The Replacement

         She jumped out of the bushes, dancing happily around the yard as I praised her for her ingenious hiding. “My turn,” I said.

         My husband held her back to keep her from following. She was so anxious to please and play. “Go, I’ve got her,” he told me.

         I ran around the house, eyes scanning for a spot where I could duck and cover, settling for the backside of the small shed in the back yard. It was a good spot with no visibility to the backside of our house.

         It lasted less than a minute.

         Around the corner of the shed she came, eyes screaming, “I found you! I found you!” There was just no fooling her.

         “Good girl! Such a good girl!” I exclaimed, kneeling to her level. “You found me!” I hugged her as she squirmed and wriggled in my arms like an earthworm who’d been plucked from the garden by a small child. “Ready to go for a walk?”

         She danced and jumped, running in a circle. My husband joined us with her accoutrements and fastened them firmly. I tucked a small ball in my pocket along with three plastic grocery sacks. “Let’s go,” I commanded.

         The three of us took off walking down the street, choosing the usual route that we’d mapped a few months before. It was scenic, and we’d marked where the dumpsters were in case we had to throw something away.

         Our girl sniffed the air as she walked, her hair a shiny black, her eyes and ears missing nothing around her. It was joy to simply watch her as she did what she always did, what they always did.

         We hadn’t thought we’d ever get another dog after tragically losing our last one.

         But Zoey, she is something special indeed.

Word count: 299