Each animal had a climate-controlled stall and access to its own private outdoor run. Kevin explained the exercise schedule to Daniel, which dogs were already spoken for and which were ready to be listed, training him for his future life at the ranch, she assumed. Daniel seemed to love it, petting all the dogs and learning their names. The dogs adored the attention – and asked for it; she wished she could turn down the volume of the barks and whines. The dogs who ran loose were apparently graduates of the program; these followed Kevin on the rounds.
Alex suspected Kevin had let her tag along just to make her uncomfortable. The horse-size spotted one – a Great Dane, she learned – was constantly on her heels, and she was sure the dog hadn’t decided to do that on his own. Kevin must have given some unseen command. She could feel the giant’s breath on the nape of her neck, and guessed there were probably flecks of saliva on the back of her shirt. The hound dog was tailing her, too, but she thought he might have chosen the assignment for himself. He was still milking those sad eyes every time Alex glanced at him. The other graduates circled Daniel and Kevin, except for Einstein, who stuck close to Kevin only and seemed to take troop inspections very seriously.
They passed stalls with German shepherds, Dobermans, Rottweilers, and several other working-group dogs she didn’t know names for. Alex kept to the middle of the long pathway between kennels and didn’t touch anything. Always best to minimize the number of fingerprints for wiping down later.
There were two small hound puppies sharing a stall, and Kevin mentioned to Daniel that they were Lola’s offspring, gesturing to the bloodhound tailing Alex.
“Oh, Lola, huh? Sorry,” Alex murmured, too low for the men to hear. “I shouldn’t have assumed.”
Lola appeared to know she was being addressed. She stared up at Alex hopefully, and her tail pounded against Alex’s leg. Alex leaned down quickly to pat her on the head.
Kevin made a disgusted sound and she straightened up to see him staring at her.
“Lola likes everyone,” Kevin said to Daniel. “Great nose, poor taste. I’m trying to breed out the lack of discrimination while keeping the olfactory genius.”
Daniel shook his head. “Enough already.”
“I’m not kidding. I expect better instincts from these animals.”
Alex squatted to scrub her fingers along Lola’s sides like she’d seen Daniel do, knowing it would drive Kevin crazy. Lola immediately rolled over, offering her belly. Abruptly, the giant dog lay down on Alex’s other side, and she was nearly positive he was also looking hopeful. She carefully patted his shoulder with one hand, and he didn’t bite it off. His tail beat the ground twice. She took that as encouragement and scratched behind his ears.
“C’mon, Khan, not you, too!”
Both Alex and the Great Dane ignored him. She twisted down so that she was sitting cross-legged with both dogs in view and her back to the brothers. If she was going to be surrounded by furry killing machines, she might as well have a few of them on her side.
Lola licked the back of her hand. It was disgusting, but also kind of sweet.
“Looks like Alex has a fan,” Daniel said.
“Whatever. Over here is where we keep the chow. Arnie picks it up every other week in Lawton. We’ve got most of what we need for…”
The rest of what Kevin said was lost in the yips and grumbles of the dogs left behind.
She stroked the dogs for a few minutes more, not sure how they would take it when she quit. Finally, she rose cautiously to her feet. Both Lola and Khan were quickly on all fours and seemed totally happy to follow her as she walked back to the house. They escorted her right to the door and then made themselves comfortable on the porch.
“Good girl, good boy,” she said as she went inside.
Kevin had probably meant to intimidate her, but she liked the way it felt as if the dogs were actually looking out for her, rather than keeping an eye on her. She supposed it was what they were trained for. It was a comfortable feeling. If she had a different lifestyle, it might be nice to add a dog. Except she didn’t know where she would get a dog-size gas mask.
Arnie was on the couch in the great room, parked in front of a flat-screen TV that was mounted on the opposite wall. He had a microwave dinner in his lap to which he was assiduously applying himself; he didn’t react to her entrance.
The smell of the food – macaroni and Salisbury steak – had her mouth watering. Not a four-star meal, but she was really hungry.
“Um, do you mind if I help myself to some food?” she asked.
Arnie grunted without looking away from the baseball game. She hoped it was an affirmative, because she was already en route to the fridge.
The refrigerator – an impressive, double-wide stainless-steel affair – was crushingly bare. Condiments, a few sports drinks, and a supersize jar of pickles. It also needed to be cleaned. She checked the freezer drawer and there found pay dirt: it was stuffed full of dinners like the one Arnie was eating. She heated a cheese pizza in the microwave and ate it on a bar stool scooted up to the island. Arnie seemed completely oblivious to her presence the entire time.
If you had to add another person into the equation, Arnie wasn’t half bad, really.
She heard the men coming back, so she headed upstairs. They’d all been forced into close quarters on the ride here, but now that there were rooms to retire to, it was possible to give one another some space. She knew Daniel and his brother had a lot to sort through, and there was no reason she needed to hear any of it.