Reckless Creed Read Online Free PDF Page A

down. An IED explosion took off Jason’s lower right arm. It was a lot for any twenty-one-year-old to deal with. But being a good K9 handler meant constantly putting yourself in situations outside your comfort zone and all the while still thinking about your dog first—above and beyond anyone or anything else. Jason still had a chip on his shoulder and Creed wasn’t sure what it would take to change his attitude.
    This senior care center was outside Creed’s comfort zone, too. As was the topic of their search. Hannah had recently convinced Creed that they needed to include infections and diseases in their repertoire of scent detection. Several years ago she had added natural-disaster searches along with drugs and explosives. All of those were things Creed understood, although he was never crazy about searching for explosives. Like Jason, Creed had experienced an explosion in Afghanistan, too, while he was a Marine K9 handler. The one time he didn’t listen to his dog, it had almost gotten both of them killed. He’d learned the hard way the importance of putting his dog and the dog’s instincts first.
    But Creed respected Hannah’s instincts, too. He’d discovered early on that his business partner had a nose of her own for what was right, not just for the business and the dogs, but for him as well. So if Hannah believed they needed to add infections and diseases to their list, Creed added them.
    The process was basically the same. He knew the dogs were capable of sniffing out almost anything as long as Creed could figure out a way to communicate with them. He used a variety of techniques that included different words or phrases. “Fish” meant drugs. So he could tell his dog to “go find fish” in the middle of a crowded airport and not have drug dealers or mules running for the exits.
    He also changed up collars, harnesses, and vests so his multitask dogs knew what they were searching for from the minute he put on their gear. This medical stuff required a new level ofcreativity for him to come up with words and phrases that wouldn’t alarm patients and residents. After all, he couldn’t just tell the dog to “go find cancer.”
    This care facility had agreed to let them come in and test their dogs. It was a great on-the-job opportunity for both the dogs and the trainers. Yet as Creed patted Molly and Grace while he stood up, he could see that Jason still looked uncomfortable.
    â€œWe’ve been through the drill,” Creed told him, eyes boring into him now as he tried to hold the kid’s attention. “It’s not that much different from our other searches.”
    â€œI’m good,” Jason said, but his face told a different story.
    â€œThe dogs can smell that you are not good.”
    This time surprise registered on Jason’s face. He hadn’t thought about that. He looked at the dogs, then reached down, giving them his hand to sniff before he scratched them behind the ears, one at a time.
    â€œBut so far, the dogs have only sniffed samples in containers.” Jason glanced around the facility again. “Not people.”
    Creed followed the kid’s eyes. Several residents sat on the sofa at the far corner of the room. They were watching the dogs and not the big-screen TV. A couple of old men played cards on the other side of the large area. A staff member smiled as she kept pace alongside an old woman using a walker. Creed decided no one was close enough to listen.
    â€œWe walk Grace and Molly around.”
    â€œInto their rooms?”
    â€œNo. Not unless they invite us. As far as the residents are concerned, they’re therapy dogs. They’re used to them coming in.”
    â€œLike the old guy that met us at the door?”
    â€œHe has other motives,” Creed said as he looked over his shoulder to see the man still hanging around the door. “This is Molly’s first time out, so I expect her to