Chapter 2 - The Address Eleanor Tried to Deny
Eleanor stared at the tag.
Her lips moved, but no sound came out.
Walter held Cooper steady while the dog lapped another small mouthful of water.
“Eleanor?”
She bent to retrieve the towel.
“It must be old.”
“It has your current address.”
“Lots of people forget to update tags.”
Walter looked toward the porch.
Eleanor lived in the small gray house across the field. He had passed it every morning for fifteen years.
“Is Cooper your dog?”
“No.”
Her answer came too quickly.
The dog lifted his head at the sound of his name.
His tail moved once against the blanket.
Eleanor saw it.
Her face collapsed for half a second before she turned away.
Walter stood carefully.
“Get my truck folder.”
“What?”
“The foreclosure folder in the front seat. There’s a number for the county animal clinic.”
Eleanor did not move.
Walter’s voice hardened.
“Now.”
She hurried through the weeds.
Cooper struggled to rise but could not support his back legs.
Walter kept one arm under his chest.
“Easy, boy.”
Eleanor returned with the folder and Walter’s phone.
As he called the clinic, she stared at the refrigerator.
Not at Cooper.
At the broken lock.
Walter noticed.
“You knew that thing was locked.”
“No.”
“You looked at the padlock before I did.”
“I’ve seen it from the porch.”
“The porch is sixty feet away.”
Eleanor gripped the towel tighter.
Walter gave the clinic Cooper’s condition and location.
They instructed him to bring the dog immediately.
When he ended the call, he found Eleanor watching the road.
Waiting for someone.
May you like
Or fearing someone might return.
👉 Then Walter discovered fresh tire tracks behind the refrigerator—tracks that led directly toward Eleanor’s property.
