Chapter 2
CHAPTER TWO
VALERIA
“You are all done, my friend,” Valeria says, giving Luna—the cutest St. Bernard she’s ever seen—one last pat before standing. She reaches into the treat jar near the exam table and slips Luna a reward for being such a good girl, especially for tolerating the blood draw without so much as a whine.
“I don’t know how you do it,” Stacy—Luna’s mom—says, shaking her head. “She’s never this well-behaved with other vets.”
Valeria smiles and rubs Luna’s ears. “Well, that’s because she knows I’ve got the good stuff.” She wiggles a dried fish skin treat just out of Luna’s reach. “Don’t you?”
Luna’s jowls slacken, and a string of drool hangs over.
Valeria laughs softly before surrendering the treat.
She walks to the computer and pulls up Luna’s chart, her eyes scanning the screen carefully to make sure everything they came in for has been addressed. When she finishes typing her notes, she turns back to Stacy, ready to walk her through Luna’s overall health.
“Luna’s looking good. Her weight isn’t a concern yet, but if you look at this graph”—Valeria turns the monitor, and Stacy leans in—“you can see it’s been steadily increasing.
I’d recommend switching her to a weight-management kibble to keep things stable.
I’d also start her on a joint-support supplement.
She’s still young, and her hips look and feel great right now, but with her breed, it’s best to stay ahead of it.
” Valeria turns to smile at Luna. “Other than that, she’s a big, healthy girl.
Do you have any other questions or concerns? ”
Stacy shakes her head. “That’s all, thank you.”
“Perfect,” Valeria says. “I’ll call you once her heartworm test comes back, but aside from that, she shouldn’t need anything else until next year, when a few of her vaccines are due.”
“Perfect,” Stacy says, then looks down at Luna. “Can you say ‘Thank you, Dr. Val’? Luna?”
Luna’s tail slams against the floor hard enough to make the wall tremble, her entire body wiggling with uncontained joy.
“You’re welcome.” Valeria gives Luna one last scratch behind the ears before sliding the door open and sending them on their way. She watches Luna’s tail swish happily as they walk out the door and down the hallway until the door clicks shut behind them.
Valeria exhales and rolls her shoulders, letting the quiet settle over her. It’s been a long day. She’s been running on empty for hours, shuttled from one appointment to the next without a break, every chart somehow twice as long as it should have been.
But Luna—thankfully—was her easiest and last appointment of the day.
Completely spent, Valeria heads to the back office to grab her bag. The hum of the mini-fridge fills the space, layered with the faint soundtrack of the clinic: low chatter of other vets and techs, dogs barking, others growling through their exams.
After the day she’s had—two charcoal inductions, a computer system crash, and one intensely stubborn blocked cat—she’s more than ready to go home, kick off her shoes, and sink into the couch with Brooke beside her.
Maybe order takeout and watch a movie. The thought alone loosens the tension in her shoulders.
She turns to leave, already reaching for her phone. As she walks down the hall, she unlocks the screen and quickly texts Brooke.
Valeria 5:26 p.m.:
I’m officially off. I’m heading home now if you want to meet there. I can’t wait to see you.
The moment Valeria steps into the reception area, she’s greeted by Brooke’s bright smile and a stunning bouquet of birds-of-paradise cradled in her arms—Valeria’s favorite.
For a heartbeat, Valeria just stares. A rush of warmth blooms in her chest, sharp and sparkling, unraveling the tight knots of the day. Just the sight of her favorite person is enough to dissolve the tension.
“Hi,” Brooke says, her smile glowing, and the dimple near her eye makes an appearance.
Valeria’s entire body loosens at the sight of her smile.
“Hi!” Valeria laughs, rising onto her toes to kiss her. “What—what are you doing here?”
“You texted earlier and said you were exhausted.” Brooke steps closer to Valeria, until her senses blur beneath the delicious mix of Brooke’s cologne and her vanilla body wash. “So I thought I’d come find you . . . drive you home myself.”
A slow smile
“But what about my car?”
“I got a ride. I wanted to make sure you got home without worrying about a thing.”
Valeria leans in and kisses her again, the last of the tension draining from her body.
“Thank you,” she murmurs. It’s small things like this—Brooke’s thoughtfulness—that constantly remind her how deeply she’s loved, how carefully Brooke holds her heart.
“Are you ready to go?” Brooke asks.
Valeria nods, but before they can turn toward the door, it swings open hard enough to rattle the glass.
A dark-haired woman stumbles inside, rain streaming from her coat. Her hair clings to her face, her eyes wide and frantic.
“I need help,” she says breathlessly. “Someone dumped this cat on the side of the road, and I think it’s hurt.”
“I’m sorry,” Brenda, the front desk manager, says gently. “We don’t have any available vets right now.”
“Fuck,” the woman whispers.
A small black face peeks out from inside her jacket, and Valeria’s heart tightens painfully.
“I can take a look,” she blurts, the words escaping before she can stop them. She’s still here. It’ll probably be quick, and there’s no chance she’s letting this cat walk back out into the rain while it’s in pain.
The woman exhales, shaky and relieved. “Thank you,” she whispers.
“I’ll only be a few minutes, okay?” Valeria says to Brooke, brushing a quick kiss across her cheek. Brooke nods, though Valeria catches the faintest flash of annoyance.
Brooke hates it when Valeria takes patients at the last minute.
Valeria wishes she could say it’s a rare thing, but it isn’t.
She can’t turn away from an animal in pain.
If there’s any way she can help, she will.
She’s learned to pick her battles with Brooke, and this is one she’ll choose every time, no matter how frustrated her girlfriend gets.
Before Brooke loses her composure in the middle of the reception area, Valeria gently steers the woman toward the empty exam room.
“Will you set her on the exam table?” Valeria asks once inside.
The woman tries, but the cat clings to her jacket, and she winces. “I can’t.”
Valeria nods. “Then you might need to hold on to her while I take a look. Is that okay?”
“Yeah. Of course.”
Valeria pulls out the stool by the computer and gestures for her to sit. When she does, Valeria crouches in front of her.
“Hey there, sweetheart,” she murmurs, offering her hand. “You’ve been through something, haven’t you?”
The cat lets out a soft meow, and Valeria smiles. Meowing is good.
She slides the stethoscope from around her neck and closes her eyes, listening carefully.
“Her heart rate’s a little elevated, but nothing concerning.
It’s probably stress,” she says, before moving her hand along the cat’s trembling side, feeling muscles twitch beneath the damp fur.
When she reaches the left hind leg, the cat flinches and hisses.
There’s swelling around the lower femur, and the limb is angled in a way it should not be.
Valeria looks up at the woman, who’s nervously chewing her lip. “I wish I had better news, but it seems her leg may be broken. We’ll need an X-ray to be sure.”
The woman exhales sharply. “Fuck.”
“Hey,” Valeria says gently, meeting her gaze. “This is something we can fix. She’ll need rest, maybe a splint or surgery, depending on the fracture, but she’s in the right place now. You did a good thing bringing her in.”
The woman nods.
“I need to take her to the back to run the X-ray,” Valeria says. “Can you try to get her into my arms?”
The woman shifts carefully until the cat is cradled against Valeria’s chest. Despite the pain, the cat presses into her, all fragile trust and warmth.
“We’ll be right back,” Valeria says before carrying her toward the X-ray room and flagging down a vet tech to help her.
A few minutes later, the images glow on the screen, and Valeria’s stomach sinks. Multiple fractures. Some old. Some new. This isn’t something a splint can fix. This cat needs surgery.
She exhales and runs a hand through the cat’s damp fur. “I’m sorry, hon.”
Valeria lifts her gently and returns to the exam room, setting her carefully on the table. She grabs a purée treat and eases it toward the cat’s mouth, keeping her calm and still. The last thing she needs is for her to jump and make things worse.
“Good news and bad news,” Valeria says quietly. “Which would you like first?
The woman swallows. “What’s the bad news?”
“The bad news is her leg was broken before and healed improperly, so there’s not much for me to do,” Valeria explains. “She’ll need surgery. I think there’s a very high chance it’ll need to get amputated.”
“Amputate?” The woman sucks in a breath. “There’s nothing else you can do?”
Valeria shakes her head, wishing she had a kinder answer. “Looks like there are old fractures that didn’t heal right, and there’s no way for me to correct that.
The woman nods. “Would you do it now?”
Valeria shakes her head. “We don’t have the surgical equipment or the specialized training for this kind of fracture.”
The woman steadies herself. “Then what’s the good news?”
“The good news is I have a friend who’s an incredible veterinary surgeon.
I can call her and see if she can take this case tonight.
She works at the twenty-four-hour emergency clinic in Lynwood, which, unfortunately, is the closest one to town.
I used to volunteer there, so I know she’ll be in excellent hands.
They might also be able to coordinate with the animal shelter to help cover the cost if you decide not to keep her. ”