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bring her a rose but not the effort to knock. And for the life of her, she could not think why.
    Bob said something about respecting the don or’s wishes, and it ended the conversation.
    Her questi ons didn’t ruin the mood, and the debates continued without her until the late morning, when contractors came to give estimates on new outdoor gates, and a family came to seek a potential new pet. Emilia kept her mouth shut after Bob and Sandra left, leaving the management stuff to Paula and Elaine and trusting Claudette to manage the phones and paperwork for a change. Instead, she spent the day cleaning the yards (a chore usually reserved for the community service handoffs), bathing the dogs, and clipping their nails. Emilia even washed their blankets and beds, cleaning out the washer each time with a scrub and disinfectant. For all her attempts to distract herself, she was only in the middle of cleaning out the lint trap when Claudette finally said something.
    “Are you okay? ” she asked. “You seem a little… off, I guess.”
    “Yeah ,” she lied. “I’m good. Just tired from pulling an all-nighter.”
    Claud ette laughed and pulled the trash bag from its container, twisting it tight. “I don’t know how you can do a summer semester. I’d go crazy without a break.”
    “I like it. ” Emilia shrugged, remembering how last year’s summer semester saved her when Kasper broke her heart. At the time, school had only been a reason to wake up in the morning until she found a job, but like all the other times in her life, it had steered her out of the storm and set her straight.
    “ Why don’t you get out of here?” Claudette said. “I’ll punch out for you when I leave.”
    “That probably isn’t a good idea.”
    Claudette laughed and hoisted the garbage up. “We might as well take advantage before we actually get cameras that work. Besides, you’ve done more around here today than I do in a week.”
    “Good point.” Emilia smiled.
    “Cool,” Claudette said, giving her a pat on the shoulder. “Just let me take this out.”
    Emilia stopped smiling as soon as Claudette was out of sight. She washed her hands and went to the lobby to get her book bag. It was the fourth time she had to pull the hair back up off her sweaty neck, and it only reminded her of how much she looked forward to a shower. Emilia sighed and stretched her arms; she was genuinely tired but knew she wouldn’t be able to sleep. And with two papers to work on, it wouldn’t matter, anyway. Maybe going home early was a good thing; she could get some research done and maybe a few pages written—
    “Em ?” Claudette yelled over the sound of dogs as she rushed them inside. “Em!”
    Emilia laughed a little. She thought that Claudette almost looked like a rodeo clown the way she herded the dogs back into their cages. “What’s up?”
    “There’s some weird dude outside!”
    “Weird dude? What do you mean?”
    She put her brush back and glanced up the stairs. Emilia thought Paula was still around, but couldn’t be sure. There had never been any serious trouble at the shelter before, but Emilia was the third in charge, and if something happened now, she might be responsible for it.
    “Like a weird-pervert-guy just sitting in his car watching the place!”
    “Stop it.” Emili a got up and helped Claudette lock up the rest of the cages.
    “I’m serious, ” she whispered, wide eyed. “I know you don’t get out much, but there are a lot of sickos out there who do messed up stuff to animals. You hear about it in the news all the time!”
    “I’m sure it’s nothing.” Emilia laughed. “But if you really feel uncomfortable, you can call the police.” She headed toward the lobby and slung one of her backpack straps over her shoulders.
    “Y- you’re not going to leave me, are you? There’s a dude who’s been sitting out there for like an hour with tinted windows just watching the place, and you’re going to leave me?”
    Emilia