EPPINGTON: THE GUARDED SECRET, Tanya Taylor [books to read in a lifetime .txt] 📗

years earlier; they had no children. She was a strong lady though—did everything for herself at that age, even took care of the yard. I offered to mow the lawn for her once or twice, and she seemed to appreciate it. However, I never knew for sure because she never said thanks.

Then there was tall Ralph Messi further up at the front. Rumor had it that he was about a couple inches short of seven feet. Surely looked like it to me. Ralph and his wife Cynthia, standing next to him, had ten grown children. They’d all taken off and gone to another state by the time they hit twenty. There were a lot of speculations flying around that something odd had been going on inside that house. I knew Tim and Sara well; they’re the only two out of the bunch that weren’t afraid to open their mouths just a little. Tim, Sara and I used to play hopscotch in the road when we were much younger. Both of them were older than me and introduced me to quite a few games, but after a while, they stopped coming out and hanging around us kids. I hardly ever saw them after that, even though they only lived a couple of doors down from my house.

The stories I relived as I looked at some of the folks around me... some were comical and others not so much.

I heard the sound of a microphone being adjusted and I looked ahead toward a podium that had been erected high enough for everyone to see those on top of it. I wasn’t too surprised that it was Chief Mays’ poodle Dolly-Ann that had the floor. Mays was standing behind her in plain clothing with his hands at his side. I got the feeling he was now her lackey and she must’ve been enjoying that immensely. I couldn’t say I felt sorry for the guy since he truly was a brute. Seems like he got what he deserved, but my folks were getting what they didn’t deserve because we loved and treated Dillinger well. He was a part of our family.

Dolly-Ann cleared her throat in the mic. “This meeting was called to make you aware of how things will be in this neighborhood and in this entire town moving forward. I know you all can hear and understand me, although you are limited in your response. I will have you know that this will be your new norm from now on and we, the canine species, have now been given full authority by the powers that be to control this place and to control your lives.”

My heart sunk. Nothing like hearing what you kind of suspected was happening. Sam and Rob glanced my way, and I blinked quickly to remind them to keep up the act and not to show any alarm.

“Your homes are now fully ours and so are your other possessions. Many of us were enslaved by you, but the tables have now turned. You will no longer be allowed to eat at restaurants, but you are permitted to work at such places to cater to us. Social activities are out of the question unless special permission is granted by the canine officer in charge. All government appointees and officers will be replaced unless otherwise notified, but police officers will still be allowed to work and be paid, although amendments to those salaries will be made.

“Schools will carry on as usual, but will be heavily monitored and guarded by our own kind. No one will be allowed to enter or leave Eppington under any circumstances and I will have you know that this town is no longer visible on the map and no mode of transportation will be able to enter it via normal means. You need not know exactly how this has come to be; what matters is that you now have the facts.

“A survey amongst ourselves has been conducted and as of tomorrow morning, busloads of people will be transported from their homes to a facility we have ready for them. These people were selected by their dogs to be sent away for reasons pertaining to prior maltreatment and will no longer be permitted to stay in their residences. There will be no escape and no alternatives. Other neighborhoods have been notified of these implementations and are functioning smoothly as we anticipated. We are all working for the common good and to make this world a better place for dogs and other animals.”

She looked at the crowd with those piercing eyes of hers: “In essence, people, you are our servants and we are your masters. You will do as you are told, when you are told.”

She looked to her left at the group of dogs seated on the podium. There were seven in total. “Let me formally introduce you to our team: In the first chair to your left is our leader. He has never been adopted into any household, but has lived his entire life fending for himself and never turned his back on his two pups. He has a name, of course, but to you he is Leader and that’s enough.”

At that point, I felt Sam’s fingers wrap around my pinky, then slowly slip away. I knew as tough as she was, she was afraid, clearly aware that none of us was any match for those guys.

The dog Dolly-Ann referred to as their leader was a Tibetan Mastiff. It had black and brown fur and could’ve weighed around two hundred pounds. It’s long been said that Tibetan Mastiffs were the strongest dogs in the world. From the looks of that one, the saying might’ve been true. I surely don’t remember seeing that dog or any other such breeds around our parts and I surmised that maybe he wasn’t a part of the Eppington community. Their leader had a no-nonsense air about him and I definitely wouldn’t have wanted him as an enemy.

Dolly-Ann went on