Lost and found

Rover had no idea what he was looking for. All he knew was that something wasn't quite right in his home. A scent in the house that he couldn't link to anything or anyone suggested something was missing. And when he watched his guardian write a tearful note and place it the room upstairs that was rarely opened he decided he had to do something-he took the note and went on a hunt for the owner of the smell. He knew his journey would be long and possibly fruitless but if he didn't at least try he was sure the mood in his home was always going to be somber. After taking one last look at the detached house he called home he trotted off into the dark on his uncharted journey.
For weeks the brindle Bloodhound trailed across the countryside, sniffing the ground for the salty scent etched in his memory. His travels took him down farm tracks and bridle paths, through fields of wheat and corn, into the paths of cows and sheep, through dense woodland, round ponds and reservoirs, across roads and motorways, narrowly avoiding cars, trucks and buses, and through the hustle and bustle of towns and cities. He walked through the day and through the night stopping only when he needed rest and to eat, although finding food was a challenge Rover hadn't thought through. Scraps in the wild were scarce and many a day passed, as he roamed the countryside, when Rover ate nothing but twigs and parched grass. He faired better in towns and cities as humans were so wasteful he dined like a king on what they dumped in bins and on the roadside, but he quickly realised the abundance of food came at a cost to the success of his quest. On more than one occasion he had to evade capture from humans wearing dark outfits and carrying leather leashes, and from kids desperate to snatch his sealed envelope by using the only defense he could: a deep, venomous growl. He didn't like it. He wasn't a vicious dog, but the note was part of his quest and he wasn't about to be parted with it.
Yet in those weeks he found nothing. Not even a scent that closely resembled the one he sought. Every day Rover thought about giving up but everyday he convinced himself to continue the search until nightfall. Rover's persistence paid off as one morning, after he crossed a rickety bridge that led to the back of an old farmhouse, he found it. It took him by such surprise he had to a double sniff just to be sure he was right. The scent caused a rush of blood to surge through his body, making his paws tingle, his heart flutter and his fur bristle. With his determination renewed, Rover powered on, following the scent until it led him to a quiet canal and then to the body of a young boy curled up amongst the trees. It was clutching a tattered and dirty blue knitted teddy bear and was dressed in threadbare rags that exposed his reedy arms and legs.
Rover nudged the boy's head with his nose. The boy stirred and wiped his eyes and when he spotted Rover leaning over him he scuttled backwards on his hands and knees through the undergrowth. Rover followed, not realising the boy's reaction was from blind terror. When finally the boy stopped beside the roots of a birch tree, clutching his knees tightly against his chest and trembling, Rover gingerly approached and dropped the envelope at the boy's feet. When the boy didn't pick it up, Rover nudged it closer to him and whimpered.
The boy reached out, picked up the envelope and studied it as though it was the first time he had ever seen one. Rover barked.
"Ruff!" the boy said in return. "You ruff."
Rover panted with excitement. He had fulfilled his quest. He found the missing something from his home, the cause of the disharmony. Now all he had to do was return the little human to the unopened room. But despite his efforts the boy refused to follow him. He sat beneath the trees and tore at the envelope until its contents fell out: a letter and a photograph.
Rover barked but the boy ignored him, choosing instead to pick up the glossy picture which he studied closely. Rover rounded on him and peered over the boy's shoulder. The photo was of a very small human wearing bulky white pants and clutching a blue teddy bear against its chest. Rover had a sense of what the photograph meant but it didn't click into place in his mind until he watched the boy glance down at his own bear and back at the photo. Rover realised the boy in the picture was him but much, much younger. Rover's guardians must have had the boy before they picked Rover up from the dog pound.
Again Rover tried to coax the boy out of the trees by walking toward the canal but the boy grunted and thrust the letter at him.
"No...read!" the boy said.
Rover didn't know what the boy wanted him to do, but sensing the boy's intrigue with the letter he did the first thing that came to his mind. He snatched it from the boy's hand and trotted out of the woods with it. The boy cried and ran, barefoot after him, with his blue bear in one hand and the photo in the other.
"Back, back," the boy cried.
Rover carried on. He broke through the trees and joined the gravel pathway that ran alongside the canal. With a quick glance to his side he could see the boy running after him, shielding his eyes from the bright sunlight with the photograph. As Rover neared a bridge the path curved away from the canal to join a busy road. Rover, realising his opportunity, bounded toward it but the boy didn't follow. He stood stock still on the pathway, trembling. His limbs were rigid and his eyes were so wide Rover could see the whites all round them.
Rover dropped the letter and barked at him once, twice, three times, desperately willing the boy to follow but the boy didn't move. Paralysed with frustration Rover looked about himself and when he noticed a woman walking on the other side of the road he began to bark and yelp until his throat felt hoarse. The racket he caused caught her attention and when she crossed the road to approach him Rover picked up the letter and backed away, down the pathway toward the boy. The moment the woman reached the pathway she saw the boy and gasped.
"Oh my," she said, resting a hand on her heart. "Hey there," she said softly as she edged toward Rover and the boy. "Are you okay? Do you need some help?"
The boy stepped backwards. Rover, fearful that he was going to run away again, trotted toward the woman and gave her the letter. He then plucked the photo from the boy's hand and offered that to her as well.
Rover watched as she studied the photo, the boy and then scanned her eyes across the page. "Oh dear god," she said and reached into her bag. A moment later she was talking into her hand. "Police. Yeah, I need you send an officer down to the bridge on Canal Street immediately. I have a lad in front of me that I'm convinced is the one that was snatched seven years ago. Please hurry."
The woman gingerly dropped her handbag onto the path and crouched down in front of Rover and the boy.
"Read!" the boy said hesitantly.
"You want me to read it?" said the woman.
The boy nodded.
"Dear Mathew," the woman began. Rover sensed the sorrow in her quivering voice. "Happy ninth birthday, my beautiful darling boy. As I promised, I now have nine candles for your 'life light'. I will light them all tonight and say a prayer for you. Your father and I love you more than words can ever express and we will never give up hope of being reunited with you. It is that and only that that keeps us going each and every day. Where ever you are now I hope that you have peace, I hope that you have comfort, I hope that you are free from pain. You are with us and in our hearts, always and forever. Sweet dreams. Love Mum and Dad."
The woman snuffled, swept a hand across her damp eyes and offered the letter to the boy.
"M...mm...mum," the boy muttered as he took the letter from her.
The woman nodded. Rover glanced up at her and then at the boy.
"D...dad?" he asked as he crept toward the woman.
Rover watched as she extended her arms out toward the boy and let him sink into her. The woman cried out just as a black and white car pulled up on the roadside. Rover leaned toward the boy and licked his face. Mathew looked back up at him and gave him a beaming smile.