The scream dies leaving an intense silence. The dog has lunged forward but not to attack, instead he is planting puppy kisses all over Conor.

“What is it?” I ask.

The mutt is large, easily the size of a Rottweiler but he is covered in a thick mat of hair. His tail is a bushy creation and he seems to have a mane. He is mostly black and tan but there is a flash of white under his chin and on his chest. He is beautiful but very big.

“Some sort of large dog,” Max says.

He steps toward Conor and the dog gives a low growl. He stops.

“Conor, does he have a collar?” I ask.

“I’ll look,” comes the reply and I can hear the smile in his voice.

Max walks up to me and whispers in my ear. “Guess we have found a dog…”

“Yeah,” I say…

“Are they gone?” Max asks. They have come out of the shop and are watching me.

I scrub at my face to stop the tears and nod. “He has something…” I can’t finish.

“I heard,” Max says and puts his arms around me. Conor does the same and I feel loved and safe.

“He wants us to rescue him,” I whisper.

“We can’t, not now.”

I want to argue with him.

“He won’t leave Aaron and what do we do with Conor? Take him to war?” Max asks.

“I know, but I feel so helpless.”

Max gives me one last squeeze and releases me. “I know.” One look at his face and I realise that he feels the same.

“What if we are never able…” Max stops me with a kiss.

“We will try,” he says, and I know that is all we can promise, but it feels as if…

We are no longer moving silently. I know that I would be able to track us just from the sound of our feet on the road. Still, when Aaron calls out again I’m shocked that they haven’t moved.

I stop and look in the direction Max came from.

“Are you alone?” Aaron cries again.

Max and Conor have stopped a little away from me and both are gesturing me to join them. I hold up my hand as if to say wait a minute. Then I gesture them over. Leaning into Max I whisper into his ear.

“Tell them you are still alone.”

Max looks at me with some confusion but does as I ask. “Yes, I’m alone.”

“What’s that?” Aaron cries.

I gesture to Max to repeat it but louder. He does.

“So you have no Bitsy with you?”

I roll my eyes. As if he would admit to…