PROLOGUE. There are three basic kinds of tales

Transcription

1 PROLOGUE There are three basic kinds of tales There s the True Tale... it s mostly the truth. It goes like this: when you were a young boy you went fishing one day and caught a three-pound bass. There s the Fish Tale some exaggeration is in there. It goes like this: when you were a young boy, you went fishing and caught a ten-pound bass. It was the biggest fish ever caught in that lake. There s the Tall Tale it s a whopper. It goes like this: when you were a young boy, you went fishing, and the biggest bass ever known to mankind bit down on your worm. Why it must have been forty no wait make that fifty pounds. This monster bass pulled you head first into the lake, and you landed right on top of it. It took you two hours, but finally you wrestled it over to the side of the lake and took it home and ate it for dinner. And there s a whole nother kind of tale it s called a Mutt Tale... it s the kind of tale I ll be telling you. The Mutt Tales started a long time ago, way before you were born, back in 1965, in Metairie, Louisiana. Now to make it clear to you the Mutts were NOT dogs. The Mutts were two kids Cheryl and Jep and wherever they went, disaster was bound to happen. 1

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3 Chapter 1 Mutts On The Move Cheryl Miles didn t have a lick of sense. I Wonder why no one s out here today? Someone better get out here soon and notice my new jacket and gloves. Up ahead she spotted the intersection. At four-and-a-half, Cheryl wasn t supposed to go past it when roaming the neighborhood, even if she was trying to muster up some compliments on her new duds. Yes. I said roaming the neighborhood. Now don t go getting yourself all upset. The 1960s were different. Back then, pretty much any four-and-a-half-year-old girl in these whole United States of America could go out and roam the streets without fear. Why, they did it all the time and no one thought anything of it. What if I just go one more block? I bet it will be okay. Cheryl reasoned. And with that it was decided, so Cheryl walked to the sidewalk on the far side of the intersection. 3

4 Mutts on the Move So far so goo Clink! What was that? Clink, clink, clink! Cheryl whipped her head around so fast that her hood fell back and her light brown hair came tumbling out. Clink, clink, clink! She turned back around and saw it. THE DOG. The mean, bad dog that she was terrified of. Oh, no! Cheryl gasped. Her big brown eyes were as wide as saucers. Maybe he doesn t notice me, she hoped, as she began to slowly back up. Grrrrr! came a low rumble from the dog s throat. Ah! Cheryl screamed. That was all the inducement she needed. She turned around and ran straight for home. By now the dog was barking his head off. And over the barking, Cheryl could hear the clink, clink, clink of the dog s collar as he ran after her. Faster, she exclaimed out loud to herself. He s gaining on me. So Cheryl ran faster, running just as fast as her little fourand-one-half-year-old legs would carry her. She was scared out of her wits, but the frightening sound never went away clink, clink, clink. Almost home, she panted out. The air was so cold that her lungs were on fire. Clink, clink, clink! In front of Cheryl was the driveway. Clink, clink, clink! 4

5 Mutts On The Move There s the door. She stopped and pushed open the door. Everything went quiet. Deathly quiet. She turned to look for the dog, but he wasn t there. She bounded down the stairs and out to the end of the carport. Clink, clink, clink! Cheryl burst through the door, but now she was laughing at herself. Mommy! she shouted. Cheryl was expecting her mommy to be in the back of the house getting Jep up from his nap. But Mommy and Daddy were both standing in the kitchen. It was the middle of the afternoon, and Daddy was in his work clothes. Big doin s must be up or Daddy wouldn t be home until after supper and bath time. Well hello, Cher Bear, Daddy said, and he scooped her up. Cher Bear was one of Cheryl s many nicknames. Her little brother, Jep, had given it to her. She was the older of the two Mutts. Why are you laughing? What s so funny? Daddy asked. I was just being silly, Cheryl said, and she giggled again. I was out there in my new coat, and I saw that big mean dog down the street. And he barkded at me. Barked, Daddy corrected. Right, barked. He barked at me and I ran, and I ran, and I ran, and the whole time I could hear his collar clinking. I just knew he was going to eat me up for supper. But guess what it was? What, Bear? Daddy wanted to know. 5

6 Mutts on the Move My zipper, Cheryl said and burst into laughter. Then she proceeded to clink her zipper. Isn t that hilarious, Daddy? I d say so Bear, Daddy said, and he put her down with a kiss. Cheryl, Mommy asked, could you find Susan and Jep please? We have some big news for y all. What news? Cheryl demanded. Just go find Susan and Jep, and we ll tell you all about it together. Once the whole family was there, Daddy began. Kids, I have some exciting news, Daddy said. I ve just gotten a big promotion. I m going to be the number one man in my company for the whole state of Arkansas. Isn t that great news? We ll be moving to Little Rock in just a little while. Moving! Susan shrieked. I m not moving anywhere! She jumped up from the couch and stomped her foot so hard that her dark brown curls bounced, and her brown eyes shot sparks of angry fire at her daddy. Susan was the Mutts big sister. She was seven, and she was definitely in charge, but I bet that if you have a big sister, you already knew big sisters are always in charge. Susan was just called Susan. She didn t have any nicknames, and she wasn t a Mutt. And right now, she was furious. But honey, Mommy said, we have to move. Daddy s not 6

7 Mutts On The Move going to be working in Louisiana anymore. He s going to be working in Arkansas. So what? Clearly, Susan didn t think that was reason enough to move. Susan, we live where Daddy works, said Mommy, trying logic. But if we move from here, then I can t play with Cindy. Cindy Wolfe was Susan s best friend in the whole wide world. I know you can t sweetie, and I m so sorry about that. But the new neighborhood we re moving into has lots and lots of children your age. You ll make plenty of new friends, Mommy promised Susan. They ll all be ugly, Susan insisted. Susan! Mommy was horrified. And I won t like them at all! Susan continued. Now honey, Mommy began, you re just They ll all be smelly, Susan interrupted. Susan, that s not true. They ll be wonderful, you ll see. You ll love it once you get there. Mommy was still trying to reassure Susan. But Susan was in no mood to be reassured. They wanted her to leave Cindy. No I won t! I won t love it, and I don t want any new friends. I already have the best friend in the history of the whole universe. Susan s voice began to crack as a sob rose in her throat. I want Cindy! Susan cried with a final stomp of her foot. Then she ran right out of the family room, threw open the 7

8 Mutts on the Move door to her bedroom, flung herself across the bed, and cried brokenheartedly. She was not to be consoled. Well Jareth, Mommy said on her way to see about Susan, I d say that went just about as badly as it could have. Jareth was Daddy s proper name, and you d better not shorten it to Jerry, or the whole family would look at you like you d just lost your mind. What s moving? Jep asked. Jep was three and one-quarter. He was the younger Mutt. Jep had blond hair so light-colored that it was almost white, and that s why everyone said he was a towhead. He also had the most beautiful blue eyes that you could possibly imagine. How anyone with such beautiful blue eyes, so adorably cute, and a perfect towhead to boot could ever be in trouble is beyond me. But trust me, he was. And often. What s a promotion? Cheryl asked. And what s Arkansas? Daddy moved to the couch, and sat between the Mutts. You do remember that Cheryl and Jep are the Mutts don t you? Mutts, I m glad you asked, Daddy told them. Moving 8

9 Mutts On The Move means we re going to live in a whole new city called Little Rock, Arkansas. It s got hills, and trees, and guess what else? What? The Mutts couldn t wait to hear the answer to Daddy s question. It has SNOW! Snow! Jep squealed, as he jumped off the couch and did a war dance, whooping for all he was worth. Snow, snow, snow! That s right, my boy. Daddy scooped Jep up mid-whoop, and put him on his lap. It s got snow, and it s got lots of things. Then he broke into his famous Irish accent. Sure, and it s called the Land O Opportunity. I know you re gonna love it. That was all the convincing Cheryl needed. When do we move, Daddy? In a few weeks, Bear, and I m counting on you Mutts to be a big help to your mama during the move and to be very good little Mutts. I m sure we will, Daddy, Cheryl said as Mommy walked back into the room. Well Jareth, she said. I think I ve got Susan calmed down, for now. She s cried herself to sleep, poor thing. I had no idea she d take it so hard. Daddy shook his head and said, They told me this might happen at work today, but I didn t think it would be like this. I m sure she ll come around, though. I think you re right, Mommy agreed. She s pretty upset now, but with all the excitement of the move, I m sure she ll be okay. 9

10 Mutts on the Move The Mutts ran off to play, so they missed the rest of their parents conversation. What did the doctor say today Mary Ann? Daddy asked. Do you have to have surgery? Mary Ann is Mommy s real name. And you better call her Mary Ann too, not Mary nor Ann nor anything but Mary Ann or else her daddy will give you the business. Yes, she said, I have to have surgery, right away. I just don t know how we re going to handle the surgery, the big move, and three kids, Daddy said. If The Mutts had been in the room, even they would have been able to tell that Mommy and Daddy were worried about the move, the surgery, and of course, Susan s broken heart. As it turns out, they weren t the only ones who were worried... Once the word got out to Mommy s family about her surgery. 10

11 Chapter 4 Arkansas Once everyone was back in the car, and Susan had calmed down, Daddy drove the rest of the way to the Pinetree Lane neighborhood in Little Rock, Arkansas. The Miles weren t actually moving into the new house yet, because it was still being built, but Daddy wanted to show it to them anyway. The new house looked big to the Mutts. It had stairs and a basement with a family room in it. It even had a garage where cars were parked along with a door that closed. The Mutts couldn t wait for moving-in day. But even cooler than move-in day was the fact that they got to spend a few weeks living in a hotel. Well Susan. Well Mutts. What do you think? Daddy asked. They were standing in the front driveway looking at the house. It looks like we could move in now, Cheryl said. Can we Daddy? Jep asked. Sure and it s not ready for us to move in yet, Daddy answered in his famous Irish accent. The outside is pretty much ready, but the inside still needs some work. So, what do you think of the garage Mary Ann? I like it, Mommy exclaimed. What do you think Susan? 29

12 Mutts on the Move It s okay. Come on kids, let me show you the backyard, Daddy said, and they all trooped around the corner of the house. Do you remember what Mommy and I told you about the snow? Yes, they all answered. Well, just take a look at that hill. The backyard was nothing but one big hill. Can t you just taste the snowflakes falling from the sky? Can t you just feel the wind in your faces while you re sledding? Yeah! they all answered. Even Susan forgot that she was supposed to be mad at her parents and got right into the spirit of things. Daddy, you have to get all of us sleds, said Susan as she grabbed Daddy s hand. Well, we ll have one sled for our whole family a big one so we can all ride together. All right, Jep yelled, and then he broke into song, And someday it just might SNOW! But Daddy, Susan interrupted. Don t you think we each need our own sleds? I don t know Susan. That could be awful expensive. Maybe it s something you need to ask Santa for. But Daddy, it s only April. Christmas is far, far away. Daddy put his arm around Susan and looked at her with a gleam in his eye. Ah yes, my lass, but so is the snow. Susan playfully punched Daddy in his arm, Oh Daddy! 30

13 Arkansas And that was the first real smile they d seen out of Susan in weeks. Susan, Mommy said, why don t we all walk up to the house, just us grown-ups? I want to show you and Miss Hettie your room. It ll be Miss Hettie s while she s here with us, but eventually it will be yours. You re going to have your own room, you know. No sharing with Cheryl? Susan was incredulous. This was too good to be true. No sharing with Cheryl, Mommy confirmed to Susan s great joy. Cheryl was hopelessly messy. Let s go! Susan exclaimed, and she took off on a dead run toward the house. Wait up! Daddy said. Then he turned to the Mutts as he started walking up the hill to the house. Now Mutts, why don t y all play out here for a while? Go exploring and see what you can discover. I bet you can find the creek over there, and I bet you can figure out the best part of the hill for sledding. Yes, yes, I know. Today you wouldn t dream of leaving a threeand-four-year-old outside and unsupervised, but in the 1960s you could. So that s just what Daddy did. Have fun Mutts, Daddy called over his shoulder. Okay Daddy, Cheryl said, and she took off at a gallop across 31

14 Mutts on the Move the flat part of the yard. She was headed toward the woods which were filled with climbing trees. Jep just stood there. He was excited about the possibility of snow. But let me tell you, poor little Jep had to make a lot of adjustments before he got to the part about sledding down the hill. Jep has spent almost his whole entire life, which as of now amounted to three years, in Louisiana without snow. There s lots you could say about Louisiana, but only one thing you need to know. It s flat. I mean the ground is flat. Everywhere you looked, everything was flatter than flat. It looks like this: Flat Flat Flatter than flat There s also lots you could say about Little Rock, but only one thing you need to know, besides its being rocky that is Little Rock is NOT flat. At least the part of Little Rock that the Mutts lived in wasn t flat. Everywhere around the neighborhood with Pinetree Lane in it was hilly. To the Mutts it looked like this: 32

15 Arkansas All those hills created a huge problem for Jep because he kept on walking like he was walking on flat ground. This was a deadly mistake, but the Mutts didn t know it yet. So Jep tried to follow Cheryl. The yard was great. There were woods with trees for climbing and at the end of the woods, there was another hill that led to a steep rocky creek. The whole thing was Mutt paradise. That creek needed a better look. Hey, Cher Bear, you come back here, Jep demanded. Let s go see the creek first. Okay, Jep, Cheryl said as she scampered back from the trees. Let s go. The Mutts took off toward the creek. It was all downhill to get there. Getting down that big hill was pretty tricky. When the hill got steeper, they started to slip and slide. It wasn t too many steps before the hill got the better of the Mutts and their hill-climbing skills. I dunno, Bear. There was concern in Jep s voice. It s really steep, Cheryl added. She sounded a little bit nervous herself. I dunno, Bear. Now Jep had moved on to fear. Come on Jep, I bet we can make it, Cheryl encouraged. I dunno, Bear. We re talking flat out panic in Jep s voice at this point. Oof! Cheryl said as she slipped and fell right on her backside. I think you re right Jep. Let s go back to the house. 33

16 Mutts on the Move Cheryl turned around and started walking back up the hill. It was hard going, but she was making progress. I dunno Bear..., Jep started in a shrill high voice, I think I need some help... And that s when it happened. 34

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