By seven thirty, the two-man crew had all the cameras in place and activated. Two monitors were set up for me—one in the living room, next to the TV, and one in my bedroom. Whenever I wanted, I could check the six-way split screen and view what was going on outside from the rooms I was in most often. I walked the men out and thanked them, then I passed through the gate on my way inside. The motion-sensor light came on immediately. I entered the backyard, walked up the steps to the deck, and then to the sliders. The entire deck lit up.
Good. It looks like everything is doing exactly what it’s supposed to do.
I felt better already, and I wanted everyone around me to feel safe, so I made the call to Dean.
“Hey, neighbor. I have two empty glasses here just begging for some Macallan to be poured into them. How about a proper thank-you for coming to my rescue today? Bandit wants to say thanks too.”
“Bandit is home?”
“You bet. Come on over and bring Jackson along.”
Dean and Jackson showed up minutes later, and I walked them around the outside of the house. I wanted my dearest neighbor, and a man I’d known most of my life, to feel safe living next door to me.
“The cameras and motion-sensor lights should keep unwanted guests away, but if anyone insists on trying to get in, I’m having an alarm system installed next week. That should keep the bad guys at bay.”
Dean seemed impressed with the system, and I was sure it helped to relieve the anxiety he might have felt earlier that day.
“Have those two guys been caught?”
“Unfortunately not yet, but we know who they are, and they can’t hide forever. You’ll probably see their faces show up on every news channel.”
“Did they come here because of John Vance’s escape?”
Dean’s question took me by surprise. It was the talk of Chicago and the national news when our sting operation took down a good number of John’s heavy hitters more than four years ago. It was also broadcast nationwide that I had shot and killed his brother, Jake, during a shoot-out between him and our narcotics team. A year later, I was lucky enough to put the handcuffs on John Vance myself. His drug cartel was crippled for a while, especially after he went to prison, but during the last three years, he’d managed to build it up again with outside help. I wouldn’t have expected Dean to remember all of that.
“No, unrelated case. This is about a recent homicide I’ve been working on. Sorry, but that’s all I can say about it.”
He tipped his chin toward the house. “I understand. How about going inside? I’m excited to see how Bandit is doing.”
In the kitchen, I poured two glasses of Macallan while Jackson and Dean played with Bandit. My pup was back to normal, and I would do everything in my power to keep him that way. I watched with a smile plastered across my bruised and stitched face, and everything felt safe once more, exactly as it should.
In bed that night, I had a feeling of calm wash over me. My dog was alive and doing well, my neighbor felt safe, and I knew the system I had installed would give me fair warning if anyone was prowling around. I would inspect my door locks tomorrow to see if they were good enough and buy a bar to put in the patio door track instead of my baseball bat. Before turning off the light, I looked at the monitor sitting on my dresser. Everything outside appeared quiet. I glanced at my dog lying on the blankets near my feet. He was sound asleep, without a care in the world. I turned the switch, closed my eyes, and knew I would sleep peacefully that night.