“You’re not closed, are you?”
Rade jumped up and checked his watch, “No, of course not. Come on in. I didn’t realize it had gotten so late. I need to get to the hospital. Anje! I need to go!”
“We’re on the last door! Is anybody here?”
“Hey, Mr. M. Good morning, Nilla. What happened?”
“Hey, Tracy’s here!” Rade smiled in welcome as he shouted to his wife.
“Great, she can cover the front while we finish up back here!”
He took a breath as he recalled the night, “Somebody broke in last night looking for a runaway. Anje’s fixing the exam room doors with the insurance guy and the glass for the front door should be here before lunch. They trashed a bunch of supplies, but replacements should arrive the next two days. More staff will be here soon, right?”
“Any minute now, Mr. M.”
“Good. I need to get going. Watch out for her, will you?”
“Of course, Mr. M.”
“Stay safe.” Rade hurried out to his car.
“Well, Nilla, let’s get you checked in.” Tracy smiled to the old fennec fox morph and stepped behind the computer. “You’re early as usual. I’ll get you in here, then I’ll make some tea for us.” She finished at the computer and started around the counter when a rough looking morph stumbled into the doorframe, making her jump, “Oh! Are you okay?”
The dirty creature took a few steps in, then fell onto a chair.
Tracy hurried to help and got the matted morph seated. “What happened to you?”
The grubby guest looked up at her with bold brown eyes while still gasping for breath, “I… escaped.”
“Escaped?!” She looked out the door for anyone following, then toward the back, wondering what to do. She put the morph’s arm over her shoulders and helped them to stand again. “Come on, let’s get you in the back and out of sight. Nilla, I’ll be right back. Let me know if anyone comes in. Dr. Milwaí! Dr. Milwaí, we’ve got an urgent!”
Anjela dashed out of the hall and darted around the counter to get under the morph’s other arm, “What happened?”
Tracy looked across the dirty fur at the doctor and whispered, “Escaped.”
“Oh, let’s go to room six in the back, then. I bet you’re the one they were looking for last night.”
The morph straightened and started to pull away.
“No, no, relax. They won’t be coming back here for a while. We filed a police report for the damage they did. They don’t want to show up here. You’re safe. Just come back here and rest while I check your injuries and we get you cleaned up.” She pushed the handle down, but the door didn’t open. She pulled it up and bumped the door open with her hip and a grunt.
As they helped the morph sit on the exam table, a man leaned in to examine the knob, “I’ll get this fixed quick, don’t worry. Is… is it alright?”
Anjela ushered him back to the hall and closed the door, “Thank you so much for your help, Chris. You have been amazing.”
“For what you do here, I can do more than press a few keys.”
“Right now, just check the other doors to make sure they’re right and save this one for later. Excuse me.” She hurried back to grab some supplies and filled a bucket with water then came back to the room.
Tracy was picking leaves and sticks out of the morph’s fur and putting them in a trash bag.
“Thank you, Tracy. Head back up front until the others get in then see if you can find some clothes. I’ll be back here for a while. See if Dr. Kansas can come in. I know his trip was canceled.”
“No problem, Dr. M.” Tracy put the bag by the door and left.
“Now, let’s see how you are doing. You seem to be breathing a bit better. Can you tell me your name?” She started brushing his fur around looking for wounds.
The morph leaned forward then looked up at the doctor, still gauging how much to trust her. A cough interrupted the first attempt to speak and the doctor quickly grabbed a paper cup and filled it from the sink to offer. After soothing a dry throat, it was easier to speak, and to trust, “Garin.”
“Nice to meet you, Garin. That sounds familiar. Have you been here before?”
Garin winced.
“Oh, I’m sorry. Yes, it looks like something jabbed you there and left a bit behind. Just a moment and I’ll get it out.” She opened a drawer to get what she needed and set them on the exam table. She opened a small bottle of peroxide and some sterile tweezers and paused to warn her patient, “This is going to sting.” She poured the peroxide over the wound and grabbed the thorn with the tweezers.
A surprised grunt was the only response as she pulled the invading barb free and rinsed it again with peroxide.
“You don’t seem to be very bad off, though these scars tell me that you’ve been through worse.”
Garin shifted uncomfortably.
The door opened and Tracy stuck her head in. “Phila and Tandy are both here, so I’m going to go around to the church to see if they have any clothes big enough. Oh, and Dr. Kansas said he’ll be in in a couple hours.”
“Before you go, would you check to see if Garin is in our system?”
“Sure thing, Dr. M.”
Anjela picked up the bag of debris as the door closed and continued collecting large pieces. “Why don’t you tell me how you got here, what you went through, so I can know where to look for injuries.”
Garin looked at her, then at the floor. “I had to stay hidden. They were looking for me. I hid in bushes and behind dumpsters. I ran fast when nobody was looking.” A pause in the story to look up at her again, “Do I have to go back?”
She stopped her grooming to be comforting, “No. I’m not going to make you go back. You’re safe now.”
Garin looked at the floor again. “Leaving was better than staying.”
The door opened again, “Dr. M? I found something.”
“What is it?”
Tracy beckoned the doctor out.
“I’ll be right back.” Dr. Milwaí patted Garin’s leg and slipped out the door. “What did you find?”
“There is a Garin in our system. He was reported stolen five years ago.”
“Stolen? Not runaway?”
“Yeah, stolen. The Karabiners used to own him and even offered a reward.”
“Oh! I remember them. They were good people. Yes, yes, they treated Garin like a son. Oh god, what has he been through?” Anjela took a breath and stared at the door as she tried not to imagine Garin’s last five years.
“What should we do?”
“Well, we need to keep him safe. And I need to contact the Karabiners. Get their info together on my desk. I’ll get him started washing, and we’ll see where to go next.”
“Got it. Should I go get him clothes?”
“Oh, yes. He’ll need some. And let’s be quiet about this. If whoever had him overhears someone talking about him being found, they might come looking for him. Or worse, someone just trying to get a reward. So, don’t say who the clothes are for.”
“Of course.” Tracy winced slowly, “Do you really think someone might come here and try to take him by force?”
“After what happened last night, I would not be surprised.”
“Dr. M?”
Anjela turned around, “Yes, Tandy?”
“There’s someone here that wants to talk to you.”
“Already? I’ll be right there. Tracy, can you help Garin get cleaned up? Don’t push him, he’s been through a lot. Just get him anything he needs and keep him safe.” Dr. Milwaí sighed, “Okay, what’s next?”
