Well, forget that.
No. She had one even better.
Fuck that.
He wanted her miserable for the remaining six weeks? Done.
But she’d spend her last waking moments making sure he felt the same.
He stepped back, cocked his head, and studied her as if he realized she’d come to an amazing lightbulb moment that would affect him. “You look funny. A little aggravated. Am I not able to eat what I want, or does this class limit my freedom of choice on that, too?”
She almost laughed. Almost. Instead, she pasted on her false, cheerful smile. Arilyn would die before he figured out he knew how to push all of her buttons. “You can eat anything you like, Officer. I can only offer you other options. I can only remind you that after forty, your statistics for heart attack, cancer, and diabetes rise, especially with a diet high in fat, salt, and sugar. I’m sure it doesn’t matter that soda can also be used to burn off corrosion in a car battery and is probably dooming you to ulcers and all sorts of interesting digestive problems.” She winked. “But that’s America for you. Land of the free, home of the brave, and all that. Enjoy the rest of your lunch, and I’ll see you in a few minutes.”
“Hey. I’m not forty yet.”
She widened her eyes in a total innocent expression. “Oh. Gee, sorry. My bad.”
The uneasy expression on his face brightened her mood. Take that, Officer. She made her way inside, greeted her other two students, and began setting up for the afternoon session. Her cell pinged and she quickly answered, noting she had two minutes before the official start.
“Hello?”
“Arilyn? It’s Anthony from Animals Alive shelter. How are you?”
She smiled. As the director of Animals Alive, Anthony Pearson was the driving force behind the not-for-profit shelter, which rescued animals, spayed, neutered, and did behavioral therapy for problem animals. They struggled every month to pay the bills, and fostering the animals helped tremendously, since the shelter was always overcrowded. Many people were afraid to foster in case they got too attached and couldn’t keep the animals, but Arilyn thought of the higher good and tried to take them in groups. The shelter volunteers were all friends and worked overtime to try to make up for the lack of funding.
“Hi, Anthony. Checking up on Lenny and Mike?”
He laughed. “All animals thrive with you, so I’m not worried. Still trying to place them in the right home. Do you mind keeping them a bit longer? I don’t want to break them up.”
Usually puppies were separated to be adopted, but Mike and Lenny were an extreme case. They were so attached to each other that when Anthony had tried to separate them, both had gone a bit batty. Finding a family to take two puppies was a task. “No problem, you know I love them. If I can teach them not to eat all my shoes.”
“I’ll buy you new ones. I have a quick favor if you have a minute.”
Arilyn glanced up and watched Stone walk in and take his usual seat. He gave a grudging nod to the other men. “Sure, I have two.”
“I got a call from a lady on Bluebird Avenue. Complaining about a dog being chained twenty-four/seven in the yard. She thinks he’s starving and may be abused.”
“Did you call the ASPCA?”
“Yeah. Told me I needed more evidence before they’d come out and investigate. The lady said she doesn’t want to get involved because she suspects drug ties in the neighborhood.”
Arilyn sighed. “I wish we had more options with these cases. Who else could help? Police?”
“Most people don’t want to get entangled with animal problems. I suspect it’s a pit bull, so it could be protection or maybe even an underground fighting network. Not sure. Already called the police; they can’t do much either.”
She tamped down on the flash of temper and glared at Stone. Of course not. More things to do in Verily, such as speeding tickets to make more money for the town. She tried to imagine him risking time and effort on an animal case and couldn’t. He was more for the hard-core cases.
“What are our options?”
“I wondered if you could take a quick drive out there. Look around. The house is on a dead-end road with a gate. If you see something that can be used as evidence, we may be able to send someone out.”
The idea took root and bloomed. Yes. She’d just figured out a task for Officer Petty to complete while in her anger management course. And it would help not only him but also the shelter.
“No problem. I’ll check back with you after I make my run.”
His sigh of relief echoed through the phone. “Thanks. It’s a load off my mind. I’m kind of slammed with the Fur Ball event going on, and we lost two volunteers last week when they moved away.”