by Dale Mayer
Essentially it was the same thing. They’d broken up, and she’d moved on. The fact that it was with his brother hurt, and yet, Zane could also see how that the connection was already there. She was, in a way, primed for that relationship because Brody had been around them a lot when they dated, when they were a couple. Brody just quickly jumped in once Zane was gone.
Maybe that was a resentment he felt toward his brother, even though he had died and now could never make amends verbally. Zane felt in his heart that sense of his brother taking advantage of Holly, but, like she had said, they’d been happy. She’d eventually loved Brody, but she still loved Zane too.
He wasn’t sure how that worked, didn’t know that he really wanted to inspect it too closely either.
He could hear sounds upstairs and realized she was tossing and turning, probably not sleeping worth a damn. And that was too bad because she needed it. Of all the things she needed right now, she—and Katch—needed sleep.
He wandered out into the backyard again, leaving the door open in case Katch wanted to come out, taking a seat on the wooden bench. She had an acre here and was less than ten minutes to the center of town, and that was just enough space to know you had neighbors out there, but they weren’t close enough to get in your face. The fact that she also had a ton of trees helped give her more privacy. He couldn’t see the neighbors on either side. He knew they were there because he had passed their driveways. But he’d never been down those driveways to see who lived there or in what kind of residences. If he walked her property, he could probably see more, but he’d have to care to do that, and he didn’t really care at the moment. He was too torn up with thoughts about what he was supposed to do now.
Speaking of which, he pulled out his phone and called Badger. When there was no answer, he left a message. “I need to bring you up to date on the last twelve hours.”
Hearing a noise behind him, he shuffled his position on the bench to see Katch slowly walking toward him. He smiled, seeing the valiance in his gaze, the lightness on his features. His body was relaxed, sensing no danger, not that ever-present wariness that showed when he was hurt so badly. “Hey, Katch. I’m glad to see you out here.”
Katch’s tail wagged as he moved toward Zane slowly but steadily. The shepherd limped on his sore leg, which was to be expected, and he had a bit of a hitch in his back as he walked, as if he were clenching against the upcoming pain. But it wasn’t long before he nudged his head into Zane’s fingers.
Zane gently stroked his nose. “You’ve had a pretty shitty life for the last bit. We’re going to make it a lot better though.”
Katch didn’t seem to mind whatever Zane said. Katch just closed his eyes and let Zane gently stroke, scrubbing the dog’s neck and under his chin, rubbing his ears. Zane could feel some of his own strain and stress roll off his back. How long since he’d had a few days like these last two? Since he had arrived, there had been nonstop action. But it was over now.
Thinking of which, he pulled out his phone and sent a text to the cops, the one in particular who he’d worked with, asking about the condition of the policeman who got shot and of the gunman they’d picked up. Instead of a text back, the phone rang.
“Hey, yeah, our fellow buddy in blue will be fine but has to stay overnight in the hospital. As for the gunman responsible for shooting that policeman, he’s doing okay. At least he’ll live. He lost a lot of blood, and he’s in intensive care, but we’ve got him under high security.”
“Good to know,” Zane said. “I’d hate to have that on Holly’s shoulders, thinking she might have killed him.”
“At the moment he’s holding, and we’re after him for shooting one cop and injuring the others. I know you’re after him for the dog but …”
“I know,” Zane said. “If animal cruelty can be one of the charges, that would be nice, but I understand knocking out the cops and shooting one will bring much bigger charges.”
“Glad you understand. I hope Holly will too. It’s tough enough on all of us,” he said. “The good news is, all of the cops will recover. Oh, and we did find the trigger for why he suddenly went off the cliff. His brother, a war vet had life support turned off a few weeks ago. He blamed the dog, although we can’t be sure the same dog was even involved, I don’t think that detail even mattered to him—just when he heard somehow that this one was part of the War Dog program he couldn’t think of anything else but killing it.”
“That is good news, indeed,” Zane said with a smile, feeling the sun break out of the clouds above him. “Makes the rest of today a hell of a lot better than it started out.”
“Right. What a change a few hours makes. Anyway, we’ll need to get your statements on the latest events. Do you want us to come later this afternoon or tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow,” he said. “Holly’s sleeping right now. Hopefully she’ll sleep through the day. She didn’t get much rest over the last couple nights.”
“I know she didn’t,” the cop said. “I’ll pop by in the morning then.” He hung up.
The phone rang again—Badger calling back.
“Sorry about that,” Badger said. “I was on another call. You found Katch?”
Zane chuckled. “He’s got his chin resting on my knee. Holly’s sleeping after the double attacks we’ve had. That was pretty hot and steady action, without much of a break or downtime.”
“Sounds like you’ve got what you need right now,” Badger said. “So was I right about sending you back to Maine?”
“Maybe,” he compromised. “I’m not saying you won this round … but maybe.”
“Are you looking for work and wanting to stay?” Badger asked.
Zane frowned. “I didn’t say I was staying,” he protested not quite ready to share his thoughts with Badger.
“Neither did you say you were leaving,” Badger said, “so I’m just tossing that out there. If you are interested in staying, we might find work for you.”
At that Zane shook his head. “You don’t have to make up jobs for me. I’m a fully capable male. I can find jobs on my own.”
Badger howled. “You know better than that. We don’t pussyfoot around here. It doesn’t matter what limbs you might be missing or what kind of condition you might be dealing with, we don’t take on pity cases. I meant that we need someone to run point from the East Coast. If you’re interested, you could be like a satellite office.”
In spite of himself, he was interested. “What kind of stuff?”
“No clue yet,” Badger said. “But we did have a conversation with a cop from your local precinct because they were checking up on you. They mentioned something about you going into the police business or into the security business, and we were wondering if you wanted to be hired for contract work.”
“Like a contract cop?” He shook his head. “That doesn’t sound viable.”
Badger chuckled. “No, but maybe as an investigator. They hire those on a contract basis when they get flooded with cases.”
Zane straightened, his interest picking up. “Huh. I’ve never considered something like that. But it is kind of the work I used to do.”
“I know,” Badger said. “That’s why I brought it up. Of course it wouldn’t be just for your local precinct. You could be needed a lot of other places. Government offices all over hire independent consultants like us to give them a hand when they’re overwhelmed.”
“That might be something we could talk about,” Zane said. “As long as it’s a real job.”
“Would I give you anything but a real job?” Badger asked. “The job might be fluid at the moment, but it’s a real job.”
“I do have some security work in my background too.”
“That’s right. You were in NCIS for a long time, weren’t you?”
“Yeah,” Zane said. “I don’t talk about it much. Most often I get a negative response when I do.”
“Yep,” Badger said. “But it’s perfect for our needs and perfect for law enforcement agencies. So wh
y don’t we check into it to see what training you might need and what the job opportunities look like from our end? If you’re interested, that is.”
“I’m interested,” he said. “I just don’t know how much work there would actually be.”
“It depends on Katch too,” Badger said.
“What does it have to do with him?”
“I presume you’re keeping him.”
Zane groaned. “Yes, but I don’t have a place for him.”
“Is he trainable?”
“He’s very trainable,” he said, affectionately stroking Katch’s nose. “He is already well trained, follows commands well. He just needs a bit of a tune-up.”
“Exactly,” Badger said. “So you know how most law enforcement agencies are short on trained K9s too.”
“You mean, like search and rescue?”
“That’s just one avenue. How about a sniffer dog? Or how about a mascot dog, one that walks through the schools and lets people know the dogs are out there to help people.”
“A community-service thing?” he asked. “Remember I’m not much of a people person.”
“You don’t know what you are anymore,” Badger said. “Anyway, I’ll take that as a yes. I’ll get back to you in a bit.” And he hung up.
“What was that?” Holly’s voice called out to him.
He turned to see her standing on the patio, a cup of coffee in her hand. He got up, intending to walk toward her.
She waved at him and said, “I’m coming.”
He sat back down and watched her head to him.
Chapter 14
She’d woken up after a short but intense nap and had called out to him. When she got no answer, she’d run downstairs. It had been such a relief to see him talking on the phone; the sight of Katch cuddling with Zane just about broke her heart. She hoped he wouldn’t abandon Katch … or her. She hadn’t realized how much that panic was still ingrained in her.
She’d poured herself a cup of coffee, wondering who he was talking to. She stepped outside, not wanting to intrude, but wanting to join him and the dog if possible. She didn’t know if the conversation was something private or not. She heard something about him not making any decisions but also that Katch was trainable.
Katch, at the moment, looked like he was in a state of nirvana. He leaned against Zane’s leg, his head resting on his knee, while Zane gently stroked his face and nose and ears. This was what the dog needed, somebody to care for him, somebody to make him part of a family.
She strolled toward them, wondering how to approach the subject. “Who was that?”
“My boss,” he said, his tone short.
Her heart sank. She sagged down on the bench beside him. “So, you are leaving then?” Even with her best efforts, her tone was sad, abrupt, hard.
He shook his head. “No. He was wondering if I was interested in staying.”
She looked at him, hope in her eyes. “He what?”
“Yeah. Apparently the local cops called him, wanting some background on me and probably a reference to make sure I wasn’t some crazy dude. So they contacted him, and, through that conversation, the cop said they were thinking about hiring some security men to help out. Obviously they weren’t talking about law officers, but they could be special investigators.” He waved his hand. “I don’t know exactly in what capacity, but my boss said there was probably work here if I was interested. I figured it was a makeshift job because Badger and his team have done an awful lot for vets like me—but not necessarily, you know, real jobs. I think it’s almost like they make up the jobs.”
“Creating jobs is a business in itself,” she announced. “And honestly, if there was work like that, would that be okay?”
He looked down at Katch and smiled. “One of Badger’s last questions was, if I thought Katch was trainable.”
“Trainable?”
“Yes. Maybe I can train him to do search-and-rescue work and much more, or even community patrol stuff, walking through the classrooms and the park, letting people get to know about dogs in law enforcement, what Katch’s history is, things like that.”
She looked at him in delight. “You know what? I think that’s a perfect role for Katch, especially as a therapy animal. It would help people understand he has therapy issues too.”
“Exactly, and the devastation on animals that comes out of accidents and the military workforce too.” He shrugged. “I don’t think they have any specific work in mind for me, and I don’t think they have a job yet, contract or otherwise. But I think they were feeling me out to see if I would be interested in doing that.”
“And would you go back and forth?”
“As a company man, I would, yes,” he said. “But I’m not sure yet. Again, no answers, just something to think about.”
“Good thoughts?” she asked slowly.
He glanced down at her, and his lips twitched. “Possibly.”
Her smile widened. “And with that segue,” she said, “I guess it might be time to talk about us?” She watched as he withdrew. “I’m not trying to pressure you, but what about our relationship?” Then all those words she had never shared with Zane came out in a flurry, as if she were afraid if she didn’t say them now, they wouldn’t come out. Even those painful words that the one cop had told her to mention, she even added them in. She leaned back and let out a heavy sigh. “Whew. That was hard to get out.”
“It didn’t sound like it was hard,” he said. “It came out in a flood.”
“Yep,” she said. “Better to get it out instead of letting it stick in my throat, forever silent.”
“I don’t have any problems with a relationship. In fact, it would be nice to see where this goes.” His voice was cautious though.
“I’d love that, but …” She reached over, picking up his huge hand in hers. “We have a lot of history, both good and bad, but we also have a future. It’s up to us to make it good or bad.”
“I’m all about the future.” He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and tugged her close.
She leaned over, her head snuggling against his chest as she petted Katch’s forehead.
“But I don’t have a job,” he reminded her. “I don’t have a place to live,” he added. “And apparently, I come with baggage.”
She started to chuckle. “If you mean Katch, I’m not sure if he’s your baggage or my baggage. At the moment, it seems like he’s baggage for both of us.”
Katch had lifted a paw and placed it on top of Holly’s knee, as if making sure Holly knew she was wanted and welcome too.
“There is that point too,” he said, squeezing her shoulders gently. He dropped a kiss on her temple. “It would be like going back in time though. I’m not sure that’s ever a good idea.”
“We can’t go back in time,” she said, “because … let’s think about this. Everything in life is about moving forward. That’s something we really need to do. So it’s not about bringing who we were forward but about reconnecting as who we are now, then moving forward.” They sat in silence for a moment, before she continued. “It’s because I married your brother, isn’t it?” She reared back slightly and looked up at him. “But you have to know, if I had any idea this day would come …”
He reached up and pressed a finger against her lips, stopping her for the moment. “In the beginning,” he said, “I definitely had a lot of anger and disquiet over the fact you married my kid brother.” He turned to stare out at the woods around them. “But I’ve come to an understanding.”
“Understanding what?” she asked, puzzled. “I need clarity here because this is too big an issue to ignore or to bypass. It’ll always be between us if we can’t clear it up now.”
“I came to understand that, if you and I had been the ones who had married, and I had died, exactly what is it I would have wanted for you? And I would have wanted you to move on, to find happiness, to not be alone,” he said. “It took me a while to realize, even though you and I had broken up, that’s exactly what I
wanted for you anyway. The fact that you chose my brother was very disturbing because it was like he was stepping into my shoes, the younger brother trying to take what the older brother had. But, with his passing, that changed everything yet again. I’m sorry for him in that he died so young, but I’m grateful for you for making his last few years happy.”
She could feel her heart melting at his words. It wasn’t what she’d expected him to say, wasn’t in any way what she’d thought he would say. But it was good. It was very good. She reached up and kissed his cheek. “Thank you. I needed to hear that.” And just as she started to pull away, he changed the angle of their faces and kissed her.
When he finally lifted his head, she looked up at him, her heart melting, her body on fire and her brain completely turned to mush. She opened her mouth once, then twice, and then just gave it up, wrapping her arms tight around his chest and cuddling in close.
“You okay?” he asked.
She smiled and nodded. “I’m fine. But, to be honest, I wish we were not out in my backyard but tucked up in my bed.” She felt the jolt through his body at her words and leaned back. “Surely that’s where you wanted this to go too?”
“I’ve always wanted that,” he said. “There’s been nothing as complete in my life as making love to you.”
Again his words seared right through her heart, lighting it on fire. She’d always loved him. But everything he said just made her love him a little more. She glanced down at Katch, who was now lying at their feet. “I think he needs new pain meds,” she said worriedly. She touched the dog.