It had been an especially gruesome day at work. The
E.R. was hardly ever a peaceful area, but today had
been extra tiring. The freezing rain accompanying the
snow had made the roads very hazardous and the
accident rate had sky-rocketed. They had to call in more
doctors and nurses to assist when the school bus had
collided with a semi. Everywhere you looked there were
little bodies all broken and bloody. Abigail had never
been able to accept the deaths of children and today
she had witnessed several.
She had stroked one child's forehead as the little girl
clutched her hand in terror and pain, crying for her
mother. The mother never got there in time to comfort
the dying child, so Abigail held the child to her breast
as she drew her final breath.
After everyone was taken care of and either admitted
or sent home, Abigail had gone to the linen room and it
was there that Dr. Simmons found her, sobbing and
rubbing at the bright red blood stains left on her chest
from the little girl's head injuries. The doctor had
insisted that she go home and that's where she was
headed now.
It was late, way past dinner time, but she really
wasn't hungry. All she wanted was to get home and
jump into a tub of bubbles and soak away whatever
weariness that she could. Maybe then she would have
a cup of tea before she forced herself to go to bed.
She pulled into the driveway and parked the car.
She grabbed her purse and walked to the house. As
she unlocked the front door and entered the livingroom,
she realized something was wrong. Sam, her Great
Dane,wasn't waiting at the door for her. She dropped
her purse and coat on the couch as she started calling
for him.
She found him in the kitchen. He was laying in the
middle of the floor, his tail thumping and his big sad
eyes looking at her despondently. As she bent down to
pet him, he raised his head and immediately began to
choke. Abigail grabbed his water dish and filled it. She
put it on the floor in front of him and urged him to
drink. He did try, but it only led to an even harder
choking episode. After a few minutes of rubbing his
throat and patting his back, she decided not to waste
anymore time. She pulled him to his legs and half
dragged him out to the car, grabbing her purse and
coat on the way out.
When Abigail got to the animal hospital, she ran
inside to get help. Sam could no longer move on his
own and he was much too large and heavy for her to
carry. The office had just started locking up, so the
doctor was available right away.
After they got Sam on a table, the doctor began
examining his throat. Then he told his assistant to set
up immediately and prepare the dog for surgery.
There was definately something lodged in his throat.
Abigail and the doctor walked out to the lobby and
he told her to go home. Sam would have to stay for a
few days at least, and he promised to call her when the
surgery was done.
As Abigail drove, she wondered what she would do
if something happened to Sam. She and her husband
had bought him when they were first married. Sam had
been her husband's dog, but had turned all of his
affection and loyalty to her when Karl had died of a
heart attack two years ago. They hadn't had any
children. Sam had been her companion and friend. She
would be lost without him.
The phone was ringing when she entered the house.
"Hello?"
"Abigail - This is Dr. Armstead. Listen carefully and
don't ask any questions. Sam will be okay, but I want
you to get out of the house immediately! Don't do
anything first! I've called the police and a car should be
there any minute. They'll explain everything to you.
Just get out now!" The line went dead.
Abigail felt fear crawl up her spine and settle on her
neck. She ran back out to her car and sat there
wondering what it could all be about. What connection
could there possibly be with Sam choking and her
having to get out of the house, and the police?
A few minutes later a squad car pulled up behind
her and two officers got out. They told her to wait there
while they checked out the house.
About five minutes passed before they led a man out.
He appeared to be in shock. After establishing that she
did not know him, the officer explained that he had
broken in a basement window and they had found him
crouched in a corner of the basement.
Abigail understood as she looked down at the man's
bloody hand. There were two fingers missing.
This story was written from an article I found in the
newspaper. The original story was about a dog who
turned on his owner & bit a finger off.
