by Darrell Bain
Elaine let out a pent-up breath. Sammie was avoiding telling the reporter she thought she could talk to animals but this was getting too close. Before Jennie could question her further, she said, "It was probably so sick it couldn't go any further and just lay down to die."
Jennie was almost certain that there was more to both stories but she didn't intend to press any further. Not now. Eventually she thought she could gain the family's confidence and they would open up. Samantha, she thought, probably knew exactly how she accomplished her feats but was prevented from saying so on orders from her parents.
"I imagine so," Ronald said. "After all, rabies is like a death sentence to any animal that contacts the disease. Sammie was very brave just the same, and we're proud of her."
"I should certainly hope so," Jennie said and while she was looking toward the girl, Ronald winked at his daughter.
She almost burst out giggling at the deception but managed to avoid it by Shufus presenting an appearance.
The German Shepherd made a bee line toward the reporter but Samantha stopped him with a single word then went on, "Shufus, this is our new friend, Jennie. Go over and say hello to her."
Obediently the dog trotted over and held up his right front paw to shake. Jennie took it briefly then let go. The dog looked back toward his mistress and made a sound between a mild woof and a questioning whine.
"He wants to know if he can get up on the couch with you," Samantha said.
"Of course he can. He's a beautiful dog."
Shufus jumped onto the couch then stretched out and put his head in Jennie's lap. She raised her brows and said to Samantha, "I've never seen such a well-behaved dog. He didn't even bark when I came in."
"I've told him to always wait for a few minutes when we have guests before he comes in. He's getting so big now he can scare a person who hasn't been introduced to him. Not that he would ever hurt anyone without my permission, though."
"Truly?"
"Of course," Samantha said, unintentionally giving Jennie another piece of the puzzle her talent presented to solve. How can she be so sure? She thought.
The doorbell rang. A moment later Ronald returned with Steve Orleans and Betty. He thought that after introductions they could drop the small talk and learn exactly what Jennie Standifer had in mind.
Chapter Nine
"Now, Ms. Standifer, I understand you want to do a book about Samantha. Could you elaborate on that please, now that my attorney is present?
"Certainly, but please call me Jennie. If what I envision comes to pass you'll be seeing more of me and I'd like to become friends with all of you."
"Alright, Jennie. I'm sure we can live with that. In fact let's all use first names. Go ahead, now."
She nodded her head at the family and proceeded to describe her vision. "What I want to do is go to Alaska and do detailed interviews with your neighbors there--but that's after talking extensively with you, Elaine and Samantha--"
"Sammie," Samantha broke in.
Betty giggled.
"Right. Sammie. After talking extensively with all of you and your former neighbors in Alaska, I would then proceed to interview the zoo staff, hopefully here at your home with you all present. During this time period I'd like to speak extensively with Sammie a few times and afterwards, drop by occasionally to see what else is happening. With all the material I'm sure to gather, I want to write a book about Sammie and the animals she's been associated with during her life, including her dog, Shufus."
Shufus' tail thumped the couch cushion upon hearing his name.
Before she could go any further the phone rang. Ronald answered it with his usual greeting of "Hello, Douglas residence." After that he was silent for a moment or two then said, "I doubt we could do it now
Dr. Summers. We're having a meeting of a business nature here at home at present." After another round of silence he said, "Wait a moment, please."
"Is that the zoo, Ron?" Elaine asked.
"Yes it is. Dr. Summers has a very ill little animal that they've been unable to diagnose. It's also on the critically endangered species list. She wanted one of us to bring Sammie to the zoo and see if she could tell them anything. When I told her we were having a meeting she offered to bring the animal here."
"What kind of animal, Dad?"
"It's a Cotton Topped Tamarin of the lemur family. It only weighs a couple of pounds."
"Ronald, you know... "
"She's afraid it's going to die unless she gets help and no one she's consulted seems to know what to do. Sammie is her last resort."
"Mom, please let her bring it here. Maybe I can... uh, see if I can help."
"I don't know. I don't want them to get into the habit of running to you every time they have a problem. Besides, look what a hullabaloo it caused with that tiger."
"Please, Mom. I saw a photo of one once. They're real cute. And maybe I can help Dr. Summers. Please?"
"Oh Lord, alright. Just this once, Sammie then no more. Tell her to bring it here but ask her to hurry. We don't want to be up all night with a sick animal."
He spoke into the phone then told his wife, "She says she can be here in fifteen minutes and she promises to come alone and keep the whole thing secret."
"I said, let her bring it," Elaine said, but not very happily.
Samantha ran to her mother and hugged her fiercely. "Thank you, thank, you, Mom. You're so good." She had tears in her eyes because she hadn't expected her mother to agree to have Dr. Summers bring the animal to their home. She was wondering if the little critter would understand her and if so, whether she could help cure it.
Jennie let out the breath she had been holding, knowing how lucky she was to be present on this occasion. She only hoped she would be allowed to stay!
***
True to her word, Dr. Summers arrived within fifteen minutes. She came in carrying a small bundle wrapped in a baby blanket supported by one arm and hand and carrying her medical bag with the other.
"Shufus, move over so Dr. Summers can sit on the couch. You can see what she has in a minute. And you be sure you don't hurt or threaten it in any way. Understand?" Samantha instructed her dog. He nodded his head and quickly moved to the other end of the couch but his ears and nose remained fully alert. He remembered Dr. Summers and liked her. She had such interesting smells of strange animal on her that he could detect with ease, even though he had no idea what they looked like.
For her part, Jennie was amazed at the amount of information the girl could convey to the dog in English. Could he really understand it all? Surely not, yet he obeyed her every command as if he did! She watched intently as the zoo veterinarian sat down on the couch and carefully unwrapped her bundle while being introduced to Jennie and Steve Orleans and his daughter.
Removing its cover revealed the little Cotton Topped Tamarin. It was curled in a fetal position and moaning and whining pitifully.
Samantha immediately came forward and kneeled in front of Dr. Summers. "Oh, you poor thing she said, knowing immediately that it was in horrible pain. "What is your name? And please tell me what it is that's hurting you so badly." Seeing and hearing the little animal suffering so had made her completely forget her mother's admonition about not talking to animals except Shufus. While waiting for it to answer she admired its long white silky fur. The covering atop its head was pure white. It had white eyebrows and short black facial hair and long black body fur except for a red shade covering its shoulders. All of it except on its face was silky and long and shiny. It was a handsome little creature except for the obvious suffering that marred its facial features.
The little ball of fur carefully opened its eyes, squinting at the bright light but evidencing puzzlement that a human could talk to it in a manner it understood.
Name Tet. Hurt. Hurt bad. Sharp stick in head and eye not there. Hurt, hurt, hurt bad!
For a moment Samantha didn't get it, but then realized the "sharp stick" it spoke of must be its description of the pain.
>
"Does it cause more pain to touch where you hurt?"
Hurts bad, here and here, Tet responded, raising one hand to touch its left eye and then running a finger below the left side of its brow just above the eye and down a bit past the left side of its eye. Then he curled up again into a ball and began moaning and crying.
"Can you tell me anything, Sammie?" Dr. Summers asked.
She thought for a moment then asked, "Does it have any nerves that run from just below the left corner of its eye and then into the eye? Tet says it hurts real, real bad, like a sharp stick it can't feel sticking it in the head and eye."
"Tet?"
"That's his name. What he calls his... his identity. That's the best way I can describe it."
Dr. Summers barely heard her for thinking then suddenly she burst into speech. She slapped her brow smartly enough to be painful. "Of course! All primates have trigeminal nerves, just like we do! I'll bet that's what this is. When the trigeminal nerve in a human acts up it's usually the part below the eye but obviously not with this little fellow. In humans it's horribly painful, so I imagine it's the same with it."
"Not it. Tet. Can you help him?"
"I really wish I were back at the zoo. All I can do here is give him a shot of pain reliever directly to the nerve, but it will only last an hour or two. Will he hold still while I do it? I wouldn't want him to get stuck in the eye with a needle!"
"I'll hold him while you do it and tell him not to move. Can I sit by you and hold him?"
"Certainly. Just be gentle with him."
"Oh, I will. Move over, Shufus. I need to sit there." The dog scooted back enough to make room for her.
Jennie had watched all this with wide-eyed amazement. Elaine was watching at first, but when Samantha began talking to the little tamarin she covered her face with her hands. Not again! She thought. But then she decided her reaction gave away too much and began looking at the vet and her daughter ministering to the Cotton-topped Tamarin again. Maybe they'll think that's just her way of talking and that she doesn't really think the animal understands her. Let's hope so anyway!
Steve Orleans was watching as well but with more of a professional interest while Ronald kept an eye on his new friend and attorney to see what he thought. Ronald already believed his daughter could communicate with mammals, unlike his wife. He wondered what Steve would think, especially after having been helped with Tuffy.
"I'm ready," Dr. Summers said, holding up her syringe.
"Now you hold real still, Tet. Don't move at all. There's going to be a little stick and it will hurt a little bit at first but then all your pain will go away for a while." she whispered to the distressed animal.
Not move, yes,Tet replied.
To everyone's surprise, including that of Dr. Summers, the tamarin practically froze in place while she injected the pain killer directly into the upper trigeminal nerve just past where it split into three separate branches. The one she injected ran above the eye. She was sure it was the cause of all the little lemur's pain. She finished the injection quickly.
"I'm done, Sammie. Do you want me to take him now?"
"Let me hold him until the shot takes effect, please. May I?"
"Of course."
Samantha held him and crooned encouraging words for a few moments then the tamarin blinked its eyes open. It looked around then threw its arms around Samantha's neck.
No more hurt!It said to her. No pain like wasps stinging eye!
"Tet isn't hurting any more right now," Samantha said to the veterinarian.
"Thank the Lord. Let me see if he'll eat a little. He lost his appetite with the pain and must be starving." She dug into her bag and fetched out a large dead grasshopper that she held out to him. The tamarin grabbed it from her hand and began munching away. Then he saw Shufus for the first time. He dropped the remains of the grasshopper into his lap and shrank away from the dog. He buried his face against Samantha's chest, chittering in fear.
"Shufus won't hurt you, Tet. Let him sniff you and lick your hand."
Not hurt? Not eat Tet?
"No."
Shufus inched closer then sniffed then licked the tamarin's tentatively outstretched hand.
"That's enough, Shufus. Let him eat now."
The cotton top recovered his grasshopper and swiftly consumed the rest of it, all the while staring at Shufus as if the much bigger animal might try to take it away from him. Samantha laughed and Shufus woofed very lightly, barely making a sound. He appeared to be disappointed when Samantha gave him back to Dr. Summers. Shufus nosed closer to Samantha until his head was in her lap.
At that moment the doorbell rang.
"What is this, a circus?" Elaine mumbled. She made a motion for her husband to stay seated. "I'll get it Ron."
She unlocked and opened the door to the length of the safety chain. "Who is it and what do you want?" she said sharply, ready to send any reporter or busybody on their way quickly.
"I am Ms. Jesha Meriweather from Child Protective Services. I need to speak to you and the rest of the family immediately.
"Did you say Child Protective Services?"
"That's correct. Please open the door."
"What do you want? You must have the wrong address."
"If this is where the Douglas family lives, I'm at the correct address and I would advise you to allow me to come in."
Reluctantly, Elaine opened the door and let the woman enter. She was rather short, slightly overweight and had her dark hair in braids coiled tightly into a bun.
In the living room she took Meriweather directly to her husband but before she could even introduce her or tell him what she was there for, Steve saw her. He stood up with an astonished look and demanded, "What are you doing here?"
Chapter Ten
Meriweather's mouth gaped open in utter consternation for a moment then slowly closed. She eyed the lawyer like she might have a burglar who was pointing a gun at her. "I could ask you the same question," she finally said.
"I'm here as the Douglas family's attorney and that includes Samantha. I really hope you're not here on CPS business because if you are, I'm afraid you're going to be severely disappointed."
"We'll see about that!" she responded forcefully but an expression much like fright passed over her, almost like a dark cloud casting its shadow on her face.
Dr. Summers was intrigued and puzzled by the woman's stated reason for being present. She passed the tamarin back to Samantha in order to get to her phone so that she could record the scene.
"What is this?" Elaine demanded of the Lufkin CPS director. "I hope you're not thinking of trying to take Samantha from us. Are you?" Her eyes bored into those of the other woman as if she were physically threatening her daughter. Her gaze spoke volumes about what she would be getting into if she tried.
Shufus growled softly.
"Easy, boy. She's not going to hurt us."
"I'm here to prevent you from getting hurt, young lady. And what on earth is that thing in your lap? Does it bite?"
"No but my dog will if anyone threatens me," Samantha said positively.
"Don't take that attitude with me or--"
"I think you'd better shut up and leave, Jesha," Steve said. "This young lady is in no more danger than my own daughter is."
"We'll see about that. I'm here on an official investigation and her parents are legally obligated to cooperate with me. If I find that she's been subjected to danger, such as contact with a possible disease-carrying animal like that creature in her lap or from hugging tigers, I believe the state will take a dim view of how her parents are caring for her."
"Yes, we will see," Steve declared, taking out his phone and dialing a number.
"Is Child Protective Services really investigating us?" Ronald asked unbelievingly.
"I think it would be more apt to say that Jesha Meriweather has taken it upon herself to investigate you in order to gain publicity for herself. Samantha's in no danger and I'll be glad to... excuse me.
" He spoke into his phone. "Your honor, I'm at the home of Samantha Douglas, the young lady who was recently in the news over that escaped tiger."
"Yes, that's the one. And Jesha Meriweather just appeared here to, in her words, investigate the situation. I believe she's already made up her mind to remove Samantha from her home because of the supposed danger her parents helped expose her to."
"Yes, your honor, that's right. I'm not only their attorney but Samantha is friends with my daughter and helped us enormously when we were having a problem with our dog. She got it and us all straightened out in just one week and we haven't had any trouble since."
He listened for a moment, then continued, "Right now Dr. Summers, the Zoo's veterinarian is here. She brought a sick lemur from an endangered species here because the family and I had a business meeting and couldn't go to the zoo."
"Oh yes, your honor. She diagnosed the problem right off. It was an inflamed nerve that was causing the poor thing an enormous amount of pain. Excuse me a moment, your honor."
Dr. Summers had been waving at him since the zoo was mentioned. "Yes, what is it?"
"I've brought a contract with me to hire Samantha as a consultant for the zoo. That comes with a retainer and the contract specifies that she will never be put in danger and that one of her parents must be present when we call on her."
"Your honor, there's another factor here." He described the veterinarian's statement and went on to say, "I believe Jesha is simply after some publicity for herself rather than actually believing Sammie is in any kind of danger from her home environment. Personally, I think she's one of the most well-adjusted young ladies of her age I've ever seen. She is an absolute wizard with animals and she also obviously loves both her parents."
Elaine flinched at the word "wizard" but she was much more concerned over the woman from CPS.
"I think a restraining order would be just fine, your honor. I'll hold myself personally responsible, too. You can find me in contempt of court if anyone discovers a thing that proves Samantha has been, or is presently in any kind of danger whatsoever. Even if she were, her almost constant companion is a young German Shepherd dog that would protect her with its life if necessary."