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"May this roo to floor, may it be happy,From wall to wall, may it be happy,May all who enter dwell in safety,May all who leave return in safety,All around e stick into the bowl of crystals and the pale s

"What was that?" I asked

"A Navajo house blessing" Bridger replaced the eagle feather above the door "So, what are your plans for the rest of the day?"

"Clean Mrs Carpenter’s house, feed the dogs, shovel ht, right?" he interjected

"Yeah, I’ up here Why?"

"Because I don’t know if her front door will lock, so you’ll be safer up here You knohat you should do?"

I studied Bridger "What should I do?"

"Let Bear sleep with you He’s tougher than he looks"

I scrunched ether "Who in the world is Bear?"

"Mrs C’s dog The black-and-white one?"

"Youas sleep deprived as uess Navajo?"

Bridger nodded "I’ve got to go So into town this afternoon and I need to arrange a place for theet soht Thanks For, you know, the clothes, the house blessing, everything"

Bridger se of butterflies "That’s what friends do, Maggie"

When it started getting dark out, I grabbed a box of crackers and a jar of peanut butter from Mrs Carpenter’s pantry With food in hand, I went to the barn

I brought the crackers to h the , creating a steel-blue square of light on h I didn’t feel the ly as usual, I undressed and shifted into Shash’s twin

Ears perched and heart pounding, I sat by the door that led out of the barn and waited Waited for wolves Or wild dogs Anything But nothing caave in to canine instincts and played

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Someone pounded on my bedroom door and I jued his tail

"What in the …" I looked atOnly bad news ca "Oh, no!" I gasped, i the list

I yanked my feet out from under Shash and leaped from bed, completely unconcerned that all I ere panties and a black wifebeater, and pulled the door wide

Bridger’s eyes filled with relief when they saw ht have come back," he said And then his eyes s, then to my tank top and back to ?" I asked "Is Mrs Carpenter all right?"

He cleared his throat and focused on ht She tried calling the house first, but you didn’t answer, so she calledwell and hopes you had a nice night, and found the barn to your liking" His eyes narrowed the slightest bit "She sounded worried about you, but e"

"Oh" A sed at the corner of ? Yep I’d chased chickens and rolled in the dirt with the dogs for hours

I glanced down atbehind it Shash, thrilled to see Bridger, tried to nose the door open "Shash, stop it," I said, nudging him aith my knee "If Mrs Carpenter’s fine, then why are you here so early?"

"You don’t have a phone I ca with ht now?" For the first ti biker shorts and a jersey

"Yeah, right now," he said with a laugh "Sunrise is the best tio; plus this is the only activity I could think of where Katie couldn’t tag along"

"Your plan is flawed I don’t have a bike," I said, stifling a yawn