Spotted Dog Last Seen (13 page)

Some of the classroom windows had been left open, and I felt a soft breeze on the back of my neck as I stood in front of Trevor Tower's locker.

Twenty-eight. Thirty-four. Eighteen.

When I opened the locker, I returned Murray Easton's book to the shelf, exactly as we had found it. I picked up two new envelopes at the top of the stack on the floor of the locker. Both were addressed to Mr. Easton. I recognized Pascal's and Merrilee's penmanship. But their envelopes were sealed like all the others beneath, each one containing its own secret.

Then, on a hunch, I pulled out the envelope at the very bottom of the stack. It, too, was addressed to Mr. Easton, but in Loyola Louden's handwriting with the hooded
a
. I wondered if she had written about not believing the senior citizen who had lost his spotted dog. And if so, I wondered if she had been able to forgive herself for doubting the elderly man's story.

I like to think that she had.

I put the envelopes back the way they were, then laid my own envelope on top of the pile. I closed the door and spun the dial, an act so final, I knew I would never be back.

But even as I walked outside and down the vacant steps toward the cemetery to visit the granites lined up with precision, I knew that Trevor Tower's time capsule, the keeper of secrets, had endless patience. Like the past, the locker I had just locked would not stay locked for long.

A locker unlocked.

Untold stories told.

The buried remembered.

Again.

And again.

Acknowledgments

I AM INDEBTED
to many people who helped me during this project, or inspired me in some way or another that worked its way into the details.

Thank you, Maura Gair, instructor at Fountain Academy of the Sacred Heart School in Halifax. You taught the boys about the importance of community service. Having watched the news story about the students working in my neighborhood cemetery during which you and Sean Mullally were interviewed, I was inspired to detour into Halifax's Old Burying Ground on my way home from work. There I came across a slate double marker with an epitaph on only one side, and I was inspired to fill in the blank by writing this novel.

Thank you, Bill Druker and D.J. DeCoste. Murray Easton is meant to showcase the exceptional teaching qualities you both demonstrate as faculty members of Fountain Academy.

Thank you, Nancy Zinck. You were an especially enthusiastic writing student of mine. You faithfully recorded my lectures, bought all my early books and had me sign them to send to your relatives out west, and then during the last class, presented me with a homemade knitted red scarf. I learned through my writer's association newsletter that you died shortly after. Merrilee's charming red plastic jacket with the bunnies-and-carrots pattern is in memory of you.

Thank you, Access Copyright Foundation. You supported my research by contributing to the costs of attending the annual conference of the Association of Gravestone Studies in New Jersey, where I presented my work to a large room of mostly archaeologists. There I secured a number of readers for this manuscript as well as learned about the fine art of cemetery care.

Thank you to my manuscript readers: Siobhan Lavelle and your nephew, David Lavelle, Judith Trainor, Cheryle Caputo, Kathleen Mannino, Gwen Enos, Susan Acampora, Louis deSalle, Sandhya Srivastava, Jack Wooldridge and Trevor Fowler (who also keeps me supplied with interesting names). You all provided helpful feedback, and I tried to make the changes you suggested. If there are any additional errors, they are my own.

Thank you, Judith Trainor, for making space for me in your over-enrolled workshop on how to make a foil impression of a gravestone carving. You patiently encouraged me to finish my first attempt — an angel kneeling beside an anchor, the symbol of hope — despite all the foil wrinkles I couldn't smooth out. Derek chooses this symbol for his own gravestone in chapter 7.

Thank you, Debra McNabb. I plucked
a tapestry of sighs
from one of many elegantly written emails I received from you in which you reflect on some heritage-related issue. Inspired by that phrase, I wrote my epitaph to the fire-station mascot in chapter 9.

Thank you, Bill Greenlaw and David Ross. You've shown kind interest in my writing during moments between the pressing issues of the day. Also, thank you to Kevin Barrett and Laura Bennett, two dedicated heritage specialists who work to protect my province's cemeteries, even the abandoned ones. You both have all kinds of stories to tell.

Thank you, Rhonda Walker, for pulling over so that I could stomp around particularly interesting cemeteries with my camera. You wouldn't get out of the car, but still. You continue to indulge my efforts to better understand whatever subject matter is at hand.

Thank you, Elliott Kerrin. You renewed my fascination with stars and planetariums when you shared your astronomy notes and photographs from Queen's University with me. Creelman's career as a planetarium projectionist is a nod to our conversations. And even though we now live in separate provinces, I'm comforted that we still share an equal view of the universe.

Thank you, Peter Kerrin. You're like Derek's dad in several ways — your sporting good nature that allows you to don a t-shirt with a slogan that Elliott made up and proudly wear it to the gym; the organizational approach you apply to your workshop in the basement, which is crammed with home projects in various states; and your love of peanut butter and jam sandwiches. You're a great dad.

And thank you, thank you, Sheila Barry. When I was feeling lost and searching for a publisher, you offered a home for this book along with your expert editorial support. In that regard, I am the spotted dog.

About the Author

JESSICA SCOTT KERRIN
is the author of the newly launched Lobster Chronicles trilogy and the bestselling Martin Bridge series.
Martin
Bridge: Ready for Takeoff
was chosen by the
Horn Book
and the New York Public Library as one of the best books of 2005.

Born and raised in Alberta, Jessica moved to Nova Scotia to study at the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design. Surrounded by shipyards, fog and historic cemeteries, she remains in downtown Halifax, where she lives with her family and pet tortoise, and continues to build her writing career.

About the Publisher

Groundwood Books, established in 1978, is dedicated to the production of children's books for all ages, including fiction, picture books and non-fiction. We publish in Canada, the United States and Latin America. Our books aim to be of the highest possible quality in both language and illustration. Our primary focus has been on works by Canadians, though we sometimes also buy outstanding books from other countries.

Many of our books tell the stories of people whose voices are not always heard in this age of global publishing by media conglomerates. Books by the First Peoples of this hemisphere have always been a special interest, as have those of others who through circumstance have been marginalized and whose contribution to our society is not always visible. Since 1998 we have been publishing works by people of Latin American origin living in the Americas both in English and in Spanish under our Libros Tigrillo imprint.

We believe that by reflecting intensely individual experiences, our books are of universal interest. The fact that our authors are published around the world attests to this and to their quality. Even more important, our books are read and loved by children all over the globe.