He had not been aware that the lock had not caught properly the last time the door had been closed, nor had he thought he might find himself deposited rather suddenly into their midst; the slender, conservatively attractive senior veterinarian still buttoning her blouse as she turned to glare at the intruder, the tall, trim veterinary student going crimson and turning away to awkwardly tug his zipper back up into place. Dr. K. Humphrey Gordon, D.V.M. felt his own face flush and ashamedly bowed his balding head.
"Well?" snapped McQueen, making both Humphrey and the kid flinch with the sharpness of her tone.
"Ab, uh-I, there-"
The nosy little receptionist herself made an appearance in the doorway to declare, "There's a kid with an Irish Setter that's been struck by a car. Would anyone care to do anything about it?"
Lillian lifted an eyebrow at Humphrey. "I-I-I have a goat," he stammered, scurrying back to his own patient's care.
It was the student who bolted out of the room and took the shortest possible route to the waiting room by vaulting over the nearby prescription counter, jogging the few steps through the reception area, then using the corner of a desk to launch himself over the check-in counter to land face-to-face with a distraught teenaged male. The kid was too upset to be impressed by the student's dramatics and turned his body enough to gesture to the cold tile floor where a glossy pile of rusty silk fur was quickly going glassy-eyed. McKenna could see that the dog was beyond saving even as he dropped to his knees, lifted the muzzle a little and pushed his own mouth over the animal's cold nose, securing the lax jaw shut with his long fingers, then administering a blast of warm breath. The sudden rush of air expanded the chest just fine, but leaked back out quickly with a sickening bubbling sound like a teapot of water just beginning to simmer. A thin trickle of watery blood traveled down the lolling tongue and he could plainly see that the hairless flesh encircling the animal's motionless amber eyes was extremely pale. Still hunched tensely, longish strands of blond drooping with dampness past his puckered forehead, the young man tried one last breath, aware it was far too late, but his lingering embarrassment over having been caught in the act and his anger at his lover's flippancy drove him to try and produce a miracle for this poor dog's kid.
It was no use. The creature was quite gone. As he gently lowered the greying russet head, only then did he finally note the odd, boxy, broken shape of the body where ribs had caved in to puncture lungs and a hip jutted oddly instead of laying flat. Massive internal injury. The death, though by far not the first he had witnessed or been a part of, nevertheless brought on a wave of numbing, internal pain that clenched his thin chest and twisted his gut.
The kid squatted beside him to softly murmur, "You did what you could."
"I...am sorry..." It wasn't enough, but what more could he offer?
A feminine voice above them said gently, "C'mon, Alex...let's go home."
He rose slowly to his full height amidst a chorus of disappointed groans and clucks from the various other pet owners awaiting their turn with a doctor or assistant, watched the young couple lift the limp body and make their way out of the crowded clinic, the dreaminess of shock slurring their movements. For the space of a heartbeat the room actually seemed silent, but then the normal ambience of excited dogs and frightened cats took over. Just as the heavy front doors were swinging back into their frame, abruptly cutting off the sounds of the grey city beyond, a woman's coldly detatched voice rang loudly out, "Somebody here got a dog that was hit by a car?"
The glances cast the veterinarian's way were quite hostile and one small nearby mongrel even began to growl. McKenna spun on his heel, jaw clenched, to see her nonchalantly attempting to replace the carved barrette he had given her in her freshly combed hair. Furious, he stalked toward her, snagged her by the crook of one arm, and lead her brusquely back the way she had come, finding the same examination room still unoccupied and thrusting her forcefully within. Before he could close the door over completely and make sure it was latched tight she began her attack.
"What do you think you're doing dragging me back here like some stubborn mutt on a short leash? We must maintain an appearance of professionalism at all times, Geoffery!"
He had never known such anger before. "How professional is it to tempt me into a little pre-lunch quickie while dying animals are lying all over the waiting room floor?"
She crossed her arms and transferred her weight to one hip. "Dying animals all over? I counted one, Geoffery! One big old dog beyond saving. Probably a breath away from death when it was brought in here. Besides, up until the interruption, I don't remember hearing you complain."
He found it difficult to contain his rage, especially since, laid back as he normally was, he had never been so overwhelmed by it before. Rather than respond to her immediately, he looked away with his face lowered and tried to concentrate on lowering his rapid breathing and heartbeat.
She took the opportunity to switch gears. "It was nice of you to try and help," she cooed, sidling up to him. "You did what you could."
His voice was a little raspy when he said to her, "It was pretty bad...shattered ribs, collapsed lung...there really wasn't anything else that could've been done to save him."
She smiled at him. "So, why did you even bother?"
Her cold logic was a part of her he had often tried, but always failed to get used to. Even when true, her words could come out sounding quite heartless. "That kid's eyes, Lil...he still had hope...."
"You'll see lots of eyes like that once you're on your own. Lots of sad eyes and broken hearts. It's all a part of the job, kid. You did what you could."
"I had to. I couldn't not respond to a creature in need...."
She missed the cutting edge of his remark completely. "You won't be able to save every animal that crosses your path. I don't care how good you become. You know that, already, Geoff. You just learn to accept it as fact and hope for the best with the next one."
He walked over to the sink and took a paper cup from the chrome dispenser so he could rinse his mouth of the lingering flavor of dog.
She hopped up on the edge of the examination table and offered him a bittersweet smile he ignored. Dr. McQueen, forty-one years old and therefore twenty years Geoff McKenna's senior, was a beautiful woman in a somewhat plain way. She never wore makeup or lacquered her short, neaty trimmed nails, her simple haircut was always either straight to her shoulders in casual moments or held away from her oval face and long neck with a barrette or tieback as it had been for most of the day, and she favored plain canvas Keds over a pair of more sophisticated dress flats even when suited in linen or silk which she preferred when teaching her medicinal knowledge to a group of dewy-eyed animal lovers at the nearby university. As always, a number of the new students would inavariably drop out once it sank in that they couldn't save every fluffy kitten, every playful pup brought their way with a dilemma. McKenna, however, despite his strong emotions towards and the rapid bonds he formed between himself and virtually every animal he endeavored to treat, was persistent enough in his pursuits and brilliant enough to go far in his chosen field. Already her star pupil had presented her with a plausible theory he had formulated for treating some of the more common viral infections seen in cats and dogs by extracting a certain protein from the invading virus itself and altering it slightly before re-introduction to the animal host so that the tiny antagonists would abandon their normal mission in order to attack and destroy themselves.
She had initially noticed him for his handsome looks and quiet, intelligent demeanor. She had fallen for his sincerity and youthful zeal. "Put it out of your mind," she coaxed, drawing him to her in an embrace once he had ventured within her reach. The light odor of perspiration on him mingled with the light, woodsy musk of his aftershave served to reignite her desire as she wrapped strong legs around him.
Geoff leaned away from her before she could taste of his lips. "Where were you this morning? I woke up alone."
She seemed suddenly aloof. "Oh, didn't I leave a note for you? Faculty breakfast meeting? Sorry about that."
"You attend a lot of meetings."
"I'm a busy and important woman." Because she disliked where this was heading, she countered with, "You've seemed distracted lately."
"Distracted?"
"You mislabeled some parts of that dog skeleton on your quiz yesterday. You mixed up heartworms with tapeworms in the first section, and recommended amoxycillin as a cure for ear mites in the last section."
The tall youth shrugged and offered a disarming half-smile. "I was thinking of you." Which was true, though he had not at the time been thinking of Lillian in a very flattering way.
She wasn't so easily charmed. Releasing him from between her thighs, she slid from the countertop and smoothed out her well-creased slacks and pristine white lab coat. "There is nothing going on between Raymond and I."
Geoff had wondered otherwise, though he had yet to actually accuse her of such. "I've seen you together in the dining hall-"
"He's a fellow vet for chrissakes," she complained, suddenly aware that the room's wastebasket wasn't in its exact place by the wall, that the sink was now spotted with water droplets and ought to be wiped out. "We graduated togather and now we teach at the same school. Am I supposed to pretend he doesn't exist? Would you prefer I be seen around campus with you?"
He frowned. "I also saw you in his car that night at-"
"I told you it had started raining while I was inside the deli, and I had parked a block away. He came in to pick up some baked ham or something and offered to drive me back to may car, okay?" Lillian smiled and chuckled at her young paramour. "Come here you jealous male. Could I hide it if I was seeing Ray? From you--the man who can sniff out something wrong from half a mile away? Kiss me." He did, but she could sense his preoccupation again. She sighed. "Well, since you're in a mood anyway, I've got some bad news."
"Hmm?"
Lil fished deeply in her long coat's pockets until she came up with two plane tickets. "I can't leave today. Something's come up. You will represent me, won't you dear?"
Suspicions heightened, McKenna's brow knit. "Something like what?"
"I'll have to explain it all after I've met back up with you. "I'll only be one day late. You can take care of yourself in that time, can't you?"
"Alone?" he asked. "In Montana?"
"Safer than here in New York. Juast a day. Tell me you aren't upset."
Outraged was the word. "I don't know these people, Lil! Why can't I wait a day, too?"
She pouted, adopting her best innocent little girl expression. He despised her when she did that--it always worked. "Oh, Geoffery, do you know how much it cost me to cancel and rebook my flight? Unless you could afford to rebook..." she trailed off wickedly, knowing the farm boy from just outside of Kingston wouldn't even be a student of hers without her own financial support.
"Fine, Lillian. I'll await you there. They know I'm only your student, don't they? That I know nothing about digging up bones?"
"It's called paleontology, dear, and I've told them you are my assistant. Someone named Havilland will pick you up. I think his name is James...or Jack. You can study or something to entertain yourself until I arrive. Don't you go flirting with any pretty little Montana girls while we're apart."
Geoff grunted neutrally. "Are we still having lunch before my plane takes off?"
"Don't be silly. You saw that crowded waiting room. I can't leave Humphrey and Debbie and Lois alone." She graciously slipped him a twenty dollar bill. "Go get yourself a hamburger and a good paperback to read. It's a long flight west, young man."
McKenna gave his instructor a perfunctory kiss on the cheek, then returned to the noise and clamor of the waiting room to retrieve the packed duffel bag and black case he had left there.
