No Place like Home

NO PLACE LIKE HOME

By Anna Pinter

Copyright © Anna Pinter 2015

All rights reserved

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Table of Contents

Chapter One Runaway

Chapter Two Wherever I lay my head that's my home

Chapter Three Danger

Chapter Four Friends

Chapter Five Dinner

Chapter Six Missing

Chapter Seven Gone to ground

Chapter Eight Where are you?

Chapter Nine Goodbye

Chapter Ten Trapped

Chapter Eleven Decision time

Chapter Twelve Sanctuary

Chapter Thirteen Neighbours

Chapter Fourteen On the way

Chapter Fifteen The green corridor

Chapter Sixteen All alone

Chapter Seventeen Waiting

Chapter Eighteen Autumn

Chapter Nineteen Home

Runaway

Buddy lay outside the open kitchen door, right up against the wall of the house, heavy with the afternoon heat. He thought that if he wished hard enough, the stony concrete beneath him and the rough brick at his back would somehow magically change into his soft, warm, quilted bed at home, and he would open his eyes to see Grandad sitting in the chair across the room with his newspaper and he would know that this had all been a bad dream. But no matter how hard he wished and how hard he closed his eyes against his surroundings, the voices from the kitchen didn’t fade away, the fiery brick still snagged at the fur on his back and the.ground remained unyielding.

He had lain there by the side of the house every day since Grandad had said goodbye and they had brought him here, Left on his own during the long days while the family were at work and at school, he lay watching the front garden and the gate to the pavement. It was a good place to wait for Grandad to return. Then he would be the first to hear his step on the pavement, and he would sit up and listen just to make sure it was really him, then he would run faster than he had ever run, paws not feeling the ground beneath them, but flying through the air to see Grandad again.

Buddy heard steps in the distance coming along the pavement. As usual, he lifted his head a little and raised an ear. It was the children coming back from school. They were still a way down the road, but even at that distance he could hear them arguing. He rested his head back on his paws and flattened down both ears as far as they would go.

Ginny was bossing her younger brother around again. Anyway, Katie’s coming after tea tonight and we don’t want you in there.

That’s not fair, said Will. He was not going to let her tell him what to do, It’s my turn to have the computer today.

No it isn’t. You had it last night. Ginny shouted.

But that was homework.

Ginny didn’t say anything. Will was only year 4 but Mum said homework always came first and games second, so Will carried on, And Mum said I could.

Ginny suddenly felt hot and tired. She decided to call her friend Katie and see if she could go round her’s instead. She couldn’t wait to go to secondary school after the holidays and not have to be around babies anymore. She’d agreed with Katie to play with their online pets together and had been planning their game at school.

‘I’m going on it now then, said Ginny running off ahead, her ponytail flying out behind her, And with that Ginny burst through the gate, sending it clanging against the garden wall and thundered up the path, right past where Buddy lay, closely followed by Will, determined not to let her win but weighed down with a heavy bookbag and PE kit, shouting, I’m telling Mum." But Ginny’s long legs had already carried her through the kitchen and up the stairs, then laughing up the second flight of stairs that went into the attic that was now their computer room, slamming the door behind her.

Then Mum’s voice shouting after Ginny, Ginny, don’t slam the door!’ Then quietly as Will burst into the kitchen trailing his bags behind him, ‘William, did you close the gate behind you? We don’t want to lose the dog, now. Then when you’ve done that come here and tell me what this is all about please.

‘Dad, why are you back early today?’ said William, dropping his bags on the floor near the table where his dad sat with a cup of tea.

‘We’ve been to see Grandad at the hospital,’ said Dad. ‘Go and do the gate, William, quickly!’

Buddy shook his ears a little and let himself relax a bit, now that the whirlwind of their hometime had come and gone. He watched as Will came back out of the kitchen and walked slowly down the path to close the gate, then went back indoors.

He didn’t even look at me, thought Buddy. It’s like I’m invisible. He heard Will go into another room and put the TV on.

Mum came out of the kitchen with his bowls of food and water. He watched as she carried the bowls into the back garden towards the children’s old playhouse where they had put his sleeping basket and where they put his food. He had always slept indoors at home and had been afraid of the noises of the night when they had shut him outside. Alone during the day, he couldn’t understand why he should be alone at night too, if they truly cared for him. On her way back inside, Mum patted his head and ruffled his brown wavy fur. She smiled at him. You poor boy, she said. He gave her hand a lick and let out a little Woof. And then she went in again.

Buddy caught the smell of the food but didn’t feel like eating. He put his head back down on his paws. He heard Mum and Dad’s voices from the kitchen, and the sound of cooking.

David, we’ve got to talk about what we’re going to do with that dog, said Alison.

There’s nothing to talk about, said David. Dad went into hospital and we promised that we’d look after Buddy. There’s noone else can do it.

I know there’s only us, but ... Alison’s voice trailed away, then she continued more gently, Your dad’s really ill. What if he’s never fit enough to look after Buddy again? What then? It’s bad enough paying out a fortune to put Buddy in a kennel for two weeks while we’re on holiday, but what are we going to do when we get back? I’ve got a week off work then we’re both back at work, the kids are at my mum’s for a week, then at the playscheme for two weeks. Someone might even report us if we just leave the dog in the garden all the time.

David sighed. I don’t know. Dad’s really ill and at the moment it’s not a good idea to make him unhappy. And I’m not going to lie to him.

For a while they were silent. Then Alison said, I’m just saying we need to do something. He’s a young playful dog but with all of us being out of the house all day he’s not getting enough company or exercise. I don’t mind feeding him, but after a long day at work the last thing I want to do is run around the garden with a dog! Apart from anything else, it’s not fair on the animal. You can see he’s depressed because he just sits outside the kitchen all day. Even Will’s given up trying to get him to play.

Well, said David, it’ll just have to wait till we’re back from holiday.

Buddy looked around at the garden. Really he should be happy here. He was fed, he had somewhere to sleep and he had an enormous garden to play in that had a lovely lawn to run on and bushes to explore. He closed his eyes. He didn’t want to look at it. All day and night he was on his own. The only one to pat him was Mum and that was just for a few seconds when she gave him his food. They just didn’t have time for him. Oh Grandad, he thought. When will you come and take me home? Just then a light breeze sprang up and moved through the garden. It ran over his fur, as though smoothing it down. For a moment he imagined it was Grandad’s hand lovingly stroking his fur.

And in that moment he knew that they left him alone not because they didn’t have time for him, but because they didn’t love him, they didn’t want him. Like a shock the thought went through him. There was no love for him in this house. He was not welcome here. He opened his eyes and it was as though he saw everything afresh. If there was no love for him here then this was not his home. Then all of a sudden he knew what he had to do. He would have to go and find his home. It was as simple as that. He sat up. He had made up his mind and strength and energy began to surge through him. He would go back to his real home, to where he was loved. He would go there and wait for Grandad to return.

Quickly he got up and went down the path towards the gate, past the car where it stood on a patch of gravel in the front garden and sat down by the gate. It would be no problem for a strong, long-legged dog like himself to jump over, the important thing was that no one should see. He would have to wait for the right moment. Excitement and impatience ran through him. He felt as though he was truly awake for the first time after weeks of being in a daze.

Looking around, Buddy felt a breeze stir the trees and flowers. High above in a bright blue sky, light clouds sped airily on their way. Young crows chattered on the rooftops, and in the trees and shrubs young sparrows flew about exploring their surroundings. Everything was fresh and green and bursting with life. Everywhere there was movement and excitement. He wanted so badly to be a part of it, to be on his way. But he would have to wait. If he went now perhaps a neighbour might see him and bring him back, or they would come looking for him in the car. And then they would tie him up in the garden always, instead of allowing him to wander about as he pleased. No, he would wait until they were in bed. That was the best time.

He went back by the kitchen and settled himself in his usual spot, but he couldn’t get comfortable. He decided to sniff around the bushes at the back of the garden, where he found a thick stick to chew on.

As he carried it back towards the kitchen he could hear David’s voice, The dog’s a bit restless today. Wonder what’s got in to him?

Perhaps he’s settling in at last, said Alison.

Buddy then went into the playhouse where his bed was. There was his old blanket from home. He curled up in it now, breathing in its familiar homely smell. Closing his eyes, he could see Grandad’s face smiling as he had said goodbye. He kept the picture in his mind. Even though he was excited, knowing that he had made up his mind made him feel calm and he soon drifted into a quiet sleep, the first peaceful night he had had since arriving there.

*

He slept so soundly that night that it was only when David started up the car in the morning that he awoke. He remembered straight away that he was supposed to have run away during the night and with a surge of panic wondered if he had missed his chance for that day. He listened as David drove the car out of the garden and left it at the kerb with its engine idling while he got out and closed the gate behind him before driving off. I can’t spend another day here, he thought to himself. He knew that before long the family would be up, but for the time being all was still quiet in the house. Quickly he came out of the playhouse into a bright dewy summer morning, shook himself then walked down the drive to the gate.

The gate was a wrought-iron one with thin wide-apart bars. He put his head between the bars and looked down the road, first one way then the other. There was no one about. His heart leapt as he realised that now was the time. He turned and looked back at the house and the garden, then turned back to the gate. Wait for me, Grandad, he thought, I’m coming home. Then, as if gathering his courage, This is it, he said to himself, this is it. And with the sound of his heart pounding inside him, he tensed his