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“Hope, that’s the vet.”
Hope sprang up, feeling nerves fizzing throughout her body.I hope I can keep up with him. I don’t know all of the chemicals here, so it could be anything that poisoned the cows.
“Ival! It’s good to see you! Come in.” Deimos swung the door wide. “I want you to meet Hope. She’s a vet assistant from Earth, working with me on whatever is wrong with the cows.”
“It’s good to meet an Earthling vet. Maybe we can put our training together to heal the cows.” Ival was just as tall as Deimos but broader. His assistant was a short, curvy woman.
The team of four sat in the kitchen as the housekeeper made coffee and prepared a plate of pastries. Ival read carefully through the report and questioned Hope on what she had learned.
“I’m not up to speed on the chemicals that are native to Nova Aurora. But I’m learning so that I can help Deimos with his cows.”
“Okay, be prepared for an education.” Ival cleared his throat and pointed a thick finger at one chemical name. “This is affecting their gastrointestinal systems. It’s not enough to kill them, but it does make them visibly ill, lacking energy. Deimos, how many cows are routinely lying down after getting sick?”
Deimos’s herd numbered fifty cows. He considered. “Maybe ten or fifteen.”
“And have you slaughtered any for consumption by Earthlings or Aurorans?”
“No. Hope warned me against that.”
“Excellent. After we have finished drinking and eating, let’s go out to the pasture. I want to take some of their blood so we can see just what has been added to their water.”
“I also suggested bringing in a supply of purified water for the cows.”
Ival looked at Hope and gave her a huge smile.
“Deimos, you’d better keep this one around. She is good.”
Hope shifted uncomfortably on her chair. She still wasn’t sure she wanted to live permanently on the planet.
Deimos caught Hope’s change of mood and thought he knew what caused it. “Ival, we’re not sure if Hope will stay or not, but I would love to have her stay.”
Hope opened and closed her mouth without speaking. Her expression became thoughtful. Deimos quietly thanked Ival with his eyes. Draining his large coffee mug, he set it down with finality.
“Okay. I’m ready to go to the pasture.” Deimos stood.
Hope slid from her chair and went to get her vet tech’s kit.
Ival checked his own bag to ensure he had everything he needed.
“Mik’lai, do you have everything else?”
The Auroran vet assistant checked her own equipment. “I do. I have many blood valves and collection kits. Plus, I brought the testing chemicals and equipment in this bag.” Mik’lai indicated a bulky bag, which Deimos picked up.
Hope hurried back into the room. “T’ikval, I would appreciate the opportunity to ask questions and learn from you.” She looked hopefully at the vet.
T’ikval looked at Hope, smiling as he did so.
“I will be very pleased to work with you … especially if you decide to stay on Nova Aurora.”
Hope nodded, though the smile on her face looked tense. Deimos decided not to say anything.
* * *
In the cow pasture,Deimos led his team to each sick cow. They drew blood from each, giving the vials to Mik’lai, who processed them.
Mik’lai set up her equipment on a table Deimos had indicated she could use. Here, she divided the blood from each cow into several smaller vials. Then, she carefully added drops of different substances, setting the closed vial in a specialized stand.
Before long, all of the cows had undergone a blood draw. Mik’lai was adding a different chemical to each marked vial of blood. She took careful notes of which chemical she had added to which vial.
