Jack (3 page)

There was a knock at the door, and Aunt Amanda looked relieved. “Whew. Perfect timing. That’s probably my friend Eileen. I asked her to come over to help me explain about Jack.” Aunt Amanda opened the door. Eileen was very short, with wild curly hair and rosy cheeks. Lizzie thought she had seen her somewhere before.

“You look familiar,” Eileen said to Lizzie after Aunt Amanda had introduced everyone. Then she snapped her fingers. “I met you at the Halloween party! You were dressed as Scooby-Doo, right?”

Lizzie smiled and put on her Scooby voice. “Ruhroh!” So that was where she had seen this woman. “Now I remember you, too. You were Little Bo
Peep.” Aunt Amanda’s Halloween party had been a blast. All the doggy day care clients had dressed up their dogs for a costume contest. There were cowboy dogs and Star Wars dogs and ghost dogs. One lady had even dressed her dog up as a cat and won second prize! First prize had gone to Hoss, the big Great Dane, who had come as an elephant. They’d had games (Dunking for Doggy Biscuits, Chase the Ghost, Fetch the Stuffed Bat) and treats (pumpkin-shaped cookies), and they’d even done a craft project (paw-print holiday cards).

“That’s right!” Aunt Amanda nodded. “Eileen was at the party. She just moved into the office next door. Eileen is an animal behaviorist.”

“A what?” Charles stared at Eileen.

Eileen laughed. “Not many people have heard of my job. What I do is study how animals act. Some behaviorists study wild animals, but I mostly study pets. I help people understand why their dogs and cats, and even their horses, behave the
way they do. I can help if you have a pet with a problem, like fighting with other animals, or running away, or” — she cleared her throat and looked at Jack, who had fallen asleep and was snoring gently on Lizzie’s lap — “chewing and eating things he shouldn’t. . . .”

“Eileen helps owners figure out how to help their animals learn to behave better, so they don’t have to give them away, or abandon them like Jack’s owners did,” Aunt Amanda finished for her friend. “She is a wizard with animals.”

Eileen ducked her head, and her cheeks turned even rosier. “I don’t know about that, but I do love working with them.” She came over to pet Jack. “I’ve heard some stories about this little guy.” She shook her head.

“Such as?” Mom folded her arms across her chest.

Lizzie crossed her fingers and hoped Eileen wouldn’t say something really awful about Jack’s behavior. She was already in love with the wacky
pup who was fast asleep in her lap, and she hoped like anything that the Petersons would get to foster him, no matter how much trouble he was. They had taken care of naughty puppies before. They could handle a dog who chewed a little.

“Well” — Eileen exchanged a glance with Aunt Amanda — “like most boxers, he has a lot of energy and he’s very curious. He can be, um, kind of destructive. According to his owners, he has chewed and even eaten up some really weird things.”

“Like what?” Now Dad looked worried.

“A cell phone,” said Aunt Amanda. “And soap. And money, and marshmallows, and a whole bag of cookies — plus the bag itself.”

“And three pencils and some sand and a birthday cake and . . . rocks.” Eileen’s eyes were bright and Lizzie thought she was trying not to smile. “It’s pretty amazing, really. Jack has eaten just about everything you can think of.”

“Doesn’t he get a bellyache?” Charles stared at Jack.

Aunt Amanda nodded. “Jack has made himself very, very sick. He’s been to the vet many times in the last month. And even though he’s only nine months old, he’s already had three operations. I think that’s partly why my clients gave him up. They just couldn’t afford the vet bills anymore.”

“Plus, they both have busy jobs, and not enough time to give Jack the attention he needs,” Eileen said. “I had just started to work with them on his behavior, but I think they were shocked when they understood how much time and energy it might take to teach Jack not to chew and eat things.”

Lizzie looked down at Jack. He looked so innocent, lying there with his head on her knee. How could his owners have given up on him? “We’ll find Jack the perfect home,” she said. She looked up in time to see Mom and Dad glance at each other.

“I only agreed to take him for one night,” Mom said.

“But he needs us!” Lizzie stroked Jack’s head.

“Lizzie, I don’t know,” Dad began. “This dog may need more attention than we can give him.”

“I’ll help,” Charles said. “I promise.”

Mom sighed. “I know you both want to help Jack. I do, too. But I’m not sure we can handle him.”

“I can give you some good advice if you agree to foster Jack,” Eileen offered. “No charge.”

Lizzie gave Eileen a grateful smile.

“How about this?” Dad asked. “Let’s agree to keep him for the rest of the weekend and see how it goes. After that, we’ll have to see.”

Mom nodded. “That sounds like a good plan.”

“Yay!” yelled Lizzie and Charles.

Jack woke up. He jumped to his feet and began to spin around in circles, dancing happily.

Aunt Amanda smiled. “I don’t think you’ll be sorry,” she said.

Mom shook her head. “I hope you’re right.”

After Aunt Amanda and Eileen left, Lizzie and Charles took the puppies back outside. “We’d better keep a really close eye on Jack today, and make sure he gets plenty of playtime,” Lizzie told her brother. “If he keeps chewing things up and keeping us awake at night, Mom and Dad won’t let us foster him.”

Charles nodded. “Good plan.”

They took turns all morning. Lizzie watched the puppies while Charles went to soccer practice; then he watched them while she went to volunteer at the animal shelter. When she got back home from Caring Paws, Lizzie was tired. She had walked six dogs, cleaned out three kennels, and fed sixteen cats. But she played fetch with Jack while Charles went next door, where his best friend, Sammy, lived. When Charles came back, Lizzie went upstairs. All she really wanted to do by then was lie on her bed and read for a while, but instead she sat down at the computer and found
the letter she had written to Kit Smithers. She read it over. Then she added a few sentences at the end.

When she was done, she went to find Mom. She was ready to e-mail her letter to Kit Smithers.

Mom was in her study. She sat at her desk, her head in her hands. Lizzie thought she looked upset.

“Did Jack eat something?” Lizzie was alarmed. Maybe Charles had not watched the puppy closely enough while Lizzie had worked on her letter.

“No, it’s not that.” Mom sighed and sat up, revealing a pile of papers on her desk. “It’s just that I can’t seem to take these notes and make them into a good newspaper article. When I interviewed this man about his green building business, I thought I understood it. But now, I keep reading through my notes, and I’m not so sure.”

“That’s too bad,” said Lizzie. But she was relieved. At least Jack hadn’t done anything else wrong. So far. “I have my letter all ready to send to Kit Smithers.” She held up the flash drive she used to save all her homework and other important things.

Mom stuck the drive into her computer. “Let’s see if we can find a Web site,” she said. Mom typed in Kit Smithers’s name. When the list of possible sites came up, Lizzie pointed to one.

“Click on that one,” she said.

Mom clicked on the heading and a new page opened up.

“That’s her!” Lizzie looked over her mom’s shoulder. “That’s Kit Smithers! That’s the same picture of her that’s in the back of
Mountain Girl.”
Lizzie had studied that picture plenty of times, imagining how exciting it would be to visit Kit Smithers in Houston, Texas, where the caption said she lived.

“She looks like a nice person,” said Mom. They
clicked around some more and found pictures of Kit Smithers as a little girl, a page with advice about writing, and a page about a brand-new book that would be coming out in a month. It was called
Northern Lights,
and as soon as Lizzie saw the sled dog team and the polar bear on the cover, she wanted that book.

“Look! There’s a place you can click if you want to send her mail.” Lizzie pointed.

Mom clicked, and an e-mail form popped up. She copied Lizzie’s letter from the flash drive into the e-mail. Then she attached a picture of Lizzie with Buddy, the one from last Christmas with them sitting under the tree together, Buddy snoozing in Lizzie’s lap.

“Put ‘from your number one fan, Lizzie’ in the subject line,” said Lizzie, “so she knows it’s from me even though it’s from your e-mail account.”

Mom typed that in.

Lizzie leaned over and clicked “send.” She couldn’t wait one minute longer. The sooner they
sent the e-mail, the sooner she might hear back from Kit Smithers. That would be so cool. She imagined telling Maria. She imagined telling her whole class. Everybody would definitely be impressed. Lizzie stared at the screen, wishing a reply would appear instantly.

“Okay,” Mom said. “I’d better get back to work.”

That meant Lizzie was supposed to leave the study. “But you’ll keep checking to see if she answered, right?”

“I’ll keep checking,” said Mom. “But don’t be surprised if it takes longer than you think. She might be very busy.”

Lizzie headed downstairs. It was her turn to watch Jack, anyway. She found Charles and the Bean outside with the puppies.

Charles waved to Lizzie. “Watch this! Jack already learned a trick!” He held a toy just above Jack’s head. “Sit, Jack.” Jack sat. Then Charles held the toy a little higher over Jack’s head. “Now, sit pretty, Jack.” Jack raised his front paws off
the ground, balancing on his hind legs. He could hold the pose for only a few seconds.

The Bean loved that trick. “Again!” he shouted as soon as Jack was back on all four feet. “Again!”

“Wow.” Lizzie wished she had been the one to teach Jack a trick. “He sure is a smart puppy,” she said. “I just know we’ll find him a great home.” She ran for the camera and took a whole bunch of pictures of Jack. She took some of Buddy, too, so he wouldn’t feel left out.

When the phone rang, Lizzie answered. It was Eileen. “I’m just calling to see how things are going with Jack,” she said.

“Well,” said Lizzie, “we’re just trying to keep him busy. I was thinking I could bring his crate up to my room tonight. Maybe he’ll be able to sleep inside it if he’s not all alone in the kitchen.”

“Great idea!” said Eileen. “That is exactly what I would have suggested. Boxers like to be close to their people. The perfect owner for Jack would be
someone who works at home, so he wouldn’t be left alone.”

Lizzie told Eileen about how she and Charles had taken turns playing with Jack, mostly outdoors, hoping to tire him out.

“You’re on the right track,” said Eileen. “Jack would probably be happiest living somewhere in the country, where he could really run around.”

Lizzie also told Eileen about how she had not yelled at Jack because she had not caught him in the middle of eating things.

“Excellent!” said Eileen. “And if you
do
catch him, you can try saying ‘leave it,’ then give him a treat when he drops whatever he’s chewing. Eventually he’ll learn the ‘leave it’ command. It sounds as if you really understand Jack, Lizzie.”

Lizzie smiled. “Maybe I can be an animal behaviorist when I grow up.” She had always figured she would be a vet, but maybe this would be an even more interesting way to help animals.

“I think you’d be terrific at that job, from what
your aunt tells me,” said Eileen. “She says you have a way with dogs, and I can see that she’s right.”

“Maybe that’s because I love them,” said Lizzie.

“So do I.” Eileen laughed. “That’s why I enjoy my job so much. Come visit me at my office someday, and you can learn more about what I do.”

Lizzie felt great when she got off the phone with Eileen. She
did
have a way with dogs. She knew just how to take care of them, train them, and most important, love them.

Before she went back outside, she went upstairs. “Did Kit Smithers write back yet?” she asked her mom after she’d told her all about Eileen’s phone call.

“Not yet.” Her mom frowned at her notes. “Remember, I said it might take a while.”

When Lizzie went out the back door, she was surprised to see Charles and Buddy and the Bean running in circles around the backyard. She waved Charles down. “What are you doing?”

“Playing tag!” Charles bent over and panted. “The Bean is it!”

“But where’s Jack?”

Charles looked over his shoulder. “I don’t know. He was right behind me a second ago.”

Jack was not in the rosebushes. He was not near the swing set. He was not behind the shed.

Jack was underneath the porch — and he was chewing on something.

“What have you got there, Jackie?” Lizzie asked. She had to get down on her hands and knees for a good view.

Then Lizzie’s eyes adjusted to the dark and she saw what Jack was eating.

“
Mountain Girl
!” Her book! Her most beautiful, favorite book, all ripped to pieces.

Lizzie wanted to yell. She wanted to scream. But she bit her lip. It wasn’t Jack’s fault. It was hers. She never should have brought that book outside where he was playing. Jack looked up at her with his big shiny brown eyes. He had one paw on the book, and a slobbered-on shred of paper hung from his jaw.

Oops. Did I do something wrong again?

“No, Jack!” said Lizzie. “Leave it!” But the lump in her throat made it hard to talk. Plus she was so upset that she could hardly even remember what Eileen had said to do. Lizzie blinked back her tears.

“Lizzie!” Mom opened her study window and stuck out her head. “Lizzie, guess what? You just got a note back from Kit Smithers!”

Lizzie gasped. The ruined book forgotten, she ran inside and took the stairs two at a time, with Buddy and Jack scrabbling along behind her. “Let’s see! What did she say? Did she answer my questions?”

Mom smiled as she let Lizzie sit down at her computer. “That was very nice of her, to write back so quickly. I’ll go get myself a cup of coffee while you read. Maybe I should take Jack downstairs with me, too.”

“Oh, let him stay!” said Lizzie. “He’s good as long as someone’s right there with him. I’ll watch him.” She barely noticed when her mother left the room. She was already reading Kit Smithers’s letter.

Lizzie sat back in her chair. “Wow!” It was so cool to get a letter back from someone as famous as Kit Smithers. She leaned forward and read the whole letter over again. Kit Smithers had answered every single question! Lizzie clicked “reply” and started writing.

Lizzie clicked “send” just as her mom came back into the room. “Mom!” she said without turning around. “Kit Smithers wrote me the best letter! And I already wrote her back. She had a dog named Jasper. He snored, and —” Lizzie spun around in the chair. Why was Mom so quiet? And why did she look so mad? “Oh.” Lizzie stopped talking when she saw what her mother was staring at.

Jack sat in the corner, munching quietly on a wad of paper. “Those are my notes!” Mom yelled. She ran over to Jack and grabbed the soggy, shredded mess out of his mouth. “No, Jack. No! Bad dog! Leave it!”

Jack looked up at her, wrinkling his forehead.

Oh, no! I messed up again.

Lizzie put her hands over her eyes. She could hardly bear to watch.

Mom plopped down on the floor and began to poke at the ruined notes. “I don’t believe this,” she muttered. “How am I ever going to write my article now?”

Lizzie felt awful. “It’s all my fault!” She jumped up to help her mom. “I was supposed to be keeping an eye on Jack.” She stared in dismay at the pile of pulp in her mother’s hands. “I’m really sorry.”

Mom sighed. “It’s okay, Lizzie. I guess it’s not the end of the world, any more than it was when he ate your letter.” But she frowned down at Jack. “To tell you the truth, at this rate I’m not sure we’ll even make it through two days with this puppy.”