Page 30 of Maid in America

Molly didn’t move.

Chastity looked around, scanning to see if the coast was still clear of Rodney or any of the others. Before she’d left for college, when she had volunteered previously, she’d been warned repeatedly not to enter the cages of the animals marked as aggressive. It was dangerous and reckless, a liability for the shelter. But, stubbornly, Chastity often did it anyway.

At one point, Rodney had even threatened to have her removed from the volunteer list permanently, but in such a small town with such a minuscule budget, the place was too desperate for unpaid help to effectively ban anyone who wanted to share the workload.

Lifting the latch, Chastity stepped inside Molly’s kennel, closing the gate behind her. The Mastiff watched, cowering, ears raised at the sight of her small space being invaded.

Chastity slunk down to the floor near the door, ignoring the overpowering stench of urine and bleach in the air. She grabbed another biscuit from her bag and offered it, but Molly turned away.

Chastity slowly set it on the floor between them, watching the dog flinch as she leaned closer. Molly’s lip twitched as though she might bare her teeth but decided against it.

“I’m gonna leave that for you. For later. I’m Chastity. It’s nice to meet you, Molly. Although full disclosure, there’s not really an animal I’ve met and didn’t like.” She glanced at the untouched treat and then back at the Mastiff.

“You seem to have a bad reputation.” She smirked. “Me, too.”

The dog’s eyes finally met hers.

“Bite-risk, huh? Did you have a bad day? It happens. Or was it the volunteer? You know, some of these people are just here for court-ordered community service,” she said bitterly. “Not me. I’m here because I want to be around you guys. It makes me happy.”

She pointed at the paper zip-tied to the other side of the gate. “That thing doesn’t tell me what makesyouhappy. Or what your favorite toy is. Or if you’re secretly a cuddle bug. Your existence has been boiled down to a few words. Now everyone thinks they know you and that they canjudgeyou on those words. Hell, I can relate.”

Molly eyed the treat again and thought better of it. Instead, she walked in a half-circle, looking for a place to lie down. It was only then that Chastity saw that the huge animal only had three legs, each attached to a snow-white paw. Finally, the dog collapsed into a furry mound on an old, rectangular dog bed and sighed.

Chastity relaxed, looking at the clear amputation scar a few inches below one of Molly’s hip bones, reddened stitches irritated. Molly turned her head, flapped her jowls with a few lazy chomps, and rested her chin on her front paws, warm eyes still staring.

“We scary ladies are the ones who need love the most, aren’t we, girl?”

The dog let out a snort as if to somehow agree.

Chastity smiled and pulled a book slowly from her bag. “Mind if I read to you?”

Silence.

“Great. I hope you are a fan of paranormal romance. If you’re not, just give me a sign, okay?”

Molly just stared at her from the dog bed, occasionally eyeing the treat between them.

“This one’s about two orcs who hate each other, but they’ve been forced together, and now they’re starting to realize they might actuallylikeeach other.”

Chastity read a few pages aloud. Sometime during the next chapter, Molly crept on her belly and snapped up the treat. Chastity smiled, still reading, seeing the dog drool in her periphery. She placed another treat in the same spot and continued on.

Moments later, Molly scooted closer, timidly gobbling it up, too.

By the end of the second chapter, Molly had shuffled close on her belly, close enough to reach out and pet. Chastity flipped the page and set her hand on the floor, giving Molly the chance to smell her. By the end of the next page, Molly gently licked her hand.

“I’m fresh out of bones. All I can offer is pets.”

Chastity hesitantly placed her palm on Molly’s head and rubbed between her ears. The Mastiff let out a low groan ofpleasure and puffed air out of her jowls. Then, she slowly set down her book and stroked Molly’s face and neck tenderly with both hands, savoring the trust that she’d built with a little patience.

Molly had what people saw as a defect. She sat by herself, day in and day out, feeling unloved and unwanted. Chastity felt her eyes well with tears at the parallel in their lives. She wanted to rip the red piece of paper on her cage to shreds. Every other dog in the place would soon find a forever home, but gems like Molly would most likely continue to be overlooked.

From behind her, Chastity heard a pair of tennis shoes squeak to a stop. She knew the footfalls well, the limp of the gait. She smiled as she caught sight of him through the fencing.

“Girl, Iknowyou know you’re not supposed to be in there,” the man said playfully.

Chastity smiled. “Well, look what the cat dragged in.”

Rodney was a brittle old man who loved animals even more than she did. Despite having arthritic hands and knees, he never hesitated to kneel on the floor and give love to any and every creature who wanted it. Semi-retired now, he was a man who devoted decades of his time, and even some of his pension, to keep the shelter afloat.

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