Michael opened the gate open for me and I slithered through the crowd of people and into the private lot. Michael closed the gate and ascended the stairs with me behind him. It was a fun night. We went to the club, had a few drinks, danced for a little bit. Just like the old days. I looked up to see Michael's door open a crack.
"Looks like you had visitors." I said, shifting to dog form and slipping past Michael and into the lost.
"Took them long enough." Michael said. A rank scent, kind of like spoiled food, snacked me on the nose. Michael pulled out a black light and scanned the floor with it to reveal footprints.
"Three man team?"
"Sounds about right. Two sneakers and a loafer." I sniffed the trail as Michael went up stairs.
"They're not terribly careful, your surveillance."
"They weren't hiding." I raised my muzzle into the air and pricked my ears to hear anything beyond the club's music. Nothing.
"I miss your F.B.I detail. They were kind of sweet."
"The feds were errand boys." I shifted back as Michael came back down. "But these guys on the other hands, might actual have something useful."
"I don't know why they bother. They should just put a bullet in your head and be done with it."
"Apparently, I'm more valuable alive than dead." He stood about a foot in front of me, his suit all smoothed and perfect. "But I'm sure they'll take it under advisement."
"Oh, you think they're listening?" I questioned him quietly. Before he could answer, his phone rang. He answered it.
"Yeah, Mom?" I strained my ear to listen to the other side of the line.
"Michael," Maddie sounded panic. "There are men here outside the house with guns."
"What? What men?"
"I don't know. They've been watching. They're coming inside."
"Call the cops. Call them right now." Michael raced out the door with me behind him in dog form.
BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB BBBBBBBBBBBBBBBBB
I raced along side the charger, my pads skidding across the concrete, tearing them up. My claws clicked as they reached out to gather more ground as I managed to keep up with the charger's speed. As we approached Maddie's house, Michael turned off his headlights and I raced up the walkway to the front door where I heard crashing inside. Michael kicked down the door and I rushed inside. Two men charged at Michael and a dog flung himself onto my back. I let myself keep falling until I was rolling sideways, sending the dog right over me. I jumped to my paws and spun around to face the small blue gray bitch. I waited for her to launch herself at me, then dodged away and flicked my front paw into her face. She screeched and staggered back, bleeding from her nose. I bit her flank so hard that she left a clump of fur in my teeth as she wrenched herself free. It was only then when I had realized that Michael was done fighting with the two men and of course he won. I crashed into her, stretching out my front paws to run my claws down her flank. She shrieked and whirled to face me. Furious green eyes stared into mine and she lunged toward me with her teeth bared. I knocked her away with a thrust of my head, then sank my claws into her ear and felt the thin flesh tear satisfyingly. She fell sideways, leaving her pale gray belly open to the ceiling. One slice with my claws and. . . Pain shot through my tail and I let out a screech. Whipping around, I saw a cream colored male clinging to the tip with his teeth. Where the bloody hell did he come from? He looked younger than the bitch by several months, his fur still pup soft around his face but the determination in his eyes made me flinch. I tried to back away but he didn't let go and the agony in my tail made my eyes close for a moment. Behind me, I heard the bitch scramble to her paws, out of reach. I clawed myself across the living room but the young dog kept his jaws locked on my tail until I felt the bone splinter. I slapped my paw down on his muzzle and he finally let go. The bitch stood to the left of me and the male to the right. I stood there, panting for breath, eyeing them both, waiting for one of them to lunge at me.
"Enough!" A man's voice shouted. I looked up to see a man entered the room with a grip on Maddie's arm. I growled furiously at him and the bitch and male growled at me. "Bellossom, Blastoise, please." The dogs went over to the man's side as the two men that Michael fought got to their feet.
"Dawn," Michael called quietly to me. I shifted to human form and went over to Michael's side.
"Fourteen minutes. I figured you for twelve. It's probably those causeways. See, you'll have to forgive my sketchy Miami geography. I'm new in town. We nearly got lost coming from your place."
"Mom, are you okay?"
"They cut the phone lines." Maddie cried. "I couldn't call the police. Then they broke in and I—"
"It's okay. It's ok." Michael soothed her. "You want to tell me who you are?"
"I'm the new man in your life." The man said. Michael stared at him and the guy chuckled. He let go of Maddie and she stumbled over to us and Michael pushed her behind his back. "You pissed off a lot of people getting your hands on the Homeland Security directive authorizing your burn notice. You're a private citizen now. You're not suppose to touch that kind of thing."
"I asked nicely."
"You wanted attention from someone a little higher up on the food chain."
"That's about right."
"It's your lucky day. Here I am. And here I will stay—" He grabbed a glass cylinder and dropped it on the ground, shattering it. Michael sighed beside me. "Until you back off."
"Michael, why are they doing this? Are you in some kind of trouble?" Maddie asked.
"Not now. Not now, Mom. Dawn, please." I took Maddie gently by the arm and led her outside to the porch swing before heading back inside to Michael's side. "Your problem is with me, not with her. You have no business coming here."
"Oh, no, but we do." The man said. "See, you're a major security risk. You just assaulted two federal agents."
"Yeah, but they clarify that when they attacked Michael. So, technically, it was just self defense." I smirked at him. Michael uncocked his gun and handed it to the man and he took it.
"Go ahead. Arrest me. I'd like to take a look at the indictment."
"Wouldn't you now?" The man questioned Michael.
"Yeah."
"Listen, you be a good boy and I'll get out of your hair. Or fur as in this girl's case." I glared at him. The man pulled out a pocket knife and flipped it open. "Until then, I'll need to keep looking." The man went over to a chair and sliced the back of it open. "Sorry. You can't be too careful."
UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU
Sam and Michael sat down as Fiona and I leaned up against posts looking out on the water. We were down at the marina, waiting for a boat that got stolen from Sam's friend. I perked my ears and in the distance, I heard a boat engine.
"Five, four, three, two, one." I muttered as I a boat rounded the corned and drove up to a dock a couple docks down from us. A black man came out of a car and walked over to the boat.
"He's cute." Fiona muttered.
"Don't you have a boyfriend?"
"Can't I think other guys are cute?" I laughed and rolled my eyes. Michael stood up and took his jacket off to reveal a gray wifebeater that hugged his chest muscles.
"What's your cover I.D, Mikey?" Sam asked. Michael grabbed a blue hat off a hook.
"Think I'm going to go with devoted employee." Michael said. "How's, uh,-" He thought about it for a moment before answering in a southern accent. "Homer?"
"Homer. I like it." Michael bent down to grab some dirt and rub it on his shirt. I sighed and Michael looked down at me and smiled and I smiled back. "You want me to set up that one, Mike?" Sam pointed to a white boat. "The sailboat?"
"Yeah, that's good." Michael cocked his head at me and I took off my collar and handed it to Fiona before I followed him out onto the dock where the stolen boat was. We waited for the cops to come to the sailboat Sam and Fiona were on before approaching the Jamaican guys.
"Hey there," Michael called to them in a southern accent.
"Can I help you?" The guy asked us.
"Yes, sir, I'm here for that boat."
"Oh, you're with the repo man, huh?"
"My boss. Hell of a guy. He's like a father to me. You beat him up pretty good."
"Yeah, that was unfortunate. I'd tried to explain the situation to him but he forced me to clarify my position. This is my property."
"We've got the paperwork right here that says otherwise." My throat became rather dry as I tried to keep a southern accent like Michael.
"Hmm. Well, that paperwork is misinformed." The guy opened his jacket to reveal a gun in his pants.
"Mmm. Why don't we ask the police to sort this out? I mean, they're right over there. I could holler over to 'em right now and ask them to come sort this out." The guy pulled out his gun and held it up against Michael's stomach. "That's a nice piece. You gonna shoot me with it? Probably gonna have to shoot her too. Might be tough to explain to the cops." I danced behind the guy's back.
"Or I can start screamin'." I taunted him.
"The way I see it, if this is your boat, these guns are registered, and you're 100% squeaky clean, you have nothing to worry about. But if not—" I untied the ropes to the boat.
"All right." The guy said. "Making a serious mistake, man." I climbed into the boat as Michael pushed the boat from the docks and jumped in. "You do this, there's no turning back, you know."
"I can't leave without the boat, so if you're gonna shoot us, get it done. Otherwise, we got places to be."
"We'll deal with this another time, when I get a little bit more privacy." I ran my hands down the seats and felt the cold, smoothness of them.
"Ooh, leather seats." I awed. "I can see why you're so attached to it."
"Pretty lady, don't get too comfortable." The guy said in a condescending tone.
"You better watch how you talk to my girl." Michael said in a way that completely turned me on.
"I'll see you soon, huh? I promise." Michael started the boat and turned it around so we could head to the other side of the marina where Fiona and Sam would be waiting for us. We reached them, Sam hooked the boat to the truck and Fiona pulled it out of the water. Michael had the back seats up rummaging through the bottom of the boat.
"What are you looking for back there?" Sam asked, climbing up.
"He was confident he getting his boat back. I want to make sure there's no surprises." Michael said.
"Well, people get attached to their vehicles. I had a Cadillac El Dorado once. That thing was part of the family." Michael pulled a black box from the seat.
"G.P.S tracker. It's how our Jamaican friend was gonna find us."
"Son of a bitch." Michael got out of the boat and placed the tracker in front of the back tire.
"Sam, how well do you know Virgil?" I asked. "You trust him?"
"He's like a brother, Dawn. I mean, the guy saved my life." Sam answered. Michael tapped the truck's side and Fiona ran over the tracker.
RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR
Fiona drove the boat to the repair shop Virgil was talking about, Sam to the right of her, Michael to the right of him and me in Michael's lap. Fiona brought the car to a stop and I slid off Michael's lap into the seat as Michael got out to go into the warehouse.
"So, how are things with Campbell?" I asked Fiona as we waited for Michael to come back out.
"They're good, they're good. We went to dinner the other night. Bulbasaur."
"Really? Isn't that the new Italian place over on Washington Street?"
"Yep."
"I thought only special guests could get in?"
"Well, Campbell's brother works there and he got us in."
"Wow, lucky you."
"You think that's lucky, you should see what Veronica got me." Sam said.
"And what's that, Sam?" I asked.
"A toothbrush."
"A toothbrush?" Fiona and I questioned him.
"Yeah, a toothbrush. That means, I'm out of Mike's place and I'm moving in with Veronica."
"Congratulations, Sam." I said.
"So, uh, how are things going with you and Mike?" Before I could answer, gunshots fired and I looked past Fiona to see Michael running out of the warehouse. He waved at Fiona and she drove forward as Michael leapt into the back of the truck and crouched down.
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
"It's clear." Fiona told Michael who was leaning up against the boat. "I don't think they followed you."
"So, Virg, it got pretty hairy back there," Sam told Virgil. "How well do you know these clients of yours?"
"You mean James?" Virgil questioned him. "Like I said, he did me a few favors. He had all the paperwork. It seemed like a simple delivery."
"James and his friends are cops, dirty cops." Michael told Virgil.
"What—what you talking about?"
"Oh, I wouldn't lie to Michael again, Virgil." I said.
"They had department issue Glocks on hip holsters, a late model Crown Vic in the parking lot." Michael's voice got louder and louder with each word he said. "I think they knew you." He was up in Virgil's face now. "You know what it sounded like to me?"
"Easy, Michael," I said, placing a hand on his chest.
"They do know me, from some boat repos that went bad." Virgil said. Michael looked at Sam. "They came to me. Look, I got a daughter in Tampa. They took pictures. They said they'd hurt her if I didn't help."
"Why do they want that boat so bad?" Michael asked the question sternly.
"How the hell do I know? It's a Donzi 27 DR. It might be worth a couple hundred grand."
"They were ready to incinerate you and the boat. It's a nice boat, but it's not worth killing the five of us and blowing up a boat yard."
"Sam, you know I wouldn't do this to you. I may be a son of a bitch for dragging you into this but if I had any other choi—" Michael threw up his hands up into the air and walked away from us, clearly out of patients.
"Hey, Mike." Sam called after Michael and jogged up to his side. I walked over to his left side. "You know how I told you Virgil saved my life and all that? Truth is, it's—it's more complicated than that. Back in '84, I was in East Germany. I made some mistakes, Mike, did some stuff I shouldn't have. Virgil gave me a second chance when I sure the hell didn't deserve it. I owe him, Mike."
"Sam." Michael said sternly.
"It's his daughter. If you're not in on this, I gotta handle this myself."
"You can't handle this by yourself, Sam."
"Yeah, I know." Michael sighed.
"We need a place to stash him."
NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN NNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN
I was upstairs sniffing around for any bugs in the computer or radio. Those little things always gave a sandy smell. I don't know why, don't ask me, they just do. Michael was downstairs planting a bug in a digital camera.
"Oh, another no confidence vote in the Italian Parliament. Any thoughts?" Michael asked, trying to keep a conversation going to make his surveillance team happy. His surveillance team had a listening device and Michael was trying to figure out a way to stop them. Of course. I trotted down the steps and shifted to human form as I approached the counter to where Michael was working at.
"As interested as I am in European politics," I said. "I was thinking this would be a good opportunity for us to discuss why exactly you left me." Michael looked up at me and gave me a look that said you didn't. Yep, that's right, Mikey, you want a conversation, then I pick the topic. He wrote something down on his notepad and held it up for me to read. Not now! "Oh, I think now's the perfect time."
"It was a difficult time. There was an important reason. It was years ago. We should—Let me gather my thoughts and we can talk about this another time."
"Not even a goodbye, Michael?" I pushed the conversation on. I held up my notepad for him to read. Nothing transmitting upstairs.
Change topic. I looked up at him and shook my head, my ponytail waving back and forth. "If you remember, I made you dinner that night."
"Well, had I known it was the last supper, I would have chewed slower." Michael sighed.
"If you recall, I let you free in Ireland and my cover got blown when we were in Germany."
"You could have left a note."
"Leaving notes is bad tradecraft. It could have put you in danger."
"You ran away in the middle of the night for my benefit?"
"Believe it or not, Dawn, yeah. It was for your benefit."
"And yours."
"Yes, Dawn, and mine."
"Thanks, Michael. A little honesty is refreshing."
Happy now? I nodded.
Optical bug? He held up his camera and I smiled. "Let us take some picture to celebrate this special night."
"What a great idea." I walked over to the large window and posed as Michael snapped some pictures. I did another and another.
"How's that one? Can I see it?"
"Yeah." I walked over to him and looked at the camera's screen as he flipped through the pictures. He pointed to a red spot in the picture and I went over to tape a vibrator there. "You had to do that now?"
"I didn't say I'd help you for free. You found your eavesdropper. I'll go over to his little listening post wait till he leaves, see where he scurries to. You think he's the one who burned you?"
"No, he came here to show me who's boss. He's one step closer." I sighed.
"We should do this more often." I leaned up to peck a small kiss on the corner of his mouth before leaving the loft.
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Michael pulled up to the Hermione hotel.
"So this is Sam's new ride?" I asked.
"His girlfriend loaned it to him. He loaned it to me." Michael said.
"Love is a beautiful thing."
"Anyway, are you sure these guys aren't gonna show up and surprise me?"
"You probably have a few hours. They're setting surveillance cameras at your place."
"Which room is his?"
"215. I followed him here last night. The guy acted a little pissed after the business with the personal massager. You sure you want to upset him?"
"He's here to make me behave. I do that, he goes home. I never find out anything. I need him here. If I can't make him a friend—" He got out of the car.
"Next best thing is an enemy." I finished for him.
TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT TTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT
"Calmed your mother down." Fiona said, coming into the garage where Michael, Sam and I were loading the ten million dollars that Sam found in the boat into the truck. "I gave her enough sedatives to knock out a trucker."
"Did you ask her what the hell she was doing out?" Michael asked as he carried a bundle of money to the truck. "I told her to keep him inside." Fiona picked one up and I picked another up and lugged it to the truck.
"Oh, go easy on her, Michael." I said. "They snuck out. A woman needs a little danger."
"All right, so what do we do about the cops and James, huh?" Sam asked as he threw a bundle into the trunk. Michael carried another while I followed behind.
"Well, I expect they're gonna be very disappointed when they find out we're giving the money to the Jamaicans." Michael went back for another. "We don't have any leverage."
"They got Virgil's daughter, Mike."
"One problem at a time, Sam. First Virgil, then his daughter." Sam, Fiona and I went back for three more before leaning up against the truck beside Michael and stared at the last bundle of money on the floor. "We could take some of the money, hire her a lawyer. That could take care of it."
"That could take care of us too." Sam said.
"I doubt they'll miss it, Michael." Fiona said.
IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII IIIII
We parked on Larry Park and looked for any signs of the cops or the Jamaicans.
"Mike, I should you go." Sam said. "Virgil's my buddy. You don't owe him anything."
"They know me and Dawn. If you show up, they'll think something's wrong. Just cover us and keep an eye out."
"All right. Good luck." Sam grabbed his sniper rifle and climbed up the hill to the top of the bridge.
"It's cute, this loyalty of Sam's." Fiona said. "I rather like this side of him."
"Thanks for doing this, Fi." Michael said. "You too, Dawn."
"Oh, we're not doing this for you." I said. "Fi promised we bring Virgil back alive." I sat in the trunk as Michael began to unload the money and Fiona climbed into the driver's seat. Michael carried the last bundle of money just as a black car pulled up in front of us and the Jamaicans got out with Virgil.
"Hey, they're right on time." Michael said. "Let's make this trade, make it quick and get out of here before things get—" Michael's phone rang. "—interesting." Michael answered his phone. "Yeah, Sam?"
"Your hunch about James was right, 'cause he and the boys just showed up." Sam said.
"Yeah, ok, I'm ready for them." He hung up. "Cops are coming." Michael grabbed a tin can of gasoline and a torch and began to dump the gasoline onto the money.
"Hey! What are you doing, man?" The Jamaican yelled. "What are you doing? I said stop it! Stop it!" He began to walk towards Michael but a bullet hit the ground, just barely missing his right foot.
"Freeze!" James yelled, coming from the front of the truck. "Drop it now!" The cops pointed the guns at the Jamaicans and the Jamaicans pointed the guns at the cops.
"Hey, you, get back! I said back up!"
"Calm down." Michael told the cops. "Calm down." He told the Jamaicans. "Boys, boys, boys! Calm down. We have a little bit of business first. Snake, let Virgil go." Snake paused. "Snake, let Virgil go!"
I'm gonna find you boy and I'm gonna kill you—" Snake threatened Michael.
"I know! I know! And then you'll cut my throat. I know, I know. Let him go." Snake shook his head. "Snake, it's the fumes that ignite. I don't even have to touch it." Michael turned the torch on and brought it close to the money.
"Wait, wait, wait! Okay, okay." Snake stepped aside and Virgil jogged to the truck and got into the passenger seat.
"Have—have you two guys met?" Michael asked James and Snake. "You have a lot to talk about. Snake, Detective James. Detective James, Snake." James pulled out his badge for Snake to see.
"Get down on the ground!" James said.
"You ain't a cop." Snake said. "You're a thief!"
"Okay, on the ground!"
"You ain't no cop!"
"On the ground! Now! Now!"
"Call! Call for backup! Go ahead! You call for backup!" Michael began to walk towards the truck. Snake pointed the gun at Michael's back.
"Michael, duck!" I cried to him. Before Snake could fire, Sam put a bullet in his side. James and Snake's team began firing at each other.
"Go, go, go!" Michael yelled to Fiona. Fiona put the truck in drive as Michael tossed the torch onto the money and got into the truck and covered my body with his to protect me from the flying bullets.
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC CCCCCCCCCCCCCC
"Do you think if I start something you could snatch his wallet?" Michael asked me.
"Michael, please, you know I'm professional thief."
"Retired professional thief."
"Still has thief in it. Go do your thing." He walked away from me and went up to the man who was sitting at the bar eating. Michael began talking and the guy stood. I made my way slowly to them and when Michael grabbed the guy's jacket, I accidently bumped into the man and slipped my hand into his pocket to grab his wallet before scurrying off. Michael caught up with and took the wallet from me. I hooked my arm around his left arm as Michael looked at the guy's I.D.
"Good to meet you, Agent Bly."