Read Online How to Steal a Dog by Barbara O'Connor - Free Book Online Page A

Toby’s and smiled at Mama in the rearview mirror. “Nothing,” I said.
    I settled back and ate some pancakes, which sure did taste good even though they were all soggy with syrup. When I finished, I took out my notebook and wrote: Save some doughnuts for Willy . I pushed the notebook across the seat and poked Toby.
    He squinted down at my note. Then he grinned and said, “Ohhhhh, okay.”
    â€œWhat?” Mama said.
    I jabbed my heel into Toby’s foot and he hollered, “Owwww!”
    Mama whirled around and snapped, “What’re y’all doing?”
    I slapped my hand over the note and smiled at her. “Nothing.”
    â€œWell, don’t y’all start that bickering back there,” she said. “Let’s go find us someplace to park.”
    I glared at Toby. We hadn’t had that dog one whole
day yet, and already he was acting all stupid around Mama. It would be a miracle if she didn’t find out what we had done.
    But so far, it seemed like everything was working out good. I’d stolen Willy, no problem. I’d found a good place to keep him. And Mama had a job at a coffee shop that gave her free food. Now all I had to do was stash some of that food in my backpack for Willy.
    I took out my notebook and wrote April 18 in my How to Steal a Dog notes. Then I wrote:
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    Step 5: Things to do after you have stolen the dog:
    1. Be sure to act nice to him so he won’t be afraid.
    2. Play with him some so he will like you.
    3. Make sure you put him in a safe place where he won’t get wet if it rains.
    4. Tie up the rope or string so he can’t run away.
    5. Find him some food and water
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    Uh-oh. Water. I’d forgotten about that. But I was pretty sure that wasn’t going to be a big problem. Still, I put a question mark beside that one so I would remember to figure it out.
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    That night it seemed like I hardly slept at all. A steady rain clattered on the roof and ran down the windows in streams. The inside of the car was so hot I had to crack
my window, and then the rain splattered my face and made my pillow wet. I listened to the slow, even breathing of Mama and Toby and thought about Willy. I wondered if he was scared. Was he getting wet? Was he hungry?
    Every time I closed my eyes, I could see his freckly face and those shiny black eyes. I could see him cock his head at me and wag his whole body the way he did.
    â€œDon’t be scared, Willy,” I whispered into the still night air.
    The car windows were so fogged up I couldn’t even see outside. I used my finger to write Willy on the foggy glass. I drew a heart around it, then wiped the window clean and turned my mind to “off.”
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    When I opened my eyes the next morning, I felt all fluttery and excited like on Christmas morning. Today was the day we would find the reward sign for Willy.
    Mama made us use the water in the cooler to brush our teeth. While she was putting on her lipstick and stuff in the car, I filled an empty soda bottle with water and put it in my backpack. Then I checked to make sure I had the bag of food scraps for Willy. Yep, half a doughnut and some scrambled eggs.
    I pulled Toby close and whispered, “We gotta look for the reward signs today, okay?”
    He nodded. “Okay.”
    I could hardly keep myself from grinning as we made
our way through the streets of Darby on the way to school. I sat up straight and pressed my face against the window, searching every telephone pole we passed.
    As we got closer to school, my excitement began to fade to disappointment. I guess in my heart I’d known it was probably too soon to find any signs. We’d only stolen that dog the day before. But in my mind, I had pictured signs on every pole. There they would be, up and down the streets of Darby. In big letters: REWARD. Then there would be a picture of Willy, cocking his head and staring out at the world through his furry black