Chapter 2
Robert Freemont became aware that his twin was standing in the doorway of his office, and glanced up to see Adrian frowning and looking rather baffled. He straightened up from the filing cabinet he’d been going through, eyeing his brother. “Something the matter, Adrian?” he asked curiously.
His twin shrugged. “I asked that guy out, and he turned me down,” he said, sounding annoyed.
Robert blinked. “What guy? Oh, do you mean Tim?” he said after a moment.
“Is that his name?” Adrian asked, making his twin give him an incredulous look.
“You asked someone out when you don’t even know his NAME?! And then you wonder why he turned you down?” he commented in disbelief.
Adrian’s frown deepened. “I thought I’d get his name off the form he was filling out,” he pointed out. “And he’d never have to find out that I didn’t know his name at first. Besides, I don’t think that’s why he turned me down…although maybe that would make sense. What other reason could he have to turn me down?”
Robert’s mouth dropped open a little. He just gaped at his twin for a moment, then he said: “Let me get this straight. You can’t think of any other reason that Tim would turn you down? I take it that you haven’t been turned down a lot before this?”
“Almost never,” Adrian replied matter-of-factly.
Robert shook his head, picking up the files that he intended to take with him on his vacation. “Well, I guess in this case you’ll just have to wonder why your legendary charm failed this time. I can’t help you, except to tell you that Tim is a really nice guy, and he definitely deserves better than a love-em-and-leave-em type like you. So I’m glad that he turned you down, frankly. Good for him.”
Adrian scowled at him. “Way to support your brother,” he remarked sardonically.
Robert laughed, picking up the stack of file folders and exiting his office. “I’m not going to support you in your efforts to get into Tim’s pants, not when I know you’d only play with him and drop him the moment you get what you want. Jesus, Adrian, you’re thirty-five! Don’t you think it’s time that you grew up and settled down with somebody? I don’t know what I’d do without Pam or the kids. I don’t envy you your lifestyle, I really don’t. But whatever. It’s your life. I’ve got to get going now. I’ll call you from the hotel once we get there, and thanks for taking over my practice while we’re away. I really appreciate it.”
Adrian nodded. “I know you’ll do the same when I want to go on vacation,” he replied.
“True,” Robert agreed, opening the door with one hand. “Although hanging out at the track has never been my idea of a good time…”
“I don’t ‘hang out at the track’,” Adrian pointed out sharply, “I’m the course veterinarian. You make me sound like an itinerate gambler or something.”
Robert laughed. “Sorry. You’re right. Still, it’ll be a big difference for you, taking care of family pets rather than race horses. For one thing, in my practice I’ve gotten to know the names and personalities of most of my patients. That’s something that you don’t ever get to do.”
Adrian frowned again. “Do you feel sorry for me?” he asked, eyeing his twin with disfavor.
Robert chuckled. “I suppose that I do, just a little,” he said. “Anyway, I’ll see you in a few weeks.” he sailed out the door with a wave of his free hand, leaving his brother standing in his clinic with his brows lowered and a dark scowl on his face.
Tim decided to stay away from the veterinary clinic for a few weeks, not wanting to encounter the other Dr. Freemont again if he could help it. While he’d miss getting to see his favorite veterinarian, it just wasn’t worth it. Especially since his cats didn’t seem to like the vet’s brother much at all. Tim wasn’t going to subject Abbott and Costello to Dr. Adrian Freemont again if he could avoid it.
Four days after he made this resolution, he came home to discover that Costello had cunningly managed to escape from his apartment. The lean black cat was a true escape artist, and Tim was forever chasing him around the bushes and down the sidewalks at his apartment complex. In this case, he saw a flash of midnight black as he was walking along toward his front door. He sighed and set down his bag, calling out: “Cos! Come here, Cos!”
The cat paused and looked over his shoulder at his owner, before he flirted his tail and darted away. Tim groaned, not looking forward to another chase session. He was kind of tired from work, and Costello was not making his life any easier. The cat had probably pushed the small window in the bathroom open with his paw again; Tim had been on the landlord to fix it forever, but the man was extremely lazy and not inclined to do any work if he could avoid it. And Costello was not only smart, he was surprisingly strong as well.
Tim hurried to stow his bag in his apartment and closed the door behind him so that it wouldn’t be stolen; then he hurried down to where he’d seen Costello last. But the bushes were empty; his pet had moved on. He began to methodically search the bushes and sidewalks around his building, finally discovering the black cat perched in an ornamental tree.
“Cos!” he cried in exasperation. “Come down here!”
The cat merely hunkered down on his branch and blinked at his owner, not moving. Tim blew out a long breath and approached the tree, eyeing it. Would it take his weight? He wasn’t sure that it would, and he didn’t want to damage the tree and have to pay to have it replaced. But how else was he to get his cat out of it? Costello might come down on his own, but that wasn’t likely. Tim suspected that he liked to be chased, and enjoyed that as much as getting to come outside.
“You’re a horrible kitty,” he said to Costello as he set his hand on the trunk. “You know that? Why do I love you so much, anyway?”
Costello flicked his tail and one ear indifferently at this question, stretching out his right front paw. He was definitely taunting his owner, the little wretch. Tim put his foot on the lowest branch and prayed fervently that it would hold his weight without breaking. He pulled himself upward, slowly and carefully. Costello watched him with interest, not moving. Upward he went, until he was in range to reach out and grasp his wayward cat. He slowly lifted his hand, stretching it out…and Costello leapt easily out of the tree right past him, and ran away down the sidewalk!
“Cos! I am going to kill you!” Tim yelled angrily, scrambling back downward much faster than he’d come up. “I swear!”
The cat continued on his merry way, heading for the parking lot. He liked to crouch under the cars sometimes, out of range of Tim’s reaching hand. If he didn’t catch up fast enough, he’d have to lure his pet out with some tuna in a bowl. He hated to do it; rewarding Costello for his bad behavior always irritated him. Tim raved down the sidewalk on his cat’s heels, intent on grabbing Costello before he could dart under a parked car.
Costello became aware of how close his master was, and sped up. He dashed out into the parking lot, and Tim heard a squeal of brakes and a loud honking. Apprehension filled him, and he ran as fast as he could out into the parking lot. He saw a car stopped there, and…oh God! Costello’s lean black form lying on the black top unmoving…
He ran into the Freemont Animal Clinic ten minutes later, with his cat wrapped in a towel to stop the bleeding. Costello wasn’t moving, and his sides lifting in hitching breaths were the only sign that Tim had that he was still alive. Judy, the receptionist, gasped when he appeared in the doorway.
“Tim! What happened?!” she asked, hurrying over.
“It’s Cos! He got hit by a car!” Tim cried, sobbing.
“Oh, no!’ she said, her eyes widening. “Let me get Dr. Freemont!” she raced away into the back, while Tim just stood the cradling his pet in an agony of fear. It seemed like forever, though it was probably only a few moments, when Judy came hurrying back with the vet on her heels. He checked in his stride a bit when he saw Tim, but then came over quickly.
“What happened?” he asked brusquely as he reached out to take the towel-wrapped animal from his hands.
“He got hit by a car! In the parking lot of my apartment building!” Tim gasped, wiping helplessly at his wet face.
“Was the car going very fast?” the vet asked as he began to carry Costello away toward the surgery.
“No. But he isn’t moving!” Tim said, wanting to pull at his hair.
“Wait out here while I examine him,” the vet said, and he took Costello away. Tim sank into one of the chairs in the reception area, putting his hands over his face. What if…? Oh, God, Abbott would be devastated if he lost his playmate! Despite the fact that they were complete opposites in personality, the two cats were fast friends. And he wouldn’t even understand why Costello had disappeared, either.
‘Try not to think like that, Tim,’ he chided himself. ‘Don’t imagine the worst until you know how bad it is.’
Good advice, but he wasn’t sure that he could take it. He waited, trying to be patient(and failing utterly) anxiety his constant companion. Hours seemed to pass, though the clock on the wall said that it had only been forty-five minutes. When Judy reappeared, Tim jumped up. “H-How is he?” he asked, hearing the tremor in his voice and not caring.
“Well, the good news is that Dr. Freemont thinks he’ll be okay,” she told him.
“And the bad news?” he asked, seeing her expression.
“He’s going to have to perform surgery on Cos…” she began.
Tim turned white and sank back down on the chair, making Judy hurry over and take his hands in hers. “Please don’t fret, Tim! He has to stop some internal bleeding, and maybe remove one of his kidneys. But he’s a strong, healthy cat. He should pull through just fine. And Randy’s a great surgical assistant, I swear. They’ll take good care of Cos. He’ll be back to his old self in no time, you’ll see.”
He let her squeeze his hands reassuringly, needing the touch. He knew that if it had been Dr. Robert Freemont performing the surgery, he probably wouldn’t be this worried. But he had no idea how good a vet or surgeon that Adrian Freemont was - he had only his vet’s word that his brother was just as good as he was to go on. How could he be sure? And what if it cost Cos his life? He’d never forgive himself…but it wasn’t like he could take his cat to another clinic now. He’d simply have to hope and pray that Dr. Freemont had been right about his twin brother.
Go to Next Chapter
Robert Freemont became aware that his twin was standing in the doorway of his office, and glanced up to see Adrian frowning and looking rather baffled. He straightened up from the filing cabinet he’d been going through, eyeing his brother. “Something the matter, Adrian?” he asked curiously.
His twin shrugged. “I asked that guy out, and he turned me down,” he said, sounding annoyed.
Robert blinked. “What guy? Oh, do you mean Tim?” he said after a moment.
“Is that his name?” Adrian asked, making his twin give him an incredulous look.
“You asked someone out when you don’t even know his NAME?! And then you wonder why he turned you down?” he commented in disbelief.
Adrian’s frown deepened. “I thought I’d get his name off the form he was filling out,” he pointed out. “And he’d never have to find out that I didn’t know his name at first. Besides, I don’t think that’s why he turned me down…although maybe that would make sense. What other reason could he have to turn me down?”
Robert’s mouth dropped open a little. He just gaped at his twin for a moment, then he said: “Let me get this straight. You can’t think of any other reason that Tim would turn you down? I take it that you haven’t been turned down a lot before this?”
“Almost never,” Adrian replied matter-of-factly.
Robert shook his head, picking up the files that he intended to take with him on his vacation. “Well, I guess in this case you’ll just have to wonder why your legendary charm failed this time. I can’t help you, except to tell you that Tim is a really nice guy, and he definitely deserves better than a love-em-and-leave-em type like you. So I’m glad that he turned you down, frankly. Good for him.”
Adrian scowled at him. “Way to support your brother,” he remarked sardonically.
Robert laughed, picking up the stack of file folders and exiting his office. “I’m not going to support you in your efforts to get into Tim’s pants, not when I know you’d only play with him and drop him the moment you get what you want. Jesus, Adrian, you’re thirty-five! Don’t you think it’s time that you grew up and settled down with somebody? I don’t know what I’d do without Pam or the kids. I don’t envy you your lifestyle, I really don’t. But whatever. It’s your life. I’ve got to get going now. I’ll call you from the hotel once we get there, and thanks for taking over my practice while we’re away. I really appreciate it.”
Adrian nodded. “I know you’ll do the same when I want to go on vacation,” he replied.
“True,” Robert agreed, opening the door with one hand. “Although hanging out at the track has never been my idea of a good time…”
“I don’t ‘hang out at the track’,” Adrian pointed out sharply, “I’m the course veterinarian. You make me sound like an itinerate gambler or something.”
Robert laughed. “Sorry. You’re right. Still, it’ll be a big difference for you, taking care of family pets rather than race horses. For one thing, in my practice I’ve gotten to know the names and personalities of most of my patients. That’s something that you don’t ever get to do.”
Adrian frowned again. “Do you feel sorry for me?” he asked, eyeing his twin with disfavor.
Robert chuckled. “I suppose that I do, just a little,” he said. “Anyway, I’ll see you in a few weeks.” he sailed out the door with a wave of his free hand, leaving his brother standing in his clinic with his brows lowered and a dark scowl on his face.
Tim decided to stay away from the veterinary clinic for a few weeks, not wanting to encounter the other Dr. Freemont again if he could help it. While he’d miss getting to see his favorite veterinarian, it just wasn’t worth it. Especially since his cats didn’t seem to like the vet’s brother much at all. Tim wasn’t going to subject Abbott and Costello to Dr. Adrian Freemont again if he could avoid it.
Four days after he made this resolution, he came home to discover that Costello had cunningly managed to escape from his apartment. The lean black cat was a true escape artist, and Tim was forever chasing him around the bushes and down the sidewalks at his apartment complex. In this case, he saw a flash of midnight black as he was walking along toward his front door. He sighed and set down his bag, calling out: “Cos! Come here, Cos!”
The cat paused and looked over his shoulder at his owner, before he flirted his tail and darted away. Tim groaned, not looking forward to another chase session. He was kind of tired from work, and Costello was not making his life any easier. The cat had probably pushed the small window in the bathroom open with his paw again; Tim had been on the landlord to fix it forever, but the man was extremely lazy and not inclined to do any work if he could avoid it. And Costello was not only smart, he was surprisingly strong as well.
Tim hurried to stow his bag in his apartment and closed the door behind him so that it wouldn’t be stolen; then he hurried down to where he’d seen Costello last. But the bushes were empty; his pet had moved on. He began to methodically search the bushes and sidewalks around his building, finally discovering the black cat perched in an ornamental tree.
“Cos!” he cried in exasperation. “Come down here!”
The cat merely hunkered down on his branch and blinked at his owner, not moving. Tim blew out a long breath and approached the tree, eyeing it. Would it take his weight? He wasn’t sure that it would, and he didn’t want to damage the tree and have to pay to have it replaced. But how else was he to get his cat out of it? Costello might come down on his own, but that wasn’t likely. Tim suspected that he liked to be chased, and enjoyed that as much as getting to come outside.
“You’re a horrible kitty,” he said to Costello as he set his hand on the trunk. “You know that? Why do I love you so much, anyway?”
Costello flicked his tail and one ear indifferently at this question, stretching out his right front paw. He was definitely taunting his owner, the little wretch. Tim put his foot on the lowest branch and prayed fervently that it would hold his weight without breaking. He pulled himself upward, slowly and carefully. Costello watched him with interest, not moving. Upward he went, until he was in range to reach out and grasp his wayward cat. He slowly lifted his hand, stretching it out…and Costello leapt easily out of the tree right past him, and ran away down the sidewalk!
“Cos! I am going to kill you!” Tim yelled angrily, scrambling back downward much faster than he’d come up. “I swear!”
The cat continued on his merry way, heading for the parking lot. He liked to crouch under the cars sometimes, out of range of Tim’s reaching hand. If he didn’t catch up fast enough, he’d have to lure his pet out with some tuna in a bowl. He hated to do it; rewarding Costello for his bad behavior always irritated him. Tim raved down the sidewalk on his cat’s heels, intent on grabbing Costello before he could dart under a parked car.
Costello became aware of how close his master was, and sped up. He dashed out into the parking lot, and Tim heard a squeal of brakes and a loud honking. Apprehension filled him, and he ran as fast as he could out into the parking lot. He saw a car stopped there, and…oh God! Costello’s lean black form lying on the black top unmoving…
He ran into the Freemont Animal Clinic ten minutes later, with his cat wrapped in a towel to stop the bleeding. Costello wasn’t moving, and his sides lifting in hitching breaths were the only sign that Tim had that he was still alive. Judy, the receptionist, gasped when he appeared in the doorway.
“Tim! What happened?!” she asked, hurrying over.
“It’s Cos! He got hit by a car!” Tim cried, sobbing.
“Oh, no!’ she said, her eyes widening. “Let me get Dr. Freemont!” she raced away into the back, while Tim just stood the cradling his pet in an agony of fear. It seemed like forever, though it was probably only a few moments, when Judy came hurrying back with the vet on her heels. He checked in his stride a bit when he saw Tim, but then came over quickly.
“What happened?” he asked brusquely as he reached out to take the towel-wrapped animal from his hands.
“He got hit by a car! In the parking lot of my apartment building!” Tim gasped, wiping helplessly at his wet face.
“Was the car going very fast?” the vet asked as he began to carry Costello away toward the surgery.
“No. But he isn’t moving!” Tim said, wanting to pull at his hair.
“Wait out here while I examine him,” the vet said, and he took Costello away. Tim sank into one of the chairs in the reception area, putting his hands over his face. What if…? Oh, God, Abbott would be devastated if he lost his playmate! Despite the fact that they were complete opposites in personality, the two cats were fast friends. And he wouldn’t even understand why Costello had disappeared, either.
‘Try not to think like that, Tim,’ he chided himself. ‘Don’t imagine the worst until you know how bad it is.’
Good advice, but he wasn’t sure that he could take it. He waited, trying to be patient(and failing utterly) anxiety his constant companion. Hours seemed to pass, though the clock on the wall said that it had only been forty-five minutes. When Judy reappeared, Tim jumped up. “H-How is he?” he asked, hearing the tremor in his voice and not caring.
“Well, the good news is that Dr. Freemont thinks he’ll be okay,” she told him.
“And the bad news?” he asked, seeing her expression.
“He’s going to have to perform surgery on Cos…” she began.
Tim turned white and sank back down on the chair, making Judy hurry over and take his hands in hers. “Please don’t fret, Tim! He has to stop some internal bleeding, and maybe remove one of his kidneys. But he’s a strong, healthy cat. He should pull through just fine. And Randy’s a great surgical assistant, I swear. They’ll take good care of Cos. He’ll be back to his old self in no time, you’ll see.”
He let her squeeze his hands reassuringly, needing the touch. He knew that if it had been Dr. Robert Freemont performing the surgery, he probably wouldn’t be this worried. But he had no idea how good a vet or surgeon that Adrian Freemont was - he had only his vet’s word that his brother was just as good as he was to go on. How could he be sure? And what if it cost Cos his life? He’d never forgive himself…but it wasn’t like he could take his cat to another clinic now. He’d simply have to hope and pray that Dr. Freemont had been right about his twin brother.
Go to Next Chapter