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“Good,” said TJ. “I want you to tell the crew to report to the mess deck. Tell them the ship is now under the control of the US military, and no one will be hurt.”

The man complied, using the ship’s intercom to make a vessel-wide announcement.

TJ spoke into his radio. “Eagle, ship is secure. You can touch down. We’re going to start searching for the dogs.”

“Roger,” replied the aircrew.

“Dogs,” the captain stated to TJ. “There are dogs in gym.”

“Mike, you and Bianca head down and check out the cafeteria and the gym. Rick, Gar, and I will secure the Koreans.”

“Roger, moving now,” replied Mike.

Mike let Axe lead down the superstructure’s internal staircase. The dog would dart ahead to the next landing then wait, glancing impatiently over his shoulder to encourage Mike and Bianca to move faster.

“We’ve got work on this floor,” said Mike when they reached Bravo deck. According to the orientation map in the landing, this was the main deck for amenities, including the messing facility.

Reluctantly, Axe joined them as they approached the mess. They could hear voices as they moved along the corridor. Then, when they stepped through the doors, the ten or so men inside fell quiet. Mike guessed they were a Filipino crew, common across the world’s merchant fleets.

“Do any of you speak English?” he asked.

Over half the men answered or raised a hand.

“OK, we’re not here for the crew. We’re here to recover animals that were stolen by the Koreans. You will all be perfectly safe if you remain here until your captain directs you otherwise. We appreciate your cooperation.” He closed the doors, and Bianca slipped a thick cable tie through the handles and pulled it tight.

“OK, Axe, lead the way,” said Mike.

The dog let out an excited bark and dashed along the hall onto the stairs and down the stairwell to Alpha deck. Mike and Bianca ran to keep up but lost him for a moment. They soon found him pawing the door to the gymnasium.

Mike cracked the door, and Axe burst into the room, barking in excitement. A cacophony of high-pitched yelps and barks assaulted their ears as they entered.

“Rick would not be happy with this,” said Mike when he saw that all the gym equipment had been shoved into one corner to make room for the cages containing Saber and the pups.

Using trauma shears from his rig, Mike cut the ties securing Saber’s container and opened the door. The dog gave his hand an appreciative lick before ducking past him to embrace Axe. Licks, snuffles, and excited barks ensued as they jumped all over each other.

“If only every mission ended with such joy,” said Bianca, a huge smile on her face.

Mike released the pups, and they joined the fray, jumping all over their rescuers, assaulting them with wet kisses.

“All call signs, the hounds have been recovered. I say again, the hounds have been recovered,” he transmitted over his radio.

He and Bianca spent the next few minutes fitting harnesses, muzzles, and leads from Mike’s backpack. Then, when the dogs were ready, he radioed the others to meet them at the gym.

“The pups have had basic training,” he explained once the team was assembled. “But they’ve never seen a helicopter. We’ll need to keep them on a short leash.” Each of them had a pup; Mike also had Axe, and Rick took Saber.

Mike was the last out of the superstructure with Axe and Hatchet. As he passed the door to the engine room, the retired working dog paused and then sat with one paw raised.

“Guys,” Mike transmitted. “Axe is indicating he’s found an IED.”

“Where?” responded TJ.

“Engine room. I might have a quick look.” He released Axe from his harness and kept Hatchet tight against his leg. “Axe, seek.”

The dog descended the stairs into the engine room and immediately moved to an adjoining bulkhead door. He sat in front of it and pawed the door.

A sensor light above the door came on as Mike opened it, revealing rows and rows of blue chemical barrels stacked on pallets. Axe sat before one of the barrels and raised his paw. Mike took a flashlight from his rig and examined the label on the side. “Holy shit,” he mouthed before activating his radio. “Guys, Deb said the shipment was sugar, right?”

“Yeah,” replied TJ.