Page 17 of Silent Heart

Either way, I was here, and I didn’t feel unsafe. He needed help. If he couldn’t swim….

I winced. What was he doing by the water? If he jumped into the lake, if he tripped and fell, he could have drowned!

At the door, I paused. “Anyone in there?”

Kole continued to watch me.

Carefully, I set the fishing poles by the sliding door before tugging it open. He didn’t protest when I led him over the threshold. A sigh of relief whispered from my lungs when I was able to safely close the door and prevent his rushing back to the water.

“Wow!” I gasped, looking around.

Everyone in Moosehorn, Wisconsin knew the McTavish place. One of the biggest houses on the upper lake, it also had a lot of property—not like our farm, but still a lot. While we all knew the place, few of us locals had been inside.

No one would believe it if I told them. It was as if someone loaded hundreds of thousands of dollars into a machine that spewed out gorgeous décor, accented trims, and luxurious furniture.

“This place is amazing.” I smiled at my silent host. Regret flickered instantly in my belly at the loss of contact.

But like any wild creature, I needed to give him space to see what he would do.

Trailing deeper into the interior, I divided my glances between the opulence around me and the man who didn’t seem to fit in here anymore than I did. Kole padded after me. Here, under the harsh glare of the lights, his eyes were definitely glazed. While the focus remained, I didn’t see the same underlying expressions in those depths that I normally did. Sadness panged in my chest. He was here, but he wasn’t really here.

Where are you, big guy?

When the rush of curiosity ebbed, the startling realization hit me that we were successfully inside, but any further steps seemed fraught with complications. Kole couldn’t be left alone. I had work at eight. Taking him home with me in the middle of the night was a terrible idea. I was good with animals—found the stray ones safe spaces in the barn. But that wouldn’t work withthis one. While I wasn’t a human doctor, I felt duty bound to sit with him and make sure he didn’t come to harm.

Which left the only option of staying awake and alert.

The TV in the living room called my name, offering a solution.

“Let’s shut off the lights down here, okay?” I moved away, not putting my back to him, but twisting to reach for the panel on the wall.

Kole followed noiselessly.

I stopped. He stopped.

A tentative smile pulled up the corners of my mouth.Sure, go into the dark with the psychotic stranger.

I pushed the ungenerous thought away. While it was sad to see him like this, Kole was currently like any other large animal who’d somehow injured itself and was alone and scared. A deep, primal need rose inside me to stay with him, to help him—to protect him.

Two steps, and the wall was close enough for me to flick the lights off. When the brightness was extinguished, I paused. Kole didn’t react. My heart thundered in my chest as I waited to see what he would do. I took a tentative step toward the kitchen.

Kole mirrored the motion.

“I’m shutting this one off too,” I said with a smile.

The overheads in the kitchen blinked out, leaving only the single bulb over the sink on.

Kole kept a few feet away, watching the darkness unfold. I wandered back to the living room. Through the dimness, I found a remote in the basket and began to click at the huge flatscreen on the wall.

“How about a movie?” I suggested.

Kole only sank onto the sofa after I did. His movements were stiff and disjointed.

“This wasn’t exactly how I wanted to spend more time with you,” I admitted, because it was highly probable he wouldn’tremember any of this. “I was hoping to be a lot closer. But…I guess this is intimate in a way.”

Tugging the blanket from the back of the couch, I snuggled under it.Well, shoot.It wasn’t large enough to go on him. So I scooted closer, watching him carefully from the corner of my eye. Whatever was happening to him, he took my movements without becoming jumpy.

I flopped some blankets on him.

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