Handle Me

It bothered her that anyone would ever have to deal with the things Ty had seen. But it bothered her more that the wounded boy she’d longed to protect had grown into a man scarred by even more tragedy.

But she didn’t need a tortured hero; she was far from helpless. Placing her hand over his, she pried Ty’s fingers from her arm. “I deal with men like that all the time, soldier. I’ll be fine.”

His lips thinned and his eyes narrowed to unhappy slits. He opened his mouth, probably to lambast her, but the words stalled.

A high-pitched scream split the park.

Ty swore under his breath.

Beside them, Kaia’s ears pricked and her body went stiff.

“Someone stop him! That guy grabbed my purse from the stroller.” An attractive blonde woman, probably in her late twenties, was pointing at the junkie hightailing it away from the park. Several women crowded around her. Most snatched up their children and held them close. But none of them were in a position to run after the man.

Van didn’t blame them. She knew from firsthand experience that addicts who were tweaking for a fix could be highly unpredictable and dangerous, and none of them had experience dealing with that kind of thing. Besides, he had a head start.

On everyone but Kaia.

She didn’t see or hear the command, but it was obvious Ty had given it.

One minute Kaia was standing at his hip, the next she was streaking across the park in hot pursuit. And even with the loss of a limb, she was easily gaining on the man.

There was an audible gasp as Kaia leapt for him, snapping her jaws around his arm and holding tight as he spun on the spot, trying to dislodge her.

The man screamed, a piercing wail that sent chills down Van’s spine.

With his free hand, he began pummeling Kaia around the head.

And that’s when she got pissed.

Without another thought, Van took off across the park. Ty was already several steps in front of her. “Make him stop,” she yelled.

Kaia wrestled the man to the ground, using the weight of her body and her sharp teeth to subdue him. Ty waded in. He must have given another command because Kaia released her hold, scooted out of the way and sat back on her haunches.

Van could see Ty had the junkie well in hand as he rolled him onto his stomach, jerked his arms up high and placed a knee on his back to immobilize him.

Van skidded to a halt beside Kaia, quickly running her hands over the dog, looking for signs of injury.

“She’s fine, Van.”

“He was beating the shit out of her, Ty,” she spit out, anger flaring in her chest.

“She’s trained for that. I promise, she’s fine.”

Kaia sat quietly—she wasn’t even breathing hard—and let Van run her hands over every inch of her body. She stared at her with those deep brown eyes, full of calm.

A calm Van apparently needed.

She realized her own heart was racing, her stomach flipping around like someone had placed her on a roller coaster. Tears burned the backs of her eyes.

She stared into Kaia’s gaze, the last piece of her brother, and realized that after only a day it would devastate her if something happened to the dog.

The thought instantly made her more antsy and unsettled.

“Someone call 911. Van, I need you over here. This guy is the one bleeding.”

Van’s body jolted into action. She scrambled over to kneel beside Ty. “This nice woman is an ER doctor. If you’ll cooperate, I’ll let you up so she can look at your wounds.”

The guy moaned and nodded.

“If you try to run or do anything stupid, Kaia is right over there, just waiting to take you down again.”

The guy whimpered. “Jeez man, I promise. Just keep that psycho dog away from me,” he wheezed.

Van leaned down to his ear, “She isn’t psycho. She’s a highly trained weapon. So I suggest you move slowly and do exactly as I say.”

* * *

TY WATCHED THE HULLABALOO. He’d clipped the leash back onto Kaia’s harness, not because he expected her to run off or react badly to the commotion, but because, after the demonstration of her skills, the spectators had been restless.

He’d watched Van administer first aid to the junkie. And while he was a captive audience, she’d also taken the opportunity to talk to him about rehab and the options that were available for assistance in getting clean.

He really hoped the guy listened, but Ty wasn’t holding his breath.

He’d spoken with the officers who’d responded to the call. In the grand scheme of things, a thwarted purse snatching wasn’t a major deal. But Kaia’s involvement had brought extra attention...and scrutiny.

Thankfully, with her scheduled appearance in the Fourth of July parade in a couple days, the mayor and police chief were already aware of her presence. Not to mention her skill set.

Van smacked her palm against the closed door of the ambulance and then put her hands on her hips as she watched it drive away. The guy wasn’t severely injured, but he might need a stitch or two.

“You’ll be in town for a few days, right?” an officer asked Ty.

He pulled his gaze away from Van and nodded. “At least through this week. Maybe next.”

“I doubt we’ll need to get in touch with you again. There were enough witnesses. But just in case, please make sure you provide us with your contact information before you leave.”

Ty nodded and then wandered to where Van was standing with a couple of the women who’d hung around.

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