Encrypted Connection

Joey: Twelve

"No need to ask, I'm already tracking that boat!", Joey said when Blaise shut the door behind him. Glued to his screens, he was running various programs on various computers at once.

Yeah, he got some more. He figured he could add a few until someone commented on it. Maybe he'd tell them they were like Gremlins and multiplying after midnight. Or maybe he'd skip on sarcasm and focus on the efficiency speech.

He'd improvise.

" All boats have identification devices and GPS. Of course this one doesn't. Sneaky Russians.", he snorted. "So instead of chasing a ghost, I'm tracking every boat in the area and comparing their position with satellite images. At some point I'll only have UFOs. As in Unidentified Floating Objects. Get it?", he chuckled before turning around to look at Blaise.

" Damn. You look like Hell", he commented before seeing what... or rather who he was holding.

"We're going to need rules about our stray addiction, you know? I brought a dog. Logic would be you bringing a cat next. Or a chicken. But a kid? That's .... A lot.".

Blue rushed to welcome Blaise, her tail wagging so bad she hit Joey's knee on her way.

Not knowing not to exaggerate, Joey scowled but the dog ignored him, making his gasp.

But when he saw her notice the kid, he decided to stay quiet -for now- to watch her.

Blue sniffled in the direction of the little girl then sat down, giving a pleading look and a whine to Blaise to have him crouch.

As soon as he did, Blue laid down and carefully crawled closer.

Then she gently nuzzled one of the girl's feet.

It was all it took. The girl let go of Blaise and came to wrap her thin arms around the big dog's head, hiding her face in the beast's neck.

Blue's tail wagged a little more but the rest of her didn't move. And Joey knew it would now take an army or at least a gigantic piece of bacon to get the dog away from the kid.

" Well. Great. Now you've done it. We have a kid.", he simply stated.

He looked up at Blaise and faked an offended glare.

"And here I was thinking you'd jump my bones first at least.". He laughed a bit and turned back to his screens.

" I suppose you'll want to get Serkov to talk ASAP but I suggest you shower and rest first, my good man. Lots of work to do.".

He gave another look at Blaise and motioned toward the bathroom.

"Go! I can manage from here. Unless it starts crying. Or needs the bathroom. Then I might panic.", he admitted with a glance toward the girl.

" Gonna order some food and healthy snacks. And juice boxes. And clean clothes are going to be a must. You did check to see if there was a return address on her before you brought her home?".

Blue let herself fall on her side and the girl crawled against her belly, eyes obviously heavy.

"Poor kid.", Joey sighed.

He seemed to think about this then looked at Blaise again.

" Don't let me get attached to her if you plan on finding her a forever home, mister. And why are you still standing here all sexy and bruised? Geez, I'm trying to work here.".

He focused on his screen again until Blaise disappeared into the bathroom.

Then he opened the big drawer next to him and lowered his voice to speak to the kitten Blue found on the short walk they had earlier while Blaise and his team were debriefing.

"Change of plan, Schrodinger. This is not the time for your welcome party. We got hijacked.".

He needed to order one of those chip reading scanners to make sure the kitten didn't have an owner already. Since they looked like they were already in the stray business, it wasn't a silly investment.

" You have your milk and your tuna and a box to do your business. Go to sleep.". He petted the little head before carefully closing the drawer then he looked around him.

He had never been so surrounded by so many living creatures at once in his life, it was weird.

Not bad weird though. Just...good weird if there was such a thing.

The little girl whined in her sleep and Joey stared at her for a moment. He got up to take a blanket from the couch and laid it on the kid.

Hmm. Didn't feel good enough, he decided.

Stripping the couch from its cushions, he used them to build some sort of a shield around Blue and her. Like a fort without a roof. He had the feeling she wasn't ready for that. Too dark. Too new.

Blue lifted her head up for a minute then went back to sleep, one paw over the girl.

Joey shook his head. "Careful. We might not be allowed to keep her so don't get ahead of yourself.".

He started to stretch but winced, his stitches reminding him he was not healed yet.

" Right. Back to the chair", he groaned.

He had programs to run, things to order, bad guys to catch.

He was really starting to dig this life. "Hell I could be a kept man", he decided out loud. " Smart, funny, good looking, great with pets and small sized humans. I'm a catch, world.".

The world didn't comment on the statement so he focused back on his computers. At the end of the day, those never talked back and that was fine by him.