by Laura Acton
Dan shook his head. “Today’s calls are flat out weird.”
The team chuckled, as Lexa said, “Yes, they are.”
Grace Christian Mission – 10:05 a.m.
Jon surveyed the scene. He wanted Dan nowhere near the man with the weapon. If he got shot again, the guilt would eat him alive. He heard Lexa over the headset just before the call. Her slip of fine and restatement of alright didn’t sit well with his gut. She needed a break, and he could use her skills to their advantage.
He doled out assignments. “Dan, Zulu One. Loki, grab a picture of the subject and try to identify him via facial recognition. Lexa, talk to the witnesses and see if anyone recognizes the man. I’ll cover the boss. Bram and Ray, find a way to the back of the nativity. We might need to come at him from behind to disarm him.”
Five responded, “Copy,” as Nick rejoined Jon at the vehicles.
Nick shared what he gleaned from the pastor of the church. “Team, he’s been here for about an hour. Pastor Fulton says our subject isn’t a member of the congregation. He hasn’t harmed anyone yet, only shot at the ground once when a woman asked him to get out of the cradle.”
Dan scanned the area, and the only option of a perch was the top of the command truck. He jumped on the hood and climbed up then set up his Remi. “I have the solution.”
“Anything of note?” Nick asked.
“Seems he is talking to himself. His eyes keep darting around, and he is restless. Might be on drugs.”
Lexa reported, “None of those gathered here can identify him.”
“Ray and I are in place. We are covered but have a direct path to him if necessary,” Bram whispered so as not to give away their position.
“Loki, anything yet?”
“No, Boss. Still running.”
“Alright, feed me if you find something.” Nick started towards the twitchy man behind Jon’s shield. Once they got to the point where the subject noticed they approached and turned the rifle in their direction, Nick said, “I’m Sergeant Nick Pastore of the Tactical Response Force. I’d like to talk. Can you tell me your name?”
“Jesus.”
“Thank you, Jesus. Can you tell me why you are here?”
“Why shouldn’t I be. This is my cradle, and I’m not leaving.” He tossed the plastic baby Jesus at the cops. “They put this damned thing in my place. I must protect what is mine, or they will steal it.”
Nick drew in a breath. With a closer look the man didn’t appear to be on drugs, so the other option was Jesus, probably not his real name, was delusional. He would have to be very careful in how he handled the situation.
It became evident after forty minutes of engaging in dialog with Jesus that he was irrational and Nick was getting nowhere. He glanced at Jon.
Jon spoke softly so his voice didn’t carry. “Dan, be ready to take PapaGulf if necessary. Bram, Ray, I’m going to distract Jesus, and I want you two to move in rapidly.”
Dan trained his scope on the mentally ill man. Not a shot he wanted to take, but he would adhere to the priority of life protocols to protect the safety of civilians and his team. The man appeared to need professional help and possibly medication, but now he was armed and a threat.
Nick stepped behind the shield for protection then Jon shouted, “Jesus, get out of the cradle now!”
Jesus’ attention entirely on Jon, he never saw Bram and Ray rush forward. Ray wrenched the rifle out of the subject’s hand while Bram manhandled Jesus. Bram took the deranged man to the ground and cuffed him in no time.
“Subject secured,” Bram said as he glanced up at Ray with a grin. His expression changed to concern. “Boss, Ray is hurt.”
Jon and Nick raced to them, Jon going to help Bram while Nick switched directions to go straight to Ray.
“What happened?” Nick asked.
“Careful.” Ray handed over the AK-47 to the boss as he kept his left hand squeezed in a tight fist hoping the added pressure would stem the bleeding. “Sliced my palm on the knife attached to the side of the weapon.”
Loki arrived before Lexa, his eyes rounded with worry for Ray.
“Let me see.” Lexa pulled out a pressure dressing. “Open your hand, squeezing is only making it bleed more.” Ray complied, and Lexa slipped off his glove to triage his injury, all gathered concerned with the depth of the cut.
Wrapping the bandage snugly around the wound, Lexa said, “Looks like that is going to need stitches. Keep it elevated above your heart for now to reduce bleeding.”
Placing his hand on his right shoulder, Ray said. “Hope they can fix this with only butterfly steri strips.”
Lexa gave Ray an exasperated look. She then noted the teasing glint in Ray’s eyes and lightly punched his bicep for yanking her chain.
“I’ll take him to the ER,” Loki offered.
“Go now, we can handle the wrap-up,” Nick instructed.
Dan approached the group with a white-haired older lady. “Boss, this is Mrs. Guntram, she is Jesus’, I mean Luther’s mother.”
The woman gazed at Luther a moment then turned to the sergeant. “I’m so sorry for the trouble Luther caused. He has a form of delusional schizophrenia and believes he is Jesus because he was born on December twenty-fifth. I thought something was up and we might need to adjust his meds.
“Luther left sometime this morning, not sure of when … then I found these.” She displayed a vial containing all the pills he should have taken. “Apparently, he stopped taking them a few months ago. What is going to happen to him now?”
“Where did he get the gun?” Nick asked.
“No idea. I don’t own weapons. They scare me and with his condition that is the last thing I would have in the house.”
“Is there a treatment facility that Luther has been seen in before?”
“Yes, an excellent one. The staff is all top-notch. I have their card right here.” Mrs. Guntram dug into her purse, pulled out a card, and held it out to the TRF officer. “The most insidious part of this disease is that when Luther is stable on his medication, he begins to believe he doesn’t need them which starts the vicious cycle of delusions all over again.”
Nick took the offered card from the mother who obviously cared a great deal for her ill son. “I think we can arrange for Luther to be transferred to the facility rather than staying in jail.”
“Bless you!” her eyes welled with tears. Years of dealing with schizophrenia wore her down, but the kindness these officers showed to her son shored her up again and renewed her faith in humanity.
Dan glanced at Lexa after Boss strode away with Mrs. Guntram to arrange Luther’s transfer from police custody to the treatment center. “How bad was Ray’s cut?”
“Pretty deep. Needs more than butterfly strips to keep it closed.” Lexa tilted her head teasing Dan as she started for the vehicle.
“Hey, butterflies work well,” Dan retorted following Lexa. What he left unsaid was, you like butterflies and I’d love to retrace yours tonight.
Blackbirds vs. Hawks
14
December 15
TRF HQ – Briefing Room – 11:45 a.m.
Dan slumped down into his chair along with Lexa, Bram, and Jon. This morning had been nonstop with three calls back to back. Luckily, each one had been resolved rather quickly, particularly for TRF, and with everyone except Ray ending up unharmed. He glanced up when Loki and Ray entered the room. Loki’s face alone told him Ray was alright. His smile broadened as he chattered away about the cute nurse who cleaned Ray’s cut.
“How’s the hand?” Jon turned an assessing eye on Ray.
“Eight stitches, but I’m approved for light duty.” After handing the note to Jon, Ray ambled to his regular seat.
“Woohoo, in the truck with me, buddy. Should be a fun afternoon.”
The team chuckled, Loki was a breath of fresh air.
Jon scanned the room. “Bram, Ray, superior work disarming Luther.”
Ray rested his hand on the table. “Did you
find out where he got the gun?”
Shaking his head, Jon said, “Not yet but Pope is investigating.”
Bram leaned back. “Are we adding this one to the weirdest call list this year?”
“Yesterday’s poultry pelting is still my pick.” Lexa grinned at Loki.
Nick entered and surveyed his team. They all appeared a little bushed. “Early lunch. We can debrief afterward. I have a ton of paperwork to do, so skedaddle.”
They didn’t need to be told twice.
Bram glanced at Jon. “I’m gonna run to a store to grab a few things that Kellie said the girls wanted for Christmas. You want to come?”
“Sure, I want to pick your brain for ideas for your girls anyway.”
“No drums!” Bram sternly voiced.
Jon chuckled as the two of them left the room.
Loki turned to Ray. “What do you want for lunch?”
A grin split Ray’s face. “I know just the place.”
Lexa laughed. “The Jamaican Parrot, right?”
Ray nodded at the same time Dan said, “Never been there. What kind of food do they serve?”
Loki bounced with excitement. “We must take Dan there. You love spicy, and Ray says the jerk chicken is the best. Too spicy for me though. I usually order their stew peas.”
“Sounds appealing.” Dan stood.
Nick watched as the four of them headed out of the briefing room together. Opening his lunch bag, withdrawing the peanut butter sandwich, he paused. This was Martin’s favorite. He eyed the pignoli cookies and decided to forego them today. Jon worked my butt off. Nick gingerly rubbed it. Well, tried to. He set to work on the injury report, glad Ray’s wound wasn’t more serious.
Jamaican Parrot Cafe – 12:15 p.m.
Dan dove into his meal of jerk chicken with rice, plantains, carrots, and green beans. He grinned at Ray who chose the chicken curry with roti, easier to eat one-handed. Lexa was enjoying her steamed fish and callaloo. Loki made short order of his stew and rice. Dan had been surprised to find Loki’s dish contained kidney beans and salted pork in a coconut milk base, instead of the green peas he imagined.
“Excellent food. I haven’t eaten Jamaican before. I like the fiery chicken, and the plantains are interesting.” Dan took another bite.
Ray grinned. “Been coming here a long time. Brought my first date here.”
Loki snickered. “A disaster in the making.”
“Shut up!” Ray gave Loki a warning glare.
Ignoring Ray, Loki started in on the story. “Ray brought her here and ordered the spicy chicken for them. All gentlemanly like ordering for the girl.”
“Annoying! Some parts of chivalry are so archaic. We can read and choose what we want,” Lexa mumbled.
Dan noted in the back of his mind. Don’t order for Lexa when we dine out.
“So the jerk chicken arrives, and Ray has told her it was the best thing ever. She takes one bite, and her mouth is on fire. Ray attempted to give her a glass of water but gave her a bath instead, as he spilled it down her dress. By this time, she is screaming at him. She stood and dumped the contents of her plate on Ray’s head before storming out.”
While Loki was talking, Ray surreptitiously added a generous dollop of curry sauce into the small remaining portion of Loki’s dish. Both Dan and Lexa caught him but decided Loki needed to learn a lesson about telling other’s tales.
Loki took a full spoonful as he ended the story and smirked at Ray.
Ray counted to three and was pleased when Loki started fanning his mouth with one hand and grabbing for his water with the other. He couldn’t hold in the laugh as Loki finished his glass and reached over for Lexa’s.
Lexa and Dan snickered.
“Not nice!” Loki exclaimed, after he put the fire out on his tongue, which made the others laugh harder.
“Serves you right. Should I tell him about your first date?” Ray eyed Loki.
“No.” Loki glanced at Dan. “So who you bringing to the party?”
“I’m going stag this year.”
“What, Dantastic partying alone?” Ray quipped.
Dan shrugged. “Only got back into town the night before we started our long-haul schedule. No opportunities.”
“Who’s your date, Lexa?” Loki inquired.
Dan couldn’t help it and teased, “Stan the Tan?”
Lexa moved fast as she landed a solid punch to Dan’s bicep.
“Ow! Damn, Lexa, that hurt.” Dan massaged his abused arm.
Loki’s face lit with amusement, his eyes bright. “See they hurt, don’t they? Lexa’s builds those muscles doing restoration.”
Ray smoothly said, “Welcome to the club. I only hope you don’t get your card punched as frequently as Loki does.”
“I don’t want to hear his name again.” Lexa glared at the guys.
Loki didn’t let the subject drop and innocently said, “Bram told me Stan wanted to prime your pipes. I’m not a household handyman, but even I know you don’t prime pipes, you prime pumps.”
Dan snickered.
“Ouch!” Loki rubbed his bicep. “What did I say wrong?”
“Well, you weren’t there so …” Dan trailed off and shifted his body out of Lexa’s reach noting her glare.
Ray decided to help out his buddies before they earned another tap from Lexa. He glanced at the beautiful red, blue, and yellow Macaw sitting on a perch in an enormous cage. “The parrot is a new addition to this place.”
Loki said, “Yeah it is. Sounds like the parrot’s previous owner didn’t like collie dogs because it keeps saying ‘kill the collies’ and ‘make em pay.’ Must be a subtle hint to pay the bill.”
Dan finished his last of his meal. “I like the food here. Thanks. I’m going to have to try the curry chicken next time.”
Their pagers all buzzed. Lexa spoke what they all knew, “We gotta go.”
Each pulled out cash to cover their meal plus tip and rushed out of the café. Lexa got into the driver’s seat, Dan entered the front passenger side, Loki and Ray hopped into the back, all put on their headsets, and buckled up.
As Lexa started the vehicle as Dan queried, “Tia, what’s the address?”
Tia informed the team, “Blackbird Industries on Fourth Avenue and Raven. An armed man is on the fourth floor of the building under construction. Employees of the Colly Brothers Construction Company say the man is a former employee, Darrius Hawks, and he has taken the owners hostage. Getting details for you.”
Blackbird Industries – 1:15 p.m.
Nick pulled up and found Jon and Bram already on scene. Dan, Lexa, Ray, and Loki were a few minutes away still.
Tia reported, “Here’s what I found out about Hawks. As the employees said, he previously worked for the company. He was injured while working on another building the Colly’s company contracted to build. Darrius fell four stories a year ago, today. He broke both legs, eight ribs, an arm, and cracked his skull. He was lucky to survive. Since then he has been unable to work. His medical file indicates he suffers from debilitating headaches and vertigo.”
Nick peered up to see four men scrunched together, standing on a steel girder four floors above. “So he blames them for his accident?”
Scrolling down, Tia responded, “Yes. Darrius claimed unsafe working conditions. Colly Brothers Construction countered, alleging he regularly failed to follow safety precautions. The company’s lawyers attested they fired Darrius for drinking at lunch before his mishap. Medical records from the day of the fall indicate trace amounts of alcohol in his system.
“The lawyers presented paperwork to the workman’s compensation board showing Darrius had been written up numerous times for poor work standards. Darrius contended they fabricated the reports to show him in a bad light because he made allegations that they cut corners.
“Mr. Hawks also accused the four brothers of trying to kill him by pushing him off the fourth floor, but nothing was ever substantiated. The WCB review board sided with the contractor and
denied compensation benefits to Darrius citing he was culpable for his injuries.”
“Thank you, Tia,” Nick said.
Jon peered up at the structure which resembled a steel skeleton. He said to Bram, “We need to get a net rigged on the third floor.”
Bram nodded. “We should have the fire department to set up one of those inflatable bags too.”
“On it,” Tia called out.
Lexa brought the vehicle to a halt. Dan, Ray, Loki, and Lexa got out and grabbed rappelling gear from the back. They joined the rest of the team and waited for a tactical assignment.
Jon glanced between Dan and Ray. He had no choice. He needed four on the net and with Ray’s lacerated hand, he must use Dan. He thought briefly about using Lexa. Even though she could hold her own in nearly every situation, she didn’t possess the brute strength needed to secure the safety net, especially if all four men fell at once.
His eyes diverted to Dan, assessing him carefully. So far today Jon had noticed no indication the rookie hurt, but he wished he could give Dan one full day of rest. However, the nature of their job didn’t allow for that. “Lexa, Zulu One. Bram, Loki, Dan, with me. Ray cover Boss.”
Lexa rushed back to the SUV, and they heard her say, “Yes! Lexa day.”
Dan and Jon shared a look and smiles. She still got so excited about being the sniper.
Scanning the surrounding buildings and finding all lower than this one, Lexa said, “Boss, no spots with a proper view from adjacent buildings. I’ll go up with you and Ray and find a position.”
“Okay,” Nick answered.
The team set out with the necessary gear to the construction elevator.
Third Floor of Blackbird Industries – 1:30 p.m.
As Bram, Dan, Loki, and Jon exited the elevator Nick bade, “Go carefully.” He closed the gate so he, Ray, and Lexa could continue to the next floor.
All nodded and headed for the west side of the building. They noted the third level had some wooden flooring but was mostly steel trusses with open four-foot square gaps. When the floorboards came to an end, they stopped and assessed the situation.