They'd fired us within four weeks, telling us to find new careers because we damned sure weren't going to make it putting up buildings.
So, we'd gone and applied for work as slaughterhouse workers. But when we'd seen what was happening behind closed doors, Gabe had almost turned vegetarian on us. Fontaine Feeds took a while to bring together and sure, slaughterhouses were never going to be a pleasant thing. But we wanted to make sure that they were as good as they could be.
And that had brought us to where we were, putting a roof on a gorgeous omega's house and doing everything we could to secure her long-term safety.
I picked up the bear, wiggled it in the air, and Carrie Ann tried to jump to grab it. Instead, her legs went out from under her and she flopped down on her butt. Undaunted, she opened her jaws in a big, doggie laugh and struggled to her feet again. The cold, Sadie had told us, was worse on her than anything else. But I saw the weakened muscles in her hind end and knew that the hip surgery would only help the old girl so much.
But hey, we knew plenty of dog wheelchair builders. Carrie Ann would have the best that money could buy, and maybe we'd donate a few dozen to some charity while we were at it. The money never slowed down. The pet business was booming. And, if the investors were right, it was about to go through another tremendous jump. Even if we had to relocate so we could keep Sadie and Tommy safe, we'd start Fontaine Feeds back up again in no time.
And we'd be richer than ever.
The bear flew across the yard and Carrie Ann scampered off after it. She snatched it from the snow, shook it savagely, and trotted back to me with hope in her eyes. I grabbed it again and pitched it for her, sitting down on the frozen stoop as she ran off to retrieve the toy like the good girl she was.
Lady snuck out of the dog door and sat down beside me, her head resting on my arm as I waited for Carrie Ann to stop digging through the snow, stuck on entombing that poor bear again. I looked down at the little dog and tilted my head. "Does Sadie need me, miss?"
She looked up at me, blinking large, sad eyes. Obviously, she had no idea what I meant or even what I'd asked. All she knew was that I'd said Sadie's name. It was likely that she couldn't find her, leading her to hunt down one of us instead. I assumed that Sadie was upstairs dealing with the birds; she'd said she'd be taking them their afternoon snack.
That meant Sadie was behind the baby gates, up a long staircase that Lady probably wasn't comfortable with. Carrie Ann happily meandered past me as I picked up Lady and opened the door, taking them both back inside. One of the three huskies that lived outside, largely due to the destruction that happened when they were inside, howled as the door shut behind me.
Instinct took over. I tipped my head back and howled right along with the dog. My pack mates took up the call on the roof and I heard both Sadie and Tommy from upstairs, howling with the rest of us.
The dog shut up pretty quickly. Most pet dogs aren't particularly fond of wolves. I cuddled Lady as I walked upstairs, making sure to close the gate at the bottom after me. Sadie had been gone for just a short time, but Carrie Ann had been in better shape when she'd left. The Great Dane didn't need to lose her footing on the stairs and crash land at the bottom.
On the landing, I plopped Lady on the ground and walked along the hallway. I peeked into the bird room to find Sadie kneeling on the ground as Tommy, awestruck by the giant cockatoo on Sadie's arm, stroked the bird's chest. It preened itself, never so much as raising a claw at our boy. "Smart bird."
Sadie looked over at me and smiled. "She was abandoned by her people about six years ago. She kept saying rude words to the neighbors and no one wanted to deal with that. Took me a couple of days to get her to stop."
"I don't know how you keep up with all their stories like that," I said, coming to stroke the bird as well.
Her eyes pinned, the pupil narrowing, and she stared at me. I cocked my head at the cockatoo. "What? You like the puppy but not the mutt?"
She fluffed her... is it a crest? I don't know what it's called, but they have that floofy feather head thing that happens. Then they usually rock out, if it's a viral video. Either way, she looked pissed so I took my hand away from her before I got bit.
Get your paw caught in an old bear trap? It sucks.
Get bit by a bird? Fuck that.
"Lady here wanted to see what was going on upstairs, so I thought I'd bring her up to say hi," I told Sadie.
Tommy was immediately distracted from the bird, his attention focused on the scrappy little dog that toddled up to him. He screamed and grabbed her, wrapping his arms around her neck and squeezing like he was about to pull her head off. For her part, Lady just licked his face and dealt with it. I gently pried him off of her and eyed him,
