Free Cold Heart by Sheila Dryden

immediately Lexi said,
    “Carter, I smell smoke.”
    He looked at her and their eyes grew wide. He gunned the engine. “I smell it too,” he said.

8
    When Wildwood came into view they could see flames coming from the roof of the barn and smoke pouring out of the cracks around the windows and doors.
    “Oh my God Carter ... Tucker.”
    Lexi was out of the vehicle in an instant and running for the barn. Carter caught up to her and grabbed her arm stopping her short.
    “Wait! Stop!” he yelled.
    “No we have to get him,” she said.
    “I will. You stay here, Call 9-1-1.” He said pressing his cell phone into her hand.
    Then he let go and ran for the barn. Someone had put the wood latch across the door. He pulled it off and pulled the door open. Smoke poured out but he could see Tucker lying at his feet. He wasted no time, bent down and checked for a pulse. It was faint. He picked up the ninety pound animal and carried him as quickly as he could to the car and lay him on the front seat.
    “I got them,” Lexi said.
    “Good. Stay here, I’m taking Tucker to the animal hospital.”
    “But ... I want ...”
    “I’ll call you,” he said grabbing the cell phone she passed to him. “You need to be here.”
    They could already hear sirens in the distance. Lexi could see Carter on his cell phone as he turned the car and raced down the driveway. She didn’t know what to do so she just stood there and watched her barn burn. It was only a couple of minutes until a fire truck and a pump truck arrived and the men immediately began hooking up hoses and spraying water on the blazing barn. Choking clouds of smoke filled the air and ash floated to the ground like great dirty flakes of snow.
    Lexi went up and sat on her porch and watched the men work and wondered and worried about Tucker. It took several hours before the fire was under control. It was obvious from the beginning that they would not be saving the structure, the fire chief told her later, so they concentrated their efforts on making sure it didn’t spread to the Lodge or Cabins or any of the surrounding grass and trees. All that remained by morning was a smoldering mess where her barn had been but at least the fire had been contained.
    “Any idea what caused it?” the Fire chief asked Lexi.
    “I think it was deliberately set,” she said. “My dog was in there and someone had put the latch across to lock him in. He likes to sleep in their since my Uncle Max was killed so I always leave the barn door open.”
    “Could it have been accidently latched?” he asked.
    “No definitely not. It’s literally a two by four that has to be lifted into a couple of slots. I think someone locked him in on purpose,” she said. “And I have a pretty good idea who.”
    “Really?” the Chief said. “Well we will be looking for a cause and I will see that the Sherriff is notified. I’m sure he will be out to talk to you.”
    “Thanks,” Lexi said. “Please tell your men thank you.”
    Lexi watched the fire trucks as they drove down the driveway. She wondered why she hadn’t heard from Carter yet. That must be good news she thought because if Tucker hadn’t made it he would have come back to tell her right away. No sooner had she had that thought than his car appeared in the driveway. He pulled to a stop and got out and began walking toward her. He was alone and looked tired. Lexi’s eyes began to fill with tears. Fearing the worst, she walked down the stairs to meet him. Now the tears were running down her cheeks.
    “Oh no, Tucker ...” she couldn’t get the words out.
    “He’s alive, Lexi,” Carter said. “But it’s too soon to know if he will make it. He inhaled a lot of smoke and it has done quite a bit of damage to his lungs and his airway.”
    “But there’s hope right? We can still hope,” she was sobbing now from a mixture of relief and fear.
    Carter walked closer and took her in his arms.
    “Yes we can still hope,” he said holding her close.