A brass tag shaped like a bone hung from it.
One side said:
BEAR.
On the other:
Loved by Henry & Lorraine.
The academy would give him a new collar.
A working collar.
Henry let Bear smell the old one once more.
Then he put it back into his coat.
The trainer led Bear away.
The dog looked over his shoulder the entire way.
Until the training-center door closed.
Henry sat inside his truck for a long time.
Then he went home.
Lorraine died nine days later.
In her sleep.
