♫On the road again!♫
♫I just can't wait to get on the road again!♫
♫Eatin' custard♫
♫And meeting Dogster friends!♫
♫Oh, I can't wait to get on the road again!♫

What a week it was. I was Travelin' Lyle. Spring and I spent a week in Wisconsin. I was very excited. This was going to be my shining moment. I was going to be Best Dog. The boss ma'am's parents have never thought of me as Best Dog. So I figure, compared to the Spring Thing, I'm a shoo-in.

But no. They loved her. She jumped up on the kitchen table planning to steal an apple pie and they still loved her.

It is so wrong. I never get to be Best Dog.

I got to meet some fellow Dogsters in the fur! We met Ziero and Mocha Java at their local Culver's. The bosses kept saying things like, "Java is so sweet!" and "Ziero is so handsome!" and "They are so well behaved!"
Like they never get to see that sort of thing at home. So naturally I got a little cranky. A little frozen custard made it all better. I could have used a burger too, though.

Now you will see I'm ready for Howl-o-ween. I had planned to go nekkid this year. My plans were foiled because somehow Skye managed to sneak her Howl-o-ween costume into a package addressed to me. The bosses saw it before I did and you can see what happened next. Very sneaky, Skye, very sneaky. But thanks for the treats!

High Stakes
Chapter 25

          As I stripped off my borrowed jumpsuit, Samantha dug a whimpering Sinty out from under the bed linens. 

          “I’m so sorry,” she wailed, throwing herself into Samantha’s arms.  “I couldn’t hold it anymore.  I did try to tell you.”  She howled and said, “I almost ruined your whole plan!”

          I gently patted her paw and reassured her that all was well.  We had, in fact, accomplished our objective with nary a hitch.

          “That’s not exactly true,” Samantha said, interrupting my self-congratulatory speech.  Her voice was low and contrite.  “I blew it.  I gave you up!”

          “What do you mean?” I asked, bewildered.

          “I said your name!  Your real name!  They’ll track us down and arrest us for dognapping.”

          Sinty cleared her throat and interjected, “You do realize that I was going to be discharged tomorrow.”

          I clenched my jaws, alternating my stare between them and then locked on Samantha.  “Did you know this?”

          She refused to raise her gaze from her paws, which were shuffling uncertainly on the pavement.  “She’s better off at home,” Samantha finally mumbled, her tone defensive.

          Sinty touched my shoulder with her paw.  Her eyes were wide and fearful.  “Do you really think you might be arrested?”  Her innocence moved me to set aside my annoyance with Samantha. 

          “I don’t think Nurse Kiko will turn us in,” I stated, with confidence I didn’t have to feign.  A smile curled at the corner of my mouth.  “In fact I think Nurse Angel Ears was rather taken with me.  So don’t you fret, Sinty,” I said, straightening the bandage on her head.  “Everything is going to be fine.  Let’s get you home.  I have to prepare for a stake out.”

          Sinty’s ears perked up and her eyes sparkled.  “A stake out?  Really?”

          Samantha raised her head and said, “Yes!  At the restaurant, no less.  I’m going to help Mr. Lyle find out who attacked you.”

          “And bring cocktail weenies,” I reminded her.

          “Can I come?” asked Sinty.

          For a girl with a head injury, this one had spunk.  Still, I couldn’t be saddled with two inexperienced sidekicks.  I had to turn her down.  “I really think you should get some rest.”

          “You could use my car,” Sinty offered.  This did get my attention.  I had missed a couple of payments on my trusty Dodge Dart and lost the privilege of its use.  Or so said the repo guy.  I hadn’t yet figured out how to inconspicuously set up my provisions without some sort of vehicle.  Perhaps I could allow Sinty to sleep in the back while Samantha and I kept watch.  I was pondering my options when Sinty added, “It’s a jaguar.”

          “Deal.”

  Chapter 26

          I was grateful for the extra trunk space of Sinty’s jaguar once I began packing for the stake out.  I had walked the girls home, leaving them to prepare the cocktail weenies, then drove Sinty’s jag back to my office and double-parked out front.  I admired my reflection in the side view mirror one last time before racing up to my office to prepare.  Soon I was sitting in the midst of a mountain of provisions, trying to limit my supplies to the bare essentials.

            Several trips to the car later, I was ready to go.  I had my Hibachi grill, complete with charcoal and matches, hotdogs, and (of course) steaks.  I had two flashlights, extra batteries, candles, and my pet rock.  I brought my Word of the Day calendar, just in case, and my dog-eared copy of Detecting for Dummies.  I carefully packed my ukulele and karaoke machine next to the flashlights.  I wrapped everything in a down comforter and tucked a few pillows around to keep everything secure.  I had a cooler in the back seat filled with soft drinks, a jar of peanut butter, turkey jerky, and cookies.  I was a little worried we might run short on food, so I called Samantha to see if she’d make a triple batch of her hotdogs.

            “Is there anything else I should bring?” she asked.  She’d agreed that we could probably use some extra food. 

            “I’m sure I’m forgetting something,” I fretted, and listed off the inventory in the trunk.  Samantha was silent for a moment and then said, “Do you have any cleft sticks?”

            “Not unless you count my ukulele,” I replied.

            “I read in a book that dangerous situations like this might put us in a cleft stick.  Perhaps we should bring one along and prepare for the worst.”

            I always appreciate the wisdom of being prepared.  I used to be a Pup Scout, after all.  I told Samantha to bring however many cleft sticks she could procure and hung up the phone, satisfied.  Less than a minute later, my phone rang with Morgan’s tone.  I hummed along to the Electric Slide for a few bars and then took the call.

            “Howdy, Morg! How’s it going?” I asked.

            “I need you to do something for me,” she replied softly.

            “What’s up?  I can barely hear you,” I shouted, assuming our connection was bad.

            “Not so loud!  I’m on a break and I don’t want anyone to hear me.  Star, Cassie, and Sadie are having a meeting tonight.  I think you should follow them and see what they’re up to.”

            I cursed my luck.  I’d waited all my life for a stake out and now I had the chance for two—but they were on the same night.  “Can you stall them for a little while?” I inquired.

            “Maybe,” she answered.  “For how long?”

            “Just a day or two.”  There was an odd noise on the other end of the line and I asked her if she could still hear me.

            “A day or two?  I thought you meant maybe an hour or so.  How could I possibly keep them occupied for a day?”

            She sounded irritated, so I refrained from making suggestions and simply explained my predicament.  “The problem is I’m already busy.  I’ll be on a stake out at Miss Steak.  You’ll have to do it alone.  Tell you what.  I’ll fix you up with a little walkie talkie and I’ll help you through it.  You can be my eyes.” 

            “Don’t expect me to see things your way,” she muttered.  She agreed to pick up her walkie talkie after her shift at the restaurant.  Two stake outs in one night!  The anticipation was almost too much to bear.