Hayden

Michael’s absence really hit me when I stopped at the Caramel Café to pick up my breakfast. I started to order two blueberry scones and then realized Michael wouldn’t be at the office to eat his. It was probably going to take a few days to get used to it. On the way up to the clinic, my phone beeped.

Derek: I love you! Have a good day!

Just like that, he had a way of making everything better.

Me: I love you, too! Don’t get hurt on the field.

When I opened the door to the clinic, Jeremiah glanced up at me from the desk and smiled, then busied himself with something on the computer. Jessica was right beside him, looking at the monitor as well.

“Good morning,” I said.

Jeremiah nodded and said, “Hey,” but kept his gaze on the computer.

Jessica looked up. “Good morning, Dr. Hunter. We’re just reviewing the schedule. We’re switching your first patient with an emergency call while Dr. Patton takes your eight-thirty exam.”

Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t care about a scheduling change, but we all knew that emergencies were usually the harder cases. I didn’t like them taking away one of my patients without my consent, especially when I knew for a fact that Jeremiah didn’t have anyone scheduled until later in the morning. I walked over to the computer and looked at the schedule.

“Why can’t you handle the emergency?” I asked, turning my attention to Jeremiah. “The last time I looked at the schedule, you didn’t have anyone.”

He blew out a heavy sigh. “That was until your patients started requesting to be seen by someone else.”

“What are you talking about?”

Wilford turned the corner, his gaze sad. “Harriett Miller called me this morning and asked for another doctor to see her dog. Apparently she’s friends with Mrs. Jenkins. I’m sorry, Hayden. I had no choice but to change it.”

I was stunned into silence. All of their eyes were on me, but I didn’t know what to do or what to say. I marched past them to my office and shut the door. Living in a small town was going to bite me in the ass. Mrs. Jenkins was going to make sure of that by telling everyone I’d killed Lady.

I had about ten minutes of silence before the telephone buzzed and Amanda’s voice blasted out of the speaker. “Dr. Hunter, your emergency just walked through the door. I’ll get the paperwork and put them in one of your exam rooms.”

“Thanks, Amanda. I’ll be right there.” I waited a few more minutes to give her time and then opened my office door; she was standing right outside, about to knock. “Everything okay?”

She shook her head. “I think the dog has parvo. The owner’s name is Terry Bradshaw, and she doesn’t think the dog had any of the vaccinations for it. She took the dog in after her friend passed away from cancer. She doesn’t have the dog’s records.”

Blowing out a sigh, I took the chart from her; since I didn’t have records, I had to start from the beginning. The symptoms were all there, but I was praying it wasn’t so, because parvo was a deadly disease among dogs. I knocked on the door and walked in.

Mrs. Bradshaw was a middle-aged woman with dark brown hair and lines on her face from too much sun. The way she looked at the pitiful yellow Lab on the floor made my chest hurt. “Hi, Mrs. Bradshaw, how are you?”

She nodded once. “Okay, I guess. I was hoping you could figure out what’s wrong with Goldilocks.”

“That’s what I’m here for,” I said, reaching down to scratch behind the dog’s ears. “When did the symptoms start?”

“Late yesterday afternoon. I noticed Goldilocks hadn’t eaten a single thing, and she’s had massive diarrhea with traces of blood in it. I know that’s not normal.”

“I’m glad you brought her in. We’ll need to run some tests on her, but do you know if she’s been around other dogs?”

“Only at the park, I guess. At home, there aren’t any other dogs around. Do you know what it could be?”

“It’s too soon to say, but I have my suspicions. There’s a disease called parvo that can infect dogs quite easily. It’s not something to play around with. I want to test Goldilocks for it, since she’s showing all the symptoms for it.”

Mrs. Bradshaw clasped a hand over her mouth. “This is bad. Dogs can die from parvo.”

“They can, but I’ll do everything humanly possible to make sure Goldilocks pulls through. After we run the tests, she’ll probably need to stay here for a couple of days until she’s stable enough to go home. Right now we’ll keep her in a separate kennel away from the others. I’ll call you as soon as we find out what’s going on.”

She nodded and got to her feet. Poor Goldilocks stayed on the floor, her eyes growing heavy. “Thanks, Dr. Hunter. Will you know something today?”

“Yes. I’ll run the tests myself.”

Amanda walked into the room and helped Goldilocks to her feet. “Take her to kennel C, please,” I told her. “We need to keep her isolated until we find out for sure what’s wrong.” Amanda nodded and took the dog away. I escorted Mrs. Bradshaw to the front and assured her that I’d do everything I could. I just prayed it wasn’t parvo. I hated seeing what that disease did to dogs.

For the rest of the day, I went from my patients to running the tests. The signs were all there, but I kept trying my best to prove otherwise. When the final results were in, I had my answer: It was definitely parvo. Parvo was a deadly disease that dogs contracted through smelling an infected dog’s feces or coming in direct contact with them. The symptoms were mainly fever, loss of appetite, lethargy, vomiting, weight loss, and diarrhea. If Goldilocks had been a puppy, she probably wouldn’t have lived through the first night. Most dogs died of dehydration or secondary bacterial infections from the weakened immune system. I pressed the intercom on the phone, hoping to catch one of the girls at the front desk.

“Amanda? Jessica?” I called out.

“I’m here,” Jessica answered.

“Could you find Amanda and Charity and come back to my office, please.”

“Sure thing. We’ll be right there.” It took about five minutes before they all marched nervously into my office.

I couldn’t help but smile. I probably would’ve thought I was in trouble if the situation had been turned. “You can relax.” I laughed, pointing to the seats on the other side of my desk. “Have a seat.”

Once they were seated, I passed them Goldilocks’s chart. “Girls, it’s been confirmed. Goldilocks has parvo. I’m going to call Mrs. Bradshaw to let her know. As you’re both aware, it is imperative that Goldilocks stays away from the other dogs while she’s here. She’s to remain in the isolation wing until we send her home. I’ll be administering her medicines, but when it comes to cleaning her space, make sure to prevent cross-contamination. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Dr. Hunter,” Amanda and Charity answered simultaneously.

I looked over at Jessica, waiting for her answer. “I understand,” she replied.

“Thank you, ladies. You’re free to go.” They left my office and I picked up the phone. It was time to tell Mrs. Bradshaw the not-so-good news.