The Dog Lady Page 2

my change in there!” Annabelle’s voice was weak and she was on the verge of tears. “Take it, but stop hurting my baby! Don’t hurt him any more!”

  “We’re not here for spare change, you cunt!” The masked man spat. Behind him, the other man stood watching mutely. “Where’s the REAL money! We know you’re loaded, where the fuck are you hiding it?!”

  Annabelle stared back in bewilderment. “Th-there’s t-t-ten dollars in m-my wallet.” She stuttered. “I-t’s all I have. Re-really!”

  The fist fell, causing the old woman to cry out in pain. “I SAID THE REAL MONEY, BITCH! TELL US WHERE IT IS NOW!” Frustrated, he shook her & struck her again.

  “Hey, man, go easy there.” The other man said, placing a gloved hand on the other’s shoulder. “She’s old, man. You’re gonna kill her.”

  “Well if she’d just cooperate,” said the first, opening his fist to deliver a hard slap to Annabelle’s bruised face. “We could just take what we came for & get out of here.”

  “I thold woo where it ith.” The old woman sobbed, her words muffled & slightly slurred.

  “We’ve searched this place from top to bottom, man.” The second man spoke again. “I think she’s telling the truth, there is no money here. Whoever said it was lying or something.”

  The man bent over Annabelle snorted in disgust & released her shirt & stepped aside. Giving a cry, she scuttled on all fours to the still motionless body of the small dog, screaming as she reached out for him. “THOO KILLED BY BABY!” The dog’s limp form was swiftly lifted & cradled into the woman’s arms as she continued to cry.

  “God, bitch really is bat-shit crazy.” One of the two men spoke. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

  Suddenly the woman looked up, pinning both men with a glare of burning hatred & fury. When she spoke, she spoke slowly, enunciating each word with exaggerated care, obviously wanting to make sure that her message was understood despite her swollen, injured face. “My children will find you. You will pay for this.”

  For several long seconds, no one moved, then finally Annabelle lowered her head once more, rocking the limp body of the small dog in her arms, & the spell was broken. The two men hurried away into the night.

  Jake sipped his morning coffee as he walked to the window, pulling apart the blinds to look up at the sky. If the weather was clear, he planned to do some work on the truck. He was surprised by the appearance of a small Chihuahua at the end of the driveway, staring intently at the house. Unconcerned, he let the blinds fall back into place & forgot about the dog.

  He was in a sour mood, displeased at the lack of the promised jackpot despite an exhaustive search of the Dog Lady’s entire small house. Not a single cabinet, drawer or piece of furniture went uninspected once the mattress had proved to contain nothing but springs & padding. Even lamps & dishes were smashed if they had the remotest chance of hiding anything within them. But they had come up empty except for a glass jar that had contained less that five dollars worth of change.

  After finishing his coffee, Jake got dressed & looked out the window again, making sure no rain clouds had snuck into the sky while his back was turned. His attention, however, was diverted by the little Chihuahua that still sat at the end of the driveway, the tiny dog’s gaze unwavering.

  A small shiver ran down Jake’s back & he felt irrationally frightened of the tiny dog. Embarrassed at his fear, Jake tore open the door & rushed outside, yelling for the dog to shoo & intending to kick it if it did not.

  The Chihuahua rose swiftly to it’s feet & trotted a short distance away, then stopped & turned back to stare at Jake with it’s bulging eyes. Jake grabbed a rock from the ground near his feet and threw it at the dog. The rock missed, but the dog trotted a few more feet away before stopping & staring again.

  Deciding to ignore the little dog, he turned & headed back for the driveway to work on the truck. As soon as he lifted the hood, all thoughts of the dog and the crazy Dog Lady were forgotten as he began to inspect the old engine, looking for the source of a recent problem it had been giving him.

  “What’s with the mutts?” Hank’s voice drifted to Jake several minutes later & he looked up from the engine at his younger brother, who had come to stand beside the truck, occasionally taking a gulp from the beer in his hand.

  “What mutts?” Jake asked in a confused tone.

  Hank lifted the beer can, indicating some spot behind the older man. Jake turned around & felt a sudden chill. The Chihuahua had returned, & it had been joined by what looked to be a large, brown Labrador mix. Both dogs stared at the men intently.

  Giving a roar, Jake lifted his grease smeared hands & rushed at the dogs, intending to chase them away. Both dogs darted a short distance away, then stopped, turning back to continue their silent vigil. Jake frowned & looked at his younger brother with a nervous frown. “I think I could use one of those.” He said, averting his eyes to the beer can. “Let’s head in.”

  When Jake pulled back the blinds from his window again, several minutes later, he was displeased to find that not only had both dogs returned to their place at the end of the drive, but they had been joined by three more. Two more had joined the growing crowd when he looked again, & he spotted another walking calmly down the street, heading toward the house.

  By the time night fell, at least twenty pair of eyes stared back at Jake every time he looked out the window. “That crazy old bat. I bet she’s behind this.” He muttered angrily. Should have killed her when we had the chance. She’s the one sending these damn dogs, making them sit there like that.”

  “What do you think they’re doing?” Hank asked in a timid voice, unwilling to look out the window to see them for himself.

  “They’re trying to scare us, that’s what.” Jake replied bitterly. “Nothing more. Somehow that bitch must had figured out who we were, and now she’s sending all these dogs to scare us into giving ourselves up.”

  “Well it’s sure working.” Hank muttered. “I’m scared as hell. And I didn’t even lay a hand on the old woman!”

  The next morning, the yard was littered with dogs. Big, small and medium, mixed breeds & purebreds. Some of them wore collars. One had a piece of chewed rope dangling from it’s neck. Another had a leash draped across it’s back. But every single dog was staring unwaveringly at the house.

  “Fuck!” Jake exclaimed, an unexplainable fear growing as the sight of the dogs. His coffee cup dropped from his suddenly numb hand & shattered as it struck the floor, the burning liquid splashing onto his bare legs and feet, yet Jake did not even seem to notice.

  “Jesus!” Hank exclaimed as he rushed over to take a look, unable to keep from finding out what had caused such a reaction in his brother. “Every dog in the damn county is out there!”

  “That’s it,” Jake growled, anger rising to cover his fear. “I’m gonna put an end to this.” He grabbed the first weapon within reach, a brass statue of an angel, & threw open the door. As soon as he appeared, the dogs rose to their feet, several of them scampering out of his way as he roared, swinging the figurine, but they always stopped after a few steps, resettling a short distance away.

  The intent glares of the dogs were almost a tangible presence, an accusatory finger aimed directly at him. “Get lost you stupid mutts! Go home! Scram!” None of the dogs moved. Jake went back inside. “Pack up.” He said once he got back inside. “We’re getting the hell out of here.”

  Several more dogs had joined the growing pack by the time the two brothers had managed to pack up some clothes. Jake took the brass angel as protection, but not a single dog barred the way as the pair headed to the truck. It took several twists of the key to get the engine to turn over, but once it did, he gunned the gas petal & the engine roared to life. The dogs scattered as the truck burst out of the driveway & Jake laughed at the eyes that stared at him from the rear view mirror, getting farther & farther away until he turned a corner and they disappeared completely.

  Jake drove several miles until he came to a seedy looking
motel. It wasn’t as good as home, but the pair decided it would do for a night or two while they decided what to do next. And it had a strict, no dog policy. Jake thought that was funny.

  The pair had been at the motel no more than ten minutes when Hank opened the door, a small plastic bucket in his hand to gather some ice from the machine next to the office. But as soon as he took a single step, he froze in terror. Sitting calmly, several feet away, a large, shaggy white dog stared back at him. After several seconds, Hank threw the bucket, then, without checking to see if he’d managed to hit his target, turned & rushed back into the room, slamming the door behind him. “A dog!” he exclaimed when Jake looked up at him in surprise. “A god damn dog is out there!”

  Thankful that they had not had time to unpack, the brothers grabbed their suitcases & rushed outside, horrified as they were greeted by three pairs of eyes that followed their every move. They dove into the truck & sped away. When Jake finally had to stop for gas, a small terrier in the car next to his stood a silent vigil at the window, staring with wide, black eyes. When they pulled into a truck stop to spend the night, Hank caught sight of a man walking a large black dog, which stopped in it’s tracks to stare at the passing truck, ignoring it’s owner’s insistent tugs on it’s leash. When they stopped at a roadside