Page 66 of Saving Veronica
“Yes. It wasn’t until 2009 that a bill was passed that the dogs handler or their family have first dibs on a dog when it’s retired from service. If they don’t want them, then it opens them up for law enforcement, and then the general public.”
They leaned back while their meals were delivered and dug in as they continued, “How did you get Major then?”
“My CO knew I wanted him. I had mentioned several times that if he was ever retired, I wanted first dibs. I figured if I was still in the military, then Dad or Grandpa could take him.”
“Makes sense, but what really happened?”
Finn paused in cutting his steak, and looked off into space, lost in thought. When he started his tale, Ronnie saw that he was actually seeing what he was describing.
“Major became a service dog when he was six months old. He was born in Germany, then sent through the training. He was trained for all sorts of things.”
“Can you share?” Ronnie prompted, when he paused for several moments.
Finn took a bite, then cleared his throat. “He’s trained to detect bombs, weapons, gas, and drugs. As well as attacking the enemy.” He paused and looked sadly at Ronnie. “At his initial training, he wasn’t trained for a certain thing, but after being in Afghanistan for six months, his first handler taught him to detect it.”
“And that is?”
Finn looked her directly in the eye as he admitted, “Dead bodies.”
“So, he’s a cadaver dog?”
“Yes, it doesn’t bother you?”
“No. I’ve volunteered for Search and Rescue when I have the time. I’ve been on some cases where we wished we had someone like Major, but we had to make do with only humans. I think I was nineteen when I found my first cadaver.” She shook her head at his expression of shock. “It was a shock, I won’t lie, but we knew going in we might not find them alive. I think what helped me was growing up on a farm. Life and death is a way of life. It’s not like I live in an ivory tower, and being a vet hits that realism home.”
“I guess it would.”
They continued to eat in silence, until Ronnie looked up and asked again, “So, how did you get possession of Major?”
“Oh, sorry. I was his third handler. The first one was killed in action after being there a year. The second one came in, did his time, and was sent someplace else. Major couldn’t go with him. I came in and everyone in the unit warned me that Major might not click with me. From the first minute I met him, we clicked. For the next three years we ate, slept, and worked side by side, twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. It was like we were extensions of each other.” He paused when the waiter interrupted them and they both declined dessert, but asked for coffee.
“We were sent on a mission into a local village. The Intel we received was there were hostiles trying to bully the villagers. We arrived and in less than two minutes all hell broke loose. The whole thing was over in ten minutes. I didn’t even know Major had been hit until it was all over. My teammates told me that someone came up behind us and started firing at our backs. Major threw himself between them and me, while my teammates took the shooters out. I was focused on the people ahead of us. When the choppers came for the wounded, Patch had literally thrown a gauze bandage on Major to try to stop the bleeding. One of the guys was able to keep the bandage on him and he left in the helicopter. I knew I was being shipped home soon, and I never thought I would ever see him again.”
“Oh, wow, did you get him when he came back?”
“Actually, no. Our commander contacted Patch to tell him that Major had been cleared, but when he came back to the unit, he suffered depression. He refused to get off the rack, which is actually a bed, the two of us shared. That was when Patch said to fill out the paperwork for me to adopt Major. It wasn’t until I landed at the airport here that I knew about it. Patch kept it a secret the whole time.”
“Good for you.” Ronnie laughed along with him. They finished their coffee and prepared to leave. After taking care of the bill, Finn helped Ronnie from her chair, then placed her shawl over her shoulders. As they walked toward the entrance, he had his hand on the small of his back. Neither one of them saw the man on the other side of the room glare at the two of them.
Chapter 22
The two of them kept up the conversation on the way home and it seemed like it only took a minute to arrive back at Ronnie’s house. Finn helped her from the vehicle and walked her to the door.
Ronnie turned to the man, and asked, “Do you want to come in?”
“If I come in, I don’t know when I’ll leave. Hell,” Finn sighed, as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I might not leave until morning.”
Ronnie grinned and with her hand on the doorknob, she slowly turned it and pushed the door opened with her hips. “Do you want to come in?”
“Hell, yes!” Finn walked forward and waited until she shut the door behind her and backed her against it. It took less than ten seconds to gather her face in his hands, and swoop in for a kiss. As soon as his lips touched hers, all the memories from that first kiss in the elevator came stumbling forward. Finn reached down and placed his hands on her ass, and brought her up on her toes, so she could feel what she did to him. They both moaned when she reached up, wrapped her arms around his neck and buried her hands in his hair.
“Where’s the bedroom?” Finn whispered against her lips.
Ronnie sighed, took his hand, and led him down the hall. He realized he had been in the room weeks ago when he’d changed into his fatigues before he rode up the mountain to find her. He’d save that little bit of information for later. Not that Ronnie would care, but he had other things on his mind right now.
As they entered the bedroom, Finn looked around and smiled at the perch against on wall at the foot of the bed. “Captain’s perch?”
“Yeah,” Ronnie said, as she turned to him. “I’m going to be honest here, Finn. It’s been a few years for me, so this might be quick. Please, tell me you have a condom.”
