Page 6

All in all, it took me well over a half hour to wrangle the kittens and settle them down, all while Romulus looked on from the front door. They finally chilled out only because I opened a can of wet food, which made them forget about wrestling each other and remember that they were apparently starving.

"Rom, I love you," I sighed when I could finally safely open the screen door and let him inside. My dog leaned heavily against my thighs, his way of offering comfort, and for a moment, we just stood there by the front door while I caught my breath and let myself come down from the madness.

There was no time to linger, though. While the kittens were distracted, I needed to check on the rest of the animals under my care.

With Romulus at my side, we checked in on Franklin and Priscilla. The crack in Franklin's shell was already looking better and didn't seem to be causing him any pain as he moved around his enclosure, so my hopes were high that he'd be fully rehabilitated soon. Next to him, Priscilla had finally left her dome shelter and coiled around some of the fake branches in her tank, basking under the heat lamp. Her color looked good, and she wouldn't need to eat again for awhile.

I fed the turtle, then cleaned out the litter boxes again, sweeping up the mess the kittens had kicked out while I was gone. Then it was back outside to make sure the chickens were safe and accounted for. They had an automatic door on their coop so they could come and go as they pleased, and most of them were out despite the chill in the air. The rest quickly joined the group when the food appeared, and while they were busy eating, I checked for any eggs. My girls had mostly stopped laying when the weather turned cold, but every couple of days I found a few.

Last but not least, I checked in on Hash Brown. Given the way the rest of the day had gone, I shouldn't have been surprised to find him out near the shed, far from the makeshift stable. He didn't seem to be going anywhere, so I left him to his own devices for now while I checked out the enclosure to see how he escaped.

"Rom, I think I need to install another camera or something," I muttered to the dog when my inspection turned up absolutely nothing. "Can mules jump this high? That's the only explanation I can think of."

Rom just looked up at me and tilted his head, breaking into a big doggy grin when I rubbed behind his ears.

"Looks like I've got more research to do." At least it would give me another good distraction tonight, but only if I could catch said mule first.

"Come on, Hash Brown. It's supper time," I called. Sometimes it worked and he'd come running for food, but not tonight. He danced away, heading further from the house. I couldn't afford to put up a fence around the entire property, which was why he'd been staying in the carport instead of roaming around like I'm sure he wanted to. I'd never seen any bears or other predators nearby, but that didn't mean they weren't there, and as much as Hash Brown sometimes tested my patience, I didn't want him to be anything's dinner.

Fifteen minutes later I stood in the middle of my backyard, hands on my hips, staring down a mule who I'm fairly sure was smirking at me. Just because that was physically impossible didn't make it any less true.

"Okay, maybe it's a good thing we don't have cameras facing this part of the yard. I don't want to see the playback on this," I muttered to Romulus. He'd remained at my side as I tried to chase down Hash Brown, panting happily, like I'd invented this game just for him.

"Come on, Jerkface," I called across the yard. "I know you're having fun, but it's getting dark and I really don't want you to get eaten by coyotes. Mostly. You're pushing it today."

He brayed and tossed his stubby mane, dancing back a few steps.

"I think I just got laughed at by a mule."

It really was tempting to let him just run around, but the urge passed as my patience reasserted itself. I knew he needed more room to run, but I'd put off dealing with it because he was supposed to be a temporary guest. One way or another, though, I needed to know what was going to happen. The LCPD had been busy the last few weeks dealing with two missing kids on top of the usual bad weather issues, so I hadn't wanted to put anymore stress on Officer Lake, but I'd have to talk to her Monday and find out if Hash Brown was going to be staying with me permanently.

"Okay, here we go again," I sighed. Pausing only to grab some treats as bribery, I took a step toward him, and he backed up again, tail flicking up behind him. For every inch I moved closer, he moved back the same amount, until we were approaching the edge of my land. Beyond was nothing but thick trees, then the mountains in the distance. The sun was already disappearing behind the horizon, leaving the trees in darkness. If he wandered into the woods, I'd have to call in help to find him again, which I absolutely did not want to do.

"Come on, buddy. Don't you want a treat?" I held out the carrot I'd grabbed and his ears flicked forward with interest, but he didn't take a step closer. I broke it in half and tossed him the smaller part, letting it fall a few steps closer to me than he stood. He approached it warily, watching me the whole time, then snapped it up, eating it in one bite. His attention went to the other half, still in my hand, and I could see his need to run warring with his desire for another treat.

"I promise, if you come back with me right now, I'll spend this weekend figuring out how to build you a proper place to run," I cajoled. Hiring someone to do it would be smarter, but my bank account cringed at the thought of how much that might cost. Just getting this place had emptied my savings account and maxed out my credit card. I'd only just paid it off, and the last thing I wanted or needed was to fill it up again.

Hash Brown stamped his hoof and snorted, frustrated and clearly trying to figure out how he could run and also get the carrot.

"I get it. Life's not always fair, buddy." I held up an apple to sweeten the deal and saw his resolve faltering. He snorted again, but finally took a step toward me, eyes on the treats in my hand. If he'd just get a little closer, I could grab his halter and get him home.

A faint crack echoed in the trees not far from me and all three of us froze. Hash Brown's ears pricked up, and Romulus stood up beside me, staring at something in the trees that I couldn't see. Another faint snapping sound, closer this time, and Rom's hackles rose, a low growl rumbling in his chest.

Whatever was out there, it was enough to spook the mule, and he took off, running faster than I'd thought him capable of. He squirmed his way through a roped-off section of the carport, one I'd thought him too chunky to fit through, and locked himself inside his stable. At least now I knew how he'd escaped this time.

"Okay, time to get back inside," I whispered to Romulus. "Come on, Rom."

My dog, usually the picture of obedience, ignored me. If anything, he crouched down a little lower, as if he were preparing to lunge at whatever was out there.

"Rom, come." My voice broke on the order, fear creeping in as I stared into the darkness. I couldn't see a thing, and the noises had stopped, but I couldn't shake the feeling that I was being watched. I could feel eyes on me, even if I couldn't see them. I remembered last night and the golden eyes in the trees, the ones I'd thought to be a cougar.

Keeping my focus on the section of trees my dog was looking at, I backed up as carefully as I could. If there were a predator out there and I ran like I wanted to, I was all but asking to be chased.

"Romulus!"

I rarely had to use such a sharp tone with him, and it broke through whatever he was so focused on. Like me, he didn't turn his back to the trees, but instead copied me, taking steps backward toward safety.

Nothing came at us, and the further we got from the trees, the more my fear faded. By the time I was safely back on the porch, it was almost entirely gone.