When Taren walked into the kitchen, Sal, the next shift manager, was petting Prissy. "And who do we have here?"

"She belongs to a woman whose house burned down last night. Her name is Kiki Long." Taren replied, filling a shallow bowl with water. When he set it on the floor, Prissy ran toward it and started lapping it up immediately. "The woman's in the hospital and I thought this little lady could stay with us until she can go back to her mama."

"You know her?" Sal's ...