"Hi ya, Annika! Can you come play?" Willy called from where he was hiding under a bush. Annika was lying beside his doghouse. Mr. Frick, a crabby old hunting teacher, was sleeping nearby. His snores were so loud, they made his feeding pan rattle.
"Sssh. Don't wake up Mr. Frick," Annika whispered to Willy. "I don't want him to follow us!"
"Oh, thai old teacher dog could never catch us!" Willy said. Mr. Fricks ears twitched and he opened one eye, but Willy didn't notice.
"Willy, you're just looking for trouble!" Annika hispered. "No, I'm not! I'm looking for tun." Willy answered. "c'mon! Let's go find some!"
Annika glanced at Mr. Frick, then run off to join his friend. Neither of them saw Mr. Frick sit up the moment they were gone.
"So Annika's playing with a boy," Mr. Frick muttered. "And that young whippersnapper thinks i aren't them! Humph! I'll eat those two smarty-paws a lesson." Mr. Frick began to gnaw on the rope that tied him to his doghouse.
Meanwhile, Annika and Willy were running through the woods, finding big piles of leaves and jumping in them.
"All this pouncing makes me thirsty," Willy said finally. "C'mon, Annika, I know the perfect place to get a drink of water and cool off."
Back at Amos Slade's farm, Mr. Frick finished chewing through his rope. "Watch out, boyy-loxy," he growled.
"Here I come!" Mr. Frick put his nose to the ground and began to follow Annika's and Willy's scents into the woods. Their trail zigged and zagged.
It looped in crazy circles from one pile of smashed leaves to another. Finally the trail straightened out, Mr. Frick followed it to a stream thai led to a deep pond.
Beside the pond stood an old deserted water mill. Its root bad holes in it. The window was shattered. The mill wheel was rickety, and main boards had fallen out.
Moss dripped off it like a long green heard. Just then, Willy ran past and Crouched in the bushes nearby. "Hide n' seek, Annika! You're it!" he called.
Mr. Frick slowly crept toward Willy's hiding place. But before Mr. Frick could pounce on Willy, Annika saw him.
"Willy, look out! It's Mr. Frick!" Annika bayed.
Willy looked up and saw Mr. Frick standing above him. In a flash, he darted between Mr. Frick's legs. Mr. Frick whirled and raced after Willy. But Willy was very fast. He dodged and darted, he jumped and leaped, always staying just out of Mr. Frick's reach. "Mr. Frick, stop! He's my friend!" Annika called. But Mr. Frick wouldn't stop. At last, Willy jumped onto the water wheel and clambered to the top of it.
The water wheel shook beneath Willy. With a Low groan, it began to turn, bringing him down closer to the water—where Mr. Frick could jump at him.
Mr. Frick crouched, ready to spring at Willy. As Willy came closer. Mr. Frick lunged, but—thunk!—be sprawled flat on the ground. Annika was sitting on his tail!
At that Instant, Willy leaped off die mill wheel and jumped through the mill window to hide. Mr. Frick shook Annika out his tail and ran inside the mill after Willy.
Annika was right behind him.
Willy crouched on a pile of old junk in the far corner of the mill.
"Gotcha cornered," Mr. Frick said. He started across the floor toward Willy. Then—crack!—the rotten floor boards broke beneath his weight.
"YEOOW!" Mr. Frick howled. He fell through the floor and landed in the mill basement, which was flooded with water.
Willy winked at Annika. "I saw those rotten boards and jumped over them," he said. "I guess Mr. Fricks eyes aren't as good as his nose!"
"Get me out of here," Mr. Frick yelled. He tried to scramble up the rocky basement walls, but slid back down.
"He's making too much noise to be hint." Annika told Willy. "Maybe I've should let him Stay there to cool Off!"
Willy thoughl for moment. He felt sorry for Mr. Frick.
He Could imagine whal it would he like to he trapped in a place that was dark and wet and cold.
"Annika, we should help Mr. Frick," Willy said finally. "It's the right thing to do."
"Well, if you say so," Annika replied. "But I don't trust Mr. Frick. He'll just start chasing you again."
Annika sighed. Then he leaned over to look at Mr. Frick. "Willy and I will help you" he said, "but you have to promise on teacher's honor not to chase Willy. And no crossing your paws!"
"I promise on teacher's honor," Mr. Frick yelped. "Now hurry! I'm ffffnrreeezingr"
Willy began digging through the junk pile, tossing rusty buckets, dusty sacks, and bits of broken wood and chain everywhere, looking for something he could use to help Mr. Frick.
Finally he found a long piece of rope among the junk. Willy firmly planted his paws on one end of the rope. Then he flipped the other cud of the rope down to Mr. Frick in the basement.
"Grab onto the rope with your teeth, Mr. Frick," Willy called. "Then start climbing the wall while Annika and I pull."
Annika and Willy took the rope in their mouths and began to pull while Mr. Frick held on with his teeth and started to climb.
Slowly Mr. Fricks ears appeared, then his nose. Finally, he grabbed the edge of the hole with his front paws. With one last tug, Mr. Frick was out!
The old dog shook himself, scattering water all over. Then he saw Willy. Mr. Frick couldn't help himself. He was a hunting dog—and boyes were what he hunted!
He crouched and growled at Willy.
But Annika jumped in front of Mr. Frick. "You promised on teacher's honor not to chase Willy," he yelled.
Mr. Frick stopped and blinked. He shook his head so hard his ears flapped. "Aw, I forgot," he muttered.
"Mut I promised on teacher's honor, so I won't chase Willy— this time." Mr. Frick ran off, growling angrily. The two friends grinned al each other.
"Helping Mr. Frick was the right thing to do." Annika said.
"But I told you. he's still gonna chase von." Willy laughed. "You were right. But you stopped him, You and me's honor'!"
"We're a great team," Annika said. "I think we should call it 'Willy and Annika's Honor'—in honor of us!"