Saturday afternoon. Baby Gio sleeps peacefully in his crib in his bedroom.
On the other side of the room, Ricky and Sarah were having a cup of coffee.
Suddenly, they heard a loud banging and crying from the child.
Wow! Wow!
And they heard the angry barking and growling of their 3-year-old Golden Retriever, Max.
The couple hurried to the room.
When they opened the door, Sarah was almost stunned.
They saw Max. He was biting Baby Gio’s clothes and trying to pull the boy to the floor out the door! Gio was crying and had a scratch on his arm.
“MAX! “Get him out!” shouted Ricky.
Ricky kicked Max in the side with all his might.
AWOOO! Dog screaming. Max let go of the boy and crouched in the corner, ears down and shaking.
Sarah immediately picked up the baby.
“Oh my God! There’s a Riot! He killed his son, Ricky. He’s been stunned!”
Ricky was furious. He grabbed a broom and slapped Max.
“You are a shameless dog!” Are you going to eat my ass off?! Get out!”
Ricky dragged Max out of the house and locked him in a back cage.
Sarah kept her eyes on Gio until he settled down. He cleaned up the wound that was superficial.
Ricky, however, made his decision.
“Sarah, tomorrow, I’m going to take Max to the Vet,” Ricky said seriously, trembling with anger.
“I’m going to euthanize him. He’s dangerous. I think it was crazy. Maybe next time he will be able to kill George.”
Sarah cried in agreement.
“Yes… Our children are more important. As much as I love Max, I can’t forgive him for what he did.”
It was night. The house was silent. They heard Max’s soft moans outside, as if they were crying.
Ricky went into the room where the incident happened to clean up the messy bed and get Gio’s belongings. They moved out of the room because of the trauma.
When Ricky entered, he smelled something strange.
“Why does it smell… “Are you ready?” whispered Ricky.
He turned on the light.
He walked over to Gio’s crib to pick up the pillow.
That’s where he got cold.
Behind the crib, he saw the wall darkening. The electric fan outlet is melting and blackening.
And what’s even more horrifying:
A portion of the curtain caught fire and fell inside the crib. The very pillow where Gio’s head was lying earlier was on fire and had a hole!
It looked like the outlet had short-circuited, sparked, and the curtain had caught fire that had fallen on the pillow. The fire only died on its own because the fabric had run out, but it left a trail of death.
Ricky’s knees trembled. He let go of the pillow.
He realized what had happened: If Gio had been there when the burning curtain fell, his son’s face would have been on fire.
That’s why Max pulled Gio along.
That is why it is a shambles.
That was why the boy was in a coma—because of the dog’s panic to get Gio away before the fire fell on his face.
“Diyos ko…” hagulgol ni Ricky.
“HE DIDN’T BITE… HE SAVED MY SON!”
“SARAH!!!” sigaw ni Ricky. “SARAH!!! MALI TAYO!!!”
Sarah ran into the bedroom and Ricky showed her the burnt pillow and melting pot. The couple was overwhelmed with remorse.
The dog they kicked…
The dog they snatched…
And the dog they plan to kill tomorrow…
He was a hero.
It endured the pain and anger of the master, only to save the baby.
Ricky ran out of the house. It was raining heavily.
He opened the cage.
Max cowers in the corner, terrified of being hit again. He covers his face with paws.
Ricky knelt down in the mud and hugged the wet dog tightly.
“Max! Sorry boy! Sorry!” iyak ni Ricky.
“I’m sorry if I hurt you! I’m sorry if I didn’t believe you! You’re the one who saved Gio! You’re a good boy! You’re the best boy!”
Max felt the master’s love. Even though the blow hurt his body, he gently licked the tears on Ricky’s cheek and the tail called. There was no anger in the dog’s heart, just love.
They took Max inside. He dried them, fed them his favorite steak, and laid them down next to them.
From then on, they never doubted Max. He was now Gio’s official guardian—the hero who couldn’t speak, but was willing to lay down his life for the family.