Chapter 171
[ 505 words ]
Chapter 171:
She slowly lifted her head. The freezing rain plastered her dark hair to her cheeks. She looked at Brenna. The warm, accommodating nurse was completely gone. Her gray eyes were dead, empty, and terrifyingly cold. She looked at her best friend as if she were looking at a complete stranger.
“Take out your phone,” Caroline ordered. Her voice was completely flat, cutting through the sound of the storm. “Order an Uber. Make sure you select the pet-friendly option.”
Brenna recoiled. She pulled her floral dress tighter around her legs.
“Absolutely not!” Brenna screamed. “I am not getting into a confined space with a stray, bleeding animal. It probably has rabies, Caroline! I am not doing it!”
𝘍𝗶𝗇𝘥 nov𝗲𝘭 𝘗𝘋𝘍𝗌 о𝗇 𝘨𝘢𝗹𝗇𝘰vе𝗹𝘀.𝖼𝘰𝘮
Brenna’s mouth snapped shut. The sheer, dominant authority radiating from Caroline’s stare sent a violent, involuntary shiver straight down Brenna’s spine.
Caroline reached into her purse with one bloody hand. She pulled out her own phone. Her thumb moved rapidly across the wet screen, securing a premium SUV.
She shoved the phone back into her bag. She slid her arms under the dog, lifting the heavy, trembling animal against her chest, and stood up.
“Go watch the movie,” Caroline said. Her voice had zero inflection. “The coffees are on me.”
She turned her back and walked straight toward the mouth of the alley.
Brenna stood frozen against the brick wall. She watched Caroline walk away. A sudden, sharp wave of rejection and hot anger hit her chest. She stomped her high heel into a puddle, turned around, and ran toward the movie theater.
A massive, black Uber SUV pulled up to the curb at the end of the alley.
Caroline pulled the heavy door open and slid into the back seat. She placed the bleeding dog on her lap. Rainwater and blood immediately began to soak into the pristine, light-gray leather upholstery.
The driver looked in the rearview mirror. His eyes went wide.
“Hey! No!” the driver yelled, twisting around in his seat. “Get out of the car! You are destroying my interior! Get out!”
Caroline didn’t argue. She didn’t apologize.
She reached into her purse. She pulled out three crisp, hundred-dollar bills. She threw them over the center console. The money landed flat on the passenger seat.
“Take me to the twenty-four-hour veterinary hospital on Wisconsin Avenue,” Caroline commanded coldly. “Now.”
The driver looked at the three hundred dollars. The anger instantly vanished from his face. He slammed the car into drive and hit the gas. The SUV accelerated rapidly through the flooded streets.
Ten minutes later, the tires screeched to a halt in front of the brightly lit clinic.
Caroline kicked the door open. She sprinted through the sliding glass doors, clutching the dying dog to her chest.
“I need a trauma vet!” Caroline shouted into the empty lobby.
A technician in blue scrubs took one look at the blood soaking Caroline’s clothes. He immediately kicked a stainless-steel gurney into the center of the room. Caroline placed the dog on the metal surface. The technician rushed the gurney through the double doors into the surgical suite.
Caroline stood alone in the sterile waiting area.
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