Injured

Eleven p.m., Saturday night. May 15, 2010.
Jodi and Kristin arrive at Jodi's house, tired, after a long night of cleaning Kristin's place. They ate at India Palace--garlic naan with raita, chicken curry, basmati rice, and two glasses of Merlot.

They open the front door. On a normal evening, Rex would nose his way around the door, excited to greet them. Today, no one greets them.

KRISTIN
Rex!... Rex?

They enter. Lock the door. Look around. The search quickly leads them to the spare bedroom on the main floor. Rex lies on the pink-striped comforter, which has been folded into a square big enough for a 105-pound dog.

JODI
Rex?

Rex does not move.

KRISTIN
What's wrong with him?

JODI
He was fine when I left at five-thirty.

Kristin leans down, feels his forehead.

KRISTIN
He's hot. What's wrong, honey?

In his lethargy, Rex is non-responsive.

JODI
Call the emergency vet.

Jodi whips out a Yellow Pages.

JODI
Here.

She rattles the number off. Kristin punches it into her cell.

KRISTIN
He won't move. He feels hot.

THE VET
If he's lethargic, you need to bring him in.

After nudging and pulling Rex for several minutes, he rises. Rex holds up his back left leg, obviously in pain.

JODI
He was fine when I left him.

Kristin straps the dog harness around Rex. He limps out the front dog, finds the nearest tree and squats. He's in too much pain to lift the leg.

To be continued....