Morning run [open]

[Nicholas Brandon]

Nick still had a few days before he started his new job; he was taking over the down sheriff’s position. He was a little bit nervous for that new position, he knew this sheriff had been around for many years and the town very much loved him. Plus, Nick knew he looked a little bit young to be the town sheriff, but he was more than experienced.

Since the time he was 18 years old he had been enlisted in the military, really he still was, so that makes 10 years. He’s been to Afghanistan; he’s been to Iraq, even a few smaller countries. During the middle years he spent time trying as a police officer and learned a lot but never obtained a job. After the explosion the military ended his current contract and told him to go home, in fact that helped him gain this position.

Nick had needed a change in his life, away from friends and family. This was his new start, and while he didn’t intend on staying here forever it would do for now, who knows maybe he would fall in love with this small town. But that didn’t change the fact that he was really still employed by the military.

Rolling over in bed he looked at the alarm clock, it read 8:00, he had slept in. Turning and look at the other side of him Rex, he’s 3 year old German shepherd was standing on the opposite side of the bed wagging his tail. The dog bound up on top of the bed and on top of Nick, he let out a laugh and pushed the dog off him and go out of bed. He dressed quickly, fixed his hair and looked down at the dog “Ready to go for a run boy” When the dogs heard those words he got visible excited.

It was important for both of them to maintain their shape. Nick and him had been training for a K-9 position before Nick had been enlisted back to Afghanistan, at that time someone had taken over his training. It had been hard to leave the dog, and even harder to come back to him. The dog could tell there was something wrong and it had really upset him. Petting the dogs head he bent down and put his harness on him then attached a long leash.

Opening the door he felt the crisp morning hit his face. He stepped outside and locked the door with Rex following then proceeded to step down off the porch and began his run. He was currently wearing a black wife beater that showed off his muscles, and grey sweat pants and running shoes. When Rex was on the job he would normally take the lead, however, he wasn’t on the job and Rex preferred to jog by Nick’s side with him.

Nick was truly glad he had this dog, it was the only one who didn’t give him much sympathy...

[larry]

Larry thought about the day ahead while he rinsed his teacup in the sink of his small kitchen. He placed the cup next to half a dozen others and frowned. He would have to do his dishes soon. But work came first, and while nothing of importance sprang to his mind that would need attention at Willow Brooke, he would still be there. The new students and the new teacher had filled out all the paperwork, but he had a debt to pay to Willow Brooke and Jared Martins. And a debt was a debt - especially when it was one that added to his little darling's happiness.

On that thought he put on his jacket and left the house, locking the door behind him, before he entered the Land Rover Freelander parked in front of his house He had only bought the car because he thought it was a sensible choice for the climate and road conditions the fall and winter of Montana would provide, and so far it had served him well, even if it was a used car.

But not today.

As much as he turned the key on and off and nudged the gas pedal, all he could get out of the car was a gurgling whine and a few sputtering burps from the engine.

"Great."

Larry got out of the car and opened the hood, but as much as he stared at the engine with his dark eyes that had intimidate a few judges and lawyers in his time, he could not will the engine to obey him.

He looked up and around, trying to decide what his first priority should be. As far as he knew he had nothing waiting on his desk at Willow Brooke, but he should at least let people know that he would be late, unless he could find someone to help him fix this car soon.

[Nicholas Brandon]

Nick had been jogging on lost in thought, having his iPod in let him loose himself in his own little word. That was until he felt his dog almost ripping his arm. For a supposedly well trained dog he had a mind of his own. Before he knew it the leash broke, which left Nick standing there looking completely confused, that leash was supposed to be strong.

He finally looked up to see Rex bounding towards a man looking into the hood of his car. His eyes got wide, why the heck would he want to go after him. Stupid dog. Police dog no less, great that would look fabulous. He could picture the headlines now Police dog unravels and attacks innocent man. He began to jog after the dog, calling his name, which the dog proceeded to ignore. Nick felt so frustrated, after all the training they had done and even on the job work they had done he proceed to ignore Nick now.

Finally right before he reached the man Nick very firmly yelled “Rex DOWN!”, almost instantly the dog laid down on the spot right in front of the man wagging his tail. He wasn’t necessarily wagging his tail because he want to be friendly to this guy, but because chasing criminals was a game for him. Nick rolled his eyes as the dog finally listened. He was going straight back to training once he got a hold of him, he couldn’t believe what just happened, how embarrassing.

Catching up to the dog and the man he looked at the man apologetically, “I’m so sorry...” he paused for a moment looking at the dog, “He’s a little too enthusiastic about his job” He couldn’t totally blame the dog, that work ethic was GREAT when he was actually going after a criminal. That dog would hunt anyone down. In fact Nick doesn’t remember anyone ever getting away from him, both in training and in the field.

Looking at the man he took in the situation, “Need any help?”. It was the least he could do after his dog almost attacked him.

[larry]

Larry was startled when he heard a man shout out 'Down', as he hadn't noticed either man or dog before, focused on his own thoughts as he was. But he was glad the dog obeyed his owner readily. A dog attack was the last thing he needed now - or ever.

"Yes, well..." he replied hesitantly as he took a good look of the man and then the dog.

Staring the dog firmly in the eyes he stated just as firmly: "Rex? So you are a king? Never sued royalty before, but if you make one wrong move we'll see each other in court, count on it."

He had gotten used to horses, even had taken some riding lessons, but horses were about the only animals he could ever imagine getting along with, and that mostly because Sarah loved them so much and he wanted to understand his daughter and her likes better. Dogs were pretty alien to him, but being firm with them would not be such a bad idea. Being firm and decisive worked in most situations for Larry.

"If you know something about cars I wouldn't mind a little help. It worked fine yesterday, but right now it simply doesn't start. I suspect it might be the battery, but cars are really not my expertise." He looked the stranger over again and stepped onto the sidewalk to make some room.

"And my offer to have you take a look at my car should not be in any way construed to be an offer to enter into a binding service contract, implied or otherwise." The tiniest hint of a wry smile played around his lips as he added just as dryly: "Sorry, lawyer joke. But I would appreciate some help."

[Nicholas Brandon]

Rex listened to the man talk to him, but his tail never stopped wagging. “Rex here” Nick said to the dog, and the dog jumped up and was right by his side. He moved over towards the car, “I know I little something” He said in a friendly manner. It was mostly him knowing how to fix army vehicles, but regular cars weren’t too much different on the inside. He moved over beside the car and looked into it.

His head was stuck in there for a good 5 minutes messing around with things before he stood back. “It’s actually the wire connecting the battery, it’s loose. You likely will just need to have the wire replaced and until then it’ll be off and on problems. It should run now...” he paused for a moment, “If it doesn’t it could still be the battery.” He shrugged a bit.

Suddenly he realized he didn’t introduce himself. Holding his right hand out he introduced himself, “I’m Nick by the way, town sheriff” He smiled likely. Even when he smiled though there was darkness hidden behind it. While he loved the military events that took place will serving them really messed his life up. These were things he wouldn’t talk about...the military told him to make an appointment with the Correctional facilities psychiatrist, but he really had no will to do that.

The dog had backed off and was lying close to Nick. He looked a lot more relaxed if you will than he had before. He was no longer interested in chasing this man down now that he realized Nick was okay with him. Nick bent down to scratch the dog, “silly boy” he gave him a scratch. Then looking up at the man he spoke once more, “I think I’ve seen you around town, you’re the lawyer right? I’ve been meaning to come introduce myself.”

[larry]

Larry just leaned against the nearest tree as he watched the man work on his car. When he finally spoke, Larry didn't like what he heard, but he supposed those things just couldn't be helped, and a lose wire wouldn't be terribly difficult to fix. "It's only a few miles to work, so I can always walk if it gives me trouble again." He liked the convenience of a car, but he also liked to stay in shape, so perhaps this was actually a good opportunity to attend to the latter. As long as it didn't start to rain cats and dogs he would be just fine without a car, if it became necessary.

"Lu Shan Chien," he introduced himself as he grabbed Nick's hand and squeezed it. "Feel free to call me Larry." The latter was far better than having to wince every time someone tried to wrap their tongues around his real name and hopelessly mutilate it.

Larry watched the guy attend to his dog for a moment and felt somewhat disappointed. The dog had very much a mind of his own that he hadn't cracked with his stare. But as long as his glare still worked on human beings, everything would be fine. After all, it was just a dog, and they very rarely ended up in the witness box.

"The lawyer?" One of his eyebrows rose ever so slightly. "Yes, I would suppose you could call me that around here."

He had heard that the town had a new sheriff, but that didn't bother him much. His work was far more about the formalities and contracts surrounding Willow Brooke, even if he sometimes did work for the locals. Chances were slim that his work would bring him in regular contact with the sheriff. If any of the kids made trouble, Jared would - most likely - deal with it himself. And from what his daughter had told him - and he had seen of the man himself - Jared was more than capable of keeping a few teenagers in line.

"I do hope you wanted to introduce yourself because you need a lawyer? Complementing my regular income with something extra is always welcome." His tone almost betrayed a hint of humor, but only almost. Making a habit of not showing his emotions had always served him well in court, had become almost second nature.

[Nicholas Brandon]

“Nice to meet you Larry” making a mental note to remember his name Nick stood up once more listening to him speak. Chuckling a bit, “While I didn’t mean it that way” he paused for a moment, “well to be honest I haven’t had much luck with lawyers.” He smirked a little bit, remembering that girl from his past, she had been too smart for him to play his games. And it ended with him being smacked in the face.

Listening to him speak again he half smiled, “If you can tell me how the hell to get the military to let me go back to work....then I will pay you whatever you want”. Nothing in his body or face betrayed the pain he felt on a daily basis. Thank goodness for the military for knocking that right out of him he thought. He so badly wanted to return to the job, go back overseas because it’s all that there was for him now, but NOPE, the military told him he wasn’t emotionally fit enough to returned.

He looked at Larry for a moment, he was an interesting guy. One with a dry sense of humour, tough attitude, very put together. Typical lawyer... He figured he was quite a good lawyer, you can always tell the good ones by their demeanour. “I’m the town sheriff by the way” he offered up. Nick wasn’t the best at making conversation, he never was, he could give orders really well, but talking to strangers had never been an easy thing for him. It wasn’t that he lacked the confidence, it’s just, the military was so structured and other soldiers were much like brothers, the real world wasn’t so close and wasn’t so welcoming

[larry]

"Hah," Larry proclaimed, "when it comes to lawyers, luck has nothing to do with it."

His eyes narrowed as Nick spoke about the military. It was clear to see that the sheriff was fit and firm, and now Larry thought he could guess where he had been turned into that shape.

"Being a lawyer is not so different from being a soldier," he said, matter-of-factly, "You need to know the battlefield, know what weapons you have at your disposal, and do some recon on your enemy. Only that we lawyers fight with words, not bullets, but the principels are the same." The edge of his mouth curled up in a semi-smile. "Strategy and tactics, tactics and strategy."

And sometimes, his thoughts told him, someone could be his own worst enemy. Then no amount of planning would help. He had been too damn stupid to realize it for years, but that was the past. Jared Martins had helped his daughter, and for that he owed him a debt of gratitude he could never fully repay - never repay in his mind, as Jared had simply told him that it was okay and that that was what Willow Brooke was for. And yet it felt all wrong. He had made a mistake with his life, and his daughter had suffered for it. There was no way that could be 'okay'.

Perhaps the same went for the sheriff too. If Nicolas had been in the military and badly wanted to go back there... Larry could very much understand how it was to lose a home, how it felt to see something one was used to slipping through one's fingers.

"If you really want to get back there so badly, just call me and we can go over it. No promises, but I owe you now, I guess, so I can at least take a look at your case - pro bono for now."

Larry moved to the hood of the car, stepping around the dog, and lowered the hood almost completely, before he gave it a short sharp slam.

[Nicholas Brandon]

Nicholas listened to him speak about lawyers being like soldiers and smiled, “You make a good point,” he didn’t disagree at all, “at least most of the time your words don’t kill.” He looked down a bit. Nick had killed people before, but he had always stood by he wouldn’t shoot for no good reason. He only killed those who shot at him first. Still it wasn’t fun killing people, but he did it to protect his family. It was in his blood and he didn’t know any other way. Plus he was deeply attached to the military.

Nick smiled, “Thank for the offer, it’s appreciated” He paused a bit... “They’re probably right though; some time away from it all might do me good.” He didn’t feel the need to share his constant nightmares, or the fact that he was with his brother when he died and the last time he held onto a rifle or tried to go through any training sessions he simply broke down.

“How did you end up coming here?” He looked over to Larry, hoping he wasn't prying to much. He hadn’t been here long, but he had been here long enough to know you didn’t just come to this small town just because. Heck, Nick didn’t even realize this place exists till they told him he was going to be coming here and working as a sheriff. He knew he needed it, as much as he wanted back, he need to get away from his family and all the people telling him it wasn’t his fault.

It was his fault, and what bugged him more was people telling him it wasn’t. So here he was, here to deal with his problems, he figured in a 6 months or so he would hopefully be ready to leave, there was nothing here for him anyways. At least not yet.

[larry]

No, his words had never killed - not a person anyway, that much Nicolas had gotten right. Mergers and acquisitions had been Larry's speciality, together with tax law and some knowledge of financing. Since starting to work at Willow Brooke he had broadened his horizon a bit, but criminal law had never been part of Larry's work, and he was glad for it. But he had helped kill some companies, and with that a lot of workplaces and jobs. He wasn't proud of that, but neither did he truly regret that part of his work. He had been just an instrument in those proceedings, someone facilitating the needs of a client who already had his mind made up.

"You are welcome," he replied and added: "If you change your mind, let me know." He gestured at the small house behind them, before reaching for his wallet and drawing out a business card. He stuffed his wallet away again and held out the card with both hands. "Here's my number, in case you ever need it."

That done, he rested on the hood of the car. "My daughter works at Willow Brooke. That's how I learned about it." It wasn't completely true, as he had started his work at the camp a few days before Sarah's return, but that she had once been a student there was something Nick didn't need to know. "If you ever run into a twenty-year old Chinese girl around here, chances are that will be her."

Of course that only explained how he knew about Willow Brooke, but not why he worked there. If he left it at that, the sheriff would perhaps ask again, dig a little deeper - as would be fitting for a law enforcement officer. Pre-empting that was in Larry's best interest, so he went on saying, "and as my daughter likes Willow Brooke I want it to succeed."

[Nicholas Brandon]

“I will definitely let you know if I do,” He would need at least a lawyer if he ever decided to try and do that and maybe a whole army of his own. He knew very well it was hard to win anything against the military especially when it was supported so much by the government. If he ever tried to go after them it would have to be a clear cut mistake on their part of you would never win. How bad would it look the military getting sued?

Nicholas took his number, looking at it briefly then tucking it into the pocket of his track pants; “Thanks” He was sure he would need it at some point eventually. Be it he himself needing it or some criminal who he was charging. He could at least be nice to the criminal and give them a decent lawyer. At least from the look and sound of Larry he figured he was at least a decent lawyer.

Listening to him speak about why he was here he smiled a bit, “That’s great, you too must be close” He knew he might be making an assumption, but he figured if they both came to work in the same place they must have some sort of relationship. He thought back to his own relationship with his family, they had been so close knit until his brother died. Nick figured it was partly his fault, he pulled away from his family blaming himself even though they didn’t blame him, he couldn’t understand who they couldn’t.

He was supposed to look after his little brother over there, and in some cruel twist someone let him live instead of his brother. He wished everyday he was the one who died and his brother had lived. At least if it was the older brother dying the younger one didn’t have the same feeling that they should protect their younger sibling. The rest of his family was still relatively close, but he also knew that him being around there blaming himself put a strain on them, which is part of the reason he had chosen to leave.

[larry]

"We get along." Larry carefully chose his words. He didn't want to be impolite and just shrug off the question, but he neither had any intention to tell the sheriff very much about himself - or Sarah. Not that he was completely certain himself where they stood to begin with. They certainly got along better than a few years ago, but he suspected it wasn't always easy for her, working in the same place as her father.

"As I said, she is twenty now. I let her live her own life as much as she pleases." That, at least summed it up nicely, and was completely truthful to boot.

"But speaking of Willow Brooke... I should better get going. Duty calls." Larry could more or less set his own work hours, as long as he was around when Jared, or someone else, needed his help. That meant at least checking for new work on his desk not too late in the morning, and he had to stop by the gas station along the way, inquire if they had someone who could do a more permanent repair of his car.

He bowed his head to Nicholas. "Thank you again for your help. I am sure we will see each other again."