Between Shep’s paws, several ants were trying to carry a crumb of moldy bread. They moved efficiently; if one ant dropped a corner, the next ant picked up the edge and the food moved toward wherever they were taking it. The ants worked together but seemed indifferent to each other. Shep glanced around at his pack. Callie was curled next to Fuzz, who barked her next lesson in cat. Fuzz licked Callie’s ears as she repeatedly garbled a meow. Boji and Dover played in the corner with a striped stick they’d found in the Car-den. Even an emotional stuffed-nose like Shep could see how much these four cared for one another. After they went home to their families, how would they suffer being apart? And Rufus and Ginny — those two were like jaws: They fit each other perfectly. Didn’t they see how great it would be to stay together as a pack? What kept the ants shuffling on, working with bugs they cared less about than a kibble? Maybe if he’d been a better alpha, his friends would have agreed to stay.
