Chief Flynn's words echoed in her mind: "Sometimes that's what healing takes. Time and patience." As Beth made her way to the staff room to get ready for her shift, Firefly's story stayed with her. Douglas had spent hours just sitting outside her stall, never pushing, never forcing - just being present until the frightened mare learned to trust.
Beth thought about her own early days here, how she'd flinched away from kindness, certain she was too broken to heal. And now look at her - she had friends who cared about her, a job that gave her purpose, colleagues who trusted her judgment enough to include her in meetings with police chiefs. The transformation felt as miraculous as Firefly's—and just as hard-won.
Beth smiled, touching the clinic badge clipped to her scrubs. Life certainly had taken some unexpected turns, and with each passing day, she felt more eager to see what came next.
Chapter 13
Beth looked up from organizing the evening's files as the automatic door swooshed open. Nathan and Harper burst through, faces flushed and breathing hard. Between them, they half-dragged a massive black dog on what appeared to be a length of climbing rope. Beth had been to their home several times, visiting with their two adorable jackalopes.
"Help!" Harper's normally quiet voice carried an edge of panic.
Beth rushed around the reception desk, medical training kicking in as she scanned for injuries. But as she got closer, something about the dog made her pause. On closer inspection it appeared to be a puppy, despite the fact that it was approximately the size of a small pony.
Those paws could double as dinner plates. And despite the animal's intimidating size, there was something distinctly puppyish about its expression and movement.
"Oh!" Beth couldn't help the surprised laugh that escaped as the creature lost its balance, and flopped onto the floor with an undignified "whuff." Its shaggy black tail thumped against the tile as it grinned up at them, pink tongue lolling.
"That's... that's not a full-grown dog, is it?" Beth crouched down, keeping her movements slow and gentle. The puppy's head was nearly level with her shoulder even lying down.
"No." Harper's voice carried equal parts exasperation and amusement. "At least, you'd think?"
"It just showed up on our front porch," Nathan explained, still slightly out of breath.
The puppy rolled onto his back, long legs waving in the air as he wiggled on the floor. Despite being nearly the size of a small bear, his uncoordinated movements and goofy expression were pure baby animal.
Beth knelt beside the massive puppy, running her fingers through the thick black fur. A sudden tingling sensation, like static electricity, made her pull her hand back. Frowning, she leaned closer, parting the dense outer coat to examine the undercoat more carefully.
Her breath caught. Tiny embers danced through the dark fur, like embers caught in a breeze.
Beth straightened up slowly, keeping one hand on the puppy's shoulder to steady herself. "Nathan, Harper - I think we'd better get him into an exam room." She kept her voice deliberately calm, not wanting to alarm either the humans or the unusual creature sprawled across their lobby floor.
The couple exchanged solemn, worried glances, and nodded in agreement.
Locking the outer doors - they were officially closed now anyway - Beth watched another flicker of red dance through the puppy's fur as she led the way back to Exam Room 2. The sparks reminded her of watching a campfire, the way embers would float up into the night sky.
"Okay big guy, let's get you up on the table." Beth positioned herself at the puppy's chest while Nathan and Harper took his hindquarters. "On three - one, two, three!"
Even with all three of them working together, lifting the massive pup felt like trying to hoist a small boulder. Beth's arms strained as they managed to get him onto the exam table. She estimated he had to weigh close to a hundred pounds, despite clearly being just a puppy given his oversized paws and uncoordinated movements.
The pup's huge pink tongue darted out, catching Beth's cheek before she could dodge. His enthusiasm nearly knocked her over before Nathan managed to gently redirect the eager pup's attention.
"Ack! No, no!" She laughed, wiping puppy drool from her face. "I didn't need a bath."
"At least he's friendly," Harper commented.
"He's definitely still growing into those paws," Beth observed as she helped the gangly pup find his balance again. He rewarded her by attempting to lick her hands, face, and any other part of her he could reach. "When he does, he's going to be so enormous I can't even imagine!"
The exam room door opened as Dr. Shelton stepped in, his eyebrows shooting up at the sight of the massive black puppy taking up most of the exam table.
"What in the..." He moved closer, professional curiosity overtaking his initial surprise. "That's not like any breed I've ever seen." His hands moved with practiced efficiency as he examined the pup's ears and eyes. "The skull structure is all wrong for a Newfoundland or a Saint Bernard. A Black Russian Terrier, maybe, but…"
A red spark danced through the heavy midnight-dark fur. Troy jerked back, nearly colliding with the cabinet behind him. His moss-green eyes narrowed as he glared first at the puppy, then at Beth, Nathan, and Harper in turn.
“Oh, hell no." Troy yanked out his phone like it had personally wronged him. "Why me? Why is it always me who gets the weird ones?"
He jabbed at the screen with more force than necessary, holding the phone to his ear while keeping a wary eye on the sparking puppy.
Beth caught Harper's eye, pressing her lips together to suppress a laugh as Troy muttered into his phone. Nathan covered his mouth with his hand, shoulders shaking with barely contained mirth. The three of them shared knowing looks. Harper ducked her head, hiding her smile behind her curtain of foxy-red hair. Beth busied herself pretending to examine the climbing rope they'd used as a makeshift leash, while Nathan suddenly became very interested in studying the educational posters on the wall about heartworm prevention.
