Circus Jack - Chapter 3. The Dognapper

Circus Jack Chapter 3.

 

The man at the market returns with bad intent. In this third chapter of our story, as the golden sun gives way to the gentle hum of night, the tranquil rural landscape is disturbed by a chilling development. After an endearing scene of homey evening meals and hearty farm work, the plot unfolds in the lull of the night. However, their serene slumber is disrupted by the calculated actions of a slender figure; an intruder with an elusive motive.

With meticulous precision, the unsuspecting Muscles becomes the very first victim of a sinister plan. After silencing the guard dog with chloroform and grilled meat, the intruder then focuses his attention on the performing dog, Peppy. Using the same approach, he stealthily makes his way through the slumber-infused household, whispering calls for Peppy in an almost eerie manner.

He successfully lures the innocent dog using meat treats and within no time, Peppy is also drugged, kidnapped, and his absence concealed. The kidnapper and his accomplice seamlessly manage to exit the scene without leaving even a hint of their malicious act, hopping onto a waiting wagon and disappearing into the night.

This chapter highlights the audacious abduction of beloved Peppy which ends with a cliffhanging silence, leaving the readers to anticipate what transpires next in this suspense-filled tale.

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Chapter 3. The Dog Napper After arriving home, the sun soon began its golden
descent, spreading its warmth across the fields and farmhouse,
as it dipped below the rolling hills on the horizon.
The kitchen came alive with the preparation of dinner.
Soon the family gathered around the table set with a bounty of spinach greens,

(00:21):
corn, tomatoes, Lancaster dairy cheese, and a loaf of freshly baked bread.
After acknowledging the bounty and saying grace, the family made quick work
of their meal, pushed back their plates, cleared the table and completed their evening chores.
Dash came in from the fields with the last of the animals, as he rounded them

(00:42):
up for an overnighting in the barn.
Darkness began to gather, and the family began preparing for a night's rest.
As evening descended on the house and farm, all that could be heard were crickets
clicking, the hoot of an owl, and the occasional creak of a settling board,
as the house adjusted to the cool western breeze.
Dash lay in his makeshift bed in the barn, snuggled beneath a patchwork quilt

(01:06):
on a mattress of straw, and muscles stood guard at the home's entrance.
His tan and black-masked face peering from the opening of his doghouse ears
swiveled to catch any sound that might threaten in the peace.
Hearing nothing, he settled in, his chest rising with a deep relaxing breath
that he expelled with a sigh.

(01:26):
The August moon rising above the fields filled his eyes until sleep came to him.
The old German fieldstone house is again at peace, that summer night,
basking in the chorus of crickets calling in the still darkness.
Then, an hour after all were asleep, crickets momentarily stopped chatting in
the grasses and reeds along the drive leading to the house, like a rolling wave.

(01:51):
First one group of crickets would stop, and then another group closer to the
house would go silent, and yet another group closer to the house would stop chattering.
This pattern continued toward the house like a shifting shadow.
The crickets are not the only creatures awake in this night.
A slender figure had been observing the house from a distance,

(02:12):
patiently waiting for the perfect moment to carry out his task.
For weeks he rehearsed every step until memorized.
He had been planning to abduct the performing dog, whose name he learned at the market.
Peppy. The man exuded an air of confidence as he reviewed the items he had prepared.
A cloth, a bottle of chloroform, two medium-sized sacks made of burlap,

(02:37):
a sturdy club, lantern and scraps of cooked meat.
Approaching the silent farmhouse in bare feet, leaving light impressions in
the grass, his first victim would need to be the guard dog, Muscles.
That single hound could upend his plan if the dog woke prematurely.
As a result, he would lose his payment for failing to abduct Pepe.

(02:59):
The man placed a large piece of grilled meat on the ground close to the base
of a tree near the dog's bed.
Muscles' nostrils twitched in the air. Picking up the scent,
he followed his nose to the tree.
Coming upon the meat, he swallowed it whole, as if inhaling the fragrant air of this summer night.
The man pounced, his rag-covering muscles' nose drenched with enough chloroform to knock out a horse.

(03:24):
Muscles went limp a moment later. The man scooped up the limp dog,
placed him inside the burlap bag with a rag of chloroform, and dumped him in the woods.
He then made his way inside the unguarded front door of the farmhouse,
with his lantern casting soft shadows.
Advancing in the front parlor, moving through the living and dining area of

(03:46):
the house, he peered and listened for any activity.
Looking into the kitchen area and back mudroom, the floorboards creaked with
nearly every step of his bony frame.
Peppy? The man whispered as he entered each room. Come here, boy. Come here, Peppy.
Finding no dog on the first floor, he softly ascended the stairs on his tiptoes

(04:09):
to the second floor of bedrooms.
Once on the landing, he could hear deep resonant snoring coming from one of
the rooms and determined the bedroom belonged to the man of the house.
Bypassing that room he moved on to the boy's room. Slowly pushing the door open
he whispered the dog's name. Nothing came in return.
Whispering the dog's name again he could hear light scratching coming from the

(04:32):
bedroom room opposite the hallway.
The man smiled in victory as he opened the door, allowing Peppy to come out partially.
Pulling another piece of grilled meat from his satchel and extending his arm
with a smile he dropped the meat and stepped back.
Peppy came out and gobbled up the meat looking for more. The man obliged.

(04:52):
Peppy vacuumed up another tasty morsel placed near the staircase as the man
began descending the stairs dropping kibbles of grilled meat on the steps,
leading peppy down to the first floor at the
bottom of the stairs he moved fast in a
single move the man pulled out his jute rope and the empty wheat sack applied

(05:13):
chloroform to peppy's nose and dropped the limp dog in his dusty sack as quietly
as he entered he departed the house strolling down the road to his waiting wagon
and partner in crime leaving no trace of evidence behind.