Page 9 of 15 Summers Later

“I’m going to guess she’s part of a feral litter somewhere. Doesn’t Charla’s neighbor down the road have barn cats? Maybe this one wandered away. Or maybe something happened to the mother.”

“You’re probably right. I’ll put the word out to Charla and others in her neighborhood to keep an eye out for any more strays. Thank you for taking a look.”

“I’m happy to, but you didn’t really need me.”

She shrugged. “You’re the professional.”

“So are you.”

For him, veterinary medicine was his vocation. For Madi, caring for animals was her calling. She adored them, with a depth of compassion that never failed to astonish him.

“On paper, I’m the vet, maybe,” he went on. “But you know exactly what to do. You can handle anything, whether I’m here or not.”

She made a face. “Tell that to everyone in town who doesn’t think I am capable of even carrying a bag of dog food. Cal Warner insisted on loading my cart today. I’m not sure he even felt like I was capable of holding his cane, what with my fragile condition. And Ava has not helped matters at all with her stupid book.”

Frustration shimmered off her in waves. “She has made everything so much worse. Why did she have to go and open up all those old wounds? We were doing fine.”

He wasn’t entirely certain that was true. Madi presented a calm, happy front to the world, but Luke knew she had deep scars she hid from nearly everyone.

He felt fortunate to be one of the few people able to know the real Madison.

“Who did you catch reading it this time?”

“Calvin told me he and his wife were reading it together. And Jewel Littlebear at the feed store hid a copy below the counter when I checked out. I don’t know why she bothered. I could still see it. Isn’t everyone in town reading it?”

“Not quite everyone.”

His phone rang and he glanced at the display. “That’s Sierra. She’s not reading it.”

“No. But I think her friends are,” Madi said darkly. “Or at least her friends’ family members.”

His phone rang again and she gestured to it. “You should get that. I saw her on my way here with her friends. They looked like they were having fun.”

While she returned to the office and set down the kitten to explore her surroundings, he answered his daughter’s call.

“Hey, Sierra. What’s up?”

“Can I stay over at Zoe’s house tonight?”

He frowned. “I thought we talked about heading into town and grabbing takeout sandwiches and then hiking up to Hidden Falls for a picnic.”

“I know and I still really want to do that. But Zoe has to leave tomorrow to stay with her dad in Utah for six whole weeks. She’ll be gone forever. This is, like, our last chance to hang out all summer. We wanted to do a slumber party with Mari and Yuki. Her mom says it’s okay and she’ll be home with us the whole night and so will Zoe’s grandma.”

Zoe’s parents’ divorce had not been amicable, he knew. Her mom currently lived with Zoe’s grandmother across town.

“Sure. That’s fine. I can give you a ride.”

“No need. I have my bike. I’m going to grab a few things at the house and put them in my backpack and head over now. Thanks, Dad. Love you. Bye.”

“Love you back,” he answered.

The click of the phone told him she had already hung up. He felt fortunate she had remembered to say goodbye as she was usually heading off in a dozen different directions.

He felt again that little tug at his heart. His baby girl was growing up. For the past four years, since her mother’s death, they had been a pretty self-contained unit. He couldn’t say it was them against the world, as he would have been lost without all the help from his mother and sister, as well as dear friends like Madi.

He and Sierra had a tight bond, though, and he always looked forward to the rare times they were able to hang out, only the two of them.

Apparently that wasn’t going to happen that evening as he had hoped.

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