Page 5 of Fight or Flight
Enough was enough.
Chapter Two
After a hot shower, Katherine settled down with the book she wanted to read. Both dogs slept at the foot of her massive bed. She didn’t care if this was normal or not. She wanted them close to her, and they never bothered her when she slept. Engrossed in the story, she jerked her attention away from her book when both Sam and Sophie suddenly leapt off the bed. Sam’s bark was loud, continuous, and ear-piercing. He bolted out of the bedroom, Sophie trailing him. Katherine tossed the book aside and followed the shepherds downstairs.
“Hey, you two, calm down,” she called out as she walked across the living room into the kitchen. Their deep, frantic barking continued. “Quiet!” she commanded, raising her voice. Neither dog stopped, their deep guttural growls alarming her.
Wanting to make sure she’d armed the security system, Katherine checked the control panel in the kitchen. It read ARMED.
“Okay, nothing there,” she said to the dogs. They were now panting, running back and forth from the kitchen to the living room, and still growling.
It was probably a rabbit or a deer, Katherine told herself. Possibly even a bear. She’d seen all kinds of wild animals on her property through the windows, though never a bear, and they had never bothered the dogs. Having had no problem with wildlife for seven years, why now? Was it the mating season? She should know this.
She flipped a switch, flooding the circumference of the house with bright light. Peering through the French doors, she didn’t see an animal of any kind, didn’t hear any wild pigs snorting, no buck bellowing. The dogs continued to emit a low growl, teeth displayed, drool dripping from their mouths.
“Sam, Sophie, down!” Katherine used her hand to indicatedown, and both dogs sat, but she could see it was hard for them. She refilled their water bowls. “Drink your water.”
They reluctantly obeyed. They never acted this way. She checked the control panel again, ran upstairs to her bedroom, grabbed her cell phone, and then went back to the kitchen. Both dogs had settled, but their pupils were dilated, a glassy look she’d never seen before. Had they gotten into something when she’d let them out earlier? Wouldn’t they have had symptoms earlier? Alarmed enough by their actions, she accessed the outside surveillance cameras through her phone. She would be able to see if anything or anyone were still out there. Between the seven cameras, one at each entrance, she saw nothing unusual. Glancing at the time, she decided it wasn’t too late to send Doc Baker a text. Unsure of what was happening with her best friends, she wanted to ensure they were okay. She texted:
Dogs are a bit hysterical. I’m concerned. K.
Seconds later, her cell phone rang.
“Hey, kiddo, what’s up with those two ornery pooches?” Doc asked.
“I’m not exactly sure.” She explained how they’d jumped out of bed and their wild barking.
“Can you FaceTime me and let me have a look at them?”
The wonders of technology never ceased to amaze her. Without them, she’d probably be institutionalized.
“Sure,” she said. “Let me call you back.” She hit the camera icon on her phone, and a few seconds later, Doc Baker’s face filled her screen. “Hi, Doc. Sorry to be such a pain in the butt, but I’ve just never seen this behavior from either dog before. Here, have a look.” She reversed the camera’s view so he could see both dogs.
“Bring it a bit closer to their eyes, kiddo,” he said.
She held the phone close to Sam, then Sophie.
“You had any troubles at your place? Them big pupils make me think they might feel threatened or scared.”
“I didn’t think German shepherds scared that easily.”
“As a rule, they’re pretty darned courageous. I’m just guessing, but from what you say, and those pupils, I’d say they’re afraid. Now, I can’t be sure without actually seeing them in the flesh, or fur in their case, but I’m pretty good at this kinda thing. So let’s diagnose the pooches as scaredy cats . . .dogs.” He chuckled.
“I trust you, so I’ll just . . .” Katherine looked at both animals. “I don’t know, keep a close eye on them.”
“Give ’em a treat and a good rub. That’ll calm ’em down. I’ll stop by in the morning, check them over, have a look around, see if I spot anything unusual.”
“I’d appreciate it,” she said. “Thanks, Doc. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“You bet.”
Katherine observed both dogs. They were uneasy, to say the least. She took two beef sticks and gave one to each, but they didn’t seem to be as excited as they normally were when she gave them this special treat. “Hey, it’s okay,” she said, running her hand along their backs, between their ears. Sam whined while Sophie carried her beef stick to the bottom of the staircase, where she gobbled it up in a few bites.
Somewhat calmed, Katherine wondered what had caused them to behave so oddly. She’d never seen them act fearful. Though she didn’t go outside with them, she always kept the French doors open so she could watch out for them. Was it time she forced herself to go outside and watch them? The mere thought frightened her so much that her heart started racing. “Not now,” she said to herself. Sometimes talking helped calm her down. It didn’t matter that she spoke to the dogs, didn’t matter what words came out of her mouth; for whatever reason, it took her focus off the physical sensations she felt when stressed. Other times she would go so far as to pinch herself so hard it brought tears to her eyes. She’d bruised herself more than she cared to admit.
Checking the control panel in the kitchen yet again to ensure it was on, she shut the outside lights off. Most likely the dogs had heard a wild animal in distress or a bear close by. Being in the Great Smoky Mountains, bears were commonplace, despite her never spotting one. Either way, she was exhausted and hoped Doc Baker could figure things out in the morning. “Come on, you two—let’s go back upstairs.”
Having finished their treats, the dogs guzzled the rest of the water in their bowls before following her upstairs. Katherine found it hard to relax, even though both dogs were now calm, resting at the foot of her bed. She tried to pick up where she’d left off in her book but couldn’t concentrate, reading the same paragraph over and over. Tossing the book aside, she took her cell phone from the nightstand and clicked on the app for the security cameras. One by one, she viewed the videos that were automatically sent to a website every hour for backup. She saw nothing out of place. With a hundred plus acres, the surveillance cameras didn’t cover her entire property. Sam and Sophie rarely, if ever, ran too far from the house, not that she watched their every move. She clicked out of the app, satisfied no wild animals were close to her property line.
