For the Love of Brutus!

Lucius eased himself carefully onto his well-used and tattered sofa. In his left hand, he held a certified letter from his favorite Aunt Squeakie who had transcended from this earth to her next universal journey a little over 2 weeks ago at the precious age of 92. In his right hand, he held a classic black leather moleskin notebook. Lucius had always known Aunt Squeakie to be a futurist, a lover of all things sentient, and someone to tell you what was on her mind. Her letter was concise:

Lucius,

I want to thank you for being a tremendously loving nephew. From the weekly calls to the impromptu lunches to ensuring my walkway was cleared of snow during the winter, I enjoyed every minute of my time with you. However my dear, I also believe I was your excuse not to venture out into the world and make a life for yourself. I have watched you slowly turn inward and wallow in self-indulgent behavior. To that end, I am going to assist you from the great beyond. I am leaving you my second most prized earthly possession, my dog Brutus. If you can learn to love something other than yourself, you will be well on your way to living a great life. I have left instructions for Brutus' care in the little black book that should have accompanied this letter.

Until we meet again,

Aunt Squeakie

Lucius lowered the letter and set the black book on the coffee table. He took stock of the boxes of pet toys and other accessories that were taking up space in his living room. Next to one of the boxes sat Brutus, Aunt Squeakie's three-year old Irish Wolfhound. Lucius splayed himself on the sofa and tried to process what had just happened. This was the last thing he needed.

He looked at his watch. It was 7:30 pm on a Sunday night and the last thing he wanted to do was sit at home with a dog he didn't want. If he moved fast enough, he could make it to the 'Howlin Jackalope' for the last 15 minutes of happy hour and sit at the bar trying to woo the sassy and highly unavailable bartendress April. Lucius quickly set about to ensure Brutus was fed, had water, relieved himself (outside) and had his doggy bed to lay on. As Lucius made his way to the door he looked back at Brutus and said, "Don't chew on anything and don't wait up."

This pattern repeated itself for five days straight : ensure Brutus was fed, watered, and walked - then Lucius was off to the bar. The morning of day 6, Lucius awoke to a yelp and the smell of something burning. Overindulgence in "99 Bananas" the evening before left some gaps in his memory about how he got home and ended up on the couch in his underwear and a burned out cigarette in his hand.

He looked down. There lay Brutus softly whimpering. To this point, they had both kept a healthy distance from one another. Lucius looked at Brutus and asked, "What are you doing you crazy pup?" Looking closer, Lucius noticed an orange glow eating the 2nd hand throw rug. He grabbed what was left of the rug and tossed it into the shower.

Lucius realized that Brutus had sacrificed his body to keep the small fire from growing and had most likely saved his life. He began to panic and then remembered the black book with instructions for Brutus' care. On page 1, Lucius found the number for Dr. Woofenstein's concierge veterinarian service. He tried to comfort Brutus as best he could while simultaneously reviewing the meticulous instructions his Aunt had left. He skipped to the end of the notebook and on the very last page his Aunt had written in bold and underlined the following sentence three times:

Learning to love Brutus will be the greatest reward of your life!!!

A knock at the door brought Lucius back to his current situation. It was the on-call vet - Dr. Bauer. Normally a man of many words, he set his eyes keenly on Lucius. The smell of burnt dog hair, the food-stained sofa, and raggedy coffee table, and what appeared to be a fresh cigarette butt made him suspicious regarding Brutus’ injuries. Lucius explained what had happened and how remorseful he was. That he would never intentionally harm Brutus and would do better by his new ward. Dr. Bauer assessed Brutus and tended to his 2nd degree burns. Dr. Bauer cautioned Lucius that he would have his staff follow up in person over the coming month. If there was the slightest hint of mistreatment of the pup he would not hesitate to contact the authorities and have Brutus removed from his care.

True to his word, Lucius started making an effort to truly take care of Brutus, from applying the burn ointment, to learning grooming techniques and figuring out which foods the dog preferred. Lucius eventually replaced happy hour at the bar with a different kind of happy hour - taking Brutus for a walk around the block or down to the pond to watch the ducks. They eventually began to meet more of the neighbors and attend pet-friendly community events.

Over a month had passed since Brutus had prevented the house from burning and Lucius from perishing. Lucius decided to take Brutus to his favorite lake that his Aunt Squeakie had written about in her little black book. It was about 20 miles from Lucius' house but definitely well worth it in light of Brutus' sacrifice.

The sun was close to setting when they arrived. As they pulled into the parking lot, the usually docile Brutus began to move his head from side to side continuously sniffing the air. It took almost all of Lucius' strength to get the harness onto Brutus and keep him from jumping out of the truck. Lucius allowed Brutus to roam freely and watched in amazement as observed a side of Brutus he had never seen before. Without warning Brutus made a dash towards a group of little elm trees. Lucius didn't know what to make of the situation. It was Brutus' reward and no one was around; so what the heck. After a few minutes of digging, Brutus had unearthed a small water-proof box with a handwritten note and a Nylabone DuraChew Marrow Bone inside. The note read -

Lucius,

By bringing Brutus here, it would seem you have taken the time to start loving something other than yourself. I'm hoping my encrypted harddrive containing $20,000 worth of bitcoin will lead to many exciting adventures for you and Brutus. "LoV3iSTheP4ssW0rd!"

Until we meet again,

Aunt Squeakie