Bandit

Then she opened the smallest of the three gifts and gasped. I had raised an eyebrow or two when I asked a buddy of mine from my support group, who happens to be a jeweler, to do a custom piece for me. I had him make a necklace out of platinum with a platinum pendent of her name on it. The script letters were encrusted with diamond dust and the "I" was dotted with a single 1/8th carat sapphire.

"Sam! This is too much!"

"Do you like it."

"Like it? I love it! But this is just too much! How much did you spend on this?"

"Ten dollars and seventy-five cents. I got it out of a gumball machine last week."

"Liar!"

"It's not polite to ask that question young lady, now come here and let me put it on you."

"Yes Sir," she said smiling, and then added, "Thank you."

With a huge grin on her face, she walked to me, handed me the necklace and spun around she lifted her hair so I could put it around her neck. I had no sooner closed the clasp when she flew out of the room to the bathroom to look at it in the mirror. When I looked in, she was standing in front of the mirror with tears streaming down her face.

"Is everything okay." I asked, silently pleased with what I had managed to pull off.

She sniffled and nodded and then she looked at me for a moment and without saying a word she walked over and wrapped her arms around me. Placing her head against my chest she just stood there holding me and softly crying. We stood like that for several moments before she backed off and looked up at me and then without saying a word she walked into the kitchen and started breakfast.

All day long, whenever I glanced over at her, Misti had one finger on the pendant of the necklace and that was when I knew that I had done a good job with it. We decided to make a trip into town the next day to catch some after-Christmas sales and get her some more clothes. She needed far more than what she had, and I was kicking myself for not having thought of it earlier. It was a decision that would shape our lives forever.

After a trip to Wal-Mart and then lunch we hit a couple of the small Mom and Pop stores in town. We were walking out of the second store when the first slug dug into the door frame missing my head by a couple of inches. The second shot caused Bandit to yelp loudly and then he dropped to the sidewalk whimpering and thrashing around with blood pouring out of a hole in his right shoulder. My blood ran ice-cold as I looked up to see Misti being wheeled around in her step-father's grasp with a revolver held to her right temple.

"You motherfucker!" Carl screamed at me from three feet away, "If I have to go to prison because of this cunt, I am going to make it worth my," He never finished the sentence.

To this day, I cannot tell you when I had drawn my weapon, it was just there. My first round hit him an inch above his right eyebrow and the second one hit him on the bridge of his nose. He crumpled to the ground in a lifeless heap and lay there twitching as the blood began to stream out of the gaping hole in the back of his head and pooling on to the sidewalk.

Misti stood there in shock for a moment and then somehow, she teleported to Bandit's side. It was utter and complete chaos around us as the shoppers ran screaming for cover, hiding behind anything they could find. Years of training kicked in and the first thing I did was scan for other threats and not finding any, I re-holster my weapon and stopped for a second to get my breathing back under control. Then I yelled back into the store for someone to call 911 and to make sure they sent an ambulance.

Then I turned my attention to Bandit and Misti. She was kneeling on the ground beside him with her tears falling on Bandit's body. There was a huge amount of his blood collecting on the sidewalk and she was stroking the fur on the top of his head.

"He's still breathing." She whispered calmly to me. I could hear a multitude of sirens approaching. I handed Misti my wallet and after I removed my concealed carry permit from it and told her to keep it in her purse. Then I said Seven. Three. Eight. Two. Can you remember that? Seven. Three. Eight. Two. Say it back to me."

She repeated it back to me twice.

"That is the PIN for my ATM card. Remember that. I don't know how long I will be here with this, but we need to get him to a vet as soon as possible. Use that card or the VISA in my wallet for the vet bill, I will be there as soon as I can."

She never took her eyes off Bandit. She sat there on the sidewalk beside him, petting his head and speaking softly to him, telling him that it would be alright and saying, "I am so sorry Bandit, I am so sorry."

The first cop on the scene came at me with his weapon drawn, looking down at the douche-bag and then at Bandit he asked, "What happened?"

"Officer, my dog needs to get to a vet now."

"What happened?" he repeated.

Three more officers came running up as a firetruck and ambulance parked down the block from us.

"That dude took a shot at him, then shot his dog and grabbed her and put a gun to her head." one of the witnesses said, "Then he," pointing at me, "shot the dude."

"Show me your hands! Now!" he said as he raised his weapon toward me sending the shoppers who had poked their heads out scurrying back for cover.

I placed my hands behind my head and put my feet shoulder width apart as another officer approached me. "Shoulder holster, left side, it's a Glock 10. There is a round in the chamber so be careful with it. My carry permit is in my right back pocket. Now please get my dog to a vet."

"You sure seem awful calm about this." The youngest cop said as he put handcuffs on me and pulled my weapon out of the holster.

"He has every reason to Son. He has probably killed more men that you've had birthdays." a familiar voice said as Bobby stepped on to the sidewalk. Walking up to Misti he knelt down and scooped Bandit up in his arms. "Come on Boy, let's you to a vet. See you in bit Sam." Then he turned and started walking to his Suburban. "Misti?" he asked over his shoulder.

"Sheriff, she can't leave, she's a witness." one of the officers said.

"She is coming with me. You can tell Chief Watson that if he has a problem with that he can talk to me about it later." Bobby growled, as he pushed his way past the crowd, the town cops and then walked to his Suburban with Misti following him. Gently placing Bandit in the backseat with Misti he jumped in the front and with lights flashing and siren blaring he headed off to find a veterinarian's office.

It had been Bobby that had convinced me to get the carry permit even though I rarely carried a weapon. As the county sheriff, he was the one to sign off on it. His exact words were "Shit Sam, even with PTSD, I would trust you with a concealed carry permit before I would trust half of the Yahoos that work for me. You have more experience in a gunfight than 99% of the people in this county." So, I had applied for it and now, I was thanking God that I had.

I don't know why but after the incident on my front yard with Misti and her mother and step-father I had begun to carry anytime we left the house. Hell, they were in jail almost six-hundred miles away, locked up on state and Federal charges, what were the chances of them getting out? Looking around at the bloody carnage surrounding me, I decided that they were apparently a lot better than I had expected.

As luck would have it, two of the six eye-witnesses to the entire incident, were a Deputy District Attorney and her husband who, like Misti and me, had been out shopping the sales in town. After the cops recognized her and after a very frazzled Chief of Police showed up on scene, I was turned lose with a promise to come to the station to fill out a statement as soon as possible tomorrow morning; the Chief was the one who took me to the vet's office.

I walked into the waiting room just in time to hear a very angry Bobby say into his phone "Look Asshole, I don't give a fuck about his rights or if you are a Federal judge or not. You released that dirt bag out on bond and he just tried to kill two innocent people in my county. By tomorrow morning I am going to make sure that every TV station in the state of Virginia knows your fucking name, date of birth, law school and underwear size. You can take your threats about US Marshalls arresting me for threating a judge and go fuck yourself with them!" Then he hung up muttering something about flaming liberal, inbred, cousin humping assholes.

"Where is Bandit?" I asked Misti.

"In surgery." Misti said looking up at me with red eyes. "I am so sorry Sam. I am so very sorry. If I hadn't been here this would have never happened."

I sat down beside her and then wrapped my arm around her and pulled her in close. She nestled her head against my shoulder and then asked, "How are you so calm?"

"I'm not calm. I'm angrier than I have been in over a decade but if I lose my cool it won't help anything, and it certainly won't help me or you."

"I am so sorry Sam."

"Stop apologizing. You did nothing wrong as a matter of fact, you were pretty damned amazing back there."

"Really?"

"Really." I said as I kissed the top of her head. "It takes a hell of a person to stay calm under that kind of pressure. Right Bobby?"

"Absolutely." Booby replied looking at me and grinning. "Seriously, it takes a hell of a person to be able to put up with your ass for as long as she has."

"No, it doesn't, you just have to understand that he is a big gruff teddy bear, once you figure that out the rest is a breeze." Misti said solemnly.

Bobby laughed and then shook his head.

"You should come over and play poker with us some night Bobby; you don't have to worry about bringing a lot of money either, you'll be playing with his soon enough." She said laughing.

"I see somethings never change." He responded laughing way too damn loud to be able to call himself my friend.

We all stood up an hour later as the doctor walked into the waiting room and over to us. She paused for a moment and then she smiled and said, "I've got good news and better news. The good news is that the bullet didn't strike any bones or major organs. The better news is that there is a lot of muscle tissue damage to his triceps and pectorals, but as far as I can tell, it didn't do a lot of nerve damage. He did lose a lot of blood though; it will be a long recovery and he might never be as fast a runner as he was this morning, but he is going to pull through. He's going to have to stay here for a few days and while he is here, I promise, I will treat him like he is my own. You can come by to visit him as often as you would like."

I had to sit down as the relief washed over me and the tears began to flow. Once Bobby knew that Bandit was out of danger, he left with a promise to call me as soon as he found out where Misti's mother was. As he was leaving he said "Well, at least you saved the taxpayers a shitload of money on a trial. Now if you will excuse me, I have to go sign a coroner's report that says the bastard died from a severe case of lead poisoning. I've got a deputy at your cabin to make sure everything there is kosher until you get back home. I'll call and tell him that you're about an hour or two away from getting there."

"Thank you again Bobby, you really are an Angel." Misti said.

Tipping his hat and winking at her, he replied in his best cowboy drawl, "Aww shucks Miss Smothers, ma'am. T'wernt nuttin'."

"Get out of here." She said laughing at him after she had given him a kiss on the cheek.

We had to wait another hour or so until Bandit was alert enough to go in and see him. A huge patch of his shoulder had been shaved bare and his bandages were wrapped in a gauze material. He was also wearing the cone of shame and he didn't like it one little bit. "I've been here Buddy, it sucks, I know, but we will have you back home in no time."

He lay there panting, just looking up at me with those big brown eyes. Misti walked over to him after a moment and he tried to scoot across the bed to her. She dropped down on her knees and wrapped her arms around his neck, kissing the top of his head and saying, "Hurry home Buddy, we need you there soon." His tail gently thumped the bed at the sound of her voice.

"Me? Nothing. You? He scoots and wags his tail. You broke my dog."

"I did not! I improved him." She said smiling across the bed at me. "He just needed a woman's touch to make his life complete."

"Uh huh."

"All males do, you are all just too stupid to realize it. The species is irrelevant." she added with an innocent looking smile.

"Amen." The doctor replied smiling at her.

"We are going home Doc. Thank you for everything. Call me if there is a change please?" I said as we headed out of the room.

"I will." She promised as Bandit starting whining when I moved toward the door.

"We will be back soon Buddy, I promise." I said, closing the door and walking to the Jeep.

We turned into the driveway about twenty minutes later and one of Bobby's deputies was sitting there. He was in his early twenties and he was all but gawking at Misti as we walked toward the truck he was sitting in. Aside from that I was immediately impressed by his demeanor and professionalism. He asked for the door key and then disappeared inside the cabin for three minutes or so. When he came out, we were standing on the front porch and he handed me the keys back say "It's clear. I kind of figured it would be but I wanted to check it out anyway. The Sheriff told me to let you guys know that her mother is still in custody, so she won't be a problem."

"Thank you, Deputy." I said shaking his hand.

Tipping his hat to Misti and saying "Ma'am." He walked off the porch and headed to his truck.

We walked in and all but collapsed on the couch both of us silent and staring into nothing; lost in our own thoughts. A half an hour of silence was broken when Misti finally spoke.

"Sam, are you going to be okay?"

"Yeah, I'll be fine. You?"

"I'm still terrified. I'm sorry but I am still afraid. My mother is out there and when she finds out that Carl is gone she is going to flip the hell out. Locked up or not, eventually she will get out and that terrifies me."

"I'll keep you safe."

"You shouldn't have to."

"Okay, then I'll teach you how to take care of yourself."

"I've never even held a gun before. I wouldn't know where to begin."

"Good, there will be fewer bad habit to break, now let's see about dinner. I'm starving."

"One last question Sam and then I will drop it for now. What Bobby said about you killing people, is that true? Have you? Other than today I mean?"

"Yes." I said, hoping to let it drop.

She stared silently at me for a moment then she got up and walked into the kitchen leaving me alone on the couch; lost in the past. Carl was number nine and he was the only one where I had known his name. That itself, really didn't make a difference to me but each of them had lives, evil though they were, and I had taken them. Regardless of the reason, that takes a toll on your psyche. When I retired and moved back home I had hoped that I was done with that, I guess Fate had made other plans.

Misti had made spaghetti and garlic toast for dinner and as we ate she kept looking across the table at me. Finally pushing her plate away, she said "Some days are better than others."

"Huh?" I asked her, confused about what she meant.

"Some days are better than others, that is what you said to me on my first night here. I was pouring out my heart about how I thought I was going to die that day and you said, "Some days are better than others." Do you remember?"

"In the living room."

"Yes, now take your own words to heart Sweetie. We are both here and Bandit is still alive because you did what you had to do to survive and keep us all safe. If it hadn't been for you, all three of us would most likely be dead now." she said firmly.

"Thank you." I mumbled sincerely.

Getting up she walked around the table and taking my head in her hands she lifted it up and kissed me, once on the forehead and then softly on the lips. "No Sam, thank you. This local lovely is still very impressed by her hero."

"Misti," I said, becoming concerned about where this might be leading.

"Relax Sam, it's just a few lingering Daddy issues, I'll work through them with Diana tomorrow afternoon." she said laughing at my apparent discomfort.

Sitting on the couch after dinner I couldn't help but think about the missing part of my life that was in a veterinarian hospital downtown. I could tell that Misti was felling the same way, so I said, "He will be home before the New Year, it is only a few days."

Scooting across the couch she lifted my arm and then snuggled against me, laying her head on my chest she said, "I never dreamed that I could become so attached to a dog in such a short period of time."

"I warned you that he was a lady's man." I said laughing.

"You did, didn't you?"

"Yep."

We sat there talking about nothing for another two hours. The one time she did get up she went into her bedroom and then came out wearing her nightgown and robe and then snuggled right back under my arm. It felt surreal sitting here with her discussing nothing and everything at the same time. I felt my eyelids drooping and finally said, "As nice as this has been, I need to get to sleep, tomorrow is going to be a long day."

"I know, just give me five more minutes." She replied with a sleepy voice.

"Okay."

I woke up at one in the morning with her still beside me, sound asleep. When I moved she woke up and sleepily said "Sorry."

"That's okay. Bedtime."

"I think bedtime was three hours ago." She mumbled yawning.

"Okay, Second Bedtime."

"That works." she said as she half stumbled into her room.

By noon Misti and I had given the police investigator our statements on the shooting and had visited the animal hospital to check on Bandit. He was looking much better now, and they had started giving him small amounts of food. The vet told us that barring any complications we should be able to take him home on the afternoon of New Year's Eve. That was the best news I had gotten in a very long time.

New Year's Eve found Misti prowling through the cabin like a jungle cat. If she wasn't pacing, she was fidgeting and if she wasn't fidgeting she was pacing. I almost had to force her to calm down enough to eat lunch and at two, when my phone rang she jumped up and said, "Is it the hospital?"

I nodded and answering the phone I smiled at her. Saying "Thank you." to the doctor I said, "Let's go get him." She almost flew to the Jeep.

There was another snow storm forecast for tonight, so we stopped at a grocery store to pick stuff up instead of Wal-Mart because the crowd would be smaller, and I didn't and wouldn't have Bandit with me in public for some time. Grabbing the essentials, we piled back in the Jeep and drove to the hospital.

After receiving his care instructions, we looked up to see a limping German Shepard coming slowly towards us. Tail wagging, he hobbled up to me and leaned against my leg. Misti and I both dropped to our knees and hugged him gently around the neck. It was Misti who stood up first and said, "Let's get you home and into bed Boy."

"Sounds like a plan doesn't it Bandit?"

She led him outside and I spoke to the doctor for a minute about the bill.

"What bill?"

"The bill for all of this." I said.

"There isn't one."

"Huh?"

"You don't know?" she said smiling at me.

"Know what?"

"Bandit has a page on a funding site. The bill is covered with a lot left over. We are going to help start a local pet rescue with the money that is left over. We are thinking about calling it Bandit's Bandits. Is that alright with you?"