The Treasure of Ecarte Island

(Down In) The Underground

"Just how far back do you believe that northernmost cave even goes?" Nora asked Petrich as he readied himself for cave exploration with Casper.
"I've no idea." Petrich replied, "The southeastern cave from light zone to dark is about fifty yards. But this northern cave, it's massive. Best being with an experienced surveyor of such places. The best next thing would be  having Leon Stephanotis with us. He would certainly make a great addition for this expedition, with his archeology experience. I shall have to write him to tell him what we find."
"Hopefully nothing." said Nora, "Other than a survey report saying that we can safely build over it."
"True enough," Petrich laughed, slipping on a canvas hiking jacket, which was Gretchen's cue to make ready for their daily hike. Petrich stroked her head as she sat at attention, her tail sweeping the floor in a happy wag. "Not today, Gretch. You have to stay home with Mistress."
At this, Nora froze, but quickly recovered. "Oh, nonsense! Let her go with you, Petrich, look at that poor little face. She'll just whine if you do not take her along."
Petrich shook his head. "I can't risk her getting lost in the dark of a cave."
"This experience is a very important part of her training." Nora reminded him, "She will not roam too far from her treats in your pocket."
            As if in agreement, Gretchen perked up her ears and made a low 'woof' sound.
            "Oh, very well," Petrich groaned and quickly prepared reward treats, which today were bite-sized chunks of fresh radish.
             It had been a bit over two years since Petrich's nervous breakdown. Actually, they had both suffered mental and physical trauma during an expedition to procure an old (and cursed) celestial document in a remote castle ruin.
Nora's own trauma had been a challenge to overcome, but now over two years later, her dreams were finally becoming, well, manageable, one could say.  Petrich, however, still sometimes woke crying out or waking up not even in bed, but crouched up against the door leading outside.
The night terrors were not as much a problem as the hallucinations, an affliction Petrich had recently started to deny. Nora knew better, for she would at times catch Petrich simply staring off into the distance, not in a dazed sense, but hyper-focused on something specific. When asked, he would often shrug and quickly deflect.
During the most traumatic moments of the expedition, they had with them a dog of the wooly water spaniel breed named Huter. She could sense when an object or being was no more than a figment of the mind and she would act as a deterrent. In this way Huter was a lifesaver. But Huter was not to stay with them in the end.
Upon mentioning the need for another 'Huter' for Petrich's ongoing condition, Gabriella Fitzhugh, known to her friends as Fitz, suggested to Nora in private another companion dog that could possibly be trained to react to mental illusions.
At this, Nora was doubtful. They had been in an extraordinary and dangerous place when Huter had come to their aid. Huter had been no ordinary dog, and Nora said as much to Fitz.
"There are dogs even now for people who are prone to seizure." Fitz had told her during their last visit to Dresgorn, "The dogs can somehow sense the onset several minutes before the seizure takes hold and has time to urge the victim to be somewhere safe. Then they can attract attention for help."
Nora gave Fitz's suggestion a lot of thought as they returned home. They had only just begun their tiny sheep flock and were given the chance to purchase two grown and fully trained border collies to help.
True, the flock was far too small to keep the dogs, Ella and Ivan, busy. They could handle flocks several times bigger. Given time, the flock would grow. For now, however, Nora needed to learn while the trials and errors were financially manageable.
There was no need at all for the acquisition of another dog, but having a whelp to learn at the heels of Ella and Ivan made for a good covert plan to have for Petrich a dog who could, at the very least, be present if Petrich's hallucinations led him astray. This was the hope, anyway. Nora was not looking for Gretchen to be another Huter, who truly was extraordinary in all senses of the word, but Gretchen was already extremely loyal and fairly mature minded at only a year old.
Nora watched both man and dog as they walked away from the cottage, on their way to meet Casper at the largest cave leading underneath the hill. She breathed a sigh of relief that Petrich was better off than being alone. She then prepared a bottle for the morning lamb feeding.