The Hours We Have

chapter nineteen

Finley sat patiently by the front door. 

I was beginning to think that he could understand words. It was nearly time for the twins to come in from school and I told Finley to go wait for them. Imagine my shock when Finley beelined for the front door and sat down. Maybe he was an intelligent breed of dog. 

If I had to guess, he looked like a mix of a husky and a golden retriever. He looked like a golden retriever, he just had the hair of a husky. I wondered if he had been the runt of his litter and then someone took pity on him, but it didn't answer how he ended up on the streets. I almost dreaded the possibility of receiving a call from the SPCA, I hoped it never happened. 

Finley perked up and then seconds later, the door opened. 

Julian hadn't made it more than a few steps into the house before Finley swarmed him with a wagging tail that was out of control. Julian dumped his backpack on the floor and bent down to grasp Finley's face in both hands, "Hi, boy!" 

I think my heart just melted. 

"Hey, I don't get a hello?" Roman whined, obviously at our newest friend, as he closed the front door. 

"Nope, sorry. Finley is all mine," Julian laughed and ruffled the fur on Finley's back. 

"Excuse you, no he isn't," I drawled from the kitchen. 

Julian stuck his tongue out. Finley went over to greet Roman, too, and I swore I saw that dog grinning. His first official day in the house and he was acting like he had lived here for years. I was a little surprised by how fast Finley adapted. Maybe he could sense that we needed him. 

"So, does Ezra know?" Julian kicked off his shoes, not even bothering to put them on the shoe rack properly, and came into the kitchen, "Did he freak out?" 

"Well, I don't really think Finley likes Ezra that much," I admitted, "They met in the kitchen and Finley just growled at him, it was kinda weird." 

Roman snorted, "That's gold. I wish I could have seen it." 

"Maybe he just knows Ezra is rotten," Julian snickered. 

"Oh, you know, I read this article about animals being able to sense when someone is bad," Roman tapped three fingers to his chin, thoughtfully gazing at the ceiling for a moment, "Maybe, Finley can just prove what all of us have known all along." 

"That's mean," I said. 

"No, it's really not," Roman rolled his eyes at me, "I seem to remember Ezra trying to choke the life out of me a few weeks ago, that was mean." 

"Okay, new conversation," Julian grumbled. 

I leaned onto the counter, "Well, I need to go shopping for Finley and I was wondering if you guys want to go? We can ask Mikeal to take the car." 

Julian grinned, "Count me in, Finley is going to be so spoiled, he'll never remember what it was like to live on the streets. Isn't that right, boy?" Julian leaned down and scratched beneath Finley's chin, "You're a good boy, huh?" 

I shook my head and pulled out my phone. Roman headed for the refrigerator, as he always did after school, and we hung out in the kitchen for another ten minutes before Mikeal opened the front door. Finley's claws ticked against the floor as he trotted over to greet our oldest brother. 

Mikeal glanced down at Finley. If I wasn't mistaken, I saw a smile on Mikeal's lips before he turned and pulled off his suit jacket. Then, he gave Finley a pat on the head and walked into the kitchen. His eyes met all of ours, "What are you guys doing?"