The Girl and The Specialist

Chapter 15: KILLER AND BULLET

I yawned as I woke up, turning to face Ron. I quickly noticed his absence and rolled the other way to get out of bed. It's been about 6 weeks since the family reunion and my ankle is finally feeling much better. I glanced at the boot and smiled. Today, I can finally walk without the boot. The second my feet touched the ground, I smiled. No pain and it's such a relief to be able to walk without my foot feeling cramped and sweaty. 

I slipped on a pair of blue skinny jeans and a gray t-shirt before heading downstairs. I immediately noticed my dad sitting at the table. I walked over to the fridge and opened it.

"Morning, Lori.", he mumbled, staring at his phone screen, "Hey, would you mind running to the store for me? I need a few things, but I have to head over to the base." He looked up from his phone as I nodded, grabbing a container of strawberries, yogurt, and the granola from the cabinets.

I cut up some of the strawberries and tossed them in a bowl along with a scoop of the vanilla yogurt and some of the granola. I quickly scooped out some of the mixture, letting out a quick breath of air. Parfaits had become my go-to breakfast over the years. I walked over to the table and sat down as Ron walked in. Dad slid over a list of groceries, and I heard my phone vibrate. I picked it up and noticed I'd received a text.

'Hey, Lori. Have you seen Ron and your dad yet today?' - Unknown

'Who is this and how do you know me?' - Lori

'Oh, sorry! I'm Miles. I work with your dad and Ron. I've been tryin' to contact them all morning.' - Unknown

'Yeah, they're here. I'll let them know you tried calling.' - Lori

I took my empty bowl over to the sink where Ron was standing.

"Hey, someone named Miles has been trying to get ahold of the two of you. Somehow, he got my number and texted me. Says he works with you two.", I whisper quietly.

Ron nodded, "Yeah, he does. He and his twin are annoying and constantly fighting one another. I'll give them a call later."

"You mind if I take the truck to get some groceries for my dad?", I ask.

"How about we take a drive together. There's some place I want to go anyway.", Ron slipped on his shoes and jacket as I quickly rinsed out the bowl and put my shoes on.

I followed him out to the truck and got in the passenger seat. We drove over to the grocery store first and I got what dad requested and what I needed. After paying, we loaded up the truck and Ron drove us over to the local animal shelter. I looked over at him, confused.

"What are we doing here?", I asked.

"We're here because I think you need a companion. Dogs are man's best friend, no? Come on.", He got out and I followed.

We walked into the shelter, and we were guided to the back where a bunch of dogs were lined up in kennels. I paused at each one and pet the dogs I could. We eventually came across a kennel with two puppies, about 4 months old.

"These two are inseparable. We think they're litter mates. Normally, we don't adopt litter mates out together, but we had to make an exception for these two. When we've tried adopting one out, they freak out. The black one has been brought back at least twice because he quit eating and just wouldn't do anything while they were separated. They were found on the side of the highway just out of town. They don't really let anyone near them, either.", the woman explained.

I knelt down and stuck my fingers through the holes in the plastic door. Probably not the best idea but it was my only option since she wouldn't open the door. The first to walk over and sniff my finger was the black one. He started licking me and trying to get me to pet him. When the other one came, he pushed the black one out of the way and did the same thing. The woman seemed more willing to open the door after this and the three of us walked into the large kennel. Ron and I sat down on the floor and the two puppies ran over. They climbed into our laps and, for the most part, were pretty calm.