The Interstellar Police Force, Book One: The Historic Mission by Raymond Klein (good books to read for women TXT) 📗

for him. Genghis set up a portable computer on the coffee table, and all the handheld devices went into the bottom dresser drawer of his bedroom.

By the time the sun set and the moon rose, they were settled. Jeff drove to Dave’s Coffee Pot before they closed for some coffee and sandwiches. They ate in front of the TV, while Jeff channel-surfed the many channels. They watched local and national news, sitcoms about dysfunctional families, and documentaries. Then they found a two-hour Three Stooges marathon on a local channel and watched and laughed hysterically. It was past three in the morning when they finally shut the television down and went to bed.

Chapter Twenty-Three

It was eight in the morning when Genghis woke to the clatter of Jeff in the kitchen.

He came out of his room, blinking his sleepy eyes. All the lights were on in the apartment and so was the television. He found Jeff unpacking bags. “Morning.”

Jeff turned to see his partner and said, “Morning! I found a store that was opened very early called 7-11 and bought supplies.” He started pulling things out. “I purchased something called Captain Crunch.” He placed the box on the counter. “Canned pasta from a gentleman by the name of Chef Boy-ar-dee.” He placed the cans next to the cereal. “And look at this. . .” He rummaged through one of the bags. Jeff proudly produced a large can of coffee. “Coffee! From the house of Maxwell! We can make our own coffee! And look what I found in one of the cabinets.” He pointed toward a small white device now on the counter. “A do-it-yourself coffee maker, from the man who invented coffee. Look!” He pointed to the small Mr. Coffee logo on the coffee maker. Then continued removing items from the bags.

Genghis was still trying to get the sleep from his eyes. He firmly placed the pads of his back legs into the light-brown, shag carpeting. Then taking three steps forward, with just his front legs, he stretched and arched his back downward, while pointing his nose skyward. He yawned loudly, curling the tip of his tongue, straightened up, and vigorously shook his head, jingling his collar tags as he did. The shaking worked its way down Genghis’s body, from his head to his abdomen, all the way down to his nub of a tail. “Ahhhh. Yes! That felt good!”

“What the hell was that?” Trent asked, seeing this reaction in his partner for the first time.

“I don’t know, but I’ve done it about every morning since I’ve become a human canine. Feels really good, you should try it.” He entered the small kitchen, “You know, Codas canines would probably throw their backs out, if they tried that.” He reared up and placed his front paws on the counter. “So, how does this coffee machine work?”

After about ten minutes of putting their heads together, verbal commands, and then a quick drive to Dave’s to ask Monica, they finally figured it out. Monica also suggested that the next time, just call her. Exactly what that meant, they would have to figure out later. They brewed their first pot of coffee. It was extremely strong, but as the day wore on, they perfected the process.

Jeff was sitting on the couch with the TV remote in one hand and a coffee mug in the other. The mug was white with bold, red lettering, stating that he was the “World’s Number One Dad.” He was scanning the TV channels, not staying on one longer than thirty seconds. Genghis was sitting on his haunches, on the floor, back against the seat of the couch, with his front legs resting on the coffee table, so he could access the computer. Genghis's coffee mug was jet black, and had “Death Before Disco” emblazoned on it in bright, yellow print.

He had brought up several maps of the Compton Square area and selected other possible targets that would appeal to Colus Valda. “You know,” he pointed at the computer screen. “If we park about here, we could watch these two buildings on the left and this one down the block on the right. With all the sensing equipment on, we would be able to . . .” He looked up at Jeff. Trent’s eyes were fixed on the television. He had stopped channel surfing on the Cartoon Network, and was enthralled that Scooby Doo and the gang had just apprehended old man Johnson. Genghis looked at the show. Another big dumb drooling human canine, he thought to himself.

He lowered his gaze and shook his head in disgust. Then, looking up at Jeff and in a high-pitched voice, said, “Hey,Moe!”

“What?” Jeff said, coming out of his trance. “What were you saying?”

Genghis went over the maps once more, then hacked into the local police department’s computers and read reports relating to the arsonist. Confidence was high within the police force that the Compton Square Arsonist would strike again within the week.

They planned to set out that night, again around ten. The duffle bag was removed from Trent’s bedroom closet and packed with the usual equipment. Later that day, they turned off the television and retired to their rooms and slept for a couple of hours, preparing for the long night's vigil. At five past ten that evening, Trent opened the garage door and pulled the Thunderbird out. Genghis was already in the passenger seat, waiting to get on the road, before calling up the holographic computer screen. Trent got out of the cruiser and closed the garage door, then climbed back in. He put the car in gear and pulled out of the drive. Turning right, they passed in front of Mrs. Remke’s house. The curtains parted slightly as Mrs. Remke watched them pass. “Now where in the hell is that idiot and his damn dog going at this hour?”

Chapter Twenty-Four

It was two in the morning and quiet in the Compton Square district of Old Town. They were parked on