Page 40 of One Cut Deeper
Determined to get it over with, I gather up my purse. I open my door and Sheba starts to follow me. “Stay. I’m sorry, girl, but I can’t take you in there with me.”
Whining, she gives me a reproachful look and sits down in the passenger seat. She’s so big her ears brush the top of the car.
Guilt swells in my chest but I shut the door, making sure the windows are cracked. I’d never think of leaving her in the car if it was summer. “I’ll be back in a few minutes.”
I hurry inside and ask to speak to someone in enrollment. A nice-looking man in slacks and a tie guides me to his office. He talks the whole way, welcoming me to Vanderholt and chattering about the weather. All I catch is his first name, John.
“So what can I help you with today?”
I sit down in front of his desk. “I’m interested in your vet tech program.”
He frowns. “I’m sorry, that program is out of our St. Louis branch. We don’t have those classes on this campus.”
I almost snort.Your freaking campus is a Kmart building.“So can I take the classes online?”
“Not for that program, no. Most of our classes require hands-on training through extensive labs, which is what you look for in this type of program. Could I interest you in our dental assistant program instead?”
I barely suppress a shudder. Ugh. I can’t imagine digging around in people’s mouths all day, and I’m petrified of going to the dentist. “No, thanks.”
“Medical assistant? We have a really nice relationship with the local hospitals and doctors’ offices. You’d be able to get a job right away.”
“No. I want to work with animals. Do you know of anyone in town who has a vet tech program?”
He smiles and spreads his hands apologetically. “I’m afraid not. Sorry I couldn’t help you today. If you change your mind on the other programs, give me a call. Classes start next week.”
“Out of curiosity, do you know how much the vet tech program costs?”
“I’m not sure, but I’m guessing in the twenty- to thirty-grand range.” At the look of horror on my face, he hurriedly continues. “With our government grants and extensive loan programs, you could get everything paid for up front.”
“Yeah, and then have a monstrous student loan to pay back. No thanks.”
I don’t take his offered card. Twenty grand! I only make twelve bucks an hour and haven’t worked up to full time yet. What a joke. Even if I got a super well-paying job afterward, I can’t expect to make more than thirty or thirty-five thousand a year. It’d take forever to pay off those loans. I pause at the door so I can dig my keys out of my purse.
“Well, whaddaya know, it’s the dog sitter.”
I jerk my gaze up to the man’s face, but I don’t immediately recognize him. He has that normal white-guy look. Brown hair, not too tall, not too short, not too heavy. Just average. But the gold Suburban parked across from my Focus tells me who he is. The creepy neighbor.
I give him a slight smile and start toward my car. Sheba has her paws braced against the passenger door, her nose up at the crack in the window.
“Are you thinking about going to college?”
I shrug but hurry my step. “I don’t think so. They don’t have what I’m looking for.”
He snags my arm in a vicious grip and gives me a tug toward his SUV. “Maybe I can help you with that.”
He wants to get me into his car.
Digging in my heels, I jerk away. Sheba turns into Cujo, viciously barking and frothing at the mouth as if she suddenly has rabies. I’m afraid she’ll hurt herself trying to break the glass, but I don’t want to let her out, either. The last thing I want to do is explain to Charlie how I let his dog bite somebody.
“Holy shit.” The guy holds his hands up like I pulled a gun on him. “Control that goddamned dog before somebody gets hurt.”
I rush around to the driver’s side of my Focus, putting a car between us. “Don’t touch me. She doesn’t like it when people touch me.” Actually I didn’t know that until this moment, but I love her all the more for it.
“DidCharlietell you where he was going this time?”
I hesitate, my hand on the car door. The weird emphasis he put on Charlie’s name sets my teeth on edge.
The man laughs. “I bet you have no idea what he’s doing. You don’t know him at all.”