Charlie IV

Chapter 1

The first few chapters are all Rick. So keep your pantyhose on.

It was a good thing he was young and in good shape as he walked from the bus stop and down a little bit of a hill that was the opening into the park where he lived.

Now living in a trailer park in Los Angeles one would think that all the trailers would be lined up next to each other with little to no room between them. That one person's window looked directly into the window of the one next to them. If they had a window there at all.

But no, that wasn't the case here. For one thing he wasn't in Los Angeles proper; he lived in a suburb of Los Angeles, way out east. Hell, if someone tried hard enough they could see mountains. Though in his case he would need to be standing on the roof of his trailer to accomplish that. And he didn't dare do it. Not with his trailer

No, all the trailers in this park were parked pretty much any direction they could think of. They even had a touch of a yard if they worked at it. His happened to be all gravel. Nothing to water and nothing to mow. All he needed to worry about were the weeds and he had a few of those. AGAIN! Not that he hadn't tried to kill the damn things.

"Hi, Rick!"

"Hi, Mrs. C." Rick waved and picked up a little speed. "Please don't need anything repaired. Please, please, please." He made it past her trailer and past a few more till he finally reached his.

Rick stopped at his mailbox and pulled out what was inside it. Sadly an election was coming up and a lot of what was in his box was VOTE FOR ME. That stuff would go straight into the trash. They were all large, very colorful, and had that person's picture on it.

Today was also going to be THAT day. Sure enough he had an electric bill and a water bill to pay. Thankfully the last month had gone from sweltering-California-hot to not-that-bad-California-warm as winter got closer and closer. It meant his windows were open and the lone A/C unit he had was off. So his electric bills of late had been a lot less. He ignored the phone bill for now. It was always the same anyway.

"YES!" It was a letter from a publisher. Rick dropped all the VOTE FOR ME on the ground in his hurry to open it.

"Dear Mr. Rodgers, Blah, blah, blah. We regret to inform you..." He stopped reading it out loud and dejected, relaxed just enough so that all of his mail fell to the ground. It was yet another rejection letter. They weren't interested in his book either. He didn't think it wasn't that bad of a book to deserve being rejected so many times. It had action, it had romance, and while there was death in it, the bad guy got caught eventually.

He sighed and had to pick up all his mail off the ground, fumble for his key that was in his pocket, and unlock the door after opening the screen door so he could go home.

Home was a 1975 Airstream Overlander. Twenty-seven feet long, bathroom in the rear, an awning that was always deployed that was almost as long as the trailer was long. Twin 20 gallon propane tanks. Main window right up front along with other windows the entire length.

It wasn't exactly shiny like a brand-new Airstream any longer. It also had a good size dent in one corner. But he had gotten it cheap. It had brand-new bamboo flooring. It had a sink, some counter space, a 4 burner gas cooktop, a refrigerator with a separate freezer on top, heater, a hot water tank, one big sofa right up front, and a table to eat on.

The bed was was farther back along the left side which he had to sidle past at night to reach the bathroom. Surprisingly the Airstream did have a lot of storage. Yes, most of it was small and up against the ceiling, but there was a lot of it. He even had a TV. And he'd put up his own antenna so he could get the local channels.

That had been his first mistake after buying this trailer. The locals had watched him do it so they then knew that he knew how to do it. Which meant he got tagged to help others put up their brand new TV antennas. That was followed by helping with a number of other things. He was the new go-to guy around here. If somebody needed help he got asked. Usually they would send a kid if they had one. "Hi, Mr. Rodgers. Mom sent me, she needs help with..." whatever it was she needed help with.

Rick put his mail down, opened his refrigerator, and saw he had one whole bottle of beer left. If he could call Budweiser beer. At least it had been on sale. It was looking like he needed everything else as well. He picked up his pint of milk carton and shaking it told him it was empty. "No eggs, no juice, almost no ketchup." So he opened the freezer. "Two chicken thighs, no meat… FINE!" It wasn't like he was a gourmet cook but he knew enough to feed himself. He grumbled under his breath and looked everywhere else. "Almost no bread, no Hamburger Helper, no beans, no corn, no green beans. What did I eat last night anyway?" Rick asked himself since it looked like he had nothing.

He had his keys in his hand and his wallet in his pocket. "Checkbook! Sometimes I wonder if my head wasn't screwed on I would forget that too." He retrieved his checkbook, locked the door on his way out, and then walked over to his truck.

He had what he could afford. A 1979 Ford F-150 Custom. Yeah, she had a few miles on her but she ran, had good tires, and she still had shocks so she didn't bounce everywhere he went. Even the brakes worked. The paint was in seriously sad shape but she worked.

A little over an hour later and he was back. He had even stopped on the way home and had gotten a Domino's pepperoni pizza. It was on special according to the sign out front. While he didn't have an oven he did have a microwave, a decent toaster oven, and a reasonable size refrigerator for leftovers. He also came home with today's paper.

After putting away his groceries he put his pizza on the table and grabbed one of his new cold beers. Miller this time since Budweiser was a bad choice. Besides Miller was on sale. How could he pass up a sale?

The paper also gave him something to read while eating his pizza instead of using up electricity watching TV.

"Al Gore signs the Kyoto Protocol. …I should have bought a magazine or something." The front part of the paper got tossed and now he was in the sports section. He didn't really follow that many sports teams. Not that he wasn't interested – he mostly was – but getting a ticket for any of the games was out. He was a penny-pincher and this paper had been a splurge he was beginning to regret.

By his second piece of pizza he was on the back page of the sports section and it was full of ads. "Alliance of Therapy Dogs. I have space for a dog. I think, maybe. …I'm just fooling myself. I can't afford a dog." Rick tossed that section of the paper and moved on.

On his third piece he found himself reading the Lifetime section. It was perhaps a little more exciting till he hit a section. It was all about a county that had removed over 50 dogs from a woman who had too many, wasn't feeding them, taking care of them, or even taking them to the vet.

"Poor puppies." Rick could feel for them. "I'm off work tomorrow. Where is this place?" He was thinking he could afford a dog that was practically free. Breeders could want a thousand dollars or more so that was out. But he could possibly afford one of these guys.

Rick was writing down the address when there was a knock on his door. That had him hanging his head. There was only one reason anyone knocked on his door. Still he got up and answered the door.

"Hi, Mr. Rodgers. My mom wants to know if you can help," he stated since he was the delivery boy.

Rick groaned inwardly. He really should start charging these people. Except most everyone that lived here was basically in the same boat he was. Not well-to-do by any means and they needed help.

"Tell her I'm coming."

"Thanks, Mr. Rodgers." The boy took off running. Rick pretty much knew everyone in this place so he knew whose mom his was. So he snatched up his tool belt and a piece of pizza, closed the box and put it in the refrigerator for tomorrow, and started walking. What was it this time?

[:] o-0-O-0-o [:]

It was midnight and Rick was dragging himself home. She was a nice lady, pretty much like everyone else in this park. They were all doing the best they could and she was no different. Her husband ran off and she had one little boy that wasn't really all that little now. She also wasn't what he was looking for in a girlfriend. She was older than he would like. And while her being Black wasn't a deal breaker, weighing in at about 240 to 250 pounds kinda was. But she was sweet.

Rick dropped his tool belt on the table. He headed for his bedroom and stripped naked after pulling all the drapes closed and turning on the lights. Next was washing up so he wasn't sleeping in his own sweat; then he crashed. Turning over onto his back, he spread himself wide. "DAMN IT!" He got up and turned off the lights and then went back to bed. He rolled over and pounded his pillow. "I'm going to sleep now."

[:] o-0-O-0-o [:]

Rick woke up and realized it had gotten a little cool last night. He had left all of the windows open but in a way it was refreshing. First up was a shower, then a shave, and getting dressed. Since it was cool he chose jeans, a t-shirt, and a hoodie that zipped. He picked up his wallet, checkbook, keys, and the address he'd written down.

"Mr. Rodgers." A different boy waved and yelled his name.

"I'm headed out and I'll be gone for hours. Anybody wants me tell 'em I'm not here." Rick got in his truck, started her and gave her a minute before putting her into gear and took off.

[:] o-0-O-0-o [:]

"Right this way, Mr. Rodgers." The lady at the counter took him into the back. "Everyone down this way is presently available for adoption," she told him over the sound of all the barking dogs.

Rick walked slowly and looked each one over. Sadly he didn't really see what he was interested in.

"Nothing?" They had a lot of dogs and if someone didn't take them or unless they found somewhere to send them, they ran the risk of having to put them down. She watched him shake his head. "So just what are you looking for exactly."

"Don't laugh," Rick cautioned her. "I was looking for a dog that I could train then take to training to be a Therapy Dog. I remember my life when I was a little kid and could have used someone. Of course most everyone will be either in a hospital or nursing home but I want to try and make a difference in someone's life."

"I'm not laughing at that. It sounds like what you need is a puppy, not an adult dog. One you can train and not worry about having to untrain. Follow me." She took him in a different direction.

"We do have a some puppies but not that many really. Though I've got one in mind that just might work for you. He's not ready and it maybe be a week till he is. This little guy here." She stopped in front of a small stainless steel kennel.

Rick saw this little guy that had bad hair but such a cute face. "He has trouble." He was up, really quiet, and was trying to poke his nose through the bars. Rick tried to touch his little nose.

"This little guy has fleas, ticks, and worms. He's been treated for the worms so those will be gone soon. As for the fleas and ticks, he's going to get dipped later to kill them all off. Then our vet will look him over and if he approves he'll be available for adoption.

"He's a rough collie. Think Lassie, if that helps. This little guy could be anywhere between 60 to 75 pounds full-grown. Do you know anything about collies?" She watched him shake his head.

"Collies are herding dogs. They'll herd farm animals or your children. Everything is game. Why I'm suggesting this little guy is because collies love people and are great with kids so he just might work for what you have planned."

Rick made up his mind on the spot. "I'll take him. I can come back in a week when I have another day off."

"Where do you live?" she inquired.

"In a trailer park," he replied. "Every trailer has a yard all its own. I work for UPS. I unload and load trucks. It's not great money but it pays the bills and it has great medical coverage."

"The next time I get a UPS package I'll think of you. Let's get you signed up and fill out the forms. We'll phone you when he's ready to go home. You'll pay for him then. You've got yourself a puppy, Mr. Rodgers." She beamed at him.

"Don't go away, little guy. I'll be back." Rick tried to get his finger between the bars and watched the puppy try and lick his finger; he pawed at his cage when the man left.

"Give us about a week."

Rick nodded. "I have an answering machine in case you miss me."

"Excellent. You're going to need a lot of puppy things. Any dog food store will have what you need. Might as well get started on your way home," she suggested before he left.

[:] o-0-O-0-o [:]

Rick saw one on his way home. He hurried in and was overwhelmed at the selections. This store was bigger than he realized. It was going to take forever to find everything he needed.

About 20 minutes later he heard, "Can I help you with anything?" She had found him wandering the aisles aimlessly.

He was relieved to see her. "Puppy stuff. I need everything – on a budget."

"All right. We're going to need a cart then." She went toward the front of the store.

"A cart?" Rick saw dollar signs and he didn't even have the puppy yet!

[:] o-0-O-0-o [:]

It had cost him more than he'd thought but he had a puppy bed that was too big for his little puppy but he would grow into it. A collar that would adjust to a point. Two different leashes. One was a set length and the other was one of those adjustable length types. One big bag of puppy food, mini tennis balls to chase, stuffed animals to play with, flea and tick stuff for puppies, puppy shampoo, two different types of brushes, and something for puppy teeth to chew on instead of his shoes. Hopefully. A food bowl and water bowl.

"What are these bags for?" She had picked up a lot of them.

"Puppy poop. You put your hand in the bag, pick it up, turn it inside out, tie it closed and throw it in the trash. The puppy pee pads are for accidents since they will happen. It's just a fact of life but he'll learn which is what those little liver treats are for. He does his business outside then you praise him and feed him a treat. He'll catch on fast. So what kind of puppy did you get?" she asked since he had gotten a pretty good-sized bed.

Rick smiled. "A collie. He's just this little thing right now."

"Hair, lots and lots of hair. Brush him at least once a week minimum or else you'll both be sorry. …Enjoy your puppy, sir," she said after taking his check and watching him walk out. "He'll be back." She was pretty sure of that.

[:] o-0-O-0-o [:]

Rick's trailer had such little floor space which meant he knew right away where the doggie bed was going. "Under the table. And it just barely fits." That worked. "Now where to put a 50 pound bag of dog food?" That proved to be more of a challenge but he found a place. Collar and leashes went on the table for now. Puppy poop bags went in a cabinet up high. Two puppy pee pads took up the entire kitchen.

It wasn't like the puppy was going to damage his floors. They were linoleum and he didn't have any carpet anywhere but the puppy needed to learn.

"There, all set." Now he just needed to get his pizza out of the refrigerator so he could eat lunch. There was nothing like cold pizza for lunch with a nice cold beer.

Hearing a knock on his door, he groaned. "I only just got home!" Rick couldn't believe this shit. What would this place be without him? He was beginning to wish he could find out.

[:] o-0-O-0-o [:]

Rick came home and every time he checked his answering machine to see if his puppy was ready to come home. He had gotten one from work asking if he could work today on his day off. At one and one half times his regular wage per hour he jumped at it. Money was money. The big drawback was he had to go into work on his normal schedule the very next day.

So it was a very tired Rick who dragged himself into his trailer and saw the doggie bed, puppy pee pads, and dog bowls. Then he saw he had a message. One whole message. "Mr. Rodgers, this is Nancy. Your collie puppy is ready to go home. You just have to pay for him and sign one last piece of paper. We're open today till 6:00. We and your puppy look forward to seeing you." BEEP!

"NO WAY!" Rick looked at the time. "I have to hustle." The benefit of his job was that all of the unloading and unloading mostly happened at zero dark early. He almost worked what some would call a night shift and almost slept during the day. Getting there before 6:00pm through rush hour traffic in Los Angeles meant he had to get moving.

"Mr. Rodgers!" One of the kids he knew well was calling his name on his way to his trailer since he saw him.

"I have to go. Your mother's on her own till I get back." Rick jumped into his truck and started her and took off. He had a puppy to pick up! He wasn't going to be alone any longer. He was going to have a friend that was going to love him because that was what puppies did.