“You should,” Archer says. “It might make a difference.”
I go to reply, but one of the other vets comes up to ask how I’m getting on, and the moment passes.
I finish my scone and coffee, return the cup and plate to the counter, and poke my head into the Fox’s Den to check on Max. He waves at me, but he and another boy are busy building the legs of the T-rex, and he doesn’t even bother to come up.
“I’m Ruby,” one of the woman says. “You must be Max’s mum.”
“Yes, I’m Isla.”
“He’s doing fine,” she says. “He spent the morning with Cullen, and he’s had a scone and some juice. I hope he doesn’t have allergies; I did ask him, but normally I get you to fill out a form before you leave him.”
“Yes, sorry, I should have come in with him first.”
“No, no, it’s okay. Maybe you could just do it now.” She passes me a sheet of paper—a one-page form for basic details like name, address, phone number, and any issues that someone looking after him might need to know.
I fill it in and hand it back to her. “Well, I guess he seems happy enough.”
“You can come and see him or call us at any time if you want to check on him.”
“Thanks!” I give him one last look, then leave him to it, pleased he seems happy without me.
The rest of the morning is as busy as the first half. Stefan sticks his head in and asks if I’d mind helping him with a surgery, so I join him in one of the operating theaters and hand him instruments as he deals with a Yorkshire Terrier who broke his leg when he escaped his house and got hit by a car.
At lunch, I check on Max but discover that he’s off with Cullen again, who’s taken him, Ollie, and Rachel over to the Petting Zoo. So I go back to work and spend a few hours in the Hotel, helping with the animals recovering from operations.
The afternoon involves more appointments, and I help several of the vets, including Izzy and a lovely lady called Summer, who’s also a cousin of the Kings. By the time Stefan comes in to check on me at four, I’m exhausted.
“Time to head home,” he says.
“You’re not closing yet?”
“Yeah… Normally we close at midday on Saturday, but it’s been so busy leading up to Christmas that we decided to stay open until four. Some of us will stay later, but the nurses will go home now. You’ve done amazing work today, and I’m sure Max is also worn out. Cullen’s been working him pretty hard.”
I chuckle and take off my tunic. “Well, as long as you’re sure.”
“Of course. Are you sure you’re okay working tomorrow?” They’re also opening Sunday because they’ve been so busy. There are a lot of holidaymakers in the area who’ve had emergencies with their pets.
“Yes, I look forward to it. Thanks for everything.” I say goodbye to the others and head along the corridor.
Max isn’t in the Fox’s Den, so I go through to the Forever Home and discover him with Cullen, who’s trying to teach a Beagle how to sit and stay. The Beagle is having none of it, buthe’s only a puppy, and he’s so delightful that he’s making the two of them laugh while they try to make him understand what they want him to do.
“Well, this looks like fun.” I smile, leaning on the door jamb and shoving my hands into my pockets.
They look around, and Max jumps up, runs over to me, and throws his arms around me. “Hey sweetie.” I kiss the top of his head. “You’ve been a busy boy.”
“I had mac and cheese for lunch,” he says, “and a banana and a yoghurt. Then I went to the Petting Zoo with Ollie and Rachel, and Poppy—she’s the lady who runs the zoo—let me hold a rabbit and a hamster, and I stroked a goat, and it tried to eat my T-shirt.” He giggles.
I grin at Cullen, who’s leaning back on his hands, watching us. “Sounds as if you’ve had a busy afternoon.”
“Just a bit.”
“I hope he hasn’t taken up too much of your time.”
“He’s good company.” He gets up and brushes down his shorts. “Are you off?”
“Yes, I’m shattered, so Stefan said I could head home.”
“Aw…” Max is disappointed, although I can see the tiredness in his features.
