Paw Patrol: Lost Hazel

Five

No one's POV

'I don't understand why you were so mean to that little girl's dog, Lindsi." Jerry said, not looking away from the road. "He's a sweet pup, you just have to be nicer to that Rylee girl."

"I hate dogs, Jerry." Lindsi says, smacking the gum in her mouth. "I can't stand them."

"Well that doesn't you give the dog a humungous bruise on his leg. That dog's basically a cop. You saw his uniform."

"Don't mean nothing to me."

"Well, could you be a little nicer next time? I'm sure that girl spent a lot of time training those pups to help people who need help, and right now she's trying to find one of them." He pulled into the garage, and pressed the button to close the door.

"Well, I hope she has fun playing hide-and-seek with her dogs, because I'm not helping her find Zumba or whatever his name is."

"Seriously? You saw how heartbroken she was."

"Good. Makes for a better story."

Jerry looked at her with a confused look. "What do you mean?"

"Welp, you know how we need a really good story to land that assignment in Boston?" Lindsi climbed into the back of the van.

"Yeah? What about it?"

She climbed out, carrying her purse, a camera equipment bag, and a box-like object covered with a black blanket.

"Lindsi?"

He grabbed his camera bag and followed her inside, locking the van and closing the side door that led from the house to the garage.

She dropped the stuff on the kitchen table and kicked off her boots.

"I, my good man, have found a way to get us there faster."

She kept her eyes on him as he walked over the blanket-covered object with a sneaky smile.

"You're scaring me. What did you do?"

She smiled, then removed the blanket to reveal a chocolate labrador in orange scuba gear in a cage that was trying to push the duct tape around his mouth with his paw with no such luck.

"No, you didn't."

"Yes, I did!" She just giggled at a "job well done."

"You kidnapped the pup?!"

"Yup!"

"This is bad, Lindsi. Very, very bad."

"Oh, think about all the positive outcomes, Jerry! We'll get our promotion and leave this dump they call a town, we'll be the most honored crew in the state of Maine!"

"Not if we kidnap a dog!"

"Oh it's no big deal. We'll just hang onto him until our producer calls us and tells us we're moving again."

"Then what do 'we' do with him?"

"I dunno."

"There's no 'we' in this, Lindsi. It's just you. I'm taking him back to Rylee." He moved to the cage and just as he unlatched and opened it, Lindsi rushed over and slammed the door shut, almost smashing his pinky in between.

"Nonono! You can't do that! Then we'll never get our promotion!"

"Your promotion. I'll stay here if it means I'm not gonna get myself arrested. Chase was on to you, he said he could smell Zuma on your jacket."

'Dogs say a lot of things. They're simple minded."

"Not those dogs. Those dogs are highly trained and are extremely intelligent, even if they're only 2 years old."

"Alright. You listen to me; if you speak a word of this, I'll kill that dog. You hear me?"

Jerry nodded his head rapidly.

"Good. Now drop him in the backroom. Do not let him out of the cage."

He carefully picked up the cage and walked him to the room in the very back of the house and gently put it down in the back corner.

"I'm going to get pizza! If I come back and that dog's gone you're gonna get it!"

He rolled his eyes. When he heard the garage door open, the vehicle pull out and the door close, he opened the cage and took the duct tape off.

"I'm sorry, boy." He said, holding out his hand for Zuma to sniff.

"It's not your fault, dude." Zuma said.

Jerry scratched the back of his ear, only to have Zuma yip.

"Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you."

"It's okay, dude. Could you look at my ear, please? Wylee was waving¹ over the scratch there. She wanted to make sure it wasn't getting any bigger."

"Sure." He lifted his left ear. "Oh, man. How'd you get that?"

"I don't know."

"Well it doesn't look infected. It should get better soon." He rubbed his soft head. "Hey, I promise you I'll find a way to get you out of this. I had a pup when I was a kid and I know what it feels like to have him randomly disappear."

Zuma nodded. "You can put me back inside now. You're too nice to get in twouble."

Jerry chuckled. "You're too cute to be stuck in there."

"I have an idea. Take the pieces off of my scuba pack and scatter them thwough town so that Wylee and the other pups will find me, but you won't get in twouble."

"I like the way you think, pup."

Jerry took the mouthpiece, the oxygen pipe, and ripped the Paw Patrol badge off the back, and shoved them in his coat pockets. "That should be enough, right?"

"Trust me. Wylee's weally smart. She'll figure it out fast."

"I do. You ready?"

Zuma nodded, and closed his mouth. Jerry carefully put fresh duct tape around his mouth, and cut it off at and end and secured it. Zuma turned around and curled himself into a ball in the back of the cage. His eyes started to swell up with tears, but he didn't show it.

Jerry just sighed and latched the cage shut.