They sat there for some time. Ethel stroked him and watched his antics while he chased after leaves. Then she glanced at her watch. It was five thirty; time to take the Shepherd’s pie she has baked out of the oven. By now it was darker and a little chilly. She sighed, pushed her self from the bench and reached for her scarf. Would this be the last time she would see the little dog, she pondered.
She patted him on the head thinking how she was back to square one. She was going back to her empty house, alone. After half an hour of forgetting her troubles she was heading back home.
She set off. Not long after she heard a soft padding of paws behind her. She turned around with a hopeful heart. Was it him? Could it be that lovable little dog she had befriended earlier?
He followed Ethel the whole way home and slept by the warm fire that night. At first he had been wary of the house. He sniffed around and checked everything out. When, at last, he was satisfied with his surroundings he settled down in Billy’s chair. She fed him left over Shepherd’s Pie and fetched him a bowl of water.
Every day they went for walks to the park and Ethel decided to call him Billy. She had never been so happy since before her husband’s death. After two weeks, however, she began to feel incredibly guilty. What if there was someone else? Was there someone else who loved Billy as much as she did? Maybe he was lost, she told herself, but how could he be? He had no collar on when she found him.
Eventually, Ethel decided that just to put her mind at rest she would phone the Dog Pound to see if any dogs matching Billy’s description had been reported lost. In the back of her mind Ethel was sure that no one would come forward to claim him. He was so hungry when she brought him home, he mustn’t have had a decent meal in days.
So after three weeks Ethel plucked up the courage and made the call. Her shaky hand held the white plastic telephone. It rang once; it rang twice, three times now. Ethel nearly hung up in false hope that no one was there to take her call. She was wrong!
“Hello, Banbirge Dog Pound, how many I help you?” said a polite, young sounding girl on the other end of the line.
“Hello, my name is Ethel Graham. I am ringing to report a dog that is in my care. It may have been lost. I was just ringing to confirm that no one had reported a lost dog.”
“Just let me check now.” The girl had left the phone and Ethel could hear her sorting through papers. “Well yes, actually, there have been three dogs reported,” her heart sank, “Could you give me a description please?”
Ethel paused for a second. It probably wasn’t the same dog. Surely lots of dogs are reported lost each week. She took a quick breath and said “Small with dark brown fur, but he wasn’t wearing a collar when I first saw him so I don’t think,”
“Yes” the girl interrupted, “Small, dark brown, with patches of black?”
“Yes,” replied Ethel, a thousand thoughts were racing through her head. Could it be Billy? How will I spend my days if he has to go?
“We have had a claim in for a little dog matching that description for about a month now! When do you think you could bring him down? We will have to arrange a meeting with the family, to clarify whether that’s him or not. What about tomorrow, four o’clock?”
“Yes, that should be fine.” Murmured Ethel quietly. She was determined not to get upset over this, or at least, not yet anyway.
“Thank-you. I hope to see you there then. Good-bye” She put down the phone.
Ethel knew that this might be the last night she would get to spend with Billy, so she treated him to the best, meatiest bone that she could buy.
The next day was damp, cloudy and reflected how Ethel felt: miserable. However, it was forecasted to get better around midday, so they set off for their walk just after lunch. Most of the clouds had cleared and the sun was slowly warming up the town when they started down the path.
They returned home by three forty-five. Gerry, one of Billy’s old friends was waiting in the driveway to give Ethel a lift down to the pound. Billy sat patiently in the car the whole way there, but when they stopped just outside the entrance door his anxiety rose and he started scratching impatiently at the window.
“Thank-you Gerry,” she said as she got out of the car. “Are you still all right to pick me up at five o’clock?”
“Yes Ethel dear. Good luck now.”
They waved to each other but when the car was out of sight Ethel’s cheery smile turned into a sad, worried frown. As soon as she walked through the automatic doors into the pound, she could see a family standing in the foyer. Billy’s behaviour changed immediately and he suddenly became excitable and began pulling frantically on his lead.
“It’s him! It’s Jack!” A little boy who had been standing with his family by the reception desk was now over petting and stroking Billy. Ethel felt a lump in her throat and a tear in her eye. It was no longer her and Billy, but them and Jack.
The little boy approached her. He was small with blonde hair and deep blue eyes.
“Thank-you so much,” he said, “I thought we would never find Jack again.” He gave her a smile and threw his arms around Jack who responded with yelps of delight.
Even though Ethel had lost her only companion, she was happy with the decision that she had made. The little dog had never looked so happy and she could tell that the whole family loved him so much by the way they affectionately stroked him and called his name.
After the family had gone and Ethel had stroked Billy for the last time she sat quietly in the waiting room, thinking about what had just happened. As she did she glanced around at the kennels behind her. A little dog sitting quietly alone caught her eye. Perhaps he reminded her of herself, or maybe it was his unusual fur markings. Whatever it was there was something special.
Ethel got up and walked over to the cold, harsh bars of the kennel. The little dog came over and began licking Ethel’s hand. His coat was a beautiful sandy colour and his long hair hung over his floppy ears. His deep, dark, brown eyes gazed up at Ethel .She could not do anything else but love him as soon as she set eyes on him.
“Can I take this little dog home please?” she called over to one of the workers with a smile on her face. Now she had totally forgotten about Billy, but it was for the better. She pulled a plastic bag out of her pocket, containing a forgotten piece of chicken, which was intended for Billy, and fed it to the dog.
“I’ll call you Silver,” she whispered fondly, “Because every cloud has a silver lining.”
