Guardian Angels
Last Time:
With only a few days left before returning, Jack found himself staring death in th face after entering an underground fight club in the Dark Side. However, by chance, Erica happened to find out about the fight club owner's plans while doing some investigating of her own. After alerting Saipia to Jack's situation, the two proceeded to rescue him, without alerting the other Angels to the situation. Despite being out numbered a hundred to one, Saipia succeeded in fighting off the club members while Erica rescued Jack. On their way to Erica's truck, they were stopped by an old tigress named Lyst and known as Prophetess. She gave them each a message. She told Erica to watch over Saipia and told Jack to pursue Saipia.
However, Jack's lust for his boss is wanning and now he's in the middle of something that he can't remove himself from easily. But, as for Erica, she's slowly realizing that she never needed to be told to watch over Saipia.
Episode 14: "Animal Cops"
Max watched the clock beside his master's bed intently. He new when it turned to 5:00am it was time for her to get up, and it had always been his duty to get her up on time. Patiently, the albino labrador sat, eyes fixed on the clock. Erica, his owner had trained him to associate that time with going for walks and food, two things which he enjoyed.
Finally, the little lights on the digital clock changed to read 5:00 and instantly he started barking and jumped up onto Erica's bed. Almost instantly, Erica stirred from her slumber. "Hey, boy, I guess you want me up, huh?" the human asked and the male dog barked in response. "Yeah. I bet you're hungry and ready to go for our morning run. Although, I think today, it's just going to be a walk."
And with that, the leopard stood to her feet and headed towards her kitchen with the white dog in tow. A full pot of coffee was waiting for her, but her first concern was taking care of her dog. Opening up the cupboard under her sink, she reached into the bag of premium dog food and scooped up a cup of keebles with a measuring cup. Happily, she dumped the entire scoop into a bowl that sat on a bad at the entrance to the kitchen. As she poured her coffee, she watched the canine eat with a warm smile on her face.
It was then that her guest came out of her room. "I thought you were talking the day off?" the wolf asked as she joined her friend in a cup of coffee.
"I am. I'll probably sleep some more later, but 5am is when I've trained him to get me up so I can feed him and take him for a walk or a run, so he can go the bathroom and get some exercise," Erica replied as she flexed her prosthetic right hand out of habbit.
"How are you new parts? Linda said she had finished with the last of the upgrades. She was still royally pissed that you didn't go to her first, but she understands," Saipia asked.
"They're great. I still have a little phatom pain and tingling in my arm and occassionally my eye has a mind of it's own, but other than that, everything works great," Erica answered.
"What do mean your eye has a mind of it's own?" the white wolf wondered.
"Well, sometimes it turns off and on. I've had it switch modes randomnly and occassionally it'll try to look in a different direction. It's weird," said the cat.
Saipia put her coffee down and took a couple steps closer to her friend. Gently, she reached up and removed Erica's right eye. She proceeded to examine the device with the interest of a mechanic. "Looks like some circuits might be fried. But, we can swing by Linda's on our way to work and get you a new one. For now, I suppose you can..."
"Dammit, Sai, I don't want to go to...Linda's. You are like the worst girlfriend ever sometimes. You know I don't much care for her," Erica argued.
Saipia laughed. "Fine. I'll pick you up a working eye on my way to work or on t he way home. Although, I've never understood why you don't like her."
"She gives me the creeps. And I've always gotten the distinct feeling that she doesn't quite like the idea of me dating you. She'd be happier with Jack dating you and he's ten times worse than I am," Erica explained.
Again, Saipia laughed. "I guess you're right. I doubt she would approve of me dating you. But, she's not my mother and I'm not a kid anymore."
Erica wore a full set of light pink pajamas while Saipia wore merely a long, button up shirt. That made Erica think for a moment and part of her desired to stay in that morning and have a little fun with her girlfriend. "You got anything on under that shirt?" she asked.
While taking a sip of her coffee, Saipia lifted the bottom of the shirt to reveal a pair of purple panties. "I'm not that crazy."
"I didn't think you were, but I had to make sure. You going to walk Max with me? Maybe we can grab breakfast. I know a great diner nearby," suggested Erica as Saipia returned the broken prosthetic eye to it's socket.
"A breakfast date, huh? Sounds like a fun. But as soon as we get back, I have to get ready for work. Because, while you're taking a break, my job is never done," Saipia replied and kissed her girlfriend.
"Speaking of, don't you have some vacation time coming up?" Erica asked.
Saipia smiled and kissed the leopard again. "Why? You thinking about taking your vacation when I do?"
"Well, it's just that, it's been so long since we've actually had sex. Most of the time we get off work, grab some dinner at a fast food joint, come back to one of our houses and then sleep because we're just so tired. Sometimes we'll watch a movie and hang out for a little bit, but it has been far too long since we've actually enjoyed each other's bodies," explained Erica.
"That's true. But that would mean you'd have to come into work today. If you continue to save, you'll have just as much vacation time I as me," Saipia replied.
Erica thought about that statement a moment and laughed. "No I won't. I'll have about a week. You have about a month coming. But, you were going to ask me to spend your vacation with you anyway and have already made the arrangements."
Saipia smiled at her girlfriend's ability to put the pieces together so quickly and effectively. "You know, after we graduated and you went off with your family to celebrate, I worked on getting a job at the Hollywood Police Department. When I did get a job, the chief instantly asked me if I knew any other Genoids that I would recommend for a job at the department. I didn't hesitate to mention your name. I was planning on getting you a job at the department anyway, but the chief made it easier. And I didn't do that simply because you were my best friend or because you're the best cop I know, it's because I know I can trust you and I always feel safe around you. And, a few weeks ago, when the chief asked about my vacation time and the department therepist insisted upon it, I knew that I didn't want to spend all that vacation time by myself. And there was only one person I could think of that I would want to share it with."
"I don't know. I thought you and James had a pretty good friendship," Erica said.
"Erica, James is madly in love with me. If I spent a month with her, she just might get a chance to ruin her marriage more than it already is. I will not directly be responsible for the destruction of her marriage," Saipia countered.
The spotted feline laughed as Max started to bark and scratch at the sliding glass door that led to Erica's sizable backyard. The big backyard was something Erica had insisted on when she went looking for houses. It was more for her dogs than for her. She loved to have a lot of room for them to run around in. "Well, I guess we're running a little late," she commented.
* * *
After Saipia's little Hyundai refused to start, the two policewomen journeyed to work together in Erica's big Toyota Tundra. Originally from Washington state, Erica enjoyed the outdoors and loved to explore the many trails and hills there, and always wanted a strong, reliable truck. However, the truck she got, was a gift from her parents to congratulate her on completing college. Erica loved her truck, though. She took great care of it, and it, in turn, took great care of her.
"I guess we'll have to get you a new car," Erica remarked as they drove to the precinct.
"Yeah. I was hoping to avoid it for a couple more weeks, but it's certainly time. I haven't decided on what to get, yet, though. I figured you and I can go around to the dealerships and I'll pick something out there," said the blue wolf.
It was a long drive from Erica's house in the hills to the police station in downtown Hollywood, but neither woman minded. They chatted and discussed a lot of things. They even began making plans for their shared vacation. "By the way, if you haven't figured it out by now, which I'm sure you have, the only way you're able spend my vacation with me is because you technically will be on duty. But, you'll just be my personal body guard."
"I did figure that out. What I can't understand is how you got the chief to buy that load of crap," Erica replied.
"Because it's not a load of crap. The only way he would allow you to go with me is if you were my personal bodyguard. However, you won't need to bring a uniform with you. I'm not going to and I don't want to draw any unwanted attention to us. And we can still hang out and have fun, but, you WILL be my bodyguard. So, if you want, you can still take some time off of work if you want. I scheduled my vacation time so that you could take yours first," Saipia said.
"But, if I'm your bodyguard the whole time, then I can't drink anything and technically, I won't be able to sleep with you. If I'm going to be spending a month with you as your bodyguard, I think I'll spend a week of that time having hot passionate lesbian sex with you while getting hammered every night," countered Erica.
"Oh, you can still drink and we can still have sex while you're my bodyguard. I mean, one of us has to be the designated driver, but I could care less what you do while we're on vacation together. You know for a fact that I can take care of myself. I mean, I did defeat a hundred guys by myself a couple days ago," Saipia replied as she brushed her mane with a wire brush.
"I know. But you know I'm a good cop and I follow the rules. And you are getting fur all over my truck. I wish you wouldn't do that in here," Erica commented as loose fur began to cover the interior of her truck in a blue coat.
Saipia looked around and noticed just how much she was shedding. "Damn. I guess there's still a lot of wolf left in me. A lot more than I thought."
"I guess. My god. And I just cleaned the interior a couple days ago. I don't even know how you're shedding that much. My dog doesn't shed this much," Erica retorted.
Saipia laughed. "You have a dog. I'm a wolf. There is a massive difference."
"Hey, I've had a wolf before and she didn't shed nearly this much. She shed a hell of a lot, but not this much," the leopard said.
Another laugh escaped Saipia's lips as Erica began to join in. "I remember that wolf. She didn't like me at all."
"Really? Why the hell not?" Erica asked.
"I don't know. Something about not being a pure wolf or some BS. She was always going off about something. Hell, she barely tolerated you because you let her run around a lot," Saipia answered.
"That's crazy. You never told me any of that when she was still alive," remarked the driver.
"Yeah, because it was never important and you never asked. But, I'm sorry about the mess," Saipia replied.
"Don't worry about it," said Erica.
* * *
The rest of the day went off rather well for the leopard. There wasn't much for her to do but some minor paperwork before Saipia sent her home early. Erica was actually grateful for the extra free time and decided that spending some time solely with her dog might be a good thing before rushing off somewhere with her superior officer and girlfriend.
Erica stopped off at the grocery store on the way home to grab a few things before hitting a fast food place. Finally, she started off towards her house. Exited to see her dog again and spend the rest of the evening cleaning her truck out and playing some video games.
However, as the Genoid leopard turned onto the long road that lead to her house, she stopped and took a moment to glare up at her house. There was something off about it. The animal inside her was whispering warnings to her. Something was wrong and she was glad she had her pistol with her. Casually, Erica retrieved her mail from the box and proceeded up her driveway.
She stopped a good hundred feet from her house and got out of her truck, gun in hand. Cautiously, she approached the front door. As she got closer, she could see it was open slightly and an unfamiliar scent greeted her. But, there was a scent missing from the mixture: Max's. The place was dead silent, as well. As Erica opened the door to her house, she peered inside to find the place a mess. Not wanting to destroy any evidence, she pulled her cell phone from her pocket and dialed Saipia's number. "Sai, it's Erica. My house has been broken into. I don't know if they took anything else, but I think they took Max."
"Why the hell would they want your dog? Are you sure anything else isn't stolen?" the wolf asked.
"I have no idea. I haven't gone inside. From what I can see, the place was ransacked and I don't want to screw up the crime scene. You best get some CSIs and get over here. I guess my day's not done yet," she explained and hung up.
Satisfied that who ever had broken in was long gone, she wandered back to her truck and casually got in and began to think about who could have committed the crime. As an albino, Max was genetically worthless, although he was rare. She figured that it had to be someone trying to get back at her, but she couldn't think of who. Gradually, though, the young Genoid officer drifted into a deep sleep.
Erica awoke to the sound of Saipia shutting the passenger door of her truck. By that time, the crime scene investigators were already packing up and heading back to the station. "You let me sleep through the entire investigation?"
"Yeah. You were out cold. Looked like you needed it. Anyway, it doesn't look like anything else was taken other than Max, your TV, game systems and all your games. They even left your old Chevy pickup. I guess they figure that because it's over a hundred years old, it was worthless," the blue wolf replied.
"That's good. Except I like that TV and it'll take me a couple paychecks to replace all those games and the systems. But I can never replace Max. Who the hell steals a dog? And an albino one at that," Erica shouted.
"Hey, don't take it out on me. I've got the entire team and then-some working on this case. No one messes with one a member of my team and gets away with it and NO ONE messes with my girlfriend and lives to tell about it. That is why I am not going to be making the arrest. James and Jack are in charge of that. My job is to make sure you're alright," explained Saipia.
"Hell no, I'm not alright. Saipia, they took my dog. The took Max. Those bastards took..." tears cut off her words.
Saipia sighed deeply as she looked at her friend. This wasn't the first time the commander had seen the captain cry. Nor was it the first time Erica had cried over the loss of one of her dogs. "If you ask me, I think Max should be the last dog you own. It stresses me out to see you like this." Erica turned her head towards Saipia to scold the wolf, but she stopped when she saw the tears in Saipia's eyes. "It's just a stupid dog, Erica. I know you don't like being alone, but if you'd actually ask me, I might just be willing to let you move in with me or maybe we could get our own house or something."
Erica didn't know what to say as the wolf pulled a klenex from the glove compartment and dried her tears. "It's not that simple, Sai," she muttered.
"Isn't it? I'm not only your superior officer, Erica, I'm your girlfriend. And I'm your girlfriend first and foremost. And every time you get a goddamn dog and it dies you spend a week crying your eyes out while I sit around scared half to death that you're going to go off and kill yourself or something else. And every time you randomly come back with a new dog before I can even say anything. Max is a great dog, Erica, I'll admit that. But he's just an animal," argued Saipia, a low growl slipping into her voice.
"He's not just an animal to me. I'm sorry that I scare you every time, but I can't help it," Erica defended.
"Like hell you can't. You could try not buying another dog. And you could come to me for advice and comfort instead of locking yourself away somewhere. And you better learn to do that, because if we find Max alive, he is not coming on vacation with us. I will not compete for your attention with a dog," Saipia countered.
Erica thought that over a moment before leaning over the center console that divided the two and gave her friend and lover a passionate kiss on the lips. "That's fine, Saipia. Trust me, if I have to choose between you and Max, you'll win every time. Max is a great companion, but he will never come anywhere close to being my sexy little wolf. You have been my girlfriend for a couple years now and my best friend for much longer. There is no way a dog is going to come between us."
Saipia gave Erica another kiss. "I'm glad. Now, why don't we head on over to my place and you can take a nice hot bath and maybe we can play a video game or two. In the morning, we can check in with James and the others to see how the investigation is coming."
* * *
James waited patiently outside the house of the leader of a local gang. Several police cars lined the street. But there were only two that were marked with the GUEST badge. The maned wolf stood next to the van and watched over things. Jack sat in the driver seat and listened to the police radio for any updates. In the newer car next to the van were Jimmy and Bryan, casually awaiting further orders. The scene was strangely silent. Everyone was grateful when a distant roar of a powerful V8 broke that silence. There was no urgency to Saipia's pace, however. She even stopped for lights and she was alone. Casually, she pulled up to the scene and got out of the Challenger. "They still in there?" she asked of her captain.
"Yeah. They're fast asleep, though. Damn bastards must have been up all night drinking. But where's Erica? Shouldn't she be here?" James replied.
"She's sleeping, as well. She doesn't need to be here," the blue wolf said as she glared at the yellow house. There was something about it that caught her attention. Something about the entire case bugged her. But it didn't take her long to put everything together. "That bastard really doesn't know who he's screwing around with or what he's getting himself into. No matter, though. His fate was sealed when he decided to challenge Liv's reign."
"What the hell are you muttering about, now?" James asked.
"Sebastian. He's behind this. He kidnapped Erica's dog to send us a message; a warning. I doubt Max lived very long, though. So, I guess we should be sending Sebastian a warning of my own. Or maybe I can get someone to do it. Either way, by messing with my girlfriend, he's only digging himself a deeper grave," explained the wolf.
James sighed with irritation. "I don't suppose I can talk you out of it, but I will warn you against killing them."
Saipia turned to her colleague with a serious look on her face. "I'm not going to kill them. I was just going to give them a little message to give to Sebastian is all."
The older Genoid glared at her friend, her tail wagging irritably. "I don't want read about them in the obituaries, Sai. I mean it. I don't care if you directly had something to do with their deaths or not."
A moment of silence passed over the scene as Saipia looked towards the house again. After a moment she started towards the front door while the other cops began to leave. "Saipia Tiffany Jones, do NOT kill them!"
"I'm not. I need them to give a message, right. If anyone kills them it'll be Sebastian. God, you can be such a bitch, sometimes," Saipia called back.
* * *
Sebastian Creed tossed the morning paper on his desk with a sigh. He glared at the two bloodied and bruised men before him. "So that stupid Genoid bitch actually beat you boys up pretty good, didn't she? Man, that has got to be embarrassing. Although, you did kill her girlfriend's dog."
"We're sorry, Boss, but she did tell us to give you a message," said the first.
"Oh really? And what would that be?" he asked as the door to the office opened and two lionesses stepped and took a place behind the men.
"She said that what she'll do to you what she did to us if she gets a hold of you. And that you're going to die," replied the second.
The man smiled. "She won't kill me, she's a cop."
"She said she wouldn't be the one to kill you and that you should leave town and never come back but it would only delay your fate," added the first.
Sebastian sighed again. "Why should I leave town? I've got all her enemies working for me and I've taken over Liv's business and territories. Soon, this town will be mine."
"You really are a fool, Sebastian," came a voice from a the doorway behind the lionesses.
"Who the hell are you?" he snapped as the two cats stepped aside to reveal a tigress standing there in her long coat with a cane clasped in front of her.
"I am a prophetess and you really should head Saipia's warnings. By messing with Liv and endangering her life, you sealed your fate, for she has a lot of friends who very willing to kill for her. And by threatening Saipia and her friends, you are simply shortening your lifespan. I have seen every possible outcome for you, and they all end the exact same way. Just remember, things are never what they seem," said the tigress before tapping her cane on the floor.
Instantly the room filled with a think, green smoke. When it settled, the two goons were dead, their necks broken and each had a single number carved into his head and as Isan and Kammy brought their limp heads together, they clearly read: "15."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" the human snapped.
"We have no idea, sir. We didn't even touch them," Isan defended.
"It must have been that tigress," Kammy replied.
"Well, then don't just stand there. Go find her and kill her," Sebastian shouted.
'Yes, sir," the two cats said together and quickly left the hazy room.
* * *
Erica was dressed in a short, purple shirt that hung loosely from her breasts and a pair of blue jeans as she yawned and stretched her long, thin arms in the spring sun. Her truck was finally packed and everything was ready to go as Saipia came out of her house in white fur and wearing a blue bikini. With final wave and goodbye to her sister, she shut the door, slipped on a pair of sunglasses and joined her girlfriend by the pickup. She gave the leopard an apologetic look. "I'm sorry about Max, Erica. Are you sure you want to do this?"
The leopard gave a crooked smile. "Yeah. Don't worry about it. He was a great dog, but I've shed all my tears for him. And I think you're right. He was the last one I'll ever own. Watching 'em die is hard on me, to. And now that I know it stresses you out, as well, it just doesn't seem like a good idea. Besides, I have you, don't I? You can be my pet wolf from now on."
Saipia giggled at that. "And I'll last quite a bit longer, too."
"You sure Jack is going to be fine with you leaving so soon after he got back?" Erica asked.
"Probably not. But, I've given up on chasing him. Way too much work. And, as you said before, I'm not getting any younger. I wish that relationship would have worked out, but I guess Jack had his own plans," the wolf answered as the two got in the truck.
Erica smirked at that with a slight chuckled. "What's so funny about that?" Saipia protested.
"It's just that, I'm happy things didn't work out between you and Jack. Now I can have you all to myself," Erica said as she started the truck.
Saipia laughed at that. "Dork. Let's get going before I decide to take my vacation alone."
"This is my truck, Sai. If anyone's going to be staying, it's you," defended the leopard as she pulled away and the two started on their shared vacation time.
