Healing the Vet's Heart

by Annie Claydon

  He had good reason. Drew had loved Luna with all his heart. He’d only hesitated in proposing to her because his own parents’ marriage would give anyone pause for thought. But when Luna’s shining optimism, her enthusiasm for the here and now had led her to propose to him, Drew hadn’t hesitated to accept.

  He’d grieved for her when she’d died. Had gone through all of the stages, starting with disbelief then pain and guilt. He’d blamed himself for not being able to persuade Luna to work a little less and blamed her for diving when she’d been tired from travelling and should have waited a day.

  Finally, he’d come to accept it. Luna had been very different from him, she’d travelled the world with a team of conservationists, seeking out catastrophes, while Drew had concentrated his efforts on long-term projects here in Cornwall. They’d both worked hard, but Luna would push herself beyond her limits, never satisfied with what she’d already achieved.

  Love wasn’t enough. Living together for more than six weeks at a time was the real test, and Luna and Drew had never done that. Their relationship had been a succession of promises to miss each other every night that Luna was away, followed by joyful reunions.

  He stretched his limbs, rubbing his face. It was all in the past now, and Drew’s relationship with Luna had been more like his parents’ than he’d thought. They had been different too and had argued their way through twenty-three years of marriage, until they’d finally come to the conclusion that they liked each other far better now that they were divorced.

  Caro was obviously just as blinded by her work as Luna had been. She was enchanting, beautiful and they were like chalk and cheese. He should remember that the next time he felt the impulse to reach out and touch her.

  When Caro reappeared, he hung onto that thought as tightly as he’d gripped his walking stick on the way up here. Her cheeks were pink from the shower, and her hair was shining, all of it caught back in a newly-braided plait. She wore jeans and a fresh T-shirt under the same green cardigan and was holding two sheets of paper as if they were about to burn her.

  ‘I’ve...um...got something for you to sign. There are two copies, one for you and one for me. It’s just a... I showed it to Lucas and he was happy with it.’ She put the paper down on the coffee table and fished a pen from her pocket.

  If Lucas was happy with it, that was enough for Drew. He reached for the pen and Caro started, a look of panic on her face. ‘You should read it first!’

  Fair enough. Drew focussed on the words on the page, reading them through carefully.

  ‘So, according to this, the work we do here is confidential.’ That was as he’d expected, but the final clause was surprising. ‘And any designs you produce will be available to others under a creative commons licence. I was assuming you’d hold the rights to your own designs.’

  ‘I want them to be of use to as many people as possible. This agreement means that you can’t assume any rights that would prevent me from doing that.’

  The idea hadn’t occurred to Drew, and he suspected it hadn’t occurred to Lucas either. But Caro seemed unwilling to trust in that, and her plan to allow anyone to use her work free of charge was more than generous.

  ‘You’re sure you want to do that? Holding the patent would mean you’d make some money from your work.’

  ‘I have an income from other patented work I’ve done. I don’t need any more, and this is...a holiday.’

  ‘A holiday?’ Drew raised his eyebrows and Caro shrugged.

  ‘It’s what I love the most. And there’s a beach down there, isn’t there?’

  Right. Drew would lay odds that Caro hadn’t explored the beach or her tiny island home. He reminded himself that it wasn’t his business what she chose to do on this so-called holiday, and that if she just wanted to work then that was entirely up to her. He couldn’t deny the potential benefits to the veterinary community.

  ‘Okay.’ He picked up the pen. ‘Can I sign now?’

  ‘Yes. Please do.’ She allowed herself a smile. ‘Now that you know exactly what your responsibilities are.’

  As far as Drew could see, his responsibilities extended to not meddling with Caro’s generosity. He had no problem with that. He picked up the pen, signing both pieces of paper, and Caro snatched one up.

  ‘Right, then. I’ll show you where I am with everything... Ew!’

  Drew followed Caro’s gaze and saw that Phoenix had taken advantage of the fact that he wasn’t looking and was pretending that the puddle she’d made was nothing to do with her. Luckily she’d chosen the tiles in front of the hearth...

  ‘Oh. I’m sorry, I should have taken her outside. I’ll clean up—do you have an old cloth and some disinfectant?’ Drew got to his feet as quickly as he could manage.

  ‘That’s okay. Tony’ll deal with it. Tony!’

  Before Drew could ask, the sound of whirring caught his attention. Out of the corner of his eye he saw something shoot across the floor towards him, and he stepped aside to get out of its way. The small, tortoise-shaped machine stopped at Caro’s feet, and a little head poked out from under the textured carapace.

  ‘Tony. Liquid spill. Hearth.’

  The little creature—because it was hard to see it just as a vacuum cleaner—responded immediately. Zipping over to the hearth, it seemed to be searching for the puddle, and when it sensed it another whirring sound indicated that it was dealing with it.

  ‘That’s...impressive.’

  ‘He’s just a prototype.’ Caro was smiling fondly. ‘I think I might make him move a little slower. As he’s a tortoise.’

  ‘And it responds to your commands.’

  Caro nodded. ‘And to my voice. Try calling him.’

  It felt a little odd, but Drew called the vacuum cleaner’s name. It ignored him completely, its mechanical mind set on sucking up the spill and then buffing the tiles of the hearth.

  Phoenix was keeping her distance, crouched on the floor, clearly wondering what this was. But she overcame her mistrust quickly and padded up to Tony, her nose twitching. When she extended her paw, the whirring stopped, and the tortoise head moved back and forth, seeming to try to sense the source of the movement. Phoenix took that as an invitation to be friends and pawed at Tony’s shell.

  ‘Tony. Go to the kitchen.’ Caro issued another command, and the tortoise pushed slowly past Phoenix. As soon as the puppy was out of range it gathered speed, shooting back towards the kitchen. Phoenix was caught up in the game, racing after it and trying to make friends again. Tony slowed down when Phoenix approached, moving gently from one side to the other as the puppy jumped around.

  Drew chuckled. ‘Outstanding. Does the vacuuming and plays with the dog.’

  ‘Tony doesn’t know what a dog is. He’s got sensors that make him respond whenever something moves close by, it’s a safety thing. Phoenix is just confusing him.’ Caro called out another command. ‘Tony. Sleep.’

  The tortoise stilled, but Phoenix still wouldn’t let it alone. Drew called her, and she ignored him completely. She could take a few lessons in obedience from her new mechanical friend.

  Caro seemed suddenly unaware of his existence too, watching Tony and Phoenix thoughtfully. It occurred to Drew that perhaps she was considering extending Tony’s range to take in play, but at the moment Phoenix looked as if she was trying to tip the vacuum cleaner over. He walked across to the kitchen, shooing Phoenix away.

  ‘Interesting...’ Caro seemed to be making the observation to herself, and then her gaze found Drew. ‘I’ll think about that later. Come and see what I’m doing.’

  She led him towards what seemed to be the back door of the house, but when she opened it, it revealed a bright, warm conservatory overlooking the sea and protected from the wind by triple glazing.

  The magazine-cover neatness of the rest of the house suddenly made sense. This was Caro’s home—the rest was just
a collection of things that might come in useful from time to time. The large space had been cleared of furniture and boasted a row of benches, some at sitting height and others standing. The standing ones were piled up with various electrical and mechanical components, in various states of assembly. There were two large computer screens, piles of books and papers, and the small lobby that led out to a path that ran behind the house contained a large 3D printer. The overall impression was of a mad scientist’s lair.

  At the far end was a sofa, with cushions piled at one end and a throw tumbled at the other. If Caro had had any sleep last night, it had probably been right here.

  ‘Sit.’ She marched over to the sofa, quickly clearing the throw and spreading the cushions. Drew sat down, and Caro pulled up one of the office chairs. He caught a faint thrill of her scent as she leaned across to put a thick, spiral-bound booklet on the sofa beside him. Initial Design Specification for Animal Prosthetics.

  ‘You can take it home to read. As long as you don’t show it to anyone...’

  ‘Of course not. I signed an agreement, remember?’

  She nodded, obviously pleased that he remembered. Caro jumped to her feet, gathering up a selection of components from one of the workbenches and setting them out on the small table in front of him. Then she reached for a laptop, opening it and tapping on the keys.

  ‘Before you start reading, I’d like to show you these...’

  At first, it seemed like a jumble of concepts. Models of human and animal limbs, wire-frame computer rendering, and explanations that seemed to defy limitations that Drew had taken for granted. Then, slowly, he began to get it...

  ‘You’re saying that you want to make a prosthetic that can respond to the movements of an animal.’ Drew hadn’t seen anything like this even attempted before. ‘It sounds almost impossible.’

  ‘The possible is only something that’s already been done.’

  There was a light in her honey-brown eyes that made Drew shiver. Walking past the realms of the possible and making the impossible work seemed suddenly as if it was the only thing he wanted to do. And he wanted to do it very much with Caro.

  CHAPTER THREE

  WHAT WAS IT with vets? Ellie was gorgeous, in a way that Caro had never even hoped to be. Lucas was handsome, good at his job, and it didn’t take him as long as most to get his head around extreme possibilities. She’d imagined that Drew would probably be a counterbalance to their dazzling attractiveness, since every extreme implied that another extreme should restore the sum of its parts to the average.

  But Drew didn’t do anything to confirm that theory. He wasn’t merely handsome, or gorgeous, he was amazing. His voice was softened by a Cornish burr, and those blue eyes seemed to take in everything. Dark curls gave him a slightly windblown look even when he was inside, and he had a body to die for, even if it was a little stiff and battered at the moment. Even that was thrillingly attractive, and Caro wondered how he’d feel about playing the patient while she played the nurse.

  That would lead to consequences. Inevitable ones that Caro wasn’t prepared to face. Leaving America, and what had become the only home she’d ever really had, and coming back here had been her way of saying an irrevocable goodbye to matters of the heart. Her work was the only thing that mattered.

  He was turning the prosthetic that Lucas had used at the clinic over in his hands, examining it carefully. He seemed to get it. The work that had gone into it, and where it could be improved. His obvious approval sent a throb of desire through her whole body.

  ‘So...where do we start?’ He looked up at her.

  With the eyes. She could start by staring into his eyes. Or with his hands. So gentle in such a strong man...

  ‘Work’s already been done on how dogs and other animals move. I want to take those findings and add to them to give me an idea of how the natural movement of a dog might control a prosthetic.’

  He nodded, frowning. Obviously applying his mind to the problem. Caro wondered if his mind was as beautiful as the rest of him.

  ‘So the joint will have the ability to flex, in response to the animal’s movements, rather than being rigid like this one.’

  He got it. A warm swell of gratification filled Caro’s chest, before she’d had a chance to remind herself that someone who appeared to get it had still been capable of betraying her.

  ‘Yes, that’s right.’ Her voice sounded a little squeaky and she cleared her throat.

  ‘And the first thing you need to do is capture the movements of real dogs and quantify that, using the software you showed me.’ He nodded towards her laptop, and the camera that lay beside it on the table.

  He definitely got it. Maybe Caro was hallucinating, and she’d find something wrong with this guy when she’d had a good night’s sleep and something more to eat than just three chocolate biscuits.

  ‘Yes. I’m hoping to film real dogs and then use the software to quantify their movements.’

  Drew nodded. ‘How do your robot dogs move? Can you show me?’

  Oh, yes. She could show him.

  ‘Clarice!’ She called her robot, who she preferred to think of as a proper puppy, despite the presence of the wriggling reality at Drew’s feet. Clarice was in sleep mode in the corner of the room and raised her head in response. ‘Come here.’

  Clarice trotted across the room. A lot of work had gone into that gait, but it wasn’t quite the same as Phoenix’s unpredictable movements. Caro stroked Clarice’s head, and when she nuzzled against her legs Caro saw Drew’s eyebrows shoot up.

  ‘It responds to you?’

  ‘She responds...’

  ‘Sorry. Do that again, will you?’

  Caro stroked Clarice’s head again and this time she pawed at her legs. ‘Her programming mimics real life. She learns, and she has a range of different reactions to any one action.’

  ‘She learns?’ Drew shook his head. ‘How does she do that?’

  ‘The same way we do. If she responds the way I want her to I reinforce it with my approval.’ Caro bent down, stroking Clarice’s head again. ‘Clarice, well done.’

  Maybe she’d gone too far. Moving around so much as a child had meant that Caro’s only permanent companions had been her robots. She knew they weren’t human, or even proper animals, but sometimes they felt a great deal more dependable. She expected that Drew would think the way most people did and consider that giving her love to a mess of circuitry and plastic was a character flaw. His derision would be harder to bear than usual and betraying her feelings for Clarice would be a mistake.

  ‘It’s fascinating. Challenging...’ He held his hand out to Clarice and her head swivelled towards him. ‘She’s very cute.’

  ‘She’s programmed to be that way. I could equally easily programme her to snap and growl at you.’

  He laughed. ‘Then you programmed her well. Maybe that scrap of humanity I see in her is really yours.’

  Was he for real? How did he understand that Caro felt that she’d put a little of her own personality into Clarice? She felt herself blush.

  Perhaps working with someone who knew nothing about robotics wasn’t going to be like wading through mud after all. Drew seemed to understand the bare bones of what she was trying to do.

  ‘So our first challenge is to find dogs to film. I imagine that’ll be where I come in.’

  Caro had been thinking that it was more a matter of what challenges she would face. In the singular. The vets at the veterinary centre were just there to provide her with the things she needed. But she couldn’t resist those eyes. Suddenly it didn’t seem so bad to share some of the challenges with Drew.

  A loud beep sounded, and he pulled his phone from his pocket.

  ‘That’s my alarm call. The tide’s coming in.’

  Oh. Up till now, the tide coming in had seemed like a good thing. Something that naturally cut a vis
it short and allowed Caro to get on with her work in peace.

  ‘That’s a shame. We were just getting to the interesting part...’ She turned the corners of her mouth down. The interesting part was actually Drew at the moment, and he had to go.

  He looked at his phone speculatively, not meeting her gaze. ‘It’ll be going back out again this afternoon.’

  That sounded like an opportunity that was there for the grabbing. ‘Would you like to stay? I’m...um...getting a bit hungry...’

  He grinned. ‘When did you last eat? Something other than chocolate biscuits.’

  Caro thought back. ‘Yesterday.’ Sometime yesterday, at least. Perhaps he’d jump to the conclusion that she’d had a hearty home-cooked meal yesterday evening.

  ‘Okay.’ Drew didn’t seem to be jumping to any conclusions. ‘I can go out and get us something before the tide comes in, and let you get on with what you’re doing.’

  ‘I have plenty of food in the fridge...’ Lack of supplies wasn’t the issue. Tearing herself away from her workshop to go and prepare a meal was sometimes tricky. ‘Would you like some cheese on toast?’

  ‘Sounds good, thank you. Why don’t you let me do that? I could do with stretching my legs.’

  He never mentioned being in pain, or finding it difficult to walk, but Caro had caught him wincing a few times when he’d thought she wasn’t looking. If her little secret was the last time she’d eaten a proper meal, then his might be that he’d be pulling painkillers out of his pocket as soon as he was alone.

  ‘If you don’t mind. That would be really nice, thank you.’

  ‘My pleasure.’ Phoenix raised her head as he got to his feet, and he bent stiffly to stroke her head. ‘Maybe you can persuade Phoenix to let you film her...’

  Maybe. Caro picked up the camera, but as Drew walked out of the room, it wasn’t Phoenix that she started to film. It was him.