Snowfall Read Free Page A

see.” She wasn’t more than five three and couldn’t weigh more than a kid, but she shouldered the giant Irish wolfhound out of the way like Grover was a lap dog.
    Apollo. Her mastiff. Two hundred pounds of muscle and heart. He knew Apollo. All the dogs were loyal to her and she loved them all. But he hadn’t seen her without this one since they’d met and knew she’d had him since he was a brand-new pup. Damn dog went everywhere with her. He was lying in the snow, his massive side flexing with his breaths. Jake hadn’t seen him go down. Fighter that he was, he’d kept to his feet until his mistress had given the call. Jake and Poncho hurried to his side and watched with dismay as the snow surrounding Apollo turned crimson.
     
    Ashley fought to keep panic at bay and focus on what needed to be done. She tried to push away the fact that Apollo was her baby. The one who slept closest to her. The one who always knew her mood, would snuggle when she was feeling down or tug her into the yard for a tussle when she was restless. The one whose heart was so big and brave that he was always the first out the door when there was danger.
    The other two were whining and circling her. They knew it was bad. She could hear the frantic yips and scratching from the dogs still trapped inside. They all knew the leader of their pack was down and their cries were tearing through her resolve to stay calm and focused. She needed to do something, but she couldn’t think, couldn’t move.
    Her hands were covered in blood as soon as she tried to stem the flow from the biggest of the wounds. She pushed as hard as she could and prayed like she never had in her life.
    “Baby. Baby,” she sobbed, knowing he was dying and helpless to stop it, “Hang on, baby. Hang on, Apollo. For me. Plea— Please, Apollo. Stay with me, boy.”
    “Son of a—” Jake knelt down next to her and cursed when he saw the damage. “Let me help.”
    Ashley elbowed him. Hard.
    “Get away.”
    He wasn’t deterred and gripped her shoulders. “Poncho’s got a first aid kit. Let us help. Get out of the way and let us help him.”
    Ashley shook her head no, lost to her panic, thinking only that she had to stop the bleeding. Jake’s cold gloves grasped either side of her face. “Look at me,” he demanded with a rough shake when she still wouldn’t take her eyes off Apollo. “Go to his head. He needs to see you. If we can’t save him, you’ll want yours to be the last face he sees, won’t you?” Tears filled and fell from her eyes at that and she saw him flinch, then he pushed her toward Apollo’s head and started barking orders at Poncho. Ashley didn’t know what they said to each other, all her focus was on Apollo and his precious, trusting face. She knew he had to be in tremendous pain, but he only gazed at her with loving eyes and licked her when she leaned in close to bury her nose in his scruff.
     
    Jake blocked out the sounds of her tears. He would break if he didn’t. The cougar got a good swipe in Apollo’s belly. He was bleeding freely from two nasty gashes. Jake opened the wound to get a look at the damage. If the intestines were intact all they had to do was stop the bleeding. If they weren’t there’d be no use.
    “Shouldn’t we get him inside?” Poncho was crouched next to him, field kit at the ready.
    “No,” he replied, “The cold will help slow the bleeding.”
    Poncho nodded and started pulling out the necessary items. “Good. I don’t think we could lift him anyway,” he murmured, then the two worked side by side in synchronized silence to save the dog that had been willing to lay down his life for them. Ashley cradled his massive head in her tender arms and wept into his neck.

Chapter Five
    “ Misery. ” Jake looked at Ashley and couldn’t keep the smile off his face as she walked away from the TV. “Now that’s just mean.”
    “What do you expect? Want me to put on Fried Green Tomatoes instead?” He threw a pillow at