**Diary Entry 12th October 2023**
Today, something quite extraordinary happened at St. Marys Secondary School in Manchester. The school had organised a safety awareness event, and the local constabulary sent one of their K-9 officers, Sergeant Harris, along with his German Shepherd, Duke. The hall was packed with sixth-formers, teachers, and parentsall eager to see the demonstration. Sniffer dogs always impress the lads, but this wasnt just about showing off. Duke had a reputationfinding drugs, detecting concealed weapons, obeying every command without hesitation.
Sergeant Harris strode onto the stage, Duke trotting beside him, calm as ever, though his sharp eyes never stopped scanning the room. The pupils nudged each other, whispering excitedly.
This isnt just any dog, the sergeant said with quiet pride. Hes my partner. And he doesnt make mistakes.
He ran through the usual drillsDuke sniffed out a fake pistol hidden in a rucksack, then lay down beside a lad with a planted bag of mock explosives. The crowd clapped.
And theneverything changed.
Just as the sergeant was wrapping up, Duke froze. His ears pricked up, his hackles rose. He stared dead ahead, fixated on a girl in the third row. Before anyone could react, he lunged, barking furiously.
Duke! Down! Harris barked, but the dog ignored him.
The Shepherd crashed into a petite, mousy girl named Emilyalways quiet, always keeping to herself. She clutched a notebook to her chest like a shield. But Duke wasnt fooled. He snarled, teeth bared, knocking her to the ground. The hall erupted. Teachers scrambled to pull him off.
Heel! Harris yanked Duke back by the collar, but the dog still growled, his eyes locked on Emily, his chest heaving.
The sergeant was stunned. He never acts like this without reason. Never.
Emily trembled, tears welling. Most assumed a mix-upwrong scent, nerves. But Harris wasnt convinced. Miss, Ill need you and your parents to come down to the station. Theres something we need to check.
Her parents protestedscandalised, mortifiedbut Dukes instincts were unshakable.
At the station, they took her fingerprints.
And thats when the truth came out.
The prints matched a woman in the national databasea wanted criminal.
Harris turned slowly to the trembling schoolgirl. Care to explain or should I?
She sighed, and in an instant, the timid act vanished. Her posture straightened, her voice dropped to something colder, older. Fine. Games up.
Her real name was Victoria. Thirty years old, not sixteen. A rare genetic condition had kept her looking like a childsmall, delicate, easily dismissed. For years, shed used it to her advantageburglaries, fraud, even a string of jewellery heists.
Her prints were everywheresafes, door handles, flatsbut no one ever suspected the teenage girl in the school uniform. Shed enrolled in different schools, posed as an orphan, changed names, stayed one step ahead.
No one wouldve ever known, she smirked. If not for that bloody dog.
Harris glanced at Duke, still watching her, unblinking.
See, Victoria, he said softly, people get fooled. But my partner? Never.
**Lesson learned today:** Appearances lie. Trust the instinctsof man or beastwhen they tell you somethings not right.