tried not to gag as he watched the family eat supper later that night. While the man and his wife were eating to their heart’s content, Warren gave Sandy a small amount of scraps that Dingo wouldn’t even want to eat. ‘The sooner we get out of here, the better,’ Dingo thought. ‘How can I get Sandy’s attention? And how will I get her to understand my plan?’ Well, he knew how to answer the first question. He barked as loudly as he could.

Warren slammed his fork on the table. “Someone shut that dog up!”

Sandy got up from her place at the table and ran over to Dingo. She sat down next to the dog, petting him. “What’s wrong, Dingo?” she asked.

Before Dingo realized what he was doing, he was explaining his whole plan to the girl. When he realized that she probably couldn’t understand what he was saying, he stopped in mid-sentence.

“Well?” Sandy asked. “Why did you stop? You haven’t told me the rest of the plan yet.”

Dingo’s eyes widened. “You can understand me?” he asked. “But…how?”

Sandy shrugged. “I’m not sure,” she replied. “I just can.”

Dingo continued to tell Sandy the rest of the plan. After he was finished, she nodded and said, “Okay. I’ll tell my mom about it after supper.”

“Sandy!” Warren shouted from the kitchen. “Are you talking to that dog?”

“I have to go,” Sandy whispered to Dingo. “Even if my mom doesn’t like the idea, I still want to go with you. I want to make sure you see your sister Saba again.”

When Sandy mentioned Saba, it reminded Dingo of something else. “Sandy…there’s one other thing that I want to tell you about Nome…”

“What’s that?” Sandy asked.

“Do you remember your older brother that your parents put up for adoption?” Dingo asked. The girl nodded. “He lives in Nome. I know him. He used to be my owner!”

Sandy’s eyes widened. “My brother?”

“Yes. His name is Jason. If you come with me to Nome, you’ll see him again.”

“Sandy!” Warren yelled.

“I know that my mom will go for the idea now,” Sandy whispered. “I have to go finish supper. I’ll tell my mom the plan and we’ll sneak out of the house later tonight.”

-----

After Sandy explained Dingo’s plan to her, Mrs. Warren bit her lip. “Sandy, I don’t know what to think,” she said. “Maybe you’ve had such a lack of nutrition that you’re losing your sanity.”

“Mom, I’m serious!” Sandy said. “Dingo was really talking to me. I already told you the plan. Don’t you believe me?”

Mrs. Warren sighed and ran a hand through her hair. “I don’t know, Sandy,” she said. “I want to believe you, but your story doesn’t make any sense.”

Sandy looked into her mother’s eyes. “Wouldn’t you give anything to see Jason again?”

“What does Jason have to do with this?” Mrs. Warren asked.

“He was Dingo’s old owner. He lives in Nome.”

Mrs. Warren’s jaw dropped. She tried to say something, but she couldn’t. “Mom?” asked Sandy, waving a hand in front of her mother’s face.

Mrs. Warren nodded. “Pack a bag of clothes, Sandy,” she said. “We’re leaving tonight.” 

Chapter 12

Dingo led Sandy and her mother through the streets of Anchorage. He wanted to find any street dogs in Liko’s group that would go to Nome with them. The first place he decided to look was the hideout.

Dingo bit his lip. He knew that Sandy and her mother expected him to know where he was going, but he didn’t really know. After all, he had only been out on the streets in Anchorage for one day, and that had been weeks ago. He started to worry that he wouldn’t be able to find the hideout at all.

Dingo was about to give up when he heard movement in an alley nearby. He stealthily moved toward the entrance of the alley and peered around the corner.

“BOO!” shouted the dog that Dingo had heard moving around before. Dingo heaved a sigh of relief when he realized the dog was Matteo.

“So, what’s up, brave dog?” Matteo asked. “I haven’t seen you since I helped you find your way back to the Warrens’. Was the evil man angry?”

Dingo showed Matteo a scar on his front paw. “Ouch,” Matteo said. “That had to hurt.”

Dingo nodded. “The reason I was looking for you is that I’m going back to Nome, and I want to know if you want to come, too.”

Matteo hung his head and stared at the ground. “I don’t know, Dingo…” he said, sighing. “I mean, first of all, I hardly even know you. I’m not saying that I don’t trust you, but this is only the second time I’ve actually seen you. The second thing is, well, what difference is it going to make if I go?”

“What do you mean?” Dingo ask, puzzled.

“No one likes me, Dingo,” Matteo said. “No one accepts me. I mean, I just want to fit in with everyone else, but no one ever gives me the chance.”

While the two dogs were having their conversation, Mrs. Warren was confused. “What are they talking about?” she asked her daughter.

“Dingo’s trying to persuade Matteo to come with us to Nome, but Matteo doesn’t want to go because he’s a social misfit,” Sandy replied quickly.

Mrs. Warren shook her head in amazement. “How do you know all of this?” she asked.

Matteo and Dingo kept talking. “Matteo, the people in Nome are different,” Dingo said. “I’ve seen how some of the people here act. They don’t accept some people just because they’re different. But the people in Nome are different. They’ll accept you just as you are...just like I do.”

Matteo looked up with a slightly hopeful look on his face. “Do you really think they’ll accept me?” he asked. “After all, you’re the only person that really likes me as a friend.”

Dingo smiled. “Trust me,” he said. “I know that they will. Will you come with us?”

Matteo bit his lip. After a few seconds he nodded his head and smiled. “Definitely.”

“Great,” Dingo said. “By the way, can you take me to the hideout that Liko and her friends use?”

Matteo hesitated at the mention of Liko’s name. “Uh…sure,” he said. He started to lead Dingo and the two humans to the dogs’ hideout.

Dingo looked concerned as he walked beside his friend. After a few minutes of saying nothing, he knew that he had to break the silence. “You said that you and she used to be best friends,” he said. “What happened?”

Matteo sighed. “I don’t really like talking about this,” he said, “but since you’re the only friend I have, I guess I’ll tell you. See, Liko and I used to do everything together. We were really close. But all of a sudden I felt a change in my feelings about her. One day I felt like she was my best friend, and the next day…well, all of a sudden I just got this crush on her.

“I tried to keep my crush a secret for as long as possible, but I accidentally told some of Liko’s friends. Then they told her, and she never said a word to me since then.”

“Wow…” Dingo said. “I’m so sorry. I know how it feels to lose a friend like that. I loved my sister Saba so much, and as soon as I found out I was going to Anchorage, the first thing I thought about was having to leave her. We’ve been through our whole lives together, so now I feel like a part of me is missing because I’m not with her.” He sighed. Then a smile crept onto his face. “But hopefully I’ll be back with her soon.”

Matteo nodded toward a small hole in a secluded alley. “There’s the hideout,” he said. “Want me to go in with you?”

Dingo nodded. He just hoped that he would find Liko inside.

-----

Saba walked excitedly through the streets of Nome. She couldn’t wait to tell Josh about her being part wolf. The only problem was that she didn’t know where to start looking.

‘Josh must have an owner…’ Saba thought. ‘He’s probably wherever they live. But where would that be?’

Suddenly, out of the corner of her eye, Saba saw something move. “Josh?” she called. She heard something running away. ‘Great,’ she thought, rolling her eyes. ‘If that was him, I just scared him off. That wasn’t very smart…’

Saba charged off in the direction she thought the other thing had gone. As she ran past an alley, she saw a dog standing toward the back of it. Saba came to a stop and started down the alley. The other dog turned around and lay at the back of the alley, staring at the