.’

       *

      Simon had barely finished knocking on the door before Eric flung it open wearing a big grin, Hugo in his arms. I glanced in astonishment at them both, never before having seen one or the other quite so content.

      ‘Hi, Eric,’ Simon said evenly, stepping into the hallway. ‘We’re here on a rescue mission, heard Hugo had been bothering you.’

      Eric chuckled and clutched Hugo tightly to his chest. ‘Nonsense, it was a very pleasant surprise to see this one in the kitchen earlier. Little so-and-so must have got through the conservatory door.’

      ‘I’m very sorry, Eric,’ I barked seriously as I followed Simon inside. ‘It won’t happen again, will it, Hugo?’

      As Eric set Hugo on the floor, my son hid behind the older man’s trousers. ‘Sorry, Dad, didn’t mean to make you worry.’

      ‘So why did you?’ I barked grumpily, as we followed Eric down the long hallway and into the kitchen. There was still mess everywhere with half-unpacked boxes all over the place.

      ‘Sorry the house is a bit of a tip,’ Eric apologised, filling the kettle. ‘We’re still up to our eyeballs and Doreen’s had enough so she’s popped to the shops for a coffee and a break.’

      Simon settled himself on one of the high chairs at Doreen’s island while Hugo stood next to Eric, almost as if he was waiting for him to issue his next instruction. ‘That’s the other reason I thought I’d pop by, see if there’s anything I can do.’

      Eric smiled at his son-in-law as he reached for a pair of mugs, tripping over Hugo in the process. ‘Oh sorry, Hugo, didn’t see you there.’

      ‘That’s OK, Eric,’ my son barked, wagging his tail.

      Turning back to face Simon, Eric scratched his head. ‘Sorry, Simon, what were we saying? Honestly, I feel as if I can barely remember anything at the minute with this move.’

      Simon chuckled, the frown lines on his face crinkling around his eyes. ‘I can’t say I’m surprised. Moving gets the best of all of us. No, I was just offering to lend a hand.’

      ‘That’s very good of you, Simon, but Hugo here has just been helping me sort through a load of boxes and we’ve got a lot done, haven’t we?’ Eric grinned, bending down and pulling a tomato from his pocket to give to Hugo.

      I watched in amazement as Hugo ate the fruit greedily from Eric’s palm.

      ‘I didn’t know you liked tomatoes,’ I barked in astonishment from my position by the doorway.

      ‘Oh yes!’ Hugo yapped, licking his lips and looking up at Eric, clearly hoping for more. ‘Eric gave me one from the greenhouse yesterday and it was delicious. Today, he found another handful had grown overnight and fed them to me.’

      I was barkless and at a loss to know what to do. ‘Just come over here,’ I ordered, as Eric pushed a mug of tea in front of Simon.

      ‘What is it, Dad?’ Hugo asked, nearing my side.

      ‘I want to know what possessed you to go running off like that,’ I yapped quietly.

      ‘I wanted to check on Eric and Doreen, Dad,’ Hugo barked. ‘I heard you bark you were worried about Gail’s parents. I thought I could come and help them for you.’

      A rush of love surged through me, at my son’s thoughtfulness. With each passing day, I was beginning to see glimpses of the dog I knew he could become. But, as always, he hadn’t got it quite right. My mission to help him was far from over.

      ‘You can’t just dash off without barking something,’ I told him gently. ‘It was a lovely idea to help Gail’s parents but you’re too young to do these things on your own.’

      Hugo hung his head in sorrow. ‘Sorry, Dad. I was only trying to help. But listen, I’ve got to tell you something. I think you were right about something being wrong with Eric and Doreen. He keeps forgetting things, Dad. Earlier on he kept saying to Doreen that he was going to go bowling and she kept telling him that he couldn’t do that any more as they didn’t live in Barnstaple any longer. He got so cross, Dad, he went out into the garden for a walk around the tomatoes and then he gave me some and then he seemed OK again.’

      I shook my head impatiently. I realised Hugo meant well but the fact was that running off, causing people to worry, was not what a forever family would be looking for in a dog.

      ‘Hugo, I know that you acted with the best of intentions today so I don’t want to go on at you too much. But dog obedience is so important and it’s vital I start to see some from you. Do you understand?’

      Hugo

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