Catie woke up early the next morning contemplating the dream that she had had last night.
'Was it really a dream? It felt different. Almost real?
' she thought to herself,
'What is going on with me?'
Maybe it had something to do with the ordeal that she had gone through. What if it was something more than that though? She decided that she needed to talk to someone about it. But who? People would probably think she was insane. Hell, after what had happened, she just might be. She chuckled softly at that last thought as she slowly sat up in bed. She uncovered herself and examined her leg. It actually didn't look as bad this morning. The bruises were still there, but they were fading slightly. She was also happy to find out that it wasn't as painful whenever she touched the bruised areas or when she bent her knee.
After giving herself a chance to wake up, she got up out of bed and straightened out her hospital gown. She needed to remember to ask for some normal clothes today. She slowly walked to the door, opened it, and went out into the quiet hallway. She didn't see or hear anybody, so she assumed that they were still sleeping. Today, she was much more confident in using her leg and although she was slow, it wasn't as painful as it had been. She took that as a good sign as she went down the hallway until she reached the main entrance. No one was out here either so she continued her slow trek towards the opposite hallway that led to the elevator. Once inside she pressed the button for the basement. The elevator ride down was quiet and this time she didn't trip over the ledge when she left. She continued her slow trek towards the hybrid ward, occasionally stopping to rest for a moment before continuing on. Once she reached the hybrid area, she opened the metal door and entered the holding area. She started on the right side of the room and started walking down the line of 10 pens reading off the information that was attached to them. Some of the pens didn't have anything information sheets attached to them. She assumed that they were empty and walked on. When she reached Bailey's pen, she stopped and read the information that was attached to her door.
Bailey (Kato x Mara): Hybrid bitch.
Siblings: Kara, Luka, Ash
Feeding schedule: Morning: Raw meats Evening: High protein kibbles and meat chunks
Scheduled owner: None.
Breeding schedule: None.
When she finished reading, she looked around the pen to see if she could find Bailey. She wasn't anywhere to be seen, so she kept going on towards some of the other pens. All of them seemed to be gone this morning.
'They are probably all outside enjoying the morning air,'
Catie thought to herself as she continued walking towards her goal. When she reached the door to the hospital ward, she walked inside and up to Luka's cage. He was sitting up and looking at her today. He looked calmer and more alert than he had the day before. With her animal experience, she knew that that was a good sign.
"Good morning, Luka! You look much better today sweet boy!" she crooned at him. He perked up a little more and started to wag his tail some as well. She slowly sat down on the cold floor and opened up Luka's cage. She reached her hands inside and started petting his head. She then thought about the fact that he was probably hungry and needed to go outside. "Luka, stay here. I'm going to find you something to eat," she said as she shut the door and carefully stood up.
She walked around the hospital ward deciding to tour it and then find out where the food was kept at. The area that she was in was painted an off-white color. On the left side, were observation cages. They were all large sized cages since the hybrids were larger animals. On the right side, were oak cabinets hanging on the walls that contained all of the medications. Underneath them, was a granite counter top that ran the length of the cabinets. Under the countertops, were more cabinets that contained cleaning supplies and drawers that contained miscellaneous supplies like syringes, needles, etc. Inside one of the lower cabinets was a large metal safe that housed the control drugs. It was password locked with a keypad combination. She walked through a door that was at the back of the room and was lead into a hallway. On the right side, were larger runs for less confinement of the hybrids. On the left side, was the surgery room. It was shut by a metal door that had a window in the top to look into the room. She walked into the kennels to see if the food was in there. Against the wall was a large refrigerator and chest freezer. Inside the fridge, were packages of meat that were thawed or in the process of being thawed out. Each one was dated and was in order according to date. She grabbed the oldest piece out of the fridge and walked back towards Luka. When she reached him, she opened the door, set the meat into his cage and backed off. He made quick work of it and was finished eating in no time.
"Good boy, Luka," she crooned at him as he licked the spot where the meat used to be. She opened the cage door and he slowly crawled out and stood up. He stretched and yawned before coming to sit beside Catie. "How do we get you outside?"
"That would be down at the end of the hallway passed the surgery suite," Catie jumped as the voice spoke and she turned around to see a woman standing behind her. She was smaller than Syd and had dark brown hair that matched her chocolate skin. "Thank you for taking care of my patient. I'm Zoey by the way. I'm the veterinarian that works for Kaine and takes care of the hybrids."
"I'm Catie. Nice to meet you," she said as she extended her hand and shook Zoey's.
"Likewise. Anyways, at the end of the hallway is a tunnel that goes up and outside. There's room enough for people to walk through it to. They're actually pretty neat if you haven't checked it out yet."
Catie nodded her head yes and started heading towards the door that lead to the hall. Luka immediately followed. At the end of the hallway, was a wooden door. She pushed it open and there was a sealed tunnel. She pushed the 'Open' button and watched the metal shutters move away from the tunnel. Luka happily walked into the tunnel with Catie slowly following him. Once outside, she noted that the area was fenced in and that there were also metal shutters on this end as well.
She waited for Luka to finish his business before they both walked down the tunnel together. At the bottom, she closed the doors. They walked back up to the hospital area with Luka staying very close to Catie. Once inside, she saw Zoey off to the right taking out some equipment. "Come here," she said to Luka. He slowly walked over to her and stood beside her as she examined him by herself. She checked him everywhere for any signs of remaining trauma. "I don't see anything that is wrong with him. He's probably a little sore, but he should be good to go back home. For now, would you help me move him into one of the bigger hybrid pens?"
Catie shook her head yes and walked toward the door that lead out into the hybrid area. She pushed it open and Zoey lead them to the pen to the left of Bailey. Zoey unlatched the door and Luka walked right inside. He immediately went and laid down on the bed in the center. He stretched a final time before he relaxed and went back to sleep.
"Thank you, Catie."
