Chapter 4

As I start my drive from the B&B I decided to make a quick stop by the Diner and thank Hanna for setting me up with a place to stay. After all thanks to her I got a good night sleep and the company of such nice people as Dianna and Jonathan. And I feel like I’m getting my appetite back again, so maybe I could grab some take away for my trip. So I turn the car to the direction of the town and start driving there. I get a weird feeling, that for some reason I don’t want to leave this town. Dianna and Jonathan showed me some human kindness and I feel like if I leave, I won’t get something like back for a while. They made me feel welcome and at home, even though I’m just a regular customer. I shut down that thought, because this town doesn’t seem like they have a place for someone new and with a baggage like mine, it’s a small place and life seems settled here, I would be an intrusion. So I just kept driving.

I didn’t get very far though, because soon I’ve spotted a car parked on the side of the road and a bunch of teens surrounding something. I slowed down and opened the window just as I was passing them. As soon as I reached them, I stopped the car.

“hey, guys! Is everything fine?”, i shouted to them. One of the teens, a miniature redhead, turned to me, and by her facial expression I gathered, that everything is not fine at all. She seemed scared, her eyes were full with tears.

“We’ve hit a fox…” She said quietly.

Another teen turned around, this one looked a bit older, a boy, dark blond hair, frowning eyebrows. He glanced my way and turned back to his friends.

“We should put it down, it will die.”, he said in a low voice.

“Let me see.”, I got out of the car and made my way to the fox.

“What are you, a witch or something? The animal is dying, you can’t help.”, the same teen said kind of rudely. The others just observed with a hind of suspicion, I was a stranger in this town after all.

“Not a witch, but a vet, so maybe I can help after all.”, I said with a small smile, trying to win them over. They don’t need to know I didn’t get my degree yet, but I guess I could do it online someday? I got on my knees a bit away from the fox, put my cane near me, and looked fox in the eyes. An injured animal is very aggressive, it would be a mistake to approach him fast.

“Hey there, buddy.”, i whispered to the fox. “I’m not going to hurt you, I’ll just take a look and maybe I could help you, ok?”, I was talking with the fox as if it could answer me, and the teens throwing me some weird looks, but I knew what I was doing, so I didn’t pay any attention to them. I slowly crawled to the fox and when I was right next to it, I started talking to it again.

“I’m going to touch you now, and you will not bite me, ok?”, my voice was calm and soothing. I slowly placed my hand on foxes head and scratched behind his ears. Then I moved my hand just beneath his jaw, to make sure he will not be able to bite me, when I start touching his injured parts. With another hand I gently touched his ribs. A small whine escaped from the fox, but he allowed me to continue examining him.

“Wow…”, said the redhead.

“Quiet, don’t scare the fox, I need my hands attached to my body,”, I said with a smirk. The tens now looked at me in awe. I gathered, that the fox just snarled at them when they tried to approach it, but well, I’m the Pocahontas here, not them. I couple of ribs were broken, but its lungs didn’t seem to be punctured. What got me worried was a little pool of blood under it’s legs. One looked broken and the blood was still oozing out. When my fingers touched the blood, I felt like sharing the insights of my stomach with the others. I turned around slightly and my face color became a bit greener.

“Some vet you are, can’t handle a bit of blood?”, said cocky blond.

“I’m pregnant, smart ass, as much as I know, it could be the smell of your socks that makes me gag.”, I replied calmly.

“Another teen elbowed the cocky one in the ribs and whispered “Asshead…”

I turned back to the fox, holding my breath, because the metallic smell of blood was slowly getting to me.

“We need to stop the blood and get this little guy to the clinic. Is there one near by?”, I said to the teens.

“Yeah, not far from here”, said another boy, a bit shorter then the cocky one and with curly black hair.

“Ok, I need a belt and maybe an old blanket, or something. We can put this little guy in my car and maybe you could show me the way to the clinic?”, while one of the teens gave me his belt, I secured it around the foxes leg to stop the bleeding, and together we wrapped him in the old blanket.

“Can you move my bag to the trunk of the car?”, I asked the redhead. 

“I’ll hold his muzzle, and you put the fox carefully on the back seat”, I instructed the boys. All the way I continued talking to the fox, the sound of my voice was calming him. Surprisingly the boys did everything as I said, and soon enough the fox was buckled up in the backseat of my car. The smell of blood was very intense now, so I opened all windows and hoped for the best. I rubbed my leg, which now hurt like crazy, because I limped all the way to the car without my cane, but the fox was more important for now, so I gritted my teeth and told myself to suck it up. The redhead shut the trunk, picked up my cane and handed it to me with a bright smile.

“Thanks”, I told her forcing a smile from myself as well.

“Do you want me to drive with you? Just in case you need help?”, she asked.

“No, it’s ok. Just tell the guys to drive slowly, because I don’t want to hurt the fox.”, I answered.

The girl ran to the car and soon our little cortege was on the way to the clinic.

We arrived some 10 minutes later, this town wasn’t big after all. The building was a pretty new and modern, with electronic doors, white plain walls and only two floor high. The redhead ran inside to get a doctor, the boys went to my car to help get the fox out. This time I grabbed my cane, because going without it now would be a suicide. I started talking with the fox again, and he kept looking me in the eyes. II held his muzzle, so that it wouldn’t bite anyone. The redhead soon returned with an old looking doctor, he was almost as tall as Jonathan, but seemed some 20 years older. Damn, why are all the guys in this town so small? I feel like a midget, really…

“Now what have you done no? Care to explain?”, he said in a stern voice. I guess the kids are troublemakers. I smiled to myself.

“We ran over a fox…”, said the curly one staring at the floor.

“Ok, bring him in”, he said. But then his eyes landed on me.

“And who are you, young lady?”, his eyes were piercing, he was studying me carefully.

“She helped us with the fox, she’s good with animals! She says she’s a vet”, redhead intervened.

“A vet, huh?”, he said becoming suddenly interested.

“Your evaluation, please?”, wow, now that is a professional interrogation. Ok, I can handle it.

“Good morning to you too. The fox has a couple of broken ribs, a broken leg. I’ve managed to stop the bleeding for now, but this was a temporary solution, it would be best to do an x-ray, put the leg in a cast and stitch him up”, I said in a calm tone.

“Ok, follow me and let’s see if your evaluation is correct. And why in the name of god are you holding his muzzle?”, his tone was stern, but quite positive, not scary at all.

“It keeps the fox calm.”, I answered with a small smile.

The doc just smirked and motioned to follow him. Slowly we all went in. Thankfully the boys remembered my walking pace, so I didn’t have to limp hard, but the moment we got inside, and I spotted a high chair on wheels, I grabbed it and landed my butt on it. A sigh of relief escaped my mouth and I received I side glance from the doc, but he didn’t say a thing.

“Ok, boys, you’re free to go.”, the doc dismissed the teens. “I believe having this young lady here will be enough to take care of the fox. Go and make yourselves useful somewhere else.” Surprisingly the teens obeyed him and disappeared quickly. I was still rubbing the foxes muzzle.

“Ok, let’s see what have we got here”, mumbled the doc and started probing it’s ribs. “How many you said were broken?”, he asked me.

“I didn’t say anything, but I’d say that 2 are broken and one is fractured.”, I said with a confident smirk.

“Uh-huh”, was all the doc said.

“So, what happened to you?”, he surprised me with a question.

“Uhm… an accident.”, I said quietly. I guess the fox felt my discomfort, because another whine was heard from him as he looked me in the eyes.

“I see.”, said the doc.

“Well, I must agree with your assessment. You know how to work a needle and a thread?”, he asked after a while.

“yeah, sure”, I said.

Together we did an x-ray, put the foxes leg into a cast and I stitched his wound. After an hour and a half the fox was happily asleep in a cage and I the doc decided to treat me with a cup of tea. I happily agreed, because I didn’t really want to leave and I was a bit tired after this little adventure.

“So, what’s your name?”, he asked me after I changed my shirt to another white one with a husky print on the stomach (yes, I love dog printed t-shirts) and we settled in a small kitchen he had in his office.  2

“Evelyn, sir.”, I answered politely. I honestly liked the doc. He was harsh, but I could see kindness in his eyes.

“Nice yo meet you, Evelyn. I’m doc Evans.”, he said and extended his hand for a shake which I gladly accepted.

“The pleasure is mine, sir.”, I said.

“So, are you here for a while or just passing by?”

“Just passing by”

“Too bad.”

His last phrase made me look at him in surprise.

“Why is that, sir?”, I asked.

“Please, no sir’s, call me doc.”, he smiled. “And because I would really use some help here. Youngsters aren’t very interested in patching the little guys up, and I’m not getting younger.”

“Oh…”, a peaceful silence settled in between us while we sipped our tea.

“I guess I could stay for a while, if you can really give me a job…”, I said quietly after a while.

“Really?”, he said with a huge smile.

“Yeah, but…”, well, this is going to be hard. I’ll have to convince him, because I’m pretty sure, he won’t hire me with my baggage….

“Yes?”, he asked curiously.

“There’s this thing… Two things, actually…”, my face became red as a tomato, but not out of shame, but out of desperation. Oh, how great would it be to get a job as a vet…

“Spill it, girl, I don’t have years”, he said patting my hand with yet another smile.

“Well… I don’t have my degree yet. I got in my accident right after I passed my finals, but didn’t have time and the energy to deal with all the paperwork… And since I’m now pretty far from my university, I have no Idea how to finalize everything…”, I blurted out and dropped my eyes to the ground. That’s it, he will not give me the job now…

“Nonsense, we’ll figure out something. There’s a university in the next town, I’m sure we can get a transcript of your records and finalize everything here in no time!”, he just brushed off all my worries concerning this issue and I was more than surprised. Was he that desperate to get help? How lucky am I?

“Wow, thanks…”, I said in awe.

“No problem, child. What’s the second thing you’ve got there?”, he asked?

“Uhm…”, I started staring at the floor once again. “This one is kind of personal…” I started.

“I’m, well, uhm…”, god, give me strength just to spill it.

“You’re pregnant, right?”, he said calmly.

I guess my eyes were the size of the tea cup I was holding, because the doc started laughing his huts out.

“How did you know?”, I asked him in total shock.

“I’m old, but not blind!”, he raised his finger in a mocking manner, that made me smile a bit.

“You are touching your stomach all the time and your gagging from the blood. What vet gags from the smell of the blood?”

“And that doesn’t bother you?”, I asked still not believing that this old man is willing to give me a job despite my obstacles.

“Child, as I said, I could use all the help I can get around here. I could definitely use you, if you could handle an injured fox and make a bunch of youngsters obey you. And honestly, you look like you need some help yourself. And I don’t have any grand children, so maybe you’ll let me spoil yours”, he laughed.2

The smile on my face was so wide, that doc started laughing again.

“I guess that’s a yes?”, he raised his brow.

“That’s definitely a “yes”!”, I said and we shook hands once again.

“Then I’ll see you tomorrow morning 9am sharp!”, said doc and went back to his stern grumpy ways.

“I’ll be there”, I saluted him in a military style and limped my way to the car. Maybe I could stay here for a while after all?