Chapter 27: In The Cruiser

The entire group of police dogs was quickly leashed up and lead through the back gate of the dirt yard. Lead around the front in an organized frenzy, they were herded into the back of a large K-9 van. 'Hero's Duty: K-9 Unit' was written proudly on the side of the vehicle, making Ralph's eyes wide- and start to panic even more.

This is really happening, he had told himself, despite not fully comprehending it all. I can't do this...

After he hesitantly hoped in the van with the other dogs and found a spot big enough for him, Ralph slowly sat down and slyly eyed his surrounding. The back of the van they were all in was huge, for one thing - so big that every police animal and their handlers could fit snuggly inside it. Off to one side, Ralph noticed as well, were a little set of cubbies, each containing large jars with airtight lids.

"I wonder what those are for," he mindlessly wondered out loud as he peered closer at the jars.

At his obvious question, Calhoun eyed him in disbelief as she flopped down in her place before him. What kind of question was that?

"Um, for the mutated scorpions, obliviously," she hissed, a disgraceful tone in her voice. "Since we must capture a few of them so that our station can dissect and test them...Your station must do that as well, correct?"

Ralph gulped and eyed her...and her look of growing suspicion on her face. "Right, right," he quickly told her, trying not to allow his face to turn green. "These containers just look different from the ones in, uh, my unit's van."

In response, Calhoun just slightly narrowed her eyes back at him. Something was a little off with this captain... and it was starting to really annoy her.

Once every pooch and human officer was loaded safely in the back of the van, the driver -the muscley guy Ralph had seen earlier- was rushed into the driver seat...and within seconds, the group was off and running. Swaying slightly as the vehicle turned out of the station's parking lot, the group of animals silently and mentally preparing for action at the hospital- or was trying to figure out how to get out of this mess, as a certain bull mastiff was doing.

Okay, Ralph: focus, the nervous pooch told himself. Remember why you're doing this. It's not to "capture" any scorpions, let alone kill any of them. It's just to get that collar. Calhoun's collar. Just figure how to get her out of it, hand it over, and then you can high tail it out of here.

"So, uh, Sergeant Calhoun...," Ralph began as casually as he could, breaking up the silence echoing around the van. "How long have you had that collar for, did you say?"

"A month," she responded dully, her face the more serious Ralph had seen it as she peered straight ahead. She was focused on the mission that laid before her, alright -and was getting more and more unsure about the dog in front of her.

"Uh...cool," he mumbled dryly, trying to figure out how to get that collar around his neck- but how he could not come off too eager, or else he'd blow his cover for sure.

The police van was silent for the next few minutes, the still quiet starting to drive Ralph crazy. It didn't help that the van bounced a bit with each sharp bump in the roadway, causing the mastiff to dig his front paws into the van's floor a little deeper- his large, thick claws scratching the metal floor the only sound being heard.

Resorting to peering out the window for some inspiration, Ralph saw just how fast the van was actually going; it zoomed by all the other vehicles on the road, which were pulled over in order for the police van to speed by. It only then did the mastiff notice the blaring sirens and the flashing lights the van he was in bore, warning other drivers to get out of the way.

As the K-9 van steadily turned right at a stop sign, a new ingenious lie hit Ralph, one he knew was a little far fetched- but decided to it test out anyway.

"I have one, too. A good dog collar, I mean," he fibbed out sudeenly, looking slyly back over at the animal sergeant who peered back at him. "But it, uh...got chewed off by one of the mutant scorpions. Back in my town, I mean."

At his shocking words, every dog in the van snapped out of their serious gaze and turned to look at him. Amazed oohs and awes quickly filled the vehicle- except the mouth of Calhoun.

"What?! Wow, that's crazy!" a small rottweiler exclaimed excitedly. "How did it not kill you?!"

"Well, he's trained to handle situations like that," Calhoun answered for Ralph- that look strong accusing in her eyes as she eyed him yet again. "Right? Captain?"

"Yup, totally trained," the mastiff lied once more, trying to avoid Calhoun's growing glare. He didn't like the way she said that last word; it once made her eyes filled with melancholy...but now her eyes just seeped with anger and judgment. Directed solely at him.

Not too far from where Ralph's feet and large behind was squished, Maddox wagged her tail in amazement. "That's awesome, Captain Ralph," she breathed dreamfully, looking up at him with wide, admiring eyes.

At her approval -and obvious slight puppy crush- Ralph couldn't help but melt into a cocky smile. No one had never had anyone look up to him (or at him) like that before- and he decided it was pretty cool... despite it all being streamed from a debased lie, of course.

Ignore that sad fact, the mastiff pridefully forced himself to hold his head up higher and shuffled his large front paws around a bit.

"Why thank you," he quickly answered Maddox, then turned back to Calhoun- and, more importantly, that collar. "Now, uh- about your collar, Calhoun..."

"Woah! Look at how big Captain Ralph's paws are, guys!" Maddox called out suddenly, only more in shock this time as she gawked over the massiveness of the paws. "They are the biggest paws I've ever seen!"

In turn, every dog quickly looked down at the mastiff's paws, seemly to have never noticed their size before- and they all quickly became slack-jawed as well. Most them shook their head in shock over paws' size as Ralph sheepishly blushed -and got slightly annoyed with being interrupted yet again.

"I bet he has killed many a scorpion with those things!" Marco overdramatically blurred out, earning a few mystified nods of agreement. "Each paw probably weighs about fifty pounds!"

"Those are some paws you got there, soldier," Calhoun finally commented softly, sounding somewhat impressed again. "You bred that way?"

"Uh, thanks. No, it was just the way I was born," Ralph acknowledged softly, growing more and more irritated. He really hated others noticing and then making a big deal about his giant paws- but this time it was even worse for some reason.

Ignoring the stares he was still getting, he peered closer at the precious collar, still hanging safely around Calhoun's neck. "Now, about that collar- is it have a buckle or is it snap-on, or-"

"Why are you so curious about it?" Calhoun hissed defensively, her voice filled with annoyance as she snapped at him. "It's not my fault you displaced your own collar when you lost a dance battle with a scorpion."

At her rebuke, the mastiff quickly sat up straight again. "Uh, n-no reason! Just curious, and m-making conversation," he quickly stumbled out. "Um...my collar was a, uh, snap-on, so I wasn't sure if-"

"Mine is, too," she interrupted yet again with a biting hiss. "All of the good dog collars used on the K-9 units must be snap-ons, so we can break out easily if we get tangled in something. Of course," the doberman exasperatedly huffed as she rolled her eyes.

That was very basic knowledge to any police dog- any real police dog. How did this captain really not know that?

Her dark eyes landing on the mastiff once more, she saw that Ralph was smiling happily for some odd reason despite her harsh answer... seeming to be relieved at her answer or something.

As he turned to stare contently out the window in silence -but every once in a while turn to slyly look at her neck- Calhoun couldn't help but allow that strangle feeling in her stomach start to grow. That feeling of distrust and suspicion.

There is something so...unprofessional and dense about this pooch, the doberman sergeant thought as she narrowed her eyes. This Ralph mutt is definitely not as intelligent or qualified or even amazing as-

Her eyes widening, Calhoun immediately bit back a small gasp about to escape her lips. She couldn't believe she could even allow her mind to dread back in that direction. Back to that earlier time...that beautiful time in her life...

Back to that one familiar face about to go swimming back into the forefront of her mind...

Shaking her head roughly, the tough doberman forcefully stopped in her thinking. Banished and refused all feelings and memories and sweet, sweet faces- partly ashamed that she even allows them to resurface in her mind and heart.

Irately angry at herself and the massive bull mastiff in front of her, Calhoun narrowed her eyes harshly. She focused on how she felt more than distrustful about Ralph now. More than unconvinced of his title.

There was something about this mastiff that she couldn't quite figure out. He seemed more than out of place, more than obsessive about her collar...

Maybe even... more than sneaky and conniving and untruthful about who he really was.

Frustrating she couldn't successfully put a paw on what it was bothering her about this pooch, Calhoun snarled slightly and sat up straighter as the van pulled into the hospital grounds- at least one thought now confirmed in her mind.

It was sure getting harder and harder by the second for her to respect -or accept- Ralph as her "Captain".