Charming: The Slipper - 1. Chapter One

I was losing control. Everything was a blur as everyone was against me both figuratively…and literally.

The incident began when I first entered a circular, tiered arena through a set of rusted double doors. The place was full of men of varying tones of monochrome that also made the area look like a black and white photograph with the dim lighting adding to the effect. However, looking at the stage of the arena that was splattered with red brought into the light the atrocious actions that were going to taking place here.

This place was not the casual business meeting either. It was where dogs fought each other to the death, and that was the reason why I was here, to examine the event as another person of the audience and record what was happening through a small camera disguised as a necktie bar of my custom suit.

This mission was not the most difficult undercover job I ever done, but it was important nonetheless. The only difficult part was going to be observing the event without acting, to stop the horrendous show and save those dogs, so they could have a better life other than fighting. However, I kept telling myself that those dogs on the stage fighting were too late to save, and that I needed to successfully accomplish this mission to prevent more dogs from experiencing the same fate.

I had to do it for those dogs and for my Aunt Cindi who was the head of the undercover agency that I worked for. I needed to prove to her that I can really do this, that I was qualified for this job, and that I was more than just a case of nepotism to the other undercover agents.

Determined, I walked down to the lowest tier of the arena, and then I waited as the place continued to be filled with other patrons. The crowd was indeed a fire hazard, and I already noted in my head where all the fire doors were just in case I needed to escape for more reasons than one. I have learned from my previous mistakes, and I would not screw up this time by not noting my environment and what to do when things have gone to shit.

After the last few men entered the arena, the doors then closed, and the lights above brightened the stage below to an almost blinding intensity. A booming voice was heard that greeted the audience to tonight’s show, saying it was going to be “bloody good”. I took a deep breath and prayed to the Godmother that I would make it through this, coming out with the recording necessary to shut this place down and arrest everyone associated with this illegal dog fighting ring.

The announcer riled the men around me who all seemed to be just as wild and untamed as the dogs that were going to be pitted against each other. The announcer then said that the first battle was going to be a warm-up for a dog that won multiple fights and had the many scars to prove it.

I wondered what that warm-up entailed, and that was when a large dog walked onto the stage through the far entrance. It was barking viciously with saliva spewing from its mouth; it was like a lion in a Roman colosseum that was ready to attack and kill anybody within the same area. The dangerous beast was restrained by a chain attached to its leash that was being held by a muscular man, and I made sure the camera captured the dog that had so many scars on its body versus actual fur that was matted with dirt.

Yelling was heard, and I looked at the other entrance to see a smaller dog, half the size as the other, being pulled onto the stage by a man who was holding its leash. It looked so terrified with all four of its paws firmly on the ground as it was pulled to the center of the stage. My heart ached for the poor creature who was obviously not a fighting dog, and it looked like it was about to piss itself as it shook with its tail between its legs.

I knew these shows were cruel with dogs attacking each other for the entertainment of humans, but to send a scared, small dog onto the stage just to be killed merciless by another, larger dog was beyond inhuman…it was soulless.

I bit my bottom lip as I watched the dog continue to shake with its big eyes as the man unleashed its collar before walking away. The other dog barked even louder as it tried to inch itself to the helpless dog; the only person holding it back was the strength of its supposed owner with both hands on the chain. Through the announcer riling the audience, the large dog barking and the sound of my own heart pounding through my chest, I could hear the scared whimper of the smaller dog who I swore looked at me as if I was its only hope for survival.

I couldn’t move a muscle at first, the voices of the other agents taunting me, Cindi’s voice expressing her disappoint because I screwed up another mission and my own voice in my head telling me to stay where I was to the record what was certainly going to be bloody massacre. The voice kept telling me to not let my emotion get the better of me; I needed to think rationally if I was going to successfully take this place down with the recording of the show. The dog’s sacrifice was certainly going to give everyone involved with this show many years in prison. The voice was literally shouting at me to not intervene and to keep recording.

But…I just couldn’t.

As the chain of the larger dog was detached from its collar, and the unhinged animal sprinted towards the helpless dog, I quickly jumped over the wall in front of me and landed my feet onto the stage. Everything was in slow motion as I focused my eyes onto the scared dog, and I sprinted to its defense. I scooped the dog into my arms like it was small child, and I held it close to my chest as I ran back to the wall that jumped over like I was performing a high jump at the Olympics.

The larger dog was barking ferociously as it tried unsuccessfully to jump over the wall, and I continued to hold the smaller dog that was whimpering and licking me on the chin. I was glad that I managed to rescue the dog from its deadly fate, but as I refocused my attention back to my surroundings, I knew I was beyond screwed.

Other than the dog whose barking echoed through the arena, the place was void of any other sounds, and I looked at the men who all had mixed expressions on their face from shock to stoic, and some with severe expressions on their wrinkled faces that spoke more about their vehement disapproval than any words could do.

With the poor dog still in my arms, I tried to move to one of the fire doors, but I was halted by the legions of men blocking every possible path I had planned out. They soon surrounded me, and all I could do was press myself against the wall where the other dog was trying desperately to jump over to rip both me and the smaller dog into pieces. I had no more options other than pray, pray to the Godmother and anyone else above that I got out of here alive.

“Well, well, well. What do we have here?”

I quickly turned my head to see a bald man in an expensive-looking white suit with a turtleneck sweater walking down the stairs to my location. He looked like a villain of a superhero comic book from just the way he smiled maliciously at me, his hands glowing with different rings that could prove to be a deadly weapon that I hoped wouldn’t be used on me.

Stopping on the last step, the man placed clasped his hands together, and with that same smile said, “Do you understand that you ruined a perfectly good opening to our show?”

I remained silent; the dog still licking my chin and completely oblivious to what was occurring. The man then chuckled, and he opened his suit coat to pull out a handgun. He proceeded to aim the weapon at me, and I swore I was about to piss myself, never had my life been so directly threatened before, and I was frozen in place. Right then I was shaking, forced into a position that I shouldn’t be with a vicious creature ready to kill me on the spot.

I closed my eyes, and the firing of a bullet was heard. I thought I was dead, but when I opened my eyes, I saw a large, red splotch on the man’s chest that quickly bloomed to the rest of his sweater. The man looked completely shocked with his lips quivering, dropping his gun before another shot of a gun was heard. I saw the man’s head whip backwards as he fell to the ground, shot in the head and most definitely dead.

Suddenly, all the lights of the arena were deactivated, and the entire area was pitch black. My eyes couldn’t adjust at all to the darkness, and the audience were panicking as they pushed and shoved me, causing me to almost lose my balance.

Through all the panic, someone grabbed me by the lapel of my suit and started pulling me effortless through the darkness. I stumbled a few times, and whoever was leading me through the arena did not stop once. I still held the dog close to me, probably just as confused as I was.

Suddenly I saw the dim, blinking exit sign before the door opened, and I stepped outside into an alleyway where a familiar car was parked. The passenger’s door was opened, and I was quickly shoved inside before the person, a woman went around the front of the car and sat on the driver’s seat. The car then started, and we zoomed out of the alleyway and into the street. I looked at the woman who was wearing a pair of black, night-vision goggles that she roughly took off and dropped onto the dashboard.

One look into her intense, blue eyes, and I knew I was screwed for an entirely different reason.

“I’m sorry, Cindi!”

“Don’t, Max. We’ll discuss this when we’re back at the agency. For now…just don’t.” Cindi sighed heavily as she drove her car through the dark streets of the downtown area of the city.

I remained silent, and I looked down at the dog who was panting lightly with its long tail wagging. Having the dog in my lap was the only solace that I had; everything else was a complete failure, and it was all my fault…but what wasn’t?

I knew I shouldn’t have sacrificed the entire mission just for one dog; I could’ve saved countless more dogs if I just did what I was ordered to do by my superior who also was my aunt, so that was more pressure for me to do what was deemed necessary. I screwed up majorly, and I don’t think I deserve to have another chance at this.

I’m just too kind most of time, like not letting a scared dog to die viciously for example even though it would damage my chances of ever gaining any respect in the agency. But in all honesty, I wouldn’t have done anything different, just the way I deviated from the plan to save the dog could’ve been done more elegantly though. However, I doubted Cindi would take that into consideration again when it came the time to pack everything up and leave.

***

“You’re too soft, Max!” Cindi said after she closed the door to her office.

I winced as I sat down on the chair in front of Cindi’s desk. “I’m sorry, Cindi.”

Walking to her desk and sitting down on the black, leather chair, Cindi clasped her hands on her lap and looked at me with what looked like pity. “Max…you had one objective. Just one. All you had to do was record what was happening at the arena, so that we had plenty of evidence to show the authorities that the place was indeed a place where there was illegal dog fighting… And now because you exposed your cover to save one dog, the people who are run the dog fighting ring are going to relocate, and we have to start all over from scratch to find their new location.”

“I know, Cindi. I know. There’s no excuse for what I did. I just…I just saw that dog about to be killed for no reason and… I screwed up, okay. Just tell me that you’re going to let me go, so I can start packing all my stuff.” I petted the dog’s head with head down.

Sighing, Cindi stood up from her desk chair and took the seat next to me. Sitting down, she scooted closer to me, and I could smell the gentle scent of her perfume of natural flowers. She placed a hand on my shoulder, and it calmed my nerves a little.

“Max. You know that I love you, right?”

I nodded, and I faced my aunt who was looking at me sympathetically. “I know…otherwise, why would you have given me a position in your agency?”

“I gave you this position because I know you worked your ass off in the academy, Max, and I want someone like you to be part of this agency because of your hard-working attitude. You…You just need to understand that the end goal is what is most important, that tough decisions need to be made for the mission. The undercover missions I placed you and my other agents are based on the end results. You can’t just jeopardize the mission just because one person or dog is trouble, and that’s what you must understand, Max. Small sacrifices must be made for the greater good… I spent most of my childhood under my stepmother’s rule, sacrificing my happiness, freedom and dignity just so I wouldn’t have to live on the streets. And now here I am, running my own agency and married to my Prince Charming who gives all the happiness that I always wanted when I was younger.”

I nodded. “I’m sorry for what my grandma did to you…and my mom.”

“It’s okay, Max. I moved on since those times, and I’ll be here to help you regardless. Do you understand?”

“I do.”

“Good.” Standing up, Cindi returned to her desk, and began typing on the keyboard of her computer. “I wonder who shot that man back at the arena.”

“It wasn’t you?” I asked.

“Of course not. I don’t resort to violence unless there’s no other option. That is why I opted to turning off all the lights, so I could get you out of there without having to kill anybody. However, it seems that the man running the ring was killed by an unknown person. Hopefully, the footage you captured will provide me some hints to who perpetrated this assassination.”

“Is there anything I can do?”

“No, that’s okay, Max. Just go home…and maybe give that dog a bath if you’re deciding to keep it.”

“Oh, yeah…sure. Bye, Cindi.”

“Bye, Max. And think about what I just told you.”

“I will.”

I walked out of my aunt’s office with the dog whose odor was starting to become noticeable to me. He indeed needed a bath, and I’m sure I had some leftover salami or other meats in my refrigerator that I can feed to this dog before I could go the store and buy him proper dog food. Never have I considered having a pet due to my busy work schedule, but I couldn’t just give this dog to a shelter with the fear that he may not be adopted. No, he was going to be under my care, and I at least had something to look forward to once I go home after a long day of work. Just hoping he was house broken.