Venus in Blue Jeans Read Online Free PDF Page B

a couple of thoroughly punctured snakes. He plunked himself in her lap every evening, nudging his head at her hand until she rubbed his ears. He was still small for a tom, but a hunter, incurably curious, self-confident, wily.
    Nico.
    Docia caught her breath on a sob, as Dr. Gorgeous finally pried the carrier out of her hand.
    “So what happened here?” he said, easily, as he unfastened the wire grid across the door. Inside the carrier, Nico managed a growl that was more like a moan.
    “I don’t know,” Docia whispered. “I came home and found him on the floor in the bathroom. He’s bleeding.”
    “We’ll help him,” the man he’d called Armando reassured her. “That’s what we do.”
     
     
    Cal glanced at Armando. That’s what we do if everything goes right. Right now, he had no way of knowing if anything would.
    Warned by the growl, weak as it was, he reached carefully into the carrier, avoiding the half-hearted nip the little cat aimed his way, and lifted it out.
    Bad shape, very bad shape. Blood dappled the fur on the cat’s face, dark against dark, and along its flanks. There was blood around the mouth, as if it had eaten something sharp. Its eyes looked shocky, head lolling.
    Cal moved his fingers quickly, turning the head to check, then caught his breath. “He’s been shot.”
    “What?” Venus leaned across the table, eyes wide. “No! Who would shoot my cat?”
    “I don’t know, but someone did.” Cal touched the cat’s muzzle gently. “Entry wound here, came out the lower jaw. Small caliber, fortunately, probably a twenty-two.” He turned quickly to Armando and gave him some directions about antibiotics and intravenous lines, then told him to call another assistant into the clinic ASAP.
    Venus stood next to the examination table, gripping the edge so tightly her knuckles showed white.
    “No,” she said again. “No. Oh, Nico.”
    “Has he been in here before?” Cal said, quietly. “Has he had his shots?”
    “Yes. Dr. Rankin…” She paused as if she was trying to remember how to complete a sentence.
    “What’s the name?” Cal rubbed the cat gently behind its ears. Stay awake, buddy. “Yours and his.”
    “Docia Kent,” Venus murmured. “His name is Nicodemus.”
    “Be right back.” Armando left to get the chart.
    Cal looked closely at Venus-Docia to make sure she wasn’t going to pass out on him, attractive though that thought might have been under other circumstances.
    “Let me tell you what we’re going to do.” He used his omniscient voice in hopes of calming her down. The voice he usually used with kids when their pets had been hit by cars. “We’ll need some x-rays and probably surgery to get rid of any bullet fragments in his jaw. Then we’ll repair the damage to his mouth and sew him up. We’ll put him on antibiotics to take care of any possible infection. He’s lost blood, which is always dangerous with an animal, so we’ll also put in an intravenous line to rehydrate him. The next day or two will tell us whether we need to do anything else.”
    Docia took a deep breath. “When?” She cleared her throat. “When are you going to operate on him?”
    “As soon as I can get some help in here.” Cal stroked the cat lightly along its spine. “I need another assistant, but we don’t want to wait too long.”
    “Can I stay here?” Her voice broke on “here”.
    Suddenly, she looked like a child, small and vulnerable for all of her six-foot height. Her dark green eyes were swimming in tears. Cal restrained himself from putting his arms around her. This would not be the best time to make a move, plus he didn’t want to let go of Nicodemus yet. The cat had finally calmed down, but it needed the contact.
    “You don’t need to do that.” Cal tried to sound as reassuring as Armando had. “It may take a while. I’ll let you know what happens, I promise.” He paused for a moment, trying to figure out how to say what he needed to say next. The hard part.