I caught a flash of fear in Keith’s eyes. We were all staring hard at Jack now. He certainly got our attention.
“What do you mean, dangerous?” Keith asked. He put one hand on my shoulder.
Jack’s grin faded. He scratched the side of his face. “Not really dangerous. Just a prank. You know. A joke.”
I suddenly realized my heart had started to beat a little faster. Ivy shifted her long hair off her face. “You want to play a joke? On who?” she asked.
Jack pointed into the pet-store window. The two puppies had given up and were lying side by side in their crate. “McNulty,” Jack said. “He owns this store.”
I squinted into the store. “The bald guy in there?”
Jack nodded. “He fired me today for no reason.”
“You were working here?” Manny asked.
“Yeah. Just cleaning up and stuff. Stacking the dog food. You know. Just being a slave.”
“Why did he fire you?” Keith asked.
Jack shrugged. “I told you. No reason.” He took a few steps back so McNulty couldn’t see him through the window. “You guys are bored, right? So you want to help me with my little joke?”
Keith waved a hand. “I don’t think so.”
“Don’t listen to Keith. Tell us your joke,” I said.
Jack rubbed his cheek. “Well . . . I’ve got fifteen stray dogs headed to the kennel in my truck. I thought maybe it might be kind of awesome to let them all loose in McNulty’s store.”
Manny and Jeremy laughed. “Awesome.”
“No way,” Keith insisted. So typical of him to back away from a little fun.
What did I see in him?
“That could be a riot,” Ivy said, brushing her hair back again.
“Count me out,” Keith said. He turned and started to walk away.
“Hey, it’s totally harmless,” I called after him. “It’s not a crime or anything. It’s just a joke.”
Manny raised his phone. “I saw a YouTube video. Some guys did this in Chicago. It went viral. They’re, like, famous. I’ve got to video this. It’s crazy. Crazy.”
A thin smile crossed Jack’s face. “Cool. We can be famous, too. “I’ll back my truck up to the door. Then you’ll help me herd the dogs into the store.”
“Sweet,” I said. My skin was tingly. I guess I was a little excited. And I felt myself drawn to Jack. Pulled to him, almost against my will, as if he were a powerful magnet.
I knew he was trouble. Everyone knew he was trouble. But we were bored and we were restless, so we went along with his prank.
And, of course, that was the start of more trouble than I could handle.
