Before Uncle Rain arrived, the front door burst open to reveal Maggie Khan, come to check up on our new livestock. My father asked her to call at her earliest convenience, and so it was no surprise that she made it over in double quick time. For one thing, she was one of my dad’s oldest friends—she shared a house with him and Uncle Rain when they were all at university. And she could never resist the lure of meeting new animals.
Maggie was carrying a large cardboard box as well as her hefty medical bag, and looked as energetic and competent as ever. She had her long hair pulled back in a tight plait, and the usual thick black eyeliner emphasising her huge dark eyes. She was quite good-looking in a horsey kind of way—she was tall and slim and had a long, serious face—although Helen once sa
