“Listen!” said Violet. “It isn’t raining as hard this morning as it was last night. Maybe it will stop soon.”
“It’s only six o’clock,” said Henry. “But we should be on our way as soon at it stops raining.”
“This won’t be much of a breakfast,” said Jessie as they sat down on the floor.
“What about our new dog?” Benny asked. “He’s got to eat, too.”
“Let’s each give him a part of our breakfast,” said Jessie. “He’ll have enough.”
It was a good idea, but it was hard to give up some of their small breakfast. They felt better, though, when they saw how hungry the dog was.
“Don’t eat so fast, dog,” Benny exclaimed. “Make it last.”
But the dog had no idea of making it last. He snapped up his share of crackers and milk. Then he looked up for more.
“I don’t think he’s had anything to eat for at least a day,” said Violet.
Henry put his things away and stood up. “Look, it’s stopped raining,” he said. “We must find a place where we can get a real breakfast. And then we must see who has lost a dog.”
“Yes,” agreed Jessie. “I think something is wrong with him. Listen! He still whines. He must belong to somebody.”
The Aldens packed up all their things. They strapped the sleeping bags on the back of their bikes.
“We can’t say good-bye to anybody,” said Benny. “And we can’t lock the door.”
The four Aldens took their bikes and went out of the old house. Henry shut the front door as well as he could. Then they walked their bikes along the wet path to the road.
“That dog is going to follow us,” said Benny.
“We shouldn’t let him,” said Jessie firmly. “We’ve got one dog at home, and Watch wouldn’t like another. And besides, I still think he must live nearby. See? His paws don’t look sore, and they would if he had come a long way.”
Jessie looked down at the little dog and he just wagged his tail. “Go home!” she said. “That’s a good dog, go home now. Go home!”
But the dog did not go home. He stood still in the path and watched the Aldens. When they got on their bikes, the dog followed them.
Benny said, “Don’t pay any attention to him. Maybe he’ll trot off home. And the first one who sees a store gets a dime.”
Henry went first and Violet last. The little dog ran along behind Violet’s bike.
“We must find a place to eat, and a store to buy more emergency rations,” Jessie said.
“Maybe we’ll find them both at the same place,” Violet said. “I hope so.”
The Aldens passed several houses, but they saw no people. The dog followed them, still whining.
At last the children saw a building that looked like a country store.
“We all saw the store at the same time,” said Jessie. “Nobody gets the dime.”
It was a store, but it wasn’t open. The Aldens sat down on the steps and waited. The dog sat beside them and waited, too.
“After all, it’s not seven yet,” said Jessie. “Maybe the store doesn’t open until eight.”
“Well, if it’s eight,” said Benny, “I shall die of starvation.”
But the store did not open at eight. It was seven o’clock when a man came down the road, taking a key out of his pocket.
“Hi, kids!” he said. “What can I do for you?”
The dog whined and the Aldens all jumped up.
“We want a lot of things,” said Benny. “But first we want to buy something to eat right away.”
The man put the key in the door and opened it.
“Look around,” said the storekeeper. “But that doesn’t mean your dog! See that he doesn’t get into anything.”
Benny said, “Come. Sit.” The dog trotted to Benny and sat down.
“Well, some dog!” the man exclaimed. “I wish my children minded me like that.”
“You don’t know this dog, then?” Henry asked. “He isn’t ours. He just followed us.”
“Never saw him before in my life,” the man answered.
“He can’t live very far away,” said Henry. “See? His feet aren’t sore. He hasn’t come a long way.”
“Maybe somebody dropped him out of a car. It’s a mean thing to do, but some people do it,” said the storekeeper. “You can be sure that dog never came from around here. He’s a funny looking dog. I never saw one just like him. I’ll ask around, but I’m sure nobody will know about him.”
“We don’t want to keep him,” Benny said. “We’ve already got a good dog at home.”
“Watch wouldn’t be very pleased to see a strange dog,” Henry said. “Especially a dog that minds when Watch never minds any more.” Everyone laughed.
Jessie was busy picking out more supplies for their emergency rations. Then she started on things for breakfast.
The man kindly washed out the four Thermos bottles and filled them with milk. Jessie bought bread, two extra bottles of milk, butter, cereal, and bananas.
“Here’s a good bone for your dog,” the man said.
“Oh, thank you!” said Jessie. “I suppose we’ll have to take him with us. But every minute I feel we are taking him farther away from his home.”
“Too bad,” said the man, shaking his head. “I can’t keep him here. I don’t want a dog around my store. You’ll have to take him with you.”
There was nothing else to do. The pretty little whining dog ran along with the Aldens on their bicycles.
Benny said, “We don’t know what his real name is. But I have a name for him. We ought to call him Shadow. He follows us just like a shadow.”
Violet added, “And he’s blue-gray, like a shadow.”
From that moment, the dog’s name was Shadow.
“There are a lot of good places along here for a picnic breakfast,” Jessie called back.
“I hope no cows,” called Violet.
Benny looked at the field they were passing. “No, nothing but daisies, Violet. Not a cow.”
The Aldens rode along, finding only one hill where they had to get off and walk. Then they saw just the right field. There were bushes and trees to hide them from the road, and there was a big flat rock for a table.
Soon the bikes were lying on the grass, and the family was sitting around the stone table.
“I wish I had some butter for my bread,” Benny said.
“I did buy some, Ben,” said Jessie. “I bought just enough for breakfast. It won’t keep in the hot sun.”
The sun was out, and everyone was happy. Shadow sat down without being told and waited politely. Jessie poured some milk for him in a paper plate. Then she broke up some bread and dropped it in the milk.
“You can have your bone for lunch,” she said.
The Aldens started to eat their cereal and bananas and milk. “No banana for Shadow,” Benny said, laughing. “But what are we going to do with him, Henry?”
“I really don’t know,” replied Henry. “He must live somewhere around here. With us, he’s getting farther away all the time. But it can’t be helped.”
So Shadow followed his new family when they started on. |