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was once again staffing the welcome area. The volunteer who had promised to sit there this morning had phoned in sick.
    “Say hi to everyone for me,” she called.
    Outside, dogs started barking the minute I appeared, as always—even though I discouraged it. I began to stroll down the path with habitats on both sides. At each enclosure, I stopped to say hi to its resident, smiling and putting my hand through for a pet as long as that pup wasn’t barking. “How are you, Elmer?” I crooned to the Lab. “You’re looking adorable today, Honey,” I told the Westie mix.
    I passed the middle building, on my right, which housed our toy dogs, most rescued cats, and other smaller animals.
    As I reached the turn toward the next row of kennels, I saw Si Rogan and Angie Shayde come through the back entrance, near the end of the storage building. “Hi,” I greeted them both.
    “Hi, back, Internet star.” Si grinned as I rolled my eyes.
    “That’s so three days ago,” I countered.
    Si was an animal behaviorist who helped to retrain our most energetic or belligerent residents to make them easier to adopt. Around my age, and cute in an aging boyish kind of way, he was a nice guy who’d worked here part-time since we’d opened HotRescues. I’d gleaned by his attentiveness now and then that he wanted to get to know me better, but I’d gently discouraged him.
    “But it’s still so adorable.” Angie was also smiling. A new veterinary technician who had only recently started working here, she had a classic oval face that looked almost cherubic, and short, curly hair. I was certain that she put all the animals she treated at ease with her warm attitude, too.
    “Would have been cuter if the circumstances had been different,” I reminded her.
    Her expression clouded. “That’s for sure.”
    They both headed for the center building as I continued my stroll. I glanced at my watch. Time to return to my office to see if the woman who’d talked about leaving her dog here showed up around when she’d said she would.
    I soon sat at my desk again and made myself begin plowing through files but kept checking the clock. When 10:10 showed, I heard a noise in the outer area. Looked like, this time, she had decided to keep her appointment. I sighed for her dog and turned my expression into a smile of dispirited compassion before rising to join them.
    “What are you doing here?” I heard Nina’s voice raised from beyond my half-closed door.
    “I’m back again to help out.” Or at least that’s what I thought I heard. The voice was muffled, yet unpleasantly familiar. No more ghost of a smile on my face, only anger. I burst out of my office.
    Efram Kiley stood there, leaning over the reception counter with a grin that appeared menacing in its innocence. He wore jeans and a HotRescues T-shirt that looked similar to my outfit that day—not prison garb. But he’d just been arrested three days ago. What was he doing out of jail?
    What was he doing here ?
    He turned to look at me. Something unsettling passed across his face—rage? Hatred?
    Or maybe nothing at all. It could have been my imagination, since it wasn’t there when he aimed his unwelcome grin at me. “Hi, Lauren. I hope we can get past that misunderstanding the other day. Honestly, I was at that puppy mill to help.”
    “Help the puppy mill owners?” I goaded. “I didn’t have any sense that you were helping the dogs.”
    His eyes turned sorrowful and pained, as if I’d unexpectedly grown cat claws and drawn them across his face. Real emotion? I doubted it. Especially not after the way he had grabbed me during the rescue. Attacked me, until Matt Kingston took him into custody.
    “Like I said, it was a misunderstanding. But now I have to prove it in court. They arrested me.” He sounded genuinely baffled, but I knew how skilled an actor the guy was. “I’m out on bail. Had to hire another lawyer, can you believe it?”
    “Yes, I can. And I think you’d better go