The dog did not move.

Instead, the German Shepherd turned fully toward the officers, standing squarely between them and Ernesto. Its stance was firm. Protective.

A low warning growl rumbled from its chest — not aimed at the man, but at anyone approaching him.

Gasps rippled through the line.

“Delta, stand down,” Valeria called, her voice strained.

The dog did not obey.

Ernesto slowly raised his hands.

“Please,” he said softly. “He hasn’t hurt anyone. Look at him.”

The dog glanced back at Ernesto briefly, as if checking that he was still there.

Then it faced forward again, unwavering.

Valeria’s eyes fell to the harness.

There, partially hidden beneath the straps, was a scar.

Ernesto reached out slowly and lifted the edge of the harness, his fingers brushing the mark.

His face drained of color.

“No,” he whispered. “That scar…”

An officer frowned. “Do you recognize it?”

Ernesto swallowed hard.

“I had a partner,” he said. “Years ago. In the military. A German Shepherd.”

Valeria stiffened.

“This dog is named Delta,” she said carefully.

“That was his radio name,” Ernesto replied. “But when it was just us… I called him Shadow.”

The air seemed to stop moving.

Ernesto closed his eyes, and the pier faded away.

He was young again.
In the mountains.
The night thick with tension and uncertainty.

He remembered the dog guiding him through danger, sensing what humans could not, standing beside him without question.

Then came the explosion.
The chaos.
The moment when the dog pushed him clear.

When Ernesto woke later, he was told his partner had not survived.

He carried that loss quietly for years.

On the pier, his eyes opened again.

“They told me he was gone,” he said. “But that scar… it happened the day he saved us.”

Valeria’s breath caught.

Delta’s file came back to her mind. Injury during an incident. Transfer. Retraining. Years of service.

An officer checked records quickly.

“Commander,” he said softly, “the injury matches. The timeline fits.”

The dog relaxed slightly, pressing closer to Ernesto.

Ernesto whispered, “Shadow.”

The dog responded instantly.

It stepped forward and placed one large paw gently on Ernesto’s knee.

A gesture too specific to be coincidence.

Ernesto covered his mouth, overwhelmed.