Page 16 of Rescue Them

Slowly the little white dog came closer, and he gradually pulled back, coaxing her out.As soon as he was able to lift her, he let her eat the food out of his hand as he carried her toward the door.Mitchell had a carrier for her, but Lyle shook his head.

“She’s shaking,” James said.

Lyle nodded and held her gently, not willing to let her go right away.Once she calmed, Lyle put her in the carrier, talking to her gently as he put her in the back of the truck.Then he made sure she had water and a little more food before Mitchell raised the tailgate.

“I’ll take these back to the rescue.Thank you both,” Mitchell said.

“I’ll lock the house and see to it that you get the paperwork you need so the dogs can be adopted out,” the deputy said before striding up the walk toward the house.

“We’ll meet you at the shelter,” Lyle told Mitchell.“I need to see that they’re going to be okay.”

“I’ll meet you there,” Mitchell agreed, and all three of them got into their vehicles.Lyle followed Mitchell, with James behind him.

“Were you all good?”Lyle asked as he drove.The dogs all had their seat belts on and sat across the back seat, scrambling to look out the windows.“I need to help James and Mitchell.”God, was he going crazy, talking to the dogs?

He parked in the shade when he arrived at the shelter and lowered the windows once more.After saying goodbye to the dogs, he hurried to the truck and began unloading the carriers, taking in the two that needed Mitchell’s immediate care first.He and James unloaded the others and transferred them to enclosures with water and more food, keeping them separated from the rest of the dogs.

“How long before they can be adopted out?”Lyle asked.

“Mitchell determines that.In this case, probably about ten days.They were in such bad conditions and two of them are sick, so he’ll want to make sure the rest are healthy.”They got everyone settled before joining Mitchell.

“I’m taking these to the clinic.I need x-rays, and I believe that the little poodle mix is going to need surgery.She’s in bad shape.”

“We’ll stay here and keep an eye on everyone for a while.Then Lyle is going to need to take his dogs home.”

“Okay.Thanks.You can take your dogs for a walk over in back of the house.They can run a little.”He transferred the two sick dogs back to his truck and pulled down the drive.

“He’s really something.”

“Do you want me to walk to dogs?”James asked, and Lyle handed him the leashes.James got them out of the car and then walked the little pack across the grass, the dogs pulling in all directions.He probably should have warned him, but James seemed to get the hang of it and managed to get the dogs to the grass, where they sniffed and did their business.

The phone rang, and Lyle went inside to answer it.A couple wanted to stop by, and Lyle explained that they would be there for another couple of hours.He wished they had stopped somewhere to get something to eat, but he pushed his rumbling belly down and pulled up the information they had on the dogs available for adoption.

“These guys loved the grass,” James said from the doorway.“I’m going to get them back in the car.”

“Okay.There’s a couple stopping by,” he told him, and sure enough a car pulled in a few minutes later.It wasn’t the people who had called, but the guy looked around a bit before coming up with questions.

“Have they had all their shots?”the man asked.

“Yes.Shots and neutering are part of the deal.That is all done by the vet who owns and manages the rescue.What sort of dog are you looking for?”He didn’t like the look in his eyes but dismissed it.

“I thought I’d take a look around.”

Lyle peered around the corner to where James was getting his dogs into the car.He turned back to where the man was walking through the enclosures.

“I love these dogs.”

“Is there one that you particularly like?”

“I can’t decide.So I think I’ll take these two.”One was a pit bull and the other was a little mutt.His tone was the same one he might have used to choose his underwear.That set Lyle’s radar pinging.Pit bulls had a reputation for fighting dogs, but Henry was as sweet as could be and Pinky was as gentle as they came.Plus once he chose them, he showed no interest.There was no loving, no gentle care.Like this was business and nothing but.

He plastered on a smile.“That’s wonderful.There are some forms that you need to fill out, and then I’ll give them to Mitchell to review.”He handed him the forms.“Please make sure we have your phone number so we can call you once Mitchell has given his approval.”He figured there was no way in hell that would happen.There was something very off about this guy, and he hoped Mitchell had cameras in this area.

The man did not look happy, and he made a show of filling out the forms.When Lyle purposely went to check out a couple of the dogs, he noticed that the man had left.After a few minutes he looked outside.The man’s car was gone.

He returned to the desk and grabbed his phone, texting Mitchell.He got an answer that he was on his way.“What’s going on?I put the dogs in the car and locked the doors.”

“Do you have video here?”