A Shadow in the Desert

Chapter Two

As she drove, Laurel's thoughts carried her back to when she came here from the Southern California area just three weeks earlier.

She had wanted to leave LA for as long as she could remember, but living there her whole life had piled on endless excuses. First, she had to finish school, then she was starting a new job and she wanted to get her student loans paid off. She let her focus became blurred by advancements at the hospital and on again, off again relationships - the only kind she was able to handle.

Towards the end of the summer, Laurel found herself standing in the entry of her LA apartment staring at herself in the mirror. She had just returned from a dinner date where she broke off the sporadic nine-month relationship with an intern that had more than run its course.

As she stared at the image before her, she told herself that the time had come...

You can stay here, but if you do, no more whining or daydreaming. This is it! Or, you can pack up the few things that you own that mean something to you – books, diploma, a few pictures, and get your ass out of here! You're 32 years old. Stay or leave, but pick a lane!

It was late August when she drove through Pine Valley with no idea where she was heading. She had surrendered herself to the belief that she would know when she reached her new home. There was nothing behind her to pull her back and nothing in front of her to distract from what she was looking for. The beauty and muted colors of the high desert pulled at her emotions as if she had just taken on a new lover. This was it, she had only traveled 450 miles to find what she had been missing all of her life - a connection to something.

It hadn't taken her long to find a place to rent in Pine Valley. The dwelling itself was small and old although there had been some attempts at updating the tiny structure with basic appliances and flooring. Laurel took to the little white house immediately, for all the reasons others had passed it by. To her it wasn't cramped, it was cozy; it wasn't isolated, it was private.

Set on the edge of a pasture, the realtor handling the property had told Laurel that it was once the residence for the foreman of the ranch. With most of their land sold, the ranch now operated with just over 100 acres, which they leased out. Finding no more need for a foreman, the house was turned into a rental. Laurel hadn't met the owners nor did she want to. She had breathtaking views from all sides of her dwelling and not another person in sight. It seemed to her that she had found paradise.

Once she moved into her little home she was happy to have found the general store, even with its limited stock, just under three miles away. Living in L.A. she was used to having most of her needs easily accessible. Now that she lived here in the valley, she had to go thirty miles to get to what the locals called 'the city'. Sage Mont had a swim center, a movie theater, and even a Starbucks. There were several large housing communities and schools from K through 12. She hadn't discovered all there was, but she had noticed that a Target was under construction near the hospital where she had found work as an RN.

There was a smaller town, Eden, about fifteen miles east of her home. Laurel hadn't spent much time there, but a drive through told her that it was far too small to find work. Eden's commerce seemed to be comprised of a gas station, a bar, and a hardware store... priorities, she mused.

*

Pine Valley Large Animal Hospital was situated about three miles down from the general store. Laurel quickly pulled in noting only a couple of trucks, including one with a livestock trailer in the parking lot. She glanced over at the clock and saw that it was 8:15. She ran up and burst through the door to the front office.

"Could you please help me? I have a dog in my car; he's been shot."

The girl behind the counter looked up with a blank expression. "We don't see small animals. There are several veterinary hospitals in Sage Mont."