Lake and I ran after him, then watched as he jumped the gate. I opened it to let Lake through, and went to see what was going on.
“It’s okay, girlies, we’re here,” Cook spoke as he held the light to the dogs.
Rose and Blanche were standing guard while Sophia and Dorothy licked something on the ground.
Lake gasped. “Is that…?”
“That’s a foal. Call Sebastian,” I told him, and went to gently move the dogs away from the baby.
“Doesn’t look very old,” Cook stated, crouching next to the poor animal.
“Nope. Less than a week, I’d say. Really bad condition, too.”
I picked the foal up and started toward the stable.
“Want me to check around?” Cook asked, gesturing toward the road.
“Nah, no use. They’re long gone.”
“Who’s long gone?” Lake fell into step beside me. “Seb is coming.”
“Good. And whoever dumped this one.” I nodded at the foal in my arms. It was cold and listless, but I could hear its breathing was strong, so I hoped its heart would be, too.
“What breed do you think it is?” Cook showed us the way until we got to the first lights at the corner of the office, then gave the flashlight to Lake.
“Horse, not a pony, that’s about all I can tell.”
“I’ll go turn the lights on.” Cook jogged ahead to prep a stall.
“Has this happened before?” Lake sounded distraught.
“People dropping an animal off? Yeah, two other foals before this one, more than a year apart, and a pregnant mare once, before I got here.” I started to feel the strain of carrying the baby, so I hoisted it higher.
“Need me to help?”
“Nah, I’m good, we’re almost there.”
I lowered the foal onto a pile of fresh bedding Cook had quickly tossed in. He came in after us with one of those emergency foil blankets.
I took it and unfolded it, before handing it back to Cook. “Here, wrap this around it. Lake, can you go fill some hot water bottles. There are some in the first aid cabinet.”
Lake got to his feet and I made eye contact with him.
“I love you,” I mouthed at him.
He smiled widely. He mouthed back, “I love you, too,” and then vanished to do as Cook had instructed.
“Let’s rub—” I took a closer look “—hera bit under the blanket. See if we can get the circulation going.”
And so it went. Another chaotic moment, another animal we would do our best to help. Except this time, from now on, I’d have Lake at my side. I didn’t need to wait for him to sign the papers, I knew he wanted this place, thislife, as much as I did.
Epilogue
Lake
The gate was still closed, but the various floral arrangements were spread around the edges of the yard in spots where they wouldn’t be in the way.
There was a banner tacked onto the office building’s wall that welcomed our imminent guests.
