“Tell Darla I’ll be right there,” I told Gina. I pulled off my nitrile gloves and dropped them into the medical waste bin.
“Cami, don’t,” Kyle said. “I’ll go.”
“No. I need you to protect the pup in case this asshole gets past me.”
I pushed through the exam room door before he could catch my arm. I stormed down the hall and pushed open the fire door leading to the area behind the front desk.
The man from the pet supply store was there, wearing his same grubby T-shirt. Only now, he was facing me. And I knew him.
His hair was longer, but his smug grin was the same. Theasshole who was abusing that little dog, who now stood in the reception area of my vet clinic, who was smiling at me like I didn’t hate his fucking guts. Had he finally shown up to make good on his final threat to me?
If he’d come here to see me cower again, he’d picked the wrong day. I clasped my hands behind me so he wouldn’t see me shaking. “Scott, what the hell are you doing here?”
6
KYLE
The second Cami ran out of the room, my training kicked in. I suppressed the impulse to run after her. If the guy in the front room was part of a criminal network, I needed a cover. I turned to Gina. “Do you have clean scrubs?”
She pointed to a cabinet.
I rummaged through it and pulled out a set marked as large. I pulled off my T-shirt and tugged on the scrubs top as I spoke. “Gina, lock the other entrances to this room, and as soon as I’m gone, lock this door behind me.”
She did as I asked, then stared at me. I held up the pants and made a twirling motion with my fingers. “Unless you want a show.”
“Sorry,” she said as she turned her back to me.
I didn’t really care if she caught a glimpse of me in my boxer briefs, but I didn’t have time to deal with her freaking out if she caught a glimpse of the stun gun holstered around my waist. With the scrubs in place and gun easily reachable from under the loose shirt, I reminded Gina, “Lock me out. No one comes in here but Dr. Vaughn or me.”
I covered the distance to the reception area in seconds. I pulled open the fire door that separated the back rooms from the public space.
“Seriously, Scott,” Cami was saying, “what the hell is going on?”
The two things I now knew were she’d met this guy before, and she was afraid of him. I could hear it in her voice. Maybe her fear was for the dog, but an instinct told me it ran deeper than that. This was definitely the man I’d seen in my rearview mirror as we’d driven away from the pet supply store. That equaled three reasons to want to crush this fucker, but my training was second nature and quickly quashed my urge to escalate.
I stepped in front of her, blocking the asshole’s view of her. “Sorry to interrupt, Dr. Vaughn.” While I spoke to her, I kept my eyes on him. “You’re needed in the back. Darla, you should join her.” I crossed my arms over my chest.
Cami gasped and I wondered if she’d caught a glimpse of my weapon. I’d have to worry about that later. For now, my only goal was getting rid of this fucking guy. Preferably by defusing the situation, but I wasn’t averse to literally throwing him out the door if he proved uncooperative.
“Who are you?” Asshole asked.
The back area door banged closed and I glanced behind me to make sure Cami and Darla were clear of the situation. Then I turned my full and undivided attention back to him. “I work here. Darla says you’re looking for a dog. You took a wrong turn at Albuquerque. We provide medical services for pets, not adoption services.”
“Albuquerque? What the hell does that mean? I’m trying to find my missing dog.”
Okay, the guy didn’t get Bugs Bunny humor. The list of reasons to punch him in the face kept growing. I clenchedand unclenched my fists, then forced a fake smile. “Sorry, no one’s turned in a stray to us. You should check at the shelter.”
“I did, an hour ago. And now they’re closed for the day.”
“I suggest you check with them again tomorrow.” I took a step toward him. “And now it’s time for you to leave.”
“What if someone brings her in here later today?”
“Then we’ll scan her chip, which will give us your contact information.”
He frowned. “She’s not chipped. I haven’t had time to do that yet.”
“So, she—you did say the dog is a she?—is a new pet. Do you have adoption papers, a breeder receipt, something to prove she belongs to you?”
