Page 142 of Into the Mist

“Holy shit! That’s disgusting!” Mercury said as she tried not to puke. “Ugh! How could the bar have been packed early Sunday morning?”

Stella waved her hand in front of her nose to try and chase away the fetid stench. “Right? So damn gross. Okay, you stay out here. I’ll run in—grab glasses—try not to look at anything or anyone—and run back out.”

“No, if you go in, I go in too. On three. One, two, three!” Mercury pulled the door open and something came rushing at them—yipping, whining, and crying. “Fuck!” Mercury stumbled back, wishing she’d taken the gun out of the glove box and put it in her pocket. And then she realized what the thing was, and joy chased away her fear. “Hey, there! Who are you?”

The pit bull wiggled and whined as she circled Mercury. Her tail wagged so fast that it blurred.

“It’s okay. It’s okay. We’ve got you now.” Mercury crouched down so the dog could lean against her. She had on a collar with the name “Khaleesi” engraved on a heart-shaped metal tag. “Hello, Khaleesi. Have you been stuck in there all this time?”

“That’s what the smell was—dog poop and pee mixed with dead bodies.” Stella bent and offered her hand to Khaleesi to sniff. “Poor girl. What a nightmare for you.”

“She’s pathetically skinny.” Mercury ran her hand down the dog’s back, feeling her spine and her ribs. “And her nose is cracked. I’ll bet she needs water really badly.”

“Wait out here with her. There has to be water in there somewhere. I’ll get some and bring it out. Looks like we need to grab a leash and some bags of kibble from that feed store too.” Stella grinned at Mercury. “You just found your dog. Now all I have to do is conjure my cat, and we’ll be set.”

Mercury had to blink back tears as Khaleesi leaned into her and gazed adoringly up into her face. “She’s the same color as Kong—gray and white. She looks young too, probably barely a year old.” Impulsively, she put her arms around the pitty and hugged her, which set off Khaleesi’s blurring tail wags again.

“She’s perfect for you—for us—and the kids are going to adore her,” Stella said. “Okay, going back in.” She drew a deep breath and rushed into the pub.

Khaleesi leaned against Mercury and whined softly.

“It’s okay—she’s coming back.”

And Stella did, gasping and retching. But she had a big, wooden salad bowl filled with water, which she set in front of Khaleesi, who instantly began to lap it up. “Watch her so that she doesn’t drink too fast and puke,” said Stella. “There’s a whole row of wineglasses hanging behind the bar. I gotta step over the remains of a bartender to get to them, but then I’ll snatch and run.” She drew in another big breath and ducked back into the pub.

“Stella is dedicated to her stemware,” Mercury told Khaleesi. “You’ll figure that out for yourself after you’re around for a little while.”

Stella reemerged in a foul cloud, but she was clutching a bussing tub to her bosom that was filled with tea towels wrapped around a dozen or so wineglasses that clanked musically together.

“Shit, I’m gonna—” Stella turned and puked off the side of the sidewalk. She gagged, dry-heaved, and then spat twice. “Fucking hell, that’s disgusting!” Stella shuddered, which sent the stemware to music again. “I wouldn’t even go back in there to rescue the bottles of booze and mediocre wine just sitting around behind the bar.”

Still petting Khaleesi, Mercury looked up at her best friend. “You say that now, but I have a feeling you’ll change your mind when we run out of wine.”

“Maybe by then the stench will have faded.” Stella turned to spit again.

“If you’re done puking, can we go?” Mercury said, but her attention turned from Stella to Khaleesi, who had suddenly stoppedlapping up water. The pitty’s body had gone rigid under her hand. She was staring past Stella. A low, warning growl came from deep in her chest. “What is it, girl?” Mercury followed Khaleesi’s gaze to see a sickening wave of green rolling its way up the highway toward them. “Fucking fog!”

Stella whirled around and gasped. “Go! Now.”

“Come on, Khaleesi!” Mercury and Stella hurried down the stairs and back to the road, where they sprinted to the truck, with Khaleesi running beside them.

Ford was emerging from the side of the feed store. He saw the dog and a smile filled his face.

“Green fog!” Mercury shouted. “Grab some dog supplies and let’s get the hell outta here!”

“On it!” Ford yelled and ran into the feed store.

“Don’t break the glasses. Don’t break the glasses. Don’t break the glasses.” Stella spoke the litany like a prayer as they raced for the truck. “I’m going to shove this bin in the back!”

Mercury opened the passenger door while Stella ran to the rear of the truck and pulled the tailgate down. “Come on, Khaleesi! Get in!” Just like she’d been listening to Mercury her whole life, the pit bull jumped into the cab.

Ford raced from the feed store with huge bags of kibble over each shoulder and a long leather leash hanging like a tie around his neck. Mercury heard him load the dog food into the truck and then shove the tailgate closed. He and Stella jogged around to the cab—and then they stopped like they’d run into an invisible wall.

Mercury frowned at them and opened her mouth to ask what was wrong when a deep, sarcastic voice came from behind her.

“Well, now, I’ve been looking for this truck everywhere. Imagine running into you girls again. Isn’t that just a spot of good luck—for me, that is. Definitely not for you.”

Mercury turned to see Alvin Rutland, an assault rifle gripped tightly in his hand, step from the narrow alley that ran between the Wheeler County Trading Company and the post office.