Christmas K-9 Guardians
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Lenora Worth
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ONE
“Hi, Granny, I’m almost done. How’s it going?”
Isla Jimenez held the phone to her ear and glanced at the white-and-black clock on the wall of her downstairs tech fortress at the Elk Valley, Wyoming, Police Department. Almost eight o’clock. She always liked the near silence at the end of the day after most people had gone home. Her brain worked better when she could be alone and hear nothing but the thoughts in her head, the kind of silence she’d craved as a child. No one shouting, no one fighting, no one crying in a corner. Group homes were not for the squeamish.
She’d promised her grandmother she’d be home by now. The last home visit from the adoption agency would take place tomorrow and she wanted to finish setting up Enzo’s bedroom. He already lived with her as a foster child, but he’d officially become her child if all went well.
She could finally adopt Enzo and make him her own. She already loved the toddler but a few setbacks had kept the red tape of the adoption tied up. She’d had a busy year. As a technical analyst for the police department and the Mountain Country K-9 Unit, she’d helped solve a serial killer cold case. The investigation spanned eight months. During that time, she’d also been targeted by a stalker—a woman from her past who’d tried to defame her to the adoption agency—who’d finally been arrested. With Christmas fast approaching, Isla was ready to put those difficult events behind her.
“Things are good here, honey,” her grandmother, Annette, said. “I can’t wait for you to get home so we can finally celebrate. I’m going to be the best abuela in the world.”
“You are already that, Granny Annie,” Isla replied, glad she lived across the street from the station. She’d been a foster child all of her life and when she’d aged out, by the grace of God, Annette, the maternal grandmother she’d never known, had been waiting for her with an offer she couldn’t refuse. A home and funding for college.
“I am, aren’t I?” her ever-feisty grandmother replied, her bubbly laugh sending sweet chimes out over the airways. “Hurry home. I made flan for dessert.”
Isla’s favorite. Having her grandmother move in with her to help with Enzo did have its perks. Isla had a lot to celebrate this Christmas. The excitement of finally being Enzo’s mother kept her going even when she was exhausted. Thankful that her dream had come true, she didn’t need anything else for Christmas. Having Granny and Enzo with her, after the year she’d been through, gave her the peace she’d prayed for so long. Now she could truly relax and enjoy this final step.
She closed her files, saving them in an encrypted cloud. Before she shut everything down, she did one last check—she liked things neat—then grabbed a small laptop and some flash drives so she could finish up a few files before taking a week off. Always on call, she planned to enjoy some time with Granny Annie and Enzo over the next few days. Quiet time, so precious, to cuddle and dream of gifts and goodies.
Heading toward the elevator, she stopped and went still when she heard footsteps echoing from the stairs. Who could be coming down to her lab without warning so late at night?
“Isla, you’re still here.”
“Michael?” The local vet took care of the department’s K-9 officer dogs and did a great job at it. Handsome and quiet, his hazel eyes always alert, his hair always needing a comb, he never had much to say, and he had no reason to come looking for her. And yet that shiver of awareness made her glad to see him. “What are you doing here?”
Then she saw the massive dog standing like a stone lion with him. “Hey there, fellow. Don’t tell me you want to work in the lab?”
Neither the dog nor the man responded to her humor.
Silence. They both stood with guarded gazes, the tension around them palpable. What was going on?
Michael Tanner filled her electronic space like an oak tree spreading over a rose garden. Granny would call him fine. Nice-looking and muscular, with a stoic expression that showed he meant business. And so did the beautiful black-and-tan dog with him. A Malinois.
“I need your help,” he said. “In a technical way.”
Trying to make things light because she really wanted to get home, she said, “As pickup lines go, that one is unique.”
“I’m serious.” His gaze flickered from her to the stairs behind him. “Can I come inside?”
Why had she even said that about pickup lines? Lifting her shoulders and chin, she said, “I was about to go home.”
Michael ran a hand over his thick gold-brown hair, which matched the dog’s fur almost perfectly. “Bogi is in danger. He has a target on his back.”
He nodded toward the dog and said nothing else.
“Is this Bogi?”
“Yes, aka Bogi the Narc Shark. Highly trained in drug detection, but he’s an all-purpose K-9. He recently sniffed out a shipment of fentanyl and other drugs worth over ten million dollars. A raid down in Texas.”
“Wow, impressive,” she said, offering her knuckles toward the dog. Bogi gave her a brown-eyed stare down but didn’t sniff her hand. More than highly trained. Like lightning on a leash. The big dog shifted his head, the leather collar around his neck jiggling.
She glanced back at Michael. “So how did he wind up in Wyoming?”
“Because his work is so impressive, someone wants him dead,” Michael replied, his words low and whispery. “I’m supposed to be hiding him, but these people always find what they want.”
“These people?” Isla’s heart rate pulsed some heavy beats. How many times had she helped find and put away these people? “Define that, please?”
“Cartel people,” Michael explained. “It’s a long story and I don’t have much time. It’s top secret—me having him in the first place. But I think they’ve found out and I can’t reach my contact in Texas.”
“As in, the cartel people are looking for you two?” she asked, her brain moving into gear even though her imagination created creepy scenarios. “Were you followed here?”
“I don’t think so,” Michael replied in a voice that made him sound like an undercover spy. “I can’t be sure, but the place is like a ghost town tonight what with the holidays coming up. You were my last resort.”
“And yet, another great line to win a woman’s heart,” she said, because she always used sarcasm to hide her fear. And she sometimes blurted out whatever popped into her head. “Get in here, Doc, and let’s see what we can find out.”
She studied Bogi. “And don’t worry, handsome. Sounds like you’re a major hero. We’ll see what we can find and who we can find to protect you.” Glancing at Michael, she said, “I’ll need to report this to Chase, of course.” When he didn’t respond, she went on, “Nora is out of town right now.”
The police chief, Nora Quan, had taken a few days off for the holidays.
“They’ll both want an explanation.”
Chase Rawlston, FBI Special Agent in Charge, and the head of the Mountain Country K-9 Unit, had saved her life when he’d caught Lisa King, a woman who’d been a preteen in the group home where Isla had spent most of her life. Lisa had been her stalker, seeking revenge because she’d blamed Isla for her little brother’s disappearance years ago. She’d tried to ruin Isla’s credentials and terrorize her into thinking she’d never be able to adopt. It had almost worked, but Chase and the team had watched out for Isla. She trusted him. He’d know what to do for Michael, and she’d help in any way she could. Probably a veterinarian overreacting.
Only, Michael Tanner never overreacted. Some of the team members called him Mr. Cool. Always calm and focused on the animals that came to his clinic, just as he now focused on the trained dog beside him. Isla could feel the tension pinging off him like shell casings pounding the ground. She had to help him. And not because she might have a tiny crush on him. Just part of her job. Or so she told herself.
She’d hurry and call Chase for advice. She couldn’t risk getting involved in anything that might mess up what could be her last opportunity to finally adopt Enzo.
Before she could find her phone, however, Michael held up a hand. “Don’t make that call yet.”
After she gave him a dagger-filled stare, Michael Tanner followed Isla over to the massive desk where she restarted her equipment. He watched as several different screens blinked and churned and sputtered, the bells and whistles of technology humming along at warp speed while his life had come to a complete halt. He considered her the best at tracking down information that could slay dangerous criminals. After all, she’d been put on a task force to hunt a serial killer. She sure didn’t need any more danger coming from him.
They barely knew each other, but his gut told him he could trust her. He’d seen the petite, brown-eyed woman in action and he’d always been impressed with her professionalism and her need for justice. She worked fast, too. He could almost see the information he’d given her percolating in her brain. Tonight, he had that same need for justice in mind, and the one person he wanted to talk to couldn’t be found. Isla could help. She could locate just about anyone using her tech talents.
But right now she shook her head and glared at him. “What are you saying? I have to alert someone and Chase is the SAC. I report to him when Nora’s not around.”
“I’m sorry, Isla. I’m trying to keep a low profile, so let’s keep this between us for now. All I need is intel on one person—the friend who asked me to do this.”
“You’re right about this place being deserted,” she said, her gaze questioning his every move. “The task force is taking a break, spread out through the whole month, but I still need to report this. I’m taking some time off next week. Monday, I’m signing the official papers to adopt Enzo, and I’m going to enjoy the holidays with him. So let me get you some help before I leave.”
He heard the determined inflection in her words. She really wanted to get away from him. Could she sense the danger that surrounded him, the kind of danger that could ruin innocent people’s lives? This was why he held friends at bay. He couldn’t—shouldn’t—have come here.
“I’d heard about that,” he said, unable to tell her that someone had tried to break into his clinic. He could handle a fight, no problem. But when it came to animals, he’d go beyond a fight. And he refused to think of those dark days of anger when he looked for the fight and welcomed it. Not now, when Bogi’s life depended on Michael keeping his cool.
She pivoted back toward him and Bogi, bristling in an urgent-business mode. “So what happened and what do you need?”
He was about to explain when they heard an echoing crash overhead. Gunshots on the floor above, followed by a thud. Did an officer on duty get hit? He gave Bogi the silent signal.
“They followed me,” he whispered as he glanced over his shoulder. He shouldn’t have come here. Now they’d target Isla, too. Grabbing her by the arm, he pushed her toward the stairs. “We have to go. Now.”
Isla’s eyes widened with a glow of surprise. “Go where? If we’re not safe in police headquarters.”
He tried to tug her behind a big cabinet.
Isla pulled away, disbelief mixed with traces of fear in her eyes, a gasp escaping her parted lips.
More shots, footsteps hurrying. Then the elevator dinged, and the door slid open to reveal a big man in black with a gun nestled in his hand.
Isla and the man stood face-to-face for a split second while Michael blocked Bogi behind the cabinet. Before the man could do anything, Michael swung around and fired one shot, hitting the intruder in his left shoulder. He fell to the floor.
Isla screamed as Michael dragged her away, Bogi getting between the unconscious man and them, a low growl his only sign of aggression.
“Guard,” Michael commanded Bogi. “Isla, don’t move.”
She gave him a look that shouted at him, then she whirled toward the man bleeding on the floor, but the K-9 stood guard. Michael couldn’t explain things right now, but she’d want answers and she deserved to know what was really going on. He’d flipped a switch and she’d witnessed it. No turning back now.
Michael checked the man’s pulse. “He’ll live, but we have to go.”
She shifted back. “Shouldn’t we wait until the police come?”
Michael shook his head. “No, we can’t. You’re not safe. They want Bogi, dead or alive. But mostly dead. And I’m pretty sure they want me, too. Really dead.”
“You failed to mention that part,” she said, suddenly diving into gathering more equipment. She grabbed electronics she’d need. They both knew to be prepared for anything. But right now, she needed to get out of here.
“Leave it,” he said. “We need to go now.”
He shoved her toward the outer door while she grabbed her backpack. “I’m taking this,” she said in a breathless rush that dared him to argue. “I have one of my secure laptops in here.”
“We’re gonna need more than electronics,” he replied. “My past has finally caught up with me, Isla.”
