Meet cute madness #3
Kendrick turned to catch a glimpse of the celebrations when, out of the corner of his eye, he saw a dark shadow approaching, heading straight for him. Thanks to his sharp reflexes, he slammed the brakes immediately but couldn’t stop the van before something hit his left wing.
A second later, he was out of his car to check what had happened. A dark alpaca lay on the road. It wasn’t moving.
“What the … I can’t believe this!” he cursed and hurried over to the motionless creature. No way could his first act as a new resident of Kirkby be to kill a local animal!
He checked and, fortunately, could immediately see that the alpaca was breathing. It didn’t seem to be bleeding either. Though that didn’t necessarily mean anything, if there were internal injuries ... Kendrick felt its pulse, which was strong and steady.
“What happened?” a voice from behind him interrupted his initial examination.
What a question! What did it look like? He didn’t answer but continued to check all the animal’s limbs carefully for fractures.
“It’s Nessie!” he heard her shout, a clear undertone of panic in her voice. He finally turned round and found himself face to face with a red-haired woman who looked vaguely familiar.
“Is this your alpaca?” he asked.
“No, my sister’s. I can’t believe you ran over Nessie!”
“I didn’t run her over. The alpaca bumped right into my wing,” he explained as calmly as possible, worried that the truth sounded like a lame excuse.
“Maybe your sister should take better care of her animal?” he countered, annoyed.
Slowly, an unpleasant realisation dawned on him.
He knew this alpaca, and now he could also place the redhead!
He had examined the young mare mere weeks ago after she had just been rescued from drowning in Loch Ness – by the very same woman who now stood next to him.
She was, he remembered, Isla Fraser, daughter of Marlin Fraser, whose sheep he looked after, niece of Rupert Fraser, whose horses he treated, and partner of pub owner Jon Grant, whose dog he had examined and vaccinated twice. Wow, just perfect!
“Sorry, I didn’t mean to sound like an arse,” he replied contritely. “Nessie just startled me when she bumped into my car. Fortunately, I was driving very slowly. I don’t think she’s seriously injured.”
“Hmm,” Isla grumbled and pulled out her phone. “Whatever you’re doing, drop it and come to the village road, by the Old School … Aye, right away!” she shouted into the phone. “Nessie is injured!” And then she added: “Vet’s already here. He’s the one who ran her over.”
Okay, so she knew who he was as well. “I did not run her over,” he insisted. “And my name is Kendrick McIntosh,” he introduced himself.
“You don’t say.” She glared at him with a look he couldn’t interpret. Hostility? Amusement? Annoyance? “We’ve met before. Also, I can read.” She pointed to his van, which had the words “Mobile Vet Services – Dr Kendrick McIntosh” on the side.
Kendrick ignored her words. “Can you make sure she doesn’t run off?” he asked. “I’ll get my emergency bag from the back. I also have X-ray and ultrasound equipment in the van in case we need it.”
Isla nodded and knelt down next to Nessie while he went to fetch his bag.
The alpaca’s heart and lungs sounded good, and the abdominal noises were normal too.
That was a good sign. He didn’t think there was any internal bleeding or a chest injury.
But why was the young mare still unconscious?
Alpacas were flight animals and usually found the strength to flee from attackers even when they were half dead. Perhaps this one was concussed?
“We need to turn her around to the other side,” he decided, instructing Isla to take the hind legs while he lifted the front.
The alpaca remained completely limp, which was really bloody unusual.
They carefully flipped her over so he could check her left side.
He felt some swelling around the shoulder, which was probably the spot that had hit his van.
He hoped it was just a bruise and not a fracture, but he couldn’t tell without an X-ray or watching her run.
While he was still contemplating his next move, a mob of people came running – led by a raven-haired Fury.
“Nessie?!” the young woman screamed. “Is she dead?”
Okay, maybe not a mob exactly. Apart from the very upset woman – presumably the animal’s owner – there were only Marlin Fraser and Collum McDonald.
“She’s not dead,” Kendrick affirmed in a calm voice. “But I can’t tell you why she’s still unconscious.”
Isla stood up to make room next to Nessie for her sister, who bent over the animal with tears in her eyes, whispering silly words of endearment in its ear.
“A perfect start for our new vet,” commented Collum wryly, apparently not sure if he found the situation amusing or alarming.
“Well, I’m sure he didnae do it on purpose,” Marlin growled in the mayor’s direction, and Kendrick was surprised to hear old Fraser have his back.
They got on well, true, but he had hit his daughter’s alpaca – whether intentionally or not, and Collum was right about this being the worst first impression he could have made.
“A vet who runs over animals should lose his medical licence, and preferably his driving licence too!” squealed the black-haired woman whose name he couldn’t recall.
Surprisingly, the sound of her voice revived the alpaca’s spirits.
Nessie lifted her head and opened her large dark eyes.
“You’re alive!” The angry shriek gave way to a cheer, which sounded equally shrill to Kendrick’s ears.
All in all, everyone’s responses seemed a little over the top to him, as if they were ... Wait a second!
He held Nessie’s head, looked into her eyes and sniffed her snout. He was right. This was unbelievable! “The alpaca is drunk!” he exclaimed.
“What?! No way,” objected the owner.
“Way,” the mayor disagreed and started to giggle. Apparently, he wasn’t all that sober either. “I saw her lick the last drop out of more than one glass, Shona.”
“Gin or whisky?” Isla enquired. As if that made a difference!