Megan had always wanted a dog - preferably a big, ferocious dog that would make her feel safe at night. Her boyfriend would put all sorts of arguments against it, saying that the house was too small, or that they did not have the time to spend with it. But none of them were convincing, and Megan had long since been certain of what was, in fact, the truth - that Alex disliked dogs. Still, it wasn't worth arguing over a pet - there were so many other things to argue about anyway...
But after one night too many, Megan finally summoned the courage to leave Alex. Being a woman who didn't like to do things by halves, she moved away as far as she could - Australia. Setting down in her house in Queensland, surveying the empty land all around her that extended about as far as the whole of the dreary city centre where she used to live, it was with the feeling almost of naughty child that Megan realised she finally had a decent excuse to get herself a guard dog. She had always wanted one ever since she could remember, but only now could she hear her father's voice in her head, telling her that her new home was in an unfriendly and dangerous place, and that it was all well to be cautious.
After several weeks, however, Megan had to admit that her father was wrong. The neighbours (if you could call them neighbours, as the nearest lived eight miles away), had been disappointingly friendly. Not only this, but the most dangerous excursion that Bruno - her beautiful, strong Alsatian, - ever had to make was crossing the road on his softly padded way to the vet for his vaccinations. Megan had to admire the way the vet calmly handled the dog, who could have snapped his arm off at the wrist with one false move.
One day, coming back from work, Megan was disappointed and a little worried to find that Bruno had not bounded up to greet her as he always did. Running upstairs, calling for him, she noticed - a tiny movement in the corner of her living room, behind the sofa. But that was surely nerves... and anyway, here was Bruno, after all. He was not clearly well, though, and Megan reproached herself for the disloyal thoughts she had allowed to cross her mind, there was no way, with that cough, that Bruno could have run to greet her. He did not seem ill in any other way, however; his coat was shiny, his eyes bright. Megan bent down and, back straining, hasted them up. She carried him off to the car, and went back into the house to call the vet. Again, she felt the tiniest shift of air i the living room, but, looking around, there was nothing abnormal. The vet's familiar voice calmed her, and having briefly explained the situation, she drove Bruno into Cairns, the nearest town, to drop him off.
Having dropped Bruno off at the surgery and collected some groceries in town, Megan made her way home. It was a fairly long drive, and she was pleased when she finally pulled outside her house. As she walked up the drive, she could hear the phone ringing inside. She almost checked herself as she broke into a run - after all, whoever was ringing inside was scarcely worth breaking a sweat over - but then habit took over and she caught the phone before it rang off.
'Hello?' she said, testily - she felt a bit uneasy. It was okay though, it was only the vet...
'Megan, I have found out what's wrong with your dog. You have to come here straight away. Just walk out of the door and back into your car!' She had never heard him this anxious before, and for the life of her she could not work out why. She slumped a little, worried now.
'Is it something awful? Is he dying?' Suddenly, without warning, she began to cry, rocking backwards and forwards. It was not fair that she had got her dog at last, only to have him taken away from her after barely six months. Irrationally, she felt it was some long distance trick of Alex's still determined as he was to spoil her happiness. With a start, she realised that the vet was still talking to her.
'Please Megan!' He was shouting now. 'It's nothing to do with your dog - at least, it is, but... anyway, that doesn't matter! Just promise me that you'll get the hell out of there. If I hear you speak again, instead of running to your car, I'm going to get angry. Okay? Okay?'
Megan was silent for a moment. The vet was about to ring off, but then, prompted by Megan's rapid, shallow breaths, he spoke once again.
'Megan, listen very carefully. The reason Bruno was choking was that he had a hand stuck in his throat! A human hand, do you understand? There's somebody in the house Megan! Get out of there!'
Suddenly, the line went dead.
