Kyron, page 5
“Well, I’m sure he does it the same way we all did it,” Kyron quipped. “You get up, and you keep falling down, until you learn not to.”
At that, Miles burst out laughing. “Oh, God, now that brings back memories.”
“Right? The good news,” Kyron added, “is that I’m as physically fit as I can be, and I’m healthy. I survived what I went through, and now I’m back out on the other side.”
“It’s sure great to see you, and it’s about time you came for a visit,” Miles stated.
“I am here for a visit obviously, but I’ve got something else going on as well. Have you heard any rumors about a dog being a problem around here?” After Miles looked at him with a frown, Kyron explained a little bit about what he was doing.
“Is this still military work for you?” his friend asked curiously.
Kyron didn’t quite know what to say about this K9 work through Titanium Corp, so he just left it fairly noncommittal and said he was helping out a friend.
“I haven’t heard anything about a dog,” Miles said, “but that doesn’t mean much.”
“Maybe not,” Kyron agreed, “but you’re a teacher. I thought maybe, with all the kids you’re around, you might have heard some talk.”
“I haven’t,” he noted thoughtfully, as he pondered the issue. “But, if you give me your cell number, I can ask around a bit and let you know.”
“Sure enough.” Kyron brought up his phone, as he also showed Miles a picture of the dog.
“That’s a beautiful animal.”
“Very distinctive and easy to identify since she’s only got three legs,” Kyron noted. “So, yeah, I feel a kinship as well.”
“Of course.” Miles looked slightly uncomfortable.
Kyron shrugged. “She’ll adapt, just like I will.” As he watched his old friend walk away, Kyron considered how difficult it was for other people to accept his new reality, when something like this happened. Kyron understood that it was hard and that they didn’t want to be rude or difficult. Yet, at the same time, Kyron fielded a million questions and still met that level of uncertainty about how to even talk to someone who lost a limb. Kyron thought somebody should be out there teaching people how to deal with it—some sort of political correctness training or something. It still sucked, but, at the same time, after having broken the ice with Miles, it seemed like every other conversation Kyron had with people after that would be easier.
But what he really wanted to deal with today was his search for the dog. Right now, he was looking for the people who had been approved for Beth’s adoption and had had trouble with her. He had found out that they were both at work, so he was waiting for them to get off.
At the end of a day of driving around and checking with several rescues, Kyron drove up to the couple’s address, hoping to find some answers. The minute he saw them, he knew better. The man was tall, with a pinched expression, angular features, and not a whole lot of welcome evident as he introduced himself. The woman was small, with the same pinched features, and definitely didn’t look like an animal person. He asked them for details on what had happened with the dog. They looked at each other, but he wasn’t invited into the house.
“The dog was a problem right away,” the man stated. “I was led to believe these War Dogs were supposedly well trained and was assured that we wouldn’t have any trouble.”
“And yet you didn’t have any problems when the first check-up visit happened, is that correct?”
“No, not at all,” the woman confirmed. “Only after that she reacted really badly to my son, and we started to worry about it.”
“And, of course, once fears starts …” he murmured. They looked at him sharply, and he shrugged. “How old is your son?”
“He’s seventeen.” She asked, “Why?”
“I’m just wondering why the dog might have perceived a threat coming from him.”
“What do you mean by a threat?” the man protested, clearly bristling. “We didn’t do anything to the dog.”
“I didn’t say you did,” Kyron stated, “but she is definitely a very well-trained dog.”
“She was also injured and didn’t seem to adapt all that easily,” the woman added stiffly.
Kyron nodded. “So, when did you notice she was missing?”
“The next morning,” she replied quietly. “My son had let her go outside, but she didn’t come back.”
“What do you mean, she didn’t come back?”
“Well, we have no backyard fence anymore,” the man explained. “We had to take down a tree, and that left a gap in the fence.
“You didn’t get it fixed?” he asked. “That’s a problem because, as you were told, there are stringent requirements for anybody with one of these dogs, and having a secure space is very important to these War Dogs.”
“Well, we would,” she began, “but then the dog disappeared.”
Kyron stared at her for a very long moment, as both of them shifted uncomfortably in front of him. He couldn’t imagine what this dog had gone through here with this couple and their teenage son, but, from everything they said, it didn’t sound like Beth had been a good fit for these people, and obviously they had decided she wasn’t welcome. “What did you do when you found out she was missing?”
They looked at each other, and the father shrugged. “We didn’t do anything. She was a problem, and, honest to God, we were glad to be rid of her.”
“Okay, and did you notify the war department?” Of course he already knew the answer to that, and clearly several things here demonstrated this family was derelict in their duty to care for this animal. The fact that they had entered a contract seemed beyond their understanding at the moment.
They both shook their heads. “No, we didn’t,” the man replied. “Maybe someone could have found her again, but then they would have brought her back, and that wasn’t something we were interested in.”
“She could also have been rehomed,” Kyron noted quietly, “and your contract legally terminated. Placement in another home would have been important to Beth.”
“She was dangerous,” the man stated.
“And my son was really struggling with the fact that she seemed to hate him so much,” the woman argued.
At that, he turned to look at her. “Is your son here? I’d like to speak with him.” They again looked at each other and shook their heads.
“No, you don’t need to be speaking with our son,” he replied. “He’s a good boy.”
At that, Kyron’s eyebrows raised. “I didn’t say he wasn’t, but speaking to him is important to help us understand the cues and what kind of behavior Beth exhibited when he was around. Talking to him would be the easiest way to determine that.”
The man immediately shook his head and repeated, “No, and, as far as we’re concerned, we’re done with this.”
“Ah, well then, I’ll let the war department know how you feel about a War Dog who faithfully served this country, and they will deal with you directly. You do remember the contract you signed and yet apparently don’t give a crap about? Well, that was issued by their department. Good day.” He turned to leave, following the odd silence from both of them, as if they had suddenly realized that they would at the very least look bad, if not be in real trouble. Yet neither of them seemed to know what to say and remained silent.
Kyron walked away. It was all he could do to hold back the disgust he felt at the thought of anybody mistreating an animal who had served this country and had done so much for humankind. To listen to their weak excuses made Kyron sick. They certainly weren’t the first supposed animal lovers who thought they cared for animals, only to find out they only wanted animals if and when the animals did what they wanted them to.
Just like some people never should become parents, many should never have animals. And, of course, animal abuse and child abuse were rampant among people who should never have gone in that direction to begin with.
The subject brought his brother and sister in-law to mind, but he knew becoming parents wouldn’t be a problem for them, since they had been looking forward to this journey for a very long time and had already shown an amazing level of patience. Kyron wished them the very best of luck; he just wasn’t sure that he had the same temperament. When it came to dogs, there was no doubt, but he wasn’t so sure about people.
Sometimes he didn’t like humans at all.
Back home again, he sat down with his brother and sister-in-law after dinner that evening. Sandra asked, “So, did you get anywhere?”
“I did, but some of the places that I got to weren’t necessarily places I particularly appreciated.” She frowned at that. He shrugged. “Some people should never be allowed to have animals. Unfortunately, even though the war department does stringent tests on a lot of these adoption applicants, they can’t always see who a person really is on the inside.”
She nodded carefully. “I’m sorry the animal went through such hardship.”
“I also don’t know,” he murmured, looking over at his brother, “if anything happened that justified the dog’s behavior. I mean, I want to say yes because dogs will always tell you the truth, whether it’s something that you want to listen to or not, but maybe it was just a poor placement. I don’t know.”
“You’re thinking that the teenager may have done something to the dog?” Sandra asked, gasping.
Kyron shrugged. “I’m not sure anybody has to do with anything,” he replied quietly. “But sometimes a dog will take an instant dislike to somebody because they see a character trait in them that makes the dog uncomfortable,” he explained. “So, was it the kid’s fault? Not necessarily.”
“Do you know what the kid’s name is?” his brother asked.
“No, I never did get that.” He frowned, as he flipped through his notes. “It would have been helpful though, wouldn’t it?”
“If I know the family name, I can get you the kid’s name, but that won’t necessarily help.”
“I did see Miles today,” Kyron added, “so maybe he knows him from school.” Kyron handed over the man’s name to his brother, who just shrugged.
“It’s not a name I know.”
“Well, that’s good. It shouldn’t be somebody a cop knows, given that these applications are supposedly screened, and successful applicants should have met some basic requirements in order to care for one of these dogs,” he muttered. “I don’t have any reason to suspect the boy or the family, outside of the fact that they took on something that they apparently weren’t equipped to handle, then didn’t follow up when there was trouble. Just abandoned a War Dog. And that, of course, has repercussions that affect the dog.”
“So, about these dogs,” his brother hesitated, “are they dangerous?”
“In the wrong hands, any animal is dangerous,” Kyron replied quietly, “and, while these dogs have been trained with some serious skills, that doesn’t make them inherently dangerous.”
“Will they react to an abusive situation? I guess it depends on whether they bonded with the new family or not, right?”
“Getting attached isn’t encouraged when you’re in the K9 Unit,” he noted. “That’s one of the reasons why I couldn’t handle it anymore.”
“I presume,” Allen said, “that no matter how stringent the requirements, there will always be people who fall through the cracks.”
At that, Kyron nodded. “The department can spend only so many hours chasing down some of these applications. When a placement determination is made, it’s pushed up or down the line. Sometimes they have thousands of applications and thousands of dogs, and it’s just a matter of expediting the process.”
“So, in some cases, something slipped through the cracks, and you’re trying to fill in those cracks?” Allen asked hesitantly.
“Yes,” he agreed. “In a way, that’s exactly what I’m doing. I’m checking on dogs that were missed or have some issues. The routine welfare check that is done on all the retired dogs determined that this War Dog, Beth, was not there and hadn’t been there for months. And, of course, the people who adopted Beth didn’t bother to inform the war department.”
“So, they might be held responsible, right? Don’t they sign a contract or something?”
“Sure they do, but you also need somebody to enforce that contract,” he murmured. “And people are really good at being shits in this world sometimes.”
His brother stared at him.
“If they can get out of stuff, they do, and it doesn’t matter what you or a contract says. Too often it’s already a done deal, and you’re left trying to figure out how to handle the mop-up.”
“Which is what you’re doing.”
“Well, first of all, I’m hoping to find the dog,” he murmured. “She could easily have been picked up by another family and is potentially doing very well there. She also could have been killed, shot by someone if she attacked them or was maybe looking for food on someone’s property. Who knows? She’s only got three legs. I don’t know what her last few months have been like, but we’re heading into the dead of winter.”
“Some of us call that the Christmas season,” his brother quipped.
“Exactly. Call it what you want, but, either way, it’s damn cold out here in Aspen, and I don’t want her suffering for any longer than she already has.”
“You feel really strongly about this, don’t you?”
“Of course I do.” Kyron frowned at his brother. “You know how I feel about animals.”
“And we’re back to that question of why you didn’t become a vet again,” his brother mentioned, with a smile.
“Because, for some reason, I felt the need to go off and join the navy,” he replied, with a smile in return, “but now I’m in the position to reconsider what it is that I want to do. But going back to school for what? Seven years to become a veterinarian? No thanks, not my style.”
“I’m scared to ask, but what are your plans?”
“I don’t have any at the moment,” he replied cheerfully. “I’m hoping to let that remain a random mystery for a little longer.”
His brother just stared at him.
Kyron shrugged. “What do you want me to say? I don’t know what I’ll do. I’m at what some people would call a crossroads crisis,” he stated. “My life has been irrevocably changed, and I’m working through that. I don’t really have an answer for you. So do us both a favor and don’t hound me about it.”
His brother nodded. “I can probably manage that.” Looking over his shoulder to make sure Sandra was out of earshot, he stated, “You should know that our parents are coming next weekend.”
Kyron sat back and glared, raising both hands. “Now why would you do that?”
“Sandra,” he replied quietly.
Kyron pinched the bridge of his nose. “Even though I specifically asked her not to?”
His brother sighed. “You also know that, being pregnant, she wants everything hunky-dory and everyone happy.”
“Life isn’t like that,” Kyron bit off.
“Maybe they won’t come,” Allen suggested. “Maybe they’ll cancel.”
“Maybe, but you and I both know that’s a very faint hope,” Kyron argued.
“I know,” Allen replied, “but today is only Saturday, so lots can happen.”
But, in his own mind, Kyron knew that not enough would happen to keep them away. And, with that, he got up, changed the subject. “I do have a couple leads reported in some of the local social media pages. Just miscellaneous dog sightings.” Kyron groaned. “I contacted a few of them, but all I got was generic locations, no true addresses. I’ll go drive around and take a look.” And, with that, he walked out, leaving his brother staring after him.
Back in his rental vehicle, he sat here for a long moment, cussing his sister-in-law and her interference. He got it; she wanted the world to be happy, but the world just wasn’t built that way. A lot of people out there couldn’t for the life of them find a way to happiness because they were just so full of judgment, so busy building themselves up by tearing others down, resulting in themselves and everyone around them being constantly angry and upset. His own reaction to the prospect of seeing his parents was kind of a surprise because he had thought he’d dealt with it, but obviously he hadn’t. The last thing he wanted was to see them, but he also knew getting out of it would upset Sandra, something he promised his brother he would not do.
Yet interacting with his parents could upset Sandra more.
As he turned on the engine and headed down the driveway, he saw Allen and Sandra standing in the window, arms around each other, watching him. He didn’t bother waving; he just drove away, wanting nothing more than to leave it all behind. But having opened the door to his brother, he was starting to feel like he wouldn’t have any choice but to open the door to the rest of his family too. Until he couldn’t take any of them anymore.
Preoccupied with thoughts of his family and all the drama and hard feelings over the years, he punched in the first address he had and followed the GPS directions to one of the main town centers. As he looked around, he shrugged.
“Not necessarily a place I would expect to see a dog like Beth.” He drove past a couple gas stations and then a small mall, pulling into the back, wondering if the dog would have chosen this place. If Kyron were a dog, it would be the last place he would choose, except for the fact that obviously a lot of humans were around. If she was staying close to people, then she was looking for support, comfort, a family, and that broke his heart. If she instead headed out to the wilds, then she had already given up on humans and didn’t want anything to do with them. He’d seen more than his fair share of that happen as well.
He got out and walked to the back of the property, where a bunch of trees bordered the area, looking for any signs of the dog or anybody around who may have seen one. He noted a security guard, standing outside, smoking a cigarette, so Kyron walked over, introduced himself, and asked if the guard had seen a dog, like the one he was looking for.
