Free Forensics Squad Unleashed by Monique Polak Page B

your wi—”
    For a second their faces freeze, and then Dad and Larry both start laughing.
    “Can we go and get her right now?” I ask Dad.
    We text Mom first to tell her to be ready. She is standing by the door when we pull up in front of the house. I hop out and get into the backseat. “Wait till you see Roxie,” I tell her. “You’re gonna love her.”
    “Is it my imagination,” Mom says, “or does all this seem to be happening very quickly?”
    “It feels like kismet,” Dad tells her.
    “What’s kismet?” I ask. If Nico were here, he’d make some crack about kissing.
    “Kismet is fate,” Dad says. “Like all of this was meant to be.”
    Mom catches his eye. “All of it?” she asks. Why do I get the feeling they are talking about something I cannot understand?
    “Yup,” he says, reaching over to pat the back of her hand. “All of it.”
    I hate to interrupt a tender moment, but I have to. “Mom, don’t act too weird around the trainer.”
    Mom turns around to look at me. “Me? Act weird?”
    I am relieved when we get back to Larry’s place and Mom does not bring up the robbery. “Her coat looks shiny,” Mom says, petting Roxie. “Do you suppose that’s because of her diet, Larry?”
    “Absolutely.” Then Larry looks hard at my mom. “I heard there was a break-in at your place a while back. That you were pretty traumatized afterward.”
    “Oh, that was years ago.” Mom’s voice is lighter and more casual than usual, so I know she’s putting on an act.
    “Roxie’s a fine guard dog,” Larry says, “but if you don’t mind my saying, I’ve had some experience with people like you—people whose homes have been broken into. People who’ve been victimized.”
    “What are you trying to say exactly?” Mom asks.
    “I’m saying no one else—not even a guard dog—can make it better. That’s got to come from in here.” He taps the side of his head.
    I’m starting to worry. Mom hates when people offer advice about her anxiety. What if she snaps at Larry?
    Mom asks Roxie to sit down and give her a paw. She laughs when Roxie responds immediately. Then Mom looks up at Larry. “Thanks,” she says to him.
    That’s when Larry agrees to let us have Roxie. Mom writes him a check. Before we go, Larry demonstrates how Roxie responds to simple commands like “heel,” “down” and “stay.” He watches while I try out the commands. “Make sure to use a firm voice. Like I just did,” Larry says. He smiles a little wistfully when Roxie heels, lies down and stays. It turns out I was right about the words Everything’s good . They are Roxie’s cue to relax.
    “What’s the cue to get Roxie to attack?” I ask Larry.
    At first Larry does not answer. He just looks at me and shakes his head. “You don’t need to know stuff like that, Tabitha. When a dog like Roxie goes on the attack, things get ugly.”
    “But what if we need Roxie to protect us?”
    I can tell Larry is thinking about my question. “There’s one cue I’ll let you use—but don’t play around with it.” Larry gestures for me to follow him a few steps away, so Roxie won’t hear what he is about to say. “Knee him,” he whispers.
    “Knee him?” I whisper back.
    “Yup. That Roxie’s cue to knock someone over. Not make him bleed, just knock him—or her—over. There’s a hand signal too.”
    “A hand signal?”
    “Absolutely,” Larry says. “That’s in case someone is trying to prevent you from speaking.” Larry puts his hands over his mouth to demonstrate.
    “Yikes.” Even thinking about that makes me nervous.
    After Larry shows me the hand signal, we walk back to join my parents and Roxie. “You’ll need to work with Roxie. Practice the commands I taught Tabitha. You’ll find Roxie enjoys it,” Larry tells us, but I notice he is mostly talking to me. He must understand that Roxie is going to be my dog.
    At 7:15 PM —or 19:15 hours in forensic-science-speak—we prepare to leave with the newest