if me brother never loved nothin' else in the world 'e loved 'is dog. i know this tar be true 'cause i often seen the joy of 'im shinin' in the dog's eyes when the sunlight hit 'em. the dog showed me the things that me brother don't tell me never. 'e aint never spoke much or showed much love tar no one.
me own brother hardly knowed by me. but i knowed 'im like no other in the family. by watchin' 'im 'round the mut. 'cause that's when a quiet brother's times a joy are shared. intar the ragged hair of 'is own dog. an' that's the way its been since since i don't know when.
then one day comin' 'ome from a trip away the dog went down under a car. 'an the only thing i remember at the time was a dry thuddin' sound an' me brother's back tar me. an' me by 'is side jus' a watchin' the car speed off intar the distance. an' the dog all mud an' bloody. squashed intar the side of the road.
an' the exchange that went on atween the two was finale an' angry. 'cause both knowed what 'ad tar be done. an' me brother was all fierce an' cursin' the dog. 'is favourite dog. 'an the dog jus' layin' there on the groun'. squashed intar the dirt with the stupidest grin. 'cause it knowed 'e was angry.
an' me brother never cryin'. an' the dog jus lookin' up at 'im. its eyes all big an' red. an' nothin'. there weren't nothin' 'e could do for the creature. so 'e fetched 'imself an old brick near the fence in the long grass. shakin' the slaters out. lookin' at me then o'er tar the dog.
an' afore i knowed what e was doin' 'e clapped it down on the poor dog's skull. all the soft tan fur an' the eyes still lookin' up at 'im as the brick came down. but not hard enough. skulls an' bones an' the like are mighty hard. an' now the blood gushed an' the old dogs clouded eyes jus' lookin' straight on down the road. as if the pains too much tar bare an' no death's ever comin'.
an' slam the brick came down again. an' the dog screamed. the most awful scream of a livin' thing changed its mind 'bout dyin'. like a human an' the eyes all full a blood. an' the brick came down again an' the dog lay quiet.
an' i couldn't believe it was done. an' me brother jus' held the brick steady like. an' looked towards me an' right thru me. right past me an on tar some other place. as if 'e knowed where 'e was goin' all along.
i tried tar call 'im back. but too late though. 'e began walkin' away with the brick in 'is 'and. off the road an' freeway. thru the fence. across the fields. all the time a holdin' the brick steady an' never lookin' back.
well i weren't goin' 'ome tar the monster without 'im. sos i waited 'round in the still dusk. until the dark came a creepin' close. beside the dog all stiff an' cold. an' sure as 'ell me brother as soon as came back without the brick. dirt on 'is 'ands an' eyes all huge an' starin' scared.
an' e' never seen me although i'd been waitin' by the dog for hours. 'e walked right by & 'e picked up the mut like a bag a lucern an' carried it away intar the night. an' aways they both went across the fields targether. an' i knowed then as sure as 'ell 'e aint never comin' back.
a few years apart i seen 'im in about town sometimes. buyin' food or grog or somepin'. for they say 'e lives in caves an' trees. but no matter where 'e is really. 'e's still me brother. an' 'e don't know where i am neither. for 'e never seen me outa 'is eyes again afta 'e bricked the dog. 'e aint never been the same.
some things yar jus carry 'round with yar for years an' years. things that don't do nobody the slightest good. but somepin inside breaks an' yar carn't 'elp it. like me own brother. killed 'is dog in frontar me with 'is own 'ands. an' went away across the fields for good.
this i know tar be true. for i seen it with me own eyes an' knowed it in me 'eart. an' when the townsfolk say theys seen 'im good an' regular i don't believe 'em. 'cause 'e went away intar the fields that night with 'is dead eyes an' the dog. an' i knowed then that 'e ain't never comin' back.
