Trail of Danger
Author
Valerie Hansen
Reads
15.0K
Chapters
1
EPILOGUE
It was Reed’s idea to treat Abigail—and Dominic—to lunch at Griffin’s. He wanted to show her the special areas designated for K-9 officers and their dogs as well as discuss their shared future in a homey, relaxing atmosphere. They had both decided it was time to tell the boy what they hoped to do and see if he was on board with adoption.
“You’re sure we can take the dogs inside?” Abigail asked.
Reed smiled. “Sure can. The owner, Lou Griffin, designated a special section for K-9 officers and their dogs. He even added a sign that says The Dog House.”
“Wow. Awesome.”
Chuckling, Reed glanced at Dom, who had walked on ahead. “You’re starting to sound like somebody else I know.”
“Well, we have spent a lot of time together lately.” She sobered. “I wish I knew why he sometimes seems so unhappy.”
“I think what we have to ask him will fix most of that,” Reed said. He’d passed the wide front window and was reaching for the handle of the door before he noticed the hand-lettered note taped to the inside. It read, “Closed due to family emergency.”
Cupping his hands around his eyes to cut the glare, he tried to see inside. The place looked deserted. Reed sighed in frustration. “Not good. I thought they were going strong when they reopened after the explosion.”
“Explosion?”
“Don’t worry. It won’t happen again. Like our kidnappers, the bomber is done causing trouble, although there are still developers who would love to get hold of this chunk of land and build something new here.”
“I love the old neighborhoods and shops. It gives New York character.”
“I know.” Reed thought he saw something move inside so he decided to knock. “Hey, Lou! What’s up? We’re starving here.”
A grumpy-looking gray-haired old man with his arm in a cast opened the door and peered out. “We’re closed. Barb has the flu and as you can see, I won’t be able to get orders up fast enough by myself. Sorry.”
“Aw, c’mon, Lou. At least a cup of coffee. There’s no other place around here that allows dogs.”
The door swung back. “Okay, okay. Coffee. I’m always open for my buddies in uniform and their K-9s. I’ve got some Danish left. Or pie.” He eyed the wiry, dark-haired teen with them and arched a bushy brow. “Who’s your friend?”
Reed placed a proprietary hand on Dominic’s thin shoulder and looked to Abigail for unspoken permission. When she nodded, he said, “I’d like you to meet Ms. Abigail Jones, who has agreed to marry me. And this is Dominic. He’ll soon be our son if he agrees to being adopted.”
The old man gaped, then recovered and stuck out his good hand to shake Reed’s. “Well, I’ll be. When you do it, son, you go all the way. Instant family. Congratulations.”
Abigail lightly patted the boy’s opposite shoulder. “What about it, honey? We talked about this a few days ago and you seemed open to the idea so we’ve looked into it. What would you say to having a couple of new parents?”
“You guys were serious? Yes!” His shout startled both Jessie and Midnight into a chorus of barking while the adults laughed.
“Let’s go sit in there,” Reed said, gesturing at the French doors leading to the separate section Lou kept for officers and their dogs.
By the time they’d settled down around a table, they were joined by Reed’s commander, Noah Jameson.
Reed stood to shake his hand, then made introductions, inviting Noah to join them.
“I can’t stay. I just stopped because I saw you come in,” Noah said. He pulled out his cell phone as he glanced at Dominic. “Is this the teenager who had Snapper?”
Defensive, Reed was quick to say, “Only for a little while.”
“Fine,” Noah said, displaying the composite Dominic had done with Danielle and holding it out for him to look at. “Is this pretty close to the way you remember the man?”
Dominic nodded.
With a telling sigh, the interim chief put the phone back in his pocket. “I’d like to believe that’s the face of my brother’s killer.” He focused on Reed. “What do you think?”
Although he trusted his son-to-be, Reed realized it had been a long time since Snapper had been handed over. Memories were funny things, as he and Abigail well knew. Still, he wanted to be encouraging as well as support the teen.
“I think that’s the best, most logical assumption to make,” Reed said. “We’ll get the guy. None of us will give up or rest until he’s behind bars.”
The strong emotions he read in Noah’s expression hinted at a desire for revenge. If Reed hadn’t known what dedicated cops the remaining Jameson brothers were, he might have worried about a vendetta. He wouldn’t have blamed them.
Gazing at his loved ones, Reed silently thanked God that they had made it through their personal crises. Abigail was going to be his wife, Dominic was eager to become their son and even Kiera had mellowed enough to return to the foster parents who had been so worried about her welfare.
Now it was time for him and his unit to go back to rallying around the Jameson family and work on solving their mystery. Justice was waiting.
If you enjoyed Trail of Danger, look for Lani and Noah’s story Courage Under Fire and the rest of the True Blue K-9 Unit series from Love Inspired Suspense.
True Blue K-9 Unit: These police officers fight for justice with the help of their brave canine partners
Justice Mission by Lynette Eason, April 2019
Act of Valor by Dana Mentink, May 2019
Blind Trust by Laura Scott, June 2019
Deep Undercover by Lenora Worth, July 2019
Seeking the Truth by Terri Reed, August 2019
Trail of Danger by Valerie Hansen, September 2019
Courage Under Fire by Sharon Dunn, October 2019
Sworn to Protect by Shirlee McCoy, November 2019
True Blue K-9 Unit Christmas by Laura Scott and Maggie K. Black, December 2019
Keep reading for an excerpt from Dangerous Relations by Carol J. Post.
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