“I will.”

 “I’ll have to make sure I save some time today to prepare,” Lucky stated.

 “What for?” Willa smiled as Angus approached, his eyebrows looking like two caterpillars attacking each other.

 “Penni’s eulogy. If she gets anywhere near Killyama, she’s gonna die.”

 Willa laughed so hard her head spun, and she had to lean against Lucky for support. Maybe she should stop by her doctor’s office tomorrow to make sure she didn’t have any ill effects from Penni’s lemonade concoction.

 Angus grabbed her in a bear hug, lifting her off her feet. After placing her back down, he slapped Lucky on the back.

 “Makes me feel good to see a young couple in love as much as Myrtle and I are. Hope you have as many years together as we’ve had. Our fifty-third anniversary is next Thursday.”

 Angus’s wife rolled her eyes at her husband. “He’s tactfully trying to remind you about our cake.”

 “I haven’t forgotten,” Willa said, noticing Lucky had become remote, standing silently until the older couple left.

 “I need to leave. I’m having lunch at the diner. The Last Riders are waiting for me.”

 Willa took Caroline from him. “I’ll see you tonight.”

 He had placed an invisible barrier between them, telling her without words the only relationship they shared was an act to deceive others. The Last Riders were the ones he wanted to spend his time with.

 Lucky nodded, locking the church door then leaving her and the children to walk to the parking lot alone. She put the children in the van and drove home, refusing to acknowledge the hurt she was feeling throughout the entire drive.

 He had left her last night without making love to her, which told her he wasn’t attracted enough to her to actually have sex with her. Today, he wanted to make sure she wasn’t building any misconceptions about his feelings toward her.

 * * *

 Willa stood at the sink, washing the dishes after lunch.

 “Why aren’t you using the dishwasher?” Leanne asked, placing a glass into the sudsy water.

 Willa shrugged. “Sometimes I like to do them by hand.”

 “Why are you crying?”

 Willa sniffed. “I’m not crying.”

 “I can do the dishes.” Leanne took the plate out of her hand, moving in front of the sink. It was the first real overture the teenager had made toward her.

 “I’ll take the kids out to play.” Willa dried her hands on a dishtowel.

 All she had to do was open the backdoor and the little girls ran outside. Willa followed them, yelling at Charlie to come out and play with the girls. The sisters loved their brother to chase them around the yard.

 Willa came to a stop when she stepped outside and saw what the girls were doing. A solid black German Shepherd was sitting on his haunches while the girls wrapped their arms around his neck. Terror filled Willa at the sight.

 “Caroline, Chrissy, come here. Right now. Move slowly toward me,” Willa urged, trying to keep the panic out of her voice.

 “We don’t want to. Isn’t she pretty?”

 Her eyes traveled down the body of the large dog. “Yes, she is.”

 “Can we keep her?” Caroline lisped.

 “No!” Willa lowered her shrill voice. “She must have gotten away from her owner. I’ll call Animal Control.” As soon as the words out of her mouth, she realized it was Sunday, and the town didn’t have the funds to employ someone to pick up strays on the weekend. Thinking quickly, she took out her cell phone and called the sheriff’s office, and the dispatcher promised to send someone immediately.

 Willa carefully walked closer to the children and dog until she was within touching distance. Then she took each girl’s hand, tugging them away from the dangerous-looking dog. The dog whined when she stepped back, placing the girls behind her back.

 She was at her back door when Charlie and Leanne came outside. The little boy stopped then ran forward before she could stop him. Leanne went slower, not wanting to appear as excited.

 “Where did she come from?” Charlie asked in awe.

 “I don’t know. Come back here.”

 Charlie reached out to pat the dog, ruffling his fur.

 “I wouldn’t do that,” Willa warned.

 “Why not? He’s friendly.”

 Willa was about to push the girls inside when Knox opened her side gate.

 “Thank God you’re here,” Willa said in relief. She hadn’t known who to protect first.

 “What’s up?”

 Willa waved her hand at the massive dog. “I don’t know how he got in my backyard, and Animal Control is closed today.”

 Knox went to the dog, sticking out his hand to be sniffed, and the dog licked his hand after a few moments.

 “How is Sissy adjusting?” Willa took advantage of the opportunity to ask about her former foster child as he petted the dog. She had an appointment with Diamond later this week, and she was going to use the opportunity to ask for information since Flora refused to give her any news on the girl, citing privacy guidelines. However, this gave her a chance to keep her appointment strictly business.

 “Good. She’s spending time with Sex Piston and her crew.”

 “That must be fun for her.”

 “I don’t know about that,” Knox said. “She thought making fun of Diamond’s doomsday prepping was hilarious until Sex Piston heard her. Now she’s trying to survive working in Sex Piston’s beauty shop part-time.”

 Willa could imagine the biker women making toast of Sissy if she showed them her teenage angst.

 “She seems pretty friendly.” Knox said, drawing her attention back to the dog. His hand went to the collar Willa hadn’t noticed. “Her name is Ria.”

 “Does it say who to call?”

 “No, but if she belongs to someone, they usually call the dog shelter. It will be tomorrow before we can find her owner if she belongs to someone.”

 “Of course she belongs to someone, or she wouldn’t have a collar,” Willa reasoned.

 “Not if the owner couldn’t take care of her anymore. Sometimes, they let them loose, hoping they’ll find a new home. What do you want me to do?”

 “I want you to get rid of her.”

 “I don’t have any place to keep her. I guess I could chain her up at the dog shelter. They’ll find her when they open in the morning.”

 “Let her stay tonight,” Charlie begged.

 Willa didn’t even think twice. “She may be dangerous. I can’t take the chance with the children.”

 “I can test her and see if you want. I’ve had several dogs, and we have a K-9 on the force.”

 Willa didn’t want to keep the dog, regardless, but the children made it hard to say no.

 They stood around as Knox gave the dog a series of commands that she followed. Even Willa could see the dog was well trained.

 “I’ll be right back,” Knox said before disappearing to the front of her house then coming back with a bag of dog food.