Page 36 of Heavy Petting

The dog’s eyes swung to mine and I thought I saw recognition in them.

“We’re going to take good care of you, don’t worry, girl. Your mom is outside waiting for you.”

She made a low whining noise.

“Let’s get some pain meds on board while we look at the x-rays.”

An hour later we wheeled an unconscious Esmerelda into a recovery kennel, hooking her IV to the chain link door. Usually we would put a smaller dog into a smaller cage, but I knew without asking that Mabel would insist on staying here with her pup.

“Thanks, nice work, both of you,” I told Steve and Erica. “I’m going to go update Mabel.”

“I’ll keep an eye on Miss Esmerelda,” Erica assured me. “I’ll let you know if anything changes.”

I headed to the room that we called the lounge. Unlike our usual treatment rooms, this one had a loveseat and a more homey feel. It was where we took the pet parents to give them bad news, or to let them be present while we administered euthanasia drugs for those who were ready to cross over.

Like that first day I met her, Mabel was sitting cross-legged, her hands on her knees while she stared into space. When she heard me enter the room she turned her head, her eyes wide and devastated.

“Is she…?”

“Mabel is going to be fine,” I told her.

She jumped up and grabbed my forearms, digging her fingernails into my skin. “Did you say she’s going to be fine?” she asked.

I led her to the loveseat and sat next to her, turning so I could make eye contact.

“Mabel has a concussion,” I said. “Her back right leg is broken, and she has contusions – bruises – all up her right side. But the good news is that she is able to move, which means her spine isn’t injured, and there doesn’t appear to be any internal bleeding that we can see at this time. We will need to monitor her carefully for at least the next twenty-four hours, but barring an infection or something we didn’t find yet, I expect her to make a full recovery.”

Mabel burst into tears and slid off the love seat onto the floor.

Mabel

I’d finally stopped crying when Elaine stuck her head in.

“Cops are here, boss. They want to get statements from you both.”

“Let them in,” Joshua told them.

We both gave our statements to the police, then Joshua took me back to the recovery section where Esmerelda was resting. She was in a kennel at the far end, sleeping on a blanket, hooked up to an IV, with a cast on her leg. She looked so small and helpless.

“Can I go in?” I asked.

Joshua nodded. “Just don’t jostle her leg. She’s drugged up right now and might not realize that she’s impaired.”

I slipped inside the kennel, closing the door behind me, and slid to the floor, hugging my knees to my chest while I watched Esmerelda.

“I’m going to check on a few things,” Joshua told me. “If she wakes up, have someone come get me right away, okay?”

“Okay.”

I could barely process what had happened. One minute I was having a nice walk with my dog and my boyfriend, then my bastard ex was hurting Esmerelda. I couldn’t believe my mother had brought him to my house.

Remembering that my phone had beeped a few times with my mother’s ring tone since I’d gotten here, I pulled out my phone. There were several messages from her, the first one asking where I went, as if she hadn’t seen me and Joshua put her on the backboard and take her to the car. The next couple defended Stephen and suggested that I was overreacting.

When my phone rang in my hand, I answered it.

“Maybelline. There you are, I’ve been trying to reach you.” My mother sounded annoyed.

“I’m at the animal hospital thanks to you and Stephen,” I said, my voice dripping with venom. “How could you do that to me, Mom?”