Harley’s Second Chance — Chapter 6

(Harley)

Every time I go to dog beach, I always take a few minutes to just dig my paws into the warm sand and let my nostrils party to the scent of salt and fish. This time was no different. The ocean air was unbelievable, and, for just a moment, it felt like I was back with Charlie again. Only when I look over my shoulder, I see a different loving face. Mitch. He’s sitting on a sheet with Daisy who’s enthusiastically talking to him about something, waving her hands in the air like she’s air traffic control. I smile inside. Mitch looks happy.

The month had flown by, and these trips to dog beach with Chance and Daisy had become part of our weekend routine. Chance even placed a bet on a dog bone that this would be the day when Mitch finally made his move and kissed Daisy, but so far, the only thing moving was Daisy’s hands. She was such an expressive talker. I tried to imagine what it would look like if a dog waved his paws around like that when barking, but I quickly decided it would look incredibly weird and put the thought away.

Chance was doing his usual thing, chasing bigger dogs into the water while they chased their toys that their owners tossed for them. He was such a goofball. I kept telling him that would get him in big trouble one day, but he didn’t pay attention, or he didn’t care. He had what people called “big dog syndrome.” I shook my head and trotted over to the shoreline where the lopping waves had created several tiny rifts in the sand. My paw prints remained imbedded for a few moments before the next ripple came along and washed them away.

“Whatchya doing?” Chance hollered, racing past me in fake pursuit of a Doberman I hadn’t seen before.

“Watching you make an idiot of yourself!” I yelled back. But he was already too far to hear or care. The Doberman ran into the water and Chance backed off. He had this knack of knowing just when to stop so as not get caught either by the dog he was chasing or a riptide. I wasn’t about to take any chances. Pun intended.

I looked back at Mitch and Daisy. Was it me or had they inched closer toward each other over the last few weeks. Mitch still kept his hands and lips to himself, but his body was screaming and his pheromones were finally in tune with Daisy’s. I knew it was only a matter of time before this went somewhere, but Chance had assured me that I had nothing to worry about; at least not as far as they were concerned.

He kept on yammering about the bad guy and the big threat to Daisy, but nothing ever happened. Not that day when he came into our yard and not since. I was starting to think he made it all up just to get my attention, but I wasn’t ready to confront him about it yet. Besides, even if I wouldn’t admit it to him, or anyone ever, I liked having him around. And Daisy too, I guess. Once you get used to her, she’s really quite charming. Except for that high pitched shrieking when she’s happy or excited. I could live without that.

Chance was in hot pursuit of a Shepherd mix when he suddenly stopped dead in his tracks. “He’s getting away!” I called out jokingly, but Chance had his nose in the air toward the street behind us. Oh no, not this again. I looked over to where he was sniffing, but all I picked up on were a bunch of passing cars and the intense smell of diesel from a van that was idling by the curb.

I walked over to Chance, more to humor him than anything else. “What?” I asked. “Shephard mix too fast for your stumpy legs?”

“You see that van?” He asked.

I nodded. Truthfully, I smelled it before I saw it, but I had smelled worst things in life so it didn’t bother me all that much.

“It’s just been sitting there for a while now,” Chance mused. When I didn’t answer, he looked at me with his big brown eyes. “What do you make of that?”

I kicked at the sand and shook. “Um, the driver likes staring at a bunch of dogs chasing each other on a beach?”

Chance shook his head. “Look closer, there’s no one in the driver’s seat.”

I squinted and saw a guy sitting in the passenger seat, but Chance was right. There was no one in the driver’s side. My eyes drifted to the port-a-potties lined up on the far end of the beach. “Maybe he had to go.”

Chance took off toward the stalls and I ran after him hoping that Mitch and Daisy wouldn’t notice our strange behavior. “What is going on with you? Can’t a man use a bathroom without you getting suspicious?”

Chance stopped so fast that I nearly smacked right into his backside. “Oomph!” I yelped.

“I want you to stay here. If someone comes near Daisy that smells like Diesel… just stay here, okay? Just until I check it out and see if there’s someone in those stalls that came from that truck.”

I shrugged. “Sure, go knock yourself out. I hope he leaves a nice big pile for your nose to feast on.”

Chance took off without a sarcastic response. Wow, that truck really had his tail in knots. I hoped that I was right and that it really was nothing to worry about.

I made my way across the warm sand back to Mitch and Daisy. The wind was picking up, which would make it harder to sniff out a certain scent, but not impossible. The putrid smell of diesel would make it easier to notice.

And that’s when it happened. I was about eight feet away from them when Mitch leaned over and closed the gap between him and Daisy. I looked away just in time as his hand went to her face and their lips touched. I couldn’t believe Chance was missing this over a stupid Diesel truck!

I lay down in the sand right where I stood, not wanting to disturb them while still keeping an eye and a nose on everyone around them.

“Hey Harley,” a familiar voice called out. I turned and saw a Collie mix named Vinnie. I had known him since back in the day when I used to come here with Charlie. There were a lot of dogs here that I knew and most of them remembered me, as I did them. We were friendly, but not really friends. Chance was the first dog I knew who actually took an interest in getting to know me.

“Hey Vinnie,” I replied.

“I haven’t been here in a while. Dad’s grandma passed away a few months ago and he wasn’t much in the mood to go to the beach.” Vinnie looked around and unmistakably noticed Mitch and Daisy. “New humans?”

“Just him,” I answered. Although based on their lip action, I had a feeling it wouldn’t be long before Vinnie’s prediction would be right. If I weren’t a dog, I would’ve been blushing in embarrassment at their public display of affection. But no one else seemed to notice or care.

Speaking of caring, where was Chance? How long does it take to sniff out a few stalls? I looked over to the stalls but Chance was nowhere in sight. I scanned the entire beach, spotting every dog from the water to the street, but none of them even remotely looked like Chance.

I glanced back at Mitch and Daisy, who were blissfully unaware of the panic that was rising in me like bile. I ran down the beach to the stalls, sniffing the air as I raced across the sand. There was no sign of Chance or his signature salty dog smell. Sure, every dog at the beach smelled like the ocean, but to us dogs, every dog smelled just a little different. And I couldn’t pick up on Chance’s scent. When I got to the stalls, I smelled the door of each one, almost getting hit in the head by someone opening a door to quickly, but the young girl just laughed and ran along.

When I got to the last stall closest to the street, the door was open, and there was something about it that smelled like Chance. But he wasn’t there. No one was. That’s when I saw it. Blood. Not a lot, but enough to know that he was hurt.

I looked to the street and the van was gone. There was still a slight scent left over from the diesel, but it was fading quickly.

I stood still, panting from the heat, my mind racing. I couldn’t believe that Chance was right. There was a bad guy after Daisy, and the jerk was using Chance to get to her.

Sneak Peak:

Harley comes up with a plan to save Chance! The stunning conclusion of Harley’s Second Chance will publish next Thursday!