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GRAFTON, Mass. - Bob and Kathy Benoit know that they can rebuild their home on Countryside Road. They just aren't sure they can fill the holes left in their hearts by the deaths of their dogs.
Benji and Emmie, the couple's Shih-tzus, perished in the Jan. 13 fire, which destroyed the Benoits' home at 23 Countryside Road.
"They were only a year old and they were as cute as hell," Bob Benoit said. "The house, our things, that's not important. Those little guys, they didn't do anything wrong."
Joseph Edward Mullen, 29, of 37 Stowe Road, was charged with arson after confessing to Grafton Police that he entered the home, poured gasoline over the living room couch and set it ablaze.
Missing from the charges: any reference to the dogs in the next room, or the couple's two cats. One cat is still missing; the other was rescued from the basement by Grafton Building Inspector Bob Berger, who brought it to a nearby ambulance for oxygen.
"I was really surprised with the DA's office because there were no animal cruelty charges," Benoit said. "The pets didn't deserve this."
The couple is working with the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals with the hope of getting animal cruelty charges added.
Almost as overwhelming, in the fire's aftermath, was the support from the community. Benoit's voice choked as he recalled the drawings given to him by neighborhood children -- one card depicted the fire, followed by a drawing of a man behind bars, guarded by a superhero.
"Stuff like that just rips your heart out," Benoit said.
A fund started by friends of the family at the Grafton Suburban Credit Union has been a great help, Benoit said. He was stunned to find that friends and people they did not even know would be so generous.
"It's so humbling," he said. "I'm having a hard time with it. I'm used to giving help, not getting help. But we're so grateful to everyone."
Help has come from unexpected places. After his cat was taken to Tufts University's animal hospital for treatment, the family was told they didn't have to pay for its care.
The Benoits have torn down their former home and the foundation is surrounded by a six-foot fence. The smokey smell that had permeated the neighborhood no longer lingers.
Benoit still comes by regularly, to visit Benji and Emmie's graves and hold out hope that his missing cat survived the fire and has been hiding.
"Bricks and mortar, we can rebuild," he said. "But we can never get them back, and that's what breaks my heart."
While it might be appalling, I understand the legal reason for not adding animal cruelty charges. Should they be added, it opens the door for defense counsel to possibly get some of the more serious charges reduced and have him plead out on the cruelty, which are misdemeanors in our legal system.