Page 45 of Sleeping with the Frenemy

“Sick fucks,” Sofi growled. She looked at Leo. “That has to be why he has all those scratches and scars.”

“Probably,” Leo agreed. He looked at the worker. “Were the other dogs that look like him messed up too?”

She nodded. “They usually start training them more intensely at this age. They have older ones fight younger ones for rewards. The vet put this specific litter at about four months old.”

Sofi waved her hand as if waving away the negativity. “We don’t even know if he’s part of that litter. Can you check him for a microchip first, before we go all doom and gloom?”

“Of course. Let me grab the scanner.” She spun on her heel and left.

“What are we going to do if he doesn’t have a chip?” Leo asked.

“What do you mean?”

“You heard her. They got in over thirty dogs just from that bust not to mention the other ones already here. These places are already underfunded and short-staffed.”

The woman walked back in before Sofi answered. “Okay, put him right here.” She patted the counter. “Hopefully, I’m wrong and this guy has a chip with some current owner information.”

Leo stepped forward and placed Dumpy on the counter. The poor guy immediately began trembling. His ears went down and his tail tucked all the way under his body.

“It’s okay, big boy,” the woman crooned. “I’m not going to hurt you.”

A whine escaped him as soon as the scanner brushed over the back of his neck and shoulder blades.

Before Leo could, Sofi’s hand reached out and cradled Dumpy’s face. He tried to get up and leap to her. Luckily the worker was done.

“As I thought, nothing,” she said. “If he does have owners, which I very much doubt given the situation, they didn’t chip him.”

“Now what?” Leo asked.

“We’ll still take him of course,” she said. “It’s a full house here, but we are reaching out to area rescues to see if they can help us out.”

“So he’ll be adopted?” Sofi asked, cuddling Dumpy to her chest the best she could even though he was the size of her torso.

“We’ll do our best but pit bulls are still a hard sell for a lot of potential adopters in Chicago due to the breed restrictions a lot of buildings have in place. Especially when they come from this background. Puppies are more likely to be adopted, but as soon as they get to around three months and don’t look like puppy puppies anymore, people are less likely to adopt them.” She held her arms out for him, but Sofi turned away.

Sofi stared at Dumpy, a frown on her face. Leo could tell that she was struggling with what she wanted to do and what they both knew she was going to do. There was no way in hell she was going to leave him there now. Not the Sofi he knew. “Fuck,” she whispered. “Why do you have to look so damn sad?” she asked him. “I can’t leave you here now.”

Leo smiled wide.

Sofi turned the worker. “I’m going to keep him.”

The woman bit her lip to hide her own smile. “Are you sure?”

Sofi nodded. “Yes, he deserves a home and if one can’t be guaranteed here, then I’ll give it to him.”

“I think that’s a great plan,” she said.

“So do I have to do anything? Fill out paperwork or something?”

The worker shook her head. “Since you never actually surrendered him, he’s not in our system. There’s no fees or paperwork.” She reached under the desk and pulled out a booklet. “However, you may want to take a look at this to figure out the next steps, the first of which should definitely be a visit to the vet for vaccinations and a checkup. None of the other dogs tested positive for heartworms, but you never know.” She leaned forward. “There are coupons for a free first visit in the folder. Tell them that Carol at CACC sent you.” She winked.

Leo reached for the folder.

Sofi smiled. “Thank you, Carol.”

“You’re more than welcome. Thank you for having a big heart.”

They exited the building, Leo smiling wide the whole time. He opened his mouth.

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