She rolled her eyes. “I didn’t mean for that to be part of the act. I’ll have to come up with a different idea. The drinking is one thing. I’m not going to be doing drugs now as well.”
He tsked his disapproval. “You might want to reconsider. You could get lots of leverage out of the rehab side of things. And it gives you a good excuse to be gone for long periods of time.”
“My disappearances are the perfect foil. The lack of an explanation for my absences up my price when I show up somewhere unexpectedly.”
He considered that thoughtfully for a moment. “That’s true, I guess.” Tossing the newspaper aside, he sighed. “I’m making lasagna for dinner tonight so don’t eat a big breakfast, dear.”
Darcy’s eyes widened. “Lasagna?” Instantly her mouth started watering. “You’re too good to me,” she said, standing up and kissing him on the cheek. She also reached down and scratched behind the ears of Molly, a mixed pointer-cocker dog that was too shy to stick her nose where Fred and Ginger had already laid claim.
“You’re too good for us,” he countered. “And besides, you lost too much weight this time. You look a bit emaciated. The lasagna is my way of fattening you up.” He also knew she wouldn’t skip breakfast, but would easily become too distracted in a few hours and would forget to eat dinner.
“Whatever, I’m in,” she said and slipped into the bathroom to shower. “Where’s Dave?”
“He’s busy,” Matt replied. “I’m taking the dogs for a walk.”
Darcy pulled the robe back on and walked back out of the bathroom. “Stop!” she called out just as Matt was reaching for the kitchen door handle. “What aren’t you telling me?”
“Honey, go take your shower and relax. Everything is fine,” he said, still trying to sneak away.
Darcy was having none of that. “Matt, tell me.”
Matt closed the door and sighed, turning around to face her once again. “Dave got a call last night.”
Darcy knew there was more to a simple phone call. People called the clinic all the time to ask for advice or to check up on their pet that might be housed in the kennel. “Who was this call from?”
Matt looked down at his mud covered boots. “We don’t know. But someone was asking about you.”
Her blood ran cold as her mind put the pieces together. “You think its Marco again?” she asked, knowing that her brother had been trying to contact her through her agent. Marco was her brother who Darcy suspected had followed in her father’s footsteps and joined the mafia. She wasn’t sure how he could have resisted the pressure, her father being a very dominating kind of personality. Marco had tried hard to stand up to their father when they were kids, but she’d been a little girl back then and had thought of her brother stepping between her father’s hand and her head made him into a hero. Now, however, she was terrified of his interest in her whereabouts. Calling the clinic like this was too close for comfort.
“Dave thinks it’s possible.”
“Possible?”
He sighed again. “Probable.”
She looked around, counting the animals surrounding her, happily wagging their tails or sniffing around. They gave her a sense of security, of rightness. “Did you tell him anything?”
“Of course not. Dave claimed he’d never heard of you. He played it exactly right so you don’t have to worry about the phone call.”
Darcy relaxed, her body almost sagging against the door to the bathroom. Then his words sunk in. “What do I have to worry about?” she asked carefully.
He was obviously choosing his words carefully. “We have a new guest,” he admitted.
Darcy’s whole body tensed. “And?”
Matt closed his eyes and shook his head. “And…the poor thing is in pretty bad shape. He’s obviously been put through the fights and has lost. A lot,” he clarified.
Darcy’s pulse was pounding wildly, her heart aching at the idea of another poor dog coming to them that had been through the dog fights. They were illegal, but that didn’t mean that the vicious fights didn’t happen. They were all over the country in both the rural areas and cities, in back alleys and old warehouses, anywhere a group of brutal, nasty people could gather and bet, make noise and jeer on the dogs that were beaten and starved prior to the fight night to make them more vicious.
Darcy forgot about her shower, knowing that the animal needed her help. She didn’t hesitate as she pulled off her robe and grabbed the jeans she’d been wearing the night before and a sweatshirt. She didn’t care if Matt saw her naked since he was so in love with Dave and barely acknowledged a female form.
“Show me,” she said, rushing out the door. Because of her worry, she didn’t even look down at the chubby rooster, despite his best attempts to trip her along her route to the clinic.
Dave was a veterinarian who took in severely hurt animals for free along with all of his paying customers. He had an amazing ability to heal animals that were on the brink of death and Darcy thought he was a miracle worker.
Matt knew better than to argue with her so he led her out of her apartment and through to the surgery area where Dave was just finishing up with the animal’s wounds. Darcy didn’t enter, but watched from the window as Dave applied a large bandage to one of the wounds and adjusted the dog’s IV which would hydrate and medicate.
“The poor little thing,” Darcy cried out as soon as she saw the shrunken, wounded animal. “I’ll never understand why people do this to the animals.”
Matt didn’t bother to respond but waited until Dave came out, tossing his surgical apron and latex gloves into the medical waste bins. “He’s going to have a tough time, Darcy,” Dave warned, already seeing the signs of determination forming on her stubborn features. “He’s probably the worst I’ve ever seen.
She ignored the caution and saw only the shallow breathing of an animal that only wanted to love and protect. “Can I go see him? Talk to him?”
Dave hesitated for only a moment before nodding. “Be careful though.”
“He won’t bite me,” she assured her friend.
Dave shook his head. “I’m concerned about germs, Darcy. He’s so torn up from his last fight, so don’t touch any of his bandages and make sure his IV continues. It has large doses of antibiotics going into his system, but he’s going to have to fight this one as much as he can.”