All She Wants by Marchant A.J

All She Wants by Marchant A.J

Author:Marchant A.J. [A.J., Marchant]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-11-24T06:00:00+00:00


20

CLARE CRADLED COMET tight to her chest, the joey buried deep in his pouch, as they crossed the shady carpark. There were only a few cars and a mini-bus, the quiet no surprise on a hot Sunday afternoon. The doors slid open as they approached the entrance. A beaming teenager welcomed them from behind the counter and pointed them to another door at the other end of the room. Tilda pressed a button beside the door and heard a buzzer inside, footsteps coming closer not long after. A hydraulic arm opened the door, and a woman greeted them with a big smile as she ushered them into a long and wide hallway. Tilda felt Clare relax a little beside her.

‘Howdy. My name’s Jenny.’ She held out a hand.’ You must be Clare… And?’

Clare’s arms were full, so Tilda shook the woman’s hand, unable to not smile back. ‘Matilda.’

‘Lovely to meet you both. And this must be Comet.’ Jenny peeked inside the pouch and Comet poked his nose out, sniffing at the offered hand. ‘Okay. Clare, how about we take the young boy to see our vet? Get him checked out, checked in, and cleared. Matilda, feel free to come along, or you’re more than welcome to wander through the sanctuary.’ She pointed to a glass door leading outside.

There was an awkward moment as an uncertain Tilda turned to Clare. ‘Do you want?… Should I…?’

‘We’ll be okay. It’s up to you, either way. All that driving, you must need to walk for a bit?’

Tilda studied her face, unsure whether Clare was being polite, or really didn’t mind. But Jenny swooped in and decided it for them, squeezing Tilda’s arm. ‘We’ll come find you when we’re done.’

‘Oh. Okay.’ Tilda folded back the pouch opening, Comet nuzzling into her palm as she said goodbye. He somehow eased her hand further into the pouch with his head. No wonder he liked it in there, so warm and cozy and safe. One last scratch and she took a step back, but she didn’t move for the door until Clare had reached the end of the hallway, a little flip of indecision in her stomach when Clare turned to look back at her before going around the corner.

Tilda waited another moment, and then shouldered the glass door open, heavier than it looked, and walked out into the sanctuary. She wandered along the paths, stopping at the habitats, studying the animals for any sign of malcontent or problems, and then, reassured, she started to enjoy herself. She came to a pen that at first looked empty, with a misshapen mound of dirt in the middle and various trees planted around. A sign told her it was home to a wombat, and only then did she see that part of the dirt mound was actually a wombat bottom, head buried deep inside his den, likely enjoying a good sleep through the heat of the afternoon, waiting until the day cooled before he ventured out.

After that she read the



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