CHAPTER 3 Rachel to the Rescue

CHAPTER 3 Rachel to the Rescue

Peering into the darkness under the porch, Rachel could see that Scratch was shivering."Where's Claude, Scratch? Is he in trouble, boy?"

Scratch whined when he heard Claude's name and slowly inched toward Rachel on his stomach.She moved back gradually, and the dog followed her into the open.Abra held on to Scratch's collar and slipped him a tiny piece of pie.

Rachel carefully examined Scratch to see if he was hurt.He had no visible bruises, but the long stem of a purple wildflower was stuck to his side.The oil acted almost like glue. She studied the purple flower.It looked familiar for some reason, but Rachel knew it wasn't a common wildflower.

"See that flower on Scratch's side?" Rachel asked Abra. "Does it look familiar to you?I know I've seen it somewhere, but I just can't remember where."

Abra stared at the flower until her eyes almost crossed, but she had to admit that she couldn't recognize it.Nor did she know where it might have been growing.

Rachel shook her head impatiently as she tried to remember where she had seen the flower.She was sure that Claude was near where she'd first seen this purple flower.A feeling of frustration engulfed Rachel. Why couldn't she remember?When her mother hiked, she always carried a small notebook and wrote down details about the flowers she saw.If I carried a notebook, too, Rachel thought, I'd know where to find Claude right now.She shut her eyes and took a deep breath.Where had she seen a field of those purple flowers?

Finally, Abra remembered where she and Rachel had seen the flowers.They had seen them at the old Montoya place, which was a place they were not supposed to go.Excitedly, Rachel told her friend to come with her, but Abra said that they should go get help first.Rachel swung into the saddle and called out over her shoulder that she had to help Claude.Abra watched her determined, and foolish, friend ride away. Then she went for help.

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