From K9 Mine:

The dispatcher’s voice broke the extended silence. “842—are you available to assist state on a vehicle scan on westbound 22, mile marker three?”

Travis grabbed the mic. “Affirmative, let them know we’ll be there in ten.”

“Copy, 842.”

He knocked on the divider door. “Wake up, Sleeping Beauty—we gotta work.”

Saoirse yawned, stretched, and then shook fiercely from nose to tail. “Can we get food after? I am very hungry. Something sweet like doughnuts. And a pup cup.”

Travis flipped on the lights and nodded. “We can do that after we help the staties with their stop.”

It took just under ten minutes to get there. Highway Patrol had a luxury sedan pulled over onto the shoulder. Four people had been cuffed and were seated on the ground, loudly protesting their innocence. Two of the County cars also responded to the call for assist. Everyone stood around, talking and waiting for the K9 unit to arrive.

He parked on the shoulder and clipped Saoirse’s leash to her harness. “Be careful,” he warned. “I don’t like the feel of this.”

“I will,” she assured him.

They exited the cruiser and approached the trooper who appeared to be in charge. Without preamble, the senior officer began to explain. “I stopped him for speed and left of center, but the car reeks of weed. Wouldn’t give me permission to search, of course, but the smell is fresh. Would you run your dog to confirm?”

“Yes, sir.” Travis nodded. Giving Saoirse a short whistle, they began walking around the rental car. Even though she knew her job inside and out, he still gave the commands for the benefit of their audience. As expected, she alerted on the interior and trunk almost immediately.

Travis nodded to the trooper. “All yours, sir,” he said. He shortened the lead, bringing Saoirse close to heel.

Surprising him, she pulled on her harness, dragging him to a clearly miserable young woman seated cross-legged on the ground. “Get that thing away from me,” she squealed, rearing back in alarm and trying to wiggle away. 

“Kemne,” he ordered, tugging her back toward their cruiser. He patted his thigh. “C’mon, Search. We’re done here.”

Saoirse parked her butt in front of the girl and refused to budge, no matter how hard Travis pulled. When he tried again, she whined softly.

Eventually catching on, he waved the female trooper over. “Have they all been searched?” he asked, keeping his voice low.

“Yeah, just as soon as they were cuffed,” the officer answered.

“What are you trying to tell me?” Travis wondered aloud, then asked again. “Was this woman searched? My dog is alerting on her.”

The trooper’s tone was more than a little frosty. “Yes, I did it myself.”

Saoirse whined again even louder. “Show me,” Travis ordered. He stood behind Saoirse, who had jumped to her feet, staring straight at the woman like a pointer. “Show me,” he repeated. She barked once and whined again.

“Ma’am, my dog seems very interested in you for some reason,” Travis said, squatting down and directing his question to the seated woman. “Any idea why that might be?”

“I don’t have anything,” the girl snapped, jerking her head once at the female trooper. “That bitch over there told you already.”

When Travis shrugged, Saoirse rolled her eyes and sighed heavily, ending in a soft whine. She flopped over on her back, exposing her belly, and chattered her teeth several times.

“You’re acting mighty…” He stopped, studying the girl. A thin sheen of sweat coated her waxy face. At once, all the pieces fell into place, and he leapt to his feet. “Start EMS,” he yelled back to the troopers. “Ma’am, what drugs did you swallow?”

She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came. Her entire body shuddered, wracked by violent convulsions. Travis held her upright, supporting her arms while she vomited up several small plastic bags of white powder. She collapsed like a rag doll, the whites of her eyes visible. He rolled her onto her side to clear the airway, placing two fingers on her carotid. “No pulse.”

The female trooper dropped down beside him, tearing open a plastic package. She shoved the nozzle into the girl’s nose and squirted. “Narcan administered, left nostril,” she called out.

The piercing siren grew louder as the ambulance approached. Travis backed away, letting the troopers take over the scene. He took a knee next to Saoirse and hugged her close. “What a rock star,” he whispered. “You saved her life.”

The surrounding activity of loading the overdose victim onto the gurney and putting the arrested in the County cars masked her quiet response. “Two pup cups. And nuggies.”

“Anything you want,” he said, giving her a quick squeeze.

As the EMS unit left for the hospital and the other cruisers began to depart, Travis suddenly became aware of how quiet the evening had become. He turned to meet the hard stares from four sets of eyes. “How did your dog do that?”

“Do what?” He decided to play dumb, at least for the moment. “Oh, that… well, she’s certified on narcotics.”

The female trooper stepped forward with arms akimbo and planted her fists on her hips. “But that dog told you she swallowed those drugs. How did she know?”

Travis scratched his head and shrugged. “Seems logical she would have handled the bags before ingesting them. Search probably detected the odor on her hands.”

The gathered officers made noises of agreement, but the remaining trooper wouldn’t buy the simple explanation. “Your dog alerted on the woman. When you said show me, Search rolled over and gave you her belly. Now, I’m not a K9 handler, but it seems to me she was telling you the drugs were inside her stomach.”

“You’re McLean, aren’t you?” one asked. “I’ve heard a lot about how smart your dog is.”

“She’s too smart for her own good,” Travis agreed, laughing it off. “She flunked out of med school, so I think the appearance of her making any roadside diagnosis would have to be just a coincidence.” As if to confirm, Saoirse flopped down and rolled onto her back, begging for a rub. “See, it was just a weird timing thing. She loves a good tummy scratch.”

“She’s a good girl,” one of the County guys said, reaching for the exposed belly.

Travis caught the officer’s arm before he got within biting range. “Ahhh… I wouldn’t do that,” he advised, guiding him back. “She runs a little spicy.” Saoirse bared every tooth in a wide grin and rumbled deep in her chest. The officer hastened to pull away and step back.

“Well, I promised somebody a pup cup,” he said, straightening. “You ready, girl?” Saoirse began pulling on the lead, and he used that excuse to make their exit. “Y’all have a good night, stay safe.” He let her tug him back to their car and opened the door for her to hop inside.

Saoirse didn’t speak until they were back on the highway. “I feel as if I did something wrong, but I do not know what,” she whined, the cabin thumping as she scratched her ear with her back foot.

Travis thought a long while before answering her. “You didn’t do anything wrong,” he finally said. “You saved her life, and that’s the important thing.”

“I smelled death on her.”

“That’s right, and you alerted to tell me, which is what you’re trained to do.”

Saoirse snorted. “Then why did everyone stare and become hostile?”

“You did the right thing,” he said firmly, “but a real dog wouldn’t know how to communicate that the drugs were in her stomach. I’m pretty sure it freaked them out.” 

The inside of the car grew quiet as they traveled. “I saved her life, though?”

“Yes, ma’am, you did. I’m very proud of you.”

“Are you so proud that I can have three pup cups, nuggies, and doughnuts?”

He burst into laughter. “Don’t push your luck. I may have to get a second job or set up a GoFundMe just to support your dessert deficiency.”