Coming Home (19 page)

"This here pup is
worth money to me. If you can save it without costing a bloody fortune fine,
otherwise I'll take it home and shoot it. Don't have no time for things not
going to pay me back."

"Bring it in and
I'll have a look." Rooney's heart went out to the small dog. It looked as
though it didn't get much love from the owner.

He opened the door,
thrust his meaty hand in and grabbed the animal by the scruff of the neck. It
howled in pain as he pulled it out and carried it inside.

"Let's get the
poor thing up on the table and I can have a look." Rooney tried to keep
her face neutral while she inspected the pup. "Can you tell me what
happened?"

"Damn stupid thing
tried to get out of its cage and got its leg caught on some rusty wire."
He looked at her and she dropped her gaze back to the pup.

Another car door
slammed and Rhian walked in, calling out a cheery hello. "Morning."
She looked into the surgery and stopped short. "Oh hello, Mr Stubbs."

He grunted in response.

"Can you start a
file for me please, Rhian. Get Mr Stubbs’s details while I work out what this
little patient needs."

"Don't do anything
without asking me first. You city people like to spend my hard earned
money."

"I can assure you
I won't do that. My first concern is always for the patient and this little guy
has done some serious damage." She stroked the pups head and looked at its
owner. "For a start, it will need an x-ray because I don't like the look
of this injury. I have a feeling there is a fracture in there from the way its
leg is hanging. Plus he is going to have to be stitched up and he will need a
round of antibiotics."

Mr Stubbs rubbed a
dirty hand over his unshaven chin and muttered to himself.

"Can you work out a
quote for me please, Rhian?" She turned back to her client. "So, what
do you plan on doing to earn money from this puppy Mr Stubbs?"

He glanced at her with
his eyes squinted. "He's a purebred cocker spaniel. I was planning on
selling him next week. Got people already wanting to see him and his
litter."

"What do you
charge? I was looking at getting a dog for my daughter, she would love a little
guy like this."

"With papers this
one is $350."

Rhian walked in with a
print out and handed it to Mr Stubbs. He looked at it and turned to Rooney,
horror on his face. "You can't be serious? This is too much for a little
mutt like that."

"My prices are
reasonable, Mr Stubbs. I don't charge any more than the other vets in town. If you
need time to pay I'm sure we can work something out."

"Nah, not going to
happen. Thought you might be different since you were a local so to speak. A
bullet will fix this and cost me nothing." He reached out and grabbed the
pup, making it scream out in pain.

"Mr Stubbs, wait.
Let me have the pup. I'll fix it and pay for everything myself." Rooney
put her hand on the dirty fur and gave him what she hoped was a winning smile.
"My daughter would love this pup and it wouldn't cost you."

"But what do I get
out of it, nothing. I have costs to cover you know."

"I'll give you a
hundred dollars then and that's it. At least that way you make something. What
do you say?"

"Show me the money
then, I don't give dogs on credit."

"Here,
Rooney," Rhian ran to grab her purse and held out a handful of notes, a
distasteful look on her face.

"Thanks." She
took the money and handed it to Mr Stubbs before taking the pup back from him.
"I'll take him now. The sooner I give him some pain relief the happier
he’ll be."

Mr Stubbs counted the
notes before jamming them in the pocket of his overalls. He nodded at Rooney
and walked out.

She waited until she
heard the ute drive out and breathed a sigh of relief. "I don't believe
that man."

"You may as well
know, he has a puppy farm. Most of the people around town know about it but
don't want to get involved because of his temper. He's a pretty shady character
too. I wouldn't trust him as far as I can spit." She walked over and
stroked the pup on the head. "Aw, you poor little guy. Let me help you
with him, Rooney."

"Thanks."
Rooney prepared a sedative and administered it, talking in her soothing voice
until it relaxed and lay back. "I'm going to have to clean this up before
I x-ray and suture that leg." She worked on the pup, using the x-ray
machine first before cleaning up the wound. Finished, she put it in a cage to
rest, snuggled on clean towels.

"Poor little mite
is filthy." Rhian poked her finger through the wires and stroked it down
the dirty fur. "Are you going to give him to Tam?"

"I think so,
she'll love it. We've never had a pet of our own. It just wasn't possible with
my work." She rubbed her hand over the back of her neck, something digging
at her. "If everyone knows about the puppy farm, how come he's never been
turned in and closed down?"

"Typical reasons.
Nobody wants to get involved, you know. He's a mongrel really and needs to end
up in front of the courts for the way he treats animals." Rhian walked
into the kitchen and filled the kettle before turning it on. "You could
ring the RSPCA since you've had cause to do business with him."

"I might do that.
Any idea where he lives? I could call in and let him know what I found with the
x-rays and check out his place."

"Do you think that
would be a good idea? I mean, he is kind of crazy. People who know him tend to
give him a wide berth. I would hate him to do anything." Rhian poured
water into two mugs and stirred them before handing one to Rooney.

"I'll be fine. I
can talk my way around most things given a chance."

The rest of the day
passed fairly slowly for Rooney. There was one more new customer looking for
vaccinations for her cats and a couple of phone calls from the advertisement
she’d placed in the local paper to set up appointments for the following day.
When she closed up that afternoon, she headed to Mr Stubbs’s place to check out
his animals.

Rooney found the farm
easily enough. When she glanced over the rickety fences, it was a hive of
neglect and she wavered about driving into a place with so much rubbish and
ramshackle buildings. A bad feeling crept down her back but she ignored it and
turned the car into the rutted driveway. Scrawny chickens scratched in the dirt
bordering the paddocks, home to under-nourished cows.

Rooney pulled up beside
a barn and got out of her car. "Hello. Anybody here?" When there was
no answer, she walked in front of the barn, peering inside for any sign of
life. An old tractor covered in sacks sat forlornly amongst bales of hay. She
heard the sounds of barking and walked briskly to locate the dogs. Another long
shed was on the far side of the barn. She hurried to the door, looking over her
shoulder to see if anyone was following her.

It took a few seconds
for her eyes to adjust to the dim interior of the ramshackle building. Row upon
row of cages held an assortment of dogs. Most of them had puppies and all were
in terrible condition. Tears welled in her eyes from the stench and filth they
lived in. Rooney crouched down and put her hand out to a timid terrier
inquisitive enough to come close to the wire.

"Oh pet, look at
you." Anger built up in her heart. She wanted to rip open the cages and
release the animals locked in this desolate place, but things didn't work that
way. Determined to do this by the book, she swung around to leave and slammed
into the chest of Mr Stubbs.

"Oof, damn."
She took a step back and plastered a bright smile on her face. "Sorry Mr
Stubbs, I did call out to you when I arrived."

"What are you
doing here?" His mouth was set in a grim line and in the darkness of the
building he looked terrifying.

Rooney's heart thumped
a wild beat and she took a deep breath, doing her best to settle herself down
and get out of this without confrontation. "I thought I’d pop in on my way
home and let you know how the pup fared." She swallowed and tucked a hair
behind her ear. "Just as well I did that x-ray, he had a small fracture.
But I've managed to set it and sew up the tear and I think he will be fine with
a bit of rest and time to recuperate."

"Out." He
pushed her toward the door.

Fear snaked down her
throat and Rhian's words came back to taunt her.
He's a mongrel.
She
stopped outside and turned to face him. "Did you want me to check on any
of the other animals while I'm here?"

"If I wanted you
here, I would have called you. Don't go for people snooping around my
place." He wiped the spit from the corner of his mouth with the dirty
sleeve of his shirt.

"Sorry you feel
that way. I only wanted to let you know what I found with the pup. If you need
anything, give me a call." Rooney hightailed it to her car, holding her
breath until she had the vehicle started and her door locked.

"Filthy dirty
mongrel bastard." She flew out of the driveway onto the main road, leaving
a trail of gravel flying in her wake. On the way home, a plan began to form in
her mind. She had to do something to save those poor animals, there was no way
Rooney could turn her back on that kind of abuse.

She parked her car and
headed for the house. As she pushed open the back door, the sound of her
daughter doing her spelling words reached her ears.

"Sticks,
s-t-i-c-k-s, sticks."

"Brilliant,
Squirt. I told you it wasn't that hard." Cade ruffled her hair and looked
up when Rooney let the door bang behind her.

***

"I didn't think it
was your style to do homework, Cade." She put her keys on the hook on the
wall and turned to him, smiling.

"Yeah well, the
squirt and me are great buddies. It's not like I have a heap of things I can
do, so why not do this for her?"

"Thanks, that's
sweet of you. How did you go with the hospital visit today?"

"Mummy, can I go
outside for a little bit before dinner?" Tam smiled and waited.

"Sure." She
turned back to Cade.

Cade looked into her
eyes.
How much did she know about him trying to save Kate from the feisty
young colt
? "It seems okay. Russ ordered a scan and it doesn't appear
to be a torn ligament. He figures it's just more of the same and my surgeon in
Sydney agrees. Nothing to do for it but rest. He wants to see me in a few days,
nothing to worry about."

"You wouldn't have
told me either unless I asked, would you? Rooney muttered. She walked over to
kiss Essie before opening the fridge door and grabbing the bottle of orange
juice. She lifted it to her mouth and took a swig straight from the bottle.

Cade watched as her hand
started to shake. A line of juice ran down her chin and throat, soaking into
her white-collared shirt. Rooney wiped at it with the back of her hand and
noticed him watching her.

"What's wrong,
kid?"

Tears welled in her
eyes and he eased to his feet, hopping over to where she stood. He grabbed her
by the shoulders and pulled her close, worried about the way she trembled.
"Tell me what's wrong, Rooney. I don't like to see you like this."

"I'll be
okay." She heaved a sigh and gave him a wobbly smile. When he released
her, she grabbed a tissue off the kitchen counter and blew her nose.

Essie placed a cup of
tea on the counter and pushed her toward the stool. "Sit and tell us
what's going on in that pretty head of yours before Tam comes back
inside."

Cade perched himself
back on the stool and listened while she relayed the visit from Mr Stubbs and
her consequent trip to his farm on the way home. "You have to file a
complaint against him, Rooney. He can't be allowed to get away with this kind
of thing. It's inhumane."

"Yeah, it made me
sick looking at those poor dogs locked up. I don't trust him though. Rhian said
he's crazy and he sure gives off that vibe." She blew her nose again and
smiled. "I know Tam is going to love the pup. At least I can say I've
saved one and given it a decent chance for a normal life."

"Yes, you can and
it's a shame we can't take more. Who knows how long it will be before they get
rescued." He started to work out things in his mind, going over how much
he had in the bank and how long it would keep him afloat when everything went
pear-shaped.

"You sound as
though you want to go and buy something too. I didn't take you as an animal
person anymore, Cade."

"You know I love
them. Hell, I was never without a dog as a kid. It's just been too hard living
in the city to keep one. Now I have to live here—well most of the time
anyway—it might be easier to have one. You and the squirt can look after it for
me when I'm in the city."

"Of course we can,
but I don't know if you should go there. It might be a better idea to call the
RSPCA and leave it at that. Let them do what they do best." She looked at
him, a frown on her face.

"Well, I think it
would be a good idea if I went in and had a look. Who knows how long it will
take them and if they have more than one complaint, maybe they will escalate
the case." He smiled and chuckled. "I can take photos too. He'll
never know what hit him."