Too Big to Run (4 page)

“There, that's done.” Janey looked up from her tablet computer. “Now let's brainstorm ideas for Maxi.”

She was in Lolli's sunny purple-painted bedroom. The two of them had just sent an e-mail to Dr. Goldman telling her about Ace. They'd attached the best pictures from their photo session. A lot of the pictures hadn't turned out very well, since Ace didn't like to
stand still. But they'd found a few good ones.

“Okay.” Lolli leaned back against her pillows. “We already decided not to do a bake sale. Or a car wash. Or a silent auction.” She ticked off each thing on her fingers.

“Right.” Janey closed her e-mail program. “Maybe we should look for ideas online.”

“Yeah.” Lolli sat up and leaned closer. “There are probably lots of sites about that.”

Janey nodded and typed “raising money to help animals” into a search engine. She scanned the first few items that came up, but nothing sounded too promising.

Then she spotted something farther down the list. “Look at this,” she said with a giggle. “It's a site of pictures of cats dressed up like bankers and stuff.”

“Ooh, cute!” Lolli grinned. “Let's look.”

“Okay—but only for a second. Then we have to get back to work.” Janey clicked on the link.

Forty minutes later, the two girls were giggling over a photo of a cat wearing a ballerina's tutu. Lolli's mother poked her head into the room.

“Janey, your mom's here to pick you up,” she said.

Janey gulped. “Oops,” she said to Lolli. “I guess we got a little distracted.”

“That's okay,” Lolli said, though she looked worried, too. “Maybe Adam or Zach has thought of something good.”

“Thanks, sweetie.” Dr. Goldman leaned over Zach's shoulder and peered at the computer screen. “You've been a lot of help today.”

Zach shrugged, spinning around in the reception chair and glancing around the clinic waiting room. “You're welcome. It's kind of fun working here. You know, sometimes.”

He was surprised to realize that was true. Up until recently, he'd hated having to spend time at the vet clinic. It smelled like
disinfectant, and he wasn't allowed to ride his skateboard in the waiting room even though the tile floor was perfect for it.

But ever since joining the Pet Rescue Club, it hadn't seemed so boring. It was fun to help out with the animals. Besides, his mom paid him extra allowance to keep her computer system up to date. Zach was better than anyone else in the family at computer stuff. Even his older brothers admitted it. And his dad worked at home and was hopeless when it came to technology. He needed Zach's help a lot.

Zach's mother clicked a few keys. “Oh, look, there's an e-mail from Janey,” she said.

She opened it. Several photos were attached to the message.

Zach scanned the text. “Oh, right, that's the new dog at the shelter,” he told his mom. “Janey thinks he'd be the perfect new therapy dog for Mrs. Reed.”

“Yes, I saw that dog this morning,” his mother said. “He cut his paw on something and Kitty asked me to take a look.”

“He's great, isn't he?” Zach smiled as he remembered how Ace had slurped his face. “I bet Mrs. Reed and Pepper will love him!”

“Maybe.” His mother didn't sound too sure. “He seemed a bit, er, lively. But it can't hurt to forward the pictures to her and see what she says.”

Zach stretched and stood up. “Do you need me to do anything else?” he asked. Two Siamese cats were waiting for his mother in one of the exam rooms, and the waiting
room was empty.

But it didn't stay that way for long. The door opened, and a woman came in carrying a two-year-old girl in one arm and a large gray tabby cat in the other.

“Hello, Ms. Patel,” Zach's mother greeted her. “This is my son, Zach. Zach, this is Ms. Patel and her daughter, Olivia.”

“Hi,” Zach said.

“Hello, Zach, it's nice to meet you,” the
woman said. The toddler just stared at Zach and sucked on her fingers.

Zach glanced at the cat. “Your cat looks sort of like ours, except ours is orange instead of gray. His name's Mulberry.”

“This is Toby. He hates being in a crate.” Ms. Patel set the cat down. He stretched, then wandered over and meowed at Zach.

Zach laughed and bent down to tickle the cat's chin. “He's talkative.”

His mother checked her watch. “You're a little early,” she told Ms. Patel. “I'll be with you in a few minutes, all right?”

“No hurry.” Ms. Patel spread a small blanket on the floor and set Olivia on it. She dumped a bag of toys beside the toddler, then sat back and sighed. “It feels good to relax!”

Dr. Goldman chuckled, then glanced at the counter. A large pill bottle was sitting there. “Matthew hasn't picked up his meds yet?”

Zach shook his head. He'd been watching for Maxi's owner. “I hope he gets here soon. I want to tell him we're going to help Maxi get her surgery.”

His mother nodded, then disappeared into the exam room. Zach sat on one of the chairs. Toby jumped up beside him and started purring.

“He's really friendly,” Zach said, petting the cat and watching Olivia play with some plastic blocks. “Hey, I wonder if cats can be therapy animals, too? Maybe Mulberry could do it.”

“Therapy animals?” Ms. Patel echoed.

“Yeah.” Zach smiled as Toby head-butted him. “I know this lady who takes her dog to nursing homes and stuff to visit people.”

“Oh, yes, I've heard about that.” Ms. Patel nodded. “My husband's father is in a nursing home, and he loves when animals come to visit.”

Before Zach could respond, the clinic's front door opened. Maxi walked in, followed by Matthew. Olivia's eyes widened.

“Doggy!” she shrieked loudly.

Maxi pricked her ears. “Oh, dear,” Ms. Patel said, bending to pick up her daughter. “What a large dog! Watch out, Toby.”

“It's okay,” Matthew said. “Maxi loves kids and cats. She's great with my nieces. And she plays with my neighbor's cat, Ralphie. Maxi's big, but very gentle.”

Zach stepped over and gave Maxi a head rub. “Hi again, Maxi. How are your knees feeling?”

Matthew smiled, but he looked worried. “The medicine makes her feel better, but she's still limping a little.” He sighed. “That's why I'm so late getting here. I just got off work, and since Maxi can't run with me right now, I figured I'd walk her here so we'd get to spend a little time together.”

“Is she really gentle?” Ms. Patel asked. “I think Olivia would like to say hi.”

Zach glanced at the toddler. She was wiggling in her mother's arms, reaching out toward the big dog.

“She's fine.” Matthew smiled. “Come here, big girl. Sit.”

Maxi sat at Matthew's feet, her tongue lolling out as Ms. Patel stepped toward her and put Olivia down. The little girl cooed and grabbed at the big dog, patting her on the head with both hands.

“Gently, Olivia,” Ms. Patel said. “Just like when you pet Toby.”

Olivia giggled and tugged on the dog's
ear. Maxi looked surprised, but didn't move. Matthew laughed.

“Good girl,” he said, rubbing her head. “See? I told you—she loves kids.”

Zach grinned. “I think someone else wants to meet her.” He pointed at Toby, who was sniffing cautiously at Maxi's tail. When the dog wagged it, the cat leaped back and hissed.

“Oh, Tobes.” Ms. Patel chuckled. “He's not used to dogs.”

Suddenly Zach remembered the medication. He grabbed the bottle. “Here,” he said, handing it to Matthew. “Mom said to give you these.”

“Thanks.” Matthew pocketed the bottle of pills. “I hope they help.”

“Yeah. But surgery will help more, right?” Zach said. “My friends and I had an idea about that. We want to have a fundraiser to pay for it!”

“What?” Matthew looked startled. “What do you mean?”

Zach told him about the Pet Rescue Club. “So this is our new project,” he finished with a grin. “Helping Maxi!”

“Wow!” Matthew grinned back. “That's amazing! Are you sure you guys want to do this?”

“I think it sounds like a wonderful idea,” Ms. Patel put in. She was stroking Maxi's head while Olivia patted the big dog's side. Maxi was sitting quietly, her tongue lolling out of her mouth. Zach was pretty sure she
was enjoying the attention.

“Okay.” Matthew scratched his head, still looking stunned. “I mean, I wish I could pay for it myself. But if this is the fastest way to get Maxi feeling better…”

“It is,” Zach assured him. “We aren't sure what fundraiser we're doing yet, though, so let us know if you think of any good ideas.”

“Will do.” Matthew looked happy as he leaned down and gave Maxi a big hug. “Did you hear that, girl? You'll be as good as new soon!”

“Yeah,” Zach said. “That doesn't mean she can start jogging again, though. Mom says it's not good for such a big dog to put stress on her joints like that.”

“Really?” Now Matthew looked less
happy. “But I work so much that our daily runs are really the only quality time we get to spend together. I'm not sure how I'll fit everything in if she has to stay home.”

“Oh.” Zach wasn't sure what to say to that. “Um…”

Just then Russ called Ms. Patel in to the exam room. At the same time, Matthew's cell phone rang. He answered, then waved good-bye to Zach as he headed out with Maxi following.

Zach stared after him, a little worried by what Matthew had just said.

Then he shrugged. They could figure that stuff out later. First they had to come up with a fundraising idea.

“Hi guys,” Kitty said with a smile as Janey, Lolli, and Zach walked into the shelter the next afternoon. “Where's Adam?”

“He had to take care of some clients right after school,” Lolli said. “He's meeting us here in a little while.”

Janey nodded, feeling impatient. The group still hadn't come up with a good idea for their fundraiser.