CHAPTER
7
The slamming car doors ignited a chorus of barking as all four dogs raced around the corner of the yard towards us. It was a pretty intimidating sight, so I dropped to one knee. “Come say hello to everybody, boys!” One by one they sniffed and circled, greeting each family member with thrashing tails and joyous whimpering. Always vying for extra attention, Atilla, the black Doberman, licked me in the face so hard, I almost fell over backwards.
The noisy excitement came to an abrupt halt when Ronda whistled and called sharply, “Leave it!” The dogs immediately fell silent, pivoted and ran towards the porch. Tally’s dark-haired sister lifted a welcoming hand and issued a halfhearted smile. She had a real knack for communicating with animals, but people, not so much. She
