From Down Here Chapter 33
Kojo is surprised but happy when Tim comes home at what seems to be earlier than usual. He wags his tail and licks Tim's hand.
Tim reaches down to scratch Kojo behind the ears. "Glad to see me, huh?"
Kojo yips his agreement.
"I had a meeting with Pine, and then she sent me home for comp time for when we were at the hostage situation. The whole squad will get comp time unless we get an emergency call out," Tim says.
Kojo has heard "emergency call out" before. It means that Tim and sometimes Lucy will have to leave. But the rest of what Tim said sounded OK, and he doesn't have a sad or mad face. Kojo goes to the kitchen and sits on the floor in front of the cabinet where Tim keeps the chew bones. He barks to let Tim know what he wants.
Tim makes a happy face at him. "So you want a treat? I don't blame you. I could use something to chew on too." Kojo doesn't know what Tim means. Tim's never wanted a chew bone for himself. But he gives one to Kojo. Then he gets what he calls a beer out of the refrigerator and opens something that smells a little like a chew bone, but it's thin, like a leash for a little dog. Kojo tilts his head as a question. "It's beef jerky. I like to chew on it, but Lucy doesn't. She's not crazy about meat."
Kojo knows Lucy likes what she calls fruits and vegetables better than she likes meat. Kojo doesn't understand why when meat tastes so good. But they make Lucy happy. It looks like the beer and the beef jerky are making Tim happy. Tim sits on the couch and turns on the TV. "There should be a game starting soon." Kojo finishes his chew bone and lies on the rug near Tim's feet until Lucy comes home.
As Kojo goes to greet Lucy, she has a happy face. She also smells of another dog. He thinks it's one of the ones he smelled on her before. "Hey!" Tim says. He gets up and does the mouth-pressing thing with Lucy. "You look pleased with yourself."
"I went to see Curan at the hospital," Lucy says. "The trainer was there with the emotional support dog from the boy who died. She and Curan liked each other from the first second. Curan petted her, and I could just see him relax. After a while, I asked him if he remembered a man named Larchmont. He looked frightened, but he held onto the dog and didn't shut down. He told me 'yes.'"
"Just 'yes'" Tim asks.
Lucy bobs her head. "Just yes. But he's never been able to get past his fear like that before. It was wonderful. The trainer, her name is Angie Summers, is going to see if she can get Curan officially matched with the dog."
"How about Larchmont, did you get any more out of him?" Tim asks.
"No. His lawyer told him to stay mum, and that's what he's doing. But Wesley is staying on it. And if Kelly helps Curan tell his story, then we'll know what Larchmont did. And he couldn't come up with bail, so he's not going anywhere."
"So are you getting more done on your case for Harper?" Tim asks.
"I confirmed a couple of sources," Lucy says. "I'm going to go see one of them, a low-level drug dealer from the Inland Empire, tomorrow."
"Are you going UC?" Tim asks. To Kojo, he doesn't look as happy.
"Yeah," Lucy says. "He doesn't work for any of the dealers or suppliers that know me. So I'll go UC as a user and see if he tries to sell to me. If he does, I can squeeze him."
"Who's backing you up?" Tim asks.
"Harper and Lopez," Lucy answers.
Tim's face looks happy, but the way he's standing doesn't. "You've got the best."
Lucy stretches up for another mouth press. "Second best. But they're great."
"Yeah," Tim agrees. "You should be fine." Kojo still doesn't think Tim's happy.
Lucy isn't home. Tim keeps walking around like Kojo does sometimes when he's waiting for something. If Tim would stop moving, Kojo could rub against him or put his head in his lap. Since Tim keeps going, Kojo decides to lie down by the door so he can listen for Lucy's car and scent her as soon as she arrives.
Kojo lies there for a long time. Sometimes he almost falls asleep, but the sound of a car going by wakes him up. He keeps wishing it would be Lucy's car. Tim finally sits down on the couch. Usually, he turns on the TV, but he just keeps looking at his phone.
Finally, Kojo hears Lucy's car. He catches her scent too, but it is strange, like she's been around someone else. He also smells some things that he smelled when he was at what she and Tim call Mid-Wilshire. Lucy comes in looking tired. Her hair looks strange, too, and Kojo can smell more of the other smells.
Tim jumps up from the couch as Kojo yips and wags his tail. "Finish your UC?" Tim asks.
"No, I'll have to go under again. I have another meet, the guy who runs the dealer I met today. Supposedly, he has some higher-grade product. I think he may be the one I want, an entrepreneur trying to move into LA. He could have some info on a local operation we're trying to close down."
"If he's trying to move into LA and he finds out you're LAPD, he'll try to take you out, Lucy," Tim says, looking scared.
"He's not going to find out," Lucy says. "But if he does, I can handle it, and Lopez and Harper will be there. We'll take him down."
"Still, it sounds dangerous," Tim says.
"No more dangerous than your Metro operations. I'll manage. I'm a cop, Tim, a good one. And I'm a big girl."
Tim leans his chin on the top of Lucy's head. "Not so big. But you are a good cop. I made sure of it."
Lucy pulls away. "It's been years since I was your boot and I've worked my ass off to be a detective and do UC."
"I know," Tim says. But to Kojo, he still looks a little nervous. "Um, Hey! Have you heard any more about Curan?"
Lucy's face looks happier. "Yeah, I got a text from Angie Summers. She took Kelly, the dog who's bonding with Curan, to the hospital again today. They did really well together. When Curan is discharged, he'll go to a foster home. Kelly can be with him."
"He can have a pet at a foster home?" Tim asks.
"An emotional support dog is like a seeing-eye dog. It doesn't count as a pet," Lucy says. "Curan and Kelly will both have to finish their training, but Kelly can already help Curan a lot. I think with time, he'll be able to tell exactly what happened to him and what Larchmont did. Emotional support dogs are amazing."
"You sound really excited about them," Tim says. Kojo agrees.
"I am," Lucy says. "Curan and Kelly opened my eyes to a whole new kind of therapy."
"And you want to get involved," Tim says.
"Yes, I do," Lucy says. "We agreed it's not the time to have kids. But I can help them a lot by putting them with dogs like Kelly. I need to help, Tim."
Tim puts his arms around Lucy and presses his mouth to the top of her head. "If you didn't, you wouldn't be Lucy Chen."