Charlie cursed viciously when he realized she'd shut the phone off. Vaulting off the glider he stalked into his bedroom and pulled on jeans and a t-shirt. Apollo on his heels, they headed out to the truck. Apollo hopped in and over to the passenger side when Charlie opened the door. Slamming it shut he stabbed the ignition and sat back to take a deep breath. Glancing at Apollo, Charlie grimaced.
"She is a handful," he told the dog conversationally. "We have to find a way to channel her into non life threatening anger management."
Apollo sniffed a loud snort.
"Yeah, I know she's damn independent," Charlie agreed. "Hell, we're creative guys. We can do this."
A few minutes latter Charlie pulled into Samantha's empty drive way. Her place was a little house on a quiet neighborhood street. Its yard was tiny when compared to Charlie's, but well kept. Three thirty in the morning is that hour between very late last night and too early this morning.
Charlie and Apollo got out and stood for a moment letting the feeling of the slumbering neighborhood sink into them. Both alert for a base-line mood to this place from which to judge if something was disturbing it or out of place in the future.
"It's her place," Charlie told Apollo quietly. "We don't disturb anything. Just wait for her. And no waking the neighbors, silent alert."
Apollo glanced up at Charlie then trotted off to track the scent of this place. Charlie watched him start the canine investigation and knew the dog would remain in his sight-line, it was part of silent alert command. Figuring he had a few minutes Charlie followed and circled the house, noting each exit opportunity and surrounding cover. It was simply a natural reaction to a new place. Both he and Apollo needed the layout of the property to feel comfortable.
They'd come back around front. The little house did not have a front porch, just cement steps up to the front door. Charlie sat on the top step in wide male stance of elbows on knees, fingers loosely laced before him. Apollo plopped down on the walk at the base of the steps. Nether seemed to move for about five minutes when Apollo shot up to hunches. His head turned to watch a car cruise slowly down the street towards them.
The headlights were in the wrong place for it to be Sam's car but the low growl of a high-powered machine said it was not a family vehicle. The car slowed and pulled to the curb directly in front of the house, coming to a stop and showing Charlie the Sheriff insignia emblazoned on the door facing him.