Well, here's chapter 4! I noticed when I finished writing this chapter that there's a lot of mystery going on. So I guess this is a romantic, humorous, drama-mystery. Who knew?

Legal: I do not own the rights to Three's Company or its characters, thanks.

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Chapter 4: A Mysterious Conversation

The next few days were hard for Janet. Terri still left for work, but Jerry stayed around to help out how he could, which was actually very little because Jack just didn't seem to like anyone but Janet. Larry stopped by once and Jack attacked him when he approached Janet, so that took some explaining. Larry really didn't buy Janet's true story, though, and went with the assumption that Jack had been drinking and there was something between he and Janet. Janet wasn't in the mood to argue so she just kicked him out of the apartment. And as far as training Jack went she felt that she hadn't really gotten much further. About the only thing she had been able to teach him was that he should pee in the toilet. Don't ask how she did it, but she did. The only problem was Jack still did it the dog way, so there was always a mess for Janet to clean every time he went to the bathroom. It was only the 30th of the month and she was already feeling exhaustion.

She plopped down on the couch and ran a hand through her dark hair. She finally got Jack occupied in his room listening to one of his Beetles albums. She wasn't sure how long that would keep him occupied, but at least she would get an opportunity to rest. Jerry was at the store getting some items. When he returned she thought they should discuss ways of training Jack.

Just then the phone rang. Janet groaned and walked over to it. "Hello? Oh, yes, no...I told you: I can't come back until after the charity ball. Y-yes, I understand. Thank you."

She set the phone back on the receiver and heaved a troubled sigh. She had just lost her job at the flower shop. She plopped down on her knees, buried her face in her hands and began to cry.

The door to Jack's room opened and he came out, singing one of the Beetle's songs. He stopped abruptly and scurried over to Janet. He made a whining noise and licked her ear. She sat upright suddenly and looked at him. "Jack, were you singing?"

He nodded, his tongue hanging out. She squeeled and swung her arms around him. He got excited and licked her face. She stood up and patted him on the head. "Good boy, Jack!"

She giddily went into the kitchen to get him a snack. No matter how many times a dog listened to the Beetles he would still never be able to sing one of their songs. What's more, when she asked him if he sang he understood her and nodded. This proved that Jack still had human qualities and he *was* trainable! Not only that, but he understood her! A new determination coursed through her body. She was going to make him a human yet!

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The next day, however, Jack was very groggy. He didn't bounce around like he usually did. He didn't tackle Jerry when he came back from the gas station with a bottle of Coke. He just laid at Janet's feet and sighed every once in a while. Jerry sat down beside Janet and they were both surprised that Jack never leaped up and attacked Jerry. He turned to Janet. "This is very odd behavior. What do you suppose has triggered it?"

Janet sighed. "I was going to ask you the same question. Yesterday he was singing and today...I don't know."

Jack got up and they watched him as he walked over to the window. "If he had a tail it would be drooping," Jerry remarked.

He sat in front of the window and stared out of it intently. Janet gasped and stood. "Oh, Jerry, I know! He wants to go outside! I mean, think about it: he hasn't been outside of this apartment since we brought him here. Not only animals need the outdoors, people do, too and that's what he wants!"

Jerry nodded. "Well, I can certainly understand that. I might get depressed if I had to stay inside for too long, but how will you take him outside without causing a scene?"

Janet tapped her chin in contemplation. A wry grin crept up on her. "Jerry, I need you to find a dog costume that would fit a grown man."

Jerry raised an eyebrow. "Oh dear."

Janet wasn't sure why she hadn't seen it before. It was Halloween. She could take Jack out in a costume and it wouldn't be that big of a deal if he acted like a dog. A lot of people got into character on Halloween.

When Terri got home Janet was putting the outfit on Jack. Terri walked over with her arms crossed in front of her chest. "So you're giving up and you think this costume will fool people into thinking we have a pet dog?"

Janet shook her head. "No, Terri. Jack needs some fresh air so I'm going to take him for a walk. As long as he's still acting like a dog this is the best time to do it. Want to come along?"

Terri sighed. "Oh, Janet, you know I'd love to, but it was a really rough day at work so I think I'd rather take a long bath and relax on the couch."

Janet nodded. "That's okay. Jerry is taking the night off. He said he was going to check in at 'headquarters' and then he was going to grab a bite and catch a flick, so we'll be back before him."

"Okay."

Janet finished with Jack's costume and put a leash on him. "Well, Terri, what do you think?"

Terri grinned and giggled. "Oh, Janet. He's adorable."

Janet grabbed her jacket and put it on. She took her end of the leash. "Are you ready, Jack?"

He barked.

She opened the door and he rushed out, dragging her along behind him. It was a very nice night and no one seemed to care that a man dressed as a dog was being walked by a female friend. They waved and all the little kids wanted to pet Jack. At first Janet wasn't sure about anyone coming up to him, but he was very nice to the kids and played with them. They went to a park and she played fetch with him when she found a stick. She couldn't believe that he actually held it in his mouth and she tried to teach him how to hold it with his hands, which was hard because of the furry paws he was wearing. He tried, though, which was what counted, she thought. After awhile she grew tired of fetch and sat on a bench. He chased a flock of birds that kept flying in the air and landing in a different patch of grass. Janet chuckled at him. Then she got a creepy feeling that she was being watched. She looked over her shoulder. A black car was parked beside the park. As soon as she looked at it the window rolled up and it drove away, but she knew who she had seen inside watching them.

Dr. Elias.

She stood and put the leash back on Jack. "Come on, Jack. It's time to go home."

She took him back to the apartment. Terri was curled up on the couch, watching a chick flick, and paused it when they came in. Janet took the costume off of Jack, read him a bedtime story and put him to bed. When she came back out Terri must have sensed there was something wrong because she said, "What's up?"

Janet sat down on the chair. "Guess who I saw at the park."

Terri rubbed her chin in thought. "How many tries do I get?"

"Elias," Janet stated.

Terri's eyes widened. "That creepy lawyer you told me about?"

Janet nodded.

Terri rubbed her chin again and narrowed her eyes. "But why would he be playing at the park?"

Janet sighed. "Terri, he wasn't playing. He was watching Jack and me. When I looked at him he rolled up his window and drove away."

"Oh. Well, I don't really know, Janet, but he sounds like bad news. Maybe you should talk to Jerry."

Janet nodded. "I most certainly will."

An hour or so later Terri's flick had just ended when Jerry walked in. "Hello, girls. Good night? How did he do, Janet?"

"He was great. We played fetch and he chased birds and played nicely with children, but that's not important. I saw Elias watching us from his car when we were at the park."

This time it was Jerry's turn to rub his chin. "That's certainly very interesting. I'll look into it and let you know any information on him as soon as I get it. And in the mean time be on your toes, girls, and don't let Jack out of your sight."

But Janet wondered if there was something about Jerry she should know when she overheard a conversation he was having that night. She was on her way to the kitchen to get a glass of milk when she heard him talking in there. She stopped and listened.

"This is very important. Dr. Elias may have more to do with this than we first thought."

"But Jerry, I don't understand," came a female's voice. "If Dr. Elias is against Mr. Tripper being a free citizen, doesn't it make sense that he would spy on them and stuff?"

"Sam," said a softer female voice, "I looked up Elias Firm, his law firm, you know? Well, there is no such thing. He made it up."

"Good work, Alex!" Jerry said excitedly.

"So," Sam spoke again, "if he doesn't really have a firm that means he's not really a lawyer. But why would he pretend to be one in this particular case?"

"I think the answer is, like so obvious," spoke another girl who sounded very much like a teenager. "He must have some part in all of this, right?"

"Exactly, Clover," said Jerry seriously, "he must. Keep on him, girls."

"Right, Jer," the three said together.

Suddenly all was quiet. Janet opened the door and walked in. To her surprise the only person in the kitchen was Jerry. His laptop was open on the table and he was pouring himself a glass of milk. He looked over when Janet entered. "Milk?"

She shook her head. "No. I just heard some voices and I thought maybe you and Terri were discussing Jack."

"No, Terri's quite sound asleep and I was just doing some work on my laptop. Is everything all right?"

Janet nodded. "Everything's fine."

But as she left the kitchen she wondered if everything really was fine. Where did those three girls go? Who were they? Why did the one called Sam sound so familiar to her? Who did Jerry work for, anyway? And what about the information she just heard concerning Elias? She got a sneaky feeling that Jack was in danger. She opened his door and peeked in. He was curled up in a little ball on the bed and a long string of drool escaped his mouth. She smiled faintly and shut the door. Maybe he was in danger. She knew one thing for sure: something about the whole situation just was not right.

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So are you getting excited yet? I am!!! My tongue is hanging out and everything! Anyway, please R&R and thanks for reading this far! Chapter 5 is on the way. ^^