Another small snippet from Disease X - The Outbreak featuring one of my favorite characters "Max"

Max really didn’t want his Momma to leave him at home alone today, he feared he would never see her again if she left him now. Max wished he’d been born with a smaller tongue that would allow him to make words so he could warn her. But alas he was a dog, even though he felt human most days.

He could understand most words, many more than he imagined most dogs could. He was blessed with a master who talked to him as if he were human, and he watched a lot of TV. On those rare occasions when Natasha had to leave him home alone, she’d always leave the tv on for him, even though she rarely watched it herself. She knew he enjoyed it and it blocked outside noises which kept him from getting anxious or upset. What she didn’t know is that the television opened up a whole new world for Max.

His favorite was the Discovery Channel. He learned about all sorts of animals all over the world. He learned about Serengeti, Africa’s Cursed Lake of Gold, the D.B. Cooper Case and people who had actually been on the moon! There was only one week of the year that he had no desire to tune in to the Discovery Channel, the week when all they talked about was sharks. He did not care for sharks and he hoped to never meet one.

He really wished he could tell his Momma not to go, but he could only manage to make a whimpering noise.

“Stupid too long tongue,” he thought, “Why can’t you form a word?”

He tried so hard to find a way to tell her about the rancid moldy smell he detected seeping from the girl’s pores. He tried to tell her to stay away from the girl; that she was dangerous… but Momma didn’t understand. She simply filled his bowl with kibble and his water bowl with fresh water, kissed him on his head and left him there with the Discovery Channel…

“Damn it!” he chuffed, “It’s shark week!”