In the Dog House

“Now you be a good boy while we’re gone.”

A woman in a fancy sequin dress stood before a black and tan Doberman pinscher. His ears were floppy and he had a tail, but otherwise, he looked like your average Doberman. Strong, muscular, the perfect guard dog.

“Com’on, hun, we’re going to be late,” said the woman’s husband. He wore a fine suit that matched her expensive dress.

“I’m coming!” said the woman. She gave the dog a pat on the head then reached for her coat. It was hanging on a rack by the door. Her husband helped her slip it on. “Kade, you guard the house, okay?”

The man chuckled. “He better. The money I paid for him.”

The dog simply wagged his tail in response. The man armed the security system, then the couple slipped out the door and strode towards the car. As they sunk into the seats of their vehicle, the dog approached the panel window that was located beside the door. With a nudge of his nose, he pushed the curtains aside and his dark brown eyes watched the car as they pulled out of the driveway.

Several minutes after they were gone, the dog remained looking out the window. When an unfamiliar van pulled into the drive, he didn’t bark. On the contrary, he left the window and stood in the center of the foyer.

The bones in his furry body began to contort and shift. His long snout full of sharp teeth shrunk and retreated into his face. His paws grew fingers. Human fingers. The black fur all over his body receded and disappeared. On the top of his head, brown hair grew in.

In a matter of minutes, the dog was no longer a dog at all but a full grown man.

Naked, he walked over to the door and tapped in the code to disarm the security system. Seconds later, the door came open. A tall man with dark, curly hair stepped through.

“Put some clothes on, will ya?” he said in a thick Irish accent and tossed the naked man a pair of pants. His accent seemed out of place considering they were in Texas.

The naked man caught the pants and stepped into each leg before pulling them on.

“You did good,” said a very short woman with bleach blonde hair. She wore it in a ponytail. She was dressed in all black, as were the other three people that came in after her. A woman with short red hair, another woman with long black hair, and a blond man in glasses. “Let’s do this quick. Nori and Lola, you two grab what you can find down here. Anything of value. Anything we can resell. Liam, you take the upstairs. Kayden, take Max to the safe. He’ll crack it. I’ll get whatever else I can find.”

Nods all around and the gang got to work.

“Com’on,” said Kayden. Shoeless, he went up the stairs with Liam and Max trailing behind him.

“Sheesh, this sure is a nice place,” said Liam.

“Tell me about it,” scoffed Kayden. “And we’re gonna make a pretty good haul once we pawn all this stuff off.”

“You think they have anything good in their safe?” asked Max.

“I’d bet money on it,” said Kayden. “These two are loaded. They don’t even have any kids.”

“Yeah, no kids, ya know they’re sittin’ pretty,” said Liam.

Kayden and Max laughed just before they entered the master bedroom. It was huge. Bigger than Kayden’s own living room.

“Jewelry’s over there,” he said, pointing out the vanity table to Liam. “And the safe is in the closet.”

It took Max a couple of minutes to crack it. When he pulled open the door, his jaw dropped. “Holy shit…”

“What? What is it?” asked Liam in his thick Irish accent. He carried a bag full of the woman’s most expensive jewelry.

Kayden was at the dresser, snatching up the man’s spare watch. It was a Rolex. “Is it something good?” he asked, curious.

“Better than good. Stacks, man. Huge stacks of money! What did you say this guy did for a living?” asked Max.

“Some kind of broker, I think,” said Kayden.

“Well I think he’s hustling on the side,” scoffed Max. “Bring me a bag.”

“Here, ya can take this one.” Liam offered Max his spare bag.

Together, the three of them cleaned out the bedroom. Everything in the safe, the vanity table, the dresser. Anything they could find in the closet. They took it all and met up with the girls downstairs.

“We good?” asked Mina, their short statured leader.

“We got several thousand dollars outta that safe. Is that good enough?” Kayden said with a grin.

“Holy shit, are you serious?! I knew these people were loaded! What did I tell ya?!” Mina said happily before slapping Kayden on the shoulder.

“Ya made the right call, boss. Like always,” said Liam.

“Damn right I did. Let’s get out of here.”

The six of them quickly loaded their loot into the van. When they were all safely inside it, with Nori driving, Kayden found a shirt and pulled it over his head.

“Feel good to be back in yer own skin?” asked Liam. He was seated in the back of the van across from Kayden.

“Oh yeah. I’m done playing dog for a while,“ he said. “It’s your turn.”

“Me? Oh feck no. Nori ain’t took a turn in a long while,” said Liam.

“What are you two saying about me?” asked Nori from the front of the van.

“Liam said you’re not pulling your weight,” said Kayden, a smirk on his lips..

“What are you on about? Ya fookin’ cunt! Nori, I didn’t say that. He’s acting a maggot, he is,” Liam said.

Laughter erupted through the van as it drifted down the road and disappeared into the darkness.