3. Brovish #2
“You remembered her name without prompting,” Krem said softly.
“Of course I did. She introduced herself.”
“But you kept it,” Traig said. “That’s different.”
Drogar let out a hoot. “You remember her name. Brovish, you called the feed supplier the grain human for six months.”
“That was different,” I said.
“In what way?” Krem asked, leaning forward.
I knew the answer. I wasn’t going to give it to them.
“I offered her a full-time job,” I said.
Silence followed my announcement.
Drogar tilted his head, studying my face. “You like her.”
“She’s pleasant. She does a good job. What’s not to like?”
Greth shook his head and grunted again.
“We should finish rounds,” I said. “Cooper needs monitoring, and there are still outdoor enclosures to check.”
“Speaking of,” Krem said, flipping through his clipboard.
“We need to make some plans for the vellicharm, though she won’t be here until next week.
It’s best to be prepared, however, because these creatures can be a challenge.
It was caught by a high lady in the kingdom, and now it has adopted all her mannerisms. I expect it will want to sit at a high table and dine on gourmet foods. ”
“We don’t have a high table, and last I checked, we don’t eat gourmet foods,” Drogar said.
“Which is why this is going to be a problem,” Krem said.
“I’ll prepare the isolation room,” I said. “We’ll figure out the rest after it gets here.”
“Also,” Traig added, glancing at his tablet, “we’re getting low on funds for the medical supply budget. I’ve been putting off ordering some of the more expensive equipment, but if we’re going to have a full-time veterinarian—”
“If she accepts.”
“She didn’t say no, did she?” he asked.
“She didn’t say yes either.” I bumped off the counter I’d been leaning against. “If she accepts, I’ll make sure the funds are there. Let’s finish rounds.”
Traig and Krem handled the main building. Drogar headed out to the east pasture to deal with the juvenile hearthmaw he’d mentioned. Greth went to the behavioral observation room where we kept creatures that needed extra attention.
After they left, I stood in the empty hallway, my reflection faint in the window glass. I was seven feet of green skin and tusks and hands that were good with frightened creatures but a ridged tongue that was clumsy with human words.
Laina hadn’t looked at me like I was too much last night. She’d looked at me like I was exactly the right person to be standing next to her while she worked.
But humans were good at being polite. I’d learned that. It didn’t always mean anything more.
I returned to the medical bay.
Cooper still hadn’t eaten.
I changed his water and food, adjusted the cloth over his kennel, and sat down in the chair beside him.
“She’ll probably call,” I told him. “She said she’d check in. That’s what humans do when they’re being professional.”
Cooper made a soft chiming sound from inside the kennel.
“I know. I’m overthinking it.”
He chimed again.
“She was good at this. Really good. And the creatures need someone who understands them. Someone who’s willing to learn.”
The clatterwing shifted, his feathers rustling.
“And maybe I want her to take the job. Not just because we need a veterinarian. Because—”
I stopped. Saying it out loud felt too big.
“Because she looked at you the way I look at you,” I finally said. “Like fixing your wing wasn’t just a job. And I don’t know how many humans think that way, but I know she does.”
I’d met plenty of people. They adopted our strays and wounded creatures. Some were kind, others only curious. Most were fine. But Laina had stood in this room with rain dripping from her coat and talked to Cooper, not just me. She’d wanted him to know he was safe.
This, I’d thought. This is what we need here.
Cooper went quiet.
I sat there for a while, listening to his breathing and the faint chime of his feathers every time he moved.
The medical bay felt less empty with him in it, but it still felt bigger than it had last night.
By midmorning, I’d checked on every creature in the facility twice.
The bloomback in the south enclosure was shedding flowers again, which meant he was stressed about something. I spent twenty minutes sitting with him, talking in a low voice until his petals stopped falling.
The mossnibbles in the communal room had rearranged the furniture again. They’d built a nest out of someone’s jacket and what looked like three of Krem’s clipboards. I left the nest alone. They’d dismantle it when they were ready.
Gerald, a snugglethorn, slept in his favorite corner on the edge of his pasture, his woolly body rising and falling with each breath. I didn’t wake him. Gerald needed his rest.
By the time I made it back to the lobby, Traig was waiting for me.
“Are you going to call her?” he asked.
“No.”
“Why not?”
“She said she’d check in.”
“That doesn’t mean you can’t call her first.”
“It feels pushy.”
Traig tapped his tablet screen. “You’re the least pushy person I know.”
“I don’t want to start being pushy now.”
He sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. “You’re overthinking this.”
“Maybe.”
“Definitely.” He set his tablet down. “She came last night. She fixed Cooper’s wing. You’re allowed to follow up.”
I didn’t respond. Traig picked up his tablet and walked away, muttering under his breath.
I leaned against the counter where Sofia still sat, staring at the front door.
I picked her up and carried her to her perch. She tolerated the relocation for only a short time before launching herself back, resuming her vigil at the door.
“Fine,” I told her. “Waste your time if you want.”
She peeped but didn’t look my way.
Lunch came and went. I ate standing up in the break room, staring out the window at the pasture where Drogar was working with the juvenile hearthmaw. She was big for her age, all dark fur and nervous energy, and she kept trying to bolt every time Drogar got close.
He was patient with her. That was Drogar’s gift.
I finished my meal and went to see how Cooper was doing.
He still hadn’t eaten any food. I removed the old and replaced it with new, then freshened his water.
After securing his cage, I went to my office, sat at my desk, and pulled out my notebook to document about the bird. Midday check. No change. Will monitor closely.
I closed the notebook and leaned back in the chair. My phone stared at me from where I’d laid it on my desk, and I picked it up, swiping into the list of contacts.
I could call Laina. Mention that Cooper wasn’t eating and see if she had thoughts.
My thumb hovered over her name.
I laid the phone back on my desk.
If she wanted to check in, she would. I didn’t want her to come back because I’d asked. I wanted her to come back because she wanted to. Even if waiting felt like holding my breath underwater.
A low rumble rang out through the building.
Sofia peeped so loudly it echoed down the hallway.
I raced to the entryway and peered through one of the front windows.
Laina’s truck. She’d come.
Traig appeared in the doorway from the other hallway. “Who’s here?”
Sofia leaped off the counter and flew over to flutter in front of the door.
It opened, and Laina stepped inside.
She saw me and smiled. “Hi. I came to check on Cooper.”
Sofia landed on Laina’s shoulder, her small wings quivering. She nestled into Laina’s neck.
Laina’s smile widened, and she lifted one hand to stroke Sofia’s spine. “Hey, sweet girl. Did you miss me?”
Sofia trilled.
Laina wore a light green jacket, and she’d pulled her dark hair back in a knot at her nape. Sofia’s wings fluttered as Laina spoke to her.
Her eyes found mine. “Is now a bad time?”
Behind me, Drogar whispered. “I knew it.”