Page 57 of The Vet from Snowy River
She skewered him with a look. ‘You want to tell me if you started shagging Beth Horrigan before you finished high school or after graduation?’
He winced. ‘That was a low blow, Hannah Cody.’
‘Yeah, maybe. But maybe it’ll teach you to stop mentioning Tom. Okay?’
He wanted to push a little more on the subject, but that little quaver under the surface of her voice decided him against it. ‘Okay. But just so you know: he’s my friend, but you’re my sister. You come first, always. We clear on that?’
She closed her eyes. ‘Clear. Are we done?’
‘We’re done. What ab—’
He broke off as he heard a phone ringing in reception. He looked at Hannah. ‘You switched the night calls over to your mobile yet? I can’t take this; me and Poppy have to drive to Cooma in a couple of hours.’
‘Not yet.’
He heard Poppy’s voice talking, then the clatter of her boots on the timber floor.
‘Dad! It’s Vera. There’s this cat that lives behind the alley, and she thinks it’s sick.’
He looked at his sister. ‘This is a job for you, Hannah Banana. Me and Poppy have pizza plans.’
‘Oh, but Dad!’
He sighed. He could read where this was going from a mile off. ‘Yes?’
‘Can’t you see her? I told her to put the cat in a box and bring her straight over. I told her you were the best vet in town.’
Who could resist that plea? Besides, he felt a warm rush at hearing his daughter say it. He shot a look at Hannah. ‘You hear that, Hannah? I’m the best vet in town.’
‘Please. Don’t make me nauseous. I’ve had a long day.’
‘Oh,’ said Poppy. ‘Sorry, Aunt Hannah. But anyway, Dad’s got the hots for Vera, but he had some sort of dumb fight with her, so he really needs to be the one to save her cat.’
He rolled his eyes. ‘When did you say you were leaving?’
She grinned. ‘You can thank me later, Dad.’
‘Okay. You go let Vera in. I’ll be in the treatment room. A stray cat,’ he muttered to himself as he headed out of the office. ‘Worms, fleas, and a bad attitude, I imagine. Lucky me.’
Hannah fell into line behind him. ‘I’ll assist.’
‘Assist my arse. You just want to be nosy.’
‘Hell yes. Who knows? I may pick up some skills from the best vet in town while I’m at it. How long have you been a registered vet now, Dr Cody? Nine months? Ten?’
He threw a chew toy at her.
The cat could be heard, but not seen. One look at the scratches crisscrossed over Vera’s wrists had him taping closed the flaps of the box she’d carried in.
‘Had an aversion to being helped, did she?’
‘Seems like.’
He looked up from her wrists and inspected her face. There were shadows under her deep green eyes.
‘Hi, Vera. I’m Hannah, Josh’s sister. I saw you at the wake the other week for Mrs Juggins, but we didn’t get to meet.’
‘Hi. Sorry to barge in on you after clinic hours. Poppy said it was no trouble.’
