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  KURT

  The K9 Files, Book 12

  Dale Mayer

  Books in This Series:

  Ethan, Book 1

  Pierce, Book 2

  Zane, Book 3

  Blaze, Book 4

  Lucas, Book 5

  Parker, Book 6

  Carter, Book 7

  Weston, Book 8

  Greyson, Book 9

  Rowan, Book 10

  Caleb, Book 11

  Kurt, Book 12

  Tucker, Book 13

  Harley, Book 14

  Table of Contents

  Cover

  Title Page

  About This Book

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Epilogue

  About Tucker

  Author’s Note

  Complimentary Download

  About the Author

  Copyright Page

  About This Book

  Welcome to the all new K9 Files series reconnecting readers with the unforgettable men from SEALs of Steel in a new series of action packed, page turning romantic suspense that fans have come to expect from USA TODAY Bestselling author Dale Mayer. Pssst… you’ll meet other favorite characters from SEALs of Honor and Heroes for Hire too!

  Being a badass growing up had been fine for a while, but Kurt knew his life had to change. His best option? The US Navy. Thirteen years later a serendipitous request from Badger to check out reports of a missing War Dog hidden in the bushes and attacking people sends Kurt to the very place he couldn’t wait to get out of.

  When Kurt chose the navy over Laurie Ann so long ago, he left her with a gift she’d fought long and hard to keep. Plus she didn’t give up on her dream of becoming a doctor. When Kurt returns, it’s hard not to see the same person she’d loved in this older version. Yet the town has a long memory, and at least one person isn’t willing to see who Kurt is now.

  But, as always, he’s a trouble magnet. Was he capable of handling the nightmare they were in, or would he leave, just like he had last time?

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  Prologue

  Kurt Manchester walked into Badger’s office. “Wow,” he said. “I don’t know what to do with this. You have an office of your own.”

  Badger looked up, grinned, and said, “Kat insisted. Otherwise I leave my shit everywhere.”

  Kurt laughed, sat down in the guest chair, and said, “What did you want to see me about?”

  “I’m sure you’ve heard about the dogs we’ve been dealing with,” he said, one eyebrow lifted as he looked at Kurt.

  Kurt nodded. “Yeah, heard something about it. You’re almost done with those, aren’t you?”

  “Nope, not happening apparently,” he said. “We’ve got another half-dozen here anyway. I haven’t even counted but was trying to finish off the original twelve files. And this is the last of them,” he said. “When the department went to check on the War Dog, the adoptees admitted that they had only done the adoption for their brother because he’d really, really wanted it. But, when they followed up with the brother, he had taken off, and the dog was nowhere to be found.”

  “And the problem with that is?”

  “We found the brother later. He’s in jail.”

  “Wow,” he said. “So where the hell is the dog?”

  “The brother has no idea, says that the dog never adjusted well to being there, and wasn’t exactly friendly, so he didn’t really give a shit.”

  “Great.”

  “Yep. Lost in Kentucky.”

  “Okay,” Kurt said, slowly getting an idea. “And that’s why you’re asking me?”

  “Kentucky is your home state, isn’t it?”

  “Yes,” he said. “But how long ago was the dog lost there?”

  “Well, we were given the file awhile ago,” he said. “And we did look at all these, and absolutely no good leads existed on any of them. So we weren’t in too much of a panic to set too many man-hours in this direction. We’ve done the best we can, but this is the oldest one we’ve got.”

  “So that’s a really cold case for me to look after,” he said, reaching for the file. He opened it up to see a completely golden not-quite-shepherd-looking Malinois. “Female?” he asked from the size.

  “Yes, she’s female, and, of course, she’s fixed. She was an excellent War Dog. She was an IED-sniffing, bomb-sniffing War Dog, and she was really good at sniffing out the enemy in hidden corners. She’s an expert at hiding herself and has done a ton of outdoor training. Her name is Sabine.”

  “In other words, she’ll see the world as her enemy. She won’t know who to trust, and she has spent all these weeks living on her own.”

  “Maybe,” he said, “and I know you think the department was derelict in not getting to this earlier, but we did contact several people we know throughout the state of Kentucky, and yesterday we got a tip, saying that somebody had seen a dog looking just like this one at a local truck stop.”

  “Is it likely she’s still there?”

  “The only thing we could think of is it’s the last place that she had human contact. And remember that she’s five and that she’s spent quite a bit of time with people.”

  “And was the tip a good tip or a bad tip?”

  “That’s where the problem comes in,” he said. “The tipster said that Sabine was trying to attack people. They’d called animal control, but so far nobody had seen Sabine since.”

  “I’m on my way,” he said, jumping to his feet.

  “Wait,” Badger said. “We can’t pay for this. We’ll cover your expenses, but there are no wages.”

  “That’s fine,” he said. “Any dog that’s been through military training deserves to have a few good years. It sounds like she’s been given a short shrift this time.”

  “It happens,” Badger said, “hopefully not too often. The thing is, do you have any K9 training?”

  “Maybe not like you mean,” he said, “but I’ve certainly been around dogs all my life. My biological dad bred them. When he was sober that is. My foster families usually had them, for easier assimilation, yada, yada.”

  “Good enough,” he said. “This one could be dangerous.”

  “She could be.” Kurt shrugged. “Yet maybe it’s about time somebody went intending to rescue her,” he said, “instead of capturing her.” And, with that, Kurt walked out.

  Chapter 1

  As Kurt stepped out of the Lexington airport into the bright sunshine, he stopped and took several slow deep breaths. It might have been the area that he grew up in, but it wasn’t an area that he had very good memories of. His childhood had been rough; in his teen years, he had bounced off the law more than playing within it. Only as he finally went into the navy did everything improve tremendously. He’d learned discipline and growth. He’d learned what brotherhood was and what it meant to have people who were there for him and who wanted to help him. He’d been very wild and unruly; going into the navy had been the best thing he could have done. School was hit-and-miss for him, and he was not sure if he would graduate because he’d skipped so much school. But somehow he’d squeaked his way all the way through to becoming a Navy SEAL, and the rest was history.

  Until his accident.

  He’d spent thirteen years in the navy, with his last year in a hospital, but the previous twelve years as a Navy SEAL. The highlight of his career.

  He’d been in a freak underwater diving accident, where part
of a wreck came down on him. Everybody said it was a total accident and could have happened to anybody at any time. But the fact was, it had happened to him. He looked down at his prosthetic lower right leg and gave it a shake. It always felt weird to think that this mechanical piece was attached to his body now. It was okay, but it just wasn’t the same as what it had been before. But he’d long ago given up on feeling sorry for himself. He was alive. He’d almost drowned and then almost hadn’t survived the accident. It was pretty hard to imagine a wake-up call with any less of a head smack, saying, Hey, what’s next in your life?

  He shook his head, walked toward the car rental office to pick up the truck he’d ordered. He knew a lot of people would laugh at his choice of a truck. In this case, a large dog was involved, so Kurt needed some space. He also didn’t know what he was up against. With that in mind, he headed out for supplies at a pet store.

  Once inside, he saw a crate and contemplated it. But he decided that, if and when he was successful in recovering this War Dog, the cage was something that he could use for transporting the dog. In the meantime, it wasn’t necessary. At least he hoped not.

  With all that on his mind, he walked into the strip mall at the end of the block, picked up a couple sandwiches from a corner deli and a coffee. With those, he headed back out to the street and into the truck. He stopped beside his vehicle to figure out with his cell’s GPS exactly where he was going and determined the truck stop was about twenty miles away. He hopped into the vehicle and headed in the direction he needed to go.

  He couldn’t imagine why the dog would be hanging around the same area, unless something was keeping her there. Animals were fairly simple in that they had basic needs and were usually easy to understand. But the conflicting reports that Badger had been getting from various people wasn’t good. It also could mean that the dog was no longer around, if it had truly gotten vicious.

  It didn’t take much for the locals to turn around and pop an animal like that to ensure that it became a nonissue before it ever got bad. He understood that sentiment in theory, but, at the same time, it was hard on the animals because they didn’t get themselves into that situation on their own. Human intervention had picked up this poor female and put her into this crazy world. Kurt had no idea what the hell had happened to her, and may never find out in full, so he needed to trace her movements back to her.

  The truck stop was about another ten miles from a small town where the family who’d originally adopted the dog had lived, and then the brother was another six miles approximately past that—and he was the one now in jail, the one who apparently knew nothing about the dog. How convenient for everybody. Kurt just shook his head, thinking about what Sabine had probably been through all this time. Most of the world would probably just say, Forget it, shoot the dog, and move on.

  Kurt wasn’t built that way. Every one of the animals on this earth deserved a chance, particularly when it was a human who had messed them up in the first place. Still, Kurt could only do so much, and the first thing was to see if he could find that dog.

  As he drove by familiar places, memories plagued him. He’d had a girlfriend off and on throughout high school, but, since he was headed down a dark and windy path back then, he knew he needed to break away from her. Her parents had been totally against their association, and, even though the teens had snuck around as much as they could, it had been hard to continue their relationship. Yet it had also added to the danger and the joy.

  He shook his head as he turned onto the main freeway, heading toward the truck stop. It didn’t make any sense to even have these memories at this point in time. He didn’t know why Laurie Ann’s voice popped into his head. It’d been thirteen years since he’d seen her. He had gone to her the night before he was due to leave, and she’d pushed him away. She had been indifferent, almost antagonistic, and he’d been heartbroken. But still he had hidden behind the tough skin that he’d been known for and had walked away from her.

  Thinking about it now, he felt it was the best thing he could have done. For him. For her. Besides, he was a completely different person now. Kurt wondered if she was still around. She’d had a huge potential to become something. She’d planned to go into med school, but he didn’t know whether that dream had panned out or not. She had the smarts. He could have had the smarts too, but that would have meant applying himself. She was a good girl, and he was a bad boy from across the tracks. They didn’t stand a chance. They’d met often—at least as often as they could—but definitely a huge gap existed between them.

  He liked to think of her as his foray into the good side of life that had made him go into the navy. And, although she didn’t want him to go, she did not stand in his way. He appreciated that about her. But thirteen years later? Well, that was a long time. She probably had a half-dozen kids and could be anywhere at the moment.

  He kept driving, now discovering the truck stop was farther away than he’d thought. He checked his GPS and noted it had been moved out of town when the city itself had enlarged. He certainly didn’t remember the truck stop, but, as he finally came upon the location that he was looking for, it was twenty miles out of town. He’d passed by a couple smaller clutches of homes, and now he was pulling into a huge truck stop. It made a lot more sense to put it way out here, but, at the same time, this fact threw off his distance and timing calculations.

  He pulled up, hopped out, and stretched his legs. That was the thing about injuries; the one thing he had to do on a constant basis was stretch. Otherwise his muscles would cramp, and stiffness would set in very quickly. The place was busy here, huge semis parked on the left and lots of other traffic. The truck stop had what appeared to be close to fifty individual gas pumps; it was a sight to behold. More and more of these bigger stations popped up all across the states. He walked slowly toward the restaurant, as he eyed the area. He stepped inside; the din from the patrons rose all around him. A waitress stepped up in front and asked if he wanted a table. He nodded slightly and said, “Yes, just for coffee though.”

  She nodded and brought him to a small booth by the window at the back. It was a perfect location. He smiled, thanked her, and sat down. He pulled the menu that she’d given him closer. He didn’t really need food, considering he’d just eaten a couple sandwiches. But a piece of pie? Well, that would never go wrong. She brought him a mug of coffee almost immediately. He thanked her and ordered a piece of apple pie to go with it. She laughed and asked, “Ice cream or not?”

  “Not today,” he said with a smile, and the waitress disappeared.

  Just then a woman in the booth ahead of him with her back to Kurt said, “What’s apple pie without ice cream? Isn’t that like a kiss without the squeeze?”

  He froze and stared at the waves of auburn hair before him. “Laurie Ann?”

  She turned in her booth and gave him a droll smile. “Well, you’re not somebody I ever expected to see again.”

  He just stared. She still had the same heart-shaped face, huge blue eyes, long lashes, and that damn dimple in the corner of her cheek that set him off every time. He shook his head. The older Laurie Ann settled in front of him was still as beautiful but had matured into something completely different.

  “I literally just arrived,” he said, as he motioned at the booth seat across from him. “Join me?”

  She hesitated, then shook her head. “No time. I’m late.” She checked her watch, looked at him, smiled, and said, “Another time. Maybe thirteen more years?”

  “Or in the next few days?” he asked.

  She hesitated as she stood, and she was still the same tall slim beauty that he’d known before. “How long are you in town for?” she asked hesitantly.

  “I’m looking for a missing K9 War Dog,” he said.

  Her eyebrows shot up. “Are you still in the navy?”

  “No,” he said.

  “Well, must have been something major to take you away from that,” she said. “Absolutely nothing would deter you back then.”
br />   “And yet you never asked me to stay.” As soon as the words were out of his mouth, he wished he hadn’t said anything, but the surprised look on her face told him that she had never thought that he’d noticed or cared.

  “No,” she said gently. “It was something very close to your heart, and I didn’t want to ruin that.”

  He nodded slowly. “It was the making of me,” he said. “It really straightened me up, and I became a very different man.”

  Her eyebrows lifted.

  “I know,” he said with a sideways grin. “A lot of room for growth.”

  She chuckled. “You were a good person,” she said. “I don’t know who you are now, but I’m happy for you if you’re happier with you.”

  It was a little convoluted, but he understood.

  Just then her phone rang, and she winced. “I’ve really got to go,” and she turned and raced down the aisle.

  His waitress came back, bringing his pie. He looked at her, smiled, and said, “An old friend I wasn’t expecting to meet,” he said, motioning at Laurie Ann.

  “She comes in here a fair bit,” she said. “She’s a pediatrician and runs between several counties.”

  “Ah.” He sat back with his pie, a big smile on his face. A pediatrician. He rolled that around in his mind and smiled. It was perfect; she had always been a fan of families and children.

  “I’m glad for her,” he murmured, but the waitress was long gone. And he sat here, almost dazed, wondering how something so simple as coming back home had opened up such interesting wounds. He was proud of who he was now; he was not proud of who he’d been back then. He hadn’t really known any better, and that was no excuse. He was just so determined to get out and to prove himself and to be somebody whose early beginnings had fallen by the wayside. He was sure the shrinks would have a heyday with a lot of it.

  In fact, some of the ones he’d talked to had helped; some of them hadn’t. Even having somebody to talk it out with and to not judge him for all his early mistakes had been a good thing. But, even now, just seeing her again had been almost heartbreaking. He knew he’d missed a huge opportunity when he had walked away from her. They were so young then, and he even more than most. But he was really happy for her—a pediatrician. Wow.