you?”
“Our Agents over there aren’t doing their job properly?” My voice sounded shaky.
“
“What could be stopping them?” I asked.
“The forces of darkness are overpowering the forces of light,” Gabriel said gravely. “It’s happening more and more.”
“What makes you think Heaven is the only place sending out representatives?” Ivy sounded a little impatient with my lack of understanding. “We’ve got company.”
“Isn’t there anything we can do?” I asked.
Gabriel shook his head. “It’s not for us to act without authorization.”
“But there are three hundred dead!” I protested. “That must matter!”
“Of course it matters,” said Gabriel. “But our services haven’t been called for. We have been assigned our post, and we can’t abandon it because of a tragedy in another part of the globe. We have been instructed to stay here and watch over Venus Cove. There must be a reason for that.”
“What about those people?” I asked, their horror-struck faces flashing into my mind once again.
“All we can do is pray for divine intervention.”
By mid-afternoon we realized we were running low on groceries. Although I was still feeling washed out, I offered to go into town for them. I hoped the errand would obliterate troubling images from my mind and distract me from dwelling on human calamities.
“What should I get?” I asked, picking up an envelope ready to scribble a list on the back.
“Fruit, eggs, and some bread from that new French bakery that’s just opened,” said Ivy.
“Would you like a lift?” Gabriel offered.
“No, thanks, I’ll take my bike. I need the exercise.”
I let Gabriel return to his reading and collected my bicycle from the garage, tucking a folded canvas bag into the front. Ivy had started cutting back the roses in the front garden and waved when I sailed past her.
The ten-minute ride down into town was refreshing after my zombielike sleep. The air was crisp with the scent of pine trees, which helped dispel my gloom. I refused to let my thoughts wander to Xavier Woods and blocked out any recollections of the previous night. Of course my mind had its own agenda, and I shivered as I remembered the feel of his strong arms holding me up, the fabric of his shirt against my cheek, the touch of his hand brushing my hair away from my face, just as he’d done in my dream.
I left my bike chained to the rack outside the post office and headed toward the general store. As I reached the door, I slowed to let two women come out. One was slightly stooped and elderly, the other robust and middle- aged. The younger woman helped her companion to a bench, then returned to the shop and taped a notice to its window. Sitting obediently on his haunches beside the older woman was a silver-gray dog. It was the strangest creature I’d ever seen, with an expression so thoughtful it might have been human. Even seated, it held its body upright and had a regal air. Its jowls were slightly droopy, its fur satin sleek, and its eyes as colorless as moonlight.
The older woman had a dejected air that piqued my attention. As I looked at the notice on the shop window, I was able to determine the cause of her misery. It was a poster offering the dog “Free to a Good Home.”
“It’s for the best, Alice, you’ll see,” said the younger woman in a brisk, practical tone. “You want Phantom to be happy, don’t you? He can’t come with you when you move. You know the rules.”
The older woman shook her head sadly.
“But he’ll be in a strange place, and he won’t know what’s going on. We have our own little routine at home.”
“Dogs are very adaptable. Now let’s get you home in time for dinner. I’m sure the phone will start ringing as soon as we walk through the door.”
The woman named Alice didn’t seem to share her companion’s confidence. I watched her gnarled fingers anxiously twisting the dog’s leash and stray to her hair, which was coiled in a flimsy bun at the nape of her neck. She seemed in no hurry to make a move, as if getting up would be an indication of sealing a deal she hadn’t had time to think through.
“But how will I know he’s being properly looked after?” she said.
“We’ll make sure that whoever takes him agrees to bring him along to the new place for visits.”
A note of impatience had crept into the younger woman’s voice. I noticed too that her voice had grown progressively louder as the conversation continued. Her chest heaved and beads of sweat were beginning to form at her powdered temples. She kept glancing furtively at her watch.
“What if they forget?” Alice sounded petulant.
“I’m sure they won’t,” her companion said dismissively. “Now, is there anything you need before I drive you home?”
“Just a bag of dog treats for Phantom but not the ones with chicken, he doesn’t like those.”
“Well, why don’t you wait here, and I’ll pop in and get them?”
Alice nodded, then stared ahead with a resigned expression. She bent down to scratch Phantom behind the ears. He looked up at her with a puzzled expression. There seemed to be a tacit understanding between owner and animal.
“What a beautiful dog,” I said by way of introduction. “What breed is he?”
“A Weimaraner,” Alice replied. “But sadly not mine for much longer.”
“Yes, I couldn’t help overhearing.”
“Poor Phantom.” Alice sighed and bent to talk to the dog. “You know exactly what’s going on, don’t you? But you’re being very brave about it all.”
I knelt to pat Phantom’s head, and he sniffed me cautiously before offering me his giant paw.
“That’s strange,” said Alice. “He’s usually much more reserved around strangers. You must be a dog person.”
“Oh, I love animals,” I said, even though this dog was the first I’d encountered. “If you don’t mind me asking, where are you going that he can’t come?”
“I’m moving to Fairhaven, the retirement village in town. Have you heard of it? No pets allowed, unless you count goldfish.”
“What a shame,” I said. “But don’t worry; I’m sure a dog as beautiful as Phantom will be snapped up in no time. Are you looking forward to going?”
She looked a little taken aback by the question. “You know, you’re the first person to ask me that. I suppose I’m not fussed one way or the other. I’ll be better once I know Phantom’s settled. I had hoped my daughter would take him, but she lives in an apartment and that won’t do.”
As Phantom butted his spongy nose against my hand, I was struck by an idea. Perhaps this meeting was Providence offering me an opportunity to make amends for my recent lack of responsibility. Wasn’t this what I was meant to be doing after all — making a difference to people wherever I could rather than focusing on my own egotistical obsessions? There wasn’t much I could do about a crisis on the other side of the globe but here was a situation where I might be of use.
“Maybe I could take him?” I suggested impulsively. “We have a big garden.” I knew that if I allowed myself time to think it through I would lose my nerve. Alice’s face brightened instantly.
“Could you? Are you quite sure?” she said. “That would be wonderful. You’ll never find a more loyal friend, I can promise you. Why, you’ve hit it off already. But what will your parents say?”
“They won’t mind,” I told her, hoping my siblings would view the decision the same way I did. “So it’s settled then?”
“Here’s Felicity.” Alice beamed. “We’d better tell her the good news.”
Phantom and I watched the two women drive away, one dabbing at her eyes, the other looking visibly relieved. Apart from a piteous yelp at his mistress and a soulful look in his eyes, Phantom seemed unperturbed to find himself suddenly in my keeping. He seemed to understand instinctively that the new arrangement was the best that could be hoped for under the circumstances. He waited patiently outside while I shopped. Then I hung the shopping bag from one handlebar, tied his leash to the other, and walked the bike home.
“Did you find the place all right?” Gabe called out when he heard me come in.
“Sorry, forgot the bread,” I said, striding into the kitchen with Phantom at my heels. “But I picked up a
