Three Dog Day Read Free

However, after several fruitless minutes walking in each direction for thirty paces and then returning, she realized there was only a gravelly square with the garage in the middle. There was no driveway and no house she could see. Why would someone build a garage in the middle of nowhere?
    She knelt down by the dogs. “Bear, home,” she said. “Titan, go home.” The dogs stared at her and she repeated the command, louder. “Home.” Mae loosened her grip on the leashes and slowly Titan started walking toward the forest, away from the garage. The valiant little corgi, with snow up to his shoulders and short legs churning, was breaking a trail with his belly. Could he really get her home? Bear stared up at Mae. She clearly had no idea what the “Home” command meant.
    â€œ Go on, Bear. Good boy, Titan.”
    Over an hour later, after hearing many repeated commands for “Home” and lots of verbal encouragement, the dogs led her out of the forest into a low, brushy bog. Beyond it, Mae saw a gravel road she recognized. She was several miles away from her car, but she knew the way from here. Overwhelmed with gratitude, she knelt down and hugged the excited dogs.
    â€œ Good boy, Titan. Good girl, Bear.” Mae found herself in tears of cold and confusion. She got to her feet and started walking on legs that felt heavy and stiff. She dug for a tissue in her pocket and wiped her nose. She felt an ache in her throat and lungs. Another half hour of hard walking in what had become a serious white-out and Mae stood beside her car. She loaded the dogs, started the engine and looked at her cellphone. It was out of charge. Figures .
    Fifteen minutes later, she walked into her house, having dropped the exhausted young Bear off at the Butlers. Mae poured herself a hot coffee, grabbed a towel and dried Titan’s fur. Corgi ears were supposed to stand up straight, but his were drooping with fatigue. She rocked him in her arms. He was asleep in seconds, not even stirring when she laid him in his bed. Still feeling chilled, Mae got a blanket and curled up on the couch. Thoreau came up and sat beside the sofa. His large solid presence was always a comfort.
    â€œ I’m so glad I still have you, old sweetie,” she said. The big Rottweiler licked her hand. Cold and exhausted, she fell asleep. About an hour later, the house phone rang. Mae sat up and grabbed the phone. “Hello.”
    â€œ Hi, Mae, it’s Ben. Are you okay?”
    â€œ Yes, sure, honey. I’m fine.”
    â€œ You sound funny.”
    Ben was Mae’s handsome boyfriend and the sheriff of Rose County. They had been a couple for nearly a year. They met when Mae turned in a report that her neighbor, Ruby Mead Allison, was missing. Shortly thereafter, Mae stumbled on Ruby’s dead body and found herself a suspect in a murder case. It had been a rocky start. Once Ruby Mead Allison’s killer had been identified, they were hit by another complication when Ben found out he had a son by his former fiancée, Katie. But they had gotten past all that and now were quite happily in love.
    â€œ I’m okay now, but I got lost in the snowstorm today. I’m finally starting to warm up.”
    â€œ I’m glad you’re all right. You should take a hot bath if you’re still chilled. Listen, Mae, I don’t mean to cut you off, but I wanted you to know that I won’t be able to come over until late tonight, if at all. We’ve got cars in ditches all over the county.”
    As Sheriff of Rose County, Mae’s boyfriend had a lot of responsibilities. And many people in Middle Tennessee were not used to driving in wintry conditions. Still, Mae was disappointed that Ben would be late.
    â€œ At least the kids are still out on Christmas break,” she said. “The last thing you need to deal with is school buses on these roads.”
    â€œ You’re right, Mae. They were supposed to go back