Miki noticed straight away and said, ‘Wow! What a cute puppy.’ Dad frowned and shook his head, but Miki was so excited to see Bonnie that she came out to pat her. Max hadn’t seen Miki out from behind the counter before. She was tall and slim like a greyhound, and she wore a long flowing dress that looked like it was from an olden-day movie.

‘How old is she?’ Miki asked.

‘Four weeks.’

‘She’s gorgeous.’

‘Yeah, I know. She’s the best.’

‘How many in the litter?’

‘Six.’

‘Are you going to keep her?’

‘Not bloody likely,’ Dad growled.

Miki glanced at Dad then said quietly to Max, ‘You’d better start trying to find homes. Maybe you could take them to school. You can put a for-sale sign in our window if you like.’

‘Do you want one?’ Max asked, hopeful.

‘I wish I could, but I can’t. No backyard.’

‘You could keep her inside.’

Miki smiled, and Max saw sadness in her big blue eyes. ‘Kurt won’t let me have a dog. Maybe in a few years when we have our own farm.’

There was a bang at the back of the shop, and Miki hurried behind the counter and washed her hands at the sink just as Kurt came in. He and Dad stared at each other. Then Dad said, ‘What does it take to get service in this place? I’ve been waiting for ages.’

Kurt frowned at Miki, and Max was annoyed at Dad for getting her in trouble. Kurt didn’t say anything, but Max knew Miki was in for it. He’d listened to Mum and Dad talking about Kurt at home. They didn’t like him. They thought he was mean to her. I think he locks her in, Mum had said. He treats her like a slave. Dad had said maybe he’d better get some locks too, and then laughed as if he was making a joke. But Max didn’t think it was funny—Miki was nice and always gave him extra lollies.

On the way home, Dad was grouchy. ‘Those pups need to be gone in two weeks.’

‘But they’re so little.’ Max ran a finger over Bonnie’s domed head.

‘They’ll be six weeks old and ready to go.’

On Monday, Max convinced Mum to let him take the pups to school so he could find homes for them. He put them in the pram, but Suzie was upset and said, ‘No,’ very loudly and tried to take them out. Max shoved her away.

‘You have to walk, Suzie,’ Mum said. ‘That’s why you’ve got legs.’