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My heart dropped saying goodbye to him, because I knew I would be alone with my thoughts. I told him we’d talk later, and we said goodbye. I curled up in bed and laid my head against the pillow, staring out the window into the darkness beyond. I fell asleep at some point and had a dream.
I was back in Sunville, waking up in bed next to Levi. A baby was crying nearby. A baby? Even in the dream, it seemed weird to think I had a baby, but I got up and cradled the little girl in my arms. There was a second crib with blue bedding. A boy and a girl, just like the twin baby goats.
Levi wrapped his arms around me, and I truly felt like I was there, I believed it.
The dream jumped forward, and we were caring for the kangaroos from Austin. Other animals surrounded us. We’d done it; we had our own little reserve.
My phone alarm pulled me out of the reverie, and as soon as I realized it was all a dream, my heart sank.
I slipped from the bed and walked over to the window. The sun was rising in the distance, and the sky was a rainbow of colors. Trees and grasslands could be seen for miles and miles, rolling hills as far as the eye could see. Those hills were filled with wildlife, animals I had only ever seen in a zoo before.
Perfection. I was living in a dream, yet I wanted to go back to the dream I’d been having when I was asleep.
I stared out at the landscape and spoke to myself, “I don’t know if I can do this.”
Chapter 26
Levi
“What’s up, little man?”
I noticed as soon as I entered the pen that Goaty wasn’t standing. His sister was jumping around and trying to get him to play, but Goaty didn’t join her. His sister head-butted him playfully, and Goaty tried to push himself up on his legs but immediately fell to the ground. My heart dropped into my stomach. I feared something was wrong with the little guy.
I knelt beside him, and even though I was no vet, he felt cooler than usual.
My first instinct was to call Anna. I was about to hit her number when I remembered she was on the other side of the world, and who knew what time it was there.
I called the emergency line at the vet instead and left a message since no one answered.
I felt so hopeless, unsure what to do for the baby goat. I sat beside him and tried to get him to eat some hay, to no avail. I ran inside and chopped up some carrots. He wouldn’t eat those either. Nothing. He just stared at me with his big eyes, looking helpless.
I checked my phone every two minutes, cursing how long it was taking for the vet to get back to me. I knew he had other clients, likely had other emergencies, but I wanted to find out what was wrong with Goaty. I wanted to make sure he was okay.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, I gave in and checked the time in Africa. It was early evening there. I texted Anna, afraid she would be busy.
Sorry to bother you, but something is wrong with Goaty.
My phone rang a second later.
“What’s wrong?” she asked as soon as I answered. No hello, nothing. Straight to the point, which I appreciated.
I told her how he tried to stand up but was too weak, how he was refusing food and wouldn’t even interact with his sister. “And he feels cool to the touch,” I added.
“Poor thing. Has he been eating enough?”
“I believe so, but Ginger has been pushing them away more. I thought it was natural to try and wean them.”
“What’s the weather like there?”
“It’s been really hot, but I installed some swamp coolers to help keep their area cooler.”
“Maybe a bit too cold?”
“It felt nice and chilled when I entered this morning.”
“That may be it, but it could also be bacterial or viral… Your vet really needs to run some tests.”
“I’m waiting for him to call me back.”
