Chapter 48

Catherine walked down Tallulah Plaza with her eyes focused on the list in her hands. Her to-do list wasn't overly long today, just fairly specific. She wanted to make sure everything she needed was on the paper before she started her shopping. She gave it a quick glance over, satisfied that everything seemed to be in order. Just as she began to lift her head upwards, her body crashed into someone else's. An apology flew out of her mouth on instinct, but she was cut off.

"You make a habit of walking around without looking where you're going?"

The apology died at her lips the moment she recognized the voice. Picking her head up, she noticed Jack standing in front of her, a smirk on his face. She offered him a smile. "Not usually, just was in my own little world." Her smile widened as he chuckled. "What brings you to town? Did you just get back from a job?"

"Yeah, actually. Was interesting to say the least. You busy?"

Catherine shook her head. "Not with anything that can't be done later. Did you wanna do something?"

"I gotta take Lucy to the vet, you wanna come with?" Jack asked as he started walking towards Wapiti Avenue.

"What's the matter, girl?" She directed her attention to the mare, falling into step alongside Jack. The horse offered no response other than a heavy sigh.

"Oil lamp shattered near her, think she got hit by some glass. She's got some cuts on her, but she seems to be okay. Just wanna get her cleaned up and looked at to make sure."

Catherine stared up at Jack with wide eyes. "Did you get hurt, too?" He didn't appear to be injured, but that didn't mean he wasn't.

"Nah, Sawyer pulled me outta the way before it shattered." Jack gave a small laugh. "Lucky he was there, otherwise I'd probably be the one needing the doctor visit."

"Who's Sawyer?"

"Agent at the Bureau. Needed some help on a lead he had, Sheriff offered to pay a little extra." He looked down at her and made a face. "Why you lookin' at me like that?"

"I just can't believe that you worked with an agent."

"Not just any agent, either. He's Fordham's apprentice, too."

Catherine almost stopped walking entirely. "So, let me see if I'm understanding you correctly. You just got back from a job with one of Archer's underlings? And he pulled you out of the way of danger?"

"Sounds about right. Though, I ain't really sure why he did. We had both of the targets tied up, doin' what he did didn't benefit him much."

"Who are you and what have you done with Jack Marston?"

Jack rolled his eyes. "Ain't ladylike to be that sarcastic, Catherine."

"I'm sorry, is a Marston chastising me for being sarcastic? I don't think you have any room whatsoever to do such a thing." She shook her head at him, but a smile tugged at her lips. She turned away from him to catch a glimpse of the newly re-opened veterinary clinic. "Looks like the remodeling went well for the vet's office!" It had nearly doubled in size. The addition was added to the old stables, which seemed to have been re-done as well. The stable doors were wide open, inviting anyone inside.

"Hopefully, the quality of service is as good as the quality of the building."

Jack led the way inside the building, Catherine following. The area was open and welcoming. A few horses were kept inside the stables, all loudly having a snack of some sort. The pair looked around for the person in charge but found no one around. "Hello?" Catherine tried.

"Just a sec!" A female voice rang out from the back of the building. True to her word, only seconds later did she appear from inside one of the stables. A rather tall, brunette woman jogged up to the front with a fluffy calico cat in her arms. "Hello, what can I do for you two today?" Her voice was almost soothing, Catherine noted. It reminded her of the birds that would sing outside her window in the morning.

"Is the vet around? I need someone to take a look at Lucy, she's got some wounds I'm worried about." Jack spoke.

The woman grinned. "I'd be happy to take a look at her." She set the cat onto the ground and offered her hand to Jack. "Violet Williams-Cox, D.V.M."

Catherine was frozen with surprise. Veterinarians were always male she didn't know a woman could be in the profession. "Jack Marston." Either Jack wasn't as shocked as she was, or he was much better at hiding it. He shook the woman's hand for a moment before she turned to face Catherine. She extended her hand to her as well. The other woman's dark green eyes were kind and comforting, almost.

"Catherine Ross." She managed to sputter out. She reached out and shook the vet's hand like Jack had.

"Well, Jack, Catherine, let's get a look at Miss Lucy. If you'll follow me, I'll give her a look over." She turned her gaze to the ground and jabbed her index finger at the fluffy cat. "Stay out of the stables, Charlie. You're gonna get stepped on, young man." After receiving a loud meow in reply, she turned back to the pair and gestured for them to follow. Not too far from the entrance was a tiled area tucked into the corner of the building. Cabinets lined the walls, holding what Catherine assumed to be supplies. The area was spotless, impressively so.

Once the vet and Jack started discussing Lucy's health, Catherine found herself tuning them out. She studied the other woman, watching as she hovered around the mare. Each touch was gentle, but confident. A soft tail wrapping around her ankle drew her attention away from the vet. Glancing down, Catherine found the cat the woman called Charlie rubbing against her legs. "Hey, handsome." She cooed to the feline. She bent down, extending a hand for him to smell. He took a few sniffs before leaning his head into her hand. "What a sweet boy."

"Consider yourself special, young lady. First time I tried to pet him he took a good chunk outta my hand."

"Cat getting along with cats, what a surprise." Jack tossed a smirk in her direction.

Scooping the cat into her arms, Catherine stood up. "He's just a good boy, that's all." She gave the cat a few scratches under the chin. She tucked his paws under her arm before taking the spot to Jack's right. "How's Lucy?"

"The wound isn't nearly as bad as it could be. Luckily, it's high enough that it won't affect her leg at all. I'll clean it out really good, bandage it up and she should be good to go." The woman decided. "If you've got another horse, I'd recommend using that one to do any hard labor. Lucy here needs to take it easy."

As Jack began to speak, a loud boom sounded from some distance away. All three heads turned towards the direction of where it came from. "What the hell was that?" Jack commented.

"Sounded like an explosion?" The vet supplied.

"It sounded like it came from the other part of town? Maybe the Bureau is testing something out?" Catherine guessed.

"Son of a bitch." Jack swore. He turned to her. "Cat, can you stay here with Lucy? I have to go check this out. I think I got an idea of what's happening." Before she could offer a response, he shoved some cash into her hands. Without so much as another word to her, he ran out of the building and towards where the sound came from. Catherine watched him for a few moments longer before returning her gaze to the vet.

"Think you can give me a hand? The salve I'm gonna put on her wound is gonna sting, she might be more comfortable if she feels a familiar touch."

"Oh, sure thing!" Setting the cat down on the ground by her feet, she walked closer to Lucy. Placing a hand on the mare's shoulder, she gave her a few small scratches. "You're a tough girl, you got this, Luce."

"You've got no idea how tough this mare is, missy."

Looking at the other woman over the horse, Catherine rose a brow at her. "What do you mean?"

Not taking her eyes off of Lucy's wound, she continued. "How long has your man had Lucy?"

She shrugged. "I'm not quite sure, to be honest. For a while, I'd say. They have a strong bond. Lucy loves Jack, don't you?" She turned to the horse, rubbing her neck to calm her down as the salve got applied.

"Well, Jack isn't her first owner. Not sure how he ended up with her, but I'm more than happy that he did." The vet finished placing the bandage on Lucy before wiping her hands on her pants. "Take a look at her underbelly." Catherine's brows furrowed in confusion, but she did like the other woman asked. Squatting to get a better look, a gasp fell from her lips. Heavy scarring marred the mare's underside, the heaviest lingering toward her backside. Why had she never noticed this before? Jack hadn't said anything about this, either. "'Bout three years ago, my father and I were out by Rathskeller Fork doin' a job. Lucy's old owner, Jeb I think his name was, had us take a look at her then."

"What did he do to her?" She thought she knew the answer already, but it was hard to imagine it being a reality. The scarring and the area was just too specific.

"Nothin' short of cruel, I'm afraid." She sighed. "I tried convincing Pa that we needed to take her with us, but he didn't wanna get in any trouble." She caught Catherine's gaze and held her stare. "You say she and that young man have a good relationship?"

Catherine nodded. "Absolutely. Jack spoils her. He wouldn't ever hurt her."

"Then I'm glad he found her. She was just barely past a foal back then. I hope she's got herself a nice long life with him."

She felt Lucy lean into her touch more before the horse turned her head to breathe at her. "I'm certain she will."

"She sure seems to like you. Back when I met her, she was really jumpy. Took Pa holding her by her reins to get her to stay still long enough to treat her. Looks like Jack's had a good influence on her." She laughed a little. "That, or you're just some sort of animal whisperer. Both seem likely, seeing as Charlie let you hold him."

Catherine returned her laugh. "I think Lucy just knows I wouldn't hurt her. As for Charlie, cats and I have always gotten along. Jack calls me 'Cat' because of that."

"Don't sell yourself short, honey. Animals are great judges of character. For a horse with Lucy's past to put her trust in you? That's a big deal. Take it from me, in this line of work I've seen it all."

"If I'm honest with you, Dr. Williams-Cox—" Catherine started before she was cut off.

"Call me Flora. I only use that long last name for name recognition. I don't need that formal title, neither."

"Flora," she began again. "I'm a little surprised to see a female veterinarian. I wasn't aware that a woman could be in this profession."

Flora's green eyes twinkled as she grinned. "Between you and I, Catherine? I think women are more suited to this job anyhow. We're calmer creatures than men are. Besides, women are capable of doing whatever a man could do, don't you think? I'm real lucky with the support I have from my Pa." Her grin softened some. "This used to be his business, but after I graduated last year he turned it over to me and retired." Her gentle laugh returned. "My husband's only request was to hyphenate my work name. He's another thing I'm lucky with."

Catherine struggled to take in the information given to her. Not only was the other woman in a male dominated profession, but she was married as well. And her husband wasn't threatened by her having a job? The only bit that didn't surprise her was that she was educated. "Thank you for telling me this." She managed to speak despite her confusion.

"Of course, of course. It does a young girl like yourself good to know that you've got more choices than to just be a wife. Not that there's anything wrong with being a wife, but there's more to life." Flora turned to Lucy again, patting the horse along her jaw. "I think this pretty girl is good to go."

"Thank you for taking care of her, I know Jack appreciates it. I definitely do. How much does he owe you?"

After the exchange of cash, the other woman gave Catherine another smile. "You're more than welcome to hang around here if you'd like to while you wait for him to come back."

"I appreciate it, but I think Lucy and I will go see if we can find out what Jack got up to. It was nice to meet you, Flora."

"Likewise, Catherine."

"You can call me Cat, if you like."

"Well, Cat, if you ever find you have yourself having any questions about my line of work, please don't hesitate to come ask. I'd love to see more women in veterinary care."

Taking Lucy's reins in her hands, Catherine matched the woman's smile. "I'll keep it in mind. Thank you again!"

Finding Jack was not a hard thing to do. In fact, he was the first person she saw when she turned back onto Tallulah Plaza. He and another man stood side by side as they talked to a third, older man. Catherine recognized the older man as the Sheriff of Blackwater. Did that make the other man the agent Jack had gone on a job with? She kept walking toward the trio only to find a mess of agents swarming the Sheriff's office off to the side. Or rather, what was left of it.

The side of the wooden building was completely destroyed, leaving a gaping hole behind. Catherine guessed that this was the cause of that big boom that sent Jack running this way. What happened here? She wondered if Jack would tell her. She hoped everyone was okay, regardless.

When Catherine got even closer, the man at Jack's side noticed her approach. He quickly removed himself from their conversation before trotting over toward her. "Miss Ross, this isn't a safe area right now. It'd be best if you went another way." He told her. Catherine didn't understand how he knew her name until she saw that a Bureau badge was pinned proudly on the left side of his sleek black coat. She wondered if her uncle's fame would always extend toward her as well.

"What's happened? Is everyone okay?"

"Yes, everyone is fine. The Bureau and the Sheriff's office are working on this. No worries, ma'am."

Her mouth thinned into a line as she looked over his shoulder. Jack's back was to her, he hadn't noticed her yet. She didn't want to bother him if he was working, but she didn't feel comfortable carrying around his money and his horse. "Is Jack working? Can I speak to him?"

Shock filled the man's face momentarily. He collected himself quickly, turning to shout at Jack. "Marston!" Jack turned, causing the agent to wave him over. He turned around, finally noticing that she was there. He excused himself from his conversation with the Sheriff before making his way over to them.

"Probably best if you keep your distance from the pier for a while, Cat." He told her when he reached them.

"Is everything alright?" She asked as she handed over Lucy's reins and the leftover money he'd shoved in her hands earlier.

"Yeah, just a little messy. I'll tell you more later. Thank you for staying with Lucy. I appreciate it."

Catherine beamed at him. "I'm happy to help." She switched her gaze to the other man, the agent. "Who's your friend?" She was being nosy, but she couldn't help the curiosity.

"Cat, Dominick Sawyer. Sawyer, Cat Ross." He introduced the pair.

Catherine smiled, happy her guess had been right. "It's nice to meet you, Agent Sawyer." She gave a small sigh before turning her attention back to Jack. "I'll let you get back to work. See you tonight?"

He offered her a small smile. "Sure thing, I'll stop by and grab you on my way out."