ENDING OF PREVIOUS POST:


"It's not necessary. I'll be right back." Jim walked in the direction he thought the flash came from. Soni sat on the rug, but motioned for Goliath and Mack to follow.

When Jim didn't find anything suspicious, he petted Goliath's head. "You saw it too, didn't you, big guy?"

Goliath and Mack cocked their heads and then both ran toward the sound they heard. Jim followed.


TODAY'S POST:

Soni watched the men dance but often glanced around to see if Jim and the dogs had returned. She saw nothing.

Alex put his hand on Soni's arm. "They're fine. Goliath and Mack can take care of themselves and I'm sure Jim can too."

"Are you forgetting his left shoulder has a bullet hole in it? Trouble finds him everywhere and now my two boys are with him." Soni bit her bottom lip as her shoulders sagged.

"You've forgotten that 'your two boys' are full grown Great Pyrenees dogs. Goliath is thirty-four inches to the shoulder and weighs at least 175 pounds."

"Mack's smaller."

"True, but he's probably 140 pounds and still has some growing to do."

Soni heard heavy panting and turned her head. She jumped up and hugged the dogs. "I missed you two. Did you have fun?"

Jim followed behind. "We had a very nice walk. I doubt those two are even breathing hard." He sat on the rug. "I see I missed the beginning of the dance."

Tatiana stood. "Now that your family's back I think Alex and I'll head home."

Soni hugged them both and said, "We won't be far behind." She watched the dance and then added, "I think it's almost over." Soni waited for Tatiana and Alex's pickup to leave before she sat beside Jim.

As the dance ended, Soni petted Goliath. "I need to find Grandfather and change."

"I think I saw Kuruk standing by the head table talking with some men."

They both headed that direction. Soni noticed Kuruk and turned to Jim. "Can you wait here a minute? I need to speak to Grandfather alone."

Jim nodded and teased, "I'll keep an eye on these two mischief causers." He petted the dogs behind their ears.

*****

Jim noticed Soni pull an envelope from her pocket. I wonder if that's the letter Tatiana told Soni about. If it is, it looks like she's hiding something. I wonder what.

Kuruk and Soni headed toward his house. Jim and the dogs followed from a distance.

"This can't be good. Look at their faces," Jim said under his breath. Goliath looked at him. "You agree, don't you?" He stopped and leaned against the Range Rover. There's many questions. What did you two hear out there? I guess I'll never know. Might as well wait here and watch the gorgeous sunset. That's one thing Texas does right. He petted Goliath and then Mack. "Any idea what's going on, big guys?"

Both large dogs lay at his feet. "I didn't think so." Jim chuckled. "Resting is always a good thing."

About a half an hour later, Soni walked down the front steps wearing her jeans, tank top, and boots. "Ready to head home?"

"Did you finish talking with Kuruk?"

"He's a good listener." At the vehicle, Soni pressed the key and unlocked the doors. "Let's go. Grandfather mentioned I should hurry home, but he didn't have any idea why. Just a feeling. His feelings are usually right on target."

Jim waited to enter until the two dogs jumped in. "Can you finish the story on the way? You ended it with the Girl-Without-Parents."

"I doubt I can it finish. It's very long. It took the dancers two dances to finish. Let's see." Soni turned onto the gravel/dirt road. "The Girl-Without-Parents took the Creator's hand and asked, "Where did you come from? He answered, 'From the east where it's now light.' He stepped onto her cloud."

Soni slowed the Range Rover down. "The girl asked, 'Where is the earth?' The Creator asked, 'Where is the sky?' Then he sang, 'I am thinking, thinking, thinking what shall I create next? He sang that four times, which is the magic number." She stopped the vehicle. "Isn't this where we saw the trailer?"

"You're right, but there's nothing there."

"We'd better take a look." Soni turned off the engine. "Come on. Grab a flashlight." She grabbed the sawed-off shot gun.

They walked until they came to the area where the trailer had sat. Soni brushed aside loose hair from a braid. "I took the hook-up bracket. People don't usually carry extras."

"Look over here." Jim shined his light to a dirt and grassy area. "These tracks weren't made by that old pickup. They're fresh."

Soni knelt and touched the tracks. "You're right. These were made by a dualie." She stood. "We were right. They were up to no good. But what?"