He barked and sat, the eyebrow moving up though he didn’t close his mouth. It was the weirdest thing, as if he found her odd. She probably was to a dog that had a master who took care of him. Her heart tugged at the thought. And then that jerk of an owner went and dropped him on the side of the road. She knew what it was like to be alone in the world. “Come on. We’ll go slow.”
Turning, she headed for her horse. When she stopped by Domino, she was pleased to see Dog followed. “Domino, this is Dog.” She grimaced. “Do I need to give you a temporary name?”
Domino lowered her head to a look at Dog then raised it again. For her that was acceptance. Dog sat as if waiting for the next command. He couldn’t be that well trained, could he?
Setting her foot into the stirrup, she threw her leg over Domino’s back and settled into the saddle. “You ready?”
Dog’s butt came back up, the tail smacking back and forth as if ready for whatever she suggested. She clicked her tongue and set Domino into a walk. Dog trotted alongside…for about twenty feet before he stopped to sniff at a bush.
If she kept going would he follow? She let Domino continue then getting nervous as the distance increased, she called out. “Are you coming?”
Dog snapped his head up and bounded after them. Relieved, she grinned. “Nice to have your company.”
Her relief ended fifty feet later when Dog bounded after a gecko on a prickly pear cactus, barking as the critter easily climbed between the needles. “Leave it be. Come on.”
The barking stopped, but it took a few more minutes before the dog gave up and followed. Just as he came even with her, she urged Domino into a trot. As she’d hoped, he ran alongside, moving too fast to notice anything else. When they made it to Cole’s, she took Domino over to the small barn and went inside.
There was a little fridge in the tack area, and she grabbed a cold water for herself then came back out to run the hose for Dog while Domino took advantage of the stop to drink water from the automatic waterer Cole had installed.
Once again, she studied the road to Last Chance looking for the new horses. Where was Garrett? He’d said he’d arrive in the morning. She pulled her cell phone from her back pocket and looked at the time. He had less than an hour left. He didn’t seem like the type who would be late. Then again, she didn’t know him.
She didn’t need to know him either. Just enough to work together. Sure, he was nice to look at, but she moved around for a reason. Handsome or not, he was just a co-worker, like Trace and Logan. For all she knew, he had a wife, and that was just fine.
She looked longingly at Whisper’s path through the desert. Waiting around was never her thing. Staying busy and productive had always been her way. Now, it was what kept her mind from wandering down dark paths she never wanted to go to again.
Back at the main house, the two stalls were ready for the new horses and all the animals were taken care of. She’d even fixed the rail Cyclone broke. There were other projects, but none she could do while alone. She hadn’t painted the new rail yet. She could move a couple horses and do that…ifCole had bought more paint.
She snorted. She was ninety percent sure he’d forgotten, but it was worth a look. Striding back to Domino, she mounted up. “Come on dog, time to go back.”
As he trotted toward her, she noticed dust on the road to the main house. Finally. She looked down for Dog and found him gone. What? “Dog!” Twisting in the saddle, she looked behind her. “Well, shit. Dog!”
He was halfway down Whisper’s path, which let farther into the valley, and he was racing like the hounds of hell were on his tail.
Turning Domino around, she chased after him. “Dog! Come here!”
As if her anxiousness at losing the small animal had communicated itself to her mount, Domino raced faster. She let her have her head as she turned off the well beaten path to follow dog across the Sonoran Desert.
She groaned as the jut of earth that was the back side of the entrance to the old copper mine grew larger as they approached.He wouldn’t.“Come on, Domino. You can catch him.” Her horse sped on.
Suddenly, Dog took a hard left and disappeared, but she’d finally seen what he was after—a jack rabbit. It had to be equal to him in size!
As she and Domino came around the side of the old mine entrance, her worst fear was realized. The dog had gone inside. “Fuck.”
As her horse slowed to a stop, her palms became slick on the reins. She and Domino faced the dark entrance, fallen beams littered the opening. Those were the ones Cyclone was supposed to drag back to the house. She dropped the reins and wiped her hands on her jeans, but it didn’t help. Her heart was racing and her body remembered.
She grasped the pommel and leaned forward. “Dog! Come heeeere.” Her voice cracked, and Domino’s ears laid back. Forcing herself to move one hand to her horse’s head, she patted her. “Sorry, Dom.”
Taking a deep breath, she stared at the opening. It was worse than a cave. It was smaller and already determined to be unsafe. Maybe if she waited, Dog would come back out. He’d eventually left the gecko alone earlier.
As if he knew she waited, a bark sounded from deep inside the mine.
Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. She had to get him out without going in. Gritting her teeth, she threw her leg over Domino and dismounted, but she couldn’t move. Her feet felt cemented to the dirt beneath them. Cupping her hands around her mouth, she tried again. “Come here, Dog! Good boy!”
She waited as silence greeted her. The entire desert was still. The heat rose from the dirt as the sun baked down on it, all creatures safely in the shadows prepared to sleep the day away. Not even a hawk or buzzard moved through the sky.
She stared at the dark opening, memories rooting her to the spot.
The gunfire behind her let her know how close they were. One lucky shot had a bullet ricocheting off a boulder ahead of her. She needed to find a good place where she could pick them off, one at a time. But running uphill made her an easy target.
