the stone with his name on it. Shivering madly but hardly looking bothered by it. Her cheeks were wet with fresh and old tears and she was absently rubbing her nose on the ground in subtle arches, as if she were trying to get closer to him. Altogether, it was a heartbreaking sight.

 

“Dusty. . . this isn't healthy. You've got to stop before you make yourself sick” Kirby nestled himself against her shuddering body.

“We're all worried about you, Dusty. You don't have to go through this alone.” Ralph joined them, putting himself against her other side.

 

If she was even aware they were there, she didn't show it. Their words were falling on deaf ears. She was so far gone at this point that she only heard a couple fragmented bits of their words.

“stop. . . go. . . alone. . .”

It barely had any meaning to her anymore. Nothing had meaning anymore. All of that was buried beneath her now. Her body slowly stopped shivering thanks to her friends but, inevitably, her quivering began. After a while that stopped too.

 

Eventually they made it back home with Dusty. They had to practically carry her the whole way. Her willingness to move her legs that morning was not the same as it was last night. They had to walk on either side of her, keeping her from falling every time she stumbled. With how weak she was, it was incredible she ever made it out there on her own.

 

It felt like a miracle when they finally got her home and out of the cold. The two male dogs were more than happy to feel the warmth and comfort of home and to finally fill their bellies. Dusty, however, went right back to the same spot she always slept, curled up into a ball, and went straight to sleep. Kirby watched her pitifully.

“We've got to do something, Ralph. Soon. Or we might. . . we might lose Dusty too” It was difficult to say the words but he knew they were true.

Ralph nodded his head, looking sadly from Dusty to Kirby.

 

Another day passed by and Dusty still showed no signs of improving. Her body was beginning to thin, she barely moved at all anymore.

Their owner finally took her to the vet to find out what was wrong with her but when he brought her back home, she looked just a hopelessly lost as before. The vet had told him that there was in fact, nothing wrong with her. She was one of the healthiest dogs he'd seen. His only suggestion was to up her food. Underfed was the only thing he could see wrong.

“She won't eat. I've given her food but she won't touch it” he pleaded. The only thing they could do was put her on a soft food diet which could be force fed to her.

 

The next few days became a routine for them. Dusty steadily thinned more and more. Every night she disappeared and every morning she was found sleeping by Kodi’s grave. Ralph, Kirby and a few other dogs from the team would carry her home and she would remain motionless the whole day. Completely unresponsive to their attempts at comforting her. None of their efforts could even reach her anymore.

 

Later in the day their owner would force feed Dusty her wet food while the rest of them ate. She didn't even fight it anymore. He would press the food into her mouth and she would swallow, hardly even tasting a bit of it. She would go back to her spot afterwards and curl back up. Sometimes falling asleep, other times only pretending. Without fail however, come nightfall, she would stand up and stumble her way back to Kodi’s grave.

 

Laying down against it, she felt the all too familiar pang in her chest build up again. Why couldn't they just leave her alone? The will to live was completely gone from her. How could she want to live when every moment of the day was filled with pain? It was unbearable. If she could die, she would be with Kodi again. That was all she wanted. To linger here only meant more suffering.

 

When the sun came up the next day, she was still awake, hardly moving or making a sound. Her friends that she had all but forgotten about were there for her. A whimper escaped her as they took her away from Kodi again. There was no fight left in her to try to resist.

 

Instead of taking her home, today they took her somewhere different. An unwelcome warm feeling washed over her when they entered the boiler room. Kirby and Ralph took her to the very front and set her down.

The chatter had died immediately once they entered. Almost a whole week had passed since Kodi had died and this was the first time most of them had seen Dusty since.

She was nothing more than a shadow of herself. There was none of the old happiness in her. It was pretty clear to everyone there that she was a dog waiting to die. A low rumble of hushed voices slowly started.

 

Kirby and Ralph nodded at each other before Kirby stepped forward and cleared his throat.

“Guys. . . I know we all felt it when we lost Kodi” he paused, looking around at all the faces watching him or looking down at Dusty. “One of us is hurting really bad. I'm worried but more than anything. . . I'm scared. I'm afraid if we don't do something soon, I think, no. I know. I know we'll lose Dusty too.”

 

The hushed voices quieted as he went on. He paced back and forth, making sure to keep Dusty visible to them all.

“Nothing could have been done to save Kodi, but I know we can do something to save Dusty. I'm not willing to give up on her” his voice may have sounded nervous when he began but it gained strength as he continued.

 

Dusty couldn't understand why they were doing this to her. Why was she being brought in front of so many dogs? Why couldn't they just leave her be?

Kirbys words didn't have much meaning to her, she just wanted this to be over. This and everything else. To put an end to it all. She wanted them to let her go so she could go back to Kodi.

“Kodi . . . “

Her ears twitched when Kirby mentioned the name. Her heart banged painfully in her chest.

“Please make it stop” she pined. Her voice sounded so unlike her own, she didn't recognize that she had even spoken. “I can't stand it any longer.” Her lip trembled, a fresh wave of painful emotions threatening to overtake her again.

 

Kirby stopped and turned back to her. Before he could react, Ralph was there. The large dog barked his approval. “I can't stand it anymore either, Dusty. Watching you do this to yourself, it's unbearable.” His voice was not unkind.

“We need you to come back to us Dusty. What would Kodi say if he saw you like this?” Kirby added.

 

Dusty shook her head, her mouth open like she was trying to say something, but the words wouldn't come out. Her bloodshot eyes looked at Ralph without understanding.

The other one, Kirby, was there too then. Their words swam in her head, becoming disconnected and turning into a big garbled mess she could only pull a few words out of.

“Kodi . . . come back . . . it's unbearable” she mumbled the words, barely even audibly.

Dusty blinked at the two dogs standing over her, feeling afraid and lost. They said something else to her but the haze that clouded her mind was coming back and she couldn't make out anymore of their words.

 

More dogs showed up and gathered around her. All of them looking at her with odd expressions. She was beginning to feel like some kind of spectacle they were all crowding around to watch. Several more dogs pressed in. What did they want? Beginning to feel trapped, Dusty tried to back away from them but they were behind her now. With no way out, she began to panic. Her eyes darted around at everyone surrounding her, watching their lips move without speaking any words.

“Please . . . go.” They were the only words that didn't choke her or get stuck in her throat. They came out as a weak but desperate sound.

 

Almost every dog in the boiler had approached Dusty to support her. Very much like the way they had united around Balto and Jenna when Kodi had been buried. A few dogs had actually left the room.

 

There was one who hadn't bothered to move yet. He watched Dusty closely from his spot at the back. Maybe it was just him, but he didn't understand how no one else seemed to notice the panic spreading on Dusty’s face.

However good their intentions were, Dusty was in a right state and this was clearly not helping matters for her. He shook his head and stood up. With one loud bark, he managed to get the rooms attention.

 

Only when they had all turned around to look at him did he step out of the shadows. When he did, he heard a sudden gasp from Dusty. Her eyes gleamed wetly, staring unblinking at him. The lost and dull eyes she had had moments ago were gone.

 

That rust-red fur, that powerful build, that handsome face. . . there was only one dog it could be.

‘It's Kodi!’

The impossible thought went through her mind the moment she saw the new dog. All of her fear was abated in an instant. If it weren't for all the dogs around her, she would have run to him then. She tried to call to him but she had no more voice. Her heart leapt when his eyes met hers.

 

“I don't think you guys are aware of what you are doing to her” He said it calmly, looking at each of them in turn. “No words can mend a broken heart. How is she even supposed to breath with you lot crowding her like that?” Silence fell after his words.

 

His resemblance to Kodi was not lost on the rest of them. The whole room was temporarily stunned by it. Only Dusty actually believed he was Kodi though. The rest of the

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