Page 4 of The Summer Inn on Plum Island
As Dawn suspected, Lila and Harper, being the same age, hit it off right away. They had lunch at a shopping mall in Boston, and the girls chose to start the journey home instead of shopping. The car was full of teenage girl chatter as Lila and Harper didn’t seem to stop chatting from the moment they met. Dawn was sure by the time they got to Boston, the two girls would know each other’s entire life stories.
They were fifteen minutes away from Newbury Port when Lila and Harper nearly gave Dawn a heart attack as they screamed, “Stop the car!”
“What the heck?” Dawn hissed, pulling to the side of the road and skidding to a stop.
She’d barely pulled up the parking brake when Lila and Harper sprung from the car and ran a few feet back the way they’d just driven.
“Where are you two going?” Dawn asked, jumping out of the car and sprinting after the girls.
Dawn watched them run down the slight embankment and followed them, stopping when she saw they were carefully approaching a large white tabby cat with silver stripes. Its gold eyes watched them wearily as they walked toward it. Dawn sucked in her breath when she saw the cat had blood smeared through its white fur near its back legs.
“It’s okay,” Lila cooed. “We’re not going to hurt you.”
Harper took off her sweater and walked slowly with Lila. “We’re going to wrap you in this and get you to a vet.”
The cat seemed tamed and to understand the girls were trying to help him. Luckily, the cat didn’t put up a fight, and soon, Dawn, Harper, Lila, and the large tabby cat headed to a vet in Newbury Port.
“Please, can you help us?” Dawn asked as they rushed into the vet’s office. “My teenagers found this cat on the side of the road.” She looked at Harper, who was gently cradling the tabby in her arms, while Lila cooed at him. “He’s badly injured.”
“Oh, my word!” The receptionist stood as soon as she saw the cat. “Where did you find him?”
Harper explained to the woman, and her eyes widened further.
“That slimy no good man,” the woman hissed through gritted teeth. “Quickly, let’s get him into an examination room, and Doctor Nicol will be right with you.”
They followed the woman into a room where the woman instructed Harper to lay the cat on the examination table.
“Do you know the cat?” Dawn asked the woman.
“Yes, his name is Tiger and he belonged to Mrs. Peters, who passed away a few weeks ago,” the receptionist explained. “Her grandson, Daniel Peters, was supposed to take the cat to his parent’s house in Boston as it was a stipulation in Mrs. Peters’s will that Tiger get taken care of.” She shook her head in disgust. “She left quite a sizable sum for the care of Tiger.”
“What a weasel,” Lila blurted. “He must’ve dumped Tiger on the side of the road.”
“And by the look of his injuries,” the receptionist gently examined Tiger, pointing to where some of his fur near his back was scraped, “he didn’t bother to stop the car.”
“Did I hear right?” A deep voice boomed as the vet rushed into the room, stopped, and glanced around. “Oh, hello,” he greeted them. “I’m Chris Nicol, the vet.”
“Hi,” Dawn, Lila, and Harper chorused.
His attention turned back to Tiger. “I told you we shouldn’t have let Daniel Peters take the cat. That man had no interest in taking care of Tiger, just getting the money, including Tiger’s care money.”
“Do you want me to call Mrs. Peters’s attorney?” the receptionist asked the vet.
“Yes, please,” Chris nodded and got to work cleaning Tiger’s wounds. When he was done, he looked at Dawn. “We’re going to need a foster home for Tiger until we can sort this mess out with Mrs. Peters’s will. Would you be able to look after him?”
“Yes!” Harper and Lila said in unison before turning to Dawn.
“Please, Aunt Dawn,” Harper pleaded with her. “I’ll look after him.”
“I’ll help,” Lila offered. “And don’t worry about keeping a cat at the hotel. My father won’t mind.”
“Shouldn’t we ask him first?” Dawn looked from one teenage girl to the other.
“Nah!” Lila shook her head. “When my father sees Tiger, he’ll say yes.”
“Can I take that as a yes?” Chris grinned as he stood next to Lila and Harper.
“Okay!” Dawn surrendered. “But if your father gets angry,” she addressed Lila, “I’m blaming the both of you.” She glanced at Harper.
