“Where is she?” Lassiter strode toward the main tunnel entrance, where Cambry was standing. “And what the hell is she doing here? That roof looks like it’s going to collapse any minute.”
“I checked. It’s sounder than it looks,” Cambry said as he wiped the sweat from his face. “But the roof up ahead did collapse, probably fairly recently. At least that’s what Margaret thinks.” He grimaced. “That’s what she told me before she crawled under that pile of timber up there.”
“What?”
“I tried to stop her. But she had me shoveling debris away from a hole up there and she was under that pile before I knew it. She told me that I should stay near the opening we’d cleared and watch out for any sign of another cave-in.”
“For God’s sake, how long has she been down there?” Lassiter moved quickly toward the timbers. “Cambry, I may strangle you.” He knelt down and peered down into the darkness. He couldn’t tell how deep the hole was or how fragile the balance of the rocks and timbers.
And he could hear nothing. Had Margaret already been knocked unconscious by one of those displaced timbers after she’d crawled down there? He took out his flashlight and shined the beam into the darkness. “Margaret,” he called. “Lassiter. Stay where you are. I’m coming down.”
“No. It’s going to be difficult enough getting back up there. If you want to help, get me a board or something that I can use for a stretcher.”
“Are you hurt?”
“No, but she is. Find me something to bring her up.”
“She?” Not the time to ask questions. “Never mind. Hold on. I’ll find what you need. I’ll take the door off the security booth at the gate.…”
*
Yes, he’ll find what I need, Margaret thought with relief as she turned back to Juno. She’d been glad to hear Lassiter’s voice. Cambry had been helpful and done everything she’d asked him to do, but Lassiter exuded confidence. Not that she wasn’t confident; everything had gone as well as it could, considering the problems she was having with Juno.
No problems. Just sadness.
She quickly sent a message back. Sadness is always a problem.
More sadness. Loss.
I know that’s what you’re afraid of, but we might be able to fix it. She couldn’t make promises. But you have to keep fighting, or we won’t have a chance.
Tired.
I don’t want to hear it. You’re strong. I can feel your heartbeat and it’s strong, too. You were meant to live. You have to live.
Sadness …
Margaret cuddled closer and held Juno tight. No more sadness. Do you hear me? Trust me. It will never be the same. But it can be good. We’ll make it good together.…
*
“Be careful,” Margaret called up to Lassiter. “I’ve tied Juno on that door with strips of my shirt, but you can’t slant that stretcher too much, or they’ll break with the weight of her body.”
“We’ll be careful.” He was cautiously lowering himself down the timbers. “I can see the door now. I’ve threaded the rope through the hole I punched through the glass window. I’ll support the frame and have Cambry pull the rope. It will—” He stopped. “Juno. I believe it’s time I asked just what kind of animal Juno is. From this angle, she appears to be of substantial size.”
“She’s a golden retriever. She’s probably only a little over a hundred pounds. Maybe less now. She hasn’t eaten for days.”
“And she’s not likely to eat us?”
“Don’t be silly. She wouldn’t do that. Not now.”
“That’s comforting.” He swung down a couple more feet. “You wouldn’t have been able to give me those assurances about that tigress you were cosseting when we first met.”
“Juno is nothing like Zaran. Well, maybe a few similarities, but even those are for completely different reasons.” She positioned Juno more securely. “And cosseting is the wrong word, too.”
“At the moment, I don’t give a damn. I just want to get you and this Juno out of this hole before the mine collapses.” He jumped the last few feet, landed beside her, and studied the dog strapped to the door. “Beautiful. If I’m not mistaken, she’s pure white beneath all that mud. What breed is she?”
“I told you: golden retriever. English cream variety.”
“Beautiful,” he repeated. “But she’s very quiet. You said she was hurt?”
“Left rear leg. I think it’s only sprained. Plus, she’s not eaten in days. She’s lucky there was a trickle of water that came in from an underground stream, or she’d be dead by now. We have to get her to a vet.” She went to the other side of the stretcher to help brace it. “Yank the rope to let Cambry know we’re ready.”
“I can do this without you.”
“No, you can’t. Why should you? I’m strong enough to help.” She made a face. “And I just got finished telling Juno that she has to be strong. I can’t wimp out.”
His lips quirked. “No, I guess you have to set a good example for the dog. What was I thinking?” He yanked on the rope to signal Cambry. “Let’s get your Juno taken care of. We do have a few more things on the agenda.”
“It’s not going to hold us up too long. This is important to me.” She braced her side of the door as the makeshift stretcher started to move upward. “I’ll be responsible.”
“I imagine you say that a lot,” he said as he braced himself and began to climb on the next foothold to take more of the weight. “I’m not arguing with you. It’s a relief to be able to do something to save even this dog. I haven’t been very successful in the rescue department lately.”
“We haven’t saved her yet. She has problems.” She looked down at Juno.
You stay alive. Do your job. I can do only so much.
No answer.
“But we will save her.” The words were for Juno as well as for Lassiter. “I just hope the vet clinic in this town has a good staff.”
*
San Chapo Veterinary Clinic was small and had only one veterinarian. But that was Dr. Hector Nalez, who was caring and knowledgeable and already knew Juno.
“Hello, girl. What’s been happening to you?” he murmured as he knelt down beside her. “I’ve been wondering how you’ve been making it.” He glanced up at Margaret. “How did you get hold of Juno? Did they give her to you?”
She shook her head. “‘They’? I don’t know anything about her. I found her hurt and buried beneath the rubble in a deserted mine. She was alone.”
“Yes, she is.” He gently stroked Juno’s neck. “Poor girl. Alone.” He straightened. “Well, let’s get her cleaned up and make sure there’s nothing worse than that sprained leg. We’ll deal with the rest of her problems later.”
He set to work immediately, checking her over and setting the sprained leg. Then he gave her a nutrition shot and started fluids as his tech began to clean her up.
He turned to Margaret. “We’ll have to start her on light, gradual feedings to begin with. That shot should help, but she’s not in good shape. Did you know that she’s going to have pups?”