37. Dog Planet

Darius opened the door.

“Is your father at home?” Logan asked.

“Cowboy!” Darius said, looking past Logan at his dog. He was tugging at his leash, his curled tail wagging furiously. Thatcher let go of the leash and Cowboy bounded into Darius’s arms.

“Is your father at home?” Logan asked again, louder.

“Give him a minute, Logan,” Aggy whispered. “He’s excited to see his dog.”

Logan peered inside the house. “Hello? Mr. Sarris?”

“He isn’t home,” Darius said, continuing to lavish attention on his dog. “He works on Saturdays.”

“Wow,” Thatcher said. “You’re here by yourself? At your age? At our age?”

“Why is that a big deal?” Kian said. “We leave Chloe alone all the time, and she’s only three.”

“Who’s Chloe?” Darius asked.

“His mom’s yappy little dog,” Thatcher said, nudging Kian with his shoulder.

Kian shoved him back. Hard.

“Ow!” Thatcher said.

“Anyway, Logan, thanks for bringing back Cowboy,” Darius said. “Where did you find him?”

“On an alien spaceship,” Thatcher said, throwing Kian an elbow. “Logan was abducted. The aliens had stolen a whole bunch of dogs.”

“Really?” Darius asked, looking doubtful.

“Really,” said Kian, elbowing Thatcher.

“We’ve returned all the dogs we rescued except this one,” Thatcher said to Darius, and pointed at the puppy, Nilla. “Want to come with us and help us find its owner?”

“Yeah, sure,” Darius said. “I just need to call my dad and tell him.” He pulled a cell phone out of his pocket.

“Wow,” Thatcher said again.

“‘Wow!’” Kian mocked, then walked away.

“What’s up with you?” Thatcher asked, following him. “I just think the guy is cool. You’re still my best friend!”

“Dad?” Darius said into the phone. “Guess what? They found Cowboy! Those kids. Logan and his friends…. Yeah, him.”

“Can I talk to Mr. Sarris, please?” Logan asked.

“He wants to talk to you, Dad,” Darius said. He listened to the answer, then looked at Logan and said, “He doesn’t want to talk to you.”

“Give it,” Logan said, holding out his hand.

Darius handed the phone to him.

“Hello, Mr. Sarris, sir,” Logan said into it. “I wanted to apologize. I was wrong. You weren’t the alien. I found the real one and got your dog back. No need to thank me. Here’s your son.” And he handed the phone back to Darius.

“Why don’t we check the telephone poles around Sandwiches?” Aggy asked. “Maybe the lady with the puppy hung up a flyer by now.”

“We need to stop at Helene’s first and return the wheelchair,” Logan said.

“Can I ride it over there?” Thatcher asked.

“I haven’t had a turn yet, and we’re bringing it back …”

Logan sighed, then relented.

Helene also tried to give Logan a reward, but again he refused.

“All in the line of duty, ma’am,” he said, and walked away.

“Yeah, money?” Kian said. “Who needs it?”

“Are we still going to be the Intergalactic Canine Rescue Unit after we return this puppy?” Thatcher asked. “Will our work be done? Do we have to move on?”

Logan shot him a weary look. “Thatcher, are you naive enough to believe that those were the only aliens on Earth? If they were, the chances of our finding them would be astronomical. No, there are others on our planet, and no doubt some of them will want to steal our dogs. The Intergalactic Canine Rescue Unit will remain active until every one of them is thwarted and sent on their way.”

Thatcher smiled a wide, beaming smile. “The I-Crew rules!” he shouted, and pumped his fists in the air.

When they reached Sandwiches, they found the weekly farmers market in full swing.

“Oh, right,” Aggy said. “It’s Saturday.”

“My parents are probably here,” Thatcher said. “They always go to the market.”

“Mine, too,” said Kian.

“My dad works Saturdays,” Darius said.

“You said that already,” Kian said.

The street had been closed off to traffic and was filled with booths selling vegetables, jewelry, fresh salmon, honey, and other goods. People carrying baskets were milling about, talking and shopping, and, on the library’s lawn, young children were chasing one another around, yelling and squealing. Logan knew many of them, having lived his whole life in Nelsonport. Many people said hello, to him and to his friends.

They ran into Thatcher’s parents, and Kian’s, but successfully slipped away from them and their boring adult conversations.

They also bumped into their teacher, Nathan, standing in front of one farmer’s stand. He pointed at the lettuces and peppers and said, dramatically, “Produce!”

“Very funny, Nathan,” Aggy said, rolling her eyes.

There were plenty of people with dogs as well, including a few of the dogs the Crew had rescued. Lily was there with Ollie, for example.

“Now I wish I’d brought Festus with me,” Aggy said.

“I totally wish I had Bear,” Thatcher said.

“I’m glad I don’t have Chloe,” Kian said.

“If I had Bubba, she’d probably just lie down on the ground and fart,” Logan said.

“At least we live on a planet that has dogs,” Aggy said.

“True,” Logan said.

“I have Cowboy,” Darius said. “Anybody want to play Fetch with us?”

“I do, Darius!” Kian said. “I do!”

“‘I do!’” mocked Thatcher, then he pulled Kian aside and asked, “Do you like him better than me?”

Suddenly, a young woman let out a screech and started running toward them, her arms out in front of her, an enormous smile on her face.

“Nilla!” she called. “Oh, Nilla! My baby!”

She hugged her dog as Darius had, and Lily, and Trudy, and Aggy: tightly, happily, tearily.

“How did you find him?” she asked, looking up.

“We’re the Intergalactic Canine Rescue Unit, ma’am,” Logan said. “It’s what we do.”