Black Dog - A Justice Security Novel: Justice Security, #12

By T. M. Bilderback

Inspired by the classic Led Zeppelin song, and the twelfth Justice Security story, Black Dog takes place very soon after the events of Hell's Bells. The story opens with Jessica Queen, Percival "King Louie" Washington, and Dexter Beck dealing with recurring nightmares. The dreams are so bad that all three consult with Dr. Caleb Mitchell, the Justice Security staff psychiatrist. Caleb discovers a common thread running through the dreams, and prescribes two things for each of them: a strong sedative to help them sleep, and to deal with the apparent issues that are causing the nightmares.

Easier said than done.

Jessica must deal with an earlier case - the genetically enhanced dog from Mama Told Me Not To Come. While assurances came from the owners of the deadly dog's siblings, Jessica doesn't believe that all of them are dead.

Louie, on the other hand, must deal with the betrayal of his former girlfriend, Donna. Since Donna was an agent working for Esteban Fernandez, Louie has been afraid to date anyone. He must overcome his fears, and convince himself that not every woman is going to betray him and those he loves.

Dexter is dealing with his own issues, and his problems won't go away without some serious soul-searching.

Meanwhile, Carly Stewart-Li has returned from rehab, and has made an unexpected life choice: she's chosen to turn her back completely on Hollywood, and wants to become a plainclothes operative for Justice Security!

Grief, twists, turns, and the loss of another partner...Black Dog gives you a look at the private lives of the people of Justice Security!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Sardis County Sentinel Press
• Release date: Oct 1, 2020
• ISBN: 9781393000723

T. M. Bilderback

T.M. Bilderback es un ex-comentarista de radio con un gran número de ideas para historias en su cabeza, muchas basadas en canciones clásicas. El autor actualmente reside en Tennessee y escribe febrilmente para lidiar con estas ideas en la forma de libros, antes de salir corriendo por la calle.

Book preview

Copyright © 2020 by T. M. Bilderback

Cover design by Christi L. Bilderback

Cover photo © Can Stock Photo / danielbarquero

All Rights Reserved.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Copyright information

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

About The Author

Other Stories

Chapter 1

Charlie Li grabbed the tranquilizer rifle, and Jessica Queen dialed Justice Security’s number on her cell phone as they ran from the office.

Justice Security, Tony Armstrong.

"Tony, this is Jessica Queen.  We’re at the dog show.  We need backup now.  And cops...lots of cops!  She hung up.  Charlie, how strong is that tranquilizer?"

Strong enough to take down that monster.

Not good enough.  Be ready to kill it if we have to.

Yes, Ms. Queen.

Jessica drew her gun as she and Charlie skidded to a stop in front of the locker room door.  The door opened into the room, so they weren’t concerned about the mastiff escaping...although the dog had used a tool – a rawhide stick - to open its cage, the rawhide stick wasn’t strong enough to lever the door open.

They stood on either side of the door.

Charlie, you have the rifle.  You take high, I’ll take low.  Shoot it if you see it.  If we have to go in, we go back to back so we can see all around us, said Jessica.

I’m not ashamed to say that this dog scares me, Ms. Queen.  It’s showing intelligence beyond a normal animal.

Jessica nodded.  I agree with you, Charlie.  Let’s act as if it’s a person.  Be ready for anything.

Charlie nodded.

Ready? asked Jessica.

Charlie nodded again.  Let’s do it.

Jessica squatted, gun pointed upward in a two-handed grip.  Charlie elbowed the locker room door open, aiming his rifle inside.  Jessica lowered her gun, also aiming inside.  The mastiff was not in sight.  Jeff Ladd was lying on the floor about ten feet from them.  His throat was gone, and his intestines were scattered around him.  He was lying in a pool of his own blood.

Jessica squeezed her eyes shut and took a deep breath, and said a silent prayer for the downed man.  She again fought down the urge to vomit.  Another man down because of her...she’d think about that later.

See anything? she asked Charlie.

No.

Jessica stood.  Okay, Charlie. Inside, nice and slow. Stay alert, my friend.

You as well, ma’am.

They started inside the room, back to back, walking sideways.

THE MASTIFF WATCHED them from his hiding place.  He breathed quietly, through his nose, so as not to give himself away.  He would take the woman first.  The man would be harder.

AS THEY INCHED INTO the room, walking sideways and trying to look everywhere at once, they approached Ladd’s body.

Okay, Charlie, who should check to see if Ladd is still alive?

Normally, the senior officer on duty.  But, I’ll do it.

"Thank you.  Where is that monster?"

I don’t know, but I’m squatting down to try to find a pulse.  Charlie cradled the tranquilizer rifle in his arms as he knelt beside Ladd.

Jessica stood beside him, trying desperately to look everywhere for the huge beast.  She froze.  Some small sound, almost too low to register, made her look up.

The mastiff was on top of the row of eight-foot tall lockers.  As Jessica’s eyes caught the dog’s, the huge canine sprang at her from a distance of just a few feet.  Jessica ducked, fast.  The mastiff, aiming for her upper body, missed her by less than an inch.  It sailed past Charlie, who was still squatting beside Ladd, and landed on the locker room floor.  When it landed, it skidded through the blood on the floor, and lightly bumped into the lockers on the other side of the room.

Jessica shouted, Watch out, Charlie!  Shoot it! as Charlie yelled What the hell?  The mastiff got its balance, but, before it could whirl around and come at them again, Charlie aimed, and shot the tranquilizer dart into the animal.  The dart hit the dog in the shoulder, but the dog was so huge, the tranquilizer didn’t seem to affect it.  Jessica had her pistol aimed at the dog’s head.  The dog whirled around, head lowered, and stared at the two of them.   Jessica noticed a strong intelligence in its eyes.

She also noticed that its eyes were shining...burning red.

Go to sleep, dog, said Charlie.

I’m going to have to shoot it, Charlie, said Jessica.

Charlie nodded.  Then kill the son of a bitch, Ms. Queen.

The dog, as if it understood the words, turned its head to Charlie, set its haunches, and leaped at him.  As the dog leapt, the locker room door swept open, Burt Oakley saw Jessica aiming her gun at the mastiff and yelled Noooo!.  Jessica pulled the trigger, but the gun didn’t fire.

The dog completed its leap, grabbed the struggling Charlie Li by the throat, bit down only once, and stepped away from the bleeding man.  Jessica continued to pull the trigger, but nothing was happening.  Burt Oakley, forgotten, watched in horror as Charlie Li tried to breathe through his torn and bloody throat.

The mastiff turned its shining red eyes to Jessica and said in a deep, low, gritty voice, Your turn, bitch!  It then leaped at Jessica, jaws gaping.

Jessica gasped, and sat bolt upright in bed as the nightmare slowly dissipated.

As she realized that she had been dreaming and was safe in her bed inside her apartment at the Justice Security building, she began crying deeply...and from the bottom of her soul.  Why did that bull mastiff – the ‘bad guy’ from her first case as a full partner, said case being inherited from Dexter Beck – have eyes that shined burning red?

And why are dreams of you all through my head? she asked quietly.  The dream had been recurring quite a bit lately, even though it had been some time since she had encountered the genetically enhanced bull mastiff.  Almost as if he wasn’t quite finished with her...or Charlie.

But the dog was dead.  Her gun had fired, and the dog was dead.

The case had frightened her badly.  Burt Oakley, the dog show promoter and owner of the bull mastiff, said that the geneticist enhanced the dog’s genes to increase its intelligence to almost human levels, so that it could better understand its master’s commands.  The geneticist also told him that there were other puppies from the same litter.  Oakley’s mastiff suffered from an unexpected side effect from the geneticist’s efforts:  he developed an evil, violent side.  When Justice Security found the owners of the other three dogs from that litter, the dogs had disappeared.

Three full-grown bull mastiffs.

Three full-grown genetically enhanced bull mastiffs.

Jessica shuddered at the thought.

One bull mastiff had almost taken her and Charlie out, like it took out the unfortunate Jeff Ladd.

What kind of damage could three do?

Justice Security had to come up with some ideas – if for nothing more than to let the nightmares stop.

Jessica swung her feet over the side of the bed and stood.  She walked the three steps to her closet to get her robe.  When she opened the closet door, the big bull mastiff was there, eyes still burning red. Jessica screamed as she backed up, and sat down abruptly as she hit the side of the bed.

Still here, bitch! said the mastiff, with its gruff, gritty voice.  Then it sprang at her, jaws opened wide, baring its teeth.

Jessica woke up screaming.

WITH A LOUD ROAR, THE demons renewed their attack.

"Let me GO, dammit!"

Everyone turned to see what was going on.

The tall demon that walked with a stoop had grabbed Megan and tossed her over its shoulder.  It was walking quickly away as Megan slapped and punched anywhere she could reach.  They were almost out of sight.

Louie threw his arms around Dexter just as he was preparing to take off after Megan and the demon.  Dexter had taught Louie very well in the skills of martial arts, and Louie was able to counter anything that Dexter tried...and Dexter tried everything he could think of to break himself loose. Louie held firm.

Let me go, Louie!  They’ve got her, dammit!

Naw, man, I can’t do it!  I gotta keep you! I can’t lose you both, man!

I can save her!

Naw, you can getcher self killed is what you can do!  Ease up, Dexter!

Just before the demon disappeared out of sight with Megan, Madeline leaned forward to throw a white power blast after it.  If she hadn’t leaned forward, the black power bolt that grazed her back and head would have hit her full-on.  The graze still hit her hard, and she was blown into a pile.  Her color faded.  Her power cascades dribbled to nothing.  She didn’t move.

Louie still had Dexter wrapped tightly in his arms, when Megan popped into existence in front of them.

Megan’s eyes were glowing red, and she was grinning so broadly that her face looked like a rictus of pain.  Her teeth were fang-like, all sharpened to points.

Come with me, Dexter.  Let me show you around Hell, said Megan.

Megan raised her