“Military, which branch?” Elowen asked.
“Army.”
“Hello,” Griz said as he walked over.
“Griz just retired from the Navy,” Elowen said.
The guy laughed and moved to Griz, reaching out to shake his hand.
"Hello, I'm Scott, my friends call me Link. At first, they said I was the missing link, then they changed it because I kept everyone together on missions, making sure all the supplies we needed were in place."
“Nice, Griz, because I look like a grizzly bear.”
“You do. So your wife gave me the card for your rental. Nice looking place.”
Griz nodded. "She did a great job with it. All the woodwork, the construction was all hers."
“Very nice. I’ll get out of your hair. Next year’s vacation will be better. Thank you for being so kind.”
Scott left, and Calla turned to go back to the vegetable garden. She paused when Elowen reached out and touched her shoulder.
“Hey, are you okay?”
Calla shrugged. “I am, but when he showed up, I was scared. I don’t know if that was a normal reaction or not.”
Elowen’s lips thinned. “Honestly, if I didn’t have Knuckles, I would have grabbed a firearm before I came out. The guy didn’t look armed, so I was fairly sure Knuckles could take care of him if he tried anything. So no, being afraid when a stranger walks up like that out here is normal.”
Calla nodded, glad her reaction wasn’t abnormal. “I need to learn to trust myself.”
Elowen pulled her into a hug. “It will happen. You’re doing fine.”
She relaxed a little, then laughed as she stepped back. "Thank you. I'm glad I'm here. Being out here in nature helps."
“Good.”
“Hey, it’s almost time to leave to go help Thario,” Griz called out.
Excitement tickled Calla's belly, and she turned to race over to the car, but then she remembered the basket of vegetables she had picked and went to retrieve it.
After bringing the vegetables inside, she washed her hands and then headed out to the car. It was weird how excited she was to see Thario, given that she didn't really know him well. They’donly met recently. It wasn’t like she’d even known him for a month, and yet she couldn’t imagine never seeing him again.
Losing her connection to Thario would be the worst thing she could imagine. Having him in her life had made everything better. Now, she just needed to figure out if what she felt for him was genuine, and if it could grow into more.
Chapter 32
Thario left the vet,happy that Hope didn’t have a chip identifying her as another person’s pet. The vet estimated she was around eleven months old. She was malnourished, but for the most part healthy. She would need some training, which he’d already planned on doing.
Hope jumped up into the truck, and he scratched her head. "You ready to move to our new place?"
Hope barked, and he chuckled. When he got back to the place he was staying, Frog wasn’t happy with him for only taking Hope.
“Sorry, Frog, but Hope needed to see the doctor.”
Frog narrowed his eyes like he didn't care what Thario's excuse was. He didn't like it. He sat next to Frog and petted his head. After a moment, Frog sighed, then rested his head on Thario's leg.
“There you go, buddy. I do love you, but sometimes you’re going to have to accept that you have to stay at home. I promise, I’ll take you everywhere important.”
Frog let out a soft bark, then moved to Hope, sniffing her. He knew Frog could smell the veterinarian's office on Hope.They'd given her a few shots to make sure she was covered for things like rabies and illnesses. At least she was getting better treatment now. The vet said he thought her fur would grow in more even once she had regular care and food.
