Part of her wondered when she would be free from this feeling of responsibility. Maybe this was always how someone felt after interrogating an innocent person. Or maybe it only happened when that person was as… what was the right word? Honest? Virtuous? Wholesome? Someone as good as Daniel.
He grunted, then turned his back and headed toward the main room of the house. She couldn’t see him anymore, but she could still hear him.
“Danny, c’mere. We’ve got one more thing we need to do.”
Curious—and procrastinating; the catalog of nightmares past was beginning to give her a headache—she walked quietly down the stairs to see what was happening. She knew Kevin well enough to be sure he wasn’t calling Daniel over for a heartfelt good-bye, complete with hugs and snuggles.
The front room was empty—Arnie had cleared out—but she could hear voices through the screen door. She went out to the porch, where Lola was waiting for her. She absently scratched the dog’s head while she took in the scene, lit by the porch lamps and the headlights of the sedan.
Einstein, Khan, and the Rottweiler were all lined up at attention in front of Kevin. He looked to be addressing them while Daniel watched.
Kevin started with his star pupil. “Come, Einstein.”
The dog stepped forward. Kevin turned his body to point at Daniel. “That’s your honey, Einstein. Honey.”
Einstein ran to Daniel, tail wagging, and commenced sniffing up and down his legs. From Daniel’s expression, he was just as confused as Alex was.
“Okay,” Kevin said to the other dogs. “Khan, Gunther, watch.”
He turned back to Einstein and Daniel, dropping into a wrestler’s crouch and approaching slowly.
“I’m gonna get your honey,” he taunted the dog in a growly voice.
Einstein wheeled around and put himself between Daniel and Kevin’s advance. The hackles rose at least six inches off the top of his shoulders, and a menacing snarl slid from between his suddenly exposed fangs. The demon dog she’d first met was back.
Kevin feinted to the right, and Einstein blocked him. He dove left toward Daniel and the dog launched himself at his master, taking him down with a solid-sounding thud. In the same second, Einstein had his jaws wrapped around Kevin’s neck. It would have been a frightening picture if it weren’t for the smile on Kevin’s face.
“Good boy! Smart boy!”
“Kill! Kill!” Alex whispered under her breath.
Einstein released and jumped back, tail wagging again. He pranced a few steps back and forward, ready to play another game.
“Okay, Khan, your turn.”
Once again, Kevin identified Daniel as the Great Dane’s honey and then made as if to attack. Einstein stayed with Khan; supervising, Alex imagined. The big dog simply shoved one massive paw against Kevin’s chest as he attacked and toppled him backward. Khan used the same paw to pin him to the ground while Einstein moved in for the jugular.
“Kill!” she said again, louder.
Kevin heard this time and shot her a look that clearly said: If I weren’t in the middle of teaching these dogs something very important, I would have them tear you to shreds.
Khan sat out the next round, while Einstein supervised again. The barrel-chested Rottweiler took Kevin down even harder than Einstein had. She heard the breath crush out of his chest; that had to hurt. She smiled.
“Do you mind if I ask what all that was about?” Daniel asked as Kevin heaved himself to his feet and started brushing the dirt off his dark jeans and black T-shirt.
“It’s a command behavior I created for personal-protection dogs. These three dogs will guard you with their lives from here on out. They’ll also probably be under your feet a lot.”
“Why honey?”
“It’s just a word. But, to be honest, I was mostly picturing it being used for women and children…”
“Thanks,” Daniel retorted.
“Oh, relax. You know I don’t mean it that way. Think of a better command and we’ll use it with the next generation.”
There was an awkward pause. Kevin looked at the car, then back to his brother.
“Look, you’re safe here. But stay close to the dogs anyway. And the poison lady. She’s tough. Just don’t eat anything she tries to feed you.”
“I’m sure we’ll be fine.”
“If anything happens, give Einstein this command.” He held out a little piece of paper, about the size of a business card. Daniel took it and stuck it in his pocket without looking at it. Alex thought it was odd that Kevin wouldn’t say it out loud. Or maybe he just wrote it down because he didn’t trust Daniel’s memory.
Kevin looked now as if a hug was actually on his mind, despite what she’d imagined before, but then Daniel’s posture stiffened slightly, and Kevin turned away. He kept talking as he walked to the sedan.
“We’ll talk more when I get back. Keep the phone on you. I’ll call when things are set.”
“Be careful.”
“Wilco.”
Kevin got in the car and revved the engine. He put his right hand on the back of the passenger headrest and watched out the rear window as he maneuvered the car to face the road. He didn’t look at his brother again. Then the red taillights were fading into the distance.