Hearts and Diamonds

Chapter one

I got up and stretched. It was early in the morning, maybe about half five.
"Come on, Diamond," I called. My three-year-old red husky leapt to her paws and bounded after me. We walked out into the hallway and across the landing. I opened the door to my parents' room a little.
"Ace. Ace..." I whispered. The old wolf padded out of the room. He was seventeen and not as active as he used to be. As a child I remember running around and playing with him but now he was much more quite. He wasn't unhealthy just slower and a little more tired.
I went downstairs and into the kitchen. Sleeping in his bed was Jack, Mum and Dad's other dog.
"Hi, boy," I greeted him. He wagged his tail and got up. I pulled a big bag of dog kibble and began pouring it into bowls. Each bowl had the dog's name on it. Ace, Jack, Diamond...
"Good dogs," I left them to eat their food and went out back. In our garden, there was a large field like space where Mum liked to practice her dog sled racing. There was a set of stalls on the left side of the garden. Each stall had a enclosed space at the back for the dogs to run around in. I picked up a bag of dog food from in a small wooden chest next to the stalls. It was my job to feed all the dogs in the morning. There were eight dogs outside. They were called Scarlett, Storm, Nikki, North, Angel, Ajax, Maxx and Minx. They were Mum's current sled dog. There were Malamutes, Huskies, Greenland dogs and mix-breeds.
I sighed before putting the dog food away. I went back inside and checked the time. It was almost six o'clock. I decided to go and get changed before making breakfast.

I made pancakes and got ready to go to the General store. I picked up a shopping list my Mum had left in the kitchen for me.
"Come on then, Diamond," I watched as she bounded over to me. I clipped a lead onto her leather collar and left the house.

"Diamond, stop it!" I snapped as she almost pulled me off my feet. I yanked at the lead and she tried to jump forward. Hearing a giggle coming from in front of me, I looked up. A girl, about my age, with blue eyes stood in front of me. She had vibrant purple hair, shaved on one side and long on the other.
"Do you need a hand?" She asked. I nodded and she took the lead out of my hand.
"Sit," she pointed down to the ground. Diamond sat down, straight away, and looked up at the girl. "Good dog!" The girl smiled and petted Diamond on the head.
"How did you-"
"I train agility dogs," she replied, not needing to listen to the rest of my question.
"My Mum trains sled dogs," I smiled
"I only just moved here," She past me Diamond's lead. "I used to live in
Portland, Maine, so there wasn't much snow to pull sleds there but I always wanted to. I own a dog but he's only small, not big enough to pull a sled. But, he is springy enough to jump a one meter fence,"
"Wow! You must be a good dog trainer," I smiled. She smiled and held out a hand.
"My name's Roxanne Smith but I don't like the name Roxanne, so everyone calls me Roxy," She told me as I shook her hand.
"My name is Adam Eldon. I lived down there in the big house that's filled with the sound of howling and constantly stinks of dog," I smiled. Roxy laughed.
"What's your dog called?" She asked, politely.
"Red Diamond, but I just call her Diamond," I replied. I, quickly, looked at my watch. "Oh, I've got to go! I've got to get to the General store,"
"What's the time?" Roxy asked. I showed her my watch.
"Oh, I've got to go to the post office. I've got a job looking after the mail dogs there," she nodded and went to leave.
"Goodbye, Roxy," I smiled
"Bye, Adam!" She waved and dashed off. I looked down at the shopping list.
• Dog kibble
• Leg of lamb for Ace
• Sourdough bread
I sighed. Some things never change.

I got home and came inside, away from the cold. I unclipped Diamond's lead and carried the shopping into the house. Mum and Dad were waiting in the kitchen. Mum was cooking breakfast for her and Dad and Dad was sitting at the table. I put the bag of dog kibble in the cupboard and the leg of lamp in the freezer.
"Oh, bread!" My Mum smiled and grabbed the sourdough bread and stowed it away in the bread box. I rolled my eyes and sat down at the table with my Dad.
"What took you so long?" He asked
"I meet a girl down near the General store called Roxy. She likes dogs and works with the mail dogs at the post office. She trains dogs agility," I told my parents.
"If she's a dog person, she's welcome around here any time," My Mum laughed and gave my Dad a plate of food.
"Thanks, Lani," He smiled and began to eat
"Welcome," she smiled back and sat down to eat.