For Love Of A Dog

Her tone stopped the man. He took off the ball cap, exposing a head that had been shorn in the not-too-distant past. She couldn’t tell exactly what color his eyes were, but they looked tired. In fact, he looked like he could use a good night’s sleep. Or several.

He was about to say something, but Amigo’s barking became almost frantic—a keening howl she’d never heard the dog make.

“For heaven’s sake,” she muttered, grasping the door handle. The dog leaped from the truck and raced for the man, circling around and around him, jumping up and nipping at his hands.

A sense of dread grew inside her as the man, bending to touch Amigo’s head, said, “I believe this is my dog.”

CHAPTER THREE

NOT ONLY WAS she surprised by his arrival, Kai Westfield seemed seriously alarmed. He wondered why. Hadn’t McDougall let her know he was coming for the dog? Amigo. His squirming, enthusiastic body warm and familiar to Luca’s hand. The animal’s huge affection and loyalty for him was momentarily overwhelming. Luca bent as far as his knee permitted, lowered his head to Amigo’s ear and whispered, “Good boy.” He blinked away the dampness in his eyes before straightening. The woman, hands on hips and face flushed, looked ready to do battle. Luca summoned his best smile.

“I’m Luca Rossi,” he said, extending his right hand. “And I assume you’re Kai Westfield? The photographer who brought Amigo home for me? Corporal McDougall has told me how gracious you were about taking Amigo and about the problem handing him over. I appreciate the trouble you went to, and the inconvenience of looking after him for these past few weeks.”

She took a moment to respond, tucking strands of chestnut-colored hair behind her ear. Composing herself? Luca wondered.

“I told Corporal McDougall that the dog had settled in here, and it wasn’t necessary for anyone to come and get him.”

Wasn’t necessary? That nettled. “Well, after all the trouble my men went to so that Amigo could come to the States, I think it was most assuredly necessary for me to come and get him. Thank you again for your trouble, and if you were out of pocket at all as a result of Amigo’s transport here, I’m happy to reimburse you.”

“There’s far more at stake here than compensation. No amount of money would make me relinquish Amigo.”

Relinquish? Were they talking about a dog she’d had in her possession for a few weeks? Or some kind of war booty? “Miss Westfield, I’m not sure what the problem is here. You agreed to bring my dog to me, and I understand the complications—both on my side and on yours—that made delivery of Amigo impossible at the time. But now I’m here to collect my dog and—” Interrupted by the blast of a horn, he turned sharply to the highway, registering at the same time her own quick pivot and mild oath.

“It’s the school bus,” she said. “I have to go get Thomas. We meet him at the end of the road. Amigo and I.” She’d just uttered his name when Amigo sprinted forward, heading up the long, narrow road to the highway. Then she took off after the dog.

Luca frowned, watching the two of them jog up the drive. The whole scenario was getting more complicated by the second and wasn’t going at all as he’d planned. Still, flexibility could be necessary at times, and perhaps this was one of them. He’d adopt a more conciliatory manner when she came back with Thomas, whoever that might be. A son? McDougall hadn’t mentioned anything personal about the woman other than her profession, and he hadn’t noticed a wedding ring. But then his focus had been on her growing anger.

His gaze shifted to the house before him and the surrounding area. He hadn’t noticed much of anything when he’d pulled up behind her pickup, other than her confrontational stance. But now he saw that the white frame, two-story house with its old-fashioned veranda could use a fresh coat of paint. To the far left was a bungalow clad in gray aluminum siding with a smaller porch and to the right of the farmhouse, a detached two-car garage. Behind that he saw two more outbuildings. The smaller one seemed to be a shed and the other a red-painted barn. The land behind the house stretched beyond his sight line. The fields were bare, speckled with what appeared to be weeds. Not that Luca knew anything about weeds or even crops for that matter, but to his urban eye, the place seemed to be in a state of neglect. That puzzled him a bit; surely farmers would be planting in May?

At least, that’s what some farmers had done. He’d passed miles of fields neatly furrowed, some even sprouting small green shoots. The place just before his turnoff to the Westfield property had been immaculate, its fields and stately farmhouse a possible feature in some country living magazine.

The rumble of the school bus continuing on its way drew his attention back to the driveway. Through the line of trees siding the gravel drive he could just make out Westfield and a small boy. Amigo was bounding back and forth between the boy and the ditches on either side of the drive. Bounding happily, Luca noted. That worried him a little.

As the pair got closer, Luca saw that the boy—small-boned, red-haired and freckled—had spotted him and hung back. When they finally came to a stop in front of him, Luca said, “Hello. You must be Thomas,” and extended his right hand.

The boy kept his eyes on the ground, ignoring Luca’s hand. Luca looked at the woman, who bent to whisper something in his ear. Without a glance at either of them, Thomas slouched over to the veranda, where he sat on the lowest step, elbows on his knees and hands cupping his lowered head.

Luca didn’t know much about kids, but he recognized misery when he saw it. “What’s happening? Your, uh, son? Is he okay?”

Her face was pale, and she looked as unhappy as the boy. “Well...Thomas—he’s my nephew, by the way—he’s feeling bad about you taking Amigo.”

“But surely he knew I was coming for my dog.” He saw from the way she swung her head his way that his tone had annoyed her.

“He didn’t know you’d be coming to take him back.”

What a complete mess this whole situation was. Amigo, who had given up his sniffing around the garage doors, ran over to the boy. Leaping and whining failed to draw the kid’s attention, so Amigo trotted back to Luca. There had been few times in his adulthood when Luca hadn’t known what to do. This was one of them.

She saved him the trouble of a decision. “Just take the dog,” she hissed. “Leave right now. I’ll explain everything to Thomas after.”

The vehemence in her face stopped any token protest he might have made. He headed for his SUV, aware of Amigo panting behind him, and opened the passenger-side door. “Here, boy.” Luca snapped his fingers. Amigo sat on his haunches, cocking his head. “Inside.” Luca snapped his fingers again, pointing into the SUV.

Amigo craned his head back toward Thomas, who was still staring at his feet, before leaping into the car. Luca slammed the door and walked around to his side.

He cleared his throat to get her attention. “Thanks again for taking care of him.” But she was still looking at Thomas, so Luca began his clumsy entry into the driver’s seat. When he fired the ignition, Kai swung around with a startled expression that made him wonder if she’d been hoping he’d change his mind.

No chance. He reversed, made a three-point turn and slowly drove to the highway. Amigo started whining and then barking.

“What’s up, fella? Want some air?” He rolled all the windows down until the A/C kicked in. Amigo’s barking rose to a frantic howl. Luca applied the brake and the dog jumped out the window.

Luca swore, shifted into Park and watched Amigo race back to the farmhouse, the veranda and the boy. He waited a moment, various game plans racing through his mind. Just keep on going, was one.

But reconnecting with Amigo had resurrected a lot of buried emotion. He remembered the first time he’d spotted the stray scrounging around the supply tent. A shout and thrown stone had sent the dog running, but the next morning he’d come back. It had seemed like the animal was purposely seeking him out. As if he’d known Luca would relent and toss him a few scraps.

Big mistake, Lopez had warned. “You don’t want that scruffy mutt to be your amigo.” Luca had ignored his sergeant and that’s exactly what the stray had become. His amigo. The name stuck.

So leaving wasn’t really an option. That left compromise. Luca could do that. If he could negotiate with Afghan tribal elders about where and when to build a road, he could parlay a settlement over ownership of a dog. And Amigo was his dog. The boy and Amigo just needed a bit of time—say twenty-four hours—to see that.

The drive was too narrow to turn around, so Luca slowly reversed all the way back to where Kai Westfield still stood. He waited as she walked toward him. Her slightly smug expression irritated, but he forced a smile.

“It seems that Amigo has made his choice,” she said.

Luca gripped the steering wheel. He was searching for an appropriate response when Amigo, crouched at the boy’s knees and licking the two small hands caressing him, gave a sharp yelp and bounded toward the SUV. Luca noted the frustration in Westfield’s face as she grabbed hold of the dog’s collar. It was always easier to bargain when one had the edge.

“I have an idea,” he began. “How about I leave Amigo here for the night? You can talk to Thomas and explain the situation. He’ll have some time to get used to the idea. Maybe even think about getting a replacement for Amigo. I can come back in the morning.”

Her eyes said a lot more than the nod she eventually gave.

“Okay, then. See you tomorrow.” He shifted gears and headed for the highway, glancing in the rearview mirror one last time.

She stood, arms at her side, with Amigo sitting beside her. For some reason, Luca took no satisfaction in his victory.

* * *

KAI SAT ON the edge of Thomas’s bed. He’d retreated to his room with Amigo as soon as Captain Rossi had left and had refused to come downstairs for supper. Kai finally took a tray up to his room and set it on his desk. Thomas was cross-legged on the bed, Amigo curled up next to him.

“I know today was a shock for you, Thomas, and this whole thing with Amigo is upsetting. Remember how I told you about bringing Amigo to the States with me and that I wasn’t able to drop him off at Captain Rossi’s house?”

Thomas nodded, keeping his solemn brown eyes fixed on hers.

“I should have made it clear from the start that Amigo’s stay at the farm might be temporary. I’m sorry about that. The thing is, the day after Grandpa and Grandma went to Columbus, I got an email from the soldier who’d been in charge of Amigo—the man who delivered him to me at the airport in Germany. He told me that he was going to be visiting Captain Rossi and would discuss how Amigo could be eventually returned to him. To Captain Rossi, that is. By then I saw that you and Amigo had become...well...friends, and I wrote back to say that we were fine with Amigo staying on the farm.” Kai hesitated, wondering if she ought to mention Harry’s negative reaction to the dog. She and her mother had tried to keep it from Thomas, knowing how much the boy loved his grandfather.

“Anyway,” she went on, “I didn’t hear back from that soldier, so I assumed everyone was okay with our keeping Amigo. I had no idea Captain Rossi was coming to get him. There must have been some kind of communication mix-up.” Thomas fiddled with Amigo’s collar. “Captain Rossi and Amigo were friends in Afghanistan, where they met. There was some kind of...accident...and Amigo helped save his life. So Captain Rossi...well, he loves Amigo, too, and I think he needs him.”

Thomas’s gaze shifted to the dog snuggled against him. After a long moment, he looked back at her.

Kai took this as a good sign and ended by saying, “Maybe we can persuade Grandma and Grandpa to get a dog. A puppy, perhaps.” His expression told her how lame she sounded. “Okay, then. Well, there’s your supper, and I’ll come back later for the tray.”

Kai paused in the doorway, waiting for some response, but Thomas kept his head bent to Amigo, clearly waiting for her to leave. As she closed the door behind her, she felt she’d blown the whole conversation with her final remark. An hour later she found the tray, its contents half-eaten, on the hallway floor. She quietly opened the door. Although Thomas’s bedtime was still an hour away, his bedside light was out and he seemed to be fast asleep. Amigo leaped off the bed and followed her downstairs.

* * *

BY THE TIME she was walking Thomas up the drive to wait for the bus the next morning, Kai knew the day was going to slide downhill. Amigo ran back and forth, tail wagging as he sniffed the ground. When the bus came, Thomas trudged up the steps without his usual wave goodbye or whistle to Amigo. Kai watched the bus round the bend before heading back to clean up the breakfast remains.

Amigo ran ahead, unaware of the drama unfolding around him, zigzagging all the way to the kitchen door, where he sat, tongue lolling, happy to be outdoors. She wondered if Rossi was still living in that fancy New Jersey house and how Amigo would fit into it; if he would be more welcome arriving there with his master than he had been when she’d shown up on the doorstep. Somehow she doubted it.

By midmorning she’d finished a cursory sweep of the kitchen, taken down the overflowing laundry basket from upstairs so she and Thomas could have some clean clothes and was brewing a fresh pot of coffee when she decided she’d been wrong to assume Rossi would arrive early. Something must be keeping him in Lima. Second thoughts, she hoped. She checked her email for any replies to her ad for temporary workers, but there was none. Her disappointment was eased a bit by a message from the magazine that had sent her to Kuwait, praising her submission and advising her that the balance of her payment had been deposited. There were no other assignments on deck, and Kai knew when her parents returned home, she’d have to scramble to line something up.

Meanwhile, all the electronic diversions available couldn’t save her from the one task she’d been loath to tackle for days. Prepping the tractor. It had sat in the barn for almost a year now.

She changed into the old work coverall she’d had since high school and, before she could change her mind, she pushed open the groaning barn doors. Coughing amid the swirls of dust enveloping her, Kai pulled the tarp away from the machine that had killed her brother.

Its ordinary, familiar appearance—rust spotted and dented—overwhelmed her. She sank onto the edge of the cutter, which was still hooked up to the rear of the tractor, and began to cry. The tears were her first since she’d heard of her father’s stroke, though not the first since her brother’s death. Despite her long absences from her childhood home, she’d missed the family traditions and routines. She’d never thought all that would change and turn upside down. Disappear.

Now there was work to do. She’d tried explaining to her mother why planting was so important, but the fact was Kai could scarcely understand why the notion had become so fixed in her mind. It was doubtful Harry would get back into the soybean business. The farm’s acreage was now too small, and his heart simply wasn’t in it.

Despite knowing her father didn’t really care, Kai persisted. She reasoned that the physical work would be a good diversion from the humdrum of looking after both the house and Thomas. Plus the crop yield, as small as it would be, would pay for some of her father’s rehab expenses. Yet she suspected there was a deeper motive. Perhaps it was her way of making up for all the times this past year when her parents could have used her help and she’d been working either in New York or abroad. Now they needed her, and she had to prove she was capable of taking charge.

So sitting and weeping in a dusty barn was an indulgence. Kai had to smile, realizing her mother might have pointed out exactly that.

* * *

THE FARM LOOKED the same, but felt different. Luca parked in front of the garage and got out. Maybe it was the silence. Yesterday had been all about the drama. By the time he’d returned to Lima, checked into a motel on the outskirts and enjoyed a cold beer and hamburger in a nearby tavern, Luca had fallen onto the motel bed, exhausted. Not so much by the swelling around his knee or the fatigue after his long day of travel, but from the emotion of the whole ordeal. That’s what it had felt like. An ordeal.

First there was Amigo, who was obviously torn between going with him or staying with the kid. And why hadn’t she told the boy that the dog belonged to someone else, and that that someone was coming to get him back?

Okay, so maybe he hadn’t actually spelled out to McDougall that he’d be fetching Amigo or when. McDougall had given him her email address, but Luca hadn’t exactly written to her, advising her of his intentions. He’d certainly thought of doing so. But once he’d decided to come, he’d taken action and carried out his plan. Just as his training had taught him. Decisions and actions needed to follow one another as quickly as possible. Otherwise disaster could result. He’d learned that the hard way.

The silence felt eerie until barking drew his attention to the barn. The big doors were open, and Amigo was running his way.

“Hey, fella.” He bent to pat the dog’s head. “What’s up? Ready to take a drive with me?” Amigo squirmed excitedly before trotting back to the barn, Luca following. He stopped just inside, eyes adjusting to the dimness. Fragments of straw flew up in the wake of his footsteps, and the air was thick with dust motes, trapped in the stream of sun from the doorway. Luca coughed. Amigo turned to look back at him before proceeding to a far corner where Luca could barely make out a large shadow. He walked toward it.

A tractor. Its engine hood was up, which accounted for the strangeness of its shape in the dark barn, and straining over it, Kai Westfield. At least Luca assumed the long legs clad in dingy blue overalls belonged to her.

“Good morning,” he said. She bumped her head against the raised engine hood as she turned around. “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you.”

She tossed aside the grease rag in her hand and jumped off the tractor’s bumper. “I thought you’d be here earlier.”

Well, good morning to you, too. Her mood seemed much the same as yesterday. Yet as she came closer, he took in a few subtle changes. Her wariness was now tinged with something that might be resignation, and her eyes, dark-circled, reflected more sadness than anger.

“I indulged in a home-style breakfast up the road a bit from the motel I stayed at. Then checked out some of the town. Or city, I guess, if that’s what it is.” He kicked himself for babbling.

“It’s officially a city, though not a big one. And I bet you ate at Nancy’s Diner. Best breakfast place around.”

Amigo, sitting on the barn floor between them, looked from one to the other. The dog seemed to be waiting for the next move, and Luca decided to let Westfield make it.

“Know anything about tractor engines?”

That surprised him. Maybe she wasn’t as predictable as he’d thought. “Uh, well, I picked up a few mechanical skills in my army stint, though not for tractors.”

Her loud sigh drew Amigo’s gaze to her, and he cocked his head. She swiped a hand across her face, leaving a streak of grease on her cheek. “Well, then,” she went on, sidestepping the dog to edge closer to Luca, “I guess you’re here to collect Amigo and take off.”

He found the statement annoying, considering that was the whole point of his return to the farm, but what really caught his attention was the bitter downturn of her mouth and the way she kept her eyes on Amigo, rather than him.

“That was the idea.”

She turned his way enough for him to see she was welling up.

Great. “Uh, what seems to be the problem with the tractor?” He wanted to change the subject. Anything to avoid dealing with tears.

“I’m not sure, except that it won’t start. It hasn’t been used for almost a year, so I thought maybe the engine needed a cleaning. You know—those spark pluggy things and that.”

“Has it got enough gas?”

“I did check that,” she snapped. Another sigh. “I need to get this going so I can plow the fields. We’re already late.”

We. Of course, McDougall had mentioned she was staying at her parents’ farm. Odd that there had been no sign of anyone else yesterday, except for the boy. “Is there someone here who can help you?”

“I wish.”

He waited for more information. Finally, she added, “My parents are in Columbus at the moment.”

So she was alone on the farm with her young nephew. Luca guessed there was a lot more to her story but decided he didn’t need to get involved. He’d had his fill of problems. “I’m sure there’s a mechanic in Lima who could fix it.”

“I was hoping not to have to bother.” She gave a resigned shrug. “Looks like I have no other choice. So—” a deep breath “—let me get Amigo’s leash and you might as well take the rest of his food. And his bowls.” She started toward the barn door.

Luca glanced down at Amigo, who stared expectantly up at him. “Okay, if you don’t need them. I mean, if you get another dog—”

That stopped her. “There won’t be another dog.” Then she went on, out the door and across the yard.

Sheesh. Be good to leave this place. “C’mon fella,” Luca said, patting Amigo. “Let’s go home.”

He waited for what seemed ages until the door at the side of the house slammed shut and she reappeared with a large plastic shopping bag. Amigo, who’d been nosing around the foundation of the garage, ran to her. She dropped what she was carrying and stooped, hugging the dog and whispering something to him as she ruffled the hair around his ears.

Luca clenched his jaw. Again, the situation was turning into something bigger than he’d expected. And why? Could nothing be simple and straightforward with this woman?

Eventually, she stood and handed him the bag. “There’s enough food for a few days. I put a bottle of water in there, too.” She brushed the legs of her mechanic’s suit and kept her eyes on Amigo.

“Great. Uh, thanks again.”

By the time he reached his car, a dozen random thoughts had flashed through his mind. The one he focused on startled him.

He turned back to her. “Look, if you like, maybe we could drive into Lima and check out a tractor supply place or whatever. See if we can get some spark plugs. If the problem is just replacing them, I might be able to do that. Worth a try, anyway.”

“It’s not really your problem.”

“I’ve got lots of time.”

She thought for a moment. “That would be great. I’ll just go change,” she said, walking back to the side door.

A thank-you would have been nice, was his first thought. The next, sobering one was, What’s happening here? What have you just done, Rossi?

CHAPTER FOUR

THE DRIVE INTO town was tense. Kai sensed that Luca regretted his offer. She knew she ought to let him off the hook but getting the fields turned over and planted before her parents returned home was her first priority. If she had to humble herself a bit to accomplish that, so be it. As soon as the tractor was up and running, Captain Rossi and—sadly—his dog, could be out of her life.

They pulled into the parking lot at the tractor supply and hardware store. Luca was about to open the rear door of the pickup for Amigo when Kai stopped him.

“We should leave him here, with the window rolled down a bit.”

“Seriously?”

“We left the bag with the leash in it back at the farm. People don’t like unleashed animals coming into their stores.”

“I thought it would be different in the country.”

“Lima isn’t the country,” she pointed out.

“Okay.” He patted the dog’s head and followed her inside.

The place wasn’t busy midweek and late morning. Kai waved to the manager, flipping through a handful of papers behind the all-purpose reception and check-out counter.