“Definitely. And Chanel, too,” Cora said, hoping to remind them of her reason for being there.
“Right! Chanel. May we have the key?” Eli asked.
“I’m breaking some rules doing this, but you’re my dude, Eli. I trust you.” Teddy handed over the key, and Cora gave him her widest smile. He pointed at Cora. “Watch this one. She looks like trouble.”
“Oh, I won’t take my eyes off her, trust me,” Eli said as they headed across the lobby to the elevator.
“Thank you so much for doing this,” Cora said once the doors closed behind them. “I totally would’ve taken Chanel, but my roommate, Maggie, just adopted our foster dog, and three dogs would be a one-way ticket to eviction-ville.”
“You foster! That’s so awesome. I always wanted to try that.”
“Well, you sort of are right now.” Cora decided to work the back door approach with Eli. “Chanel can hang with you for a bit while I try to find her a forever home. I’ll be quick, I promise.”
“Yeah, okay. Makes sense.”
“That is, unless you fall in love with her.”
He looked directly into Cora’s eyes and paused. “That could happen.”
The elevator chimed their floor. They stepped into the hallway and instead of keening wails, Cora heard nothing. She looked at Eli with wide eyes.
“Yeah, I know,” he replied, reading her thoughts. “It’s eerie. Chanel has been completely silent all day. I hope she’s okay.”
Cora fumbled with the lock on the doorknob and still heard nothing from inside the apartment. “I’m sort of freaking out that it’s so quiet in there. And I can’t open this damn ... door...” Cora grew frustrated and jiggled the knob helplessly.
“Please, let me do it.” Eli slid the key in the lock effortlessly and then turned the knob. “After you.”
Cora flipped the light switch by the door and was shocked that the piles had multiplied in the week since she’d last been there. The apartment smelled of spoiled food, urine, and unwashed dog. Cora could only imagine how horrified Beth Ann’s parents must have been to discover their daughter living in such squalor.
“Oh wow, this is really bad. Worse than I imagined,” Eli said, stepping in gingerly.
“I know, it’s awful. I’m mad at myself that I didn’t do more to help her.”
“Don’t blame yourself, Cora. You’re her dog trainer, not her therapist.”
“Yeah, but I saw how it was in here, and how unbalanced Beth Ann seemed, and I couldn’t change it.”
Eli turned to face her. “Okay, so what could you have done? Report Beth Ann to Animal Control? Get her committed? It’s not like you had a ton of options.”
“I know, but maybe if I’d been, like ... a friend, or something. Maybe she would’ve reached out to me before things got too bad?”
“From what I know about Beth Ann, being her friend wouldn’t be easy. She’s a little kooky. Obviously.” He gestured to the filthy apartment.
Cora frowned. “I just feel like I should’ve helped her more.”
“Well, now you can help Chanel,” Eli said with finality. “Where is our stinky little friend?”
The pair worked their way through the rooms, weaving through the boxes and dirty plates, calling out to Chanel.
“This is unlike her, she always comes running to the door when I show up. How are we going to find her in this mess?”
“She’s right here,” Eli called out.
Cora walked to where he was standing. Chanel was wedged beneath the couch with her back foot sticking out. “She really knows how to disappear, huh?” He knelt down. “Hey, little alien. Will you come out?” He touched her paw, and it disappeared beneath the couch. “Crap. Now what? Want me to lift the couch?”
“No, no, let’s wait a bit. She’ll come out in her own time. I don’t want to traumatize her any more. Do you mind?”
“Of course not. My next twenty-four hours are dedicated to her. I even took tomorrow off.”
