Chapter 1 #2
For this afternoon though, he was going to hang with his buddy Thomas and savor the other thing he was most looking forward to on coming home: his newly renovated ’69 Mustang Boss.
A few years ago, while on leave and hanging out at a bar with friends, Kurt had overheard a guy trying to off-load the car.
Even though it needed work, Kurt was a sucker for Mustangs, especially late-sixties models.
The drunker the guy got, the more willing he was to haggle.
When they shook hands on a price, Kurt thought he’d gotten the better end of the deal.
Seeing the car in daylight the next morning, he wasn’t so sure.
The original paint coat had been more rust than red, the tires were threadbare, the leather interior was ripped and in disrepair, and the car went little more than a quarter mile before overheating.
But that was where Thomas came in. Kurt’s Mustang was Thomas’s biggest and best restoration yet.
Thomas had sent him enough photos and video for Kurt to be certain of it.
With a gleaming coat of classic red paint, the rebuilt engine, custom wheels, and an all-new interior, the renovated Mustang looked even better than Kurt could’ve imagined.
Unfortunately, none of the cars idling in the passenger pickup zone was the one he was looking for.
Not that Kurt was surprised. Thomas had never cared much for being on time.
Thankfully, he didn’t keep Kurt waiting long.
Before his ADHD could get the best of him, Kurt heard the Mustang’s purr a few seconds before he spotted it coming up the ramp.
It looked even better than it had in the videos.
A smile broke out across Kurt’s face as Thomas let out three quick honks and pulled into one of the open spaces up the row.
Kurt was winding through the crowd as the little kid closest to him let his cone-holding wrist flop sideways.
As quickly as the kid’s scoop of ice cream fell onto the concrete, the old Lab was ready.
She lunged to the edge of her leash and inhaled the messy treat with a flick of her tongue.
After that, she was once again sitting at attention at her master’s side without him seeming any the wiser.
The kid, who’d at first looked about to cry, started to giggle.
Kurt couldn’t help but laugh as well. God bless the USA.
* * *
Kelsey’s tires hugged the curb as she parked in front of the Sabrina Raven estate.
Megan was already here, at work picking weeds out of the overgrown landscaping.
Hands down, the massive old mansion was the most peculiar item ever donated to the shelter.
Probably ever donated to any shelter anywhere, Kelsey was willing to bet.
She stepped from the car and opened the back door. Orzo hopped out and looked around, sniffing the air as if to affirm they weren’t returning to the strange and scary place he’d just come from.
“Guess who’s with me,” Kelsey called across the wide spans of lawn.
Tossing a handful of weeds behind a bush, Megan headed her way, smiling sympathetically.
Even though she’d seen her yesterday, Kelsey blinked at her supervisor’s swollen belly.
She was still getting used to the idea of pregnant Megan, partially because Megan hadn’t announced her pregnancy until she was starting to show.
Megan met her and Orzo halfway across the yard, motioning in Orzo’s direction. “I’m guessing the home visit didn’t go well?”
“Not very. Have you ever heard of a fruitarian? Because I hadn’t. Not until this afternoon. To each their own, but they seriously wondered if their diet of fruit, seeds, and nuts might work for Orzo.”
Megan laughed. “Oh my. I guess when you enter enough homes, you eventually see it all. I was skeptical about mixing dogs and macaws, but I knew you’d make the right call.”
“Thanks. I recommended our dog-walking program. If I heard right over all the squawking, I think having a dog to take on long walks was what one of the sisters was most excited about.”
“Good thinking,” Megan said, extracting a two-inch-long red downy feather from Kelsey’s thick, blond hair.
Kelsey suspected the reason her bra was itching her skin so badly also had something to do with a macaw feather. “I may be finding those for a while.”
A cloud pushed in front of the sinking sun, making it seem closer to dusk than it was.
Kelsey glanced at the 114-year-old house.
She had stepped up to the task of feeding Sabrina’s cat because she lived closest, not because she was particularly fond of the drafty old place.
It would be nice to have Megan’s company for once while feeding Mr. Longtail.
Kelsey scanned the perimeter and found the gray-and-black Maine coon sprawled out in the far corner of the front porch, grooming his long, glorious fur. She urged a sniffing Orzo along as they headed toward the house. “So what’s up? Why’d you want to meet me here?”
Megan bit her lip and looked away guiltily, which piqued Kelsey’s curiosity. Whatever had brought Megan here this afternoon wasn’t something inconsequential.
“I had an idea. Kind of.”
“You kind of had an idea?”
“I was thinking that since you come here every day to feed Mr. Longtail and staffing’s pretty good at the shelter for the first time in forever, maybe we could put your time here to better use.”
Kelsey was at a loss. She’d certainly never expected Megan to comment in this direction. “You want me to put the five minutes I swing by here on the way home from work to better use?”
Megan smoothed back hair that was already nicely confined in a wrap. “Remember what you said a few weeks ago about what you really wanted for your birthday?”
“A thigh gap?”
A laugh lightened her serious look. “Not that, the other part. About shaking things up and all.”
“I know you’re not saying you want me to spend more time at this creepy, dilapidated house so I can shake things up.
While I’m taking care of an ornery cat that half our employees hope will one day disappear so we can honor Sabrina Raven’s request and not sell her estate until after Mr. Longtail is in cat heaven. ”
“It’s just… What if while we’re waiting for whatever eventuality comes our way regarding this place, we make use of it?”
Kelsey shrugged. “How so?”
“By keeping a few dozen animals here that we can’t keep at the shelter because of insurance regulations.”
“What sort of animals?”
Megan plunged ahead, talking fast, which showed Kelsey how important this was to her.
“I’ve looked over Sabrina’s will. I even ran it by our lawyer this morning.
Her only real stipulation on leaving the house to us was that we care for Mr. Longtail until his eventual passing.
We wouldn’t be in violation as long as he stays on the property and we continue to care for him.
If you remember, Sabrina’s will states we have the right to sell everything left here at our discretion and to use the house as we wish as long as that use doesn’t displace the cat. ”
“I know that. So are you saying you want to bring more cats here?”
Megan chewed on her lip. “I don’t suppose you watched the news last night or this morning?”
“No, I babysat my nieces last night, and it was a string of princess movies. This morning I didn’t have time. Why?”
“There was a large-animal confiscation centered around St. Louis. It’s a really big one. It has expanded to three states so far.”
“Like a ring of cat hoarders?” Kelsey asked playfully.
“I wish. That would be so much easier. It was a dogfighting ring. A big one. They’ve confiscated over 150 dogs already. They’re raiding a few more houses that may be involved.”
Kelsey’s heart sank into her toes. “That’s horrible. It’s beyond horrible. It’s sickening.”
“I know, Kels. These dogs… You know we can’t take any of them at the shelter since they’re fighting dogs and we’re a public facility.”
Kelsey turned away from Megan to take in the house. “And the Sabrina Raven estate isn’t.”
The massive brick mansion could realistically house three times as many animals as the shelter.
If those creaky hardwood floors didn’t give way.
And even though the house was smack-dab in the middle of South City, it was at the tail end of a quiet street, and the yard was a half acre or more.
The backyard was huge, mostly reclaimed by nature, and surrounded by a tall privacy fence.
She could see why Megan had thought of the house.
“No,” Megan said, “it isn’t.” She paused, letting Kelsey take everything in.
Finally, she added, “I made some calls earlier. If we act now, they’ll make sure we get dogs that pass high on sociability and health tests.
Ones that can be rehabbed for certain. The guy who’s taken the lead in the rescue said he’d help find a trainer to do the retraining.
You’d oversee their basic care. And I’m sure volunteers will be stepping up in droves to help.
But you’re the only one I trust to take this on.
I’d do it if I wasn’t nearing my third trimester.
” She cocked an eyebrow hopefully. “There’s going to be a trial, and there’s still so much red tape to sort, but I think in a few months’ time we could start bringing them into the shelter for adoption. ”
Kelsey’s stomach did a flip like when she was in school and about to do an oral report.
Letting out a controlled breath, she caught the gaze of Mr. Longtail.
His yellow-green eyes narrowed into slits, and he gave a twitch of his impressive tail before letting out a hiss, as if expressing his opinion on the idea. Orzo replied with an eager bark.
An untold number of dogs needed lots of loving care. The shelter had been given the perfect place that they could use to step in to help. And Megan trusted her to lead it. The whole thing felt a bit surreal.
But Megan was right. Her birthday wish on turning twenty-seven last week had been that she really wanted to shake things up.
She just hadn’t decided how. Never in her wildest dreams would she have imagined like this.
“I’m in. You know I’m in. I don’t know a thing about rehabbing fighting dogs, but you know I’m in. ”