“No!”Sunny lunged in front of my gun, screaming at the dogs. “No!Settle!Settle!”
The speed of the charge slowed, the barking did not.
“Put your gun down, Jagg!”
I lowered my Glock as she dropped to her knees in front of me.
“Settle.” She soothed, opening her arms to her dogs. “Settle, babies,shhh,calm. Come here.Shhh.”
The dogs immediately relaxed, either remembering me, or sensing the sudden calmness in their master. Probably a little of both. The barking slowed to whimpers as she stroked them.
“That’s it.Shhh.Good babies.” Her voice cracked, followed by a sniff.
My heart broke. Her sanctuary—her family—had been violated.
My throat tightened. I wanted to hurt whoever had done this.
Burn their world to the ground.
Sunny surged off the floor, her eyes popping. “Brutus.”
“Where is he?”
“By the river. I don’t bring him up to the house until bedtime.” She ran out the door.“Come.”
I wasn’t sure if the command was for me or the dogs, but I followed. There were immediate things that needed to be done in that house, like search for trace evidence, but at that moment, the most important thing to Sunny was her dogs—and surprisingly, I cared, too.
We ran down the trail, Sunny leading her pack while I hung back a few steps, double-gripping my gun, tuning my senses to the woods around us. The moonlight led the way, bright enough that we didn’t need flashlights. A breeze blew at my back, a few withered leaves flittering down from the trees, sending me jumping at each one.
Sunny’s pace quickened as the musty smell of the river grew closer. I could practically hear her heartbeat on the breeze.
The trail opened to rushing water and the sound of her feet pounding the river rocks. This time, I pushed to a sprint and pulled ahead of her. If something had happened to Brutus, I wanted to be the first to see it. I wanted to shield her as much as I could. I wanted to be there for her the moment her world shattered. My first zing of panic came when the dog didn’t bark as we barreled down the river. I focused on the black silhouette in the cage.
Move.
Bark.
Do something!
As I neared the cage, two silver eyes sparkled in the moonlight. Brutus stood, wide neck, thick chest, muscular legs, all in one piece. His eyes locked on mine as Sunny threw open the cage door. Relief washed over me. He wasokay. I found my gaze drifting to his injured shoulder, hoping it was okay, too.
I blocked Athena, Max and Tango from getting any closer.
“Brutus baby, are you okay? It’s okay. Settle, baby.”
Sunny slowly reached out her palm and dropped to her knees in one fluid movement. “Good boy. Good baby.”
The dog finally moved, backing up while keeping those electric eyes on me. I don’t think I’ve ever seen hair darker than Sunny’s, until seeing his. Brutus would be almost invisible in a pitch-black night.
The other dogs hung back, respecting the pit. Or fearing it, perhaps.
Once I was sure everything was okay, I made the call to the station, where Tanya promised to have someone there within ten minutes. I took note of the time, then shoved my phone into my pocket.
Sunny pushed to a stance, waiting to exhale until she was fully upright. She turned to me, not with fear or anger in her eyes, but gratitude. Thankfulness. She had her babies. Her dogs were okay.
Her face softened and a soft smile crossed it.
In a time that anyone else would be riddled with panic, fear, or rage, Sunny Harper smiled. Her car had been keyed, her home destroyed, but in that moment, Sunny found the light. She found the one reason to be thankful and clung onto it with such grace and beauty.
