No-one told him about the dog. He’d had a clear run. The so-called secure complex was barely a challenge, the target easily despatched. The dog had been in the lounge room, cowering. He knew he had to get out, the timing was everything. But he couldn’t leave the dog.

This piece was written in response to a call for a 50-word crime story. Dogs often pop up in my stories, invited or otherwise. Do you have uninvited guests in your writing?

[Photo: dog on shop awning in Gunning, NSW]