3. See A Man About A Pig
CHAPTER 3
See A Man About A Pig
G arrett stood in the paddock and wondered what the hell he was doing. He should haul his ass back to his own paddock, his own horse. If she was a vet, she could handle the mare by herself.
He didn’t move.
It wasn’t that he didn’t believe her. She’d been prickly as hell when she’d held the gun on him. His first impression that the horse had been abused by her hand had dissipated almost instantly.
Her anger had been all aimed at him and his intrusion onto her property as a potential threat to her animals. Her wording and inflection had given her away. She cared about this horse.
The ridiculous goats bouncing around the paddock had helped him decide as well. No creature could be that happy if abuse or neglect was happening. The littlest one kept nibbling at his boots.
The sheep and the cows in the other paddock appeared content. As did the half-dozen cats he spotted everywhere. And the donkey in the smaller paddock off to the side. Although the donkey was giving everything around it some serious side-eye, it appeared healthy. It didn’t even flinch when the peacock and peahen wandered over. He wondered what other kinds of creatures his neighbor was housing on the rest of the property.
Garrett didn’t remember any of his friends talking about the vet, and he didn’t know her name yet, but from everything he saw, she ran a good place. It wasn’t as nice as the property beside him being empty, but he’d cope. This was probably the source of the dog barking he’d heard this morning. The sound had been close by, but if his land had been empty for a while, the dog was probably used to wandering around. As long as Garrett stayed on his own land, he’d be able to avoid it.
He was about to head back when he felt her return. His training in the Army had made him aware of his surroundings and the changes in air movements. Scents and sounds, too. But it hadn’t been anything other than a gut reaction that said, she’s here .
He refused to look until she appeared in the paddock, that trim and gorgeous body now covered in denim and flannel. Shame.
She eased across the paddock, speaking gently and firmly as she moved. “I’m going to have a look at that leg and hoof, Onigis. You know no one is going to hurt you here. Well, you may not know it yet, but it’s true. We’re all here to help.”
The woman passed him a mug, and the scent of coffee nearly had him weeping in gratitude. She took a sip of her own mug, then placed it on a fence post and kept talking to the horse.
The mare danced in place but didn’t rear up or run off. The woman appeared to believe the animal had been deliberately hurt before, setting his teeth to grinding again.
The vet didn’t slow or alter her approach. She ran her hand down the mare’s neck and continued to speak softly. Garrett remained alert and ready to move. Horses were easy to spook, and their reactions were never a hundred percent predictable, even when they’d been treated well and trained. A thousand pounds of unpredictable animal meant the humans had to be alert, especially if this animal had suffered at the hands of one.
The woman’s body language showed confidence along with a healthy respect for an animal that weighed about the same as a grizzly.
She touched the horse firmly and kept speaking to get it used to her voice. Finally, she lifted the horse’s leg and ran what looked to be a thorough and gentle examination.
Garrett didn’t relax until she moved away from the horse with soft words and more pats. When they made eye contact, hers widened as if surprised to see him still there.
She walked toward him. “She looks to have some tendon damage. Nothing serious yet, but if they’d continued to race and train her, she’d be lame.”
“Should you confine her to a stall to limit movement?” That was common practice with tendon issues. It kept the horses from wandering too far.
The woman’s frown was immediate. “That would be ideal, but she’s afraid of the stall, afraid of being inside.” She gestured at the goats. “I’m hoping these guys will talk her into using it soon. The stall I’ve got here is for exactly her kind of condition.”
He turned his head to take a better look at the addition to the paddock. A shed had been converted into a stall with one side opening into the paddock. The door was open, and the inside looked clean and inviting for the horse.
He looked from it to the animals and back. “Support goats?”
Her laugh was full of joy. “They like to think so. Popcorn, especially.”
“Popcorn?” Why had he asked?
She nodded. “Popcorn. Butter. Raspberry. Empathy goat troop extraordinaire.”
He’d bet his truck that Butter was Popcorn’s kid, and that Raspberry was the one who made the weird sound along with her bleat.
The woman didn’t lose her smile as she turned to him, and he nearly had his knees knocked out from under him. That smile could get him to do a hell of a lot of things.
She gestured at the horse. “I’m going to head into the barn to get some liniment and wraps for Onigis. Why don’t you tell me who you are and why you’re here on my land?”
She turned, grabbed her mug, and climbed through the fence, leaving him to follow. Or not. He could leave. He should leave. Instead, he followed her into the barn .
The inside was divided into several sections. Like most animal barns, including his, the doors opened to a large middle aisle. To one side, the area was tricked out like a regular vet’s office. He followed her into the large space filled with a couple of desks, a table, animal toys, and equipment on multiple shelving units. A large parrot perched on a potted tree.
The bird studied him and then squawked. “Michael J. Fox. Michael J. Fox.”
Garrett laughed. “Is that your name?”
“Celine Dion. Celine Dion.”
He grinned and moved closer to the bird, who had to be almost two feet tall. Kimi grinned over her shoulder. “That’s Canuck. He arrived a couple of months back. I found him sitting on a fence post one day. Only speaks in Canadian celebrities.”
“Wayne Gretzky. Wayne Gretzky.”
Garrett laughed again. “And no one has claimed him?”
She shook her head. “Another abandoned animal. I’ve put ads out on social media and contacted vets in Vermont, surrounding states, and across the border in Quebec and Ontario. No response.”
Anger at the people who abandoned animals was clear on her face, but when she turned to the parrot, she softened and tapped his beak. “But you’re safe and happy here, Canuck, aren’t you?”
“John A. MacDonald. John A. MacDonald.” And his head bobbed up and down happily as she stroked his head.
She laughed and patted the bird. “I’ll just grab the stuff from the back. I’ll be right back.”
“Shania Twain. Shania Twain.”
Garrett was grinning when he turned to see the rest of the space, but what he saw nearly knocked him flat.
Gotcha Wall Of Fame .
The words were painted on a wall above framed photos of people with the animals they’d adopted. Mostly dogs. Along with a lot of people he knew. Epic and his Piper posed with a French bulldog. Falcon and Branna with something resembling a Yeti. Oz and Isla with a chocolate lab. Slick, Addison, and Nina, with a shepherd.
Memories of Shaggy slammed into Garrett, and he had to close his eyes against the onslaught. His buddies had not only found love in human form but with animals as well.
Dogs. They all had dogs. Why did they have to have dogs?
How was he going to face them? He avoided dogs at all costs these days. The memories were too hard.
Instead of staying to help the vet or to acclimate to the thought of all those dogs, Garrett turned and walked out of her barn. He ignored the peacock and the goats who pranced after him and moved through the trees and over the fence until he was in his own space again.
Only then could he suck in a breath.
Kitty stood pretty much where he’d left her. Nothing had changed. Except that his heart had ripped open once again.
At least he’d found out about the animals before he’d shown up at their homes. He could build up his shields. Act normal.
Hah.
Normal was no longer in reach.
Garrett climbed into the paddock and approached Kitty, pleased when she knocked off his hat with the equine equivalent of a giggle.
A different tabby cat sat on a post watching him and he wondered if this one belonged to the vet as well or if they were all barn cats, free to roam where they pleased.
A dog barked somewhere, and he wondered if it was that shepherd of Slick’s. The one who lived on the next farmland.
Maybe coming to Phail had been a piss-poor idea after all.
K imi stared at the empty office when she came out of the back room. Her mysterious visitor had disappeared as quietly as he’d appeared. She expected to find him outside, but he wasn’t there either.
“Ryan Reynolds. Ryan Reynolds.”
Kimi laughed. “Did Stetson remind you of Ryan Reynolds, Canuck?” He was certainly handsome enough to be a celebrity, but she was pretty sure he wasn’t an actor. The man had to work with animals in some capacity .
If it wasn’t for the fact that she didn’t hallucinate, she might wonder if she’d made him up. Stetson was certainly a delicious fantasy, even if she had pulled a rifle on him.
That made her grin. He hadn’t been afraid of her, even with the gun. The man’s animal sense appeared to be finely tuned, so he’d maybe judged her as accurately as she’d judged him.
Neither of them would hurt an animal. Both of them would protect them and do what they could to help. Apparently, the man trusted Kimi to handle Onigis on her own. Which she could.
But her thoughts strayed to the man while she worked with the horse and figured out how to minimize the mare’s movements. The small paddock and attached stable were exactly for this kind of injury. Hopefully, Onigis would become comfortable in the stable at some point. Currently, Butter was curled up in the doorway. Maybe seeing her goat buddies inside would help the horse and help her feel safe.
Kimi’s phone rang with a call from Mona Hamilton. She and her husband ran a farm a dozen miles to the east of Phail. They mostly grew vegetables, but they’d added chickens last year as well. “Hi, Mona.”
“Hi, Kimi. We found some pigs in our yard.”
Kimi took a few seconds to digest that. “Pigs?”
Mona laughed. “Pigs. I know. So weird. There are three of them. One’s bigger than the other, so I’m guessing a mama and her babies.”
Huh. “I’m guessing you didn’t order any pigs?”
Another laugh. “Not a chance. They look healthy enough, but I know nothing about pigs. And honestly, I don’t want to know anything about them. The chickens are enough for me and George.”
“Understandable. Are there any new farmers out that way?”
“No. We’ve called a few people, but no one knows anything about anyone raising pigs nearby. Can you help?”
Well, she certainly wouldn’t let the pigs fend for themselves. “I’ll be there as soon as I can.” Kimi hooked up her trailer and added some straw for bedding, along with a couple of buckets of food. Pigs weren’t picky eaters, but she needed something to entice them into the trailer, so she grabbed a variety of what she had on hand. And hoped these particular pigs weren’t fussy.
When she arrived at the farm, she found three large pigs standing in a row, watching the chickens like they were streaming their favorite show on TV. George and Mona sat in lawn chairs and waved her over. She backed the trailer up close to the pigs and then joined the humans.
George pointed at the animals. “Thought we might have to try to stop them eating the chickens, but they seem content to watch.”
For now. But she didn’t say that out loud. These weren’t small pot-bellied pigs but full-sized animals. The smaller ones probably doubled Kimi’s weight, and Mama had to be over five hundred pounds. She stood higher than Kimi’s elbow.
Mona grinned. “Wish we could keep them, but we’re not up to anything more than the food and the chickens.”
“No problem. You haven’t fed them anything, have you?”
George shook his head. “Mona wouldn’t let me. Said they’d be hard enough to move as is, harder if they know food comes from here.”
Kimi grinned. “Exactly right. Okay, let’s see how they tolerate me.”
The pigs didn’t even flinch as Kimi approached, their attention fully focused on the chickens. She spoke to them and patted the mama first, figuring she would be the one to be convinced.
Mama ignored Kimi like she would a fly. She could work with that. Aggressive pigs would have been a problem. She grinned at the couple. “Here’s hoping they’re hungry.”
She returned to the trailer and grabbed a bucket full of apples. She took out her pocket knife, snagged one apple, and passed the bucket to the couple. “Toss me one when I need it.”
Most pigs were pretty well trained to react to people, so Kimi moved in front of them and made sure they saw her. She peeled some of the apple and dropped it in front of Mama. Sure enough, her ears twitched, and she lumbered forward to grab the peel.
Mona and George cheered, making Kimi laugh. Soon, the pair were acting like full-on cheerleaders. Go piggies. Go piggies.
She wished all of her rescues were this much fun. Once the pigs were up the ramp and secured in the trailer with some carrots and greens, she locked it up and smiled at the couple. “Let me know if you hear anything about who left these animals here.”
Their faces sobered. “What kind of person would just dump them here? ”
Kimi blew out a breath. “At least they left them in a place where people would take care of them. Some animals just get left behind or forced into the bush. Now, these guys have a chance to survive and find a good life, thanks to you.”
Mona laughed. “Thanks to you, actually. Is there anything we can do to help? Would leftover produce be good for them to eat?”
When she left, Kimi had several boxes of leftovers, a box of fresh veggies, and a dozen eggs to thank her for her trouble. New England was filled with good people. With a few glaring exceptions.
Like Hendry. She’d have to draw bloodwork from Onigis later today. She had her suspicions about what he was putting into his horses, and Onigis was going to help Kimi take the man out of business.
After driving home and relocating the pigs to the rear paddock with plenty of trees for shade and suitable ground for their rooting behaviors, she added soybean meal to her shopping list. That would ensure their diet stayed balanced, but they’d be fine for a few days until the feed arrived.
Her stomach growled, and she realized she’d missed both breakfast and lunch. Again. After doing a quick check on the animals, she headed inside her cottage and made an omelet with a few of the fresh eggs and veggies.
Kimi sat on her back porch to eat her late lunch and surveyed her property. This was her favorite spot in the world. As a little girl, she’d wanted to take care of all the animals. Her grandmother had laughed and encouraged her to do what she could to help while teaching her that wild animals needed to be wild to be happy.
They hadn’t had a lot, but they’d been happy and able to help others. “You’d like this place, GG.” Her grandmother would have had a good giggle about the pigs watching the chickens, too. Maybe it was time to get a few of her own chickens. She had lots of room to add a coop out near the pigs.
However, if she moved the rheas to a closer pasture, maybe they would serve the same purpose. Rheas looked like small ostriches, although the rheas had three toes. She’d inherited the small flock recently when a vet in Albany had called her. The birds had been rescued from some idiot who thought it would be fun to have them in his apartment.
Rheas were easy-going and got along with most animals and humans, but she hoped they’d pecked the guy in his sleep. At least now they were safe, and she was sure they’d have fun being entertainment for the pigs. She’d make the move this afternoon.
A dog’s bark broke her contentment. It was the black and white pit bull she’d found on the road in New Hampshire more than a week before. She’d been doing reconnaissance and spotted the poor thing passed out.
He’d been nearly dead from dehydration and with a broken foreleg. Bite marks on his face and both forelegs. Fury rippled through her again. Bastards like the ones who’d made him fight should be jailed. Or worse.
She’d managed to get the dog home and into her operating room before he’d woken. Sadly, he’d escaped shortly afterward.
The dog had been in recovery when Kimi’d been called to an emergency. A rabid coyote had wandered onto a sheep farm and the dogs were attempting to protect the flock. The farmer had run out there with them.
It had taken a long time to contain the coyote, calm the man and his dogs, and ensure none of them had been bit. She hadn’t returned until the middle of the night, and the dog had been gone.
She had to have left the door slightly open. Rookie mistake but the Hal’s panic had infected her. The man wasn’t prone to overreactions and her haste had cost the dog its safety.
From the glimpses she got, he still wore the cast. She wanted to lure him to the barn but hadn’t had any luck. He watched from a distance but wouldn’t approach.
For the first time in years, she didn’t have other dogs on the property. They’d all been adopted and were thriving. Maybe if she had some, the stray would come for the company.
When Nina came by for her shift later, she would ask about borrowing Animosh back for a few days. The shepherd was a sweetie and might be able to lure in the stray. Nina wouldn’t mind. The girl might only be thirteen, but she’d done more for the world than many adults. She spent at least three hours every Saturday working with Kimi and had a knack for making everyone feel welcome. Humans and animals alike.
Nina thought she was working for the fun of it, but Kimi paid her regularly without her knowing. The girl’s college fund was growing, and Kimi couldn’t wait to turn it over to her one day.
A flash of black and white had her standing and moving toward the barn. Maybe today, she could talk the dog into approaching. Or perhaps she’d spot her mysterious visitor from earlier. Either one she would call a win.