New Member Of The Family
Summery: My take on how the Burkes adopted Satchmo.
Note: Set pre-series
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Elizabeth Burke was turning off the lights and gathering her things, getting ready to leave Burke's Premier Events and head home. She was dreading the walk to her car, since it had been pouring rain for the past hour with no signs of letting up.
With one last look around to make sure she had everything, Elizabeth opened the front door. She jumped back with a gasp, when a brown blur whizzed past her. Elizabeth turned and saw a medium sized brown dog standing there, dripping water on the floor.
"Out." She said, pointing towards the still opened door. The dog looked at her, his head cocked sideways. He made no effort to move. "Out." She repeated more sternly. But the dog just sat down.
Elizabeth smiled slightly at him, he was a cute dog. But he was real thin and his hair was matted and dirty.
"Okay, boy." She said, shutting the door. "How about some food? I've got half a hamburger in the fridge."
She walked into the other room, then returned with the food and placed it in front of the dog. He woofed it down quickly, then looked up at her as if asking for more.
"You are hungry, huh boy." She said, petting his head. "No collar, I'm guessing you're a stray."
Elizabeth went back into the kitchen and rummaged around for a few moments, then returned with a plate of cocktail weenies and shrimp.
"It's probably not very healthy for a dog." She said, placing the plate in front of the dog. "But it'll have to do for right now."
She watched the dog scarf down the food and smiled again. "You eat like my husband."
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Peter walked into his house, and headed straight for his recliner. He was exhausted.
"Honey, you home?" He called out, as he sat down.
"Yes Dear." Her voice floated from the kitchen. "I'll be in there in a minute. Would you like a beer?"
"That would be great, thanks." Peter said as he closed his eyes and leaned his head back. It felt so good to relax.
Peter heard someone moving towards him, but figured it was his wife. "I hope your day went better then mine." He said. "I was on a stak…..Hay!" He shouted, when something pounced onto his lap. He looked down and saw a dog laying in his lap.
"Elizabeth!" He yelled, shoving the dog onto the floor.
"Peter." Elizabeth scolded, as she entered the room in time to see the dog land in the floor with a yelp. "That was mean." She knelt in front of the dog, after setting Peter's beer on the coffee table. "He was just saying hello."
"Why is there a dog in here?"
"He showed up at work." She said, petting the dog. "He was starving, and dirty. So I feed and bathed him, got him all clean and happy."
"That doesn't explain why he's here."
"I couldn't just leave him, Peter. He needs a home."
"No way." Peter said.
"Come on Peter, you like dogs."
Peter looked from the dog to his wife, both were giving him their best puppy dog eyes. Peter Burke knew when he was licked.
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That night, husband and wife laid in bed snuggled up to each other. They heard rain pounding on the roof.
"What were you saying about a stakeout earlier, Honey?" Elizabeth asked.
"We received Intel that Caffrey was holding up in this posh hotel." Peter said. "So we staked it out, for five hours."
"Did he show?"
"No, but a bottle of expensive Champaign did."
"He sent you Champaign?" Elizabeth asked, trying not to laugh.
"I am going to catch him one day." Peter said, with determination. "And put him in prison where he belongs."
"I know." His wife said.
They saw lighting flash trough the window and then heard a loud clash of thunder.
"Enough talk about Caffrey." Peter said, smiling at Elizabeth. "I'm sure we can find something better to talk about."
"I'm sure we can."
Another bolt of lighting and another loud clash of thunder erupted. They heard running paws and then saw a brown blur jump onto the bed and dash under the covers.
"Out!" Peter ordered, as another clash of thunder erupted. The dog whined and burrowed deeper into the covers.
"Peter." Elizabeth said. "He's scared."
"So?"
"It's okay boy." Elizabeth said, as she uncovered the dog and started petting him. "You can stay in here tonight."
"But…" Peter started, but then stopped when his wife glared at him. With a deep sigh, he rolled over and closed his eyes.
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The next morning, Peter was in the shower. He heard someone enter the bathroom and smiled. "Care to join me, Honey?" He asked, sliding the glass door open. But instead of Elizabeth, the dog was the one to jump into the shower with him.
"Out!" He shouted, scaring the dog. He ran from the shower and out of the bathroom. "Damn mutt." He mumbled.
"Peter!" Elizabeth's angry voice shouted. "What did you do to Satchmo?"
"Satchmo?" Peter mumbled to himself. "What a name for a dog."
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After his shower, Peter went into the kitchen. Elizabeth was pouring him a bowl of his favorite cereal.
"Aren't you joining me?" He asked, when he only saw one bowl.
"I have to leave in a couple minutes, I already ate."
"This is new." Peter relied. "Usually I'm the first one to leave."
Elizabeth finished pouring his cereal, and then threw the empty box in the trash. Peter wrapped his arms around her and they kissed, long and hard. Neither noticed Satchmo climb onto Peter's chair, or when he started eating Peter's cereal.
Peter and Elizabeth pulled apart, and that's when they noticed the dog.
"Down!" Peter shouted. Satchmo jumped down and ran behind Elizabeth.
"That mutt ate my cereal." Peter said, glaring at the dog.
"He was just hungry, Peter." Elizabeth said. "No need to get mad."
"But he ate my cereal, and that was all of it."
"I'll pick some more up on my way home, eat something else."
"But it was my cereal."
"You sound like a five-year-old."
"That mutt…"
"Peter." Elizabeth scolded. "Do not be mean to Satchmo, he's still very young. He'll learn what's appropriate behavior and what's not. Just give him some time."
She petted the dog, then stood up and faced her husband. "I have to run, do not be mean to Satchmo." She leaned forward and kissed Peter, then left.
Peter glared at the dog, who ran from the room.
"Yeah, you better run." Peter shouted after him.
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Several hours later, Peter was just about to leave the office. He was almost to the elevators, when he saw Hughes running after him.
"Where's Elizabeth?" The older man asked, his voice urgent.
"Probably home by now, what's wrong?"
"Anthony Morgan escaped prison less then five hours ago, when the guards searched his cell they found a picture of Elizabeth."
"When he was convicted five years ago, he swore he'd get even with me. Make me pay for him going to prison and for his wife leaving him." Peter said, as he pulled out his phone and tried his wife's number. It rang several times, but she did not answer.
The elevator opened and Peter dashed inside, while redialing his wife's number.
"I'll call for back up." Hughes called out, as the doors shut.
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Elizabeth was in the kitchen, putting on some coffee, when she heard her cell phone ringing. She walked into the living room and was about to pick up the ringing phone, when the front door slammed opened with a loud thud and splintering wood. Before Elizabeth had time to react, the intruder rushed to her and grabbed her phone.
"Who are you?" She asked.
"An old friend of your husbands." Morgan snarled.
"Well he's not here right now. You'll have to come back later."
Morgan backhanded her hard across the face and she fell to the floor.
"I hate comedians." He said. "Now stand up."
Elizabeth stood up, looking at the man in fear.
"Your husband took everything from me." Morgan said, as the house phone started ringing. "Now I take from him."
The man aimed a gun directly at Elizabeth's chest. "I would really prefer to make this slow and painful, but time is not on my side."
Before Morgan could pull the trigger, Satchmo appeared and lunged at the man. The dog sank his teeth into Morgan's wrist and the man yelled out in pain and dropped the gun. Morgan kicked out, catching Satchmo in the chest. The dog let go with a yelp.
Elizabeth and Morgan both dove for the gun, Morgan got to it first and closed his fist around it. Then yelled out in pain again as Satchmo's teeth sank into his butt. The gun once again went skidding across the floor. This time Elizabeth grabbed it, then stood and pointed it at the intruder.
"Satch, down." She ordered. The dog let go and then stood beside Elizabeth. She aimed the gun at Morgan and said. "Don't move."
"I'm bleeding." Morgan said, clutching his injured wrist to his chest.
"And you will be bleeding in more places if you move."
"Elizabeth!" Peter exclaimed, as he burst into the house with his gun drawn. He looked at the man in the floor, then at his wife, then at Satchmo. "I miss something?" He asked.
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That night, Peter and Elizabeth were snuggled close together on the sofa. Satchmo was curled up in the floor.
"I'm so glad we kept Satchmo." Peter said. "After this he can eat all of the cereal he wants and he can sleep in bed with us every night. Hell, I'll even share the shower with him."
"You hear that Satch?" Elizabeth asked the dog. "You're a member of the family now."
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THE END
Hope you enjoyed it. Please let me know what you think of it.