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Chapter Nineteen

Gareth

Okay, maybe this was a bad idea.

Gareth shifted about uncomfortably in the treehouse as the wind howled in through the gaps and the branches creaked. It suddenly felt a lot colder outside.

Oliver had stopped by again and given him a sleeping bag, some Kettle Chips for dinner (in case Marcus and Ralph reappeared before he could have a caviar feast), a bottle of 7Up and a couple of books to read.

“I got them all past mum and dad, but that weird professor guy asked if I was going on a sleepover. I just said yes and hoped I don’t confuse my parents if the professor blabs to them,” Oliver had explained.

Gareth had nodded before politely declining Oliver’s offers of a porn magazine for entertainment (“I’m gay, tits don’t interest me”) and his airsoft gun in case Arseny came looking for them, having decided he didn’t want to shoot Ralph in the gloom by mistake.

He watched the house for any sign of life. The sun was setting and the lights were all off and there was no sound of the Lotus approaching. Gareth had taken Ralph’s jock and underwear up the tree house and to bed with him. He pulled the jock out of his sleeping bag to look at.

Trust me to grab clean pairs off the washing line!

The bag of Kettle Chips Oliver had given him was already half-eaten, and Gareth decided to nibble on “a few” (which turned into eating most of them) and before long there was only crumbs left at the bottom.

His stomach was still rumbling and he decided to go and check out the selection in the fridge. Gareth couldn’t help but thump his tail, which caused the treehouse to creak alarmingly, as he decided upon a plan; try some of the exotic cheeses, have some of their wine and go upstairs to find a worn pair of Ralph’s underwear to take to bed and sniff.

The ideas made him grin and he moved to climb down the ladder.

As soon as his hind-paw touched the first rung he heard the sound of a powerful engine approaching.

“Bollocks,” he sighed out loud to himself.

It seemed his dinner plans would have to be postponed.

He hauled himself back up and saw a pair of headlights sweeping down the lane, and even in the dusk he could identify them as belonging to Ralph’s car.

Gareth found himself quivering as the car pulled up outside the house.

Yes, this was a seriously bad idea, what am I going to do tomorrow?

He prayed that Ralph or Marcus wouldn’t come out to the garden.

A light came on inside the kitchen and Gareth held his breath, trying to stay calm and reassure himself.

Perhaps they’ll have sex upstairs with the curtains open?

The thought of another free porn show involving Ralph reassured him a little and he continued watching.

The light in the kitchen remained on and he could see movement, and then Gareth heard the sound of the engine start back up and Ralph’s car sped off.

Have they gone out?

Gareth wondered whether to quickly dart into the house to grab some food and underwear, but then he saw movement in the kitchen again. One of them was still at home.

He settled down into his sleeping bag and continued watching, licking crumbs off his paws.

The 7Up bottle poked him in the stomach and he reached down to open it. The bottle let out a hiss and Gareth smothered it in his sleeping bag. He knew that no one from the house could likely hear it, but he didn’t want to run the risk.

The liquid was quite warm, but he chugged it down anyway.

As he watched the house, he couldn’t help but wonder what was in Arseny’s office that he was so paranoid about.

Part of Gareth’s mind compelled him to go and investigate, but the other half told him the idea was suicide.

Instead, be began to play a small game of what could Arseny have in his office?

Perhaps he was building a nuclear bunker, turning the Mansfield house into an escape room or was creating a new shopping mall.

Nah, Arseny isn’t that interesting or fun. He’s probably building a golf course.

His thoughts were interrupted as the sound of Ralph’s Lotus returning echoed down the lane.

Gareth decided that he would investigate what Arseny was hiding the next moment he had an opportunity. It would be his last attempt to take his not-dad down, and if that didn’t work he would run off with Ralph and kiss Little Hartbrook goodbye.

A minute later the car appeared outside again and Gareth strained his ears as he heard the sound of the front door open and close.

Please have sex and give me something entertaining to watch!

The bedroom light flicked on and Gareth rubbed his paws, hoping to catch a sight of the Doberman naked. All he had to do was replace Marcus and imagine himself in the situation.

“There’s no need to sleep outside Gareth, come up here. I’ll keep you warm.”

“Thanks Ralph.”

“No need to say thanks my pup, a cute guy like you shouldn’t sleep outside. Come and lift that tail of yours.”

“Yes boss.”

“Good boy, now brace yourself. Dobie has a nice big cock for you.”

Gareth was shaken from his fantasy and instinctively wanted to berate Oliver, but then he remembered the Collie was back at his parents’ and the sound that had pulled him back to reality was the front door of Honeysuckle Lodge closing again.

Ralph’s Lotus started up and Gareth watched as it sped away.

A minute later the front door opened again and he saw the faint outline of Marcus hurrying up the lane.

“Interesting,” Gareth murmured.

Gareth kept watching the house. The kitchen light was still on but there was no sign of anyone at home.

Gingerly, he climbed down the ladder and hurried across the garden, sniffing at the air.

The scent of fox and Ralph’s aftershave was strong by the back door, but there was no sound of anyone in the house.

Gareth eased the door open. The house was silent, no sounds of paw-steps, music playing or a television.

“Hello?” he called out and realised his voice was shaking.

No one was at home.

Gareth propped himself against a kitchen counter as he began listing the steps of his plan on his paw; go back to not-dad’s, see what’s in his study if he’s out, cycle back here and if Marcus and Ralph are out take up position back in the tree house or crash at Oliver’s as a last resort if they are in.

Either of the latter two steps would still give him an opportunity to watch Ralph or even talk to him.

Gareth smiled as he walked down the hallway. After snooping on the Doberman he wanted to try introducing himself to Ralph.

He made for the front door, locked it behind him and stashed the key back in its usual place.

There was no sign of anyone on the lane so he hurried over to where his bike was hidden behind the bush and began cycling.

As Gareth peddled up the dark lane he wondered why Ralph and Marcus had left the house separately.

Perhaps Ralph and Marcus had a lover’s tiff?

The thought made Gareth grin. If they broke up he had a better shot at getting with Ralph.

Then again, if they break up Ralph might leave forever.

The second thought made Gareth’s ears droop. No Ralph would mean no escape from Little Hartbrook.

As he cycled towards the centre of the village, Gareth added a new item to his long list of plans; if Ralph and Marcus are done, get them back together…that way Ralph will be kept around and I can show him I’m better.

Gareth grinned at the idea, and then swore and served on his bike to avoid an oncoming car which sounded its horn.

“Up yours!” Gareth yelled, and as the car passed he recognised it as Marcus’ red Audi. “And fuck you for killing Forrest off!” he added, before realising that the fox probably could not hear him.

Gareth paused on his bike to gather his breath.

Wait, what if Marcus is going back to Honeysuckle Lodge?

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” he exclaimed out loud.

“Are you all right young man?”

Gareth yelped and turned to see an older looking Border Collie standing near the pub.

“Oh yeah, I’m just, uh, venting frustration.”

“Oh I do similar, only my word of choice is bugger,” the older Collie replied. “Anyway, I shan’t keep you. Cycle safely now.”

Gareth peddled off and picked up speed as he reached the other side of the village. He couldn’t help but think the older Collie resembled Oliver, and that wasn’t purely down to the fact they were both the same canine species, but he pushed the thought away as he focused on the mission at hand.

He reached the gates to not-dad’s place and cycled through them.

This is crazy, what am I doing?

Gareth kept repeating the thought over and over in his head as he cycled cautiously up the driveway to Arseny’s house.

Maybe taking Oliver’s airsoft gun would have been a good idea.

He knew not-dad often took Eliza out for dinner as a father/daughter thing when she came to visit, and as he rounded the corner he saw to his relief that not-dad’s Bentley was gone.

His mother’s red Mini Cooper was parked nearby however, and Gareth decided he would try sneaking through the house without her seeing him.

Even though he wanted to rescue her, he knew she would try stopping him if she caught him snooping around Arseny’s study.

Gareth left his bike against the wall, and as quietly as he could, he eased the front door open.

The house was just as silent as Honeysuckle Lodge had been, and Gareth assumed his mum must be in bed already.

He crept down the hallway in the direction of Arseny’s study, hoping the door would be unlocked. He reached the door and closed a paw around the door handle before giving it a gentle push.

It opened and Gareth breathed a sigh of relief.

The office was gloomy and Gareth closed the door before flicking the light on.

Arseny’s office consisted of a large oak wood desk, a computer, various certificates of from the Great British Cider Awards, a large framed photograph of Arseny meeting the Queen (Arseny was guffawing while showing off all his teeth while the Corgi was smiling pleasantly but her eyes were fixing not-dad a funny expression) and several filing cabinets.

Gareth tried one of the filing cabinets and found it was locked.

Damn.

He then pulled at the desk drawer and sighed as it refused to budge. Gareth then remembered a trick Oliver had showed him. The Collie had once used it to break into an outdoor cabinet over in Fildown that stashed adult magazines for a newspaper shop. Oliver claimed he had then taken the magazines to school and charged the students in his class one pound to look at the photos.

Gareth doubted the legitimacy of the magazine part, but the lock picking trick did work.

He pulled out a hairpin from his pocket that he had once stolen from Eliza and gently eased it into the desk drawer’s lock. He twisted and moulded it into the lock before pulling on the drawer.

To his delight it slid open.

The drawer was full of pieces of paper, some had handwritten notices and there was sheet with what looked like digitally drawn squares and lines on it. Gareth frowned and pulled the sheet out. He realised the squares and lines looked like roads and buildings. There were the letters HD-C written along the top.

“The fuck does this mean?” Gareth muttered.

On impulse he pulled out his phone and snapped a photo of the sheet.

Even if it means nothing, it could be evidence.

Gareth wondered whether to try picking the filing cabinets, but his ears stood up as he heard the sound of tires on the driveway.

Cursing under his breath, he stuffed the sheet back in the drawer, closed it and moved to turn the office light off.

If Arseny was pulling up at the front the window was the best escape route.

Gareth gritted his fangs as he eased it up, wiggled through the gap (almost knocking a plant pot over in the process) and fell onto the grass outside.

“Ouch!” he growled as he picked himself up and closed the window.

He heard the faint sound of a car door closing followed by Arseny’s booming voice.

“Ah yes I knew that waiter would give me a free glass of cider as soon as he recognised my name! It pays to be in this industry you know.”

Definitely time to get out of here.

Gareth skirted around the edge of the house until he reached the front. He glanced around the corner just in time to see the front door close.

He waited a second, making sure Arseny wasn’t lurking in the darkness somewhere, before he sprinted forwards and mounted his bike.

His heart was pounding as he mounted it and peddled away as fast as he could.

The centre of the village seemed emptier of people as he cycled through it. There was no sign of Marcus’ Audi driving about.

Gareth continued cycling and he passed the road where Frank lived. Instinctively, he glanced up and saw Marcus’ Audi parked where Frank’s cottage was.

“Marcus, you’re a slut!” he sighed before cycling on.

Ralph drives away and Marcus goes to Frank’s place – and the wolf isn’t even a celebrity!

Sure, the wolf was quite muscular and good looking, but in terms of fame he was a major downgrade from Ralph.

What the fuck is Marcus thinking?

Gareth shook his head as he cycled on to Honeysuckle Lodge.

There were no cars parked outside and he stashed his bike before hurrying up the path.

He paused and then knocked on the door to test no one was in.

Please let no one be in, I have no excuse to be here; I’m giving out religious leaflets, selling double glazing, or actually I kicked my ball over!

Gareth decided the last excuse was the best one, even if it was late.

No one came to the door, so Gareth glanced around before retrieving the key and letting himself in.

Good, this means not having to knock on Mrs Durrence’s front door and explain why I’m coming for a sleepover at such a weird time.

He hurried to the back door and out into the garden, knowing he had a lot to tell Oliver.

Gareth smiled grimly to himself as he reached the ladder to the treehouse and pulled out his phone.

Man I have a lot to tell you, he texted before climbing up.

He reached the top, accidentally kicked the 7Up bottle which fell through the trap door (shit, I’ll find that in the morning) and wriggled into his sleeping bag.

The wind was still howling through the gaps of the treehouse, but Gareth ignored it.

His mind was already scheming how to get Ralph to come back if he had broken off with Marcus.