Brigit
There he is, she communicated silently to Blast in her canine way.
The two of them were hunkered down beside the doghouse in the backyard, hidden from view. That stupid squirrel had come down from the tree to scavenge for pecans on the lawn. He didn’t realize the dogs were in the yard. Well, he was about to find out. The hard way.
Brigit slowly rose to a crouch, her neck stretched, her head extended out in front of her. Every muscle in her body was tensed. Blast did the same. Now that she was in the ready position, Brigit’s mouth began to water. She hadn’t ever caught a squirrel, but she could imagine what it would taste like. Probably chicken.
Ready? she conveyed to Blast.
Get set.
GO!
The two bolted out from behind the doghouse and tore their way across the lawn, kicking up grass and dirt behind them. The squirrel turned their way, dropped his nut, and streamed across the yard, a small brown blur.
He reached the base of the tree and sprang up it. Brigit leaped after him and snapped her teeth hard. Snap! Beside her, Blast did the same. Snap!
Dang. They’d just missed him. All they had to show for their efforts were a few pieces of squirrel fur on their tongues.
It was probably just as well, Brigit thought. If she ever caught and ate that squirrel, the backyard wouldn’t be nearly as much fun. But if she couldn’t have the squirrel, she could at least have his nut. She picked the pecan up from the ground and crunched it between her teeth, the squirrel scolding her all the while. Chit-chit-chit!