Chapter 31

Ursa

That same night, as I jogged home, I noticed something in the distance. Something - or someone - was following me. I saw their shadow dart out from behind the dying trees around Barnswell and creep towards me.

My heart started pounding in my chest. I dug through my bag to find my flashlight and my cell phone. I found the flashlight first and shone it at the path behind me. A dog was standing there. It was about the size of a small child and had thick, black fur. Despite its size, the dog was unhealthily skinny. I could even see the dog’s ribs. I looked at the dog’s red collar.

Ursa. The dog’s name was Ursa.

I didn’t see an address though. I dug through my bag and found a salami sandwich. I held the sandwich in front of Ursa’s mouth, and she gobbled it up. Ursa licked my hand.

“So Ursa,” I said, as if the dog could understand me. “Where are you from?”

Ursa didn’t make a sound and snuggled up against my leg, almost knocking me over.

“Should I leave?” I asked the Magic 8 Ball.

It is certain.

I petted Ursa one last time. As I walked away, I saw her standing in that exact spot, drool hanging out of her mouth. Just as I approached my house, I noticed Ursa, now only a shadow, running back into the words.

I wondered where Ursa came from. She was probably a stray. It made me miserable thinking of Ursa alone in the woods, fending for herself. Part of me wanted to take her home, but that wasn’t a possibility. Dad would kill me. I was sure Olivia would like it though. She always loved animals, especially dogs.

I was getting too attached to Ursa already and that was never a good thing. Whenever I got attached to things, they went away: Papa, Samina, all of them. I couldn’t let myself get attached to a stupid dog.

I let my flashlight lead me to the door so I could avoid tripping over Jimmy’s motorcycle. I opened the door and walked inside. I still had math homework that night. Mrs. Price was just getting worse and worse about homework. I was frequently up until midnight trying to finish all of it.

I was trying to tear down the wall, but it would only climb higher. How much longer could I try to tear it down? It was too high. Nothing was working. I was still a caged bird.