A pint after work.

Posted on 24 Feb 2024 @ 21:08 by Deputy Sheriff III Angelica Passolini & K9 Cheech & Deputy Sheriff II Harrison Conway

1,050 words; about a 5 minute read

Mission: From Our Past
Location: Sheriff's office
Timeline: Late March 2023

It had been one of those shifts, nothing too crazy, but crazy enough to have good stories what her sister called a good day's work. Though. she was right now in Internet Crimes with the NYSP so she had more interesting cases. Cheech was dozing by the lockers as she finished changing and let her hair down, her duty gun went into it's zipper case, it was big and bulky so she preferred to carry her off-duty gun, a small Colt .38 revolver that had been handed down by her mother once she was sworn in.

That gun had been carried by three generations of Passolini women from her grandmother, who had been a detective with Special Victims, then her mother, and now her. That went into the small of her back and was quickly covered by a t-shirt everything else went into a duffle bag.

Once ready she switched Cheech over to his off-duty leash, a sign for the dog that he was off duty and able to be a dog again. Once ready she headed out where she bumped into Harrison Conway.

"Hey you hungry?"

Harry had finished his shift, fixing his baseball cap as he thought back on the shift that he had, the reflective moments that he could use to make him a better deputy. He adjusted his bag as he walked down the corridor, only to be met with fellow deputy Passolini and her K9 partner, Cheech.

He stopped, wheeling himself around so he was facing the pair. "Hey, yeah starving, you got a place in mind?"

Usually, he would have had some sort of snacks and a place where he would have stopped on shift but this one had been a whirlwind of calls and reports after work.

"There's a joint a few miles down, Freddies, they got a patio so Cheech can hang out and they got a good menu."

Harry nodded. "I don't think I've been, sounds great. You going to be drinking tonight?"

"Probably just gotta stash my gear in the trunk." if she was having a beer, then the small revolver went in to the trunk of her car, in to a bolted lockbox. "You?"

"Yeah, I'll be headed out to the local haunt for a few." Harry replied with a shrug of a shoulder. "Meet you out front in a bit then and we can take a walk down."

It was close by and Cheech needed to stretch his legs, so she walked out to her car and put her bag and the small revolver in the bolted lockbox with her badge and ID, if she was drinking she would be a better bystander then responder. Closing the door she headed out, Cheech feeling more like a dog and walked by her with a spring in his step.

Harry thumbed the belt loops of his jeans as he watched the cars drive past out of the station as he saw that Angelica was coming on out with Cheech. He couldn't help but crack an amused smirk as he remembered Cheech's naming origins.

"All good to go?"

"You bet." she smiled, as Cheech seeing the new person sniffed him curiously then nudged a pocket in his "where's my treat" response.

Harry gave Cheech a pat on the head; he loved dogs and certainly Cheech was no exception. "Ain't got anything for you buddy, your mum might though." He nodded towards Angelica as he looked up, beginning to walk out of the station and towards their destination

She sighed and fished out a treat from her pocket, "I think they'll make you a plate when we get there. The place they were going had put a doggy burger, basically a cut up patty with no bun, on the menu. "He's spoiled rotten." She remarked, "So don't let him try and convince you otherwise." Which got a huff of annoyance from the dog.

Harry grinned as he looked down at Cheech, always had a soft spot for dogs and certainly no doubt that he was a spoiled dog. "Hah, yeah, got to avoid the begging at the table."

---

It did not take long until they arrived at the joint that they were intending on holing up for the time being. Harry pushed open the door, taking a brief glance over his shoulder as a safety precaution and out of habit before following the duo in and spying a table that they could seat themselves at and quickly went for the menu. "Tempted to go for my usual go-to burger and chips. Oof, choices. You?"

"Always up for a good burger, and the fries are good here, Haven't heard them called chips since Kandahar, a unit of the Coldstream Guards was stationed in our FOB, so I had to learn British to communicate." It was an old joke she had learned. "Let's get a table, and get some drinks."

Harry chuckled, folding his arms across his chest. "No shit," He kicked himself for forgetting that Angelica had served. "They tend to say that don't they, chips not fries. Spent some time in the Sandpit with a couple of British guys, they were good company-"

He motioned towards the empty table as he headed over. "Remind me, combat engineer right?" He settled into a seat, glancing briefly over at the drink choices.

"Yup, there is nothing that cannot be solved with the proper application of high explosive." She grinned and ordered a Sam Adams. "And I helped out with outreach and Female Engagement Teams, basically go to villages, help them out, build stuff, and clear fields of Unexploded ordinance."

"Amen to that," Harry replied with a light chuckle as he ordered himself a beer. "How'd you find the whole gig? Miss it much?"

"Miss the people. especially some of the locals, the kids were always happy, the constant fear, the thinking every pile of garbage might be an IED, or any group might suddenly become an ambush. That, not so much."

He nodded, eyes raising up to the waiter who delivered their drinks onto the table before returning his gaze to Angelica. "Damn straight." He raised his bottle and made a motion to cheers. "Weirdest feeling you could have but wouldn't trade it for anything else."

"Damn straight." She smiled as they clinked bottles.

 

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