Chapter 18 A jubilant grin had been pinned to Toby Parker’s round face from the moment he’d peeled a bag of dog treats off a dusty general store shelf that drizzly late morning. Beef flavored, in the shape of bones. Despite the dampness in the air and on the ground, he briskly rode his bike along the pebbly and intermittently steep back roads of Winston to Sean’s place. He paid no mind to the splattered mud gathering on his shoes and pant legs. Instead, he pictured the gritty old dachshund’s gray jowls flopping from side to side as he devoured the food from his open hand.
The boy wasn’t really a dog lover, but he was fascinated with Rocco. Being Sean Coleman’s companion certainly earned the dachshund points, but it was more than that. Rocco was also a lot like his master—tough, tenacious,
