Tag Archives: writing

March 19, 2025 · 4:51 am

The Dog That Inherited A Palace Chapter 22

©GeraldineBanksMarch2025

Cross held the phone and talked , as Lettie looked on.

“Yes a small boy with four or five dogs, including a small terrier. Where? Where are they now? They escaped? You managed to capture one of the dogs. Look give me your address and we’ll come and meet you at the barn. ” He glanced at Lettie, and signalled that they would go over there in the car together.

The farmer whose barn Tommy and the dogs had taken shelter in had seen the story on the News that morning about the dog who had been kidnapped and escaped from it’s kidnappers and seemed to be making his way home cross country from London with some other dogs and a small boy.

So when he went into his barn to get some rusty old equipment that he was planning to clean up and sell, he was surprised when he heard a dog bark and looked up to see a little boy running towards him holding a rucksack, followed by three other dogs and a small terrier. They ran by the farmer and out the barn door.

The dog that had barked and had warned the others stood his ground as there was no room to get by, so the farmer thought quickly and ran out of the barn and closed the door behind him. The farmer just had time to see a white tail and the head of the little boy disappear around the corner of the stone wall surrounding the farm and run onto the road. The farmer thought about following them in his car ,but he decided it was useless. The feature on the News had said to ring a number if you had any information, so that is what he did.

When Cross and Lettie arrived and talked to the farmer , they were very happy to hear some good news, and they arranged to take the dog that was in the barn. They told the farmer that James would collect him later that day. They also had a look at where the dogs had ran around the stone wall. They could see paw prints and the footprints of a small boy. After following the prints for a short while , they realised that the little group were long gone. Cross found the spot where they had crossed the road and ran into the undergrowth, Cross couldn’t follow, but he checked his GPS on his phone and he reckoned that they were heading in the right direction to get back home. He just hoped they would be safe on their journey.

Tommy, Tedi and Bruno along with the other dogs had kept going until they were well away from the farmer. They were now in fields and countryside and they were making their way through open fields which had crops in them. Tedi was sure of his navigation now and there wasn’t any need to follow roads, the terrain was flatter and easier and there were lots of small brooks and rivers that the dogs could get a drink out of.

Tommy was very tired ,he wasn’t too sure where they were going , but he did his best to keep up and knew if they needed anything that there were built up areas in the distance, which were sure to have shops or petrol stations. As it was after their experience at the barn , for the moment they all wanted to stay clear of anyone. They missed their friend , but what could they do? Tedi thought that if he could get home , then they could search for him then, Bruno agreed. They couldn’t go back now.

They made good progress , they had been travelling by daylight and it was about three o’clock in the afternoon. They had came to a stile and they all crossed over it but they were so tired they decided to rest up, and found a sheltered area under some trees and lay down together. It was a beautiful day and the sun was warm. They all fell soundly asleep.

They were rudely awoken by the sound of dogs barking and the horses and people running from the other side of the field. They watched in amazement at they saw the red coats of the people on the horses and the hounds running in all directions barking , not knowing quite in what direction to go. One lady went to jump a fence and fell out of her saddle with a thump on the ground. This stopped the progress of the hunt somewhat as some of the riders stopped to see if the lady who had fallen was alright, others jumped off their horses to catch the stray horse, who had kept going for a short distance after losing it’s rider but was now standing around not too sure what had happened. It was easy to catch.

Tommy then noticed the fox, it was moving slowly along the edge of the field , obviously looking for somewhere to hide and keeping an eye on the people in the red coats on horses. The hounds had lost the scent and that is why they were confused.

The fox clung to the hedgerow and almost seemed to be crawling on all fours. Bruno thought about distracting the hounds, but Tedi said it would be too dangerous, that the hounds as a pack could be very vicious and they might attack Bruno. Luckily the fox had made it to the other side of the field and was hunkering down in a hedgerow.

Tedi , Bruno and Tommy looked on as they watched the lady who fell off her horse remount and the hunters and their pack began to regroup.

They hoped that the fox would stay where it was and not move and indeed , the hunt changed course and went off in the opposite direction with the hounds braying and running around trying to find another scent.

” Stay where you are little one, you’re safe.” Tommy said out loud, but speaking to himself. The dogs had lost interest in the fox and wanted to go back to sleep.

After the hunt had disappeared, Tommy decided to check out the area where the fox was. It was still light and the dogs were fast asleep. Tommy walked over to the hedgerow and once he had cleared away some undergrowth he saw the fox laying low on the ground, it was injured , there was dried blood on it’s back leg, and it looked in pain. Tommy didn’t want to leave it there , so he gave it some water and the last bit of food that he had left in his rucksack. The fox was very thin, so Tommy decided that it would fit in his rucksack, he would take it to safety and see if he could make it better.

That evening , they set out on what Tedi knew would be the final leg of their journey home. Tedi could almost smell home. It took a few hours and it was dark when they arrived at the outskirts of the estate. Tedi was relieved, but the estate was quite big and it would still take some time to reach the House.

Meanwhile , Cross and Lettie were back a the House awaiting any news. James had picked up the stray dog and had settled it in one of the kennels. All they could do was wait and hopefully hear some good news soon.

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Tagged as , , ,

March 16, 2025 · 7:49 am

The Dog That Inherited A Palace Chapter 21

©GeraldineBanksMarch2025

Meanwhile the dogs and Tommy made good progress, fortunately Tedi’s navigation brought them through two Country Parks, they were called Langley Country Park and Black Country Park. They were safe places for the dogs to be , the weather was pleasant and not too cold even though it was night time, there was good ground coverage of trees and shrubs that they could all hide when necessary.

Bruno kept watch all the time, he was wary of people , however as they walked through the woodland and across the heathland of South Buckinghamshire, the only thing they could hear and see was the nocturnal wildlife that surrounded them. There were many bats flying around , the dogs listened as they whizzed through the air. Tommy wasn’t frightened as the dogs didn’t seem bothered by them and increasingly as Tommy’s eyes became accustomed to the dark, he began to see more and more.

There were lots of voles wandering around, they smelt the dogs and would move back into their little burrows, but the mice seemed oblivious and scurried around in the twigs and moss underneath their feet. Tommy heard and saw frogs and toads, and the air was full of insects, which buzzed around them and drove the bats crazy. Hedgehogs wandered back and forward scurrying along and sometimes you could hear them crunching on the shells of snails and munching on slugs.

Bruno signalled to Tommy that he wanted to go off alone, so Tommy untied himself. Tedi understood and stayed close to Tommy, they were both at the front. They heard a scurrying and snuffling sound that was near them as they approached some woodland. They had came across a Badger Sett, which had a few families of badgers within it, all the families were out , looking for food and getting some fresh air, the cubs were playing and although the parents heard the approach of Tommy and the group , they were not frightened. To the badgers, the little group were part of nature, they smelt just like them. So Tommy gleefully looked on as he walked by and saw the cubs wrestling and playing and screeching and squeaking.

Tedi though kept up the pace, and Tommy kept going, as they walked through the woodland they noticed picnic tables where food had been dropped and apart from Tommy who had a rucksack with fresh food in it, the dogs scavenged a little, but it was not the best of food and they were wary of getting sick. As Tedi explained to them, it wouldn’t be long before they’d have the best of food and a nice bed to lie in.

They reached the end of the wood and Tedi looked up in the sky and checked the stars against his internal GPS.

” Yes, we are heading in the right direction”. He thought to himself.

The terrain they came to after the forest was known as the Carr, it was a landform that is a type of waterlogged wooded terrain, that is a precursor to the formation of land. The land became marshy and there were a lot of shrubs. The dogs sensed the wetness and tried their best to find a way that wasn’t too marshy.

It was then that a group of Roe Deer appeared in the distance being chased by Bruno. Tommy watched fascinated as Bruno ran around them and chased them backwards and forwards. They were getting tired and Bruno was going at full pelt. Tedi and the other dogs looked in awe, however , they all stood still as they knew what was coming next.

One of the deer slipped in the muddy ground and fell and within moments , Bruno , being the Podenco he was , jumped on him and the other deer ran even faster away from the inevitable fate of one of their own.

“What is he doing?” Tommy asked. Tedi looked at him , he couldn’t explain it , it was nature, it was a natural instinct in hunting dogs. The deer would make a good meal for the dogs and then they would be on their way.

By the time they reached Bruno , the deer was dead and Bruno signalled to the dogs to have their fill. Tommy wandered off to a nearby stream so he wouldn’t see them eat and then joined the other dogs. The meat was delicious and by the time they had finished there was nothing left apart from the bones. There was no denying it , it was the best meal any of them had ever had.

It gave them energy for the next phase of their journey and Tommy had understood the importance to them and that it was natural. However, he was certainly put off when he saw the faces of the dogs all covered in blood and led them back to where he had been sitting to have a drink and he helped them clean up. As soon as this was done they continued on their journey, the dogs with renewed energy. Bruno dutifully linked up with Tommy as before. It was going to be hard for the little boy and he needed all the help he could get.

They walked through the marshy area and through more forest until eventually they came to a car park at the end of the Country Park. The moon had disappeared and the first birds were beginning to sing. They would need to find somewhere to shelter as Tedi and the other dogs could smell rain in the air. Bruno thought that it would be best if they followed the road, there weren’t many cars at this time of night. So they padded along gently heading West. Whenever they saw the lights of a car or a delivery van they hid in the undergrowth beside the road.

They came to what looked like an abandoned farm, there were many buildings that looked disused. It was three hours since they left the Country Park and they were all tired and it was getting light. Tedi and Bruno , said to the others to wait while they checked the farm out. Luckily quite near the road was an old barn, which had straw in it , but no sign of any other animals.

” This will do” Tedi said,” We can stay here until it’s dark again tonight and tomorrow we will be home.”

Bruno went off to get the others. They were all ready for a sleep, but it was agreed that one dog would stay awake and be on guard to listen out for anything untoward. So they lay down together, while each dog took turns guarding to protect the others while they were asleep.

Tommy was exhausted and after having some of the juice he had in his rucksack and a sandwich, he fell asleep almost immediately and slept soundly. Bruno lay beside him to keep him warm.

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Tagged as , , , ,

March 14, 2025 · 5:15 am

The Dog That Inherited A Palace Chapter 20

©GeraldineBanksMarch2025

Totally unaware of the kidnapping rendezvous and the capture of the kidnapper , Tedi , Tommy and Bruno and his friends continued their journey.

Tedi and Bruno had developed a very close bond. Tedi knew he could rely on Bruno to help him get back home safely with Tommy. Bruno was originally from Spain and was a type of hunting dog called a Podenco. He was mischievous and knew the ways of the world.

As dogs, on their first meeting within seconds they both knew everything about each other, their health , their history and also their honesty. As they travelled together Tedi picked up on the hard times Bruno had been through. There was a sadness about Bruno that was always present.

Bruno was fascinated by the images of the Big House, the Countryside and the Fields, in turn Tedi picked up on Bruno escaping off a boat that was being used by drug dealers to land drugs off the coast. He had made his way to London, and lived rough for about seven years. He had loads of friends and loads of adventures, but he was getting older and wanted to find a “safe” home.

So that’s how Bruno and his mates, accompanied Tedi on their journey back to the Big House.

After crossing under the M4 motorway. They made their way cross country, following Colne Brook while it was still dark and found a road which pointed in the direction that Tedi wanted to travel. Bruno said that roads were “good” as they always led somewhere , usually shelter and food. Bruno showed everyone how to keep out of sight and even found a bit of rope for Tommy to attach himself to Bruno. Tommy would be able to keep up with the dogs and no one would get lost.

Tommy was relieved to reach the road, it was getting light and he was wondering if there would be any shops or garages in Iver to get something to eat. They followed the road, walking on the grass behind a hedgerow so no one could see them and they came across a brightly lit petrol garage that had just opened. Some of the dogs headed for the bins at the back, when no one was looking they rooted around in the darkness, and ran away as soon as the doors opened with people bringing out cages of empty cardboard.

Tommy though knew what he was looking for, and entered the shop unseen and left the shop unseen. He had untied himself from Bruno and Bruno watched as the automatic door slid open and Tommy entered the shop. Everyone was too busy setting up the tills tidying, restocking and cleaning to notice the little waif of a boy who quietly gathered something for breakfast ,some drinks and some bottled water and some fruit and then left.

Bruno was impressed when Tommy came out again without being noticed. To be truthful, having some fresh food was a real treat, so he called to the other dogs, to leave the bins alone and to move on . The little group went back behind the hedgerow and walked a bit further on and then they stopped when they found some shelter under a tree and beside a small bridge crossing. They were all tired and they had the cover of some trees and thick bushes and were able to feast on what Tommy had brought and drink fresh water , they could then have a well deserved sleep. The day was just beginning but for the little group of dogs and Tommy it was time to rest. They all snuggled up together.

Tedi’s head was racing as he lay among the warm bundle. He was dreaming of home and he could almost smell it. He reckoned 60 miles or so. Three days travel if they kept up this pace. He was trying to keep a note of the shops that Tommy had taken items from and planned to settle up with them once they had got back home. For the moment it was necessary , but he didn’t want Tommy to get into trouble or the shops to be out of pocket.

So far they had got on quite well sleeping outside, but it wasn’t what Tedi was used to. They would rest for today and then head out again when it started to get dark.

Dogs don’t think in terms of days, but it was going to be Saturday night when they set off again. Cross and Letitia had been given the go ahead , as the kidnappers were now behind bars, to launch a Publicity Campaign to look out for Tedi and the other dogs as well as the little boy. They had used the CCTV images that the Police had gathered and the plight of the Dogs and the little Boy was all over TV and Radio. They concentrated their efforts on the area where the dogs were travelling through, so everyone was on the lookout for them. Bruno though knew how to keep out of sight , so despite the coverage there were no reports of sightings, which frustrated Cross and Lettie who couldn’t help but wonder where they were.

It was seven o’clock at night when the dogs and the little boy all woke up. The weather had been kind to them, it had been warm with no rain and it was just getting dusky and turning into a pleasant evening. They had all slept soundly and had eaten and drank. Tommy put some bowls of water out for the dogs and they had some snacks and soon it was time to go.

Bruno was up and ready , snuffling at the others to get a move on .In truth Tedi was a bit stiff and did some stretches as he always did. Downward Dog and Upward Dog which was his way of limbering up and getting ready for the long walk. Tommy meanwhile was refreshed and put his little rope leash over Bruno’s head and tied it to his own waist. Bruno seemed to understand the pace that Tommy could go at so they both walked together. Tedi was always at the front.

Tedi sniffed the air for a few minutes after doing his stretches. He let the dogs know his plan and with Bruno’s help they began the penultimate stretch of their journey back to the ” Big House”.

Meanwhile back at the Big House it was all stations go. Lettie was making and taking telephone calls, and putting out Publicity to search for the little dogs and the boy. The villagers now knew the full story and were on the look out for any sign of the dogs and the local Police Forces were notified.

“Surely they would be spotted soon” .Lettie and Cross thought. They were worried but hopeful and now the news was out, it was easier to keep everyone informed. Mr and Mrs Graham now knew what had happened, and just hoped that Tedi was safe, and they said if there was anything that they could do let them know.

” It’s a waiting game now” Cross told Mrs Graham on the phone ” We’re doing all we can.”

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Tagged as , , ,

March 9, 2025 · 7:08 pm

The Dog That Inherited A Palace Chapter 19

©GeraldineBanksMarch2025

On Friday morning Chief Superintendent Napper drove up the long driveway to the ” House” . He was driving his wife’s car to maintain the status that the Police were not involved, even if he knew Tedi was not in danger , at least from the kidnappers.

It was a pleasant day and the Superintendent was pleased to say that he had some good news. There had been a two or three reports of sightings of a white dog with a small boy and it appeared that they had travelled out of London and had been spotted with some other dogs. The little group had so far evaded capture and seemed to be heading West. Increasingly the Chief Superintendent felt that Tedi was heading home. Even better he had CCTV photographs of the little gang which he felt would reassure Cross.

Napper was intent on getting the kidnappers, he hated kidnappers with a vengeance. One of his most difficult cases was a kidnapping that was never resolved to Napper’s satisfaction. So he was determined to get the person responsible . This was an opportunity to get the main protagonist and he had to persuade Cross to follow his plan. He felt Cross would be reassured that they could proceed with the plan without endangering the little dog.

” So there you are” Napper handed Cross and Letitia the photographs.

” Yes, that’s definately him! ” Cross and Letitia gasped. ” I don’t know the other dogs with him or the little boy”.

“They seem to mainly travel at night, how they got out of London and crossed the Motorway without being killed, I don’t know, but now we’re beginning to get reports from the smaller villages. Some people have reported the dogs sleeping in their outhouses and have given them food and water. The little boy has stayed out of the way when people are around, might be he’s scared someone will catch him. Either way , they’re covering a lot of ground , about twenty miles a day.”

” Is there nothing we can do, put out a search party, posters anything?” Cross asked.

” If you don’t mind, they seem to be doing OK, we can’t say anything yet, I want to get this kidnapper, you said that you were getting a call at 6.00 o’clock tonight , to arrange a rendezvous to hand over the money. “

The Chief Superintendent continued.” You’ll get full backing and I’ll get whoever is behind this. I’m pretty certain the kidnapper will ask for a meeting tonight. We’re going to fill a suitcase full of monopoly money and a little surprise, the techhie people will brief you. You know he hasn’t got the dog, but you can bluff it. Whoever the kidnapper is , they aren’t going to trust their underlings with ” a million smackers”. The Chief Superintendent smiled.

So Cross took the call as agreed at 6.00pm, the technicians were listening in and gathering evidence. They managed to trace the call to a telephone box in Oxford, and the local Police , once they knew the coast was clear , followed through and took finger prints from the phone in the box. It was a long shot but it had to be done.

The kidnapper was oblivious to all this evidence gathering and was pleased with himself for setting up the rendezvous. He would handle this alone, he would have some dinner at a local restaurant and then make his way to the Industrial Estate he had chosen for the money to be handed over and agreed Ten O’clock. He would bring a little white dog which looked like Tedi, it was in the back of his car. In the dark no one would know and anyway if there was any trouble he would use his gun.

Cross was in his car , waiting at the agreed Rendezvous spot in the middle of the Industrial Estate the kidnapper had requested. Cross had been waiting in his car for ten minutes , when the kidnappers car pulled up beside him.

Cross rolled down his window.

” You got the money in small bills in a suitcase.”

” Yes, I have, let me see my dog.”

” Look he’s there in the back, happy as Larry to see you he is.”

” It’s very dark, but yes , I can see his tail wagging, so he’s alright then?” Cross played along.

” He’s fine” The man took out a gun and said to Cross. ” Get out of the car, I’ll check the suitcase on the bonnet, no funny business, you’ve seen the dog”.

” Yes , that’s fine.” Cross wasn’t worried about the weapon, in his youth, he’d looked after many shooting parties, there wasn’t much he didn’t know about guns.

Lettie, however, was in the Chief Superintendent’s car watching on videocam and she was very worried.

” Oh no!” she put her hand to her mouth.

” Be careful everyone, suspect has a gun. Approach with care, but move fast if anything untoward happens. Listen for instructions and act when I give the command.” The Chief Superintendent said over the radio.

” Untoward?” Lettie looked at Napper.

In the meantime Cross had got out of the car with the suitcase in his hands and moved to the front of the car to lay the suitcase on top of the bonnet.

The kidnapper moved beside him but keeping his distance and pointing his gun at him.

“Open it”

” Surely that isn’t necessary, I hardly would have come here by myself without the money.”

” I wasn’t born yesterday mate, you posh ones are all the same, forget it , there’s no honour among thieves. “

” What ? What Century do you think we’re living in” Cross looked at him calmly.

” Open it!”

” Alright” Cross moved his hands towards the two locks on the suitcase.

As he pressed the locks, the case flew open and jets of orange gas spewed into the atmosphere.

” Go!” Napper shouted on the radio.

Meanwhile Cross jumped behind the passenger side of his car, and ran around the back . At the same time covering his face with the mask he had in his pocket. He ran around the back of his car over to the kidnappers car.

The Police came from everywhere, they shouted at the kidnapper to put his weapon down.

The kidnapper’s eyes were streaming and he couldn’t see a thing, the Police shone a beam of light on him and watched as the kidnapper threw the gun on the ground and bent over and began rubbing his eyes. The Police officers grabbed his arms and moved him away from the gas towards a wall of a building and then searched him.

The message came over the radio. ” Suspect detained. Weapon retrieved, cleared of live ammunition and bagged for evidence.”

” Right , lets go and see this fellow.” Napper said to Lettie.

“Is that OK? Well I’d appreciate it, I mean I ….”

” Right come on….” The Chief Superintendent said gruffly, he had cottoned on to the fact that Lettie was fond of Cross.

So as Napper walked up to the officers who had handcuffed the kidnapper, Cross appeared with a little white dog in his arms.

” I’ve no idea who this is ” He said to Lettie.

Lettie looked at him relieved and petted the little dog on the head.

” Are you alright?” she asked, really meaning Cross but looking at the dog.

” He’s fine, fortunately I got him into the fresh air before he breathed in any of the orange gas.”

” And how about you, you OK?” Lettie enquired .

” Oh yes, I think it all went to plan what do you think?”

” Sounded pretty good.”

They both looked over at the man in handcuffs being questioned by Chief Superintendent Napper. They spoke to some of the other officers involved and checked if it was alright for them to return home. The Chief Superintendent would be occupied for quite some time and while Cross and Lettie wanted the go ahead to start the Publicity to find Tedi and his gang. It was agreed they would speak to the Chief Superintendent tomorrow. So they said their goodbyes to the officers and some of the technical staff and headed back to the Palace with the new addition to their brood, James would be delighted and they had already decided he would be called ” Napper”

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Tagged as , , ,

March 7, 2025 · 7:17 am

The Dog That Inherited A Palace Chapter 18

©GeraldineBanksMarch2025

Tedi looked at the frail little boy that was Tommy and wondered how they were ever going to make it. Still ,Tedi’s homing instinct was very strong, he knew he had to just keep going. It was three O’clock in the afternoon and he knew the right direction to go. Tedi got up and Tommy followed him.

They walked along streets and alleyways heading towards what everyone would know as the North Circular, fortunately there were a lot of cafes and shops along the route where they were going. Food seemed to have been dropped everywhere and now and then Tedi stopped and ate what he found on the ground which was actually quite tasty, there were meat sandwiches, burgers and fries and his favourite fish and chips. Tommy couldn’t eat that , but he was quite capable of going into shops and shop lifting, he knew how to get in without being noticed and he came out with all sorts of things , drinks and food, even a dog bowl to put water in and finally a rucksack to put everything in.

However, one observant shop keeper, spotted Tommy and nearly caught him. Tedi was just having a wee when he saw Tommy running out of the shop being chased by three young men.

” Ooops” Tedi thought” and started running too, Tommy followed him. They crossed roads dodging the traffic and came to a load of abandoned road works, there were lots of signs but no one working on them. Tedi popped behind one of the big orange signs and onto the edge of one of the holes Tommy followed him. They hunkered down and waited for the men to pass.

The men were were quite out of breath, but still managed to talk to each other.

” We should report it to the Police, a little boy out on his own like that with a little white dog. It’s not right.” Said one of the men.

” Yes, poor little blighter , the little boy was skin and bone, ran like the wind though, best report it , someone might be looking for him.” One of the men gasped.

And so Chief Superintendent Napper, got the report of the little dog and a boy who matched the description of Tedi and Tommy and it looked like they were heading West out of London.

” That’s going to make the meeting with the kidnappers very interesting, I think I’ll pop in and see Mr Cross later on today. He’ll be glad to know that I don’t think that the kidnappers have the dog either.” Napper thought to himself, and decided to issue a request for other nearby Police Forces to report any sightings of a small white dog accompanied by a little frail boy.

So Tedi and Tommy sheltered behind the roadworks for a while and then continued their journey. The roads were very busy , it was getting to five o’clock and everyone was going home from work. It would be light until about seven O’clock and Tedi was beginning to feel tired, he knew he’d rather travel at night as it would be safer and less likely to attract attention. Also he needed the stars and the moon to help him navigate, he couldn’t rely on them but if he could see them it would reassure him.

Tedi decided that as they were near some very big concrete roads that they would find a culvert and hopefully find somewhere comfortable for him and Tommy to hide and have some rest.

Tommy was slowing down and he was really grateful when Tedi made a left turn and went under a bridge. Someone had discarded loads of cardboard and Tedi and Tommy were able to gather it up and protect themselves from the hard ground. The traffic was very noisy , but Tommy had something to drink and put some water in Tedi’s bowl and then they lay down, hidden from everyone and they both fell asleep , cuddling each other to stay warm.

They woke up at midnight, much longer than they intended sleeping. Tedi was woken by a paw in his face, it was a large brown mongrel who was fast asleep on the cardboard beside him. Tedi opened his eyes and raised his head to see four other dogs huddled together with Tommy and him. Despite being a chilly night they were all very cosy and all the dogs were snoring gently. Tedi looked at Tommy and saw how comfortable the little boy was cuddled up to the dogs.

Tedi wanted to get up and moved out of the way of the large brown dog, who he later found out was called Bruno. Bruno woke up and in a few minutes both dogs knew each others history. Bruno looked after the other four dogs with him, they’d been strays in London for a long while. Bruno found out Tedi was heading back to the Countryside and Bruno asked him if he and his friends could go with them. Tedi liked the idea immediately and said yes.

Tedi explained that he wanted to set off while it was still dark and his plan was to find shelter, food and water on the way. Bruno told him he knew the best way to get out of London and that there were loads of tunnels under the motorway that they could go through in safety and he knew a lot of the towns on the way to the Countryside. Bruno had had enough of London and it’s business and pollution. He wanted to live like a Lord like Tedi. Tedi said he would see what he could do. He really liked Bruno.

And so , one by one they woke up the little pack of dogs and finally they woke Tommy up who was very reluctant to get up . Tommy yawned, but brightened up when he saw the dogs, and patted each one and said hello. Bruno was nearly as big as Tommy, and Tommy hugged him.

Before finally leaving , Tommy opened up his rucksack and got some water for the dogs and some sausages, and Tommy drank a small carton of fruit juice he’d taken from one of the shops and an out of date bacon lettuce and tomato sandwich for himself which he ate, throwing small bits of bacon to the dogs who were delighted.

So guided by Bruno and the night stars, Tedi, Tommy and Bruno passed underneath the big motorway and began their journey into the Countryside.

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Tagged as , , ,

March 4, 2025 · 2:36 am

The Dog That Inherited A Palace Chapter 17

©GeraldineBanksMarch2025

Tommy and Tedi ran down the street away from the Police Raid. After about ten minutes , they both felt they were far enough away to stop and get their bearings. Unbeknown to a lot of people, dogs have an amazing GPS system, no one knows how it works, but their brains are like supercomputers, in fact probably a lot of animals have this ability. When Tedi stopped, he knew he was free and there was one thing now he had on his mind and that was getting back home. He was going to take Tommy with him.

They were in London, and they had to get to Oxfordshire, and they would have to find food and shelter on the way and avoid busy roads and anybody that might try and capture them. Tedi sat down and Tommy sat down beside him.

” What will we do now little dog?” Tommy said quietly, not knowing what to do himself.

Tedi put a paw on Tommy’s shoulder, Tedi’s brain was processing the information of where they were, he sniffed the atmosphere and realised that there was an awful lot of pollution. So initially scent was not going to help. However, a picture came into his head and he knew exactly where to go. The little boy would help him with the roads and perhaps finding food. They had rested enough it was time to go.

Tedi stood up and signalled to Tommy to follow. Tommy got up and followed him and their adventure began.

Meanwhile Chief Superintendent Napper was on the phone to Cross.

” We had sight of the little dog, but he disappeared during the raid, no one knows where the dog is.” The Chief Superintendent said very disheartingly.

” Do you know if the kidnappers have still got him?” Cross asked .

” We don’t know, none of the people that we arrested seem to have a clue , it could be they are lying but I don’t think so. I think we need to go along with the meeting on Friday. Act as if no one knows anything. Someone is behind all this and that is the person I want.” Napper said firmly.

” Do you think Tedi is still alive.” It was a question that broke Cross’s heart to ask.

” My gut feeling is he is , we haven’t found the little boy who was looking after him, both of them are missing. My feeling is that the boy took him and probably has headed for another safe house. On that assumption then the people you are meeting on Friday still have the dog. “

“OK, well the meeting’s on and I’ve got the money, but I’m not handing it over until I get Tedi back. “

” We’ve got a team of people trained for this eventuality, I’m just arranging for them to go see you , they’ll have the cover of maintenance people, so they’ll be with you tonight. They’ll go through everything with you. “

“I had the usual threat, don’t get the Police involved. ” Cross said

” As far as the raid was concerned it was drugs and animal welfare, bit of a coincidence perhaps, but as I say the ones we have in custody are not the brightest. The ones you are dealing with , may well be a bit brighter, personally I think they’re going to try and pull the wool over your eyes and get the money without giving you anything.” The Chief Superintendent said matter of factly.

” Well in that case , I hope your people can help, so you think they’ll get here tonight? ” Cross felt disheartened , but that he did need help and he wanted to do the best for Tedi he could.

” Oh yes, and they’ll have a lot of monitoring equipment and believe it or not a psychiatrist too, to help you negotiate .” Napper smiled, policing had become so much more than when he started on the beat.

” Thanks Chief Superintendent.” Cross put down the phone gently. He was worried.

Lettie arrived at the House later that evening , and Cross updated her about what had happened, shortly after that the ” Maintenance Team ” arrived and both Cross and Lettie went through with them everything that had happened so far and they looked at the monitoring equipment the Police had and talked through when and where the meeting was going to happen on Friday. Cross said the money was in a suitcase in the safe.

Cross , got James to show the ” Maintenance Team ” around and where to get coffee and tea when they wanted and anything from the larder in the kitchen if Mrs Graham wasn’t around. There were also rooms to set up their equipment and camp beds if they needed them.

All this busyness helped Cross not to worry and also it was good to have Lettie around.

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Tagged as , ,

March 1, 2025 · 7:05 am

The Dog That Inherited A Palace Chapter 15

©GeraldineBanksFebruary2025

Lettie found Arthur in his local pub and it didn’t take her long to get the whole story. Arthur’s loose tongue had led to Tedi being kidnapped and it was now very serious as they had no idea where the little dog was. She realised, while she was talking to him, that he was very unhappy and needed help .She changed her approach.

He wanted his old job back and he knew he had blown it, she knew he meant it. Lettie needed someone to start collating the photographs and researching the archives of the House for Tedi’s biography.

” I don’t want this to have a sad ending”. Lettie said.

” Neither do I , Lettie, you’ve got to believe me, I don’t know who that man was I talked to , but you’re right , it is my fault, and I’ll do anything to get that stupid dog back, and get a job. I can’t go on living like this.” Arthur put his elbows on the table and pushed a half finished drink away from him.

OK, well , I don’t think there’s anything you can do at the moment, to be honest. I can’t say much, the less people who know the better about what is going on, but when we get him back , it’s going to be quite a story and you are a good photographer, start writing a list of the equipment you’ll need and in the meantime I’m going to send you some archive files which I want you to start collating and getting into order for the book….. oh and Tedi is not a “stupid dog” far from it. In fact ,he might just save you , if we can save him.”

This took Arthur by surprise, but he smiled; ” It’s too early for thanks but I’m not going to mess up this time.” They both stood up and gathered their things .

Lettie looked him straight in the eye. ” No , Arthur something tells me you won’t.” They left the pub and went their separate ways.

Meanwhile, Chief Superintendent Napper was presenting his plan to his group of handpicked detectives. The House where they suspected Tedi was being held had been watched by a number of Crime Agencies in the past, covering drugs, and illegal dog breeding and now kidnapping. They had enough evidence to raid the place, although they could not be sure that they would get Tedi out without harming him. They wanted the little dog back safe and unharmed. Not finding him alive; was not an option ; so they would hold off until they were sure they could rescue him unharmed.

” How can we know for sure? Should someone go in undercover, maybe looking to buy a dog, or a puppy whatever?”

“Best try the internet, Facebook or whatever, then get someone to send you to the address, that ‘d be a good cover.”

“Sounds good” said Chief Superintendent Napper. ” Get on to it. First one who gets an appointment at that house, I’ll buy them a pint. You can toss who does the visit.”

By the time the detectives had done their searches and finally got the appointment, it was too late in the evening to do anything and they needed some rest. The appointment was booked for the morning. They were all pleased with the result and they made some more preparations before they went home, they had to be ready if they managed to find Tedi.

The phone rang as the Chief Superintendent picked up his car keys from his desk, it was Cross, he had received a call from the kidnappers, they wanted to arrange a meeting to hand over the money and get Tedi back.

Napper immediately said “When?”

” They want to meet on Friday, it’s Tuesday now. “

” What did you say ? I said I’d have the money by then, I want Tedi back.”

” Interesting, that’s OK. Thanks for letting us know, we’re working on something tomorrow, but to keep them sweet, we’re up for the Friday meeting. Can you text me the details of what they want and where they want to meet. I’ll update you tomorrow. “

” Great Chief Superintendent, speak to you tomorrow.” Cross felt relieved something was happening, the waiting was awful.

So Tedi spent another night in the strange house with it’s comings and goings at all hours. The little boy , whose name was Tommy, would pop into the room and bring Tedi some food and biscuits and refill his water bowl.

Tommy even managed to bring Tedi up to his bedroom at night, it seemed that the person who was supposed to be looking after him had been taken unwell from something he’d eaten or drank or worse and Tommy had been asked to look after the little dog.

Tommy was delighted and his regular visits cheered Tedi up. When Tedi followed him up the stairs to the little room at the top of the house and hopped on top of Tommy’s bed, he snuggled up to the little boy. The bed clothes smelt stale and unwashed and the boy’s bedroom was very neglected , Tedi couldn’t see any toys or books, but nevertheless Tommy found a little rag for him and Tedi to play with. Still Tedi felt safe with Tommy and he hoped Tommy felt safe with him. They both fell asleep in each others arms.

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Tagged as , ,

February 27, 2025 · 6:01 pm

The Dog That Inherited A Palace Chapter 14

©GeraldineBanksFebruary2025

Tedi was very annoyed with himself, he had brought all this trouble on him and the House through his own carelessness. Cross had tried to tell him not to go wandering off by himself, that he was at risk of being kidnapped and now it had happened.

The first night he was there he had been let out in the garden accompanied by one of his minders, the same thing had happened the next morning. However, it had been a while since anyone had came, and there had been a lot of noise in the house. Tedi thought he heard the whining of puppies and barking of dogs somewhere but he wasn’t sure where. There were slamming of doors as well as regular arguments and men and women shouting.

Suddenly the door opened and a little boy aged about ten came in the room. He looked very uncared for and very thin and there were holes in his teeshirt and jeans. He closed the door very gently and walked up to Tedi and said.

” You alright little fellow?” and bent down and rubbed Tedi on his tummy.

Tedi looked up at him with his big eyes and gave him his paw.

” Aw you are so cute, I wish you were mine. I’ll wait until it’s clear and get you some nice biscuits and some fresh food. The door hasn’t got a lock on it , so as long as no one sees me coming in and out you and I can be friends. I can’t stay long but I’ll be back.” The little boy tickled Tedi under the chin and stood up and quietly went out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Tedi watched as the little hand of the boy closed the door gently. The little dog saw this as a ray of hope and it cheered him up.

Later that evening the little boy came in again and this time he had some kibble biscuits and half a tin of fresh dog food. Tedi had to eat it out of the tin but the little boy helped him, he gobbled up the biscuits and then the little boy poured some fresh water into one of the bowls.

” That will keep you going for a while, I’ll just take a little out at a time, they never feed the dogs enough.” He said.

Tedi looked up gratefully and held his paw out in thanks. ” I wonder how many dogs are here?” He thought to himself.

“That’s alright, they’ll be up later to take you out in the garden, I’ll be going to bed , but if you look up you’ll see my window, it’ll have the light on. I’ll make sure you’re alright little one.” Again the little boy left the room very quickly.

Tedi was amazed , who was this little boy? Sure enough, that night the man came with the slip lead and roughly dragged Tedi out to the garden. Fortunately, when they reached downstairs, he just let him go into the garden as it was totally enclosed. Sure enough Tedi looked up at the back of the building and timed it just as he took his wee. There, indeed,was a light on in the window.

Tedi counted the floors and the position. Perhaps he may visit the little boy some time, maybe not tonight, but he knew where he was. The strange man put the collar over Tedi’s head again and pulled him roughly. Tedi cooperated resentfully so as not to get hurt. He was tired and wanted to go to bed. Once he got back to the smelly , dark room, he lay on the floor and fell soundly asleep.

Unbeknown to Tedi , the Police had enough information to know the location of where he was being kept and they were watching the house.

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Tagged as , , ,

February 26, 2025 · 5:55 pm

The Dog That Inherited A Palace Chapter 13

©GeraldineBanksFebruary2025

“Hello Letitia, it’s Cross” Cross sounded grumpy and gruff.

Lettie held the phone to her ear; she had tried to get Cross to be a bit more relaxed and cheerful and recently she thought she’d cracked it , but he was back to his old ways. Then, she thought, something was wrong as she listened to the tone of his voice.

” You OK what’s the matter?”. Lettie asked.

” Tedi’s been kidnapped”.

” What?” Lettie nearly dropped the phone.

” Yes, this afternoon, he’s been taken, I haven’t heard anything yet, but I know they took him about 11am today and I know the car registration. I was wondering if you had any idea what I should do ?”.

” Good Grief, have you contacted the Police?”

” I wanted to run that by you, do you think I should? Suppose the kidnappers do something , you know if the police turned up at their door ,they might hurt him, it might make things worse. I don’t know.”

“It’s difficult , there’s bound to be a ransom demand, you’re right I don’t think they’ll harm him as long as they think they’ll get some money out of it. You say you’ve got the registration number of the car he was taken in. Here give it to me , I’ll make a few discrete phone calls and I’ll ring you back.”

Cross gave Lettie the Registration Number .

” Leave it with me I won’t be long , I’ll ring you back, for the moment we’ll keep this quiet, let me know if you hear anything.” Lettie said and hung up.

Once Cross came off the phone , a message came through from downstairs that a Parcel had been delivered and it was marked urgent. Cross ran downstairs, James had the parcel in his hand.

” Did you see who brought it ?”

” Yes it was the normal DPD Driver, is everything OK?” James asked.

” Unfortunately not, Tedi was taken at about 11am today from the village, we think he’s been kidnapped. I think this parcel might be to do with it.”

Cross and James opened the Parcel, it was just a normal sized box, all that was in it was Tedi’s collar.

” Damn, nothing else, no demand , no ransom.” Cross looked hopelessly at James.

” I’ve asked Lettie to find out what she can, I want to keep this quiet until she let’s me know what to do, we’ve got the reg number of the car he was taken in. James I need you to continue as if nothing is wrong, radio silence for the moment, try and keep everyone sweet, not asking too many questions. Do your best . I’ll keep you up to date, but for the moment if you see anything suspicious let me know.”

James nodded.

Later that evening , Lettie rang Cross.

” Police are involved but only low profile.” She said” Watts has got a friend whose high up and he’s in the process of following up on what we know so far. They reckon you’ll get a ransom demand soon. Have you heard anything?”

” We had a parcel delivered about an hour ago, DPD, a box , it had Tedi’s collar in it, no message just his collar.” Cross spoke softly.

” Right, well that’s a start, look I’ll let Watts know, I’m sure the Police will be able to track that parcel, but for the moment I don’t want the kidnappers to know we know anything about them.”

” OK, that makes sense. We’ve done what we can for the moment.”

” Yes, I’ll be over tomorrow morning, try and get some sleep. Night. ” Lettie pressed the call finished button.

Cross, put his phone down in silence and looked at Tedi’s collar and just hoped that everything would be OK.

The next day , Lettie and Watts arrived and Cross was downstairs having breakfast, the post had arrived and indeed there was a ransom letter among the post.

“If you want your little dog back send us a £1million”

“Details to follow.”

It was printed on plain printer paper with no signature, the envelope it came in was plain brown and it had some stains on it. Cross had put everything in a plastic bag , just in case there were any clues that the Police might be able to follow up on. Lettie poured herself a cup of tea and sat down at the table with Cross and Watts.

“You know, I think I’m going to find Arthur and have a word with him, I’m pretty certain this is his doing.” She placed her tea cup on the table quite forcefully, she was annoyed.

Cross looked at her. ” As long as you stay safe, if it is his doing he’s going to be mixed up with some pretty bad people. Anyway do you know where he’s living now?”

” No, but I’ve got a fair idea where I can find him this afternoon, he’ll be drinking in his local”

” Do you want me to come?” Cross said.

” Probably best not to, I think he’ll only talk to me . I won’t want to give anything away, I might have to make up a story about not been able to find some pictures I need from back in the day, I mean he probably needs money, I’ll sweet talk him, to see if he knows anything.”

” OK” Cross thought it was worth following up on and the cover story seemed credible.

“I’m going to drive over to Police HQ with the ransom letter and the collar” Watts interjected ” It’s just another part of the jigsaw. You want to come with me?”

” Yes, that ‘d be good”. Cross finished his cup of tea, he was relieved to be able to do something other than wait.

While Watts and Cross were on their way to Police HQ . The Detectives had been busy discussing their progress in one of the meeting rooms with their Chief Superintendent. The registration plate number was false, but the Police were able to trace the garage that had made the fake number plates. All number plates have a digital code on them and it was picked up by the digital camera used to take a picture of the car when it was leaving the village.

The garage that had supplied the stolen black car that the kidnappers had used had also printed the fake number plates. The black car was a very distinctive model, and with a bit of detective work , there was enough to interview under caution the owner of the garage, and he sang like a canary. Within minutes the Police had a name and an address of who had paid for the car and the number plates. They had it from on high to tread carefully so they hadn’t followed up on that yet.

When Watts and Cross arrived at Police HQ , they handed over the ransom note and the box with the collar in it to the front desk .These would be checked for DNA and any other samples that might indicate the origin. Watts and Cross were in the Chief Superintendent’s Office when he came in after his meeting with his detectives.

Chief Superintendent Napper was a good friend of Watts, they had been at school together and had kept in touch. Watts introduced Cross to Napper and the Chief Superintendent gave them an update.

“Well, that number plate has been significant. I don’t think we’re dealing with anyone very sophisticated here, my only problem is the little dog’s safety, it’ll take minutes to get in a building but seconds to dispose of the evidence. So although, we have enough information to do a raid or at least arrest someone, who to be truthful has form and has done similar things in the past. In order to achieve what we all want I’m going to tread carefully. I don’t think we’re dealing with the brightest of sparks, but I want a successful conclusion for everyone involved.”

The Chief continued. “The ransom note still doesn’t detail where the ransom is to be sent, so you’re going to hear from them again. Perhaps the next communication will tell us what our next step will be. In the meantime we’ve got a few properties in the London area that we will be watching. We know who our man is. I just need you , Mr Cross, to be calm and collected and I assure you we will get that little dog back safely.”

The Chief Superintendent opened a drawer on his desk and handed Cross a mobile phone.

” Here let me know personally anything that you hear, it’ll speed everything up.” Cross took the phone and put it in his pocket.

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Tagged as , ,

February 23, 2025 · 8:36 am

The Dog That Inherited A Palace Chapter 12

©GeraldineBanksFebruary2025

Tedi sat in his chair in the grand living room, all his friends and sisters and brothers were spread across the room in various dog beds and baskets , some near the fire , some underneath tables. They’d all been fed, it had been a Mrs Graham’s leftover day, so they were all very happy, they had been treated to the leftovers from the café and from the staff meals and it had been delicious.

Lettie and Cross had gone out to dinner, they were an item now. The dogs had watched as boring old Cross had been smitten by Lettie, they had spent a lot of time working together and they got on so well that the dogs all knew that it was inevitable that there would be a boring “romance”. The dogs thought it was a very long drawn out process, and apparently Lettie and Cross were now engaged.

Lettie had suggested to Cross that Tedi write his memoirs, so now and then Cross would sit down with Tedi and they would write down all their adventures together. Tedi’s memory was very good , perhaps too good and they had arrived at a point in his story that was difficult for both Tedi and Cross and had stopped for the evening. It had been a relief for Tedi , when Cross told him that he had a “date” with Lettie.

So now Tedi found himself sitting in his chair with those around him he knew he could trust. There was a few missing and that was part of his story too. He couldn’t help but think back to what had happened.

It had all started with Arthur, he had really grown to hate Tedi and blamed him for losing his job with Lettie. But Lettie had decided enough was enough when after numerous warnings Arthur turned up one day drunk. It appeared he’d been spending a lot of time in the local pub and had got in with a bad crowd.

Things had gone from bad to worse for Arthur when he lost his job. He had sold all his camera gear and was a regular in the pub, so regular that he was well known and one night he was approached by a man , who wanted to know all about the “little dog “who lived in the Big House.

Of course , Arthur knew everything that the man needed to know. The layout of the house , Tedi’s routine, where he went during the day , who he went with. Despite Cross trying to make everything as secure as possible Tedi was a free spirit and liked to go out with his friends. Arthur had spent months following him around when he worked for Lettie and it wasn’t long before the stranger had a good idea where Tedi’s favourite places were.

Tedi remembered very clearly the day he was kidnapped , he’d been around to Fred’s and had stayed a while , Fred hadn’t been well and there was talk of getting a new puppy, which had worried Fred. When Tedi left him and was making his way along the high street in the village Tedi noticed the black car pull up beside him. At first he thought nothing of it , but it was when two men jumped out and tried to grab him that he realised something was terribly wrong.

Luckily , he was able to dodge out of their way and ran down the street, the two men chased him and unfortunately Tedi made a wrong turning and ended up in an alleyway which was blocked at one end. He tried to jump over the fence but it was too high and the next thing was he was bundled into a black bag and shoved into the back of a car.

” Got him” said one of the men.

” Careful, Jack, he’s worth a fortune, we’ve got to look after him.”

And so it was Tedi was brought to a secure house somewhere in London, he was left alone in a room , it was cold and he was given his food in a bowl once a day and fresh water every two or three days. The conditions were not very good. He was let out in the garden late at night and early morning , but other than that he didn’t get any fresh air or walks. The people who were in the house didn’t pay any attention to him and Tedi was very much left alone. It was a very sad time for Tedi, because there wasn’t a lot he could do.

Meanwhile back at the Palace, it wasn’t until later on that evening that Cross realised something was seriously wrong. Tedi was nowhere to be seen and none of the other dogs knew where he was. Trinnie was very upset as she worshipped Tedi, but she managed to point to Fred on one of the pictures of the “Big Show” on the wall to signal to Cross that Tedi had said he was going to visit Fred.

Cross rang Fred’s owner immediately who confirmed Tedi had been there, but had left ages ago. Cross drove over to Fred’s house and looked in the immediate area, there was no sign. However, three of the local dogs who lived near Fred came out of their houses , they had seen what happened through their windows, one of them had even managed by barking and making a fuss to get their owner to take the registration of the “suspicious car” they had seen the bad men throw the black bag in the back.

It took some time for Cross to understand what the three dogs were trying to tell him, one of them took him down the alleyway and showed where Tedi had been captured; the little dog did the actions of trying to jump over the fence , so that Cross would understand that Tedi was trying to escape and that something bad had happened to him.

The other two dogs , who both lived in the same house, got Cross to follow them home and once Cross had spoken to their owner, the realisation that Tedi had been kidnapped finally hit home . The two dogs were very excited and calmed down once the owner had passed the details of the Car registration to Cross and also there was an added benefit that the owner had seen the two men and were able to describe them. The two dogs licked the owners hand they were so happy that the owner was able to pass the information on.

The first person Cross rang was Lettie. He couldn’t handle this alone.

Leave a comment

Filed under Short Stories

Tagged as , , ,