14. Jasper #2
After I’d helped Mrs. Taylor clean up the kitchen, I grabbed the directions Jasper had drawn out for me and headed for the bright pink truck.
I’d spent so much time with Jasper since I’d been in town.
Getting out on my own for a bit would be good for me.
At least that’s what I told myself the whole way to For Pitties’ Sake.
Zina must have heard me coming up the drive. Several dogs occupied the outdoor kennel runs, and they greeted me as I climbed down from the truck.
“Hi, I’m glad you could make it this afternoon.” Zina held her arms open. “What happened to your eye?”
“Just a late-night run-in with a crazy goat.” I gave her a hug, then stepped back to check out the building and surrounding area.
A single-story house sat a few hundred yards away.
But the shelter occupied its own building.
Dozens of chain-link dog kennels protruded from the side of the building.
“Thanks for the invitation. This is a great space.”
“Thanks to Alex and his dad. Let me show you inside first. Maybe these dogs will quiet down a bit if we head inside.” Zina opened the door and held it while I stepped into the space. “It’s not much, but it’s everything we need, and at least it’s not falling apart around me.”
I lifted my brows. “Does that happen a lot around here? Buildings falling down?”
“No.” Zina let out a laugh. “But that’s kind of how Alex and I met. He tried to check a leak on the roof of my old building and ended up falling through. The whole building was condemned, but it all worked out.”
“How?”
“What’s that?” Zina tilted her head.
“How did it work out after he had your building condemned?” Didn’t sound like the start to a perfect relationship.
“Oh, well, it’s a long story. We ended up having to move the dog rescue into the wedding warehouse for a bit. But then Alex was training penguins for that winter wonderland wedding, and—”
“Penguins? Real penguins?”
“That’s right. Lacey will go to any and all lengths to make sure the brides who book their weddings in Ido get the wedding of their dreams.” Zina rolled her eyes. “It can get to be a bit much. I’m assuming you’ve heard about the upcoming butterfly wedding?”
I smiled. “Yes, Lacey mentioned it’s coming up soon.”
“She’s good at what she does though, and she’s single-handedly saving the town.” Zina clucked her tongue. “Don’t tell her what I said. She told me to be nice today.”
“The two of you seem like you’re pretty close.
” I wondered what it would be like to have a close female friend.
The closest thing I had was Stella, who didn’t really count.
Monique had been a good friend, although she was more of a mentor.
Not the kind of friend I would call if I wanted to whine about my love life.
“We’ve been friends since junior high. No matter how crazy things get around here, I’ve got her back and she’s got mine.” Zina pointed to a door. “You want to tour the offices before we go back to meet the dogs?”
“That would be great.”
“We’ve got a training session going on, but we can peek in on them.” Zina led the way and I followed. “Since we moved the rescue out here, we’ve been able to add some additional services. Alex’s grandpa’s been volunteering with a program that works with veterans to pair them with service dogs.”
“That’s fabulous.” I peered through the window into a large area with a concrete floor. A half dozen dogs worked one-on-one with their handlers.
“It really is. It’s a win-win. So many of our dogs are abandoned or surrendered. We’ve found a lot of our service members feel the same way. Seeing them build a bond with each other is an amazing thing.” Zina motioned for me to move on. “We’ve even done some work with kids from the community.”
“Oh? What kind of work?” I was always looking for ideas on how to further my platform.
Zina peeked through the window of the door to our right. “Good. One of our trainers is here. I’ll introduce you.”
I followed her into a medium-sized room where a man sat at a desk, his pen flying over the page in front of him.
“Hey, Zeb, got a sec?” A dog lying at the man’s feet lifted his head.
Zeb turned around in his chair. “What’s up?”
“This is Delilah. She’s the current Miss Lovin’ Texas and I’m showing her around the rescue. I told her about the program we’re working on that pairs youth with the dogs.”
Zeb nodded. “It’s been working well so far. The kids get a chance to work with the animals, and the dogs get the opportunity to socialize and learn some good behaviors. Some of these kids feel so out of control. It’s cool to watch them learn how to control their own emotions.”
“What happens to the dogs? Do the kids get to adopt them?” I asked.
“If possible. But their home environment doesn’t always allow that. Some of these kids live in apartments or mobile homes that don’t allow pittie mixes.” Zeb glanced toward Zina. “But my sister’s working on trying to change some of that.”