We follow Chuck out, and the stunned looks on all of their faces is enough to make me laugh. I can’t stop the giggles from coming out, needing to put a hand against the truck to hold myself up once it starts to get a little hysterical.
“Harlow, are you okay?” Jaxon puts a hand on my arm, and when my eyes meet his, I can’t hold it back any longer. The tears well up and cascade over, and I start to sob uncontrollably. He pulls me into his arms, his scent enveloping me as I purge all my sadness and frustration in a good bout of tears. He rubs my back and murmurs words that help despite me being totally unable to understand them right now. Like animals, people just enjoy the warmth and presence of someone they love when they’re hurting.
“Back off, man. Give her a moment,” Oli growls, but I shake my head, pull myself together, and step out of Jaxon’s arms. Pressing a kiss to his cheek, I wipe my face.
“It’s okay, Oli. These guys have to go wrangle some snakes so I don’t have to. Alright, Jay, let’s get Nyx out, so you guys can be on your way. I’ve got it from here, and Doc is making some calls about permanent homes for them.” Jaxon’s hand on my arm tightens, but he lets me go, and I climb up into the tray.
Opening the gate, I lead Nyx out, and my family all take a big step back.
“Holy shit!” Kai’s quiet exclamation sounds slightly awestruck, but there’s no fear there. I should have figured the adrenaline junkie would have no problem being around a cat large enough to take him down as a snack if she wanted. I jump down from the bed, and she follows behind me, ears pricked, looking around and sniffing the air. She’s still incredibly calm, and if it weren’t for the rest of the animals that we’re responsible for keeping safe, I’d be tempted to take her for a longer exploration of the grounds. Poor baby deserves it after being kept in that horrible barn.
“Ok, guys, just give me some room. I’m going to put her in the cage in my barn, then you can bombard me with all the questions.” I wave goodbye to Jay as he closes the cage and slams the tailgate before climbing back in, heading out to deal with the snakes. Thank fuck I don’t need to worry about them.
Nyx follows me into the barn, stopping to sniff at the aviary and the stable that DS and Jenny are usually kept in. I can see that they’ve been moved, and I’m thankful someone had the thought to do that before we got here. I’m pretty sure they would have freaked out if they smelled Nyx.
I lead her into her temporary home before removing the collar and stepping back out, closing the door behind me. She paces back and forth, exploring every inch of it before flopping down and rolling around on the hay. Happy little grunts fill the air, bringing me a sense of peace. I can’t say that I expected to find a freakingjaguartoday, but there’s nothing like the peace of a safe, happy animal.
“That’s a jaguar.” The stunned words make me turn around, seeing Chuck and Melinda standing behind me. He has his arm wrapped around her, though I’m not sure if they’re actually worried about the big cat or if they’re just responding to that instinct that says a true predator is in their space. They’re staring at Nyx like they’re waiting for her to do something interesting, but the cat is really just doing… cat things. Honestly, there’s not much to see right now.
“Yeah, from what I got out of the woman, she was bought to breed. She’s only about a year old, and they don’t mature sexually until they're between three and four. If they had tried breeding her too early, they could have gotten one or both cats killed because the female wouldn't be receptive to it. Honestly, I’m not sure she would have been receptive even if they waited until the proper age. She would have been living in those horrid conditions for a long time and probably would have been as feral as the two tigers by the time they got to that stage.”
“Harlow, I’ve got a butcher delivering us a leg of deer for her. Is that okay?” Declan asks, looking up from his phone in his hand, a worried frown between his eyes. I hadn’t even noticed that he’d joined us. “What do we need to do for the babies?” He has the cage at his feet, and they look to be napping.
“That’s perfect, Declan. Come on, let’s leave her in peace until the meat gets here. I need to check over the babies.” He takes the cage into my clinic, which is helpful, but I have to stop in my tracks and hold out my hands to stop the parade of Bostons and Summers who try to join us. “Okay, I know you all want to help, but that’s not going to work. Declan and Jacinta can stay, but the rest of you need to find something else to do. I want to give them a full workover, and I don't want them handled by a lot of people until we figure out what’s going to happen to them. If they get too attached to you, it’s going to make it harder for whoever takes over. ”
I laugh out loud when everyone’s faces scrunch like they want to argue with me, but they bite their tongues and leave us be, making me love them all the more for it.
As they all depart the barn, I hear another car pull up, followed by Doc’s voice. After the rumbles of some small talk, he joins us in the clinic in time for Declan to lift the cage onto the exam table.
“Sorry I took so long. I stopped to pick up some supplies for the cubs.” He puts a shopping bag down on one of the benches.
Declan introduces him to Jacinta as he pulls various things out of the bag. “I have a friend who has experience with leopard cubs, and they messaged me a recipe they used. But I would like to see if we can get some electrolytes into them before they eat,” he suggests. “He also said that we should name each of the cubs, put nail polish on their nails so we know who’s who, and keep a separate record for each of them. Have you got any notebooks? You can write it all in there.”
I scramble around in one of my drawers and pull out five notepads. “Will this work?”
“Yup, should be fine for now.”
“Jacinta, can you ask Melinda for some nail polish? I know Max has plenty if she hasn't. Five different colors.” She leaves to do as I ask.
While that’s being taken care of, Doc Davies lines up five bottles on the bench, already mid-explanation to Declan about how to wash them.
When we packed up my clinic the other day, I labeled all the boxes so I knew exactly where all the important basics were. I pull out electrolytes, wormers, flea treatments, and nail clippers, laying everything on the exam table. With a small set of scales and a plastic container the size of a shoebox, I’m almost ready. I fill the sink that Declan isn’t using with warm water and add some pet shampoo to it. The cubs are all filthy, and I want to give them a wash to clean them all up.
When I turn back, Doc and Declan are waiting for me, and I know Jacinta should be back soon.
“Okay, I think the best thing to do would be one at a time.” I point to the sink Declan just finished using. “I want to use that sink to wash their eyes, noses, and back ends, using this cotton wool and running water.” I hand the cotton wool to Doc. “Can you do that bit? Then pass them to Declan. You can be in charge of washing them. Is that okay?” The big grin on his face says an eager yes.
“Once washed, Dec, we need to dry them because we don't want them getting cold.” I pull a hair dryer out of a cupboard, and he raises his eyebrows. “You’d be surprised how handy this is.” Jacinta arrives back, puffing, in time to hear the rest.
I plug it in and lay out a couple of towels, setting up a makeshift station drying area. “Jacinta, it will be your job to dry them. Towel off as much moisture as you can, then low heat and low fan until they’re dry, okay?” She nods, her eyes bright with excitement as she goes to her station and puts down five bottles of polish.
“Once they’re finally clean, I’ll weigh them, give them their flea and worm treatments, and clip their nails as well as listen to their lungs and hearts. We need to make sure we have a record of all that stuff before Jacinta can paint their nails while someone feeds them a bottle of electrolytes. Once they’ve done all that...” I pull a baby play pen out of the cupboard, set it up, and throw some more blankets on the floor. “Then they can go in here while we do it all over again with the next one. Anything I’ve missed?” The last comment is directed at Doc, and once I have his approval, we’re all good to go. Thankfully, his beaming smile says I’ve got it all right, so I settle myself in to work, ignoring the heat of my blushing cheeks.
Two hours later, the four of us emerge from my clinic a little worse for wear but smiling. All cubs are now fully treated, and none of them show signs of any sickness other than being slightly malnourished, which, in itself, is a miracle, considering the squalor they were being raised in. I was worried about an upper-respiratory infection, but these little guys are so much more resilient than I had thought.
I put a hand to my back and stretch, groaning thanks to being bent over for a long period of time, and Declan steps up behind me. With just the right amount of pressure, he starts to rub my back, the little show of care unexpected but much appreciated.
“Doc, do you want to come up to the house and have something to eat? Melinda told me to ask you when we were finished,” Jacinta offers.
