Jane, on the other hand, had hidden her upset behind a cool, almost cold, demeanor. “I simply asked them to refer you to me, Mrs. Dowdey,” she said. “You’ve had two cats with health problems—”
“I give my cats the best of everything!” Mrs. Dowdey’s voice got a bit strident. “The best beds, the best toys, the best food—”
“And too much of it,” Jane interrupted crisply. “In my years at this practice, you had one cat die from renal complications, and the other become very ill—”
“Mrs. Purrley died, too,” Mrs. Dowdey’s voice switched to an accusing tone. “Your husband was absolutely no help at all.”
Now Jane’s voice got a bit loud. “He’s not—” She clamped her lips together and took a deep breath.
But when Jane spoke again, her voice was mild. “I’m sorry to hear about Mrs. Purrley. Since I haven’t seen her in more than a year, I certainly can’t comment on whatever treatment Martin may have undertaken.”
“I had to have her put to sleep.” Tears appeared in Mrs. Dowdey’s eyes. “It’s so lonely in the house now.”
“We’re trying to set up a class on how to keep a pet healthy,” Jane began.
“As if you people care about that.” Mrs. Dowdey huffed. “Sick animals are your bread and butter.”
Jane’s lips compressed again, but once more she managed to keep anger out of her voice. “I think healthy animals are what we all want. If you take the class, I’d be willing to revisit the question of adoption.”
“You would?” Mrs. Dowdey sounded surprised but hopeful. “This isn’t because you’re angry that I went with the other Dr. Rigsdale?”
“Of course not. We’ll let you know when the class starts.” Jane tried to sound nice, but she clearly wanted this conversation to end. “Rita, will you see Mrs. Dowdey out? Make sure you have her number so we can get in touch with her.” Jane turned back to Shadow, who had retreated to the far edge of the table, his nose wrinkling. From now on, Mrs. Dowdey would be Rita’s problem.
But Mrs. Dowdey apparently had to have the last word. “Thank you, Doctor. I may have been a bit hasty.” She seemed to notice Sunny and Shadow for the first time. “That’s a very handsome animal.”
“Thanks,” said Sunny, struggling to keep her annoyance out of her voice.
Mrs. Dowdey finally allowed Rita to conduct her down the hallway and back to the reception area. After a brief exchange, the voices muffled by distance, the front door closed.
Jane gave Sunny a wry grimace. “So now you’ve gotten to see behind the scenes in the exciting world of veterinary medicine. Does it make you feel as if you made the wrong choice way back at career day?”
Sunny grinned. “In the newspaper business, people who don’t agree with what you write do it in the letters to the editor, not face-to-face.”
Jane sighed. “Carolyn Dowdey means well. The problem is, she really didn’t know how to take care of her cats. She figured as long as they got the best of everything, they would be fine. And that there was no such thing as ‘too much of a good thing.’ That’s not always true, even if you can afford it.”
Her expression darkened. “And because she
She reached out to touch Jane’s arm, and Shadow came over to press his head against her, too.
“Take care of yourself,” Sunny said.
Jane smiled down at Shadow, combing her fingers through his gray fur. “And you take care of this little guy. I’d say he’s pretty well recovered, but keep giving him the oil massage for a few more days.” She looked at Sunny. “And if there’s any problem—any problem at all—you let me know.”
Sunny got Shadow’s carrying case. “You’ve got it, Jane,” she promised. “After all, we returnees have to stick together.”
*
Usually, Shadow regretted leaving Gentle Hands—she was always so nice to him. But as Sunny opened the box, he just about jumped in there, eager to get away. He burrowed into the fur that wasn’t real, inhaling deeply to breathe in the scents trapped in the fibers. Anything to block that awful stench in the air outside.
The loud older human might have gone, but the stink that had surrounded her still hung in the air.
However long Shadow stayed around the two-legs, he’d never understand some of the things they did, especially their attitude when it came to smells. Most of the time, they didn’t seem to smell things at all. Oh, sometimes he’d see them sniff the air around cooking food. And if his litter box got too full or his stomach rumbled and a little ripe air escaped, the humans would make sounds of annoyance.
