Page 27 of So Smitten

The hardest part would be to get him to look simultaneously as though he were afraid of Michael, obedient to him and also as though he hated Michael to his very core and would tear his throat out if only he wasn’t certain that Michael would hurt him if he tried.

Turk barked enthusiastically and Faith turned to see him wagging his tail and bouncing up and down as a dog on tv ran through an obstacle course. He turned to her, his goofy open-mouthed smile and exuberant eyes the polar opposite of the dogs Faith saw online.

Faith admired his strength. He had been hurt badly by West, and worse by Trammell before him, but he was still a puppy at heart. Even though he was a Marine Corps dog turned FBI K9, Faith imagined he would be more at home playing hide and seek with some kids than fighting other dogs.

But here he was, after suffering at least as much trauma as Faith herself, and he was still joyful, still happy just to be around his human, no matter what they were doing.

Faith’s smile faded as she thought of him fighting some massive dog in the ring. She trusted Turk to come out on top in any fight, but what if he didn’t? West had shown her that Turk wasn’t invincible. If he slipped or ended up with the wrong dog, he could get hurt or killed far too swiftly for Michael to intervene.

God, she hated this.

But it was their best chance at solving this case. If Turk could understand, Faith knew he would tell Faith to let him help, to let him do what Faith had done so many times and put himself at risk to help catch a killer.

She thought of David’s words to her earlier. He told her that it worried him to know that she regularly put her life in danger for the sake of her job, but that she would never ask her to quit because he knew she wouldn’t. She took her job seriously and had long since understood that it might mean she died someday.

Turk was no different. Just because he was a dog didn’t mean he didn’t know what danger was. He had already put his life in danger for Faith’s sake dozens of times. Faith knew he wouldn’t shy away from this job either.

She got up and switched off the tv. Turk protested with a whine and Faith said, “I’ll put the show on later. Right now, I need to teach you something.”

She made a little space in the hotel room, pushing the chairs and the bed apart. Turk cocked his head questioningly, and she said, “This will all make sense in a moment. Okay, Turk. Heel.”

Turk cocked his head again, but other than that remained completely still.

“Sit.”

Turk sat.

“Listen.”

Understanding crossed Turk’s face. That was the same sequence of commands they used when they were training him for Faith’s K9 certification. He dutifully sat and paid attention.

Faith turned the laptop to him and said, “Be mean.”

He cocked his head, and Faith played a video of a dog snarling and snapping at someone through a fence. The dog was chained and straining against the leash. Turk watched intently, and Faith repeated the command. “Be mean.”

She played the video again. When it concluded, she paused the laptop and said, “Be mean.”

Turk stared at her, concentrating hard. Finally, he took a tentative step forward and placed his paw on the laptop. He looked at her questioningly, and she sighed. “Let’s try again.”

She closed the laptop and pointed at herself. “Faith, be mean.”

She growled at Turk, snapping and biting. Turk stared at her as though she had suddenly gone crazy and barked in concern.

“Yeah, I don’t blame you,” she said. She side and said, “Okay, one more try.”

She opened the laptop and played the video again. “This dog is mean,” she said.

Turk stared intently at the screen, and Faith said, “this dog is mean.”

Turk barked to indicate understanding, and Faith said, “All right. Turk, be mean.”

Turk looked at her for a long moment. Then he barked tentatively. He bared his teeth uncertainly, and Faith said, "Yes! Be mean, Turk! Just like that."

Turk growled a little more convincingly. Faith glared at him to demonstrate the anger she wanted to see. “Be mean.”

Turk barked loudly and growled more angrily. “Good,” Faith said. “Be mean. Be really mean.

Turk lunged at her so suddenly and convincingly that she cried out and stumbled backward. Turk glared at her and barked and snarled, ears flat back on his head. He lunged at her again, stopping himself just before reaching her so his jaws snapped inches from her face. He continued this for a few moments, then sat back and barked in a much more friendly and calm manner.

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