Shoplifter: E.O.W Series, Book 1

Chapter 7: Peroxide and Pick-Pocketing.

I sat the nervous little dog inside a box that I have lined with an old flannel shirt and finished drying him off  with a towel. He has already tried to shake himself dry and soaked Noah in the process, I only escaped by using my unfortunate friend as a human shield. The garbage can we had found him in wasn't an empty one and it left Killian in dire need of a bath. He didn't fight me very much, I think he was glad to feel the touch of caring hands. Despite all my efforts to clean them, his head and rear end still smell like old hamburger. For such a young animal he has a surprising amount of quirks. He didn't like to be scratched behind the ears, in fact he won't even let me come close enough to his ears to get a decent look at them. I've tried several times in my  search for the source of that awful smell. He hates when I pet his back, I was barely allowed to touch him at all. He loved to be scratched under the chin and between the shoulders but if I get near the dog's head or lower back he growls and runs.  I pick up Killian and place him in my lap, he reacts almost instantly by yelping and scrambling away. It sounds like he feels pain from human contact, perhaps he expects all people to bring him pain. I was beginning to find his level of mistrust worrying,  fearing that it will turn into violence as he grows older, larger and stronger. I don't want a violent dog.  I looked down with a disheartened sigh and noticed a fresh stain on my jeans. It was obviously blood, but it wasn't a red liquid it was a sticky brown ooze and it reeked. Realizing immediately that this came from my dog I scooped up Killian and went to find Joan.

I found her in the kitchen, as soon as she saw Killian she groaned. "I am not a vet." 

"He's oozing brown glop." She puts her glass of water down and walks over to me, taking Killian from my arms.

"Put a towel on the table." I get one from the cupboard and lay it out on the metal counter.

"It's on his ass or something." Joan looks the dog over then gives me an annoyed glance.

"The ass and the tail are very different Kaius Anthony." She used my middle name, either she missed her coffee or I caught her at a bad time.  I bring over a wet rag and the hydrogen peroxide.  "Kaius have you ever seen a Doberman puppy before?"

"Yes, right in front of me" She is far from amused. Joan chooses to ignore my comment and talk as if I had provided the answer she was expecting.  

"Well they have floppy ears and long tails at birth. Humans alter them to make them appear more menacing, more like a guard dog. A vet will cut off the ears and tail if the owner desires. But whoever did this was not a vet, they put a rubber band on his tail to cut off circulation with the hopes of it rotting and falling off." Well the monster who did this to Killian was obviously successful, there was no sign of a tail when I found him. "His ears weren't ever stitched or even cauterized they were just snipped with some type of scissor or shears.  My best guess is that he came from a puppy mill. His owner did a shoddy job altering him and dumped him in the alley after he got the infection." I look down at the dog sitting in an awkward position on the counter, I pet his head gently. I feel bad for the little guy. I help as Joan cleans his wounds and hold him still as cuts the remnants of a rubber band from the mangled skin on the end of his tail.  I turn to Joan.

"So what do I do now?"

"You need to get him puppy food, a clean place to sleep and flea medicine...he's riddled with them and pretty soon we all will be too. So hurry up and take Noah out to get supplies."

"Okay, will you tell Blind I can't train today."

"Will do."  She says with a gentle yet forced smile. I wonder what has gotten into her and Blind recently? I leave Killian upstairs to sleep and change out of the clothes he soiled. I put on a black tank top and a pair of jeans with a chain going between two of the belt loops. Then I gather all of my usual equipment, patting myself down to make sure that I have everything.