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I hear?” the guy with the odd name—Woody? —said.
    “Yeah. The power went off and the backup generator has to be started manually. They didn’t know till morning what had happened. By then the temperature had dropped, water froze in the lines, they broke and flooded the place.”
    “Sounds like a good case for a suit,” Stan remarked. “It’s irresponsible to board animals and not have an emergency plan in place.”
    I couldn’t argue with that, but I didn’t like to hear Sarah and Saffron bad -mouthed. The couple who owned Happytails Boarding had become like family to me in the short time I’d been working there.
    The garage was enormous. Big enough for two cars and a third bay for whatever extra vehicle the homeowner might have from a motorcycle to a boat. Stan’s area was filled with golfing equipment and some saws and drill presses. There was also a work bench and a lot of tools hanging on the wall.
    “Doing some woodworking?” I asked.
    Stan pointed out the space where Woody could set the dog crate. “Yes. I’ve been making birdhouses.”
    “ Nice. My dad likes to make things too. He owns a hardware store,” I offered lamely, and then silence resumed.
    I longed to be at home. This three-day visit already seemed to have gone on for at least ten hours. My mind pinballed around trying to keep names straight, remembering what I needed to do next for the dog, and, of course, thinking about Anna’s less than enthusiastic reaction to my proposal. Information overload for somebody who functioned best on a regular routine.
    T he door from the garage into the house opened, and Anna appeared, light from behind haloing her like an angel come to save me from dysfunction.
    “Hi. How’s my baby doing?” she said.
    I released the kraken, and Baby charged. She leaped into Anna’s arms, wiggling and licking as if she hadn’t seen her in weeks.
    “It’s all right. Good girl.” Anna soothed and p atted the dog.
    I remembered what I’d planned to do next and got out the dog dishes. After putting some food into one, I went inside the house to fill the other at the kitchen sink.
    Jackie stood , stirring something in a mixing bowl and talking to Cousin Callie, or Chloe. They looked over at me when I entered.
    “Just getting some water for the dog,” I said.
    Anna’s mom drew her mouth into a polite smile that wasn’t very warm. “That’s fine.”
    The smell of roasting meat and something sweet—maybe sugar cookies— made my stomach grumble. It had been a long time since we’d stopped for lunch. I tried to think of something to say, but nothing popped into my head, except the same drill about how uneventful the drive had been.
    I half filled the dish and hurried out of the kitchen. Before the door closed behind me, I noticed Jackie had stopped stirring and was wiping my snow-wet footprints from the floor with paper towels.
    Out in the garage, Anna was alone. Her dad and Wood y had taken our luggage up to the room we’d be sharing—Anna’s bedroom. I wondered if her mom had left everything untouched. Anna had once told me I wouldn’t find boy-band posters and flowered wallpaper. Though always an overachiever, she’d dressed goth and listened to heavy metal back in the day.
    Anna sat cross-legged on the garage floor, holding Baby’s front paws and looking into her face. “Poor girl. You have to go in your crate for a while, but we aren’t going to leave you here. We’ll be right inside.” Anna looked up at me. “I feel so bad. She’s not going to know we’re not leaving her forever.”
    “ It would be the same if she was boarded at Happytails. She’ll be okay.”
    I leaned against the wall , because the thought of sitting cross-legged was impossible right then. The garage was quiet. From inside the house came muffled voices and the soft strains of Christmas music. The holiday was starting to smother me in syrupy sweetness.
    Anna got up and put Baby in her crate. Immediately , the dog began to