Page 6 of Kent's Watch
“What’s that?”
“Will our pups have vests to wear while we’re training them?”
“They will, but not until tomorrow. Today is all about the two of you getting to know one another.”
Just then there was a squealing sound of a hurt dog, and an angry human screamed, “You fucking stupid mutt!” Kent looked up in time to see the man working with a German Shephard pullhis foot back to kick the dog. Rita was on him in seconds, but she wasn’t fast enough. She reached down and scooped the pup up and out of the way, but the man’s foot caught her in the ribs.
Kent looked at Tate, said firmly, “Stay.” He dropped the leash then strode over to the man. With his hand on his shoulder, he squeezed and escorted him toward the front door. Three of the men who were employees of CSAR were right behind him. It didn’t take long for Rita to join them. He looked around and saw Julie holding the quivering pup in her arms.
“Outside,” Rita said between clenched teeth. Kent saw Tate was still where he left him, then took the man outside, since his hand was still clamped on his shoulder.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” Rita kept her voice low as she asked the man that question. “You don’t mistreat an animal like that.”
“He wasn’t following my direction.”
“You can’t expect an animal that doesn’t know you to follow your every command. It takes time and patience.”
“He did it!” The man threw not only an accusing look, but also pointed a finger at Kent.
“Yes, but he also has a commanding presence when he’s not working with his dog. I said this at the beginning of today’s class, not everyone is cut out to be in this line of work. I’m going to have to ask you to leave. You are no longer welcome here.”
“I want my money back.”
Rita looked at Kent and rolled her eyes. “Shoot me now,” she whispered before turning back to the man. “No. You signed the non-refundable waiver.”
“You’ll be hearing from my lawyer!” the man screamed at her.
“Tell them I’m here Monday through Saturday, seven in the morning to seven at night.” Rita didn’t bat an eye when the man started swearing and calling her all kinds of unflatteringnames. They all stayed outside as they watched the man go to his vehicle, and he churned up gravel as he left the lot.
They went back inside, and Kent immediately returned to Tate. “Good boy,” Kent told the dog, and gave him a treat when he found him exactly as he had left him. They spent the next three hours working with their dogs. One of the women that had been left without an animal had taken over the care of the pup that had been abused. From what Kent saw, he knew they would make a great team together. He smiled when he heard the woman call the pup, Charlie. By the time he left, he not only had the file on Tate, but he had purchased the collar and leash he’d used, and made a monetary donation to the center. He was given a lightweight vest for Tate that said he was in training. With that on, Kent took him into the local pet store to purchase all the items he would need for Tator Tot at home. He had decided that when he wore the vest, he would call him Tate. When they were home and the vest was off, he would be referred to as either Tator, or Tator Tot. He would probably regret it once the smaller than average pup grew into itself, but for now, it was a fitting name for the little bugger.
CHAPTER 3
Rita slammed into her office,reached up, pulled her hair, and let out a silent scream. She turned around when the door opened and glared at the people standing there. “What the hell did we miss?” she demanded of Julie and Scott. They had just completed their first training session with the new group of people, and Rita had to kick one of the male participants out of the group because he had abused the pup right in front of everyone. She had no fear about being sued, because everything she saw was on video tape. She’d learned when her father had run the business to make sure the classes were caught on the video system. Not only was it for her own safety, but the tapes had been used in the past for additional training. She remembered one particular instance when a customer repeatedly said he hadn’t done something. It wasn’t until her father had showed him the tape that he realized he had been in the wrong. She made a mental note to get the tape and keep it in her safe in case that man decided to sue her.
She turned her glare to Julie and held her hand out, before she demanded, “I want to see the applications.”
Julie must have anticipated the request because she immediately handed over the folder in her hand. “We didnothing different that we have in the past, Rita. I know you know this, but we can’t know a person’s personality from a bunch of words on an application. You’ll see the notes I made from the references. There was nothing in the application itself, nor the responses from our canned questions for the references.”
Rita flipped through the pages, then paused long enough to look up and turn her glare onto Scott. “Why did you let that man take Bluey? How dare he have my Bluey almost leash trained in the first session!” She knew she sounded crazy flipping from one issue to the next, but she couldn’t seem to stop herself. She felt out of control, and didn’t know why.
“Because he wanted him?” Scott replied as a question, and turned his confused look to Julie.
She grinned at him, and said, “You might want to leave the room for this next part.”
“Excuse me?” Both Rita and Scott said at the same time.
Julie turned all her attention to Rita and let out a small sigh. “Rita, you and I have been best friends for damn-near thirty years. What I’m about to say, I’m saying with all the love I have for you. As a best friend, a sister, and your most valued employee.” She didn’t wait for Rita to speak. To hold the other woman off, she held up her hand and looked her directly in the eye. “You need to do one of three things.”
“What’s that?” Rita demanded snidely to her friend and co-worker.
“One, you need to get laid, two, you need to get drunk, or three, you need to buy batteries for your toys. Maybe then you’ll stop being such a bitch.”
“I’m outta here,” Scott said as he hurried toward the door. “I’ll be in the hall if you need me.” He couldn’t leave the room fast enough.
“What did you say to me?” Rita demanded as she glared at her friend.
“You need to get laid. You’re being such a bitch. I know you’re upset with Tim for abusing Charlie, but that’s no reason to take your anger out on Kent. He did nothing wrong with his training with Tate.” Julie didn’t back down, and nodded her head when she saw her friend deflate. “If you want to get technical, then it’s your fault for allowing Bluey, excuse me, Tate, to be put into the program to begin with. You can’t go off when he was picked.”
