“Ta-da!” Mavis said, sweeping her arm out toward Henry.
“What in the name of sweet Bessie McGee is that?” Mr. Duffy stared at Henry.
Mavis grinned. “A dog!” she said. “A really sweet dog who needs a home. Right, Rose?”
Rose looked from Mr. Duffy to Henry and back to Mr. Duffy. “Um, right.”
“I know he’s kind of funny-looking,” Mavis said. “So skinny. But he’s nice.”
“Where in tarnation did y’all find that mongrel?” Mr. Duffy walked slowly around the gatehouse, inspecting Henry from a distance.
Henry sat beside Mavis, watching Mr. Duffy, looking kind of pitiful.
“In the woods,” Mavis said. “He’s been there for a long time. That’s why he’s so skinny. He needs a home, right, Rose?”
Rose nodded.
“And he has tattoos on his ears,” Mavis said. “I bet you never saw that before.”
Mr. Duffy raised his eyebrows. “Tattoos?”
“Yeah, look.” Mavis flipped Henry’s ears over and showed Mr. Duffy the tattoos.
117E
51549
Mr. Duffy squinted down at Henry’s ears. Then he straightened up, took his cap off, scratched the top of his head, and said, “That dog’s from Wonderland.”