‘So, according to this, the work we do here is confidential.’ That was as he’d expected, but the final clause was surprising. ‘And any designs you produce will be available to others under a creative commons licence. I was assuming you’d hold the rights to your own designs.’
‘I want them to be of use to as many people as possible. This agreement means that you can’t assume any rights that would prevent me from doing that.’
The idea hadn’t occurred to Drew, and he suspected it hadn’t occurred to Lucas either. But Caro seemed unwilling to trust in that, and her plan to allow anyone to use her work free of charge was more than generous.
‘You’re sure you want to do that? Holding the patent would mean you’d make some money from your work.’
‘I have an income from other patented work I’ve done. I don’t need any more, and this is...a holiday.’
‘A holiday?’ Drew raised his eyebrows and Caro shrugged.
‘It’s what I love the most. And there’s a beach down there, isn’t there?’
Right. Drew would lay odds that Caro hadn’t explored the beach or her tiny island home. He reminded himself that it wasn’t his business what she chose to do on this so-called holiday, and that if she just wanted to work then that was entirely up to her. He couldn’t deny the potential benefits to the veterinary community.
‘Okay.’ He picked up the pen. ‘Can I sign now?’
‘Yes. Please do.’ She allowed herself a smile. ‘Now that you know exactly what your responsibilities are.’
As far as Drew could see, his responsibilities extended to not meddling with Caro’s generosity. He had no problem with that. He picked up the pen, signing both pieces of paper, and Caro snatched one up.
‘Right, then. I’ll show you where I am with everything... Ew!’
Drew followed Caro’s gaze and saw that Phoenix had taken advantage of the fact that he wasn’t looking and was pretending that the puddle she’d made was nothing to do with her. Luckily she’d chosen the tiles in front of the hearth...
‘Oh. I’m sorry, I should have taken her outside. I’ll clean up—do you have an old cloth and some disinfectant?’ Drew got to his feet as quickly as he could manage.
‘That’s okay. Tony’ll deal with it. Tony!’
Before Drew could ask, the sound of whirring caught his attention. Out of the corner of his eye he saw something shoot across the floor towards him, and he stepped aside to get out of its way. The small, tortoise-shaped machine stopped at Caro’s feet, and a little head poked out from under the textured carapace.
‘Tony. Liquid spill. Hearth.’
The little creature—because it was hard to see it just as a vacuum cleaner—responded immediately. Zipping over to the hearth, it seemed to be searching for the puddle, and when it sensed it another whirring sound indicated that it was dealing with it.
‘That’s...impressive.’
‘He’s just a prototype.’ Caro was smiling fondly. ‘I think I might make him move a little slower. As he’s a tortoise.’
‘And it responds to your commands.’
Caro nodded. ‘And to my voice. Try calling him.’
It felt a little odd, but Drew called the vacuum cleaner’s name. It ignored him completely, its mechanical mind set on sucking up the spill and then buffing the tiles of the hearth.
Phoenix was keeping her distance, crouched on the floor, clearly wondering what this was. But she overcame her mistrust quickly and padded up to Tony, her nose twitching. When she extended her paw, the whirring stopped, and the tortoise head moved back and forth, seeming to try to sense the source of the movement. Phoenix took that as an invitation to be friends and pawed at Tony’s shell.
‘Tony. Go to the kitchen.’ Caro issued another command, and the tortoise pushed slowly past Phoenix. As soon as the puppy was out of range it gathered speed, shooting back towards the kitchen. Phoenix was caught up in the game, racing after it and trying to make friends again. Tony slowed down when Phoenix approached, moving gently from one side to the other as the puppy jumped around.
Drew chuckled. ‘Outstanding. Does the vacuuming and plays with the dog.’
‘Tony doesn’t know what a dog is. He’s got sensors that make him respond whenever something moves close by, it’s a safety thing. Phoenix is just confusing him.’ Caro called out another command. ‘Tony. Sleep.’
The tortoise stilled, but Phoenix still wouldn’t let it alone. Drew called her, and she ignored him completely. She could take a few lessons in obedience from her new mechanical friend.
Caro seemed suddenly unaware of his existence too, watching Tony and Phoenix thoughtfully. It occurred to Drew that perhaps she was considering extending Tony’s range to take in play, but at the moment Phoenix looked as if she was trying to tip the vacuum cleaner over. He walked across to the kitchen, shooing Phoenix away.
‘Interesting...’ Caro seemed to be making the observation to herself, and then her gaze found Drew. ‘I’ll think about that later. Come and see what I’m doing.’