Lawfully Courageous

Sneak Preview - Lawfully Brave

Sergeant Luke Jordan always got a kick out of traveling with his search and rescue dog, Hellion. The striking black and white husky was a frisky two-year-old with a sizable dose of pup still in his heart. There was a prance in his step as he and Luke strolled from the animal check-in and out area. For one thing, he was tail-wagging happy to be free of his cage after the couple of hours flight from Ft. Leonard Wood. Plus, he thoroughly enjoyed all the attention he was getting. Dozens of heads swiveled in their direction as they exited the front doors of the airport into the Texas sunshine.

Hellion was a complete chick magnet. Women sighed and aw'ed over him, while children (again, mostly girls) squealed in delight at the sight of him, begging their parents to let them run pet him.

It was way too bad Luke didn't have all afternoon to stroll around the airport with his charismatic dog. It might have actually improved his own social life. He and Hellion had just returned from a nine-month tour to Afghanistan. They'd routed out so many enemy combatants together that the other guys in his unit had taken to calling him Sergeant Fang. He and Hellion had made headlines and had recently been awarded several medals for exemplary service — none of which brought Luke any closer to acquiring a girlfriend.

As much as he enjoyed his career in the Military Police, the twenty-seven-year-old soldier despaired of every meeting the one. It was difficult to have much of social life while he was serving back-to-back training missions and deployments — much less getting to know a woman well enough to date her.

He ran a hand through his hair, mussing the dark blonde waves he'd allowed to grow out in recent weeks. There was no point in coming home to Desert Springs, Texas for the holidays with a buzz cut. It was time to kick back and enjoy civilian life for a couple of weeks. It had felt wonderful a few hours ago to swap out his uniform and combat boots for a comfortable pair of jeans and a t-shirt. His parents would make him put his uniform back on for their family Christmas pictures, of course. Barb and Chuck Jordan were American patriots through and through. They couldn't be prouder of the fact their son was serving in the Army.

Luke's watch buzzed with an incoming text message. He held his wrist up to read the message while he waited for the crosswalk guard to signal him and the awaiting pedestrians that the three lanes in front of him were clear to cross. The parking garage was on the other side of the pick-up/drop-off lanes.

So sorry, baby, his mother texted. Stuck in traffic. ETA 25 minutes.

No problem, he texted back. See you soon.

Well, bummer! Luke lowered his arm and gave a light tug on Hellion's leash. Guess their holiday would have to wait a little longer to get started. There was no point in standing outside in a cold parking garage, though. Might as well step back inside the terminal. No sooner had he rolled his suitcase back through the double glass doors did his wristwatch go off again. This time, it shrieked out a shrill alarm.

His watch wasn't the only device nearby that was sounding off. Dozen of people around him were frowning at their smart phones, watches, and other electronic tablets, which were squealing the same warning.

Luke scanned the face of his watch and noted it was an amber alert — another missing child. Of all the rotten luck! It always made his stomach hurt to receive these kinds of messages, but even more so during the holidays. It meant some kid wasn't going to be where they were supposed to be for Christmas, unless local law enforcement was successful in their search and rescue efforts. Luke felt a stab of guilt at the fact he was starting his Christmas vacation, when another family was experiencing so much heartache right now.

"Omigosh!" A smoking hot blonde, who was checking in at the nearest kiosk, clapped a hand over her mouth. Christmas red lacquered fingernails brushed against her cheeks.