Hi Mum, It's Sammy (Clone 63 - Part 9)

I woke the next morning still feeling different. My bond with Jericho is going to take some getting used to. Even as I got out of bed, I could feel that he was relaxed, warm and happy in his sleep. I'd love to crawl back into bed too but unfortunately there is work. If I don't go, I won't get paid.

So I tended the babies, then got myself ready for work. I rang Felipe and Jared and asked them if they could meet me early for a bit of a chat. We agreed to meet up and have talk before work.

"Sam, what's up?" Felipe was still yawning like his head was about to come off. "This had better be good, I hate moving a minute before I have to in the morning."

"Sorry Felipe. Well, I've been thinking about the missing pet reports that I've been writing up. I'm pretty sure that there must be a reason so many dogs and cats are going missing."

"Can't we do this at the station at the lunch break or something?" he yawned again.

"Chuck specifically told me that he wants nothing to be done about the pets. He feels that it's a waste of police time." I looked at the two of them. "So I was wondering if either or both of you wanted to pursue this out of hours."

Jared shook his head. "If Chuck doesn't want it pursued, then I'd rather not. I didn't transfer here to get suddenly find myself unemployed. Chuck may not be much for formalities but I'd bet he is big on obeying the senior officer."

I looked over at Felipe. "How about you?"

"I'm in. Chuck likes horses and doesn't think anything smaller is worth police time. But I told a couple of those people to file reports. Merlot and Thea did file reports?" Felipe looked directly at me and I nodded. Felipe continued, "I've been here a long time, Chuck won't find it easy to fire me."

I smiled at Felipe. "I'm glad you're in. I'm not sure I should handle this alone. And I wouldn't want to involve my housemates or anyone else that isn't a cop."

"So, if you've been thinking about it, then how should we proceed?"

I asked Felipe, "Do you happen to have a pedigree cat or dog?"

"I have a German Shepherd, Rex. Why?"

"Well, the disappearing pets are entered into the Pet Show next week, right?"

"Yes, that's true."

"I was thinking that if we had access to a pedigree pet we could surrounding the area the pet stays in during the day with surveillance cameras. Maybe one obvious one and 2 or 3 well hidden. After that enter the dog in the show and see if we can catch the pet nappers in action."

Felipe nodded his head. "That seems like a sound plan, but there is one problem with it."

"Only one problem with it?" That was a bit of a surprise, I was anticipating more. "What's the problem?"

"It's going to be expensive. The entry fee to the pet show is bad enough. But getting several cameras with a plan that may sacrifice one of them will really cost a pretty penny. We can't use any police equipment. Not if you want to keep it from Chuck, we have to sign everything out from him." Felipe shook his head. "I've no spare cash to put into this."

I nodded reluctantly. "Yeah, I hadn't actually thought about the cost. I don't know how much those cameras would be. I guess I'll have to look into that." I sighed, that would put a crimp in the plan. "But Felipe, you should know at least one pedigree pet is missing that wasn't entered in the show. Your dog may disappear too."

Jared glanced at his watch, "We better get moving. It's nearly the start of the shift."

We arrived with 5 minutes to spare. Chuck was waiting for us. "Right, today Sam has to sit the exam and so Jared, you're taking the desk duties. Felipe has normal patrol. Sam, you'll be in my office for your exam."

I lead the way into Chuck's office and he closed the door after entering the office. "Now, Sam, my computer has the exam. The computer's been taken offline so you'll have no net access. The test is automatic, it will start in 5 minutes and end in four hours or when you've clicked the "Finished" button. A passing score is anything above 70%. If you can score higher than 90%, you'll be on the fast track to the next promotion." He waved me toward his desk.

"Any questions before it begins?" I shook my head as I sat down. I was feeling quite nervous, if I failed, it was months until the next time I could take this test.

I sat staring at the blank screen waiting for the test to start up, now getting jittery as all hell. Then I felt the love and reassurance of Jericho. No words, just the vivid sensation which gave me the impression that everything was fine, and I should calm down. I took a few deep breaths and relaxed. Jer was right, everything would be fine.

The test flickered to life and I felt even better. It was long but it was also multiple choice. I scanned the first few questions and noticed that each question had one or more answers that were easy to eliminate. It wasn't going to be a super simple test, but I finally had confidence that I'd be able to pass it.

Two hours into the test when it suddenly flickered off. Chuck looked up from the book he'd been reading. "Ah, right. Break. Get up, walk around, stretch. The test will be back in 10 minutes."

I walked out to the main room. Jared was looking like he was about to throw the computer out of the window, I wonder if I usually look that bad. He looked at me hopefully and straightened up in the chair. "You done? Can I get out of here?"

"Nope, just a break."

He slumped back in the chair, disappointed by the lack of escape. "Damn, and you've been manning this desk for how long?"

"I forget exactly how many days but the answer is way too long. I hope to hell I pass this test because I need to get out at least some of the time."

Jared nodded glumly, "Which means I'll get stuck in here some of the time." He looked at me, "Is it bad if I hope you fail?"

"It would be if it works that way." I shrugged. "We'll see." I walked back to the office, it was nearly time for the test to resume.

 The test flickered back to life and I slowly made my way through the rest of the questions. I was fairly close to finished when Chuck said, "Thirty minutes left." I finished the last few questions then returned to a couple I wasn't quite sure which answer was right.

When Chuck called five minutes, I went ahead and hit the Finished button. I was exhausted and changing things in the last few minutes wasn't likely to improve my score in the least. I watched the form disappear from the screen. "So, Chuck, now what?"

"Central office will process your exam and send back the results in a few hours. You can take the rest of the day off. I know these tests are tiring to take. I'll let you know tomorrow how you did."

I breathed a sigh of relief. No desk for me today. "Thanks Chuck, I'll be here tomorrow."

Time to go home, where my family is.

Jericho met me at the door. "What had you so flustered this morning?" He wrapped me in a big hug. "It took me a little while to figure out exactly where that feeling were coming from."

"The boss sprang the police test on me today. I was worried that I might not pass. They only have the tests every couple of months, if I fail, I'm stuck at that damned desk every day until the next time. Sorry if I caught you by surprise."

"Don't worry, love. We have plenty of time to learn about our bond. It's a bit different for every bonded Strider couple and there is the blessing of the goddess. So I don't know much more about what to expect then you do."

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Bonus pic

Well that looks like you are talking to each other. Seriously guys, why not sit facing each other?