Page 28 of Silent Heart

“You’re soaked,” I muttered, turning the heater on full blast and pointing it at him.

While it took ten minutes to speed across the lake, it took double to drive around. The McTavish place was on the southwest side, and the storm brewed over there. We were about a mile out when the first bits of lightning crackled through the sky.

Kole tensed.

“It’s just thunder, bud,” I promised. Damn, he really was like a hound or even a horse. I turned up the volume of the radio, doing everything I could think to fight the noise of rising thunder.

As we pulled to the gate, which was shut, I had to roll down the window. “Um, any help getting in here?”

Kole looked at me expectantly.

“I don’t know the code,” I insisted.

Thunder boomed.

The gargoylesque beingshuddered.

“Okay, we’ll have to make a run for it.” I unbuckled. There had to be a spot to climb the fence. If not, we’d go around down by the lake. Not that I wanted to swim in this storm, but there was always the dock access to the property.

I laced my hand through his, locked the Volkswagen, and tugged the sleeping giant along. I kept up a steady stream of chatter, hoping my voice helped him. A story about raspberry picking in the fall tumbled from my lips. The trees here reminded me of the spot we’d foraged.

“So, you see, I’m blessed to walk through poison ivy, but everyone else in my family is cursed,” I explained.

Thunder exploded close by.

Kole froze, grabbing for his head. I had to bounce on my tiptoes to reach that high since he didn’t release my hand.

“What happened to you?” I whispered, wishing I could know.

But also, it didn’t matter. He foundme. Whatever condition this was, he came to me. And like any other stray, I would never turn him away.

“Okay, just a little farther,” I promised. Thinking through every tactic in case Kole panicked, one popped into my head. It was how my grandpa worked with any animal—especially the larger ones like cows and horses. “Oh, do not make me sing.”

I managed to tug Kole forward. The fence didn’t enclose the entire property, tapering off in the trees. It was designed to prevent vehicles approaching from any direction except the paved drive. I tugged Kole through the trees, jibber-jabbering about the best way to build a chicken coop. The house appeared a few moments later, and I shook my head. All the lights were on again.

Lightning ripped the sky in two.

Kole froze. He wouldn’t budge.

The clap of thunder was two Mississippis away.

Oh, shoot!I had to try something!

“’Tommy used to work on the docks, union's been on strike,’” I croaked.

Kole looked at me. That stormy gaze that I could lose myself in was shrouded in shadows.

It wasn’t like he would remember, right? Crap! I’d forgotten to ask if he remembered anything from these strange episodes.

Electricity blazed through the sky, making me belt out, “’He's down on his luck, it's tough, so tough. Gina works the diner all day, working for her man. She brings home her pay, for love, mmm, for love.’”

With a smile on my face, I drew Kole forward. It was hard to believe Bon Jovi was what came to mind, but it worked.

Thank you, Grandpa.

Drenched, we made it to the front entrance just as another clap of thunder shook the earth. I shut the door in the face of thestorm. Kole continued to shake, as if the thunder rattled inside him. I didn’t have a weighted blanket or anything calming to give him—not that giving him a shot of trazodone in this state would be smart. But there were natural remedies we gave the nervous pups, even some CBD or weed would do the trick.

“Not if he’s unstable,” I chided myself. The chemicals could mix with his brain and produce an unknown effect.

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