A/N RECAP - Danny has left leopards den after dupe basically told him to get lost and stop destroying the family, meanwhile Rosie who has been helping Alice with Robbie ran into max while shopping and was annoyed by him.

(X)

Rosie sat at home, Max had been on her mind. He had been on her mind as she drove home, as she wrapped her God child's present and as she signed the card. This card was only from her, unlike in previous years when they'd signed things together. Rosie and Max, a duo and now…..she clenched her teeth together annoyed. How dare he just show up out of the blue and invade her thoughts again! They were OVER! Finished! Kaput! So why couldn't she stop thinking about him? And she coundn't forget the hurt look in his eyes as she had insulted him, she rubbed her eyes, that had been out of order. But then again so was he for dating HER so soon after they broke up. Marissa! Eugh! God Max is three weeks all it takes you to get over us and everything we had. And here Rosie thought he loved her. She licked the gum for her card and grimaced. Max used to do that, he didn't mind the taste. She sealed it up trying to force Max from her mind for the tenth or eleventh time in an hour. You know what, she'd change Robbie, that would stop her from thinking about Max. she was about to go an collect him and change him into his gorgeous jeans and shirt when her phone rang. It was her dad, she connected.

"Hi dad."

"Hello Rosie, how's things at home?" his voice eager.

Well her ex husband was stressing her out, Alice was way out of her depth with stuff in the surgery and Charlie didn't even want to hear her dads name..…. "We're all good, I'm taking Robbie to his first birthday party this afternoon, lots of girls there too." she laughed. Old habits were hard to break, she didn't want her dad coming home earlier then he felt he needed to.

"Oh is Robbie getting an early start on the girls?" her dad chuckled. "How is Charlie?"

Now this was a sticky area. Charlie was seriously angry are their dad for how Alice had been…. "She's good dad, we all are."

"Rosie I know she isn't happy with me. Dupe left a rather jovial message on my phone telling me as much." well Dupe was actually gloating the old toad! He'd been right though, this space was doing him the world of good, it was returning that was worrying him.

"Oh dad, she'll come around."

Danny wasn't so sure. "Maybe." his voice low and full of emotion. "Alice?"

"She's working the surgery…." working too hard! "I'm enjoying the time with Robbie though, shame he has to go back to the UK."

"Yeah." he breathed.

"Are you going back dad? With Alice?"

He exhaled. "I dunno Rosie, Charlie and Robbie need me."

She did too! Just coz she was in her twenties didn't mean she needed her dad any less than the little ones did! "Anyway dad I have to go, I'm just getting Robbie ready, tell Evan and Liv I love them. Ask him when he's gonna get himself over here and visit his big sis, I miss him! Surprisingly!"

She heard her dad talking then a deep voice. Her dad laughed. "Evan said your getting soft in your old age."

"Tell him when I see him I'm gonna kill him!"

"Yeah Rosie I love you too." Evan told her over the phone.

"Brat!" she hissed playfully.

Her dad came back on the phone. "I'm just going now dad. See you soon, love you."

"Love you too, kiss the kids for me and tell Charlie I miss her."

"Do you want me to pass on a message to Alice?" she asked hesitantly.

There was silence on the other end.

"Dad?"

"No it's ok." he said choked.

"Ok, see you dad."

They disconnected. Rosie looked at her phone sadly wondering what had went wrong with her dad and Alice. While she did that Alice walked into the house carrying Robbie. Rosie restrained a wince when she saw her step mother, she looked terrible! Really tired!

"Alice since I'm taking Robbie and Charlie is at her friends why don't you catch forty winks." or four hundred?

"Can't I just brought Robbie up to the house to hand him over. We have three emergency's calls. Ed is off to one and I'm trying to figure out how to be at the other two at the same time." Alice rubbed her head after Rosie took Robbie. "I think I'll be working on one while on the phone barking out orders to the other."

"Alice if we can find Caroline I can….."

"No no it's ok, go to your party it'll be fine." Alice assured with a smile knowing Rosie was about to volunteer to take the other. She kissed Robbie's head. Then looked at him. "No kissing all the girls lil man, one at a time." rubbed his head smiling at him lovingly.

Rosie looked at Alice and saw the pure love on her face. She had a faint memory of her mother looking at her like that and she knew that she would have looked at her baby like that too.

Alice broke the musings. "Anyway I have to go. Thanks Rosie." she grabbed her keys and left.

"C'mon Robbie lets go grab your clothes and make you even more handsome than you already are!"

(X)

Alice had the radio to her mouth as she drove, the scenery flying passed quickly. She was speeding and she knew it but this lion was in a bad way! "I'm on my way now. There is only one of me and there was another emergency. I'll be five minutes." tossed the radio on the seat. She couldn't believe some people kicking off just because she had other things to do! If they took better care of their animals and NOT knocked them down with a truck then she wouldn't be needed would she! Her internal rant finished when she pulled her truck into a clearing and saw people milling around.

"Ok, I'm here where is he?" she saw an adolescent make lion on the floor with respiratory distress, she ran over. "What do I have? I've been told the foreman thinks he hit the animal with a car…" how he was unsure she didn't know, I mean you know when you hit an animal but there it is! She placed her box down and opened it.

"Yes!" The owner said quickly, he was fidgeting. "It was a truck."

Alice glanced at him frowning. "How?" her focus back on the animal.

"Came from no where." the owner said nodding.

"But boss a…."

"Ssshhh!" he warned. "Let the woman work!"

"I'm gonna anesthetise him, do you have anywhere I can work?" Alice asked.

"No."

"I'll have to be here then." she checked the head. No sign of injury, nothing on the legs either. Physically there wasn't a mark on him. She probed the stomach and noticed it was distended. She frowned when she realised it was large. Twisted bowel possibly? The animal suddenly stopped breathing.

She pulled materials from her box. "Look I'm gonna intubate him, you are going to have to breath into the tube for me."

The mans eyes widened." NO!"

"Look he is going to die I can't help and breathe for him!" and she pushed the tube down the animals throat.

"Do it!" the boss ordered.

The foreman acquiesced reluctantly, shooting his boss daggers the whole time.

Alice meanwhile pulled her scalpel out and cut the animals stomach open. She did all she could but the animal was beyond saving. "I'm sorry, nothing I could do." she said standing up pulling her gloves off. "Sometimes there is nothing that can be done. I'd like to take him back to my practice for an autopsy."

"Why?" the boss said shiftily.

"Just standard stuff." she assured. "Nothing to worry about." the radio cracked. Someone else calling in an emergency, she was in demand! "I'll send one of my people called Du Plessis over for the carcass."

"Ok, thanks for coming. Goodbye."

Alice climbed in her truck and left.

"Take the carcass into the bush and burn it!" the boss ordered.

"But she said…."

"I don't care what she said! I want rid of it now!"

"I'm not going near that thing! It's been opened up I could…."

The boss handed him gloves and a face mask. "Use these, just get rid!"

A/N UH OH! What has Alice been exposed to? And is it harmful to humans? Will danny come back soon? And will Rosie see max at the party? Lots of questions and answers will be coming soon, very soon!
PS Thanks to everyone who wished my lil man a happy birthday, we all had a fab day and party...still bloody shattered tho lol x