"Right now." He smiled, then turned to Tam. "I'm going to get the file from the car, Sweetheart. I'll be right back."
"Ok, Baby." She replied and smiled as he stood up.
When Royce had left the office, Tam smiled at Lisa.
"Are you my son's girlfriend?" Lisa asked, not knowing what else to say.
"Yes, ma'am. I never thought I would actually meet Royce's mom, though." She smiled uncomfortably, realizing that IF Lisa wanted Royce in her life, Tam would be part of that too.
Lisa smiled reassuringly. "That's ok, dear. I never thought I would see my son again, and these circumstances are definitely unconventional." She chuckled.
Tam chuckled with her, realizing the absurdity of it all. "I know the feeling. Ma'am, Royce told me a few weeks ago that he didn't care who his parents were. He just wanted to get on with his life. Since all this happened, he really does want to connect with you. Don't worry, he'll keep his word, though. But if you want him in your life, the ball is in your court."
"Thank you for that, Tam." Lisa smiled at the girl. "I have some thinking to do, though... and I will need to discuss this with my husband. He's not going to be happy that I kept David a secret from him."
"Then don't tell him, mom." Royce said as he entered the office and set the file on her desk. "I meant what I said. I won't mess up your family."
"But..." Lisa started.
"Listen to me, Senator. I'm not the son you wanted. You have a son, two daughters, and a husband who all love you. I'm at peace with who I am, now more than ever. I appreciate your honesty earlier when you told me about your life and about me. I wanted to say thank you for giving me a fighting chance instead of letting your father dictate my fate." Royce was nearly in tears, but fought them back as he took a deep breath. "You've given me the closure I need to get on with my life. For that, I will always be grateful."
Royce smiled then, a single tear rolling down his cheek as he hugged his mother. She clung to him tightly, not wanting to let him go again.
"So does this mean you're going to give up being this Steel Cat?" Lisa asked with a chuckle.
"Not on your life, mom." He chuckled back. "I'm just not going to come after you again, unless you give me a reason. Deal?"
"Deal!" Lisa said with another chuckle, squeezing her son in a hug. She let him go and turned to Tam. "Tam, sweety, please keep an eye on my boy here. I know I don't have much right to ask this, but he IS my son, if only by genetics. Please take care of him and don't let him get out of hand."
"I will, ma'am." Tam said as she came over and hugged the Senator herself. She released the older lady and gave Royce a quick kiss on the lips. "Come on, baby. Let's go."
"Wait a moment." Lisa said, and they turned their attention back to her. "Dav... Royce, I am going to tell my husband about you... not that you're the Steel Cat, but that you're my son. I want to be part of your life, no matter what happens. I've missed out on you, and I have a confession to make."
That took Royce off guard, but he just raised an eyebrow questioningly.
Lisa took a deep breath. "I recognized you ten years ago when I was in Sacramento and you were there with the group from the orphanage. I wanted to say something to you, but I couldn't. I am so sorry, Royce."
Royce took a moment to soak in that information. He closed his eyes, then opened them and looked at her evenly. "It's the past, mom. And I'll consider what you've said about being in my life. However, I do NOT want the Press finding out about this. I don't want my face and name plastered all over the News."
Lisa nodded. "I understand, sweety." She smiled.
"Thanks, mom." Royce said as he and Tam stood up to leave and turned toward the door.
As they went to leave, Lisa looked at the keychain on her desk. "Royce, you forgot this." She held it up as he turned back for a moment.
"No I didn't, mom. I want you to have it. I don't need it anymore." He smiled, and Lisa watched them go.
When they'd left, she sat at her desk and checked the file he'd returned to her. She smiled, thinking of the possibilities. He was her son, and she wanted to get to know him and his girlfriend. She wanted to be a grandmother. She also saw that dealing with lowlife gangbangers was not the way to get things done. Her son was the Steel Cat, and she had an idea...
* * *
Royce was fighting back his own tears as Tam drove them home. He felt better than he'd ever felt before, but he couldn't help wanting to get to know his mom and siblings. But this was for the best. He also had a new target to think about, from the reports of some strange stuff down by the Docks.
Tam glanced over at him where he stared out the window. "Are you ok, baby?" She asked softly.
"Yeah, Sweetheart. I'll live." He looked at her with a smile and squeezed her hand.
"Good. I love you, you know." She smiled back and gave his hand a return squeeze.
"I know, and I love you too." He replied immediately.
Then the hairs on the back of his neck stood up as they pulled into their parking spot.
"Hold on, Tam." He said suddenly, stopping her from opening her door. He looked around, and spotted the black sedan that didn't seem to belong with all the other vehicles. It wasn't that the car was that different, since there were other Mercedes-Benz models in the lot, but this one was in the wrong spot. It hadn't been there before, to the best of his knowledge.
"What is it, Baby?" She asked, as Royce made sure he could quickly reach his belt buckle when he exited the car.
"Black sedan, three o'clock." He inclined his head. "The Mercedes."
"What about it?" She asked.
"That's Mr. Willard's spot, and we know he doesn't make enough to afford that car. He's also at work right now.
Tam realized that he was right, and looked at Royce. "What do we do?"
"When we get out, we go to the door as if nothing's wrong. If we make it inside before they get to the door, head to the bathroom and get in the tub. If they get out before we get there, I'm pushing you forward and acting as a decoy. Ok?" He looked at her, and she saw the iron resolve in his eyes.
"I don't like this, but ok, baby." She replied with a nervous smile. They got out and started towards their door.
Royce kept his eyes sideways and watched through his sunglasses as the doors to the sedan opened, and when he saw Darnell, he pushed Tam forward towards the door as he slipped all three throwing knives out of his belt buckle with his left hand.
* * *
Darnell didn't give a fuck that he was violating the restraining order. He also didn't give a fuck that Mr. Wolfe would send people to kill him when he found out what had happened.
The reason was that he had successfully recruited 40 good soldiers from a gang in Compton to help him with his revenge. His plan was flawless in his eyes. Take out Royce first, give Tam a chance to come back, but if she didn't take it, cap her sorry white boy lovin' ass too. Then he would go for Mr. Wolfe himself. He had the firepower and manpower, even if he had to exhaust most of his cash to get it. He would have more than enough after his coup de état.
He saw Tam's blue Toyota pull in, and then park as she and that fuckin' cracker talked for a moment. Then they got out and started towards their new place.
Darnell gave the signal to the three men with him, and they got out with him as they drew their weapons.
He saw Royce pull something from what looked like his belt buckle as the white boy pushed Tam toward the door with his right hand, and dove behind the nearest car.
Tam had her key out already, and opened the door just as the first shot hit the doorjamb.
She slammed the door behind her, and Royce looked around the bumper. Darnell pointed and shot, but the bullet kicked off the bumper and into the wall of the apartment next to the one that his ex shared with her new boyfriend.
"Cap that muthfucka!" Darnell yelled at the two closest soldiers, and pointed with his gun at the car where Royce had taken cover.
Dammit! Shots were fired, and he knew that T
am was already calling 911. He fired again, hoping to hit the gas tank of the car that hid his nemesis.
Unlike in the movies, cars don't usually explode when a bullet punctures the gas tank. Royce knew this, but Darnell didn't. Royce leaned out and flipped a throwing knife into the first gunman's hand holding the pistol, and the man dropped his weapon from nerveless fingers. He howled in pain, and tried picking up the gun with his left hand.
Royce broke cover, sprinting towards the gunman, and slamming his elbow into the man's jaw, snapping it and knocking him unconscious. He retrieved his knife from the man's hand and flipped it at he next gunman before diving to the side and behind the corner of a wall.
The bullets kicked up the dirt and off the wall as Darnell and his two remaining thugs fired without taking time to aim properly. He readied another knife and ducked down as he leaned out and threw it with accuracy and speed.
Royce had practiced hard to perfect his knife throwing technique. He could throw downwards, sideways out, sideways in, and even underhand with deadly (if he so chose) accuracy. His natural agility helped his accuracy, and timing was everything when releasing the blade.
The second blade found its mark in the second gunman's bicep, making him lose control and drop his pistol. The man pulled the knife out, and tried to retrieve his gun.
Darnell walked towards the corner, and reloaded as he ran out of bullets in the magazine.
As he slapped the new mag in and went to rack a round, Royce reappeared and threw his last throwing knife straight at Darnell's head.
Darnell took a split second to register what was happening, but that was a split second too long as the knife slammed into his left eye.
Darnell screamed and fired off blindly, shooting his own man through the leg before regaining his equilibrium and pointing back at the corner through his tears that were streaming from his one good eye. He felt the ceramic throwing knife with his fingers, and gingerly removed it, screaming again as he felt it tear out of his eyeball.
The one man left standing looked at Darnell. "Shit, man! You didn't say nothin' about no fuckin' special forces assholes! Fuck this, I'm outta here!"
"The fuck you are!" Darnell snarled as he shot the man down in cold blood, his bullet punching through the gunman's skull. He looked at the other man who was upright and shot him too. 'Fuckin' amateurs!' He thought to himself.
Darnell could hear sirens in the distance, and knew that he could at least kill Royce before they got here. He tossed the ceramic blade aside and put his hand over his eye to control the bleeding as best he could. He then walked toward the corner, pretty sure that if Royce had any more knives, he would have used them already.
Royce had drawn the blued steel dagger from behind his belt, and was holding it blade down as he anticipated Darnell coming around the corner. He was crouched down, waiting on the big man. He saw the shadow coming and kept as loose as possible, then the first foot appeared and Royce lunged upwards, slashing through the tendons of Darnell's right wrist, causing him to drop his gun.
"FUCK!" Darnell shouted.
"Leave now, Darnell. I don't want to kill you, but I will if I have to." Royce said relatively calmly. "The cops are on their way."
Darnell was completely insane with rage, and swung wildly at Royce. Royce ducked, slamming the butt of his knife into Darnell's nose, breaking it and causing the blood to gush out. He spotted Darnell's Glock on the ground and kicked it away before starting to circle the big man again.
Royce and Darnell circled each other. "You know, Darnell, I think Viagra could help with your... little problem."
Darnell was now completely off his rocker, and charged Royce blindly. Royce dodged to the side as he saw the black and white police cars, sirens blaring and lights flashing, pull into the parking lot. He swiveled quickly to see that Darnell had knocked himself cold against the wall of the apartment building. His jaw dropped open when he saw the spider webbed crack in the wall where Darnell's head had struck.
The cops drew down on him until he dropped the knife and put his hands up. Tam came out of their place and looked on as Royce was handcuffed and led into a waiting squad car. EMTs were treating Darnell as best they could, bandaging his eye and wrist and tending to his other injuries.
Detective Raines was there as well, and walked over to Tam. "I'd say it's good to see you again, Miss Jenkins, but I'm not sure it would be appropriate under these circumstances."
"Please let Royce go, Detective. He was just defending me and himself." Tam said as she took in the carnage. Two men were dead, and two more, including Darnell, were injured.
"Well, I'll get him out of the back of the squad, but I'm still going to need to question both of you." Raines nodded, then ordered a uniform to retrieve Mr. Royce from the back of the car and bring him over to her.
"Good to see you, Detective." Royce smiled as he was led to them with the cuffs still on his wrists.
Tam laughed in spite of everything. Royce was fine, his shirt, pants, and face splattered with blood, very little of it his. He had a slight graze across his shoulder from one of Darnell's 9mm rounds, but other than that, he was fine. Most of the blood, it turned out, belonged to Darnell himself.
Tam and Royce took turns telling the Detective what had happened. Mostly Royce after Tam went inside to call them. They neglected to mention where they were returning from, but that wasn't of any consequence right now.
"Officer Rollins, get these cuffs off Mr. Royce, please." Raines told her subordinate. "This boy is getting a medal if I have to pin it on him myself!"
"Yes, ma'am." The officer replied, unlocking Royce's cuffs. As soon as his hands were free, he threw them around Tam's waist and held her close.
"Don't you ever do something that damn stupid again, baby!" Tam whispered urgently in his ear.
"As long as we aren't ambushed again, I won't, sweetheart." He promised.
"I don't think there's going to be any danger of that, at least not from Mr. Dutton." Raines said with a smile. "Let's go inside where we can talk, though."
They led her inside their new apartment, and Raines had to smile at the place. In only a few short weeks, the two lovebirds had moved in together, presumably for safety and to cut back on the rent each paid. They all sat in the living room, Raines on a chair and Tam and Royce on the sofa, with Tam leaning against him.
"Ok, this is what I see happening..." Raines said without preamble. "Darnell is facing a lot of charges. Unlawful Discharge of a firearm, Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Violation of Probation and Restraining Order, Two Counts of Murder Two, etc. The list right now is too long to count."
"So we'll never have to see him again?" Tam asked, shuddering as she held onto Royce tightly.
"Except at the trial, no. You will both be called to testify. I don't see him getting a plea deal for this one." Raines was shaking her head. "The two gang members out there have been identified, and they have a lot of friends in the penal system. Even if Darnell makes it to trial, he's going to be in Solitary Confinement for probably the rest of his life."
"Thank God." Royce closed his eyes and crossed himself unconsciously. His years in the orphanage had ingrained certain behaviors in him that he didn't even realize, but he didn't care at that moment.
"I would thank him too. Also, I'm pretty sure I can get the D.A. to not press charges on you for the knives. Yes, we found your throwing blades out there, and we've taken them as well as the dagger as evidence." Raines informed them.
"Ok by me. I'll just buy more, and more of them this time." Royce shrugged and smirked grimly.
"Baby, how did you learn to throw knives like that?" Tam asked.
"I was bored in the orphanage one day..." He started, and Tam laughed. Raines joined her as he told the tale of how he'd taken up knife throwing as a hobby. "... and since I don't like guns, and even if I did most of them are illegal here, I decided to go with knives as self-defense weapons."
As he finished, he smiled innocently at the Detective and Tam.
"Ok, this is too good." Raines smiled and shook her head in amusement. "The funny part is that it's completely believable."
"My Man has many talents." Tam said in a sexy voice as she kissed his lips sweetly.
"Baby Girl, I need a shower!" Royce said in a flustered voice as he saw Detective Raines looking on in amusement.
"Don't let me stop you." She assured them with a grin. "I have to get going anyway. This paperwork is going to be a pain in the ass, especially after CSU is done."
"Well, thank you, Detective." Tam said with a genuine smile as she rose and let the Detective out.
"Anytime, Miss Jenkins. Mr. Royce." She waved to both of them as she walked back to her partner and the waiting uniforms.
Once everything was taken care of, Royce and Tam collapsed back on the couch together.
* * *
Darnell, with his eye and wrist bandaged, was led into the holding cell. 'Fuckin' shit, man.' He thought to himself. 'That little punk ass better watch his back when I make bail!'
He couldn't believe that the punk had beaten him! He hadn't just fought him to a standstill, he'd beaten Darnell outright!
Darnell's mental health had quickly degenerated even further after he'd been fired. He didn't think about the fact that he was lucky to be alive. He had focused on revenge, pure and simple. His biggest mistake had been underestimating his enemy. He knew the kid was a bastard when it came to hand-to-hand combat, but he was unprepared for his proficiency with throwing knives. The kid was deadly accurate, and he would never see out of his left eye again.
As Darnell sat in the holding cell, he was suddenly jarred back to the present by the next man to be shown in. He was a big man, even bigger than Darnell.
"Hey, man. I heard you got fucked up by a white boy." The newest arrival sneered at him.
"Fuck you, man." Darnell shot back. He wasn't in the mood for this punk.
"Hey, man. We've all been there." The man sat down, his tone a bit friendlier. "Listen, they didn't search me as well as they could have. I got somethin' here to take the edge off your pain, brotha."
A Stainless Steel Cat Page 9