GHOST CABIN ☆ EARTHMIX AU

Part twenty: duty calls

A feeling of adrenaline mixed with sadness rushed through Mix's body, "how bad is it? Do you know what happened?"

"It's a bear trap. Her leg got stuck there — he is bleeding a lot. Mix, can you help us, please?" sheriff Leblanc asked.

"Yes, yes, of course. Give me just a minute. I'll go find my vet bag," Mix said already running upstairs.

"That's bad. I wasn't expecting this. Be careful," Earth said as he watched Mix checking if he had everything he needed in the bag.

Mix's wide eyes shoot to Earth, "you aren't going? They said it's only five minutes from here. I thought that you can go if it's near."

"I can, but why would I? You can do it without me. I don't need to be there."

Mix said nothing, just stood there, while precious time was slipping away.

"Mix," Earth said, stepping closer, "you don't need me there. You are a vet; you did it many times without me."

Mix nodded, sighing, "it's just...since I came here we have been always together so I thought that...but no, you are right. I'm a vet and it's time to save my first patient here." He zipped the bag and threw it over his shoulder.

"Good luck. And really, be careful. It's pitch black outside and there are many bear traps around this area."

Mix frowned, he didn't like the sound of it at all, "I will be. Don't worry."

Mix was already on the stairs when he heard Earth's soft voice again, "Mix...I like you a lot. Remember that."

Mix halted his steps for a moment, his face suddenly way warmer than the rest of his body. He turned behind himself, seeing Earth's grinning face. He ducked his head and with inaudible, I like you too on his lips, he ran out of the Ghost Cabin.

.....

The dashboard of the car was the only weak source of the light in the Jeep as they were rushing to the wounded doe through the narrow, muddy, and unwelcoming forest roads. Mix was sitting in the backseat, clutching his vet bag, his heart beating fast with adrenaline.

Mix was a vet practitioner for a year now. He finished his vet school sooner than anyone else at that's only because he also started sooner than anyone else. Mix was quite a genius. He didn't think that about himself because he was a narcissist or something. It was a fact! Mix was so good in school that he jumped over a few grades, allowing him to start university sooner than his peers.

But he showed his ultimate potential when he started studying veterinary. He loved every minute of it even though it was extremely time consuming and tiring. Mix was really good at what he was doing. He was a great vet despite being so young. But precisely because he was so young, sometimes he got this feeling of not being good enough, not being qualified enough. What if he weren't going to be able to save the poor doe?

Even if the sheriffs wouldn't blame it on him. Mix would blame it on himself.

Maybe that was why he hoped that Earth would go with him. Earth would be next to him as his anchor; holding him steady throughout all of it. But Earth was right. Mix was a vet. He did it many times without Earth and he was going to do it again. Saving animals — that was what Mix knew how to do the best.

A loud scraping sound erupted through a walkie-talkie in sheriff Anderson's hand, making Mix fully present in the car again. The car was slowing down until it completely stopped. "She is in and out of consciousness sheriff. I don't know how long we can keep her like that, sheriff. Are you close?" a man's voice worriedly said through the walkie talkie.

"We are almost there," sheriff Anderson said, getting out of the car, followed by sheriff LeBlanc. Mix followed both of them. They walked only a few tens of meters before they stopped in front of a small, bloody doe. She was still really young. Mix was expecting an adult doe. The adult one would have better chances for survival.

"Can you please point your flashlights at her but careful not in her eyes, only at her leg for now?" Mix put down the vet bag and stepped closer, careful not to scare her even more than she already was.

Both sheriffs and two men that were already there waiting for them to arrive focused their flashlights on the wounded, bloody leg. Mix lightly touched the leg, making the doe let out a painful ear wreaking sound. Her leg was jerking and blood was pouring out of the wound. But now when Mix could see it fully under the light...it wasn't that bad.

"Okay, I need to put her to sleep and then you need to transport her with the bear trap to the nearest vet hospital. Where is that?" Mix said, looking at sheriff LeBlanc.

"About fifty kilometres away in the neighbouring town."

"Fine, I'll go with you. She needs to get this bear trap removed as soon as possible but I can't do it alone here. It's too dangerous. If I do it here without proper equipment she can bleed out."

Sheriff Anderson gasped at Mix's word, her hand flying to her mouth.

"Can someone help me hold her so I can give her the injection?" Mix asked, taking out the sedative from the bag.

To be continued...

P.S. I'm sorry little doe, you'll be alright. I swear this is important for the plot.🥺

Everyone, please keep Ukraine in your thoughts and prayers, and please stay safe wherever in the world you are. I love you🙏❤🤎