Alivaro answered, “I agree, but we don't know about the other bomb. He looked at Mike and Bob, his divers, “Get down there asap.”
Alivaro and another bomb expert, John Navarro, donned bomb suits and hustled over to the first cruise ship. They stopped at the edge of the dock above the antenna poking out at the water line. John fastened a line on a piling, linked a carabiner to it and slowly descended the fifteen-foot distance from the dock to the water line.
After tying a safety line to the case handle, John released the magnets and lifted the box out of the water. “There is a digital readout, counting down.”
“How much time left?”
“Just passed 26.11.08. I’m familiar with this display. It means there are 26 hours, eleven minutes and eight seconds before detonation.”
“Okay, let's bring the case into the truck before we open it. At least that will remove the threat of sinking this ship and contain the explosion.”
While John carried the bomb to the truck, Mike and Bob surfaced near the second cruise ship. Mike signaled a thumbs -up to the Commander. They had tied a line to the case and handed it to Alivaro who followed John to the truck.
Twenty minutes later, both bombs were disabled and loaded in the lead-lined, bomb-proof vault of the truck. They pulled out of the lot and headed back to Naval Air Station on the east side of Key West where the radioactive material and the explosives will be safely disposed.
Deputy Singer extended a hand to Charley, Hawk, Vicky and Katie. “I can't thank you guys enough. We could not have avoided a huge catastrophe without you.”
Katie and Vicky were hugging all three dogs. Charley replied to Singer, “And we would not have succeeded without these dogs.”
Zahira pushed between Spirit and Makeen to get closer to Katie who started to laugh, “Looks like we have a new family member, Charley.”
“You know, Katie, I think it is time to get larger quarters.”
Vicky grabbed Charley's hand and squeezed, “We need to talk, Charley.”
❖
A NEW FAMILY
One day later...
CHARLEY WRAPPED VICKY in his arms as they sat on the porch glider, looking southward past Boot Key harbor as the sun set. Spirit, Makeen and Zahira lay alongside each other, relaxed but alert for any new threats on their expanding family. At Vicky's insistence, Charley had renamed the two newest members to something more suitable.
Vicky practiced her newly acquired command of the dogs that Charley taught her, “Romeo, Juliet, Spirit, come.”
The trio gathered closer.
Vicky looked at Charley, “We have been through a lot these past few years. Many near death experiences, not to mention constant travel and disruption to our love life.”
Charley kissed her on the neck. “You know how much I love you, Vick.”
“No question there. And I love you, Charley.” She looked at the engagement ring he had given her just one week ago right before Katie was abducted by Kareef. “I know we talked about waiting another year for a wedding, but I have some news.”
Charley sat up, the three Belgian-Malinois stood, ears raised in full alert position. “What kind of news, Vick?”
Vicky placed Charley's hand on her abdomen. “I'm pregnant.”
Charley's jaw dropped. Then he grinned. “You mean, I'm going to be a dad?”
Vicky saluted, “Affirmative, Squid.” She hugged each dog and continued, “With three furry babies and a little human, we will need more room. I plan to take maternity leave from the DEA, but I want to stay near the office in Miami.”
Charley remained silent.
“Do you think we can find a place nearer Miami? Maybe Key Largo?”
Spirit, who has frequently demonstrated her understanding of English and perhaps more importantly, her read of Charley's thoughts and emotions, hopped onto Charley's lap, gave him a big kiss and then pushed his hand toward Vicky.
Charley teared up and said, “Spirit knows what we must do. I'm okay with a move, especially with a baby coming. Let's break the news to Hawk and Katie tomorrow.”
Vicky, Charley, Spirit, Romeo and Juliet did a group hug. A new family protected by canine courage.
THE END
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Reading Mark Twain’s short story, The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County at an early age made a lasting impression on my writing style. Watching Jacques Cousteau explore the undersea world armed with Aqua-Lung and underwater camera fueled my love for the sea. The scenes and stories were mesmerizing to a young boy. I feel the influence of both storytellers when I create Charley Manner adventures. Amp up the pace, throw in some high-tech gadgets and weaponry, substitute the frog with a man-eating shark or other menacing denizen of the deep, wrap it around an invincible hero and you have Trouble on the Straits (TOTS) and the sequel, Deep Strait. My readers asked for more stories with Military Working Dog, Belgian-Malinois, Spirit. The latest book, Canine Courage, addresses that request.
I write action adventure thrillers, injecting my more memorable life experiences into the main character. Once, while SCUBA diving in dark waters, something very big bumped me. The creature was not clearly visible in the murk sixty feet below the surface, but my imagination filled in the blanks. In TOTS, I start with Charley out on the Florida Straits sitting in his brand new $18,000 fish-fighting chair with a bottle of Gran Patron Platinum tequila and a Great White shark tugging on his line. He ends up in the water with the beast, but you'll have to read the book for the rest. And Deep Strait brings more dangers, natural and manmade, in the depths halfway between the Keys and Cuba.
Charley is six-feet-four-inches tall, 220 pounds of lean power, encased in a charbroiled tan and topped with salt-crusted hair lightened by Florida’s scorching sulphur sun. He's a swash-buckling, ass-kicking former Navy SEAL with take-no-prisoners attitude. Hooyah! Charley tells tall tales to his bar mates just like me except I'm only six feet tall and not so tan. My shark encounters, not so much.
But enough about me. Start reading about Charley in the prequel, Hellhole in Khyber, to see how capture and torture in Afghanistan affected his attitude on life. Book #1: Trouble on the Straits, can be read as a stand-alone story or a natural sequence from the prequel. Book #2, Deep Strait, picks up the action with sexy DEA Agent Vicky Borne returning to the Keys after serious rehab and training at Quantico. It’s payback time and she asks Charley and Hawk to help. Book #3, Canine Courage, is my latest story. I hope you enjoy reading Charley's adventures as much as I do, writing about them. Subscribe for updates on my website.
http://michaelmarnier.com
BACKGROUND FACTOIDS
There are approximately 2800 Military Working Dogs (MWDs) on active duty. Check out the sophisticated battle harness they wear when on a mission.
The following verse is what Spirit and her war dog teammates are trained to believe. It describes this powerful military weapon deployed to enhance the SEAL team’s effectiveness to a level unreachable with machines and technology alone. The warrior dog is an honored member of our nation’s armed forces.
The Guardians of the Night
Author Unknown
Trust in me my friend, for I am your comrade.
I will protect you with my last breath.
When all others have left you and the loneliness of night closes in, I will be at your side.
Together we will conquer all obstacles
And search out those who wish to do harm to others.
All I ask of you is compassion,
And the caring touch of your hands.
It is for you that I will unselfishly give my life,
And spend my nights unrested.
Although our days together are marked by the passing seasons, know that each day by your side is my reward.
My days are measured by the coming and going of your footsteps. I anticipate them at every opening of the door.
You are the voice of caring when I am ill, the voice of authority when I have done wrong.
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Do not chastise me unduly; I am your right arm, the sword at your side.
I attempt to do only what you bid of me. I seek only to please you and remain in your favor.
Together you and I shall experience a bond only others, like us, will understand.
When outsiders see us together, their envy will be measured by their disdain.
I will quietly listen to you and pass no judgment,
Nor will your spoken words be repeated.
I will remain ever silent, ever vigilant, ever loyal.
And when our time together is done and you move on in the world, remember me with kind thoughts and tales.
For a time, we were unbeatable,
Nothing passed among us undetected.
If we should meet again on another street, I will gladly take up your fight.
I am a Military Working Dog.
❖
If you would like to read more about Spirit and her post-military adventures, stay tuned for the next book in the Charley Manner Action Adventure Series. Have some thoughts about Spirit that you think will fit in a future story? Send me a note and I will do my best to weave it into a future book.
mailto:[email protected]
Charley Manner series Box Set Page 31