The strange noises and smells along with the sick feeling in my gut didn’t allow for much sleep. Every time a car would go down the street, I would listen intently for any sound that it had stopped. I didn’t know how likely it was that those that had ransacked the lab would still be looking for us yet. It might take them a while to figure out my doggie pals weren’t quite what they were after. They might figure I was playing dumb and try and wait me out. It all depended on how much real and specific information on me they had. A lot depended on what they wanted me for. I couldn’t imagine someone going to this much trouble to take dogs even as smart as the others. This had to be tied to something that woman Donna from Sacramento had said or written down. She obviously had piqued someone’s interest. I went into the house and waited at the back door to be let out. Amanda’s mom saw me first. She walked over to open the door but stopped and looked into my eyes.
“My daughter believes you are worth going to a lot of trouble for. She says you are a creature in which there is no guile” she said slowly. I shook my head and waited before answering
“I won’t let anything happen to your daughter ma’am. I would die to protect her.” There was no trace of untruth in my voice and I realized as I said it, that I had meant it. She smiled.
“I believe you would, but I certainly hope you won’t have to, Joan. My daughter feels the same way about you” she said softly while sliding open the door. I bowed my head in thanks then headed for the bricks in the corner. Before business as usual, I sniffed the morning air and listened to the sounds of the waking neighborhood. Other than the sick spot in my heart, all seemed well with the world. I took care of things quickly and headed back in.
The smell of frying bacon was well underway, and the house already seemed a better place. Pete stood at the gas cook top, a pair of tongs and a spatula held high over a sizzling frying pan.
“Hope you don’t mind scrambled eggs, Joan” he said with a grin. “ I broke the yokes” I smiled back but answered truthfully.
“Your daughter would probably prefer you feed me something lower in fat and cholesterol sir” This reply brought a huge explosive laugh from the man’s chest. He practically doubled over.
“Now I’ve heard it all! A dog turning down bacon and eggs!”
“ I’m not turning it down,” I stammered, “it’s just…”
“Amanda’s still asleep, my wife only wants coffee and we don’t have dog food in the house” he interrupted with a smile. ”But if you want to wait?” I looked around quickly, my mouth watering in spite of myself.
“No whatever you have is fine, thanks” I managed to get out
“I thought so.” He replied, sliding half a pan of yellow fluffyness and two strips of bacon onto a plate and setting it in front of me. I stood there in disbelief while he sat down at the table with the other half and said “Dig in!” I didn’t have to be asked a second time. I finished before he had taken four bites, but this is probably because he was still chuckling. It didn’t take long for the smell of breakfast to rouse Amanda. She showed up in the kitchen scolded her father for feeding me eggs, then of course asked him to make her some more breakfast for her. He did while rambling on with his daughter about how dogs have been eating and sharing the food of man for thousands of years. Even before the invention of pet food companies. I sat there looking stupidly at the two of them enjoying each other and for just a few minutes, It seemed that I could almost forget the seriousness of our situation.
Amanda’s mother had been watching the news in the living room for more information but joined us for a second cup of coffee while Amanda ate. She told us that the police had found the van used for the attack on the lab and to steal the dogs down near the Port of Oakland. It was, of course empty. I wondered what I could find out about it by giving it a good sniff. Amanda checked for messages on her phone while her father cleaned up. No calls. . Amanda started to try Jimmy’s number but her father stopped her.
“Let’s do that from a payphone”, he said.
“Dad! I don’t even know where to find one these days” she said.
“We’ll find one” was his reply. I had to agree with him. If these guys were serious, they would be waiting for a call from us and might know how to use the GPS in Amanda’s phone to find us. Amanda decided to try and find a pay phone while we searched for dog food. I sort of expected that. It was too good to last.
Amanda’s dad said there was a pet store a couple of miles away but insisted that he go with us. He found Amanda a floppy hat and a pair of sunglasses and told her to wear them. She didn’t give him a hard time about it. I guess the reality of Josh’s death was settling in. Before we left, We waited in the doorway out of sight while Pete walked out to the curb, stooped to pick up the morning news and had a good look up and down the street. Soon he began motioning for us to come out. Amanda’s mom looked nervously through the crack in the door as we made our way to the car. I could hear the deadbolt click.
“Makes me glad I still take the paper” he said somberly. Amanda grabbed it from him as she opened the door to her car and pushed the seat forward. I jumped in the back and laid low.
“You drive dad.. you know where we’re going” she said getting in on the right. “I want to look at the paper and see if they have any more information about yesterday.” Pete got in on the driver’s side, adjusted the seat and soon we pulled away from the curb and out into the street.
The pet food store was a couple of miles away and it didn’t take long to get there. It was early and they were just opening up. I thought I might have to wait in the car, but Amanda’s dad said that they let people bring dogs inside. I didn’t have to be asked twice. I fell in behind father and daughter as they locked the car and headed inside. The woman at the register looked up from what she was doing and smiled at us as we came through the door. She seemed to be trying to decide if I was going to be well mannered. I guess the way I stated close to Amanda and Paul satisfied her and she looked back down. The incredible variety of smells was a fascinating puzzle for me. Near the door, a row of gurgling fish tanks, a display of rawhide chew toys, collars, leather leashes, the paper of books, all of this quickly overshadowed by a box of open dog cookies and farther back…puppies! Their smell was unmistakable. I stopped at an isle that made its way to the back and could see rows of cages behind a glass barrier. I could just make out the sound of their yips and cries from where I stood. I wanted very much to see more, but obediently followed my humans to the big breed food shelf.
“Puppies!” I tried to whisper. Amanda was looking at the food. She pointed to a large sack and Paul heaved it up and slung it over his shoulder. Amanda knelt down and keeping her voice low, replied,
“Yes Joan, they are sold here, but this is usually not the best way to find a healthy pet.” I am not totally naive. I realize that my kind is bought and sold. The most marketable age to do this is when we are very young. For some reason, I have concerns about this. It kind of seems like getting married too young.
“Can I see them?” I asked eagerly. She hesitated, then nodded “Of course” Amanda’s dad carried the sack of dog food toward the counter as Amanda and I continued toward the back of the store. I could hear the bag hit the floor with a thump. I could hear him speaking kindly to the clerk. My attention shifted away as Amanda and I stopped at the large glass window. Behind it were three rows of cages. Most of them were empty but several had occupants. Some of the puppies were sleeping, their furry bodies pressed against the wire of the cages. One fellow was putting on quite a show. He capered and thrashed a rubber mouse toy with great enthusiasm. It made me sad to think that he had so recently been taken from his family and his mother. He didn’t seem to mind. I know that my intelligence gives me a much greater and more complex understanding of situations than other four legged philosophers. I am sure he remembers his family, but I don’t know for how long.
We caught up with Pete at the car. He had just dropped the sack of food in the trunk and closed the lid. In his hand was another bag.
“Got this” he said, opening the bag for me. I stuck my whole head in and took a good look and a sniff. It was a chest harness, similar to the kind guide dogs for the blind wear, with a looped leather handle sticking straight up at the back. I looked at him quizzically.
“You can wear this if we need to go inside a different kind of store or someplace where dogs are not usually allowed” he explained. “Amanda can pretend to be blind. She’s already got the glasses”
Amanda stood looking at him with hand on hip and a look of real surprise on her face.
“It’s actually a good idea, and you know it” he said. I had to admit he was right and nodded my approval. Pete knelt down to fasten the straps around my torso.
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“I didn’t know they sold those kinds of harnesses at a regular pet store” she said at last. “It does solve the problem of no place to attach a leash on the speaking collar” Amanda finally agreed. “But why can’t you be the blind one?” she asked with a grin.
“I intend to keep my eyes wide open to look for trouble” he admitted pointing a distance away in the shopping center parking lot. “Phone’s over there.”
Paul stood with his feet shoulder width apart, looking nervously around while Amanda tried the number on the pay phone. Jimmy picked up, first ring.
“Jimmy! Where are you?” she asked breathlessly. “What a relief….” She paused while he spoke, but I couldn’t hear what he said. “No,” she said, looking down at me and then over at her father. She looked worried. “What time? Ok Jimmy, see you there” she stopped, and quickly hung up the phone.
“What did he say?” Pete asked as Amanda slumped, bending over with her hands on her knees. She looked like she had the wind knocked out of her.
“He told me to meet me at my apartment and to ‘bring the dog’. I don’t Jimmy would have put it that way, dad! He would have called her ‘Joan’. This is bad! He wants to meet there at ten o’clock“
“That’s about forty five minutes” Pete said matter-of-factly “But Honey, we are going to need to call the police on this, right away”.
The phone call to the police did not go well. Pete was angry. Amanda was crying.
“They said they’d send a car?” she said incredulously. “Dad, Josh was murdered!” I looked at the pavement, also miserable.
“They also said not to let you go to the meeting” Pete continued. “And I agree with them.” Amanda turned red.
“I don’t think they thought I would try to go” he said, “But I am.”
“What am I supposed to do then? Sit at home with mom?” She asked angrily
“You need to take care of Joan, keep her safe” he replied
“Oh… I’m going too” I said quickly. “The police didn’t mention me!”
“That’s ‘cause they don’t know about you Joan!” said Amanda “It would be totally playing into these people’s hand if you get anywhere near that apartment”
“Look Amanda,” I implored trying to make eye contact, but she was looking away with red and puffy eyes, “. I’ve already lost Josh. You and Jimmy are the only family I’ve got left. Jimmy is my friend. I care about him too much to sit around and let something happen to him!” This last bit caused her head to swivel around and our eyes met at last. She knelt down and hugged me around the neck, burying her face in my fur. I felt an additional hand on my head and Pete’s voice wavered with emotion as he said,
“Not the only family, Joan.”
I looked up at him and met his gaze “Thank you sir” I managed.
“You’ve got to let me go, Dad!” Amanda implored pulling her face off my neck. I could not see her expression, but saw his resolve melt as he realized he didn’t have time to fight with her about it.
“Let’s get going” was his only reply as he opened the car door and folded forward the seat so I could jump into the back.
Amanda’s apartment was in Berkeley, near the lab. We didn’t have much time but we stopped by her parent’s house on the way. Pete went in alone and was back in about two minutes. He told us that he wanted to let Amanda’s mom know that we had talked to Jimmy. I suppose it was only obvious that he failed to fill her in on the more difficult details. A not too mysterious bulge could be seen in the middle of his back under his tee shirt which he just happened to start wearing un-tucked. Amanda didn’t seem to notice but I did. I had not expected him to bring a gun. With his daughter along on such a venture, I could understand his wanting to have fall back on if things went really sour.
Continuing on to the small apartment near the Lab, Amanda told her father to park a couple of blocks away.
“It’s two streets up on the left , the units on the corner ” She said
“I know, honey” Pete replied, “Its blue. I helped you move in. Remember?”
“I was telling Joan, she’s never been here” she replied smiling.
I suddenly had an idea.
“Let me out!” I said “I want you two to stay put while I do some reconnaissance. “ Pete and Amanda exchanged doubtful looks. “I can figure out how many we are up against and get back here before they even see me” I assured them. “Remember, my ancestors were wolves!”
Amanda looked at her father then leaned forward in the seat and cracked open the door. I squeezed past. “Six twenty one, apartment D. It’s in the back!” she hissed out the window. I nodded and didn’t look back until I was three houses up the street. I went yard to yard using the landscaping and fences as cover. Popping my head around a hedge, I could see father and daughter talking and gesturing through the windshield. They were probably already regretting letting me go alone.
It was a fine morning and there were people on the street and in their yards. There were less people outside and the cover looked better on the other side so I crossed as soon as I could, using a passing grocery delivery truck as a partial screen. I think the driver caught a glimpse of me in the rear view mirror as I shot across behind him like a yellow bullet. Other than the truck, there was no traffic on this quiet Berkeley back street. I stuck to cover and moved fast. My nose was my early warning system. It was a huge advantage to be traveling into the soft morning breeze. I pulled up at the yard across the street from the apartment crouching low behind some junipers and took a look.
The apartment was more like a four-plex. The small yard in the front had a wooden pick nick table and benches. The table had a hole in the center that supported a large shade umbrella. At the table was Jimmy. He was not alone. A dark skinned man of either South American or Arab decent impeccably dressed sat next to him. I could smell his cologne. It partially blocked Jimmy’s fear. He was terrified. They were both sitting on the same side of the table. Unfortunately they were looking up the street in my direction. They obviously had not seen my approach. Thanks wolf genes.
Looking closer, I could see that the man had his hand under his coat and the coat was pushed aside hard into Jimmy’s ribs. I couldn’t smell it but the hand most likely held a gun. I spotted the second guy about ten seconds later. He was two houses down, on the other side of the street. He had one foot up on one of those placard bus benches advertising a local car dealership. Also dressed in a suit, his eyes scanned both directions up and down the block. He looked bored and hot. He probably wished he had pulled the umbrella duty. I figured the guy with Jimmy to be in charge.
I was about to extricate myself from the juniper bush and head back to Amanda and Pete when the police car turned the corner. It stopped across the street from the table. There were two uniformed cops inside. Jimmy stiffened and looked even more nervously at the man at his side as the hand inside the jacket pulled away and transferred to the other side facing the officers. The guy on the bench straightened up too, fiddling with his coat button. Pete’s call to the police had been taken more seriously than we had thought. With the gun out of his ribs and two cops just yards away, Jimmy looked like he was thinking about making a run for it. His eyes darted back and forth between his captor and the street. Perhaps if I could create a distraction... From somewhere behind me I could hear someone coming. He was whistling a quick and nervous tune. I glanced back. It was Pete! He swung his arms in an exaggerated way as he approached the corner where I lay hidden. As he got a glance at the situation unfolding in front of him the whistling stopped. I think he saw me. He looked away fast. The doors of the police car opened.
I have read stories where humans have reported that time seems to slow down in situations of great stress and rapid activity. For me it was the other way around. It happened way too fast. The man at the bus stop had three rounds fired before I was over the hedge. The first two hit the cop on the passenger side in the chest and in the neck. He went down in a fountain of spurting crimson. The blood forcing its way through his fingers as he desperately slapped at the wound. The third shot hit the door of the police car. Behind it was crouched the driver who had just managed to get down behind it. He of course was clearing his weapon to return fire at the man who had probably just killed his partner. He aimed to fire at the man by the bench who quickly ducked out of sight. Unfortunately the officer was open to the side and the guy holding Jimmy brought up his weapon. His first shot turned the driver’s window to crystal shards hanging crazily like the web of a drunk spider. The cop jumped inside, slamming the door. Glass fragments followed him.
I bounded across the asphalt of the street. The guy still hanging on to Jimmy repositioned to fire again. Clearing the small fence, I hit him like a yellow battering ram knocking him backwards. My teeth found bone deep inside his arm. I bit down until I felt it break. It snapped twice but somehow even with me on top of him, he managed to hold onto the gun. On his back, screaming and cursing in Arabic, he tried to roll me off. To his credit, Jimmy didn’t run but stepped down hard on his gun hand, pinning it to the ground and probably breaking a finger or two. More screams.
Writhing and twisting he battered Jimmy’s leg with his free arm. Jimmy twisted his foot and crunched down harder, ignoring the pain. From the street I could hear the cop in the car urgently calling for backup on the radio.
The guy at the bus bench had ducked behind a brick pillar but must have realized he wasn’t going to need much more help with the remaining cop and began running toward us. A look of rage and hate burned in his eyes as he saw Jimmy standing over his partner. Without conscious thought I found myself letting go of the gun arm and moving to intercept him. Somehow I could sense that this one had taken part in killing Josh. The blood lust was upon me. He brought up his gun to fire.
Most dogs would probably run straight into a weapon like a handgun, especially if they had no real concept of where the killing end of such a thing was. I knew better. I weaved and dodged crazily as we closed the gap between us. This threw him, I think, as I felt several of his shots miss, but not by much. I threw myself forward and upward at the end of my charge trying to curve in from the side, aiming for the throat, but never made contact. A shocked look crossed his face and I could feel and smell the breath knocked out of him as his direction changed so abruptly that I missed hitting him completely snapping at air. , Out of his back came a plume of red as the bullet exited the center of his chest, spinning him violently backwards. He tumbled into the street landing with his arms and legs in an impossible position for the conscious. Blood pooled. Finishing my arc, I skidded to an awkward stop and looked back. The shot hadn’t come from the cop.
It was Pete. He stood in the center of the intersection. His hand was still holding the revolver he had brought along. I met his eyes for half a second before both of us dashed back toward Jimmy who was still struggling to hold the man on the ground. My hackles stood high on my back as the deepest snarl I have ever made roared from my throat. I wanted to kill him too! I was on him in seconds.
“You Bastard! You killed Josh! I’m going to tear your throat out!” I screamed standing over him. His face went red, then pale as he realized I was not just barking but using words. He struggled even harder in panic. It took everything I had to hold back. I wanted him dead!
“No Joan!” Jimmy said quickly, sensing my thoughts. Only Amanda, running up from behind us probably saved him. I didn’t want her to see me tearing out this man’s throat. She probably would have trouble forgetting that image. The man continued to look up at me, a look of horror on his face. At last, together, Pete and Jimmy were able to wrestle the gun away from him. Pete kicked it away. It clattered against the leg of the patio table. Pete stood by menacingly as Jimmy continued to hold the man down. But at least for now, all the fight seemed to be out of him. All of this had taken less than 30 seconds. I could hear sirens screaming in the distance, coming closer very quickly.
“Somebody check on the wounded officers” Pete said. Amanda and I looked at each other and began running toward the car. People from houses up and down the street were timidly peeking out of windows and peering out of doors just cracked open. The cop in the car was bleeding badly but very alive. Covered in glass and multiple deep cuts, he had been saved largely by his bullet proof vest. He raised his forehead, smeared with blood, above the windowsill and grunted as Amanda and I approached the car. Seeing a woman he pulled the handle, kicked open the door and slid out. Glass crunched noisily, falling from his hair and uniform like crystal ice droplets as he rolled to his feet. He still held his gun as he scanned the crumpled mass of the dead man in the middle of the street then turned to look at the fallen body of his partner on the other side of the car. His face looked ashen.
“They need you over there, officer” Amanda said meekly as she gestured behind us at her father and Jimmy. He nodded curtly.
“What the Hell are you people doing here?” he shouted, running toward them but keeping his gun leveled at Jimmy’s prisoner.
Quickly circling behind the cruiser I could see that his partner if not dead, would be soon. An enormous pool of blood ran from the sidewalk into the gutter of the street. The gushing flow from the wound in the man’s neck was now only a ragged spatter. He wasn’t conscious. Amanda quickly sat down on the curb and applied pressure over the hole in his neck anyway. I laid by her side and put my chin on her knee. Tears flooded her face as she looked into the officer’s glazing eyes. They looked so surprised.