The next day Kerrigan exited the office suite to see Anna Brooks setting up a presentation in the conference room. She ducked her head in the door and asked sweetly, “Ana, right? Did Conor remember to ask you about houses?” Anna looked up and nodded, “This is actually for you. I have a number of options if you would like to come in and see.” Kerrigan entered the room, but felt like something was off. Anna remained extremely professional but seemed distant. “We may be able to eliminate some of these depending on your needs,” Anna explained, pulling several homes up on the screen. “Why don’t you list some of the things you believe are essential and we can go from there.” “Ok, well, there will be four of us staying there, so I think four bedrooms is important. While the girls can share a room, I think if we are going to be here for any length of time, each having our own space is key.” Anna toggled a setting and several houses fell off the list. “Um, Reilynn will be recovering, so
The three men stepped forward reluctantly. “In the back of Wayne’s van, you will find suits. Don them and help each other. You have three minutes. GO!” Eli commanded. The men hurried to obey while Wayne appraised Karrigan. “Ready for your first test, Girl?” Kerrigan nodded but her body shook slightly with nerves. “Faolan! Dein!” Faolan came to rigid attention and stood between Wayne’s legs. “Come here, girl. Time for you two to bond.” Kerrigan came forward and accepted the leash. “Now, it’s up to you to seal the bond and help her imprint on you. You will start with the commands Dein for Guard, and then Spaan for defend. These will begin to get her used to your voice and know that she is to guard and defend you. Try it now and be firm in the commands. She is used to hearing orders when on duty. You can be soft when she is off duty but always command to show when it's time to work,” Wayne explained. Kerrigan knelt and let Faolan sniff her hand before standing back up and command
The following morning, Kerrigan joined Wayne and Bran at the Jinstain police K-9 training ground. Six dog handlers were present for their annual recertification and Faolan was Wayne’s top choice for showing them the course. Kerrigan was nervous in front of so many experienced handlers, but Bran assisted her in remembering any commands she forgot. Faolan executed the basic course with ease, returning to Kerrigan’s side. The morning training only lasted just over an hour but was an excellent primer for Kerrigan. Watching the other trainers gave her a chance to cement some of the concepts in her mind, and she was both relieved and a bit concerned that even with their years of training, several of the trainers still struggled to control their dogs. If this was the state of the current police force’s more experienced members, she wondered how effective they were in the field. “Never mind the weaker ones. After all, that is why I am here. The department wants me to work with them for the
Later that day, Kerrigan and Evelynn pulled through the gated entrance to the address Anna had provided. The community guard waved them through without much of a fuss after they simply mentioned meeting Anna Brooks. “House is in the back. It has its own street, so its hard to miss.” This entrance led to a series of large homes that had been built some time ago. A new section of the neighborhood was being created and would likely connect to this section within the year. Evelynn drove them to the back of the neighborhood where a narrow paved lane ended with a long driveway. There had been two homes on the corner flanking this private street, but this property felt set aside, separate from the larger neighborhood. No one should be on this private street unless they were visiting the home at the end. Kerrigan let Faolan out of the car first and spotted Anna coming down the drive toward them. “Ah, good you found it without too much trouble. Being tucked back in here I thought you migh
Kerrigan fell into a simple routine of visiting the local police academy to train with Faolan every morning, stopping by the hospital to check on Reilynn, and then visiting either the master craftsmen at the violin shop or going to the community center in the afternoons before returning to Vokrizin to catch up on emails from Natalie. Faolan was brilliant, and the other trainers were envious of her skill and obedience. After the first week of working with the police dog trainers, Bran commented, “Faolan has really taken to you. She never really took to any of the other trainers who worked with her. Even Evelynn seems to be doing well with her.” “Even Evelynn? What is that supposed to mean?” Quipped Evelynn as she jugged past with Faolan on their next circuit of the course. “Damn that one has good hearing,” Bran commented, watching her run past. “Best keep that in mind. Hopefully, we can get Reilynn out here soon. I think the two of them will get along great,” Kerrigan said. “When
Conor was sitting behind his desk glancing through reports from the team when a knock startled him from his reading. He looked up to find Peter Miros standing in the doorway. “Got a minute?” Peter asked. “Sure. What’s up? Everything alright with AperturePhoto?” Conor asked. “What? Oh, yea everything is fine there. Great, actually. This is our best month yet.” “Then what’s got you so wound up? Cara doing ok?” Conor asked, seeing Peter fidget. “I actually ran into an old friend from school. You don’t happen to know Andrew Harden do you?” “Andrew? Yea, as a matter of fact, he and I went to high school together. He was a smart kid! Didn’t he skip a grade or two? I really haven’t seen him in say… 4 years?” “Yeah, and his family doesn’t really care for him to be out in public much for fear he might outshine them. That witch of a stepmom he has really made life hard. I think she is still afraid that his father may let him get some of the business even though his mom was just a summer
Conor walked down the hall to his old office and knocked just as Kerrigan was hanging up with Natalie. “Got a minute?” “I suppose.” “Issues back at Dragon Corporation?” “Kelan is being an ass to my staff, and my chief of security is missing. But all sunshine and rainbows. So, what's up?” Kerrigan said with a forced smile. “Well, Peter Miros stopped by.” “The AperturePhoto guy?” “Yep. He had a curious visitor. One Andrew Harden.” “Harden… that family does construction for the Benedicts, right? What did he want?” “You know your stuff!” “It pays to know one’s enemy,” Kerrigan said with a smirk. Conor explained briefly what Peter had told him. Kerrigan sat back in the chair and steepled her fingers in contemplation. “So, the runt of the litter is making a play for the throne. Sounds like Harden Corporation will be in dire straights if they don’t get a major injection of funds.” “Or they will just keep playing lackey to the Benedicts,” Conor suggested. “True, but Ezra Harden i
Conor looked around the table at his team, as well as at Kerrigan and her guards sitting stoically at the far end. He had chosen the conference room with the large oval table for a reason and he hoped it would become apparent shortly. “Everyone, I realize that Vokrizin is growing faster and larger than I could have ever hoped or believed. I am also painfully aware that Celia and Abrasax are in meditation for the foreseeable future. When I ran Celia’s Herbals, it failed because I lost track of the business, and was not as involved as I needed to be. I want to ensure that doesn’t happen. Miss Lokir, I am hoping you would be willing to assist me in this.” “Depends on what you had in mind. I do at some point still have Dragon Corporation to consider and manage,” She said seriously. “Of course, and I wouldn’t want to keep you from those duties. No, what I could use most right now is guidance on how you manage to keep such a large conglomerate moving, and offer advice on how we can prepa