Outside the building, the dog’s legs buckled. He caught himself just in time, swaying badly before regaining balance. Sam felt a surge of alarm. This did not seem to be emotional collapse alone. Something physical was failing, too. But the handlers had never mentioned it.
Sam dropped to one knee without thinking. The dog panted hard, sides heaving, body trembling. His eyes darted, then slowly settled. After a long moment, the shaking eased. Sam stayed still, grounding the moment with his presence alone.