Chapter 5
Robert had to get ahold of Lady’s owners to tell them that Maisie had found her collar and learn if they actually had her in hand or not. He called the clinic. “Hi, this is Dr. Robert Campbell, calling about a patient.”
“Hey, Doctor, we miss you already,” his former vet tech said. “What do you need?”
“A friend found Lady’s collar. She’s a West Highland terrier. I believe Abercromby is her owner. Can you check? I need to try and reach them and see if she’s missing out here or she just lost her collar and they have her.”
“Sure. Let me pull their record up. Here it is. Bruce and Mary Abercromby are Lady’s owners.” Allan gave Robert their phone number and address in Edinburgh. “Unless they moved without telling us, they still live here. Maybe they were just visiting your neck of the woods.”
“Thanks, Allan. I’ll give them a call.” The Abercrombys were wolves, and he thought they could probably find Lady alright on their own, so that gave him a little bit of relief.
“You’re welcome. If you ever get tired of being out there and want to enjoy city life again, we would love to have you back.”
“Sure thing.” But Robert loved being here with the wolves. He hadn’t realized how much of a difference it would make in his world until his sister moved out here and mated Lachlan and they invited Robert to all the pack functions. He used to be known to just work and chill while watching some TV at night. Everything was different for him now.
After they said goodbye, Robert called Bruce Abercromby. “Hi, this is Dr. Robert Campbell, formerly with the Edinburgh Animal Hospital. I’m living in the Highlands now, and a friend of mine found Lady’s collar. Did you lose her or just her collar?”
“Och, Doc, she has run off. We’ve been in the area, staying at a bed-and-breakfast for the last two nights. We took one last hike before we returned home, and she tore off after a rabbit. We ran after her, but you know when a dog runs like that, it’s impossible to keep up with her. We couldn’t shift and chase her down as wolves. Way too many hikers were about. Where was her collar found?”
“At the MacTavish Inn. I’m going out there now to see if I can find her. How far are you from that location?”
“About a mile. We’ve been hiking all over, looking for her. We’ll head there now.”
“Maisie and Anne MacTavish are searching for her also. They’re the owners of the inn. And they’re wolves.”
“That’s great news. Thank them for me. We’ll see you soon.”
Robert grabbed a box of doggy treats, a leash, and a dog collar and drove off to Maisie and Anne’s place. He didn’t want to call Lachlan and have more of their clan’s members help him quite yet because they might just scare Lady off. On the way to the inn, Robert called Maisie. “I’m on my way over. Lady’s owners are going to your inn. She got lost while they were on a hike. Have you made any headway?”
“We’ve found some paw prints in the garden, and she left some muddy prints on the back walkway, but we’re still searching for her,” Maisie said.
“Okay, I’ve got treats for her.”
“Oh, good idea. We should have thought of it.”
“I’ll be there shortly, and so will the Abercrombys. They’re wolves, by the way.”
“Oh, great. That should help. See you soon.”
Not too long after that, Robert parked at the inn and headed for the gardens. He soon smelled Maisie’s scent and another she-wolf’s and figured it was Anne’s.
He began calling out for Lady and shook the box of treats. It always worked to get a dog’s attention at the clinic.
Way off in the distance, he heard a howl. He assumed it was one of the sisters, howling to him in her human form to let him know where they were. He howled back and hurried in the direction her howl had come from.
He smelled Lady’s scent this way too, so the sisters appeared to be on her trail. He saw some paw prints too. But when he reached Anne—she had the same pretty blue eyes, but her hair was lighter than Maisie’s—he was surprised to see she was alone. “Where’s Maisie?”
“She ran after the dog. She told me to wait here for you.”
Which confused him. He would have been able to find them even if Anne had continued on with her sister.
“The River Shiel is flowing into Loch Moidart,” Anne explained. “The tide was out, but it’s coming in fast, and the dog went to the island. Maisie followed her. Maybe you can rescue them before it’s too late. There was no sense in me getting stuck there too. I’m going to return to the inn and see if I can meet up with the Abercrombys to let them know what’s going on.”
“Okay, I’ll go after Maisie and Lady.” Robert took off running for the sandy causeway before it was under water. If they were lucky, he could make it in time, entice Lady to go with him, and then he and Maisie would have to run as fast as they could to cross the causeway before it was impassable.
Before he reached the causeway, he didn’t see any sign of either the dog or Maisie, but higher up on the island, the bracken reached six feet and higher, so they could have already been moving through the bracken or even be on the other side of the island and he wouldn’t be able to see them. Situated way up above on the granite summit of the Island of Eilean Tioram—Tioram pronounced Chee-rum , meaning “the dry island”—the thirteenth-century Castle Tioram was formidable, thirty-three feet high, although in ruins. The island itself was about 200,000 square feet, so it wouldn’t be hard to find someone on it.
He shouted for Maisie and Lady, shaking the box of treats and running full out.
When he crossed the sandbar, the water was up to his calves, the tide already beginning to come in. He raced across the disappearing causeway as fast as he could, the water ice cold, and he was reminded of hypothermia and was, again, not dressed for being in the water. He made his way through the rocks and the network of paths interwoven through the bracken, heather, and brambles up to the castle. He was getting closer to the southwestern, pentagonal curtain wall when he saw strands of the terrier’s white fur on some brambles. Part of the northwestern wall had collapsed, which made walking the beach on that side risky.
Then he heard Maisie calling for the dog on the other side of the castle.
“Do you want some treats, Lady?” Robert asked, shaking the box and trying to make his way safely around the castle.
“Robert, we’re over here!” Maisie called.
“Have you got her?”
“No. She’s sitting down, panting, not moving, finally , but she’s afraid to come to me, probably because I’ve been chasing her all this time. But she’s listening to the box of treats you’re shaking and your voice and warily watching me. Oh, she’s circling again, digging at the ground, restless, panting more. She’s worn out so she’s not running any longer, but I think she’s thirsty and hungry.”
“Is she okay otherwise?”
“Tired, and her parents are going to be shocked when they see what a mess she is. She desperately needs a bath. She’s wearing pieces of bracken and brambles. She’s way overweight, so all this running has to have been hard on her. How are we doing on the tide?” Maisie asked.
“We have to hurry. It was already up to my calves.”
“Tell me about it.” She sounded so defeated, he worried she’d injured herself.
“Are you okay?”
“No.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I twisted my ankle. I was trying so hard to keep up with the dog and not lose her, I was moving too fast for the terrain. I don’t think running for the causeway is going to work for me,” Maisie said.
He’d figured he would carry the dog, and he and Maisie would run together once they reached the beach, but he couldn’t carry her and the dog and make it back down the hill and to the causeway in time before the water was too deep. At high tide, the loch would be nearly fourteen feet deep.
He finally reached Maisie, who was sitting on a rock, Lady sitting nearby. Her ears perked up when she saw him, and she stood, her tail wagging like crazy. She was dirty, just like Maisie had said, but man, she had really gained weight since the last time he’d seen her. He brought out a treat for Lady. She came over for it, and he greeted her, at the same time putting on the collar and leash he’d brought with him. She sniffed at the dog biscuit but didn’t take it.
“Either she has been overeating since I last saw her, or—”
“Don’t tell me she’s going to have pups.” Maisie sounded worried, her brow furrowed. “I have her collar.” Maisie pulled it out of her pocket. “I just couldn’t put it on her.”
He handed Maisie the lead and crouched down to check her ankle and saw the bruising and swelling. “It’s swollen, alright.”
“Can we make it down to the causeway?” she asked.
“We’ll try. You hold on to Lady’s leash, and I’ll carry you down the hill.”
“No way. It’s too slippery and dangerous. We’re likely to fall and hurt ourselves more.”
“We’ve got to try.” Though he seriously doubted they would make it in time, he wasn’t one to give up that easily. The water would be so cold, he couldn’t risk trying to get the dog and Maisie across the causeway if the tide was high enough to force them to swim. “Just easy does it.”
He checked over Lady next. Her belly was swollen, and her nipples were distended. She was very affectionate with him. Other conditions could cause weight gain, a swollen tummy, and changes in appetite, but he knew she was having pups. He was surprised Bruce hadn’t told him.
“Worst-case scenario, we can build a fire down below. I saw a firepit, probably built by someone who got stuck on the island exploring and didn’t leave fast enough.” He lifted Maisie into his arms.
“Like us. What time does the tide go back out?”
“Eighteen hours from full tide to low tide.”
“No way.”
“Yeah. I hope Grant can figure out a way to come and rescue us, but it’ll probably take them a couple of hours at least,” Robert warned, trying to inch his way down one of the paths, holding her against his chest while she held on tight to Lady’s leash, the dog following behind them.
“I can’t believe you and I are in another mess like this together.” She sighed.
“I’m sorry.”
“Oh, it’s not your fault. It’s Lady’s. Normally, dogs will come to me with some coaxing, but she was just too wary, and I wasn’t smart about bringing treats. You didn’t bring anything to cook over a fire, did you?”
“No, I’m afraid all we’ve got is the box of dog biscuits.”
“Well, Lady is all set then, though she didn’t eat the other one you tried to give her.”
Robert kept making the slow, tedious journey down the rocky, treacherous bracken trail, slipping a couple of times, Maisie tensing and letting out a soft cry when he did. It was a lot harder to do while carrying someone. Every once in a while, Lady pulled at the leash as if she’d decided to take a different trail, which had Maisie calling out, “Lady, come.”
But since they were also worried about Lady now that he knew she was pregnant, they were taking it slow for her too.
When they finally reached the base of the granite hill, he set Maisie down and looked at the water that now separated them from the mainland. Then he got on his phone and called Grant, glad he could get reception. “Hey, are you up for a rescue mission?”
Grant asked, “Aye, always. What’s wrong?”
“I’m with Maisie, and we’re stranded on the rocky Eilean Tioram Island.”
Grant didn’t say anything for a moment, then he stifled a chuckle. “A date gone wrong?”
Robert smiled. “Nay. It’s a long story. We had to capture an escaped dog. She went straight to the island. Maisie was chasing her and sprained her ankle, and the tide was already coming in when I reached them. So now—”
“You’re stuck on the island. Gotcha. We’ll bring an inflatable, but it’ll take some time to get it ready and there.”
“I figured about two hours.”
“Aye, or a little longer. Can you keep each other warm until then?” Grant asked.
“Yeah. Someone built a firepit here, so we’ll start a fire and cuddle with each other and the dog. One other thing: Can you bring a whelping box and water for all of us?”
“A birthing box?” Grant sounded worried this time.
“Lady, the dog we captured, is full of puppies and is going into labor,” Robert said.
Grant laughed this time. “It’s a good thing you’re there and not me. Okay, we’re on it. See you when we get there.”
“Thanks.”
Maisie smiled at Robert. “Did Grant laugh too hard?”
“He was trying not to until I mentioned Lady is having puppies.”
Maisie nodded. “I texted my sister. She said the Abercrombys arrived so she gave them a room for the night. Anne will let them know we have Lady, that she’s safe, but we’re stuck here until we get rescued. She told us she would have dinner waiting when we get back. And she said you weren’t sweet at all. You’re hot.”
“Oh?” Robert smiled, amused her sister would say that.
“Yeah, she asked me what I thought of you earlier, and I told her you were sweet, which you are. You saved me from drowning and gently removed the fishhook from my arm.”
“How are your head and your arm?”
“My arm is already healed. No bandage.” She showed him. “And my head is fine. Now, if my ankle would heal just as quickly, I’ll be good as new.”
He removed his shirt and then bunched it up under her ankle to elevate it. “I’m going to get a fire going.”
“I didn’t tell my sister you were hot.”
He arched a brow.
“You are, but I didn’t want her to know that. She’ll give me grief about it later.”
He chuckled. He was glad Maisie thought he was hot. He sure felt the same way about her.
Then Maisie called Anne to let her know what was going on.
Lady was lying on the ground next to the rock. She looked exhausted but appeared happy and comfortable to be with them.
The sun was quickly going down, and so was the temperature. He wanted to get the fire started right away, but if they got too cold, they could shift and wear their wolf coats. Maisie was still holding the leash so the dog wouldn’t dash off again.
Before long, Robert had started a fire.
“I thought you were going to have to try to light the fire in some more primitive way,” Maisie said. “I never expected you to have a lighter on you.”
“I always have one in case I have to sterilize a knife to use in an emergency. I always carry a pocketknife also. I had the tools in the first aid kit to take the hook out of your arm before the boat overturned too.”
“You’re certainly handy to have around in an emergency.” She took a deep breath and let it out. “You know we haven’t really had one yet, but do…you think we might…go on a date sometime? Like just a nice lunch out for two?”
He laughed. “I would sure be all for it. How about I take you to the Ye Olde Highland Pie Shoppe, Heather’s place? Heather is Enrick MacQuarrie’s mate, if you haven’t met her. Have you ever been there?”
“I have. The food is great. Tomorrow is out though. We’re supposed to be at Farraige Castle, that is if we make it out of here tonight.”
“We’ll be rescued before then. We could do it the day after tomorrow then.”
“You have a date.”
“Good.” Once he added more driftwood to the fire, he called his sister. “Hey, Edeen, I’m kind of stuck on Eilean Tioram, so I won’t be home for dinner tonight.”
“Grant called Lachlan about it and said they’re still getting a boat loaded and they’ll be on their way within the hour. Are the two of you and the dog okay?” Edeen sounded concerned. “He said the dog might be giving birth before they get there.”
“Yeah. We’ve got a fire started, but we can shift if we need to get warm. Unless Lady begins to have her puppies and then I need to help her with that.”
“And Maisie’s ankle?”
“It’s just sprained. She’ll be right as rain before we know it.”
“Okay. But no dinner for you tonight?”
“Her sister is fixing us dinner for when we get to their place.”
“That’s wonderful. We’ll see you later then. Let us know if we can do anything for Maisie while she’s incapacitated.” Then they ended the call.
That reminded him that Maisie probably wasn’t going to be able to do the training she planned to do with Conan tomorrow. They would have to see how her ankle was doing in the morning.
“You probably have already decorated your vet clinic, but if you don’t have enough pictures for the walls, I could have a photo shoot of some animals. Yours, I’ll already be doing Edeen’s, and the MacQuarries’. That would make it more personalized.”
“I would like that. Cats, dogs, Highland cows, sheep, horses, perfect.” Then he lifted her off the rock, and she tilted her chin up for a kiss. He thought. He smiled down at her, his gaze navigating to her lips.
She raised her brows as if waiting for him to make the first move. But then she stated just what she wanted. “Kiss me to make it feel better.”
He was sure ready to make her feel better any way that he could. He pressed his lips against hers and started slowly, but she jumped right in and became his partner in passion. She licked his lips, stimulating them in such a sexy way. He gently bit her lower lip, and she reciprocated, making him instantly hard with need. She affected him like no other she-wolf ever had.
They touched their tongues and stroked each other, deepening the connection. When they parted, he brought her to the fire and set her down before she got too cold. “I’ll be right back.” He grabbed his shirt and put it on.
Then he sat down behind her, his legs surrounding her, propping up her leg over his so that it elevated her sprained ankle. He pulled Lady onto her lap and the three of them snuggled together, waiting for their rescue. He’d never had such a nice campfire experience with such a kissable she-wolf. She was a delight to be with. He wrapped his arms around her, and she shivered.
“Are you too cold?”
“No. I’m getting warmer by the minute, in the nicest way possible.”