First Born (Lily Moore Series) by Zoeller Tricia

Author:Zoeller, Tricia [Zoeller, Tricia]
Language: eng
Format: mobi
Publisher: Blue Portal Press LLC
Published: 2013-05-05T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 25

At Death’s Door

Seth’s phone calls kept rolling to Dr. Gladson’s answering machine, but he remembered that the veterinarian lived in a ranch home adjacent to the clinic off the South Loop in Marietta. Leaving Lily in the front seat, he approached the red brick house and rang the doorbell. Two large dogs barked in warning. The door creaked open a crack with the chain still in place. “Who is it?”

“Seth Moore. You knew my father, Arthur.”

“Moore? What do you want?”

Seth shifted his weight to his right leg. “I have a badly injured Shih Tzu in my car.”

“Then take her to the emergency clinic on Cobb Parkway.”

Seth swallowed the lump in his throat. “Please,” he pleaded. “I’m taking a huge risk here, Dr. Gladson. You used to treat a police dog named Barney, a Belgian Malinois. She’s...she’s like him. I think you may be the only one who can save her.” He looked back toward his truck, thinking he should have carried Lily in his arms. Once the vet saw her, there was no way he would refuse.

“You’re Arthur’s son?” he asked.

“Yes.”

“Show me some ID,” he insisted.

Seth reached into his back pocket for his wallet and produced his driver’s license. Dr. Gladson handed it back to him.

“Bring her in.”

Seth ran back to the passenger side of his truck, and retrieved Lily. God is she dead? Her tiny mouth gaped open, her tongue hung out the side. The vet unchained the door revealing a man close to Seth’s height with shoulder-length gray hair, a mustache, and round wire-rimmed glasses.

Two black Labradors converged on him having made their mad escape through the open door. “Back!” he said.

With one command, Dr. Gladson had the labs back in the house. His brown eyes shined, inquisitive, yet calm. “They seem to like you,” he noted as he motioned Seth to follow him next door to the clinic. The keys jingled in his pocket. He unlocked the doors and turned on the lights. The place smelled of nervous animals, pet food, and antiseptic. Seth followed him through a small reception area to an exam room. “What’s her name?”

Seth paused, “Tashi.”

“What’s her real name?” he asked gently.

“Does it matter right now?” asked Seth. “Can’t you just treat her?”

“If she has any connection to that Malinois then it would be pertinent to the care I provide,” said the vet as he efficiently pulled supplies on to the table.

“She’s related to the Malinois.”

Lily lay on her side. Seth watched for a breath. He breathed a sigh of relief when he noted the slightest movement of her rib cage.

Dr. Gladson went to work using Seth as his technician for holding and retrieving items. He removed a beautiful necklace from around Lily and placed it on the counter, before x-raying her neck and shoulders. Then he started an IV for fluids and pain medication.

“The wound has already healed a bit.” Dr. Gladson studied the exit wound. “That’s strange,” he said.

“What?”

“I’d say the bullet went clean through the shoulder muscle, but...usually the exit wound is larger than the entrance.

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