I have always thought that human beings are a box of surprises. And the world of lodging, in particular, reminds me of this every day. Clients in Black by MasTorrencito
Just when you think you’ve seen it all, just when you think you’ve dealt with the worst customers on the planet, the universe teaches you a lesson: there’ s always worse to come.
The Spanish proverb says: “Others will always come along who will make them good”.
And boy, did they do it.
The Strange Reserve
It all started with a reservation that in itself made me frown. It came through a channel we didn’t even know about, which was already a sign of weirdness. One night only, mid-week, breakfast included.
Normal.
Until they arrived.
And mother of the beautiful love, if I had known what was coming, I would have left a candle burning in every corner of the lodging.
An Unsettling Arrival
It was a silent warning.
Before we saw them, before a car or a human voice sounded, the dogs felt it.
First one of mine, then another. Then those of the guests staying with us. And within seconds, a symphony of barking took over the place. It wasn’t playful barking or the usual warning. They were alarm barks.
My hair stood on end.
We didn’t know what was coming, but the dogs did.
I decided to lock up mine. Four dogs, on full alert. Normally, when new people come, they get excited, wag their tails, sniff around… but not this time.
Something didn’t add up.
And then I saw them.
They walked in perfect synchrony, straight, confident, imposing. As if the Men in Black movie itself had decided to materialize in my rural lodging.
Dressed entirely in black.
Leather jackets, tight pants, boots that echoed with every step. Tall. Strong. And with sunglasses even though the light was already beginning to fade with the sunset.
But what was really impressive were the dogs.
They were not dogs. They were beasts.
Two Czechoslovakian wolves.
If you’ve never seen one in person, imagine a cross between a mountain wolf and a German shepherd, but with the bearing of an animal that knows it rules the world. Big, muscular, with a dagger-sharp gaze.
They did not walk. They paraded.
One on each side of the pair, without a visible leash, but completely synchronized with them.
The feeling was clear: If you pass them on the street, you change sidewalks. Yes or yes.
The guests, who were on the terrace, remained silent. Some even shifted uncomfortably in their chairs.
I cleared my throat.
-Hello. Can I help you with anything?
The man neither smiled nor made any pretense of politeness.
-We are looking for the reception.
I nodded my head.
-This way.
And then I noticed another key detail: the dogs were not neutered.
In my housing we have very clear rules about that.
When someone books, they are informed three times:
📧 In the confirmation email.
📱 In the welcome WhatsApp.
📩 In the online check-in email.
And yet, here they were.
I looked directly at them.
-Have you read the terms and conditions?
-Yes.
-¿Y…?
The man paused before responding:
-Well… they are competition dogs. They are not going to play or be loose or anything like that. We are on our way to France and this place was on our way, so we gave it a try.
There it was. The classic “let’s see if it sticks.”
I crossed my arms.
-Rather than testing, you have ignored what we tell you.
The guy kept his expression impassive.
-Can we stay or not?
First pulse launched.
-If you always have them restrained and controlled, yes.
-Well, that’s it. Which is our room?
The Smallest Room
On any other day, if I had larger rooms available, I would try to accommodate clients better at no extra cost. But these… not these.
They were going to sleep where they themselves had chosen.
The second floor.
The smallest room.
The one specified for one dog.
I led them to the door.
The man frowned.
-And you want me to get in here?
-It is what you have reserved. There were others available.
-But here, with these two dogs… it’s small.
-Yes. It says it on the web when you book. With measurements and photos.
-I thought you were going to give us another one.
Second pulse.
-I give you what you paid for.
-But do you have others free?
-Yes.
-And can’t you give us a bigger one for the same price?
-No.
Silence.
The woman, until then a silent shadow, spoke for the first time.
-This is the one I told you when we booked.
Wow, she was alive!
The guy sighed.
-Well, we’ll take this one.
Very good.
-Breakfast is included.
-We will not have breakfast.
Perfect.
The Last Problem
Not even ten minutes had passed when, from the terrace, I saw the two wolves on the loose, advancing calmly but with an imposing presence.
I stood up suddenly.
-Butwhat is this!
They were not playing. They were not attacking. They were simply walking. As if patrolling their new territory.
I went straight to his room.
I knocked on the door. Nothing.
I called back.
-I‘m coming!
The man poked his head out.
-What do you want?
-Your dogs are loose on the terrace.
-And what do you want me to do, tie them up?
-That’s what you said. Always tied. So please do, or I’ll have to ask you to leave.
Silence.
He looked at me. I looked at him.
He sighed.
-Okay.
He closed the door.
I went down to the terrace and ……. There they were.
The doggies.
Firm. Upright. Vigilant.
The air was still thick with tension. The other customers stood still, almost breathless, not daring to move too much. It was as if we had all been trapped in a documentary about predators.
All except Maky.
Oh, Maky…
Maky is one of those dogs who live in his own world. A clueless. A free soul. A happy unconscious who believes that everything and everyone is his friend.
So, without a second thought, he approached the Czech wolves.
Wagging his tail like a fan, with that blind, fearless enthusiasm that only happy dogs have.
And that’s when I thought two things:
- This dog is crazy.
- I am left without a dog.
The scene was heart-stopping. Maky, wagging his tail, bringing his muzzle fearlessly closer, and the two wolves tense as bows about to shoot.
But then… something happened.
The wolves did not react as I expected.
First, they stiffened their postures more, watching Maky suspiciously, as if they didn’t know what to do with such positive energy. Then, little by little, their ears relaxed. Their tails, previously stiff, began to move very slowly.
Maky had succeeded.
As if he had flipped an invisible switch, the wolves began to relax.
I could not believe it.
Were these the same intimidating-looking dogs that looked like they were trained for combat?
It seemed that, for the first time in a long time, they were no longer on guard.
And then Maky did what he does best:
He tried to play.
He bent down, wagged his tail even harder and let out a high-pitched bark, as if to say, “Come on, come on, let’s run!”
The wolves looked at each other.
One of them turned its head towards its owner, as if waiting for an order that never came.
And then Mastitwo appeared .
This is when I really thought it was going to get messy.
Because if Maky is the happy dog, Mastitwo is the boss of the pen. A mastiff who, although good-natured, does not tolerate nonsense.
I saw him approaching and prepared to intervene.
But…
The wolves did not see it as a threat.
They smelled him, he smelled them, and within seconds, there they were, all four of them wagging their tails.
It looked like an impromptu dog party, a peace agreement sealed with wiggling butts and curious snouts.
And then the unthinkable happened .
From one moment to the next, without warning, the four of them shot out.
PPPUMMMM!
A single instant, an invisible spark, and the four dogs ran off as if they had received an injection of pure happiness.
They went down the stream, jumping through the water, splashing fearlessly, as if they had been friends all their lives.
The customers on the terrace, who until a moment ago hardly dared to move, were now gawking.
The tension that had filled the air suddenly disappeared, replaced by a scene worthy of an advertisement for freedom and nature.
If I had known earlier, I would have plugged a cable into them to charge my batteries with the energy they were releasing.
They were running, jumping, chasing each other, challenging each other as if they were in a wild dog race. The show was incredible.
The wolves, who until a few minutes ago looked like fierce warriors of a dark clan, now looked like giant puppies enjoying their first afternoon off in years.
The Moment Everything Changed
The air was still charged with that vibrant, wild energy. The dogs were still running rampant in the stream, enjoying their newfound freedom. Water splashed with each stride, their paws leaving furrows in the wet earth as they spun, chased and pranced as if they had never done anything else in life.
I was watching with a smile, enjoying the show, when suddenly a deep voice interrupted the scene.
-Whereare my dogs?
I turned my head and there he was.
The Man in Black, the same one who had arrived with that rigid, serious attitude, with the look of one who never leaves anything to chance. His posture was still firm, but in his tone there was something… different.
I shrugged with a smile.
-Downstairs, running with mine.
His brow furrowed in disbelief.
-Thatis impossible… I have not given them any orders.
I chuckled under my breath and nodded my head.
-Well,look at them, they’re having a blast.
The man looked down into the stream. His body tensed.
And then I saw it. He didn’t believe it.
His dogs, those disciplined wolves, trained with almost military precision, were prancing and rolling in the grass like two uncontrolled puppies.
Without expecting it, the man whistled.
Strong. Precise.
An instant later, the two wolves turned their heads, stopped dead in their tracks, and ran toward him with the same discipline they had shown when they arrived. It was impressive to see them in action.
But when they reached their owner… his expression changed.
They went from overflowing happiness to the usual stiffness. They lowered their heads slightly, their bodies tensed, as if waiting for a command.
He stared at them, as if trying to understand what had just happened.
I expected anything. A reproach, an order to bring them in, maybe even an apology for the out-of-control.
But no.
The man reached out his hands and, with a gentleness I had never seen him use before, stroked each one on the head.
Then he leaned over a little and, in a low voice, said something in their ears.
I don’t know what words he used. But it was magical.
The dogs looked at each other, then looked at mine and, without further ado, jumped back into play like there was no tomorrow.
As if that whistle had never existed.
As if they were, for the first time in a long time… dogs just being dogs.
I stared at the man, still surprised.
He, without looking up from his animals, sighed deeply.
–Really… this is paradise. It’s the first time I’ve seen my dogs like this.
I crossed my arms and smiled.
-Do you knowwhy?
He shook his head.
-No… tell me.
–Because you’ve relaxed too. And they notice it. Today, for the first time… they are just dogs playing with other dogs.
The man remained silent. He looked at his wolves, who were now fully integrated with the others, no hierarchy, no orders, just enjoying themselves.
And then, without further ado, he turned and asked:
-Can Ihave a drink?
–You know where the bar is. You know where the bar is.
He got up, walked to the bar and poured himself a beer.
A small gesture, but full of meaning.
It was at that moment that she arrived.
The woman who had so far hardly spoken. She approached him slowly and said something in a low voice. He nodded. They exchanged a glance, and suddenly, everything changed.
Something in his expression softened. He was someone else.
They sat at the table with us, chatted with the other customers, laughed quietly. The Czech wolves ran free with the rest of the dogs.
And what had begun as a tense, difficult and strange day, ended up being one of those unforgettable afternoons at Mas Torrencito.
Relaxed customers.
Dogs playing.
As it should be.
And I, watching from the terrace, could only think how ignorant we humans are.
We spend our lives believing that we know everything, that we understand the rules of the world, that we can measure behavior with labels and standards.
And in the end, the dogs come along and show us what really matters.
The simplicity of a gesture.
The confidence of a tail wagging.
And the magic of a friend who simply wants to play.
From MasTorrencito we wish you a good day and may your dogs be with you!!!!
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