He darted under the bedroom bed, growling at me. I grabbed the ashtray and hurled it at the dog, causing him to flee to the windowsill and jump over the railing. Living on the ground floor, I knew the fall wouldn't be lethal. With urgency, I swung open the door and dashed outside to pursue the dog. Perhaps upon landing, he had hurt itself; he limped away from me, seeking refuge under a nearby car. From there, he continued to snarl at me, clearly agitated and defensive.
"What are you doing?” Mable Prince’s voice cut through the tension as she spotted me crouched on the ground, peering intently. She was my neighbor, always sticking her nose into everything and often twisting situations around. Honestly, I tried to avoid getting involved with her whenever possible.
I grabbed a stone and threw it at the dog, causing him to scurry into the bushes and hide in a corner. As I chased after him, Mrs. Prince suddenly yanked me back.
“What’s gotten into you? Dale treats that dog like his own child. If you have a fight with him, don't take your anger out on that dog. That poor creature doesn’t know a thing about human’s business!” Because of her loud shouting, a crowd started to gather around us. Soon, more and more people joined in, their voices rising in accusation about me abusing the dog.
“She seemed like a nice woman, turns out she's a horrible an animal abuser.”
“Look, the dog seems terrified, he's shaking so hard he's drooling. It must be because she beat him so badly.”
I remember when the dog drooled, it meant the virus had already entered its brain and there was no chance for him to recover. To prevent Rex from biting anyone else, I picked up the nearest tree branch and approached the rabid dog slowly.
Just as I took a couple of steps, Mrs. Prince grabbed me tightly, “Get a hold of yourself, will you? This is not how you should handle this. There’s plenty-”
“You want to get bitten? This dog has rabies!” I snapped. “Don't say I didn't warn you.” I made my voice icy cold as I spouted the least sentence.
Mrs. Prince froze instantly. She stared at me with wide eyes, her face filled with horror.
“If the dog has rabies, why would she want to catch it?
“Shouldn't we call animal control?”
“That's why we have to look at things from both sides. As far as I know, Harper isn't someone who is cruel to animals. She's doing this because she's trying to protect others.”