Page 17 of Home Changes
They slowed to a walk as they reached the edge of the block and circled around behind the bakery.
Allison’s eyes narrowed as she spotted the trash can again. The lid was off. She let out a sigh and stepped forward, picking it up.
“I think someone’s stealing,” she said, her voice low as she looked back at Kathy. “This isn’t a raccoon.” She pointed at the can. “You know I donate as much as I can. I give extras to the church andpeople who need help. But sometimes food expires. It’s not enough to give away, and I can’t sell it, so I toss it.” She paused. “Every day, for at least a week, the food I put in this can disappears. Sometimes the lid is off. Sometimes it’s back on. But the food is always gone.”
Kathy walked over, hands on her hips, inspecting the scene. “Yeah, okay … but it’s hard to tell anything back here. The gravel doesn’t leave footprints. And there’s nowhere to hide unless they’re lightning fast.”
“Not necessarily,” Allison said. “If they know I go running with you and the back of the store is empty, they wouldn’t have to hide. They’d just have to time it right.” She turned toward her friend. “I’m going to talk to Ken. He usually knows if someone’s fallen on hard times. If that’s the case, I’ll start putting together care packages. A loaf of bread doesn’t cost me much. It wouldn’t hurt my bottom line.”
Kathy nodded immediately. “If you find out who it is, let me know. I’ll do what I can to help, too.”
Allison gave a quiet smile. “I’ll do that. Come on in. I’ll grab you a bottle of water.”
“Thank you. The walk home relaxes me, but on days like this, a cold bottle of water sounds perfect.”
Kathy followed her through the back door of the bakery, and as Allison reached into the fridge fortwo bottles of water, Kathy pointed toward the kitchen window. “Hey, is that somebody up front?”
Allison turned, squinting through the front of the shop. Her lips curled into a small smile. “Yeah. I think it’s Seth …. and his partner.”
Kathy’s grin spread wide, and her eyes sparkled. “Seth Hansen?”
Allison nodded.
“And what do you mean by ‘partner’? You never answered that.”
“He has a dog,” Allison said with a small laugh. “Amilitary working dog. That’s his partner. He was a dog handler in the military. The dog retired, and Seth went back to get him about a week ago.”
Kathy raised her brows, thoroughly amused. “Let me guess. You’re going to ‘go see what he needs,’ and I’m supposed to forget about this until tomorrow?”
Allison chuckled. “Yes. Let me handle this, and you go out the back. I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Kathy backed toward the rear exit, still smiling. “You’d better believe I wantallthe tea tomorrow. You’re not dodging my questions.”
“Get out of here.” Allison laughed, giving her friend a playful push.
After Kathy waved and slipped out the back,Allison walked through the bakery and unlocked the front door.
“Hey,” she said, greeting him with a smile. “Did you need something?”
Seth looked between her and the sign in the window.
“I actually didn’t realize it was past two. I’ve been letting Dad whittle out on the bench with Delbert. Trying to keep him on a routine, and the doctor said it would help.” He gestured beside him. “This is Gomer, by the way.”
The black German Shepherd sat neatly at his heel, poised and watchful.
Allison’s heart softened immediately. She squatted down and extended her hand slowly. “Hey, big boy. How are you?”
The dog sniffed Allison’s hand, gave a little huff, then licked her fingers with a single swipe of his tongue.
She smiled up at Seth. “He’s gorgeous. May I pet him?”
“Sure,” Seth said, watching with clear affection. “One of the things about Gomer is he’s exceptionally friendly. Honestly, it was one of the reasons he was offered up for adoption. He’s one of the best at search and rescue, and he can detect drugs in anyroom, but if someone offered him a belly scratch, he’d flop over and let them. Meanwhile, the person he was supposed to be tracking would just keep on running.”
Allison laughed and ran her fingers through the thick fur at the dog’s scruff. “You are absolutely gorgeous,” she cooed to the dog, rubbing behind his ears. She offered her hand again. “Shake?”
Gomer lifted his paw and placed it gently in her palm.
“Oh, you’re smart, too,” she said, grinning and giving him another pat before standing. Her eyes returned to Seth. “Did you find out the results of your dad’s tests?”
