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“But doesn’t this cost a lot, May?”
“It does,” she explains. “But there’s something you need to know. We had a lucky streak, and since then, I’ve made some big changes to this place.”
I look around. The changes are already apparent, with the movers taking anything and everything inside.
“But how can we afford this? What happened to the debt collectors?”
May turns to me, sighing.
“Well, there’s someone who came by about a week ago. He gave me the money and told me to invest it in this place and pay the bills. A good Samaritan.”
“Wait, it’s not—”
“I’m not going to say. He asked for a vow of silence, but he wanted to do this for this place and for you.”
I take in her words.There’s no way that May means Robert, right? Who else could it be, right?
“Is it Robert?”
“I won’t say. But what I will say is this place is about to have a whole new breath of fresh air. And I’m excited to see what’ll happen next.”
I nod, looking out. The fencing has been improved with industrial-strength fenced-in areas.
“How can we afford all of this?”
“The person who gave this to me also paid for renovations. He wants to make sure that this place is ready for whatever animals need us.”
“This is just . . . amazing!”
Tears well up in my eyes. I know that this is a home for me but knowing that it won’t be leaving anytime soon brings me a relief that can’t compare.
May turns to me, her expression changing to a serious look.
“There is something else I want to talk to you about, Sara. Something I’ve wanted to mention to you before. I needed the right time when the bills were gone, of course.”
“What is it?” I ask tepidly.
She encourages me to follow her to the back office, closing the door. When we get there, I sit down, the ticking clock the only sound in the room. May is much better now, but she still gives a little cough and then looks at me.
“I want you to take over this place.”
“Wait, you can’t be serious?” I spit out. I love this place, but this is not what I was expecting to hear.
“Yes, I’m serious. You’ve proven to me, time and time again, that you’re reliable, Sara. I want you to take over this place. You are like a granddaughter to me. I have no family but you.”
My hands clench my thighs as I listen to her. I shake my head, completely shocked. I really didn’t think she’d actually turn the sanctuary over to me.
“But May, I’m still so young and—”
“So? I’m not getting any younger, Sara.”
“I’m not trained to be a veterinarian. I sure don’t have the money to go back to school—”
“That’s why I’m sending you back to school. If I’m going to keep this place alive for future generations, I want nobody else but you to be running it.”
I listen to her words, completely shocked. There’s no way this is actually happening, right? May smiles, and as I see the wrinkles still prominent, the realization hits me.
She is getting too old to run this on her own.
