Once Maverick had done his business, they went back inside, and Rob searched his phone for “alarm companies” in the area. Two were in Knoxville, and one was in Ridgeview. He called the Ridgeview number.
“Protect and Defend Alarm Service, this is Frank speaking,” a man’s voice answered.
“Do you sell alarm systems or just monitor them?”
“Both. We have several types we can install, or you can install some types yourself. We can monitor it locally, or get you set up with a national company, if you prefer.”
Rob explained what he was looking for.
“I’d like to come over. That way I can better advise you about what type of system you’ll need. It usually depends on the amount of area covered and the layout. Some systems operate on the perimeter of the home itself and others can cover the yard. You’ll decide whether you just need a perimeter alarm on the house itself, or if you want the yard covered.”
“I definitely think we need to have the yard covered. Somebody came over a five-foot fence and put poisoned meat in the yard for the dog. They hid it under a bush near the fence.”
“Man, that’s sick. I agree. You’ll want the yard monitored.”
“When can you come over to look?”
“I’ve got some time this afternoon.”
Rob gave him the address, and they made an appointment. He wanted this done. Hopefully, MJ would go along with the idea. Nick would talk her into it, if he couldn’t. He wanted it ordered and paid for before MJ could veto the idea.
He looked at his watch. He’d grab a sandwich and use the next hour reading a book he’d picked up. He selected the self-help book on PTSD for “warriors.” That was a nice way to think of himself. He took a bite of his ham and cheese sandwich, and opened the book, getting the lay of the land about what it covered.
Okay, he could do this. He read the introduction and learned how pervasive PTSD was among veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan. It affected eleven to twenty percent of veterans, with more of them affected from a deployment in Iraq than Afghanistan. Interesting. Speculation was that veterans of the Iraq conflicts had seen more combat. He wasn’t sure about that but wouldn’t quibble about the impact either conflict had on vets like him. He didn’t need to win a contest about who had it worse. As far as he could tell from talking to other people who’d served in both countries, the experiences sucked, period.
He finished his lunch and rinsed his dishes, putting them into the dishwasher before returning to the book. He was halfway through Chapter One, when the doorbell rang. He glanced at his watch. Right on time.
He met Frank Deluzzia at the door and introduced himself. Frank was a thirty-something man dressed all in black. He wore a black polo shirt with a logo of a shield that looked like a law enforcement badge, with crossed swords under it. His shirt was tucked into black tactical pants. The man wore black work boots, and a baseball cap with the same logo.
Rob took Frank on a tour of the house and yard. “What do you think?” he finally asked the man.
“If it was me, I’d put motion-activated cameras around the perimeter of the lot, with an alarm that will go to your cell phone. We can aim them so they are less likely to be activated by animals. They might pick up your dog,” he said, gesturing toward Maverick, “but you’ll be able to eliminate him as a source pretty easily, I would guess.”
“Yes. We’re usually out with him. Since finding the poisoned meat, we’re keeping him on a leash, even in the backyard.”
“I get it. I’d do that too.”
“If you put in that system, what’s the cost?”
“It depends if you want us to monitor it. We can set it up to go to us and you, or just to you to monitor.” Frank quoted a figure for each service.
“I’d like to go with the monitored service, in case I’m not available to respond. We’ll probably want it to go to both of our cell phones, and also to you.”
“We monitor 24/7. I’ll set it up to go to your phones and any computers you designate.”
“When can you get it installed? I’d like to have it operational as soon as possible.”
“Tomorrow is Saturday, but I’ll come over and do it. It usually takes several hours, but it ought to be operational by the end of the day.”
“Perfect. Can I pay with a credit card?”
“Sure. No problem.”
“How did you get into this business?” Rob couldn’t stop himself from asking.
“After I got out of the service, I came back here to Ridgeview. I grew up here. As you might imagine, there weren’t a lot of jobs, so I took what I’d learned about security for Uncle Sam, and I apply it to the civilian population.”
“Good for you. I’m trying to figure out the future for myself now. I got a medical discharge about nine months ago.”
“What branch?”
“Marines. How about you?”
“Army.”
They both reached out at the same time to shake each other’s hand and agreed Frank would stop over around eight the next morning.
It was nice
