by Ho, Jo
“He’s in here!” I heard someone shout.
I bolted through the recovery room towards the exit when Chase’s panicked voice suddenly cried out. “Help, help!!” A cacophony of dog and cat cries blanketed the night, distressed from the attack.
They were in the kennels.
I crept towards them silently, hoping the animal calls would mask any sound I made. Plastering myself to the corner, I saw Chase gripped by two men. One had a deep scar over the left side of his face. The other had the build and stature of ex-military. He had a commanding and menacing presence and only spoke when absolutely necessary. This must be the scumbag in charge.
Scarface shook Chase roughly.
“Where’s the dog, kid?”
“You’re too late,” Chase cried. “He’s long gone.”
I had to hand it to her, nothing fazed this girl. Scarface didn’t seem as impressed though as his hand lashed across her face, leaving an angry red imprint of his palm. Chase’s head snapped back violently. Just seeing it made my teeth jar; I don’t know what it must have felt like for Chase.
“That all you got?” she taunted, eyes flashing.
A vein in Scarface’s forehead throbbed. His hand clenched into a fist as he went to punch her again, but suddenly a sea of cats and dogs spilled out of the kennels, swarming around their feet! Scarface tried to find Bandit but couldn’t keep up with them.
“Boss?” he asked.
“Go,” the military man, instructed. “I’ll deal with the girl.” His hand slid into his Kevlar vest to retrieve a wicked looking syringe.
I didn’t know what was in the needle this time, but I knew it couldn’t be good. While the last thing I wanted was to become embroiled in whatever the heck was going on here, I couldn’t in all good conscience let them hurt the girl; Emma would turn in her grave. If I was going to do anything, I had to act now.
Using the animals as cover, I stole behind Military Man and struck at his syringe-wielding hand. Not expecting the move, the needle dropped to the ground, where, stampeded by a heavy-footed Bull Mastiff, it shattered into a million pieces. Military Man roared furiously, turning his attention to me, flinging Chase to one side.
“Run!’ I screamed.
Chase bolted down the hall as Military Man barrelled into me, crushing the breath from my windpipe. Grabbing me in a headlock, he squeezed. I felt a wall of muscle constricting my airway, pushing down on my chest. This must be what a car feels like in a steel compactor, came my distant thought. I clawed feebly at Military Man, but he held on with vice-like arms.
As the world began to swim and I started seeing stars, there came a chorus of ferocious barking. I felt the pressure easing slightly and twisted my face in the direction of the sound. Some of the escaped dogs had formed a circle and were snarling at us.
Wait, not at us. At Military Man.
Globules of thick saliva dripped out of the Bull Mastiff’s mouth. Low, threatening growls reverberated in the back of his throat. Unsurprisingly, Military Man took a step back.
It was a mistake. The dogs advanced as one.
In one smooth move, Military Man released me and sprinted for the operating theatre. The dogs raced past me, bounding after him.
I was in shock and stood there, gaping stupidly after them. After a few moments, I looked towards the exit to see Chase and Bandit running away. I stared back at the clinic, at the home I had made with Emma and which was now being destroyed. My heart seized in my chest. I knew it was just panic, but it felt as serious as a heart attack. Every instinct in my body screamed at me to rush upstairs and save Emma’s precious things. Her smiling face on our wedding day — my favorite picture of her, and the one that I had had to place facedown as the sight of it tore me apart — flashed up in my head. All I had to do was run up those stairs, and into the bedroom, and the picture would be there…
Then another image flashed up. Chase’s anxious, tear-streaked face when she had first appeared on my doorstep, with Bandit, bleeding out in the shopping cart.
As I fought with myself over what to do, a gunshot blasted into my reverie, causing me to crash back down to Earth.
Tearing my gaze away from my home, I ran after them.
CHAPTER 29
CHASE
We ran for what seemed like miles, until blisters formed on my feet and my lungs were on fire.
Within a few short minutes Sully had caught up to us and was now leading us down meandering footpaths, behind opulent back yards with swimming pools and double garages. He had obviously come this way many times before. He never hesitated, taking each turn and corner confidently, stopping just in time as we reached a road with traffic. We zig-zagged across the neighborhood until he finally took us uphill to a secluded clearing where we could see all the way down to NYC. It was here where we saw the mushroom cloud of smoke billowing into the sky. Sully squinted at the direction of the smoke, taking it all in. Pain flashed over his face.
“They’re burning down my home,” he’d said quietly.
And I realized he was right. We hadn’t run nearly as far as I’d thought. From here, we had a perfect view of the blazing fire that consumed his clinic. Lights from neighboring houses flooded on, as concerned residents gathered around. In the far off distance, the screaming sirens of an approaching fire truck blared, but I knew it was already too late. It wouldn’t reach the clinic in time to save it.
It was a shock when I’d first realized he was running after us. Back in the clinic, Sully had been so reluctant to help that I had been ready to burn the place down myself, but when they started blasting holes in his home, I understood how much danger we were in. Despite how I had some major trust issues when it came to adults, I kept my misgivings to myself. Besides, they had almost killed him. It wasn’t safe for him back home anymore, even if the home were still standing.
I sank to my knees, from emotion or exhaustion, I wasn’t sure. Maybe both. Bandit pressed up against me, as if offering his strength. Sully tore his eyes from the fire and looked down at him.
“What was that down there?”
“The thing with the dogs? Pretty sure he got them to attack the bad guys. He probably just asked,” I said.
“Woof,” came Bandit’s reply.
I stroked him, gratefully. “Neat. Thank you, boy. You saved us.”
Bandit flopped onto his side and raised his legs in the air. I reached down and scratched the uninjured part of his stomach. Sully didn’t say anything, just continued staring at the blaze in the distance, anger and pain rolling off of him in waves. It was uncomfortable to watch.
I opened my backpack, rifling through it until I came up with a pack of cookies that I fed to Bandit, conscious he still hadn’t eaten yet and needed to keep up his strength. He gobbled them down so fast I thought he would take my fingers with them. I was relieved by Bandit’s appetite though. Wanting food = good. It meant he was on the road to recovery. Sully finally looked back at us and frowned at my choice of food.
“What, it’s not like I have a wide menu available,” I said, opening my bag to show him my stash.
Suddenly, he reacted, recognizing the contents inside. “You stole from me? While I was saving your dog? That’s what you were doing in my clinic?”
My cheeks started flushing, but I felt justified in my actions. “Bandit needs to eat, and you looked like you could afford it.”
Sully looked outraged by my response, but I wasn’t backing down. What else was I supposed to do? Suddenly, Sully laughed, incredulous. “You come knocking on my door, covered in blood, Bandit in your arms. I help you save him and in return, you steal from me. And now my home is gone. Everything. There’s nothing left of her.”
And wow if that didn’t feel like he had sucker punched me in the stomach. It was like I could feel everything he was feeling and I did not like it one bit, you know? In a bid to change the subject, I forced myself up, despite my calves screaming in protest. Since my lungs didn’t feel like they would burst anymore, I knew I had to m
ake a move. If those guys were searching for us, I had to put as much distance between us as possible.
“Bandit and I need to keep moving. We’re too close still. I can’t risk them finding us,” I said. “Boy, are you OK to move again?” I asked Bandit.
His tail wagged and he stood up, if a little wearily. My guilt escalated another notch. “We’ll rest once we’re a safe distance away.” He licked my hand to tell me he was OK. He understood. I turned to face Sully, biting my lip as I struggled to find the words.
“I’m sorry,” was all I finally managed.
Sully didn’t respond. Didn’t move a muscle in fact. Just stood there, frozen, unblinking. The thought came then that maybe he wasn’t so much shell-shocked anymore, but in physical shock.
My mind ran through what it knew about the condition. Keep the patient warm. Well, it was pretty hot out here tonight so, check. My eyes took in the condition of his face. Was the skin clammy or just sweating from the run here? I didn’t know. I was about to reach out to take his pulse when he suddenly turned and focused his dark eyes on me.
“I’m coming with you.”
I was so shocked by his words, I didn’t know what to say. I pulled back and shared a look with Bandit. “Er, heck no,” came my instant response. “I know you helped us, but I don’t know you, and I trust no one. Nada.”
Sully ignored me, warming to his decision. “Those men are after me now too! You think they’ll let me go if they catch me? There’s nothing left here for me now, and Bandit needs my help. His wound will need to be regularly dressed. If it gets infected, which is likely out here, you won’t have a clue how to fix it.”
What he was saying wasn’t unreasonable, but every nerve in my body was crying out NO! People had a way of screwing me over, and I really wasn’t comfortable with the idea of us rolling on together. A girl and her dog didn’t draw much attention, but add a man to the equation and it was all up for grabs.
“Look,” he continued. “I’ve lost too much not to see this through. I want to know who those men are, and what they want with Bandit. I want to see the face of the person who took away the last link I have with Emma.”
I didn’t reply, brain in panic mode. He must have realized I wasn’t caving any day soon however, as he came at me with my biggest weakness.
“What about money? Do you have any? Because I do.”
So then we were three.
CHAPTER 30
THE MERCENARY
After the mutts had gone for him, The Mercenary had retreated into the operating theatre. They’d trapped him into a corner, but The Mercenary had completed two tours in Iraq and wasn’t about to be taken down by these fur on legs.
He’d tipped over the operating table and, using it for cover, he’d taken shots at the dogs with the tranq gun. Of course, he would’ve preferred a real gun, but the boss had commanded no casualties. Not out of the kindness of his heart, but to keep the clean-up down. Boss ran a near invisible operation and that’s how he liked to keep it.
The first row of dogs dropped fast, and once the others saw their fate, they scampered off in terror. Stupid animals. The Mercenary rounded up his men and sent half into the night to search for the dog, while he and the rest ransacked the place. Among the things he found that could be of use was Sullivan’s cell. While they searched, Sullivan’s full background had been downloaded to his PDA. There was only one piece of information The Mercenary found of interest — Sullivan was a recent widower.
With this knowledge in mind, The Mercenary searched the apartment above with fresh eyes. This was a man clinging onto his dead wife; her things were everywhere. Since The Mercenary was a man who didn’t like to lose — and yes, he had lost tonight — The Mercenary decided to have some fun and torched the clinic. Boss hadn’t said anything about building casualties so, The Mercenary figured it was fair game. Besides, this Sullivan jerk deserved nothing less for giving him so much trouble.
Once the clinic had been set alight, he and his men had piled back into the vans and were off before a crowd had even gathered. Shadows in the night, that’s what they were. The Mercenary took one last look at the blaze. It was quite the beaut, now spreading to the surrounding houses.
Good, The Mercenary thought, smiling. If Sullivan ever returned, he’d have angry neighbors to contend with.
Blackman, his guy with the scar over the right side of his face, suddenly handed him a phone, expression grim. “It’s the boss,” he said.
The smile was wiped instantly from The Mercenary’s mouth.
CHAPTER 31
CHASE
After we’d walked another two hours, we made our way to Scantic River State Park. Sully mentioned quietly that he used to come here with his wife. He figured we’d be safe here for the night, though when we passed a sign that revealed we were in 167 acres of open ground for deer and turkey hunting, I sincerely hoped no one would mistake us for dinner, not after all we’d already gone through tonight.
Sully checked Bandit’s wound, said it was coping well under the conditions, fed him a pill then redressed the dressing. He said he’d keep watch for the first few hours and if no one came, then he’d allow himself to rest. Since he was forcing himself on us, I’d asked what our plan was for tomorrow, but all he managed was to mumble he’d figure something out by the time the sun rose. I would’ve preferred to know what our next steps were right then and there — what if I didn’t like what he was planning? Sully however, wasn’t forthcoming with any more information and seemed to shut right down. After instructing Bandit not to leave my side (you never know, some trigger happy fool might think he was a deer), I found myself musing over the day’s insane events.
It was strange. Most of the adults I’d met in my life weren’t the responsible type. Heck, they were downright degenerates (especially my folks), and not surprisingly, I’d developed a healthy mistrust of them all. With Sully, I wasn’t sure. Yeah, he really cared about his wife, but that didn’t make him a good person. Judging by the constant flip flopping in my stomach, my gut didn’t know what to make of him as yet, so I’d be wary, just in case. People have a habit of turning on you when you least expected it. This I knew from experience.
Bandit curled up by my side and was asleep almost instantly. Poor guy, from being stabbed to escaping capture within minutes of his life saving operation. I realized we had a lot in common. We were both survivors. It’d take a lot more than a few armed men to break us.
I stared across at Sully’s profile. Outwardly he seemed calm, but his hands were clenched into fists, and his jaw set into a tense line. He was still staring into space when my eyes finally closed and I fell asleep.
CHAPTER 32
SULLY
Morning light streamed in through tall oak trees, bathing us in a warm glow. Chase and Bandit were curled together, much as they had been the whole night.
I had barely slept. All night, my mind had raced with vivid flashbacks of the day before. From the moment of Chase’s bloody arrival to my near brush with death. Military Man’s sneering face regularly interrupted my flow of thoughts, causing me to wonder what kind of corporation he worked for that would condone such violence.
Obviously one that didn’t care one iota for the rules.
I’d told Chase I’d come up with a plan for them, and I had one, of sorts. Just not a very good one. I knew I was being irrational. This was crazy! A huge part of my brain was screaming at me: go back! This won’t end well! But every time I considered leaving, a picture of Emma going up in flames entered my mind, and it made me madder than a wet hen. I wanted, no, needed to find the people who had done this to me. If I were honest, I also felt a flicker of excitement.
All year I had been a shadow of myself. Just motivating myself to do normal things, like cleaning up the house and taking a shower had seemed monumentally hard. I felt nothing, only numb. Had been that way for so long now, I wondered if I’d ever feel anything again. Yet tonight, despite all logic, I was feeling a rush of emotions so intens
e, they threatened to overwhelm me. And that was before I considered the possibility of Bandit’s super intellect. For sure, I was going to test that. As soon as I figured out how.
I looked at the sleeping girl and dog. I knew without a doubt that they needed me. As resourceful as she was, they wouldn’t last long out here without help. Not that I felt beholden to them. It would take a while before I would get over how Chase had stolen from me. The defiance in her eyes when he’d caught her out!
I pulled out my wallet and counted out my money. Not much. Enough for food and someplace to stay tomorrow, but they’d need more. I had a credit card, but I wasn’t keen on the idea of surfacing for now. Better to stay out of sight until the heat had died down. Or at least until those soldier thugs weren’t around.
Bandit stirred, waking. He got up, performed an all body shake then padded over to greet me. I couldn’t help smiling. As a boy, I had been one of those kids who couldn’t get enough of animals. Soon as I could walk, I would chase after anything furry and on four legs. Sadly, neither parent was particularly into animals, so my early interactions only consisted of friends’ pets. After I had met Emma (we were college sweethearts), we’d discussed getting a dog, but the timing was never right. And when the clinic opened, well, I had had plenty of animals to look after. We had decided to give the clinic time to establish itself, and maybe in a year or so, we would adopt a pet.
Well Em, how’d you like me now? Instant father of two.
