Free Movie For Dogs by Lois Duncan Page A

advantage of our hosts.”
    The limo driver suggested that Aunt Alice take off her mask before she went into the hotel. He was afraid the people at the desk would think it was a holdup. He promised to keep Red and Lamb Chopsafe in the car and bring them to Bruce’s room after we were registered.
    While Aunt Alice was checking us in, a man came up and asked, “Are you here for the
Dogs in Action
contest?” Aunt Alice said, “Yes,” and the man said, “I’m Maynard Merlin, and I’m here for that, too.” So we’ve now met our other competition besides Kristy.
    I took notes while our enemy talked to Aunt Alice:
    Maynard Merlin has shiny black hair that doesn’t match his gray eyebrows.
    He was wearing a gray suit and a red tie.
    He smiles all the time, even when there’s nothing to smile about.
    He guessed who we were when he heard Aunt Alice tell the check-in person that we had two dogs outside in a limo.
    His own dog, Gabby, was in their room, resting up for tomorrow’s interview.
    He asked Aunt Alice too many questions.
    One question was, could we all eat dinner together? Aunt Alice said that was a nice thought but we were too tired from the long plane trip to begood company and she thought we would order up room service. Then he asked her if she would like to meet him later in the lounge so they could have a drink and get to know each other. She told him, “No, thank you.”
    Then Kristy asked him what Gabby’s video was about.
    Mr. Merlin said he’d taught Gabby to talk.
    To Be Continued

CHAPTER TEN
    They gathered in the hotel lobby at eight o’clock the next morning to wait for the limousine to take them to Star Burst Studios. Maynard Merlin was waiting for the limousine as well, and Gabby was with him. The only one of their group who was not staring at Gabby was Mr. Merlin, who was staring at Aunt Alice.
    Aunt Alice adjusted her mask and said, “Good morning, Mr. Merlin.”
    Mr. Merlin asked, “Is that you, Alice? I didn’t recognize you with your facial adornment. I hope you had a good night’s rest.”
    “I slept very well, thank you,” Aunt Alice said politely. “Both of our four-legged companions slept in the room with Bruce, so I didn’t sneeze even once. Kristy has informed me that Maltipoos arenonallergenic, but I’m not one for taking chances, especially with a big day ahead of us.”
    The children could not take their eyes off Gabby. They had expected something extraordinary, but he looked like a run-of-the-mill hound-type dog with floppy ears and oversized lips.
    Kristy said tentatively, “Hello, Gabby.”
    Gabby said, “Allo.”
    Kristy let out a shriek. “Oh, my gosh, he really
does
talk! Mr. Merlin, I thought you were kidding! What else can he say?”
    “His vocabulary is somewhat limited, because there are particular sounds that dogs can’t make,” Mr. Merlin explained. “Gabby has trouble pronouncing certain letters of the alphabet, such as ‘s’ and ‘b.’ The ‘th’ sound is beyond him, but he does very well with vowel sounds and with easy letters like ‘l,’ ‘w,’ and ‘r.’”
    “Hello, Gabby,” Andi said. “I’m Andi Walker. I’m very glad to meet you.”
    “Allo, Annie Wawar,” Gabby said.
    Then, just as Bruce was preparing to introduce himself, the limousine driver arrived to whisk them off to Star Burst Studios.
    Aunt Alice took her seat in the car, and Mr. Merlin immediately plunked down next to her. Bruce sat behind them with Red, and Kristy squeezed in beside him with Lamb Chop on her lap. That left Andi to share a seat with Gabby, which she didn’t mind at all, as she had liked the dog as soon as she’d seen his sweet face.
    “Are you excited about being interviewed?” she whispered to him.
    Gabby said, “Uh-uh,” and leaned his head against her shoulder.
    When they reached the studio, they were ushered into a pleasant waiting room with large plush chairs and a sofa. A secretary phoned Mr. Donovan, who rushed out to greet them. He was