The pleading cry, made it clear, the puppy couldn’t break free. Bea began scanning and planning, something she was working little by little to stop. With a history of getting into other friends’ business she wanted to be especially alert. That obsessive behavior had often led to guilty, and possibly resentful feelings.

Practicing her talk to the maker exercise convinced her she was doing the right thing. She hadn’t needed any assistance from her friends, Snakely and Spidie, before, this was new, Their assistance would surely be needed this time. 

They were going to have to plan together and work as a team, just as Scruffles, she, and Sweet Puppy had on many occasions. In this case someone was expressing a cry for help. She had to admit she could not pull this off on her own. It felt strange to have to consider asking Snakely and Spidie for their aid.

The resolute wee bear was changing her pattern of when to offer help, and practice being humble exercise and ask for help. Though there was a note of urgency in the frenetic barking, she had to do her investigation exercise, joined by her two passengers, Snakely on her shoulder and Spidie on a web between her ears. 

Realizing the frantic cries meant, it was possible the puppy knew something Bea did not. This called for alertness and stealth. The one who could speedily slither over to the barn was Snakely.

The first step of the mission was to have Snakely, who would sweetly sidle closer, to see if she could gain more intel, before they planned their approach. Snakely was excited to assist as scout, while Spidie maintained her look out position.

Even with Spidie upon her perch, she could not follow Snakely to locate her in the tall grass. She was hidden and looked just like the grass, until it grew  shorter and she could see wiggling blades. She lost Snakely again as she slid beneath the side barn door.

The smart snake chose not to go through the open door so as not to be seen. Spidie and Bea were anxious about Snakely’s safety. The two continued to keep their eyes and attention fixed upon Snakely’s point of entry.

There was a rustling in the grass beside Bea’s feet, paws and claws. Unlike the first time the startled wee bear sucked her breath in as she experienced the tickling sensation, this time there was a sigh of relief.

Bea became aware she’d been holding her breath an unusually long period of time.  She breathed more easily as Snakely gave her report. It seems the puppy’s name was Lady, and she’d been grabbed by a cruel man and thrown into the barn. 

He had muttered something about the van would be here to get her, and he’d be rich. She told Snakely she had no idea what that meant, but it did not bode well for Lady. It was imperative they extricate her immediately. 

If Bea’s ground plan did not go as hoped, Snakely had a fail-safe counter plan. This would ensure pure distraction for the van man, so everyone could safely drop out of the van driver’s sight. 

She was going to make her way over to the truck, unlatch the door, then lift all of the locking levers on the crates. That man would have more than Lady to worry about.

This was Bea’s original strategy. Spidie would be doing her magic designing an entire curtain of webs covering the entire doorway. Snakely would sequester herself under the doorway. 

When the van driver was dragging or carrying Lady out of the barn, heading toward his van, Snakely would raise herself so as to trip up the captor.

That’s what he deserved for trying to send dogs on an unnecessary path to the bridge of rainbows. As luck would have it, things became even more tangled for him.

The master plan went off without a hitch. Bea hid behind a wide tree while fate was carried out.  It turned out he had long hair under his cap, bushy eyebrows, a long mustache and a broad beard and glasses. 

What an ordeal he was in for, his glasses were more gummed up than his eyebrows. With stuck up hair, beard and mustache, he maneuvered with great difficulty, but messed up glasses was another issue. Fumbling for a bandanna to futilely do something about his worthless glasses, his focus changed from Lady to self-survival. 

He dropped any contact with Lady and stumbled around attempting to right himself so as not to tumble onto the stone embedded driveway. He could be heard mumbling something about how that would be the clincher, if he were to go down for the count.