Finding Isadora (35 page)

“
I’m wearing your cousins, Owl,” I said as I gave my real-live parrot a goodbye stroke.

“
Hurry home, cutie,” he squawked.

It was tempting advice—to hurry home after work and hole myself away with my friendly menagerie. On the other hand, I really wanted to talk to my parents and Janice, and soothe my bruised heart with the support I knew they
’d offer.

Walking to the clinic, I recognized Tonia Melanchuk and her
basset hound Melville on the sidewalk ahead of me. Tonia, clad in a business suit and sneakers, was juggling briefcase, take-out coffee, and dog leash. I caught up and relieved her of the leash. “I’m betting you’re on your way to see us.”

“
Melville has an appointment for his annual shots,” Tonia said. “He knows it too, and he’s being a darned nuisance. I told him it’s much more fun to hang out with the other day-care animals than be in the apartment by himself, but he can’t seem to get past the idea of shots.”

I bent down and caressed his head, scratching behind his floppy ears.
“You’re in for a treat today, Melville. There’s a little girl coming in this afternoon who loves dogs. I bet she’ll take you out in the courtyard to play.”

“
A little girl?” Tonia cocked an eyebrow. “Your daughter?”

My heart gave a painful throb.
“No, I don’t have any kids.” Would I ever? Still, I was trying not to be a pessimist. “Not yet,” I amended. “This is someone my parents are looking after for a while because her mother’s in the hospital.”

“
Your parents sound like nice people.”

“
Hearts of gold.”

We had reached the clinic door and Tonia squatted down and looked Melville in the eye.
“You be good now, sweetheart. I’ll be back to pick you up around five thirty.” She kissed his head then sprang to her feet and strode away.

Melville plunked his backside down and watched her go. When I gave his leash a gentle tug, he gazed up at me with soulful eyes.

“Yes, you really have to,” I told him. “Come on, let’s get it over with. I promise you’ll enjoy playing with Alyssa.” If he understood me at all, he’d spend the day looking forward to that treat. Just as I was looking forward to seeing Alyssa.

Melville was typical of the day
’s patients. By and large, the animals were in good health, needing only minor treatments. But we had a full slate of appointments, and Liz had called in sick so I was the only vet working in the morning, and was rushed off my feet. No time to fuss about Richard, worry that he hadn’t phoned, or fret over my own future. I hoped that when Felipe, the third vet, came in at noon I’d be able to scrounge a quick lunch break with Janice. Unfortunately, when I texted her she texted back,
“
Sorry, staff mtg. 2moro
?
”

“
2nite
?
”

“
I kind of have plans
.
”

Martin, by any chance? I knew that if I told her I really needed to talk, she
’d change her plans, but my problems could wait until tomorrow. It wasn’t like anything was going to change between now and then.
“
OK, lunch 2mor
o
,” I confirmed.

Besides, Grace and Alyssa would be here in a few hours. Even if there wasn
’t an opportunity to have a real talk with my mom, her presence would comfort me, and Alyssa was guaranteed to brighten my day.

After I
’d seen another couple of patients, I was ready for a lunch break, but Felipe caught me in the hall. “Hi, Iz, I’m here. But I have to do an emergency appendectomy. Can you handle my other patients?”

“
Of course.” I grabbed a yogurt from our supply in the fridge, gulped it down, and hurried back to work.

The afternoon was so busy that, when Grace and Alyssa arrived, I shot a startled glance at my watch.
“Good heavens, is it that time already?”

“
Are we too early?” Grace asked.

“
Not at all,” I said, giving her a hug then exchanging another with Alyssa, whose warm body quivered with excitement. “I was working so hard I lost track of time.”

“
What animals are here today, Izzie?” Alyssa asked eagerly.

“
Let’s go and see.” I reached for her hand, but she was already running ahead of me down the hall. Grace and I exchanged fond smiles, then followed her. I realized how much we were all going to miss Alyssa when she went home to her mom.

Britt and Alyssa were chattering away when my mother and I found them. I broke in to say,
“Be sure to let Melville, the basset hound, have a good romp in the courtyard. I promised him he could play with Alyssa.”

“
We’ve already talked about it,” Britt said, and Alyssa seconded her with a firm nod.

I turned to my mother.
“Okay, we’re superfluous, and I need to get back to work. How about you? Want to pass the time making phone calls again? By the way, I have a name to add to your list.”

“
You do? Cool. And yeah, I’d like to borrow the phone, and I need to do some grocery shopping. Say, why don’t you come for dinner? Alyssa says the only kind of pasta she’s ever had is mac ‘n cheese so I’m going to make four-cheese rigatoni.”

“
I’d like that.” The food, the idea of all of us eating together—and the opportunity, when Alyssa went off to do homework or watch TV, to have some private time with Grace and Jimmy Lee. Then I remembered that the last couple of times I’d gone to my parents’ apartment, Gabriel had shown up. “Uh, will Gabriel be there?”

“
No. Why? Did you want me to invite him? Richard too?”

“
No!”

She raised her eyebrows in a question.

Now was not the time to tell her about the breakup. “I feel like some family time.”

“
Hmm. Want to play hooky and come shopping with me?”

Had she guessed how badly I wanted to talk?

Regretfully, I said, “Can’t. Liz called in sick and we’re swamped.”

“
See you in a bit, then. By the way, that skirt looks great, hon.”

Her comment brightened my spirits.
“It was obviously chosen by someone with exceptional taste,” I said.

She polished her knuckles against her shirt-front, and we both laughed.

“I love it, Grace. It’s a feel-good skirt. I’m so glad you gave it to me.”

“
Me, too. Okay, you go to work and I’ll do my thing.”

“
I’ll pop in and give you Henry’s name and phone number when I get a chance.” I nibbled my lip, knowing what I wanted to say but finding it surprisingly difficult. “Uh, Grace? I’d like to help, too. If you tell me what to do, I could make some of those calls. Or do anything else that’s needed.”

My mother didn
’t startle easily, but now her eyes widened and she stared at me. Her gaze warmed with affection. “That’d be good, hon. We can talk about where you’d best fit in.”

I could see she was pleased, yet I realized she
’d never judged me for failing to join in her and Jimmy Lee’s causes. My parents really did love me unconditionally.

After she
’d gone, I found I was smiling. Despite lack of sleep and emotional stress, I was actually feeling okay.

* * *

A little over an hour later, I watched Alyssa walk proudly out from the back of the clinic with Melville on his leash. In the reception area, she carefully transferred the leash to Tonia, who said, “I can see he’s been in good hands.” The woman bent down and kissed his head. “Haven’t you, sweetheart?”

Alyssa gave the
basset hound a hug. “Bye, Melville. It was nice meeting you.”

“
And it’s time for us to go, too,” Grace said. “Can you leave now, Isadora?”

“
Yes, things have slowed down and Felipe can cope.”

“
But I don’t want to go,” Alyssa complained.

I bent down to her.
“We have to, so we can help Grace get dinner ready. But thanks for coming today, Alyssa. You’re very good with animals.”

“
I’m going to be a vet. Just like you, Izzie.”

Grace and I exchanged smiles and my mother said,
“You’ll make a fine one. Just like Isadora.”

“
Thanks, Grace. And I’ll second that, Alyssa. You’ll make an excellent vet. Once you’ve done your training, you come see me and I’ll hire you.”

“
Can’t you hire me now?” she said eagerly. “This is way more fun than school.”

I chuckled.
“You need school. That’s where you’ll learn all the things you have to know so you can give the animals the very best care, and help them get well.”

Head tilted to one side, she studied me skeptically, then finally nodded. Grudgingly.
“I guess.”

The three of us said goodbye to Betty
at the reception desk, and headed out of the clinic. “Are we bussing?” I asked. My parents drove no more than absolutely necessary.

“
No, I brought the van.” Grace led the way down the street to the beat-up old vehicle they’d had converted to a hybrid.

As Alyssa and I waited for Grace to unlock the door, the girl grinned up at me.
“I like your earrings, Izzie.”

I flicked one of the parrots.
“Thanks, so do I. Jimmy Lee gave them to me.” I took one out of my ear and handed it to her so she could examine the painted wood more closely. Then, after a quick glance at the tiny gold studs that told me her own ears were pierced, I unhooked the other one and handed it over, too. “They’d look good on you. Why don’t you take them?”

“
Really!” Her dark eyes gleamed with excitement, then she said quickly, “No, I shouldn’t.” Clearly, she was dying to be persuaded.

“
Sure you should. They’re my way of thanking you for helping out at the clinic.”

Easily convinced, Alyssa said,
“I want to put them on now.” She reached up and yanked at one of her own studs.

I caught her hand.
“Wait until we get home. We’ll clean the wires to make sure they don’t infect your ears.”

The girl huffed out an impatient sigh and I knew I
’d been classified as a fussy adult. Grace shot me a grin and said, “Come on, you two. Climb in.”

When we reached the apartment, Jimmy Lee wasn
’t home. “You girls go do your thing with the earrings,” my mother said, “and I’ll put away the groceries. But then I want you both in the kitchen to help with dinner.”

Alyssa and I hustled off to the bathroom and soon the parrots were flying from her small ears, a perfect
accent to her dark skin and curly black hair.

My own ears weren
’t used to being naked and, feeling rash, I reached into my bag and took out the earrings Gabriel had given me. When I put them on, I saw that the cat’s eyes brought out the mauve in my own.

“
Cool, Izzie,” Alyssa said, “but I like mine better.” She flicked her head back and forth, making the parrots toss dizzily.

“
Kitchen help?” my mother yelled.

Alyssa and I, caught in the act of admiring our own reflections, both started guiltily. She slanted me a grin that was surprisingly adult, said,
“Oops!” then scampered off and I followed.

As the three of us got to work, Grace said,
“Alyssa’s been to the hospital a couple of times to see her mother.”

“
She says she feels okay,” the girl said doubtfully, “but she doesn’t look very good and her voice is all croaky. Mommy never gets sick.”

I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and gave Alyssa a quick hug.
“It’s not really like she got sick. She was in a fire, and when she was trying to get out, something fell and knocked her down.” I’d heard the whole story. Cassie had a broken arm, cracked ribs, and a skull fracture, plus she’d suffered from smoke inhalation.

“
She’s doing very well,” Grace said, “but I’m afraid it’s going to be a while before she’s back to her old self.”

“
How long will they keep her in the hospital?” I asked as I started to grate asiago cheese.

“
Only a couple more days,” Grace said.

How on earth was Cassie
McKenzie going to manage? But I didn’t want to ask the question in front of Alyssa.

“
Mommy’s going to come here and live with us,” Alyssa announced.

“
What?” I nearly grated my knuckles instead of the cheese.

“
We’re going to give her my bed,” Alyssa said importantly, “and I’ll have a sleeping bag on the floor so I can stay with her.”

I closed my eyes briefly, then asked the inevitable question.
“Does Gabriel know about this?”