“Sadie is such a funny dog,” said Jackie. “I just love her.”
Hmm.
Jackie threw Sadie’s ball to her. Sadie brought it right back.
“Good girl!” said Jackie.
Jackie threw the ball over Sadie’s head to Mark. Sadie ran to Mark to get the ball. Mark threw the ball to Eric. Sadie ran to Eric. Eric threw the ball to Lynda. Lynda threw the ball to Meghan. Meghan gave Sadie a turn to catch the ball. The Barton kids made a circle. Sadie ran round and round inside it.
“I wish we could have a puppy like her,” said Lynda.
“You can!” I said. “You can even have Sadie!”
I told them how we thought Sadie would be happier living with a big family.
“This is great,” said Mark. “But we are going to have to ask our parents.”
“They did promise we could have our own pet someday,” said Jackie. “Maybe they will let us have Sadie.”
That night, Mr. and Mrs. Barton talked to Mommy and Seth a few times on the phone. Finally they came to our house to meet Sadie. She jumped up and licked each of them hello.
“I grew up with a golden retriever,” said Mr. Barton. “I think she will make a great pet for our family.”
Mrs. Barton agreed. The next thing I knew, we were packing up Sadie’s things and handing over her leash. We hugged her good-bye. Then she went off with the Bartons with her tail wagging.
The minute she was gone, I breathed a sigh of relief. I was going to miss Sadie. But I was not worried about her. I could see she was going to be very happy in her new home.
Treehouse War
On Thursday afternoon all the kids showed up to work on the treehouse.
“Can Seth help us this afternoon?” asked Eric.
“He will not be home from work until late. He has to make up the time he lost training Sadie,” I replied.
“Too bad,” said Bobby. “We need a roof on the treehouse. But the roof will be even harder to make than the railings. And we did not do so well with those.”
“I like our railings,” said Andrew. “They are not like anyone else’s.”
This was true.
“I do not think we should work on the roof today. Not with the little kids around. They could get hurt,” I said.
Everyone looked at me. I guess I sounded bossy. Well, someone had to be in charge. And it was my yard.
“We may be littler than you,” said Meghan. “But we are not babies.”
“Oh, all right. Just be really careful,” I replied.
Meghan stuck her tongue out at me. I did not stick my tongue out at her. That is because she is four and a half and I am seven.
“Maybe we could paint the treehouse today,” said Kathryn. “We have lots of paint. And we want it to look beautiful.”
This was a good idea.
“All in favor say aye!” I said. (Even though it was Kathryn’s idea and not mine.)
“Aye!” everyone replied.
We decided to paint each wall a different color on the outside. Inside we would paint pictures. (My friends and I are very good artists. We once painted a prize-winning panel on a big fence.)
By dinnertime on Thursday we had finished the outside walls. One was red. One was green. One was yellow.
On Friday we worked on the pictures inside.
“I need red paint,” said Alicia.
“There is no more up here,” said Bobby. “You will have to go down and get it.”
Alicia climbed down the treehouse steps. The red paint was at the bottom. She held the paint in one hand. She put her other hand on the tree trunk as she climbed up again.
I saw her start to slip. But I could not reach her fast enough. It was only a couple of feet down to the bottom. But she fell all the way.
“Ouch! Ouch!” she wailed.
Alicia sat on the ground, crying.
“Are you okay?” called Bobby, running down the steps.
We all hurried down to see if she was hurt. Luckily she had only skinned her hand and banged her knee.
Bobby and I led Alicia into the house. Mommy took care of her bruises. Then we went back outside.
“You see, little kids can get hurt around here,” I said. “From now on there is a new rule. No kids under six can play in the treehouse.”
“No fair!” said Willie.
“Double no fair!” said Andrew.
Andrew, Alicia, Meghan, and Willie did not like my rule one bit. (Alicia even started to cry again.)
“They are right. It is not fair,” said Nancy.
“Any one of us could have slipped,” said Kathryn.
“Even you,” said Bobby.
“I do not care,” I replied. “No kids under six. That is the rule.”
“Who made you boss of the treehouse?” asked Alicia, sniffling.
I shrugged.
“I am seven,” I replied.
Everyone glared at me. The Treehouse War was on.
Back Where We Started
On Saturday morning, Mommy drove Andrew and me downtown. We were going to buy new shoes to replace the ones Sadie ate.
We were halfway down the block when we saw Mark and Eric walking Sadie. Actually, she was walking them. That is because Sadie was pulling so hard.
“Hi, everyone!” I called out the window. “See you later.”
When we got back from our shopping trip, Mommy dropped us off at the Bartons’ house. All five kids were in the front yard playing with Sadie. Sadie was so happy to see Andrew and me, she almost knocked us over.
“Is everyone having a good time with Sadie?” I asked.
“We were having fun,” said Eric. “But I thought you told us she was a little bit trained.”
“She is,” I replied. “She knows how to sit. And she knows to come if you call her.”
“No, she does not,” said Meghan. “We call her all the time. Watch.”
The five Barton kids called Sadie at once. The problem was they were standing in different places. Sadie did not know where to go. She looked confused.
“Only one of you can call her at a time. You do it like this,” I said. “Sadie, come!”
Sadie looked at me. Finally, she trotted to me.
“Let me try it,” said Mark. “Sadie, come!”
Sadie looked in Mark’s direction. Then Meghan and Lynda started arguing about a toy. They were on the other side of the yard. Sadie looked their way. Eric and Jackie started giggling about something. They were standing in a different direction altogether. Sadie looked confused. Poor Sadie.
“Maybe you could skip training her now. You could just have fun with her,” I said.
We tried playing a game of fetch. But the Barton kids kept throwing different toys to Sadie. So she just lay down and did not fetch any.
“Come on, Karen. We have to go,” said Andrew.
It was time for lunch so Andrew and I headed home. While we were eating, the phone rang. Seth went to the den to answer it. He came back a few minutes later. He did not look too happy.
“That was Mr. Barton,” said Seth. “He does not think Sadie is doing very well with so many kids around. She will not listen to anyone. And she just threw up her lunch.”
“What do they want to do?” asked Mommy.
“They want to give her back to us,” replied Seth. “The kids are coming over to work on the treehouse this afternoon. I told Mr. Barton to send Sadie over with them.”
Oh, boy. We were back where we started. I jumped up from the table.
“Excuse me,” I said.
“Karen, where are you going in such a hurry?” asked Mommy.
“I am going to hide my new shoes,” I replied.
Bad to Worse
Sadie came galloping back into our yard. The first thing she did was make a puddle on our woodpile.
“No way!” I said. “We are having enough trouble building this treehouse without any help from you.”
I led her inside and handed the leash to Seth.
Outside I fou
nd more trouble. This time it was the little kids. They had climbed up the trunk of the tree. They were painting pictures on the treehouse. Meanie-mo pictures. One of them showed horns and claws — and pink glasses!
“Hey, what are you doing?” I asked.
“You told us we could not play in the treehouse. But you did not say we could not play outside it,” said Willie.
“Then I am changing the rule. No kids under six near the treehouse,” I replied.
The little kids started whispering to each other. Then they started giggling. But they climbed down from the tree.
I called a meeting for the rest of us.
“We need to watch the little kids. We have to make sure they follow the rule and do not get hurt,” I said.
“It is your rule, Karen. It is not ours,” said Nancy.
“We do not even like the rule,” said Bobby.
“Why not? Alicia got hurt. Wouldn’t you feel bad if another little kid got hurt?” I asked.
“Well, yes,” replied Jackie. “Maybe Karen is right.”
“No way. They could get hurt even if they are not playing at the treehouse. Any of us could,” said Mark.
“You are just being bossy,” said Lynda.
“I think Karen is trying to be nice,” said Eric.
“Maybe. Maybe not,” said Kathryn. “We should take a vote.”
Goody. I love taking votes.
“All in favor of Karen’s Rule, say aye. Aye!” I shouted.
But nobody else could decide.
“Aye, um, no wait. I take it back,” said Eric.
“Aye … I’m not sure,” said Nancy.
“Aye. No, not aye. Yes, aye. No, not aye. Oh, I do not know what to do,” said Kathryn.
“We can keep the rule today since the little kids are gone anyway,” I said. “We can take another vote tomorrow.”
“That is the best idea,” said Nancy. “We are wasting time arguing. We need to finish painting.”
Everyone agreed to go back to work. We marched over to our paints.
“Where did the brushes go?” asked Bobby.
We heard giggling from behind some bushes. The little kids jumped out and called, “Finders keepers, losers weepers!”
I stomped over to the bushes. Now I was mad. Things were going from bad to worse.
“Where are those brushes, Andrew Brewer?” I said.
“I’m not telling,” said Andrew with a big grin.
“Where are the brushes, Alicia?” asked Bobby.
“I am not telling, either.”
“Willie, where are the brushes?” asked Kathryn.
Willie covered his mouth and did not answer.
“Meghan?” asked Lynda.
“If you want them, you have to find them.”
That did it. The big kids started shouting.
The little kids shouted back. Then they started crying.
The next thing we knew Sadie was in the middle of everything. So was Seth.
“Quiet down, everyone,” said Seth. “Someone please tell me what is going on.”
An Important Phone Call
We all started talking at once. We told Seth about my rule. We told him what the little kids did to us. We told him about our vote.
“Whoa,” said Seth. “I think I see the problem. I think the problem is me. I have been so busy with Sadie that I have not been helping enough with the treehouse.”
“We are good at some things. But I guess we could use a little help with other things,” I replied.
“I would like to see what you’ve done so far,” said Seth. “But first I would like to hear some apologies. There was a lot of yelling out here a few minutes ago.”
“I am not sure I want to apologize,” said Andrew.
“Me, neither,” said Alicia.
“Then I do not want to apologize either,” I said.
“About this rule, Karen,” said Seth. “I plan to be around more. And we can fix up the treehouse to make it as safe as possible. So do you think we will need the rule?”
“I guess not,” I replied.
“Good. Then we can start fresh. The best way to start fresh is with apologies. Whoever apologizes say aye,” Seth said.
“Aye!” we all replied.
We led Seth to our treehouse. We showed him our railings and painted walls. (The little kids promised to paint over their meanie-mo pictures.)
“I think these railings are great. We can add a few planks of wood going across as a safety feature. That way no one can get stuck between the railings,” said Seth. He looked my way and smiled.
We agreed to add ropes to our ladder so we’d have something to hang on to when we climbed up. (The big kids can climb up very well without ropes. But I knew ropes would be good for the little kids.)
“All we will have left is the roof. You kids have done a terrific job without me,” said Seth.
“Seth, will you come here, please?” called Mommy. “We have an important phone call.”
I wondered what it could be. I found out soon enough. Mommy and Seth were heading toward the car.
“Let’s go, kids,” said Seth. “A woman named Mrs. Gillen just phoned to say that she and her husband may have found Midgie.”
Midgie! I could hardly believe my ears. None of the other people who thought they had Midgie really did. But maybe this time. Maybe these people really had found her!
“See you later,” I said to my friends.
Andrew and I raced to the car.
“Please let it be Midgie. Please, please, please,” I whispered to myself.
I closed my eyes and whispered the same thing over and over again.
“What are you saying?” asked Andrew.
I told him. We both started saying it out loud. Then Mommy and Seth joined in.
By the time we reached the couple’s house, we were all chanting together. “Please let it be Midgie. Please, please, please!”
Midgie!
I was the first one out of the car. I raced to the door and rang the bell. I could hear barking inside. It sounded awfully familiar.
An elderly man opened the door. Guess who was standing beside him.
“Midgie!” I shouted.
I could tell she was happy to see me. She was not just wagging her tail. She was wagging her whole body.
I scooped her up in my arms and hugged her. My family raced to us.
“Thank you so much, Mr. Gillen,” said Seth. “I can see you have taken very good care of Midgie.”
An elderly woman joined us.
“I am Mrs. Gillen,” she said. “Please come in and sit down. I am sure you would like to hear how Midgie has been.”
“Thank you,” said Mommy. “We would love to.”
We sat down in the Gillens’ living room.
“Look at all these dog toys,” I said. “Midgie, are you sure you want to come home with us?”
Mr. and Mrs. Gillen laughed.
“We have tried our best to make her happy,” said Mr. Gillen. “We found her about two and a half weeks ago. Her collar and tags were missing. We thought she must be a stray and took her in.”
“We kept our eyes open for signs in the neighborhood. But we don’t go too far from home these days. So we did not see any,” said Mrs. Gillen.
“This morning I had an appointment with my doctor,” continued Mr. Gillen. “That is when we saw your sign. It was posted on his street.”
“Thank you for calling us as soon as you did,” said Mommy.
“And thank you again for taking such good care of Midgie,” said Seth.
“We were afraid something terrible had happened to her,” I said.
Midgie was sitting between Andrew and me. We did not want to let her out of our sight.
“May I get you something to drink?” asked Mrs. Gillen.
“No, you have done enough already,” said Seth. “You have also gone to some expense to take care of Midgie. May I pay you back for her food and toys?”
“Absolutely no
t,” said Mr. Gillen. “It was a pleasure to have her with us. We are going to miss her.”
“You can come visit her anytime,” I said.
Mr. and Mrs. Gillen gave us the toys they had bought for Midgie. They each gave her a hug.
We piled into the car with Midgie and headed home.
“Now Midgie will get to meet Sadie!” said Andrew on the way.
“You are right,” replied Seth. “I almost forgot Sadie was back with us.”
“There is something else we cannot forget,” I said. “Somehow Midgie escaped from our house. We have to find out how. Otherwise, she might do it again.”
Case Closed
The little house had turned into a little zoo. We had Midgie, Sadie, Rocky, Emily Junior, and Bob.
The good news was that Midgie and Sadie got along fine. The bad news was that Sadie and Rocky still had to be kept apart. And Sadie was still a lot of work.
“Uh-oh. Somebody better come outside!” called Andrew from the yard.
Mommy and Seth had let Andrew take Sadie in the backyard for a minute. We hurried to see what had happened.
“The leash slipped out of my hand and she knocked over the can of paint,” said Andrew. “Then she slipped in it.”
Sadie was covered with green paint. Andrew had paint all over his hands and pants and shoes.
“I will clean up Sadie,” said Seth.
“I will help Andrew,” said Mommy. “We have got to find a new home for Sadie. She is too much work when we already have so many pets.”
While everyone was busy cleaning up, I did another important job.
“Midgie, your disappearing days are over,” I said. “I am going to find out how you have been escaping.”
I decided to search our house from the top all the way down. The attic door was locked. So Midgie was not getting out that way.
I checked each of the bedrooms and the bathroom to make sure no windows were open. She could have climbed out an open window and then gone down a tree. Maybe. But the windows were closed or open just a crack. Midgie could not have been getting out that way either.
I checked the first floor. Midgie was standing outside the basement door yapping to get downstairs.