I tried to stay engulfed in my work. We were busy and Dr. Stone wasn't at the office as much. I was the only other one who cared for livestock. Everyone else was house pets and small animals. I woke up early and went out on calls then didn't get back until dark. Dr. Stone gave me the on call cell phone now. No more relaying calls, it went straight to me.
Around 5am the phone rang. I groaned and sat up quickly. Then cleared my throat to not sound so dead. "It's Ada."
"Ada, hey. Sorry, I thought I called Dr. Stone." It was a familiar voice. Kayce.
"You did but he's out today. Whatcha need?" I rubbed my eyes and yawned, already losing my patience for the day.
"I've got new horses coming in today. I was needing him to look over them before we kept 'em." He also had no patience today either.
"Yeah. I'll be there. What time are they being dropped off?" I stood up out of bed and started to change, expecting for Kayce to tell me they were already there.
There was silence on the other end of the line. "I don't mean anything by this, but it really needs to be Dr. Stone who checks them out."
I froze. Are you fucking kidding, is what I wanted to say. But instead I sighed. "I understand. But he's not available." I chewed on my lip. Please don't ask any questions.
"Ada, you don't understand-"
"I do. This is my job and I know what I'm doing." I said sternly. Kayce is not a crush, he is a client. And I know my work better than him. "Once again, Dr. Stone isn't available today. I would be more than happy to check them out. I just need to know a time so I can make arrangements. Now is this going to work out or are you still going to treat me like I'm incapable?" This was a confidence I only had when it came to work. I would've never spoke up before this way.
"It's fine. They're already here. Thanks." And then the line dropped.
I sighed and shook my head. This is gonna be a mess.
I jumped into whatever clean scrubs I could find and made my way to the ranch, dreading ever second and regretting what I had told to Kayce. It was rude and unprofessional. When I pulled up, there was a small trailer. A dingy looking one. Not what I was expecting. I jumped out of the truck and walked towards Kayce. I also started regretting not bringing a jacket, it was cold this morning.
"Morning." He nodded at me, barely even looking my way as he opened the gate on the horse trailer.
"Good morning." It came out as a small voice. I stepped over to look inside. I immediately realized why he didn't want me here. I nodded and sighed. I looked around, but didn't see a driver. I assumed he didn't want me to see him. "What the hell, Kayce?"
He dropped his head. "We do it all the time."
"You steal horses from other people?" I rested my hands on my hips. I stared at the brand on the boney hip that looked nothing like a Yellowstone brand.
"I don't want you involved. It's not that I thought you couldn't do it. I just didn't want you too." His eyes looked sad and tired. They were a little red too. Maybe he was sick. Or just tired.
"Why'd you take them?" I asked quietly.
"About to starve to death. Neighbor says the owner beats 'em. Figured we can break and take care of 'em here." He spoke lowly and softly. This morning voice he had was extremely sexy. It was raspy and deep.
Stay focused.
"Alright," I rubbed my face,"You want a copy of immunizations, ownership paperwork, anything else?"
"You don't have to do this." He shook his head.
"Would Dr. Stone?" I asked. The look he gave me said yes. "Then yeah. I do. I'll have it ready by tomorrow. Let's treat them with some antibiotics too. No telling what they're sick with. And keep them isolated from until they start putting on weight. I wanna make sure they don't have any parasites that can be contagious-"
He cut me off. "I need them soon."
I shot back at him almost before he could even finish the sentence. "We do this my way." I swallowed hard, not wanting to argue with him. Not wanting to stand up against him but this is my career. And I know what's best for those horses. I had to keep telling myself this. Stay strong. "I don't care how Dr. Stone did it. This is how I'm doing it. If they're contagious," I pointed to the trailer then out to his barns,"Then they're all dead. And I'm not gonna be responsible for you losing 2 million dollars worth of horses." I let out a deep breath.
He stared into my eyes. Thinking. He's either pissed or respects me. I just couldn't tell which one it was. "Yes ma'am." He nodded and started to walk away.
"Kayce..." I said with a different tone now.
"They'll be isolated." He nodded again. "We'll do it your way." He mumbled.
"I was just going to say it was nice to see you again." A smile crept up on my face. This is terrible timing. What the hell are you doing.
"Yeah," His eyed me up and down,"You too."
"Who the fuck is this?" I heard someone from behind me holler.
I turned to see an older man stomping our way. "I'm Dr. Stones tech, Ada." I helped my hand out.
He stared at my hand then looked at Kayce. "What the fuck are you thinking?" I dropped my hand then looked at Kayce myself.
"Dad, I trust her." He blinked slowly.
Dad. Okay, makes sense. Trust me? I'll be damned. You were just arguing with me.
The man stared at me. John Dutton stared at me. "John." He stuck his hand out.
I looked at it for a second then shook his hand. "Ada." I said hesitantly.
"I hope you understand-" he started in.
"I understand everything. It was nice meeting you, but I have to get back to work." I nodded to him, then glanced back at Kayce. "I'll drop the papers and antibiotics off tomorrow. I don't want you to be seen at the clinic, just in case."
"Alright."
And I stomped off to my truck.
*****
The cool morning faded into an extremely hot day. Even for me. Even my Texas skin tanned more somehow. I got home late that night and couldn't wait to get a shower. Hannah wasn't going to be home tonight. She was with her dad. He had a doctors appointment today. A serious one.
I pulled out my phone and swiped through to find her name. I put it on speaker then set it on the counter by the fridge as I dug thru to see what I could find to fix.
"Hey." Her voice sounded tired. And sad. I froze.
"Hey. Just checking in. How'd it go?" I already knew the answer.
The other end was silent. Then I heard a sniffle. "It's bad, Ada." Her voice cracked and she sniffled again followed by a cry.
I tried to hold it together but it hurt listening to her cry and knowing I could do nothing about it. "Is it cancer?" My voice sounded weak, like it wasn't even my own voice.
"Pancreas. It's already spread to his liver."
"Pancreas?" I repeated. "That's...but that's rare. Are they sure?"
More sniffles and cries, and then she said,"Positive. They can operate but you know how that goes."
"Surgeries more dangerous than the cancer." I finished her thought. "Damn. I'm sorry, Hannah." I wanted to hug her and see her. My heart ached for her.
What will this town do without him? What are we gonna do with the clinic?
"Hows everything at the clinic?" She asked.
I sighed and pulled some salmon out of the fridge. "It's good. No troubles here. Well, the girls said they had a rabid squirrel in the office earlier, but thankfully, I had bigger fish to fry at the time." I chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.
She gave a little laugh. "Good. I think we're gonna go to the Mount Helena and the cathedral tomorrow and then come home in a couple days. I know you can handle it, but if you need us to come back-"
I cut her off. "No. Spend as much time with him as you needed. I've got everything covered here, Han."
It was silent again. "Thank you."
"Don't thank me. I'm your best friend. That's why I'm here. Give him a big squeeze for me and call if you need anything." I said cheerfully.
"I will," She sniffled again,"I love you, Ada." Her voice cracked again.
My heart shattered. She was hurting so bad. "I love you too. Good night."
"Goodnight." And then she hung up.
I let out a shaky breath. "Okay. It's okay." I tried to not think about Dr. Stone or what would happen. I just ignored it and fixed myself dinner. I tossed the salmon in the oven while I took a quick shower.
I ate dinner and caught up on some episodes of Law and Order. When I started to doze off, my phone rang.
I picked it up,"It's Ada." I tried hard to keep from yawning.
"Hi, is this the emergency vet?" A sweet, woman's vice answered back to me.
"Yes ma'am. What can I do you for?" I sat up and started walking to my room, ready to change clothes.
"Well, my donkey just stomped some coyotes but he's been bitten or scratched and I can't get the bleeding to stop. I'm needing some help." Her old voice was shaky and nervous.
"I'll be out there shortly. What's your address, ma'am?"
*****
The next day I made sure to finish up the paperwork for the new Dutton horses. Once things seemed to settle down at the clinic, I drove out to the ranch.
It was hot again today. The hottest day of the year in Montana. This of course called for a beautiful, summer sun set. The dark orange and red sky reminded me of Texas. I missed it to an extent. I missed my friends and Texas itself. I miss the heat and the beach and the friendly people. Montana was full of people consistently fighting for something. It's a different world here.
Kayce wasn't in any of the barns. It had just gotten dark so I figured he was still working but I didn't see him anywhere. I went to check the bunkhouse, assuming he would be there or at least someone there would know where he is.
I could hear laughing and noise from a ways away. I opened the door and it quieted a little, then completely when everyone looked at me. Jimmy, Ryan, and Colby were at the table, along with others who were playing poker or some kind of card game.
"Ada, hey." Ryan stood up.
I saw Rip in the corner of my eye. He was laying on one of the top bunks with his hat resting over his face. I watched as he jerked the hat off his face and sat up, looking my way. He jumped down from the bed.
"Hey, I was trying to find Kayce. I've got some antibiotics for y'all." I shoved my hands in my pockets as Rip walked towards us.
"I think he's at the house. I'll take ya up there." Rip nodded.
Ryan sat back down,"See ya around."
I smiled and followed Rip back out the door. "I know where his cabin is, I can make it there." I said to him as we were walking.
"I think he's at the main house. It's best that you don't just show up there."
"Oh." I nodded. Weird.
Once again, the way people act here is so strange.
