Eyes and Ears
Disclaimer: Same as before…
Summary: G.I. Joe begins a partnership program with local law enforcement in Imperial County, CA in order to watch for any Cobra activity inside US territory.
Jimenez Residence
Brawley, CA
Amy Cole, Tyler and Summer Jimenez
18 January 2002, 1602
Amy smiled right after Ty answered the door and said, "Hey Ty, sorry I'm a bit late. Construction down the road was no help."
"Don't worry about it. The little monsters are in the living room," Ty replied with a chuckle.
"Hey smart guy, that's a Hell of a way to refer to our kids," a tall blonde woman said from just slightly behind Ty and to his right as she walked into the hallway.
Ty turned around, putting an arm around his wife's waist and giving her a light kiss on the lips. He smiled and said, "Meant as a term of endearment of course."
"Good save," his wife replied before taking her husband's hand.
He smiled back at her and gave it a return squeeze.
"I like your dress, Summer," Amy said with a smile.
"Aww, thanks, Amy!" Summer's smile broadened.
"Kids! Your Nina is here!" Ty called out over one shoulder.
Excited footsteps skittered across the floor and two high-pitched voices yelling echoed into the room. "Nina! Nina!"
Ty deftly stepped to one side of the hallway, still holding hands with his wife. A skinny seven-year-old with glasses and dirty blonde hair in braided pigtails with a shorter five-year-old with wavy jet black hair at her heels ran out of the living room and into the hallway.
Amy crouched just as the two kids reached her. Two pairs of arms wrapped themselves around her waist, above her hips, Alvaro near the right hip and Kayla near the left.
"Hi Kayla! Hi Alvaro!" Amy smiled and rustled the hair of the two kids after she let go of the hug.
"Kids, listen to Auntie Amy, okay?" Summer said.
"Okay Mommy!" Alvaro said.
"Si Mama!" Kayla replied.
'Wow sounds like a female version of Ty when he's speaking Spanish.' Amy thought to herself.
"Hey kids, Auntie Amy needs to walk," Amy replied.
"We should be back around 8:30 at the latest," Ty replied as he rattled his keys with his other hand.
"Have fun on your date night you two," Amy said as the children disentangled themselves from her waistline.
Summer gave each of her children a kiss on the cheek and said, "Mommy and Daddy will be back soon."
She stood up and followed Ty out of the front door, closing it behind her. Amy locked the door before walking towards the living room with the children in tow only to be stopped dead in her tracks by a question.
"Tia Amy, what's a bar fight?" Kayla asked.
'Gah! Awkward!' Amy halted mid-footstep.
Rallying herself, she put her foot down before she turned to face the little girl and asked, "And where did you hear about bar fights, young lady?"
"Daddy told Mommy that you broke up a bar fight," Kayla said.
'There is no way I'm gonna get out of this!' Amy thought to herself.
"Well first off a bar is where grownups go to have grown up drinks. And a bar fight is when grownups have too many grown up drinks and fight," Amy replied. 'Hopefully that's the last question.'
"Oh! Beers like Papa and Tio Diego drink," Alvaro piped in, face brightening
'Talk about rapid fire.' Amy groaned inwardly as she looked towards Alvaro.
"Yeah, like when Papa and Tio Diego go to the garage and work on Daddy's car. Everybody knows that!" Kayla interjected as she looked at her little brother.
"But Papa and Tio Diego don't fight when they work on the car," Alvaro said, his little face scrunched up in confusion.
'Kids say the damndest things.' Amy mused to herself.
"Tia Amy said grownups have to be at a bar to have a bar fight," Kayla replied.
"You're almost there, young lady. But also bar fights happen when grown ups drink too much and Auntie Amy has to get involved," Amy replied as she walked towards the living room with the children.
"Is that like when Daddy collars a drunk and throws them in the dunk tank?" Alvaro asked.
'Is there an off switch?' Amy thought to herself.
"It's a drunk tank not a dunk tank," Amy responded. 'How much more police lingo are these kids going to pick up?'
"Oh!" Alvaro said.
'I remember when I was saying police lingo as a little girl. Now I wonder if my Dad felt the same way I do right now.' Amy thought with a wry grin.
"Did you take those guys that got in that bar fight to jail, Tia Amy?" Kayla asked as she looked up at her.
"No, three of them went to the hospital and I didn't arrest the other guy," Amy replied as she sat on the sofa with the two children sitting beside her. 'Hope that's the end of it.'
"Why?" Kayla asked.
"Because the other three guys attacked the fourth guy and he defended himself," Amy replied. 'Pretty brutally but effectively. Randall, Marty, and Jared were lucky they weren't severely injured or killed.'
After a brief pause, she said, "Okay guys, that's enough about Tia Amy arresting people. Let's watch a movie…"
Amy watched as both kids sprang off the sofa towards the DVD stack to the right of the television, mercifully they picked the same movie. She stood up as Alvaro handed her one of the Rugrats movies.
'Rugrats in Paris: The Movie. One of their favorites.' Amy thought before she stuck the disc into the player and closed it.
"I'll make some popcorn and order us a pizza for dinner after the movie," Amy began before she walked into the next room, sticking a bag of popcorn into the microwave and punching in the time and heat setting. She tapped the start button and glanced past the half wall into the living room, seeing the kids were still watching the movie and smiling.
Grozny, Chechnya
Captain Arkady Danilov
08 December 1999, 0450
With a vicious bang and a jarring thud the BTR-80 wheeled personnel carrier rattled as it rolled over a double stacked landmine. The vehicle threw its occupants about like an amusement park ride from Hell. A sickening crunch as the vehicle rolled over Popov, the commander standing up in the BTR's turret before the blast.
The gunner narrowly avoided being struck by the vehicle hatch. A toolbox flew, striking the face of another soldier in the back of the vehicle, killing him instantly. Arkady felt his arm smack against the wall of the BTR, his arm going numb. The world tilted crazily and then went black…
Heat. The acrid scent of smoke. Both of these awakened him. Everything was in double, everyone in the back of the BTR was dead. Anton, the gunner's, body was on fire. Through the smoke he saw movement of boots.
'Choryt!' Danilov thought to himself. His hands groped around, grabbing hold of an AK-74 rifle that lay nearby him.
"I won't harm you," the stranger said.
He looked up to see a man, crouching on the ground wearing the splotchy green and brown camouflage of the Russian Federation's Army. His face was concealed by a black balaclava.
Coughing. Ears ringing, he clutched the AK-74 carbine in his hands. If this was a Chechen he was determined to at least shoot the prick. Blinking his eyes in the smoke he felt the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end. A strange sort of energy seemed to engulf him as the stranger grabbed a hold of his combat webbing and he felt himself being dragged along the ground.
He felt himself being dragged out of the open gunner's hatch, holding the AK in his hands as the mysterious savior dragged him into the street.
The eight wheeled BTR personnel carrier lay on one side, smashed against a concrete post, two of the front wheels on the right side gone, the remaining two tires on that side were on fire. 'Anti-tank mine, no doubt!'
The stranger dragged him towards what was left of a bank, setting him behind what looked like a teller's station, glass shards adorning the top of the counter.
"Who are you?" Danilov asked, looking towards the stranger as he set himself up behind the counter, setting the AK-74 rifle on the counter, using it as a rest.
'I can cover the front of this building. That door behind me is blocked off with rubble. The Chechens will have to attack me directly.' Danilov thought to himself.
The man said, "You should be safe here."
As he looked towards the stranger Danilov saw a patch on the shoulder of the man's uniform. It was the shape of a shield with a cross inside of it. But a cross with three beams. The topmost of the three horizontal beams was the shortest of the three. Below it was the longest beam of the three and nearer the bottom the third was canted.
'The Russian Orthodox Cross!' Recognition hit him harder than the BTR rolling over and landing to one side.
"Stay here," the mysterious commando said over one shoulder as he raced out of the building.
Danilov squinted a bit seeing the letters INRI across the back of the man's vest. 'Who is he? No, that doesn't matter right now…'
His wrist throbbed, so did his right cheek. His tongue probed around inside his mouth, two teeth cracked. He tasted blood.
He barely realized he was setting magazines next to his rifle to facilitate quicker access to them. Tapping his right thigh he felt the presence of the Makarov pistol and loosened the holster fastening. He eased the lone RGD-5 grenade from his left cargo pocket, ensuring the pin was loose and easy to pull.
'Alright the Chechens can only come through the bank's front entrance. I can handle them with the '74 in short bursts. Then the Makarov and its three spare magazines. When they get close I'll kill all of us with this grenade. I'm not going to wind up being cut to pieces on the internet!' Danilov thought to himself.
He heard the boom as the BTR's fuel exploded followed by pops louder than the Moscow New Years Eve fireworks display as the ammunition on the BTR began to cook off. His ears rang again, vision going double again.
As his ears stopped ringing he could hear voices. Angry voices in the local dialect. 'Chechens!'
Looking out the front of the bank he saw a Chechen fighter nudge a dead Russian soldier with the muzzle of his AK-47 rifle. Two more were walking around the burning hulk of the BTR. 'Most likely waiting for the vehicle to quit burning before taking anything they can salvage from it.'
Three other fighters walked from an alleyway across the street. One of them had an RPG-7 anti-tank rocket launcher, the other an RPK squad automatic weapon.
'If they pass me by I'm not engaging. I'll lie low but the moment they start towards this bank I'm shooting.' Danilov thought.
The Chechens stood in a cluster as they watched the BTR burning. Danilov held his breath. 'Maybe they'll move off…maybe that fellow with the folding stock AKM will tell them to just fuck off and I can lie low…maybe…'
Just then the man with the folding stock weapon turned to his left, pointing. Danilov snapped off a short burst from the AK-74. 'Remember, twenty-two. Squeeze the trigger at twenty and let go at two…3-5 rounds…'
His cheek burned, and his broken teeth throbbed. Spitting blood onto the floor he watched with savage elation as the man pitched head over heels onto the pavement as three 5.45mm rounds ripped into his neck, chest and head.
The RPG gunner left fly and Danilov ducked as the rocket slammed into the wall without exploding. Dumbstruck he glanced above his head, four meters upward, seeing the rocket sticking out of what was left of the drywall.
He squeezed the AK-74's trigger again, hitting the RPG gunner around the pelvis and stomach. Then bullets flew back towards him, smacking against the walls, the counter, and anything else they could shred…
'This is the end…' Danilov thought grimly as he returned fire.
Arkady Danilov's Apartment
Brawley, CA
Arkady Danilov
19 January 2002, 0302
He sat up in bed, heart racing, sweat pouring down his face. Gasping for air he looked around the bedroom. Blinking his eyes and shaking his head. 'Fuck even trying to go back to sleep right now.'
He stepped out of his bed, not even bothering to fix the rumpled covers as he walked into the kitchenette of his apartment. Putting the coffee pot under the spigot he let water flow into it before he shut the tap and put it on the coffee maker. Putting grounds into the filter and flipping the switch he opened the cupboard, pulling out a bottle of vodka and his trademark coffee cup.
He poured a slug of vodka into the cup before taking a quick sip from the bottle and sticking it back into the cupboard. Turning to face the wall of his living room, seeing the Orthodox Crucifix pinned to the wall.
He held his fingers together before crossing himself three times in the way of the Russian Orthodox faith. The coffee pot gurgled as the last of the water ran through the percolator. Pouring coffee back into his mug he walked into the living room, tugging a paperback from off the shelf.
'Perhaps Ernest Hemingway's words can help me here…' Danilov thought to himself, sipping his vodka spiked coffee.
He reached over and tugged a paperback copy of A Farewell to Arms. The paperback's spine had many creases, and the covers had some folds in them. He carried the paperback in his left hand and his coffee cup in his right as he walked back to his kitchen table for some reading.
Presently hours passed, and glancing at his wrist watch he saw the time which read 0630. Adding 12 to the figure he knew that it was actually 0642, as his watch ran 12 minutes slow since Chechnya.
'They thought I had gone mad when I returned from Chechnya. That I had crawled to safety and there was no commando wearing a balaclava and the Orthodox cross.' Danilov thought to himself, taking another slug of coffee, this one not fortified with any vodka.
'They can claim that it was all me all they fucking desire. But I felt the Hand of God Himself that day. And I intended to live, if for nothing else to find out why I was spared the fate of the rest of the men in that BTR.' Danilov thought as he continued to read.
Shuddering at the memories he set the book on his kitchen table before stepping out onto the walkway of his apartment in time to see Deputy Amy Cole step out of the apartment to his right out of the corner of one eye. He turned to face her.
"Privet Amy," Danilov began, with a smile. 'It is a surprise to see her. A pleasant one for damned sure.'
As he spoke he took in the sight of the shapely brunette, her hair in a simple ponytail. Her blue University of California Irvine crew neck sweater looked well worn and comfortable, matching the jeans she wore.
'By anyone's standards she's a beautiful young woman.' Danilov thought to himself just before she reacted to his greeting.
Cole Residence
Brawley, CA
Amy Cole
19 January 2002, 0643
The last person Amy Cole expected to see when she stepped outside of her apartment was one Arkady Danilov. Yet there he was. She had a near perfect profile look at the man as he stared out at the sunrise over the desert. He wore a pair of gray sweats and the blue and white striped undershirt that Marty Ricks threatened to stain red a couple days ago.
His jet black hair was tousled as if he'd just woken up and his right hand clutched a coffee mug that looked near permanently stained various shades of brown in different spots. But it was ink on his upper arm near the shoulder that caught her eye. She saw a strange looking cross and four Cyrillic letters immediately below it. Above the right elbow was a ridged scar.
He turned to face her, smiling as he said, "Privet, Amy."
"What are you doing here?" she asked. 'Note to self, look up Russian tattoo meanings.'
"I live here." Arkady replied, gesturing towards Apartment 9B's beige painted front door with one thumb.
"For how long?" Amy asked. 'This is a hell of a place to see someone I nearly brought in for a bar fight.'
"I've lived here for about eight months. What about you?" Arkady countered.
"I just moved over here earlier this week." Amy glanced down at the brown stained coffee mug with the slogan Ask Someone Who Gives A Shit emblazoned on it. She had to smile at the sheer cheek of that one.
"Nice mug," Amy commented. 'There is seriously something eccentric about that thing.'
"Not bad for a…what was that word again…frisbee?" Arkady said.
"Freebee," Amy helpfully supplied.
"Ah, spaciba," Arkady replied.
Amy looked quizzically at him and Arkady supplied, "Spaciba means 'thank you'."
"Oh. How does that go?" Amy asked.
"Ah, Spa-see-bah," Arkady said, annunciating each syllable.
Amy nodded and with a small smile said, "Spaciba."
"Not bad for your first word in Russian!" Arkady's smile widened.
"I gather you're off today as well?" Amy asked.
Arkady nodded. "Perfect time to enjoy the sunrise and the coffee."
"In a more or less permanently stained novelty coffee mug?" Amy replied. 'I don't know why but that damn mug is so funny.'
"Appreciate the simple things or you go insane," Arkady mused.
"So what do you have planned today?" Amy asked.
"Drink coffee, read books, and maybe exercise a bit. And you?"
"Sounds like a relaxing day. I'm moving all my stuff out of my Pod, sadly." Amy gestured towards the small metal shipping container in her parking space.
"Need some help?" Arkady asked.
"I don't wanna impose," Amy began. 'That's really nice of him.'
"Nitchevo." Arkady shrugged.
Amy's brows furrowed just before Arkady helpfully added. "It means 'no matter' or 'no problem'."
'I've learned two words in Russian and the sun hasn't completely risen yet.' Amy thought, digging into her pocket for her keys. She saw the Russian set his coffee cup down and follow her towards the stairs and into the parking area.
The Pit
Headquarters Building
General Hawk and Chase Devineaux
19 January 2002, 0808
Chief Inspector Chase Devineaux, ACME Detective Agency, stepped into General Hawk's office with Sergeant Slaughter behind him. He took in the details around the office as he took the steps towards General Hawk who stood at the center of the room.
"Good morning, General," Devineaux began as he shook hands with Hawk. 'Certainly working with GI Joe was a logical choice given events of the last few years.'
"Good morning, Chase," Hawk replied before gesturing for Devineaux to have a seat, handing him a presentation about GI Joe for his reference.
"I do hope that our assigning of an agent to work with your team has been helpful, Monsieur," Devineaux began, pulling a small notebook from his coat pocket.
"We assigned him to work with one of our specialty teams, the Renegades," Hawk began.
"Given his background with the Russian Spetsnaz that is no surprise." Devineaux nodded sagely, jotting down a few notes in his small notepad.
"Sergeant Slaughter is the Renegades' team leader, he can fill you in on any particulars." Hawk canted his head in the powerfully built noncom's direction as he spoke, jotting some notes down on a legal pad on his desk.
Sergeant Slaughter spoke just then. "Agent Danilov has proved more than helpful to my team, even with that bar fight he got into a couple nights ago."
"Ah yes, the El Centro Field Office reported it the other day. I do know it was in self defense so we did clear him of any administrative issues," Devineaux replied with a grin before he clicked his pen and made some notes.
"I did have a look at your proposal, about bringing us in to assist local police departments when they run across Cobra cases." Hawk held the report in question in his right hand.
"Intelligence and its speedy dissemination is best, indeed," Devineaux replied.
"I'll have my communications people and yours collaborate to set up the tipline," Hawk replied.
"And my intelligence people will work with yours to create an intelligence fusion cell." Devineaux sagely nodded.
"I've got Agent Danilov giving a briefing on Cobra to the Imperial County Sheriff's Office at the Brawley station on Monday." Sergeant Slaughter piped in.
"And I've got Agent Ledbetter briefing at other stations around Imperial County with Inspector Arnold covering the Imperial County Sheriff's Office leadership." Devineaux replied.
"Good work. Now to switch gears, is there any veracity to this supposed sighting of Carmen Sandiego in Moscow?" Hawk asked.
"The Moscow Field Office is still looking into it, but they are fairly certain she was spotted at Sculpture Park," Devineaux replied.
"We thought she had been killed almost three years ago, in the same explosion that killed Gunnar Maelstrom," Hawk replied.
"Oui, so had I. Indeed most of us had sworn she died in 1999 after Maelstrom had chosen to align himself with Cobra," Devineaux noted with a raised eyebrow. 'VILE operatives were killed in great numbers from 1997-1999.'
Imperial County Sheriff's Station
Brawley, CA
Deputy Amy Cole and Sue Kendall
22 January 2002, 1747
Deputy Amy Cole stepped out of the women's locker room after making a small adjustment to her uniform in time to see Deputy Sue Kendall bent double by the soda machine as she hit the button for a Sprite. The ancient machine rattled and machinery clanged and thudded before it dispensed a frosty green can into the feed tray.
The willowy redhead smiled as she reached a long arm down into the tray and pulled the Sprite out.
"Hey Amy, how's it going?" Sue asked before reaching a hand to her mouth to yawn.
"It's going well," Amy replied with a smile of her own as she approached her friend.
"Did you have a good weekend?" Sue asked as she popped open the Sprite and took a long pull of it.
"Oh yeah, babysat Ty's kids on Friday night and actually got myself moved in on Saturday," Amy replied. 'I just have to take everything out of the boxes.'
"That was quick, I thought Diego took his kids camping over the weekend and your parents were visiting your brother in Nevada," Sue asked as she took another pull out of the Sprite as they walked towards the break room.
"Actually my neighbor gave me a hand." Amy smiled at the memory. 'That was really sweet of him.'
"Oh, what was that?" Sue replied, stopping and placing a hand on Amy's shoulder.
"What was what?" Amy raised an eyebrow. 'Oh no, Sue, not again…'
"You smiled when you said your neighbor gave you a hand." Sue smiled knowingly.
"Sue, the man helped me move in! It's not like it was a first date!" Amy exclaimed.
"So who's the mystery neighbor?" Sue asked, a smile widening.
"Agent Arkady Danilov, from ACME's El Centro Field Office," Amy replied.
"Wait, wasn't that the guy involved in that bar fight in Slab City on Thursday?" Sue asked.
Amy nodded. "It was in self defense."
"I know, I ran into Randall, Marty, and Jared in Niland earlier today. They looked a little rough." Sue resumed walking.
Amy fell into step beside her. "Those three got off lucky, all things considered."
"I could see why Danilov didn't want to press charges," Sue replied, smiling a second time.
"Okay, I know that look, you know something and you just can't wait to tell me!" Amy replied.
"Agent Danilov is actually in the lobby, he's gonna give us a brief about Cobra. I passed by him talking to Sergeant Barrera." Sue waggled her eyebrows.
Amy rolled her eyes just as the door to the lobby opened with Sergeant Barrera with Agent Danilov in tow. She noticed the man wore a black blazer with matching slacks, a blue collared shirt without a tie. When he smiled at her she felt a blush, which deepend when Sue was looking right at her.
The back way to the station opened as both Amy and Sue took a step backwards. Two deputies from the day shift came into the room, pushing a dolly with a large dog crate with an evidence sticker taped to the sides. The crate shook violently and the sound of growling echoed.
"Hey Sarge! Do you know when Animal Control is supposed to get here with fucking horse tranquilizers!?" Deputy Sal Cartwright grunted as he grabbed the sides of the crate to ensure it wouldn't fall. He yanked his hand away from the side opening just in time to avoid being bitten.
Deputy Alberto Rivera shouted into the classroom, "Ty, Diego could you give us a hand!"
The crate shook again as its occupant slammed against the opposite side of the crate. Diego and Ty both braced their weight against the crate.
"What's in that thing? A dog or a velociraptor?" Sue yelped, jumping back a pace as Ty yanked his hand back, also avoiding the dog taking a bite out of it.
"Carajo!" Ty yelped.
"Looks like a German Shepherd on steroids!" Amy remarked after she stepped around to the front of the crate at an angle.
Out of the corner of one eye, she saw Agent Danilov approach. He turned towards Sergeant Barrera and said, "I may have a solution."
"Ostanovit!" Danilov sternly commanded.
The dog quit moving and Danilov approached the crate. Amy stepped back another two paces, her hand dropping to the handle of her Sig 9mm pistol. 'Damn, Agent Danilov, get out of my line of fire in case I need to put that dog down!'
"Myjesto!" Danilov gestured with his right hand, palm up.
He knelt near the front of the crate as he reached for the latch.
"Agent Danilov?" Barrera remarked as she heard the tumblers of the latch click when Danilov turned the knob.
"It's alright Sergeant, I know what I'm doing." Danilov looked over his left shoulder and nodded before he turned to face the crate and opened the door wide.
Amy noticed just about every deputy had a hand on the grips of their pistols. The dog stayed put and Danilov stepped back a few meters.
"Komne!" Another stern command.
The dog slinked out of the crate. It did look like a German Shepherd, but it was larger, its mostly black coat thicker than any GSD Amy had ever seen. The dog walked straight over to Danilov.
"Sidet!"
The dog sat in front of Danilov and he crouched in front of the animal, scratching him behind the ears and petting him. The dog responded in kind, licking his face.
"Molodets!" Danilov smiled and continued the scratching and petting before he turned to face seven very curious deputies looking right at him.
"I think we've got the situation well in hand," Danilov replied as he stood up.
"Whoa!" Sue broke the silence before picking her mostly empty Sprite can off the floor and knocking back the remaining contents before tossing it towards the recycle bin. The can hit the rim and bounced onto the floor and rolled toward Ty's left foot.
"Brick!" Ty shouted before he picked up the can and tossed it into the bin.
Sue rolled her eyes and shot Ty the finger, much to everyone's laughter.
"How did you do that?" Amy asked. 'That was amazing…'
"Simple, I worked with such dogs in the Russian Army," Danilov replied, smiling at her.
Amy smiled back, blushing at a knowing look from Sue and an equally knowing one from Ty and Diego. She hung back briefly as the others filed into the classroom.
"Alright everyone, we've got a shift change to take in," Barrera said before turning to face Agent Danilov.
"Yes?" Danilov asked.
"I take it you plan to adopt this dog?" Barrera replied, stepping to one side to let Amy straggle into the classroom.
Danilov smiled and nodded. "I feel a sort of kinship with a dog from my homeland."
"That's good of you, but I ask you to keep him on a leash in this building. Deputy Rivera will give you a hand." Barrera gestured to Deputy Rivera.
"Go give Agent Danilov a leash and collar for this dog." Barrera leaned out of the doorway before she walked into the classroom as Rivera and Danilov walked down the hall.
Amy, sitting at one of the seats at the front corner of the classroom, craned her neck to listen in on the conversation outside. As Barrera stepped into the room Amy shifted her weight to make it look like she hadn't been eavesdropping.
"Your eavesdropping skills need some work, Amy," Barrera deadpanned as she headed to the podium to make some adjustments to the laptop for Agent Danilov's presentation.
"Busted," Ty quipped.
"I hope every drunk on our beat decides to really tie one on tonight." Amy shot back.
"What's this I hear about you and our Russian friend being neighbors?" Ty leaned forward from his seat behind her, with a raised eyebrow.
"Where did you hear that?" Amy asked.
"Sue told me while you were outside turning red." Ty grinned.
"Didn't he help you move in?" Diego replied, grinning toothily.
For the third time that evening, Amy blushed red. "Diego, it's not like it was a first date!"
"Hey, if they hit it off you and Ty won't have to keep sending Amy on blind dates," Sue interjected.
"Sue, this isn't one of those pulp romance novels you always buy from the gas station." Amy rolled her eyes for the second time that evening.
Sal chuckled from next to Sue only to get elbowed in the ribs. "Hey, that's assault and battery!"
"You wuss I didn't hit you that hard," Sue quipped back.
"I swear, Sue, one of these days you're gonna wind up buried by a falling stack of Harlequin novels," Sal joked again.
"Sal, I'd hate for you to get tased at the end of our shift." Sue's hand dropped theatrically to the taser on one hip.
"As much as I'd like to watch Round 578 of Sue vs Sal, I'd like to know what happened with that dog." Amy swiveled her chair to her right to face Sue.
"Well, we had that call about that possible meth lab on that patch of land west of Niland. Me and Rivera responded to it and well looks like Skippy over there wound up sampling his own product," Sal began.
"That matches with what I heard on the radio," Sue interjected.
"Sue came up on the net saying she was about to back us up if anything worse happened." Sal nodded as he reached into his pocket, pulling a can of Skoal out, grabbing a pinch and sticking it under his lip.
"Okay, then what?" Amy replied.
"Skippy scrambled into his trailer with us chasing him, he was about to open that crate to let that Shepherd on Steroids out at us before I tazed his ass."
"Figuratively or literally?" Ty chimed in.
"I think he literally tazed Skippy on the ass!" Sue replied.
"I might've fired the taser a hair too soon." Sal gumbled.
"Shocking," Ty chuckled.
"As it stands that damn dog nearly bit us when we hauled that crate into Rivera's SUV!" Sal interjected.
"Hey, maybe it prefers gringos," Ty interjected with a laugh.
"Shut up, Ty!" Every deputy in the room replied.
"You should've saved your empty soda can, Sue," Diego quipped.
"Like she could hit me with it all the way across the room." Ty stuck his tongue out.
"I dunno, I think she could," Amy replied.
"Way to stick by your friends, Amy." Ty teased.
"Hey if I wasn't your friend would I babysit your kids!" Amy countered.
"Alright, pipe down, guys, Agent Danilov is on his way." Barrera glanced out of the doorway.
Sue gave Amy a knowing look only for Amy to roll her eyes. 'Great, I'll be part of the station rumor mill for the foreseeable future.'
"Ryadom!" Danilov ordered and glanced down towards his left leg to ensure the large dog followed at his heels.
"What does that mean?" Deputy Rivera asked as he led Danilov and the large dog toward the storage area.
"I believe the rough translation is 'Heel'," Danilov countered.
Rivera led him towards a back storeroom before opening the door with a set of keys and handing Danilov a collar and leash set.
"Sidet!" Danilov ordered. The dog sat down and he attached a collar and leash.
'Seems a tad excessive, given I control this dog well enough with both verbal commands and hand signals…' Danilov thought as he walked back towards the classroom with Deputy Rivera in tow.
He walked into the classroom, looking at the projector screen to see the PowerPoint presentation he'd emailed to Sergeant Barrera the previous day.
Getting to the podium he gave the command to his new pet. "Lyezhat!"
The dog lay down, looking over the assembled deputies with his head out as it panted with tongue hanging out.
Danilov scanned the audience as well, smiling when he saw Amy. 'And she smiled back…' His heart skipped a beat.
"Right. Good evening, all of you. I understand you're about to commence your shift change so I will be brief," Danilov replied.
He clicked the pointer and the image of the red stylized snake head insignia appeared. He paused for a second. "This is the insignia of COBRA, a massive global terrorist organization you may have heard of. It is led by Cobra Commander and his principal subordinates include Destro, a well-known arms dealer, and the Baroness, a former intelligence officer from Romania."
Clicking the pointer again he paced across the front of the room. "Drugs, illegal weapons, and other contraband are what one finds across traditional cross border smuggling routes. These would also be likely infiltration routes for Cobra operatives."
He let the words sink in, before he once again clicked the pointer to advance the slide and walked across the front of the room while scanning the assembled deputies. Out of the corner of one eye, he saw the dog doing the same.
"As far as what to do if you encounter Cobra operatives? Contact us via radio through your dispatch. We monitor your frequencies as well so you'll be able to communicate with us." Danilov continued, eyes scanning the room as he continued the lecture.
As his eyes scanned the room he saw Amy look up and smile. He managed a small smile of his own, crossing the room again before speaking some more, "I won't take up too much more time, but I'd like to bring your attention to the handouts I've left at each seat. These describe the different specialties of Cobra soldiers, which we colloquially call Vipers as well as include known field operatives from Cobra operating on the West Coast."
He went through a few more slides, adding an anecdote that he distributed some information pamphlets to the station before concluding his session.
"Additionally, ACME is working with both your leadership and G.I. Joe to better assist you with dealing with Cobra. Use the callsign Guardian, and we will be there."
After a brief pause he said, "Thank you for your time."
"Thank you, Agent Danilov," Barrera added.
"Nicevo," Danilov replied.
"What does that mean?" Barrera quirked an eyebrow.
"I believe the English equivalent is 'No Problem.'." Danilov replied with a nod before he headed out of the station with his new dog in tow.
"Ryadom!" Danilov sharply commanded and the large animal trotted astride him.
TBC