The Art of Racing in the Rain Chapters 31-35 Summary

How It All Goes Down

  • Okay, back to the story.
  • Zoë returns to school, and during her time there, Denny takes Enzo to a coffee shop where they meet a rotund and compact man named Mark Fein. It turns out he's going to become Denny's attorney in the coming proceedings.
  • Mark Fein also refuses to call Zoë by her first name, which is both weird and shows how little he actually cares about this case. Maybe.
  • Or we could just be projecting.
  • At least Mark takes the time to notice what a handsome dog Enzo is, so that's something.
  • Mark is prepared to help Denny, but he doesn't come cheap.
  • Lawyers usually don't.
  • While Denny goes to work at the car repair shop, Enzo sometimes joins him there, getting treated like a shop dog, an unofficial member of the work pack.
  • One day, while Denny is at work, a pair of police officers appear, carrying clubs and looking menacing, and the scene goes about as smoothly as we thought it would.
  • Denny is arrested on the charge of rape of a child in the third degree.
  • We told you that little barnacle Annika would be important later.
  • Need we say it?
  • Okay, we'll say it: ruh-roh.
  • Enzo explains that as a dog, he misses much of the process, including the court proceedings over last the three years. Denny has been embroiled in a custody battle for Zoë and a lawsuit involving the rape charges set against him.
  • So let's get this straight. Enzo can't go into hospitals, and he can't go into court. What is this?
  • It's like he's a dog or something.
  • Enzo recounts for us the legal processes and the following events using a mix of secondhand information and his background knowledge of Law & Order (including its three spin-offs), as well as The Rockford Files, Grand Prix, and Colombo.
  • What, no Judge Judy?
  • Maybe Enzo doesn't like CBS.
  • After Mark Fein bails Denny out of jail, where the police were keeping him after his arrest, Mark demands to know what this new lawsuit is all about, and we all have a pretty good idea.
  • We told you to remember the name Annika.
  • That little barnacle.
  • Mark impresses upon Denny the enormity of the situation, and how this new information could change everything in his case against the Twins.
  • Hasn't the poor guy been through enough?
  • Continuing on the path of sunshine and happiness, Denny comes to terms with the possibility that he could lose Zoë.
  • Mike and Tony drop Enzo off and encourage Denny to open up and talk about things. There's nothing wrong with expressing emotion, they say.
  • They're telling us? We've been crying since page 1.
  • Denny turns down the offer of solace and cuddles and instead turns to (dun, dun, dun) alcohol.
  • Enzo might be a patient dog, but he can't take Denny turning into his own self-pitying soap opera, so he barks sharply at him, which is his way of saying, "Cool it, man."
  • What Enzo's really saying is "Don't do it, Denny."
  • And we're inclined to agree.
  • Denny realizes that if your dog's disappointed in you, you should probably stop doing whatever you're doing—good call—so he puts the alcohol away.
  • Enzo forgives Denny this brief slip, and the two watch family videos together as they formulate a plan for how to get through this.
  • Are we sure this isn't a soap opera after all? Hallmark would love the rights to this.