Kevlar to My Vest Read online

  It was pale and clammy. Her eyes were red, having still not returned the glasses that usually covered her sightless eyes.

  I’d met Viddy through her sister, Adeline.

  Adeline was married to a member of The Dixie Wardens MC, Kettle. One of my brothers.

  Adeline and Viddy were twins. Both of them had dark hair, nearly black. Their skin was pale and creamy. However, that was where their similarities ended. Adeline was well rounded in all the right places. Well, more so now that she was eight months pregnant; but even before that, she’d always had more curves than Viddy.

  Viddy was more what I liked to call...delicate. She was small, fine boned, and trim. Although she did have some meat on her, she really could stand to gain more. Her hair was always braided and out of her way, except for today.

  Today, the black strands were loose and flowing around her shoulders and back.

  Normally, I would never catch her in anything less than what I liked to call her combat clothes. Loose jeans, a plain monotone shirt, and a jacket of some sort or another.

  Today, she was in a fitted tank, a pair of black yoga pants that said Pink across the ass, and tennis shoes. This was the most I’d ever seen of her skin, which made me aware of another difference between her and her sister.

  “You don’t have any tattoos like your sister?” I asked in surprise.

  Her head, which had been bowed, tipped up and regarded me. Her eyes moved over my features as if she could see.

  Then her beautiful mouth tipped up into a smile. “Can you imagine what my sister would put onto my body if I took her with me? I would never really know if she put something offensive on me or not. I can see her doing it, too. She talked me into it once, but we were both drunk. I’m not even sure if it says what she says it does. Luckily, mine’s on my ribs.”

  I returned my eyes to the road, trying my best not to roll my eyes. “You and your sister have the weirdest relationship. My brothers would kick my ass if I ever tried to do something like that. Although, they’ve kicked my ass for less, so it’s nothing new.

  “How many brothers do you have?” She asked as she turned her attention back down to the dog in her lap.

  I turned down Main Street and went to the park she’d indicated; glad it was still too early for the spray park to be open. Luckily, I knew quite a few of the city workers, one of which I’d called on the way, who’d told me the code to get in the gate.

  “I have two brothers. Miller and Foster. They’re both SEALS.” I said as I pulled the car into a parking spot directly in front of the gate.

  “Like the bad ass ones that have to survive being water boarded before they become SEALS?” She asked quizzically, as I shut off the car.

  I rolled my eyes as I got out of the car, opened Radar’s door, and then went around to Viddy’s. She was still sitting there patiently with Hemi in her lap.

  Scooping the dog up easily, I backed up until I was out of her way, and watched as she stood, unfolded her cane, and closed the door behind her.

  “There aren’t any steps. Only smooth concrete once you step up on the curb that’s about six inches in front of your left foot.” I instructed her.

  She followed my directions, and we walked into the splash pad, only stopping once to input the code.

  I set Hemi down on his feet, walked over to the button that I’d seen Sebastian’s son hit multiple times during his last birthday party, at this very place. Sebastian’s the vice president of The Dixie Wardens. He’d rented the entire place out for his son’s fourth birthday.

  Mostly, he rented it out because The Dixie Wardens tended to be off putting to the normal population. Therefore, to save themselves time and heartache, Sebastian rented the place so no other kids, nor parents, could attend while we were there.

  “Is he playing?” Viddy asked me.

  I watched as Radar got right up next to Hemi, nudging and urging until, finally, Hemi started walking slowly towards the spraying water.

  Once the water hit him, renewed vigor started to pour through Hemi, and he started moving a little more jovially until finally he was trotting, keeping up with Radar as they both frolicked and played.

  “Yes, Radar’s playing with him. He looks happy, honey.” I told her, watching her face.

  The next four hours went about as expected. Radar and Hemi played in the water for a good hour before Hemi finally lost his battle with the exhaustion. Once they were efficiently dried off, we took him to go get a steak dinner. Sadly, he only ate about a quarter of it before he lost the desire to eat, and nudged the rest in Radar’s direction, who’d refused to eat it.

  Then the final moment came as I pulled up to my house that was set off in the woods.

  At first, I’d been willing to take Hemi back to his doctor to be euthanized. Then, I’d heard about Viddy’s treatment, and knew that I’d never take them there.

  Instead, I called my good friend, who took care of Radar and my other animals, Kosher, Tequilla, and Mocha. All three were German Shepherds. Radar being the oldest, at nine, followed by Kosher, who was two, and finally to Tequila and Mocha who were still small at nine weeks old.

  I trusted my good friend, Dr. Zack Toler. Zack had taken care of Radar when he’d been sick or needed a check-up for nine years now, and had taken very good care of him.

  “Where are we?” Viddy asked when she heard the crunch of gravel underneath the tires of my cruiser.

  “How do you know we aren’t anywhere we’re supposed to be?” I asked as I put the car in park and slid out.

  I let Radar out, and then made my way around the car to Viddy, who had her feet up in the seat to allow Hemi to sleep on the floorboard.

  “The sounds are different. Nowhere I know has that kind of gravel. So, where are we?” She asked as she turned in her seat and placed her feet on the ground.

  Not thinking about the fact that she hated being led around, I grabbed her by the elbow and took her hand to guide her to the front porch and then to a seat.

  “We’re at my house. I have a friend who’s a veterinarian. He’s coming over now to help.” I explained as I walked towards the front door, opened it, and moved to the side as Kosher came barreling out.

  Kosher was a bundle full of energy, which was why I’d moved Viddy out of the way as I’d done. He wouldn’t have understood that she wasn’t able to play like all the other people that came over. When my boys weren’t on the job, they were free to play and have fun just like any other dog. Which included jumping up and licking faces.

  Viddy, however, wouldn’t have been prepared for the massive dog, and it was best for all if I moved her out of the way, just in case.

  Kosher didn’t come barreling out, however. He came out slow. Much slower than he normally did, and walked straight to Radar who was standing beside Viddy’s open car door. Both of my boys watched as I went to the car, lifted Hemi out, and took him inside to lay him on the couch.

  Hemi lay there, not moving, exhausted from all that he’d done in the last four hours.

  Feeling the sadness well up, I started to walk back outside but stopped once I saw Kosher and Radar leading her in. She had a hand full of fur from each dog, and was walking slowly forward. She was reading Radar and Kosher’s cues as if she’d done it a million times before.

  “Your friend is here. I heard him pull up.” She choked out.

  I walked up to her, pulling her into my body and hugged her tight. She was shaking, and very near to tears.

  “Do you want to be there with him?” I asked into her ear, breathing her scent in with each inhale.

  She felt perfect in my arms. The only thing I wished was different were the circumstances. I wish she hadn’t called because she was in a bind. Especially one such as this.

  “Yes,” she breathed, looking up at me.

  Not liking that she wasn’t looking at my eyes, I took her face in my hand and moved her until her eyes were connected to my own.

  Eyes so close to mine. One blue and one green. Both p
ale. Hypnotizing.

  That was how I’d gotten my road name. Trance.

  Loki had given me that name one day when a woman had turned him down after seeing me.

  “It’s like they’re in a trance. Once they get a look at your pretty fuckin’ eyes, they don’t want to see anything else!” He’d whined.

  Loki was another member of The Dixie Wardens, and my best friend. We’d met first on the force and, shortly after, prospected for the Wardens together. Both of us had been sponsored by Sebastian, only a year after Sebastian had become a member himself.

  “Trance, is it okay that I come in?” Zack asked from my front door.

  I looked up to see him watching Viddy and me.

  He was a short man. In his late fifties, Zack had been in practice for nearly thirty years. He’d moved here all the way from North Dakota, and I’d found him by chance when I’d needed an emergency vet for Radar when he’d swallowed a chicken bone.

  It also said something about him that he didn’t just come barging into my territory. Radar and Kosher, although somewhat occupied with Hemi, were not totally ignorant to what was going on, and Zack knew that.

  “Zack, come in please. Viddy, this is Zack, the horde’s vet. Zack, this is Viddy. Viddy’s dog, Hemi, is the one I called you about earlier.” I said, leading him over to the couch.

  Viddy’s hand was still in mine, holding on incredibly tight as Zack cooed and cawed at Hemi.

  “Oh, Hemi. You’re a strong one, aren’t you? Are you ready to go home, good ol’ boy?” Zack asked as he started to set up his things.

  Zack had enquired with Hemi’s vet to be sure, and he’d concurred with Hemi’s prognosis. Hemi only had another couple of days, at most, to live and after today, he didn’t have much of an outlook, and would probably be in severe pain if precautions weren’t taken.

  “Now, do you know what euthanasia is, my dear girl?” Zack asked in his grizzled, no nonsense voice.

  Viddy was shaking her head before he’d even finished with the question. “No, sir. I don’t have the first clue. It’s not going to hurt, is it?” She choked.

  Zack patted Viddy’s hand and led her to sit on the couch next to Hemi’s head. “No dear, it won’t hurt. Now you just sit here and talk to him, okay? He won’t feel a single thing, I promise.”

  Zack spoke throughout, explaining exactly what he was doing, and why, all the while Hemi laid still, taking in the scene around him, but not putting up one ounce of fight.

  “Now that I have the IV in, I’ll put the solution in. It’ll be exactly like he is going to sleep. One minute he will breathe, and the very next he will not. Do you want to say anything to him before we do it, baby girl?” Zach asked her softly.

  “I promise to never use your dishes on another puppy. I will forever keep your name sacred, and I will forever remember you. When I go to work and find some of your hair on my shirt, I’ll remember that you used to roll in my clean laundry, and smile. I love you so much, and I’ll miss you like crazy, Hem.” She said quietly into Hemi’s fur.

  As she spoke, I watched as Zack depressed the plunger on the large syringe in his hand, and counted down from twenty.

  At seventeen seconds, Hemi’s eyes closed.

  At eleven seconds, he inhaled deeply.

  At seven, Hemi took his final breath.

  Chapter 1

  My job is protect your ass, not kiss it.

  -Trance to a suspect

  Trance

  I watched from my position at the kitchen table as Radar played with Kosher. Radar had Kosher pinned to the floor with his gaping maw at Kosher’s throat, and then just as quickly, Kosher was up and pinning Radar to the floor.

  Radar didn’t know it yet, but he was about to retire. Just as soon as I could guarantee that Kosher was ready.

  Kosher was a two-year-old German Shepherd. I’d been working with Kosher now for two years. I’d raised him from a tiny puppy, all of six weeks old, just as I’d done with Radar.

  Radar I’d gotten even earlier at five weeks, but the results were the same.

  Raised from tiny pups, I put them through vigorous training, exercised them, and worked with them day and night. So much so that I considered them the perfect dogs. They would both protect me with their life, and I knew the day would come, likely sometime very soon, that Radar would need to retire. Therefore, that’s why I’d started working with Kosher.

  Police dogs got tired just like humans. There was only so much a police officer could take before he needed a break. Sadly, Radar’s break was very near. At nine years old, it was nearly Radar’s time.

  I already knew Kosher hated being left behind in the mornings as we left, but soon it would be Radar, and I just didn’t know how he’d react to seeing his place in my vehicle usurped by his friend.

  Mocha and Tequila, not ones to pass up a fight, ran full tilt until they both slammed into the snarling mass of fur, being brought into their tumble out of sheer momentum.

  The high-pitched puppy barks started to get to me, so I started repeating one word very softly. At first it started out almost like a whisper, but then it turned into a quiet word.

  “Heel.” I said softly.

  No reaction from the rat pack.

  “Heel.” I said again.

  Surprisingly, it was one of the puppies that reacted first.

  “Heel.” I said with a slightly higher pitch.

  Which was another reason why I thought it was about time for Radar to retire. I wasn’t saying he wasn’t good at his job. I was saying that he was losing his touch, and that touch was paramount to mine and Radar’s life.

  Mocha, of course, got the towel I kept at my hip for praise, and she held on a good ten seconds longer than she usually did. She basked in the approval I gave her before I finally won and looked at the glaring Radar.

  That was his towel. Or at least he thought it was. Normally, he was the one who got the towel.

  “You snooze, you lose, old buddy!” I called to him.

  I had a feeling he’d be mad at me for a while.

  Walking away from the horde, I went to the laundry room to grab my uniform I’d picked up from the cleaners last night and then to my room to get dressed.

  After I stripped down to my briefs, I slipped on thick gray wool socks over my feet. Then I pulled on my uniform pants, zipping but not buttoning. Followed shortly by a plain white undershirt, my bulletproof vest, and then my uniform shirt.

  Once all of that was in place, I tucked, zipped, and straightened.

  I clipped on my badge, slipped on my boots, and then belted my gun belt around my waist.

  After everything was in place, I went to the bathroom and ran the electric razer over my face, brushed my teeth, grabbed my gun off the bathroom counter, and holstered it before walking out my bedroom door.

  I could already feel the low throb of my lower back from my gear, which meant not good things for me. Today wasn’t going to be a fun day. I hated running the dog through the schools. I hated finding weed and coke in a fourteen year old’s locker.

  Although today should prove interesting since I was doing it at the school that Viddy and Adeline worked at.

  Recently, the two schools had combined.

  Benton High and West Benton High had finally pulled their heads out of their asses and combined the two schools. It was ridiculous that they had two in the first place. Benton had a population of 15,000. It was ridiculous to have two graduating classes of sixty and sixty-two consecutively.

  What that meant now, though, was that Viddy and Adeline, her sister, now worked in the same school. Which they loved.

  I was happy because Viddy was happy.

  Why?

  Because I was a love sick fool. I was so beyond in love with that woman that I could barely handle it. I’d been debating for months now on what to do. What stopped me was the fact that she didn’t make a move.

  If she’d even given me one hint that she wanted me, I’d have said fuck the boyfriend and went for it.
But she was nothing but friendly with me, which sucked.

  I’d never had a problem getting a girl that I wanted. Never.

  Then that five foot five, black haired beauty walked into my life, and I’d had nothing but problems ever since.

  Fuck, but I even had to picture Viddy, when I fucked other girls, to get off. Now that was embarrassing. At least I hadn’t called out her name, even though I’d roared it in my head.

  The last thing I picked up before I left the room was my cell phone, which I clipped onto the last spot open on my belt, at my right kidney, and left the room.

  I stopped at Mocha and Tequila’s kennels, whistled one sharp burst of sound, and stood to the side as Tequila and Mocha ran full tilt to their cages.

  Since they were only just now six months, there was no way I was leaving two puppies alone in my house with all the furniture I’d just bought.

  I’d learned my lesson with Radar. Luckily, I’d planned on tearing that particular wall out anyway.

  “Alright Radar, let’s ride.” I said as I grabbed my keys off the kitchen table.

  Just as I reached the door, I turned and gave Kosher a scratch on the head before I armed the alarm and left through the front door, Radar close on my heels.

  It was a bittersweet moment.

  This would be the last time I took Radar out on his own for a shift. Next week started a new chapter in our life.

  Hopefully, that chapter would mean good things.

  Chapter 2

  Watch out, I’m about to release my bitch.

  -Viddy to Leona

  Viddy

  “What’s going on?” I asked Leona.

  Leona answered me quickly, all the while eavesdropping on the happenings of the commotion in the hallway.

  Leona was my teacher’s aide. She was twenty-two, and set to graduate with her degree in ASL, American Sign Language, at the end of the year.

  When we returned from summer break, she would be joining my team helping teach the kids that needed special education in the Benton school system.