One Foot in the Grave - Denise Grover Swank Page 0,37
got to get back to the front desk even though hardly anyone shows up,” she said, sounding disappointed.
“You should get a bell for the door,” I said as I sat cross-legged on the wood slats. “Or one of those electronic chimes. Then you can step away.”
She made a face. “Dr. Donahey doesn’t like it. She prefers to keep things quiet for the animals.”
Considering that I didn’t know much about animals, I just nodded. “Well, thanks.” But as she started to walk away, I called after her, realizing I could use my lack of animal knowledge to my advantage. “I’ve never had a pet before, so is there any way I could talk to someone about what to expect? Like a vet tech?”
Her face brightened. “Yeah. I’ll send someone out to you.”
As the back door closed, I gave my full attention to the wiggling kittens crawling on top of my legs. I’d never had a pet as a kid, and my teaching schedule had kept me from my apartment for long hours, which had never seemed conducive to caring for a pet. But I had to admit the kittens were tugging at my heartstrings.
A dark gray one seemed fascinated with my fingers, batting at them and then crawling under my hand as though trying to force me to pet it.
I picked it up and held it to my chest, giving it some good pets, and grinned when it started to purr.
“Looks like you found my favorite,” a woman said as she walked out the back door onto the porch.
I glanced up to see a woman in her mid-thirties. Her long blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail. She wore a pair of pale-yellow scrubs covered in parakeets and cockatiels.
“He seems to have picked me,” I said.
“She’s really good at that,” the woman said with a friendly smile, but the corners of her mouth looked like she was holding them a bit too high to be natural.
Why was she acting strangely? Was she worried I’d take the kitten away?
“Is this one taken?”
“No, they’re all available. It’s hard to get people to take kittens or puppies around here. Dime a dozen. We’ll probably be stuck with them for months.”
I cringed, hating the idea of the kittens being stuck in a crate for that long.
“I was thinking about getting a pet for me and my landlord, but I work long hours and it would be difficult for him to chase around after a puppy. I’ve heard cats are pretty self-sufficient, so I figured a kitten might be a good option.” I’d had no intention of adopting a kitten when I’d walked in, but now I was beginning to give it serious thought. Maybe a kitten could keep Hank company while I was gone all day. “I’ve heard cats don’t want much attention, but this one seems to like it.”
“Cats are a lot like people. Some people are huggers. Some people don’t want to be touched. If you actually are here looking to adopt a kitten and want a snuggler, that one is the way to go.”
Frowning, I said, “What makes you think I don’t really want to adopt a kitten?”
She put a hand on her hip. “I know who you are, Carly Moore. You work at the tavern and you used to date Wyatt Drummond. You’ve never stepped foot in this place, yet you walked in two days after Heather Stone was dug out of the side of a mountain. It’s as plain as day you aren’t here for a cat. You’re here to see me.”
“So that would mean you’re Abby Atwood,” I said.
“Dr. Abby Atwood Donahey,” she said. “DVM.”
“I love your clinic,” I said, still stroking the kitten. “Very homey.”
“It’s way too small, but there wasn’t much available in Drum and I don’t see a ton of patients, so the cheap rent works to my advantage.” She frowned. “I take it you’re here to ask me questions about Heather.”
“What makes you think that?” I asked out of curiosity.
She leaned closer. “Rumor has it that the last time Lula Baker took off, you got it in your head to go looking for her, not knowing her history, and put Greta in danger with your snoopin’.”
The official story was that Lula had taken off and come back on her own—not entirely untrue—but the other part of the story was a whopper: our explanation for Greta’s kidnapping was that her ex-boyfriend had kidnapped her for a few days until Todd Bingham found out and made