Bailey's Story Read Online Free PDF Page A

he’d said to me? “Stay”? “Dog door”? “Good dog”? How were those connected? Was there something he wanted me to do so that he could give me a biscuit? Which one was Stay, again?
    And where had my boy gone? Why would he go anywhere without me?
    None of this made any sense at all! I sniffed around the garage. The smells were interesting, different from the ones inside the house, but I wasn’t in the mood to explore. I wanted my boy! I barked. The door to the house stayed shut tight. I scratched it. Still nothing.
    I heard some children yelling from the front of the house and ran to the big garage door, hoping it would lift up. Sometimes it did that, and then Dad or Mom drove a car in or out. But that didn’t happen this time. The big door stayed firmly down.
    A loud truck of some kind swept up the voices of the children and carried them away. A few minutes later I heard Mom’s car drive off. And then the world, which had been so full of life and fun and noise, became quiet. Horribly quiet.
    I barked for a while. Surely someone would hear me and realize that I had been shut in the garage and come to get me out!

    Nobody did, though. My barking didn’t make anything happen at all.
    I sniffed around the door to the house. I could smell Smokey on the other side of it, and I was sure he was happy that he was there and I was here.
    I scratched the door. I chewed on some old shoes I found in a corner. I ripped up my dog bed. I found a black plastic bag, tied shut, full of clothing. I got my teeth into that, too, ripped it open, and scattered the clothes around the garage. I peed in one corner and pooped in another. I tipped over a big metal container that smelled wonderful, and inside it I found a few pieces of chicken and some spaghetti and half a waffle. I took care of all that, and I licked out a can of fish that smelled like Smokey’s breath. I ate some paper. I knocked over my water dish and chewed on it.
    There was nothing to do.
    When were the people coming back? Where was my boy? Now that I’d found the boy and figured out that my job was to be near him, how could he go away and leave me? When I’d gotten myself out of the big yard and gone into the world, looking for what I needed, I’d never imagined this.
    Would I be alone forever?

 
    5
    After the longest day of my entire life, I heard Mom’s car pull into the driveway. Her car door slammed, and I heard running feet pound through the house.
    â€œBailey!” the boy shouted, and the door to the garage flew open.
    I tackled Ethan, overjoyed. He was back! He’d come to save me! We fell onto the floor of the kitchen together. But he pushed me away while I was busy licking his face and snuffling up all the unfamiliar smells on his clothing. He got to his feet again and looked into the garage.
    â€œOh, Bailey,” he said, sounding sad.
    Why on earth was he sad when we were finally together again? It was so exciting! I tore past him and skittered into the house, leaping over the furniture. I spotted Smokey and chased him up the stairs, barking when he dove under Mom and Dad’s bed. I dashed back down the stairs to Ethan again, my tail beating the air.
    Mom was standing next to Ethan now, and they were both looking through the door into the garage.
    â€œBailey! Quiet down!” Mom called sternly.
    â€œBad dog, Bailey,” the boy said crossly.
    I was astounded. Bad dog? Me? They had accidentally locked me in the garage and forgotten about me and left me there all day, but I was willing to forgive them. Why were they scowling like that and shaking their fingers at me ?
    Moments later I was back in the garage, helping the boy as he picked up everything I’d played with and put most of it into the tall metal trash container that I had knocked over. Mom came out and picked up the clothes, sorting through them, putting some into the trash and taking some back inside the house. But no