Galena's Gift. Rosemary Nelson

dog,” he said. “Hold still one more second. A shot . . . and you’re all finished.”

      I put my face down close to hers. “That wasn’t so bad was it, Mitsy?” With a growl, she bared her teeth and bit me on the nose.

      “Owww!” I yelled, letting go. She fled to her box in the corner, where she once again huddled in a ball, watching me clutch my nose.

      Dr. Ferguson was at my side instantly. He pulled my hand away. “Let’s have a look.” He frowned, then went for the bottle of antiseptic.

      “You have a couple of skin punctures. You’ll need a tetanus shot later.”

      “Yuck! I hate shots!”

      Dr. Ferguson chuckled. “So does Mitsy, obviously.” He frowned again as he dabbed the antiseptic on, while I winced at the sting.

      “Lisa, never ever . . .”

      “I know, I know,” I interrupted. “Never ever put your face down near an animal when it’s scared or in pain. I just wasn’t thinking,” I said.

      “You were thinking about the animal rather than yourself,” he said with a small smile.

      “Lisa?” Paul’s voice floated in through the window.

      “I’m in here,” I hollered.

      Dr. Ferguson winced. “Lisa, please go to the door instead of shouting. We want to heal the animals here, not traumatize them further.”

      “Oh, sorry.” I headed out the door.

      “What happened to you?” I could tell by the look on his face that mine looked pretty weird.

      “Come on, I’ll tell you on the way. Mom will probably be home soon. I want you to meet someone,” I urged, running ahead.