Page 37 of Survive the Night
“Jovanovic is still out there.” Just the thought of Sarah being at risk—even if that risk was small—made Otto feel sick. He’d been planning to ask some of the other officers to keep an eye on his place while he was at work, but there wouldn’t be any help until they returned from training.
The lieutenant narrowed his eyes, looking back and forth between the two of them. “Jovanovic wasn’t even back in California for a full day before he was spotted. Things are too hot for him. I’m guessing he’ll make a beeline to the Mexican border. If you’re worried about Blanchett’s sister, though, talk to the FBI about protective custody when they’re here.”
Otto was torn. He wanted Sarah to be safe, but he also wanted her close by. “That’s days from now.”
“Enough.” Blessard’s tone was final. “It is what it is. File a complaint with the chief when he returns. Gunnersen, go home and get some sleep. It’s going to be a shitty week.”
* * *
Otto was in a bad mood by the time he got to Nan’s. After Blanchett’s attack, he was wired and on edge. Despite the lieutenant’s reassurance, Otto still felt like it was a bad time for two-thirds of the police force to be sitting in a classroom several hours away.
It made him twitchy. He’d be the only cop on duty for the next four nights, so Sarah would be alone out at his place. It had been hard to leave her the previous night, and he’d been toying with the idea of using some of his personal days. Since he didn’t tend to get sick and didn’t take vacations, he’d racked up quite a bit of unused leave. Now, though, there was no one to take his place. He’d be leaving Sarah unguarded each night whether he liked it or not.
He slammed the door of his squad car a little harder than necessary, and he made himself pause and breathe for a second. It wouldn’t help Xena, the dog he was working with, if he was angry. Putting the whole situation in the back of his mind, Otto calmed his thoughts.
Once his annoyance and worry settled, he walked toward the building where Nan kept the rescue dogs. When she’d bought the property and built the kennels, she’d planned to board and groom dogs. The Monroe K9 unit used her facility when they needed to house a dog, since it was a better setup, with exercise yards and indoor training areas, than the small kennel next to the PD parking garage. Nan had never intended to house an animal shelter, but the closest humane society was almost an hour away, so people started bringing strays and unwanted dogs to Nan. Soft-hearted Nan could never turn them away.
“Hey, Sam,” Otto said as he stepped inside the building. It was only when he was in the warmth of the heated building that he realized how cold it was getting outside. The first big snow of the season was supposed to hit in a few days, and Otto had felt the bite of winter in the air. Jules’s brother, Sam, gave Otto an unsmiling nod without pausing in his work spraying down kennels with the pressure washer. Sam had worked for Nan since his family had moved to town a few months ago. He hadn’t had any experience when he’d started, but he’d learned quickly and was good with the dogs.
A quick glance showed that all the kennels were empty. Zipping his jacket a little higher, Otto stepped back into the cold. The wind had picked up, and it pushed against his back and legs as if hurrying him along. He moved quickly, wanting to get back into the warmth—or at least find a windbreak—soon.
Xena had the same instinct, since she was tucked into her shelter. Holding back a groan, Otto lowered himself to the ground, patiently rewarding her with a tiny treat every time she poked her nose in his direction. The pit bull–Lab mix had gained quite a bit of weight since being rescued in a raid of a suspected dogfighter’s home, but Xena’s ribs were still visible under her short coat. Her muzzle and head were crisscrossed with old scars, and she was missing part of her right ear.
By the time he’d succeeded in luring her out with treats, Otto was half-frozen. He gave her a final, gentle ear rub and slowly shifted away before standing, so as not to startle her. When he reached the gate, Nan was there, waiting for him. She was tall, her rangy frame disguised by multiple heavy layers. Her graying hair was covered in a colorful stocking hat.
“Brrr!” She gave an exaggerated shiver as he approached. “Xena’s coat is too short for this kind of weather. I asked Sam to bring in all the dogs, so Xena will be back inside soon. This wind is ridiculous. I’m nowhere near ready for summer to end.”
“Summer’s been over for a while,” Otto said, glancing at Xena as he closed the gate behind him. The dog watched him go, and her tail wagged slightly before she retreated back into her shelter. “Now fall is done.”
Nan arched her eyebrows so high they disappeared under her hat. “Thank you for that, Mr. Depressing.”
Otto just offered a small shrug of apology. It might not be cheery, but it was true. Winter was well and truly there, and he had the frozen ass to prove it.
“Do you have a minute?”
The words, so close to what he’d asked Theo such a short time ago, worried Otto. Nan had never asked Otto for romantic advice, and he would be very happy if she kept it that way. They’d discuss dogs, the weather, and occasional town happenings, and that was it. Otto really didn’t want to expand their conversational subjects, especially if it meant hearing about Nan’s love life. She was watching him, though, waiting for an answer.
Trapped, he gave a silent sigh and a slight tip of his head before following her to the main building where her office was. As they crossed in front of the kennels toward the office door, barking echoed and reverberated, bouncing off the ceilings and walls, painfully loud.
Once inside Nan’s small, untidy office, Otto hurried to close the door and muffle some of the noise. Nan moved a stack of papers off the lone visitor’s chair, but he waved her off, preferring to stand. If she was going to ask some extraordinarily awkward question, he wanted to be able to make a quick getaway.
After sitting in her own chair, Nan didn’t seem to be in any hurry to speak. Instead, she picked up a pen and focused on it as she rolled it between her fingers. Otto watched her, curious, but not curious enough to prompt her. If this was about something that was going to be vastly uncomfortable, he’d rather stay in ignorant bliss for a little longer.
“Otto, about Xena…”
“Xena?” He hadn’t expected the dog to be the topic of conversation.
“She’s been here almost three months.”
Otto’s stomach clenched. He knew where this conversation was leading. Suddenly, Nan’s reluctance to speak made sense.
“I know you’ve been working with her a lot—almost daily—but she’s just not making much progress.” Nan’s voice was gentle, but her words still made Otto stiffen.
“She is making progress,” Otto said, keeping his voice even with some difficulty. “She wouldn’t even look at me when she first arrived, much less take any food out of my hand. Now, she’s coming out of her shelter willingly, and we’re working on her touching her nose to my hand. She just wagged her tail at me!”
Despite his best effort, his voice rose on the last words. Immediately clamping his mouth closed, Otto gave himself a mental lecture. He needed to stay calm and rational. Xena was special to him, though. She reminded him of a much-younger Otto, before he’d been fostered by the Lopez family—an Otto who’d learned to keep his head down and who’d gotten very good at dodging fists.
“I know she’s making some progress.” Nan’s expression was apologetic. “It’s just not enough progress. There are two malamutes coming in tomorrow that got left in a foreclosed house after the owners moved away, and I need that space. I just don’t have the room for Xena anymore, not when it’s probably going to take another year to get her to the point where she can be adopted. I called the pit bull rescue in Fort Collins, but they have a waiting list. I’m stuck, Otto.”
