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WHEN VIC ENTERED HER bathroom, she smiled at the eight puppies feeding on their mother’s tits. She sat down beside Arroo and praised her for such a beautiful litter. “If you want, we can keep the pups a secret for a week or two.”
Arroo barked once and wagged her tail.
“Did Maddy misbehave?”
Arroo barked once.
“I’m sorry. I’m sure she didn’t do it on purpose. Having her mom go crazy. Then, being moved to another home must have been more traumatic than I realized.”
Arroo growled.
That caused Vic to examine Arroo more carefully. Her touches, be they soft, caused Arroo to growl. Thus, she was now worried. “Arroo, I need to go downstairs and call Dr. Connors. I’ll be sure to lock the door so no one can bother you and your babies.” Arroo licked her hand.
Vic wasted no time asking Dr. Connors if he had time to check on Arroo.
“I’m a doctor, not a vet,” he reminded her.
“I know but, I don’t have a vet,” Vic admitted, and my dog needs a kind doctor to care for her.”
Dr. Connors sighed. “I’ll find you a vet and we’ll be over as soon as possible. But you’ll need to wear a wig and dress.”
Vic growled.
“Was that you or the dog?” He asked.
“It was me,” she snapped.
“Well don’t do that once the veterinarian arrives. He’s an excellent vet, but he is a bit of a gossip, and that is something that you don’t need.”
“I’ll put on a wig and dress,” Vic grumbled.
An hour later, Gregory escorted Dr. Connors and Dr. Stevens to their upstairs bathroom. Dr. Steven first examined the puppies and declared them fine. However, he lost his smile when checking over Arroo.
“Honestly, I’m amazed your dog is not screaming in pain. It appears someone has stomped on her feet, grabbed her up by the ears, and twirled her about.” Do you by chance have children?”
“A great many,” Dr. Connors replied.
“Well, one or more of them need to be severely punished.”
Vic sighed. “Can you make Arroo better?”
“Yes, but your children’s bad behaviors cannot continue.”
“I agree. First of all, I will keep the puppies and Arroo in my room, and I’ll lock the door when I leave. Then I will discover which of the children are involved. I hope it is just one, but I will assess them all before declaring the culprit.”
“Then perhaps you should do so now,” Dr. Stevens snapped.
Once Vic hurried downstairs, the vet focused on Dr. Connors. “I’m a bit concerned by the amount of damage this gentle dog has incurred. How many children does the lady possess?”
Dr. Connors grimaced. “That’s a bit complicated. Vic has a son by birth and another son by adoption. Another boy named Ham is the son of an employee and a servant, and finally there is a young girl that was taken from her birth mother because she planned to kill her baby. Vic gave her to her sister, only four years later her sister, Claire, went insane. That resulted in Maddy coming here to live quite recently.”
“Well, normally I would expect the problem to be with the boys, but the background of the girl gives me some concern.”
“She’s the first on my list,” Connors admitted. “Honestly, all three of the boys behave wonderfully. I cannot imagine any of them doing this.” He then paused. “However, sometimes Jacko drops his three boys off for the night, and they are the worst children I’ve ever known. But the boys haven’t been here for a month. The mother took them to their estate and is determined to make them behave. Unfortunately, they have already killed a kitten, so it doesn’t seem to be working.”
“When was the last time they were here?”
“A month and a half ago. That’s why I don’t think they were involved.”
“Tell me more about the three boys who live here.”
“Cannon is the oldest of the three boys, and I expect he will be the most upset over what has been done to his dog.”
“If that is the case, why did he not protect the dog better.”
“I don’t believe he was aware of how severely his dog was hurt.”
“But he was aware that the dog had been harmed.”
I suspect so, Vic says he asked her if she would let the dog stay in her room.
Do you believe him?”
“I have known the boy all his life. The only time he has ever hurt someone was when Ham was a baby, he and Arroo did bite the boy. When asked why he and Arroo would do such a thing, the boy explained that they wanted to see if he tasted like ham.”
“Was he punished?”
“Oh, yes! Xavier punished Cannon with a blistered bottom, while Vic scolded the dog.”
“Is it the same dog that he has now?”
“Yes.”
“Is it possible that the boy named Ham is retaliating?”
“I don’t believe so for two reasons. First, Ham, Cannon, and Arroo love each other. Secondly, Ham is much taller than the other children now, and he is very careful not to hurt anyone during play.”
“You also mentioned another boy?”
“Yes, Danny. He is hands down, the sweetest child you will ever meet. He’s turning two soon.”
Dr. Stevens sighed. “Can you tell me more about the girl?”
“She’s the only girl, just a few months younger than Cannon. She used to live with her mother until Claire had to be put into an asylum. Unfortunately, the doctor caring for her mother recently declared her well and set her free. I believe she remains dangerously insane.”
“Do you expect she will return here?”
Actually, we believe she is already in London. Her goal will be to steal Maddy and probably kill everyone else in the house.
Dr. Stevens pondered the matter. “It is possible that the young girl is unstable as well. Such traits often come from their parents.”
“Claire adopted her. Unfortunately, I do not know much about her natural mother’s background. Although, I do recall Vic stating she wasn’t fit to be a mother.”
“Let us return to the dog. I understand the injuries to the dog have only occurred recently while the girl lived in this house?”
“Yes.”
He studied the calm and gentle dog laying on a mat. “In my opinion, it would be better if we remove the dog and pups to my kennel.”
“I don’t expect Vic, nor the children will agree. They love the dog dearly.”
“Well, someone doesn’t. Honestly, I doubt the dog, nor her pups will survive if left here.”
Vic spoke from behind him. “I will make certain Arroo and her puppies will be safe from now on. I believe Maddie is the problem. When I asked why she would hurt Arroo, she tried to put the blame on Danny, but that is not remotely possible. Danny is only two years old and a very sweet child. However, it does explain why Danny prefers to stay in his crib rather than crawling about on the floor. Before Maddy came to live here, he preferred to crawl and follow the other boys.”
“Can you tell me about Maddy’s biological mother and father?”
“Her biological mother was going to pay a baby farmer to kill her, so I asked if I could take her. Since it saved her the money to have the child killed, she agreed. I then gave her to my sister, Claire, so she could have a child to love. For the first few years, Claire was happy. But recently she’s gone crazy.”
“Can you give me an example,” Dr. Stevens asked.
“Claire burnt down her house simply because it was legally in my name.”
“What happened to the girl?”
“We took her in.” Claire smiled at the memory. “Maddy was so happy when she first came to live here. She no longer had to wear miniature gowns that itched her.” Vic paused, losing her smile. “I don’t know why she hurt Arroo. When I asked her, she insisted she had never hurt the dog. Then she got very angry that I could think such a thing. But by Arroo’s fear of her, I believe it was Maddy.”
“And how do you plan to prevent the assaults in the future?”
“Well, first, I will not allow Maddy to have access to Arroo in the future. But I also need to reduce her jealousy of Danny. Thus, I think she needs her own bedroom, so she won’t have to see Danny so often. I also suspect much of her anger is because she had a beautiful room before Claire burned it down. Presently, she’s sleeping in a tiny bed next to Danny’s crib.
“If she calms, once she gets her own bedroom, I will attempt to give her one of the puppies in hopes that if it is entirely hers, she will love it with all her heart.
“And if that doesn’t work?”
“Then I’ll try something else. What I won’t do is give up on her.”
Dr. Stevens sighed as he handed her an embossed card. “Do you have a telephone?”
“We have one in the house.”
“Excellent. Give me a call if any dogs are further harmed.”
Vic frowned at the certainty that the man believed she’d let someone hurt the dogs again.
“Just so you know, I’m not going to allow that to happen. But I thank you for your concern.”
“Exactly, how do you plan to stop the girl’s abuse?”
“I plan to give her a puppy of her own.”
“I don’t think that is a good idea at all,” Dr. Stevens warned.
I believe Maddy gets angry at the dogs because she has no puppy to love. My sister hated dogs and refused to let her touch them. I will give her a female pup from this litter that will be only hers. I will then help her learn how to love, feed, and care for her puppy.
“And if she kills it?” Dr. Steven asked.
“She’s just a child. With love and kindness, she can be turned into a delightful young woman. I intend to give her that and the first gift I will give her is a gentle, loving, female puppy.”