15
He Is MineTitle: He's Mine, I Saved Him
Author: Lady Bethia
Series: Stand Alone
E-Mail: Page: http://groups. PG
Warning: Some adult language.
Disclaimers: I do not own the Sentinel. I am just borrowing the characters and abilities from Pet Fly Productions. And I promise to return them in good order maybe. I am making no money off this either it's just for fun. AU fun.
Summary: Jim is to hot to keep in town after his partner is killed so where does Banks hide him?
HE'S MINE, I SAVED HIM
Detective Ellison you will sit your ass down and you will listen to me. Am I making myself clear?" Captain Simon Banks of Major Crime bellowed.
"Sir yes sir." Replied Ellison in military fashion, as he stopped pacing around Banks' office to sit in a chair as instructed.
"I want the people who killed your partner as much as you do Jim. But they are on the hunt for you now. In addition, you are so hot that I cannot even put you up in one of our safe houses. So, I'm afraid the only option I have left to keep you safe is this." He stated as he handed Ellison a piece of paper that looked like a brochure.
"What in Hell!" He yelped and began to pace around the office again. "What am I suppose to do at a Dog Show? I can't catch the killers if you ship me out of the state and half way across the country!" Jim yelled furiously.
"You are not going to be the one to catch the killer; you are off the case as of now. Go home and pack. You will be out of town for a minimum of one week to ten days." Banks ordered as he took off his glasses and rubbed his tired eyes. The headache he had had for several days about this matter had just blossomed into a full-fledged migraine.
"What am I going to do at this…this Dog Show sir?" Jim gasped out in disbelief. "I don't even work with the dogs much less own one."
"You will be helping Officer Jones with three of our dogs. Moreover, it is not a dog show. It is a Police – Search and Rescue Dog Convention." Banks said in exasperation.
"But…" Jim started.
"NO BUTS!" He roared. "You will go. You will help and you will stay gone until I say it is safe for you to come back. Now go home, pack and get some rest. You will be at the airport at 8 am. Here are your tickets and flight information. Jones will meet you at the ticket counter after he checks in the dogs." Banks ordered.
Everyone in the bullpen had been half listening to the shouting coming from the Captain's office but when Jim opened the door to leave the whole bullpen made sure to be very busy, doing something other than watching Ice Storm Ellison stalk out and thru their midst.
Officer Jones looked up just in time to see the parting of the crowd as Ice Storm Ellison stomped thru.
"Ellison over here. Where have you been you're late? Jones inquired.
"Six car pile-up on the interstate got in my way." The unhappy large detective growled.
"We'll be boarding in about 15 minutes. Oh yeah, here is a packet containing all the info about the convention. It should be fun. There are training courses for handlers as well as dogs. The seminars and lectures sound great as do the competitions and meets." Bill Jones said enthusiastically.
Jim just glared as he took the envelope of stuff.
"You thinking about getting a dog Detective?" Jones asked trying to ignore the Detective's overly harsh glare.
"No. I do not want to go. I do not want to talk about it. I will assist you but I would rather be here solving the murder of my partner." Jim growled in a whisper for only Jones to hear.
"OK. Why are you going with me then? I was told you volunteered and that you were maybe looking into getting a canine partner." Jones asked in confusion and a small amount of fear.
"I have to get out of town and they can't put me in one of the safe houses. Can we please discuss this later in a more private location?" Jim answered and then rubbed hard at his temples to try to relieve the headache that was building.
Several hours later when they were St. Louis, Jim had finally passed out in his hotel room after a severe bout of vomiting and an even more severe migraine.
"Captain Banks why did you send this guy with me? He's a Psychotic maniac. He also just spent the past hour in the john throwing up because everything was hurting him." Jones begged the answers from Banks frantically.
"Is he alright? Put him on the phone I want to speak to him now." Banks demanded.
"No I will not wake him up are you kidding! He told me in great detail that he was an ex-Army Ranger Special Forces. He is passed out in his room hopefully for the night." Jones said in fear.
"When he wakes up tell him to call me right away Officer Jones." Banks ordered.
"OK sir I will." Jones replied as he hung up the phone.
"The hell I will. I will just leave the bastard a note. I am not going to get any where near that guy voluntarily if I don't have too. I can take care of my dogs all by myself thank you very much." Bill monologued to himself, as he got ready to meet with some of the other participants of the convention in the bar down stairs.
Two days into the con, Jim was adjusting to his new environment. St. Louis MO was an interesting town but all in all Jim would still have rather been here under different circumstances. He had finally come to a mutual understanding with Jones. He helped walk the dogs or hold them between events or sessions and the rest of the time he spent by himself wandering around.
The most surprising thing to both Jones and Ellison was that Jim had a natural repore with the dogs. They really liked him and even obeyed commands given to them by him.
"Jim I think you have a real talent with the dogs. You might want to consider working with them. It will even reduce your stress level at least that's what the doctors say," Jones off handedly mentioned. Jones noticed that when Jim was working with the dogs he seemed to be in less pain and was in a much better mood all around.
"I work for Major Crime. What I do is too dangerous to get a dog involved. Furthermore, I live in an apartment loft without a yard. Dogs need time and space especially big ones like these. I don't have much of either." Jim ticked off the reasons he should not have a dog. But to Jim even his very real excuses seemed to be hollow. He was discovering something new about himself. He really liked the dogs and he was beginning to entertain thoughts of having one.
"Well you can always come down to the kennel and visit these three. They like you a lot especially Carrie." Jones admitted.
"Thanks. They're great dogs. Are you putting them in the Subdue and Restrain Trial?" Jim asked.
"Yes. You want to help?" Jones replied with a smile knowing that he had Jim almost hooked on the dogs.
"Sure." Jim said.
Jim did more than help run the dogs he actually put them thru the trial and with his extra encouragement, they won.
From the sidelines, a longhaired young man with a colorful vest watched Jim with interest.
"Hey Blair, who are you watching?" A female Search and Rescue officer ask.
"The guy that just ran the winning Cascade dogs." Blair answered as he watched Ellison.
"Oh yeah. He's the guy that's been walking around here like a bear with a sore paw. He's a cold one except with the dogs. I wouldn't advise bothering him Blair. I like you all in one piece." She commented with a flirtatious smirk.
"I have no intention of bothering him. I just want to find out who he is. I will be going back home eventually and if he is there with the dogs I could get some more great info for my research." Blair gave her a huge grin.
"Just be careful, in fact, I think you should talk to the other guy with the Cascade dogs first before you approach that bear." She advised.
"I'll take it into consideration." Blair answered her as he turned back to watching Jim.
"Hey Jim, who is the long haired guy with the hippy vest that is staring at you so hard?" Bill asked casually as to not attract the attention of said Hippy.
Jim turned to look at Bill but while doing so he scoped out the area and saw Blair.
"Don't have a clue. He doesn't look like trouble but you never know. I'll deal with him later." Jim replied as he went back to brushing Cassie.
Jim walked Cassie back to their crates just as the Hippy came around from the other side towards him. "Hey man great run. With the scores the Cascade dogs are getting, you will be in the top ten or maybe even the top five of the teams here competing. Oh by the way," Blair continued as he held out his hand to Jim. "My name is Blair Sandburg and I am doing my dissertation on the closed society of the Search and Rescue and Police dog units. I was wondering if I could interview you and your partner about yourselves and the dogs." Blair finally took a breath and waited for Jim to answer.
"Is this some sort of come on because if it is I AM NOT interested?" Jim growled at him.
"What? No man, I really am studying you guys and your dogs and the relationships you form with them." Blair stammered in shock at Jim's complete misunderstanding of his approach.
"Officer Jones is not my partner. I am just helping with the dogs while we are here. Excuse me I have things to do." Jim replied brusquely.
"Wait I don't understand? These dogs are specially trained and someone can't just come along and do what you have been doing with out years of training." Blair explained hoping to get Jim to open up and admit that he really did work with the dogs.
"I did." Jim answered with another growl and walked towards the food court.
Blair ran after Jim and just as he was about to catch up with him Jim fell to the ground grasping his head and crying out in pain. At the same time, all of the dogs in the convention hall started to howl, bark and whine in pain.
Half way across the food court, several officers tackled and stopped an animal rights nut with a dog whistle.
Blair dropped to the floor and reached for Jim's head to get it off the ground. "Help this officer needs help." Blair called out just as Jones showed up.
"Shit Ellison not here not now!" Jones exclaimed.
"What is wrong with him man his is in real pain here?" Blair demanded.
"Who are you?" growled Jones.
"I'm Blair Sandburg. I am a student at Rainier University studying you people for my doctorate; Police, Search and Rescue and their dogs." Blair answered as he petted the injured detective.
Ascerning that Blair was harmless, Jones stated, "We have got to get him out of here. Can you help me get him to his room?"
"Sure what happened to him?" Blair said as he lifted the right side of Jim while Jones took the left.
"Some damn animal rights protester hurt him and the dogs with a high powered dog whistle." Jones panted as he hurried as fast as he could with Jim.
"Slow down man he's too heavy for me to move that fast. Anyway are you telling me he could hear the whistle?" Blair shook his head in wonderment.
"Yes he has some heightened senses thing and now he is in trouble again with them. I just hope we get him to the room before he comes too. I so do not want to have to fight off a furious migraine powered ex-Special Forces type who can't decide if he wants to throw up on us or kill us first." Jones moaned as he fished in Jim's pocket for his key.
Taking more of Jim's weight as Jones opened the door Blair asked in a quiet voice, "How many senses are heightened?"
"All of them," replied a shaky voice, which startled them both.
Blair spent the next two hours telling Jim and Bill all about Sentinels as well as helping Jim get himself back under control. At first Jim thought, he was going to kill Sandburg but then he realized that his voice and touch were actually helping him where with anyone else all it did was cause him even more pain. He still was not prepared to accept or really want help from anyone especially not some Neo-Hippy Witch Doctor Punk like Sandburg. So, he let his frustration for having lost control again have full rein.
"I am not some Neanderthal mutant freak." Jim barked when his headache was gone.
"No man no, you're not a freak. Your kind has been around as long as normal people have. You Sentinels are the reason man survived through the ages. You're our guardians our Blessed Protectors." Blair said trying to make Jim understand that he was special all the while touching him on his arm.
Trying to change the subject from himself to anything else at all Jim asked, "Why did you change from Sentinels to this cops/S&R dog thing Chief if I'm so special and needed by people?" He finished with a growl and moved out of reach of Sandburg's hand.
"Because Sentinels are so rare that you're the only one I have ever found in our society." Blair explained in a shy quiet voice.
"That's not all is it?" Jim pushed now that he got Blair off balanced for a change.
"No. I was taking a leave of absence from school in order to make some money to continue going to school. I wound up in Seattle renting space in an old warehouse. It turns out that the warehouse on the other side of me had an illegal drug lab in it. Well one night it blew up and took out my warehouse with me in it." Blair started to explain as he sat down on the bed.
"The police were all over the site but no one thought to check and see if the other warehouse had been occupied at the time. One Officer there had a dog partner who had to go, so he took him off to the side. I don't know if the dog heard me or smelled me but he started to go nuts at my warehouse." Blair took a deep breath.
"The Officer didn't know what was making his dog go nuts but he figured he had better find out so he started to enter the remains of the building I was trapped in. Just then, one of the hazmat people saw him and yelled for him to stop. He tried to pull his dog back out but the dog turned around and bit him breaking free. He dug his way to me and grabbed on to my shirt to try to pull me out but I was stuck. The dog managed to rip my sleeve and took it back to the officer. After that, the crews dug me out. That dog saved my life and I'm repaying my debt by telling people about how important these dogs and their partners are." Blair finished looking a little bit embarrass.
Continuing to be recalcerate, Jim demanded, "That still doesn't explain why after so much work you've put into the other thesis that you would simply change over to a new one."
"I told you I was unable to find anyone with all five senses enhanced and without a subject to study I had gone about as far as I could. Besides, I needed money and a new place to live. I began talking to the Police in Seattle and became friends with a few of them. I found out that they needed help funding their dogs and acquiring new ones. Well I know all about getting funding by grants so told them I was good at writing reports and grant proposals. They decided that I could handle fund raisers too since I was so good at convincing people of anything." Blair said with a depreciating shrug.
Jim realized that Blair was telling the absolute truth. He also realized that he needed Blair to be able to keep his sanity. 'God why me,' he thought to himself.
"So you're the one who is the guest speaker at the fund raiser Social thing tomorrow night with all the big wigs." Jim stated.
"Yes. We are hoping to get some of the big donors of other animal projects to send some money our way. We also want to get more help from the Breeders by the way of giving us better prices for the dogs we need. Furthermore, we need more help from trainers by the way of volunteering their time and skills or at least discount their pricing for training for local police groups." Blair stated and then added, "We also need more people to take the training to be handlers and eventually trainers as well."
Jim grunted as he stood up and walked towards the door. "I'm hungry so if you don't mind leaving my room?" Jim briskly said.
"Sure no problem man, hey if you need anymore help here is my room number." Blair said as he handed Jim a card. "Oh yeah, can you two join me for dinner later at the bar. I hear that they have excellent steaks."
"I'll be there," replied Bill.
Both men turned to look at Jim.
"Alright, alright I'll be there at 7." Jim agreed as he ushered the men out into the hallway. He turned and headed for the stairs at a fast clip just short of a run. Once downstairs, Jim went straight to the food court and ordered a burger with everything. As he walked towards the crates where the Cascade dogs were all hell broke loose around him. He was pushed to the floor and then run over by a huge dog just as shots rang out. Grabbing for his gun, Jim looked up just in time to see a huge Bull Mastiff grab and subdue the gunman. Who was very quickly being surrounded by everyone else who had a gun in the area.
A tall black haired bronze skinned Amazon of a woman walked forward towards the dog and his prisoner. "Well Max now what are you going to do with him?" She asked the dog as she gave him the signal to release his captive to the police in charge.
Max walked to his owner nudged her hand with his nose and then processed to go to Jim. He sat down in from of Jim and woof at him.
Jim looked at the dog and then at the woman. "What in heck happened? And what does your dog want with me?"
"He wants you to acknowledge that he saved you from that assassin." She said in an accent he had never heard before.
"He saved me?" Jim questioned.
"Yes he saw the assassin pull his gun and start to aim it at you so he knocked you down and stopped him." She replied.
Jim looked down at the dog again and said, "Thanks big fella," with a pat on the head.
This was what Max was looking for. 'You're welcome and you're mine now.' Max said telepathically to Jim.
Jim stood there dumbfounded. "Who are you?" Jim asked the woman in shock.
"I am Tamara Sandalwood and I breed work dogs for various uses." She said with a smile. "And it seems that Max has taken quiet a liking to you. You are in the market for a new dog aren't you?" Sandalwood stated emphatically.
"No. I don't work with the dogs. I'm just helping." Jim said lamely.
Max growled at Jim and said to him, 'I claim you as my people. She will give you a cheaper price because I will not leave you. You need a keeper and guess what, I volunteer.'
"What kind of crap is this that you're pulling lady?! I don't want a dog. And you will stay out of my head Mutant or I will shoot you for assaulting a Police Officer." Jim turned sharply with military precision and walked away.
"Looks like you have your work cut out for you Max." Tamara said as she petted Max on his head.
Max got up to try to follow Jim but Tamara put a restraining hand on his collar. "Let him go for now Max we will see him later."
Blair rushed over to Jim as he was heading back to the food court to get another burger. "Jim man, wait. Hey, are you going to buy that dog from Sandalwood? He sure seemed to like you. Her dogs are the best Jim they really, really are the best. She sells only a small handful when ever she is here and from what I have been told it seems that it is the dogs that choose the people that they want to buy them not her." He said in one breath.
"I don't know what kind of scam you people are running but I am not getting a damn dog!" Jim shouted.
"Hey big guy don't freak out. I'm just trying to help." Blair said as he hurried after Jim.
"All I want is my lunch so just beat it." Jim shouted.
Blair backed off with his hands raised in surrender. Jim stomped over to the concessionaire and made a third attempt at getting lunch that day.
Jim took his lunch outside and ate under the trees. He had run into telepaths before in the Army and was always able to keep them out of his head why was this different? Furthermore, he was having a hard time wrapping his mind around the idea of a dog not only being intelligent but also a telepath. He would have to talk to that woman Sandalwood later and find out what her game was.
"Ellison, Detective Ellison!" yelled an officer from the back door of the convention center.
Luckily, Jim had managed to finish his hamburger in peace before this latest interruption.
"Yeah I'm coming." He shouted back as he stood up and dusted off his pants.
"What is it now?" He asked as soon as he was close to the Officer.
"Sir we need a statement as well as information about yourself. The gunman was after you." The Officer answered.
"Shit. I'm going to have to call my boss, Captain Simon Banks of the Cascade PD in Washington." Jim said as he rubbed his hand thru his hair in a nervous gesture.
The Officer led Jim down a back hallway to one of the conference rooms that were now occupied by what appeared to be three Detectives. "Detective Ellison please sit down we need to ask you some questions about the shooting this afternoon. Especially considering that the shooter admits to being sent after you personally." The oldest of the Detectives said before introducing anyone.
"Alright," Jim answered.
"I'm Captain Davis of the St. Louis PD. I will be conducting this interview. These Detectives are Lieutenant Jones and Detective Yamada and they will be handling this case." Captain Davis explained. "Do you have any questions before we start Detective Ellison?"
"Yes. I need to call my Captain and tell him they found me. Then I will tell you everything I know." Jim stated.
"Very well." Captain Davis agreed.
Jim dialed Simon's number on his cell phone and waited.
"Captain Banks." Banks answered gruffly after the third ring.
"Captain its Ellison." Jim said.
"Jim, what is wrong now and NO you can't come home yet." Banks asked and ordered all at once.
"Sir they found me and tried to kill me at the convention in the main hall with hundreds of cops and dogs standing all around me." Jim explained. "I am here with Captain Davis about to give him a statement on what happened and what is going on at home that brought this all to his door step."
"Damn it Jim! All right, all right put this Captain on. I'll tell him about why you're there and you tell him what has happened since you have been there." Banks ordered.
"Yes sir," Jim said as he handed the phone over. "Sir my Captain wants to talk to you."
After a few minutes talking and listening to Captain Banks Captain Davis answered, "Yes. All right. Yes. Yes. We will do our best and thank you for your cooperation Captain Banks. Good bye." Captain Davis hung up the phone before returning it to Jim.
"Detective your Captain was very helpful in explaining what started all this but I still need you to go over it for the record for me." Davis explained.
"Yes Sir." Jim answered.
Detective Yamada turned on the tape recorder so that the interview could proceed. Jim then spent the next two hours answering questions about the death of his partner and the reasons he was way out here in Missouri with a trainer/handler of Police dogs running the dogs thru their paces.
Finally they let Jim go. He was exhausted and his head felt like someone took a sledgehammer to it. Not to mention that his gut was rolling and lunch was trying for a revisit. So Jim was very much preoccupied with his pain that he did not even see Sandburg until he ran right into him.
"What the hell" yelled Jim?
"Whoa, you ok man? You look like shit. You weren't hurt were you?" Blair babbled as he held onto Jim to steady him.
Jim looked down at Blair's hand and then realized that his headache was fading and he was starting to feel better all because of Sandburg. "What did you just do to me?" He demanded pulling away from Blair.
"I didn't do anything. You ran head long into me. Are you ok?" Blair asked again.
"I don't know." He glowered at Blair. "One minute my head is ready to split open from a migraine and then I run into you and it started to fade as soon as you start pawing me. What the hell is going on?" Jim demanded as he back Blair into the nearest corner. But as soon as he did that, he became hypnotized with Blair's scent and moved up close and personal pushing Blair further into the corner.
"Jim man what are you doing? Hey!" Blair tried to push Jim away but he was just not strong enough.
Jim buried his face into Blair's hair at the side of his neck and inhaled deeply then zoned.
"Man this can not be happening. Come on big guy don't zone on me like this. Wake up Ellison! Jim man I need you to wake up. Come on I need you to wake up now because I hear someone coming down the hall. Jim I NEED YOU to wake up." He gritted his teeth and growled the last command.
Jim inhaled sharply and pushed away from Blair. His eyes wide with fear he asked, "What just happened to me?"
Blair never let go of Jim as he pushed back so after Jim's fearful question Blair automatically started to rub up and down on Jim's arm. "You zoned man. We just have to figure out what it was that zoned you and fix it or something." Blair answered.
Jim looked embarrassed and blurted out, "It was your smell. Your scent."
He pulled away sharply and all but ran down the hall away from Blair.
"Jim Wait! Damn it don't run. UGGG. How am I suppose to help you man if you keep freaking out on me." Blair muttered as he went down the hall.
At ten till seven, Blair showed up at the bar/restaurant in the hotel that everyone said had great steaks. He saw that Bill was already at the bar with a beer but Jim was nowhere in sight. Then he noticed Tamara Sandalwood in the corner with one of her dogs. Tamara had two steaks with baked potato in front of her. After she finished cutting up the steak and potato for the dog and she placed it on the table in front of him. The Bull Mastiff was so large that he could easily reach the plate from where he was sitting on the floor. However, the most surprising thing for Blair was the fact that the dog seemed to have much better table manners than most of the people he knew.
"Hi Ms Sandalwood." Blair said as he walked up to her.
"Hello…Blair isn't it?" She asked.
"Yes ma'am. Which one of your dogs is this one?" He asked as he showed his hand to the dog for inspection.
"This is Max. You want to join us for dinner?" Tamara invited with a smile pointing to the empty chair.
"Ah well I am meeting Office Jones over there and Detective Ellison for dinner actually. Jim isn't here yet so I thought I would come over and say hi. He's the one that saved Jim today isn't he?" Blair said indicating the dog Max. "Is that why he is getting a special dinner tonight?" Blair inquired as he petted the big dog's head.
"Yes he deserved it I think. However, I do not know if I will be able to convince Detective Ellison to reconsider buying Max. Max has taken quite a liking to him." She informed Blair.
'Ellison's taken quite a liking to Blair too he has his smell all over him.' Max told Tamara in a tone that said he was not happy about this. 'He's mine. This man will just have to share or go away.' Max woofed at Blair after speaking to Tamara telepathically, then he went back to eating his meal.
"Max has taken it into his head the Detective Ellison is his no matter what and that you will have to share him or go away." Tamara informed Blair with an amused grin.
"What?" squeaked Blair? "It's true your dogs are telepathic?! Wow!" Blair exclaimed as he gawked at Max.
Max sighed and then said to Blair, 'It's not polite to stare by peoples standards by dog standards you are challenging me.'
"No, no I am just…You talked to me!" Blair stammered.
"Sit down Blair before you fall down." Tamara laughed and pushed him into the chair beside her.
"Wow you understand human standards of behavior? How well? Can you tell me more about you own?" Blair started to ramble off when Ellison came thru the door into the bar.
"I think you will have to wait on the 20 questions for later Ellison is here and he is upset that you're over here. You are more than welcome to talk with us later." Tamara dismissed Blair.
"Oh ok thanks." Blair said as he got up and turned toward Jim.
"Jim hi man, you ok?" Blair asked when he saw the anger on Jim's face.
"No I am not alright. What are you doing to me? All I could hear any where in this whole hotel was your heart beat. And why is everyone so damn insistent that I get a fucking dog!" Jim yelled.
"Easy man easy and calm it down with the swearing please. I don't know completely what is going on Jim but I am here and I will help. As for the dog, you need someone to calm you down you're way too stressed." Blair added while petting Jim's arm.
"Jim, Blair I have our table over here." Bill interrupted.
Jim and Blair walked over, sat down and before they could say anything to each other, the waitress came over with menus and asked what they wanted to drink. After all the ordering was completed, Bill answered one of Jim's questions.
"Jim you are at a Police and Search and Rescue dog convention. Therefore, the topic on everyone's mind is dogs. In addition, as for why you should have one is simple, for a complete rookie with the dogs you have helped Cascade come in at the top 5 so far in the competitions. I could never have done that alone. Furthermore when you have been with the dogs you have had fewer problems with your senses and with your stress levels." Bill stated as boldly as he could and praying to every saint, he could think of in hopes that Jim did not kill him.
Jim laid his head on the table in front of him in defeat.
Max looked up just as a large man walked into the bar/restaurant area. Sensing something evil about the man Max looked hard and heard him going over his instructions to kill Ellison and all witnesses. Max threw himself forward and jumped on to the table where Jim and the others were sitting and hurtled into the chest of the man just as he pulled his gun. The gun went off hitting the wall behind Tamara. She dove under the table. Jim and Bill drew their weapons as the gunman surrendered to the 200-pound dog holding his throat in his jaws.
"Max release him!" Jim ordered.
"Mister you are under arrest for attempted murder of a police officer." Jim said before reading him his rights, dragging his up by his shirtfront and cuffing him.
Max never left Jim's side for the rest of the evening. Finally, at about 11pm Jim, Blair, Bill and Max made it back to the hotel. The night manager met the men as they came in. "Gentlemen is everything alright now?" The manager asked.
"Yes hopefully there will be no more disturbances like this again while I am here." Jim said gruffly.
"Very good. Oh and since you, where not able to have your dinner we saved the steaks so you could have them as sandwiches if you want. And dinner is on the house." The manager insisted.
"Wait we didn't even get a chance to order?" Jim said in confusion.
"Ms Sandalwood took the liberty of ordering all of you dinner." The manager said.
"Thanks man that would be great. Can we eat at the bar?" Blair accepted for the group.
"Of course right this way." The manager led the way and then went back into the kitchen to make sure their dinner was made for them.
Max sat down beside Jim and rested his head on Jim's lap. Jim looked down at the dog and sighed. "You aren't going to leave me alone are you?" He asked.
'No you're mine. Raven will give you a good price for me.' He added.
"Who's Raven?" Jim asked looking at the dog puzzled.
"Sandalwood," said Blair. "Raven is a nickname of hers or something."
"Well after dinner I better get him back to her." Jim stated.
Max growled, 'No, I will stay with you. You can talk to her in the morning and she says you're welcome.'
"Between the senses, telepathy and the rest of it I think I am going mad." Jim sighed and shook his head while running his hand through his hair.
The rest of the convention went without a hitch. No more attacks and no more weird besides Sandburg and Max.
"Hello Captain Banks? Yes this is Officer Jones." Jones said into the phone.
"What's happened now?" Banks demanded with a growl.
"Nothing sir. No everything is just fine. We won 5th place over all for the Police Dogs. But the reason I'm calling is I wanted to tell you that Jim will be coming home with a canine partner." Jones stated hurriedly.
"He what? What happened between him and one of your dogs?" He demanded.
"Nothing sir he isn't getting one of my dogs. Ellison purchased a new dog. I took the liberty to schedule them to start the official dog academy as soon as we get back." Jones informed him.
"Is Ellison there with you? If he is PUT HIM ON NOW!" shouted the pissed of Captain.
"He is not here sir but I will tell him to call immediately. Good bye." Jones said as he hung up before Banks could say anything else.
"Oh man, Ellison are you in trouble now." Jones mumbled.
One month after the dog convention, Jim entered the bull pen with his new partners. Max trotted on his left while Blair bounced on his right.
"This is going to be so cool man. I have heard about the Major Crime Department. Do you really think Captain Banks will let me do a ride along?" Blair babbled.
"Don't worry Chief you won me over. And I'm the one everyone tiptoes around." Jim said with a smile as he ruffled Blair's hair.
"Hey man not the hair." Blair said as he swatted Jim's hand away.
"ELLISON IN MY OFFICE NOW!!!" The captain bellowed thru his door at the same time as Jim reached is desk.
"Then again Chief you might just want to run for it now. I'll guard your retreat." Jim stated with resigned doom.