Truth or Dare

by Fern Michaels

  “I’m going home,” she said in the same brittle voice. “I brought him, so you can bring him home. When he’s ready. No questions, please. I’m out of here.”

  Cooper scampered over to Julie, who bent over to hug the strange, mystical dog with tears in her eyes. Cooper licked at her tears, yipped softly, then walked her to the door. She waved, her gait unsteady.

  “What the hell?” Jack said. He sat down on the floor, his back to the wall. Cooper sauntered over and looked Jack straight in the eye. Not knowing what else to do, Jack simply nodded as he ruffled the dog’s ears.

  Chapter Three

  The team eyeballed Cooper, who, after a soft whoop by way of a greeting, walked over to the monster door and lay down. He closed his eyes, but everyone knew that the strange dog wasn’t sleeping.

  Cooper was waiting.

  For what, no one knew.

  Jack massaged his throbbing cheek. When Harry handed him four aspirin, he reached for them greedily. He chewed them dry; then Harry handed him a green leaf of some sort from the plastic bag he always carried in his pocket. Harry was a health-food nut.

  “What is it?” Jack asked, suspicion ringing in his voice. Harry ignored the question.

  “Just bite down on it. It will take the edge off the pain. You need to head back to the dentist. There are a lot of hours between now and next morning, and the pain will just get worse.”

  Jack nodded, knowing that Harry was right. Harry with the perfect teeth with nary a cavity, as in ever. Sometimes he hated Harry and his glistening pearly whites.

  “Does anyone have a clue as to why we’re all here?” Fergus asked. “I get the part about no matter where we are or what we’re doing, we drop everything if a call goes out to meet. But we’re all here except for the person who called the meeting.” Cooper yipped to show he’d heard Fergus’s last comment. Fergus immediately corrected his last statement. “And one unexpected four-legged guest we’re always happy to see.” Cooper yipped again to show that he accepted the correction.

  “Are we just going to stand here in the hall or go to the conference room and talk about . . . something?” Abner asked.

  “You got something to say?” Ted asked.

  “As a matter of fact, I do. I just quit my job at the CIA.”

  A chorus of “whys” hit the air.

  “I hate working for stupid, buttoned-up suits who can’t find their ass even with a road map and a flashlight. I was just about ready to walk out when Espinosa’s text came through.”

  “Wow! What are you going to do now?” Dennis asked.

  Abner laughed. “Count my money and tally up all the beachfront properties I own.” The team laughed, knowing Abner’s penchant for buying up beachfront properties for his future retirement. “And I plan to keep my eye on all those suits. One false move and . . .” He flexed his fingers, then rolled his eyes to show what he could do to the suits if they came after him in any way. The team nodded. They understood perfectly what Abner Tookus was capable of with a computer and his magic fingers.

  Cooper stirred. Then he got up and walked to the door just as the red light over the door turned green. The hiss of the hydraulics sounded like a thunderclap in the quiet building.

  Eyes bulged, jaws dropped when Cyrus bounded into the room, the cylinder the vet had attached to his collar swinging back and forth as fast as his tail. He started to bark, loud, then louder as Espinosa tried to herd the three squalling kids, who were dragging their feet, to the center of the room. Espinosa himself looked like he’d just gone ten rounds with Godzilla and lost all ten.

  The group stared, shocked speechless at what they were seeing. Cyrus barked relentlessly. The kids wailed louder as they clung to one another as if their lives depended on one another. Jack’s tooth beat like a bongo drum.

  Ted let loose with a loud, shrill whistle that made everyone in the room cringe. Cyrus howled, and the kids sobbed and shrieked even louder.

  Cooper moved. First to Cyrus. The two dogs stared at one another. Cyrus clamped his mouth tight and stood at attention. Cooper walked over to the crying children and looked up at them. He pawed first one, then the other, and finally the little boy. The wailing and crying stopped immediately.

  Espinosa came out of his trance and started to babble. “We were on our way home, and I caught a flash of something out of the corner of my eye on the side of the road. There was barely any traffic, so I knew it was something. Cyrus started to howl and unbuckled his seat belt. I pulled to the shoulder, and you know Cyrus, he knows how to open the door. He was out like he was shot from a cannon. He was over the rail and down the ravine before I could turn off the engine and get out. I followed him—actually I lost my footing and rolled down the hill.” He pointed to the kids and said, “And there they were!”

  Maggie’s maternal instinct, which she had no idea she had, rose to the fore. She swooped forward and gathered the trembling children close. “They’re so little. And so dirty. We have to do something. Right now, they are scared out of their wits. You’re all men!” she said, as if that explained the current circumstance. “Let’s all calm down. I’ll take them to the bathroom and get them cleaned up. Dennis, go to that children’s specialty store across the street and get some new clothes for them. Take a picture of them for the size before you go. Shoes, too. The place is a specialty children’s boutique, so they’ll have everything. It’s where the rich people shop. Buy three sets of everything from the skin out. We have two girls here, so get something pretty. Why are you still standing here? I told you to go!

  “The rest of you do something constructive like maybe calling Dings and ordering some food for these kids. What! What! Do I have to do everything? Move it, people!”

  The people moved, even the dogs, at Maggie’s tone. Cyrus followed Jack to the conference room, as did the others. Cooper followed Maggie and the kids to the bathroom. She heard Espinosa say the kids hadn’t said one word, so he had no clue if they were runaways, kidnap victims, or simply lost.

  “Figures it would be up to me,” Maggie muttered as she ushered the kids down the hall into the bathroom. She fixed a steely eye on Cooper and said in a voice that had cowed many a man, “I don’t know what your schtick is, but it had better be good. You’re here, so that means you want to help. No one is going to hurt these kids. You must know that, or you wouldn’t be here. I’m running with that, Cooper. So, start doing whatever it is you do, and let’s get this show on the road. I need information. The reason I need information is because I’m a reporter. We want to help, but we need to know who these kids are. You can’t talk, so it’s up to them.”

  Cooper cocked his head to the side as though he was weighing Maggie’s words. Then he circled the kids, stopping at each one and licking dirty hands before he walked over to the linen closet, where the towels were, and lay down.

  “Right! Right! I’m on my own here. I see that. Okay then. Listen up, kids, we’re going to get cleaned up here. Do you want showers or a bath?”

  Cooper barked once. A gentle bark. “A shower please,” the older girl said. “My sister likes a bath, and Andy likes a shower. I can take him in with me and wash him down.”

  Maggie almost blacked out. She looked at Cooper and nodded her thanks. Don’t you worry, Mr. Cooper, I’m going to figure you out at some point. Maggie absolutely believed that the strange dog grinned at her.

  “Good! Good!” Maggie said cheerfully as she smacked her hands together. “By the time we’re all finished in here, Dennis will be back with some nice new clean clothes and shoes. Then we’re going to get you something to eat. Let’s think of it as a picnic inside. Okay, then,” she said, turning on the tap in the oversize tub. “I’m going to sit over here so you can all strip down, and I won’t look. Be sure to clean your ears good, wash your hair twice. There is some really nice shampoo in there that’s mine. It smells like strawberries. Use it all up, I don’t care. The soap smells like lilies. When you get out, you’re all going to brush your teeth. That’s if I can
find some new toothbrushes.”

  Maggie turned off the tap just as the middle sibling stripped off the last of her clothes, showing no modesty. “Need any help?” The little girl shook her head. In what she hoped was a motherly sounding voice, Maggie said, “After the first wash, I’ll let the water out, then fill the tub again. Do you want me to help you wash your hair?” The little girl nodded. Maggie dived right in, scrubbing and rubbing and rinsing. She blinked at the dirt filling the tub. She let it out and started to fill it again. “I’m thinking maybe we’re going to need three tubs full of water,” she said, and giggled. “How did your hair get so dirty?” she asked casually.

  “We slept on the ground. Carrie tried to pick all the leaves and sticks out.”

  Aha. “So your sister’s name is Carrie. What’s your name?”

  The little girl looked over at Cooper, who was watching her. “Emily.”

  “I told you that my name is Maggie. What’s the little guy’s name?”

  “Andy.”

  “Is Andy your brother?”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “Okay, your hair is nice and clean now. You start washing, and I’m going to look for some toothbrushes. Don’t get out till I come back, okay?” What a stupid order that was. Like Cooper was going to let that happen.

  Maggie beelined for the door and called to Ted, “Quick, I need toothbrushes and toothpaste. There is a drugstore two doors up from Dings. I know their names now, and they’re brother and sisters. Cooper got them to cooperate. I need to know how he does that, Ted,” she said fretfully.

  “That’s for another time. Three toothbrushes coming up.” A second later, he was gone.

  Maggie yelled again, “Hey! Somebody! I need a trash bag to put the kids’ clothes in.”

  Charles appeared out of nowhere, a large black plastic bag in hand. He held it out.

  “They’re talking, Charles. Tell the others. I have names now. Just the first names, but it’s a start. It was all Cooper’s doing. Suddenly, I feel like a mother.”

  Charles smiled. “That’s a good thing. The children need a woman at their side right now. And you called it right when you said the all-male team was intimidating them, not to mention Cyrus and Cooper. That dog confounds the life out of me.”

  “Yeah, me too. But things seem to work for the better when he’s around. He has this . . . this . . . mystical way about him. He just looks at you, and you . . . you do what he’s thinking. Did I express that right, Charles?” Maggie dithered.

  “As well as I could, my dear. I think we should just accept he’s on our side and let it go at that. I know that goes against everything you as a reporter live and breathe by, but from where I’m standing, it seems to be the way to go.”

  Maggie nodded. “I need to get back in there. They seem like such sweet little kids. Their parents must be worried sick. I think they’ve been on the run for a while from the condition of their clothes, especially their underwear.”

  Charles nodded. “Food is on the way, and here comes Ted with the toothbrushes.”

  Ted was breathless as he handed over the drugstore package. “Dennis is on the way; I saw him coming up the street. He has two helpers from the store. He must have bought it out.”

  Maggie stood on her tiptoes and kissed Ted on the cheek. “Thanks, honey.” She whirled around and entered the bathroom.

  Charles grinned from ear to ear. “Honey?”

  Ted laughed. “When was the last time someone called you honey, Charles?”

  “The truth is, Ted, I don’t ever recall anyone calling me honey.” Both men were smiling when they made their way inside the conference room.

  Back in the BOLO’s oversize bathroom with the heated tile floor, the children huddled in the thick, plush towels wrapped around them. Maggie made sure the towels were secure, then towel dried their hair and combed it. The girls had curly hair; the little boy had a wave to his.

  “One at a time, brush your teeth. Three times. Each. Carrie, you go first, then Emily, and Andy last.” The children obeyed. When they were finished, the toothpaste tube was empty. “Remember which one is yours for the next time,” Maggie said, lining the toothbrushes up on the counter.

  “You said the next time. Are we staying here?” Carrie asked in a jittery voice. Cooper barked.

  “Just for a little while until we figure things out. First we have to get you dressed; and then you have to eat. After that, we’re all going to talk and decide what to do.”

  A knock sounded on the door. It was Dennis, loaded down with shopping bags and boxes of shoes. “Do you need any help? I had the salesgirl mark the bags for the biggest size, the middle size, and then the little boy’s. I can help with the boy.”

  “Sure, that will help. What’s this bag?”

  Dennis flushed bright pink. “It was some stuff on the counter, you know how they put stuff out that you didn’t mean to buy but you pick up at the last second. Hair ribbons, barrettes, some bracelets, and a key chain with a truck on it for the little guy.”

  “They’ll love it. Thanks, Dennis.” She waited as Dennis scooped up the little boy under one arm and took him to the kitchen, where he dressed him from the skin out. He handed him the key chain and smiled when the little boy’s eyes lit up. “I need a key. Thanks, mister.”

  “You’re welcome. And I think I have a key right here,” Dennis said, removing a key to his bike rack and sliding it onto the key chain.

  The team sat around the large table in the kitchen while they waited for Maggie and the kids. Jack massaged his aching cheek as Cyrus pawed at him. “Ah, jeez, Cyrus, I’m sorry. With all this going on, I forgot about your checkup.” He unclipped the leather cylinder on the dog’s collar and made a production out of reading it aloud to everyone in the room. “A-1 all the way! Nice going, big guy. And your retention of the Greek commands is stellar! And . . . ,” Jack paused dramatically, “he gave you a gold star! That makes four in a row. We’ll frame this when we get back to the farm and hang it up with the other three. I’m proud of you, Cyrus!” Jack hugged the big dog close and whispered in his ear. Cyrus danced away, his tail swinging so hard, the others thought of it as a weapon. “And a special thanks from all of us for finding those kids!”

  Cyrus made the rounds getting a treat from everyone. His job done, he took his place on the carpet in front of the stove. He dropped his head onto his paws and closed his eyes.

  The team sat silently, staring at the open doorway and willing Maggie to appear with the kids. The front doorbell rang. Dings’ food delivery. Dennis rushed to the door and returned with two shopping bags full of Styrofoam containers. The bill stapled to the shopping bags said there were scrambled eggs, sausage, toast points, jam, butter, fruit bowls, orange juice, and milk. In another bag the bill said there were pancakes, waffles, syrup, butter, and crispy bacon.

  “Do you think three little kids can eat all of this?” Dennis asked dubiously.

  “Depends on how long it’s been since they’ve eaten. Or what they’ve eaten,” Charles said just as Maggie ushered the three kids into the kitchen. The gang stared at the kids in their clean new outfits, their faces shiny clean, the girls’ hair tied into ponytails with colorful ribbons.

  “Time to eat!” Fergus shouted.

  Fergus set out the food and motioned to the gang to head on out.

  “You kids eat all you want. Cyrus and Cooper will stay with you. When you’re finished, they’ll come for us and we’ll all have a nice talk. Okay?” Charles said.

  Three small heads bobbed up and down, their eyes on the feast in front of them.

  “Andy isn’t real good with a fork yet. Is it okay if he uses his fingers? Manners are important, but he doesn’t understand that yet,” Carrie said, never taking her eyes off the food in front of her.

  “Absolutely! Today, manners do not count,” Charles said as he walked out of the room.

  In the conference room, the gang all looked at one another, their eyes full of questions. And then they all started talki
ng at once.

  Charles rubbed at the stubble on his chin. He held up his hand for silence. The room was so quiet, the movement of his fingers against his chin sounded like sandpaper being rubbed on a piece of wood. “I have no clue what we’re dealing with. They’re beautiful children, but then, all children are beautiful. There have been no Amber Alerts that I’m aware of, so that more or less takes kidnapping off the table. Where are the parents? Are the children from around here? I watch the news constantly and constantly get updates. There have been no reports of missing children. Three missing children, not one, not two, but three.”

  “Maybe they’re from another state and were being transported somewhere and somehow they managed to get loose and ran away. Who would report them missing without incriminating themselves?” Espinosa said.

  “Which brings us back to the parents,” Abner said. “I’m checking all the databases I know of. I’ll put the word out to my colleagues and see what they come up with. Now, I have to warn you. If this is something like child trafficking, then we’re talking about the underbelly of the Internet, that black hole reserved for the lowest of the low.”

  “Get on it, Abner,” Charles said.

  From that point on, everyone in the room had an opinion, each one different, but in the end it came back to, where are the parents? At last, they simply gave up and stared at one another until Cyrus appeared in the doorway.

  Finally.

  The troop headed for the kitchen, stunned to see that it was neat and tidy, all the Styrofoam boxes closed and stacked on the kitchen counter. The plastic silverware had been rinsed and dried, the shopping bags folded neatly in a pile. The table was clear of crumbs. Carrie and Emily sat at the table, their hands folded. Andy lay curled up next to Cooper and was sound asleep.

  “Andy always takes a nap after he eats a lot,” Carrie said.

  “That’s fine,” Maggie said. “Are you guys ready to talk?” Two heads bobbed up and down. The room went quiet as Charles leaned forward. “Where are your parents, Carrie?”

  “I don’t know. When we woke up, Aunt Betty was there. She told us to get dressed and go with her. Then she lost us.”