by Mayer, Dale
"You could just acknowledge that you can talk to dogs. Surely, that would be easier. Stupid people.
Dogs? Communicate with dogs? Acknowledge such folly? Hell, no! And why a dog? If she was going to imagine a talking animal, why not a beautiful wolf? Or at the very least a majestic eagle?
I'd rather be a bloody horse, but hey, I am what I am. I should have been a Newfoundland dog, but someone screwed up the original orders. So guess what? If I have to deal with it, then so do you."
Gripping the armchair tightly, Ninna opened her eyes and studied the dogs around her. From a little one being held in a woman's arms to something that was huge and black and white. She thought it was a Great Dane. There was no sign of a Newfoundland dog, if they were the ones that resembled black bears.
"I said I should have been one of those. Geeze, don't you listen?"
"I don't have to listen to you." Her answers just seemed to slip out on its own.
"Yeah ya do, unless you're going to drug yourself up or run away again."
Again? How could he know about her history?
"Because you were just talking about it, dumb ass. Maybe you should go and get your prescriptions filled now. Whatever 'they' are. You're starting to sound like you might need them."
Deep under the disbelief and fear that she truly was on her way to bedlam, irritation and anger stirred. She didn't have to take this. Especially if it was her imagination. She deserved respect. No, she demanded it.
"Snort. Let me know when you're looking for some input on that. Not."
"If you're not my imagination and you're not a gorgeous Newfoundland, who and what are you?" There, that should fix the speaker. Whoever it was, he wasn't likely to get up and walk over. It just proved it was her imagination and she needed to call her doctor. And thank heavens she was still alone in her corner.
"Go ahead and call him. Get more drugs into your system. Let more doctors into your head. Ignore what's really in there. What do I care? I'm just a dumb basset hound to you. It's not like you're going to listen to me no matter what form I'm in. Your kind never does."
basset hound? That basset hound. Really? Okay, that was a bit much. She spun around looking for the fat one she'd seen earlier. "Okay, smarty pants imagination, I can't see any basset hounds in this room, now." Just then the group of people standing in front of her moved.
The same huge basset hound she'd caught sight of before lay slumped on the floor, soaking up the sunlight, and taking up way too much space in a crowded room like this. He looked closer to a skin dog, what is that breed...a shar pei... with all those wrinkles.
"Oh, aren't you a comedian now. See if I care. Insult me all you want. I know what I am and I know what you are."
Stunned, she slunk as deep in the chair as she could crawl, staring in horrified fascination at the boneless mess of patchwork colors. She eyed him carefully. That dog was looking to get stepped on. And was that a food dish sitting beside him? Surely not.
"What's wrong with keeping my food bowl close? I want to be on hand when someone fills it. Is that so hard to understand? Besides, how can you not know what you are? And you call me stupid. I'm Mosey. You. Are. Psychic."
As she watched, he rolled onto his back, his long ears flapping to the floor on either side of him and those loose jowls slopped to the floor as they reformed into a wide grin.
His mouth never moved, but the voice in her head, said, "Boo. I see you."
Chapter Two
"Ninna, hi. Welcome to Lost for Options. I'm Stacey."
Ninna pulled her shocked disbelieving gaze away from the canine comic on the floor to see a tall curvy redhead, with similar features to Stuart's. The matching bright red hair cinched it. They had to be family.
"Uhm. Hi, Stacey. Nice to meet you." Flushing with embarrassment, Ninna quickly stood to shake the proffered hand. She couldn't help but feel like plain Jane in comparison to the statuesque woman in front of her. Ninna had dressed in standard skirt and blouse for her first day, but Stacey's designer jeans and swanky top looked just the attire to marry business with chaos.
"Follow me and we'll find an empty office in the back where we can talk." Smiling cheerfully, Stacey carved a path through the crowd.
Ninna cast a last look at the basset hound, only to see one paw drop in a parody of a good bye wave. Gulping, a faint sweat breaking across her forehead, she raced to catch up with her guide. They walked through a large set of double doors into a cooler, calmer hallway where she could almost hear normally again. At the third doorway to the left, Stacey motioned for her to go in.
"I'm going to grab a coffee. Would you like one, too?"
"That would be great, thanks."
"Good, the coffee in here is for the staff. There is coffee in the main room, but sometimes it's impossible to make it through the crowd. You can always count on finding some here." Stacey walked over to the sideboard where there were several coffee makers lined up. She poured out two cups and handed one to Ninna. "There's cream and sugar at the side, if you need them."
Ninna shook her head. "Thanks, but I prefer my caffeine straight."
"Then you should fit in around here. We'd all inject it into our veins if we could." Stacey's smile was wide, genuine and irresistible.
Falling under the friendly spell, Ninna relaxed a little more, realizing she could be really happy here. "Sounds like home already."
"Good. Then let's get you started." Stacey led the way back out the hallway. "We'll walk around and introduce you to everyone and get you set up at your desk."
"Do I get introduced to all the dogs, too?"
Stacey laughed. "There're no dogs here on a permanent basis, you'll get to know the regulars quickly. As for the others, you'll just go crazy if you try to figure them all out."
"Really?" Ninna didn't know if she dared to ask, but figured she could get away with it today of all days as a newbie. "I thought I saw a basset hound out there in the common room."
"You probably did. We have any number of breeds through here on a daily basis, due to the unique set-up here between the vet clinic, shelter, socializing at the park and the many different classes we offer."
She had to be satisfied with that. Maybe she'd be lucky and she'd never see him again.
The rest of the day passed by in a blur. New jobs were deadly. So much to learn, sort through and memorize, that by day's end she'd used up all the energy she had available and barely slunk out of the doorway to her car. She was close enough to walk home, something that would save on gas expenses, but she'd driven in on her first day to make sure she arrived on time. The fresh air revived her slightly. The good news was that she barely thought of her crazy conversation this morning or that obese basset hound.
"Try to forget me, will ya? I don't think so. And who are you calling fat? You're the one who had that second muffin this morning."
Ninna's hand froze, her car remote fob in her hands. No. No. This can't be happening. It wasn't right.
"Well, it sure as hell isn't wrong."
"Oh yes it is," she muttered out loud. Hitting the unlock button, she jumped in and quickly locked the door. Jamming the keys into the ignition, she started the engine. As the purr rippled through the interior of the car, relief shuddered through her. With a glance back at the front of the center, she put the car in reverse and backed out of the lot. Turning the wheel, she had to force herself to stay at a sedate pace as she headed out of the parking lot.
And wished she hadn't.
Sauntering across the long covered porch was the same basset hound.
Shit. She'd had enough of him for one day.
But he obviously hadn't had enough. "You can run, but you can't hide."
She hit the gas and tore out of the parking lot.
***
Ninna parked haphazardly, knowing she shouldn't have even driven home in the state she was in. The damn voice in her head as she'd exited the lot had finished her. Now she could really use a double shot of something. Either that or a mess o
f Prozac. She fumbled for her house keys and finally managed to get the front door open. Entering quickly, she slammed the door closed and locked it. Tossing her purse onto the couch, she raced into the bedroom where she threw herself down on the bed.
It's just my imagination. It's just my imagination. Oh God, please let it be my imagination.
She groaned, her voice getting louder and louder until she was almost screaming with her frustration as she ran out of breath.
And into the dead silence that followed, her phone rang.
Normal. Mundane. Like it should be.
She pulled her phone out of her pants pocket. The effort drained her.
"So, how was the job?"
Jane, her best friend, sounded bored as usual. Must be hard to be a Daddy's girl with a trust fund - not. Regardless, the two had met years ago and had been fast friends ever since. "It was fine. Crazy when I got there, but things settled down eventually." Ninna rubbed her sore eyes, wondering how much she dared say.
"Were you nervous? Did you manage to get in the door without having a panic attack?"
Ninna's eyes opened wide. Maybe that's what had happened. She'd had a panic attack. The voices were from stress, she knew that. The shrinks had warned her before about needing to lower her stress levels. She'd been so scared that something would go wrong. Ninna sat up. A grin broke free. Yes. She wasn't going crazy. Just stressed.
"Hello? Are you there?"
"Yeah, I'm here. I'm exhausted though."
"That's to be expected. How about I pick up a pizza and come by? We'll put on a couple of chick flicks and hang out. That way you won't worry about your day and you can rest."
Ninna grinned. "What would I do without you?"
A loud snicker came through the phone lines. "You'd replace me with someone else. I have no doubts about that. I'll be there in an hour." She hung up.
Ninna didn't want to move. Lying on the bed took every ounce of effort she could put out right now. Unless it was for a shower. Once the thought of a shower entered her mind, she couldn't shake it. Finally, with only half an hour until Jane's expected arrival, she dragged herself under the hot water. She'd meant to call her shrink and make an appointment first, but the office would likely have been closed anyway. And maybe it was for the better. If stress was the culprit, then it should ease by the weekend.
There might even be some old medications lying around. Although that wasn't the wisest choice either.
Pizza and a movie were perfect for tonight. Pulling on her black yoga stretch pants and top, she headed to the back deck where she moved through a couple of yoga positions and practised her deep breathing. Hearing a knock on the door, she walked back inside to open the front door.
And stopped.
Instead of Jane, it was Stuart, the vet who'd taken her inside the center this morning.
He looked at her and blinked. "Oh."
"Oh. Were you looking for me?" She wished. He was just so...male. Her sex life had been nonexistent for a long time and he was definitely worth a second look. Besides, he'd been super nice to her this morning and that went a long way to making him eligible in her books.
He flushed, not quite as bright as his hair but not far off. She watched the color travel upward with great interest. She could actually follow the color as it spread. Poor thing. That had to be hard for a guy to live with.
"From your silence, "she said candidly.
He grinned. "Hi, Ninna, and no, I didn't know that you lived here. I'm glad to see you though. I'm looking for a little black kitten that's gone missing."
"A black kitten?" Mystified, Ninna took a quick look around on her porch. "I just got home, but I haven't seen any animals. Is it yours?"
"Sort of. He'd been dumped at the center. He's a runt, a little sickly and didn't seem to do well at the center, so I thought maybe a different atmosphere would help him out." He shrugged. "Apparently that helped him out a little too much. He appears to have taken off."
Ninna finally realized this cute vet must be one of her neighbours. How sad that she hadn't known that before. "If I do see him, where am I supposed to return him?" She looked at the two sides of the street. There was her house, old, heritage, small, surrounded by derelict and other equally uninspiring houses. And then there was the other side where monsters had been built up and down the block.
"I'm in that one. The one with the stone wall out front." He pointed to one almost directly across the street from hers. The biggest of them all. She shook her head. He must have a huge family if he needed a house that size. He also could not have lived there for long, because that for sale sign hadn't come down more than a few weeks ago.
"Okay, if I see him, I'll bring him over to you."
He smiled. "Thanks. I appreciate it." He turned and headed toward his house.
Ninna stood on the porch and watched him walk across the road and down the sidewalk. Jane pulled up when he'd almost reached his driveway. Ninna couldn't tear her eyes away. She heard him whistle and heard the barking. Next thing she knew several dogs rushed forward to greet him at the yard gate.
"Oh shit."
Dragging up the rear was the basset hound. He tossed her one open-mouthed grin before following the other dogs inside the house.
***
"So what put that sour lemon look on your face? And here I come bearing gifts. It's pepperoni with ham and mushrooms. Your favourite." Tossing her hair, Jane brushed past her with her oversized box. "I got a family size. No comments, please. A girl has to do what a girl has to do."
Ninna turned her attention to her best friend's voluptuous curves. "I hope you're planning on sharing that thing."
"Nope. Go get your own." The laughter in her voice reassured Ninna that she wouldn't have to order for herself. With Jane, one never knew. That girl could seriously eat.
As soon as she'd closed the front door, Jane spun on her. "Who was that divine looking man? I love his hair. I didn't even know you were on speaking terms with an eligible male. Spill."
"Hey, I'm not a recluse. I know some guys." Ninna grabbed the pizza box from Jane's arms and headed to her kitchen table. By the time she had the box open, Jane had already pulled down two plates and was reaching for the biggest piece.
"Yeah, old fat farts you've known forever." Jane smirked around the bite of hot cheese dripping from her mouth.
It was a little hard to argue that, since most of the men she knew were her dad's old friends.
Jane wouldn't let it go. "So who is he? Details, please."
Rolling her eyes at her friend's curiosity, Ninna finished swallowing her bite before answering. "He's one of the vets from the center. I met him this morning." With a sheepish grin, she explained the meeting and how he'd helped her get into the front door.
"And how does that have anything to do with him being at your front door tonight?"
"A lost kitten." It sounded retarded to her, too. From the look on Jane's face, she thought she was putting her on as well. "Honest."
Jane shot her a sceptical look, then snatched a second piece of pizza. "It sounds like the scary dude with the van asking a girl to help him find his lost puppy."
"Oh, now that's going too far. I think he brings animals home from the center. He said something about the kitten not doing so well in that atmosphere."
"Obviously it wasn't doing well at his house either, if it ran away."
Ninna didn't want to consider that. "Anything could've happened. Besides, rather than criticizing him, maybe we should go and look for the poor kitten."
Jane's gaze widened in disbelief. "So you are interested in him?"
"What? No! Of course not. I just met him." Ninna could feel the heat rise on her cheeks. Damn Jane anyway. How did she always manage to get to the heart of something Ninna wanted to hide? It's not that she was interested; it's just that maybe she was a little intrigued. Or she would be if she let herself think about it, but she wasn't going to, because she needed this job, and office relationships weren't a good idea.
She so couldn't afford to lose her only pay check in six months.
"Like that's a reason to stop stalking him."
"Stalking him? That's a horrible thing to say. I don't stalk," Ninna gasped, outraged until Jane's laughter pealed through the room. "Oooh, you." Ninna threw her napkin at her. "That's it. Let's go find a kitten." Ninna stormed out the back door.
"No. Wait. I'm not done eating. I was just kidding!"
Ninna ignored Jane's wails of distress and headed out her back yard to the small white picket gate that separated her badly-in-need-of-a-cut grass from the alleyway behind her house. She didn't bother checking to see if her friend followed. Experience told her she would. Walking down the alleyway, she started meowing, hoping to have the kitten answer back. She couldn't imagine what anyone hearing her must think. She didn't care.
