“Fuck,” she exclaimed.
Alex’s head suddenly snapped around, as she heard a noise coming from the back of the location. She brought the gun back up and began moving forward, as the huddled group of shoppers took the opportunity and fled, knocking over two end displays, as they ran out the front door to safety.
She cautiously made her way back toward the rear of the store, as she reached her left hand up to her shoulder and retrieved the mic for the portable radio.
“M-11-1, shots fired at the Quick Mart.”
“M-11-1, did you say shots fired?” she heard Abby ask.
“Affirmative, shots fired.”
“M-11-3, clear from assignment and respond to the Quick Mart, forthwith. Confirmed shots fired.”
“M-11-3, 10-4,” Hutch replied.
As Alex made her way into the backroom she found the owner, Sanjay, laying on the floor unconscious and bleeding from a laceration to the back of his head. She scanned the stock room, ensuring that it was empty, before opening the door which led out into the back parking lot.
Alex paused for a moment, standing off to the side, as she allowed her eyes time to adjust to the brightness. When she could see clearly, she made her way out, sweeping the lot for any potential threats. Once she had cleared the area, she made her way back inside to check on Sanjay.
Off in the distance she heard the sound of a siren wailing, as Hutch responded to the scene.
CHAPTER SIX
The problem with being up in God’s country was that the music selection was really limited. It was either some twangy, angst ridden, country song involving some love-sick farmer lamenting about being rejected by the milk maid, or a lecture about the evils of alcohol and fornication from some down station preacher. Neither of which were particularly appealing to her at the moment.
Tatiana reached over and hit the selector button, watching as the radio scanned frequencies.
“C’mon, give me something good for a change,” she muttered.
After what seemed like forever, she finally found a song with a heavy metal beat and raised the volume up.
She reached over and grabbed the pack of cigarettes from the cup holder. She lit one up, as she glanced back over her shoulder.
How long does it take to get beer? she wondered.
She reclined back in her seat and was enjoying the music when she saw the unmarked police car pull into the parking lot.
“Oh shit,” she said, as she slinked down lower in the seat, trying to make herself as invisible as she could.
Tatiana kept a watchful eye on the car. Then she saw the door open and the blonde haired cop get out.
“Well hello, beautiful,” she said.
She immediately felt an immense feeling of relief come over her, because she had originally wanted to go into the store herself, but Susan had insisted that she would go. Susan seemed to enjoy the game of being out and about in public, here in Penobscot, as if daring anyone to identify her, but the reality was that she had grown-up and changed her looks over the last two years. Tatiana doubted anyone would ever be able to recognize her. Even if she did look familiar they probably wouldn’t recall where they had seen her until it was too late.
She continued to watch as the cop walked across the parking lot and then entered the store. Her mind was immediately drawn back to that day up in the cabin, when she had first encountered her. Almost immediately she could feel the raw emotions begin to well up inside her. It drove her crazy to think just how much desire that woman seemed to evoke in her.
She closed her eyes, thinking about the way she had come on to her in the cabin. How seductive she was and how easily Tatiana had fallen for her. Then she remembered the first kiss, the warmth of the woman’s lips, and she felt her body shudder, as if a bolt of electricity had coursed through her.
Suddenly a gunshot rang out; shattering the intimate moment that had been replaying in her mind.
“Jesus Christ,” she exclaimed, as she twisted around in her seat.
As she looked around, she was struck by how normal everything appeared.
Had it just been a car that backfired?
A second later she got her answer when the first person burst through the door of the store, followed a moment later by about a half dozen more.
“Fucking hell,” Tatiana exclaimed, as she prepared to drop the car into drive and put some distance between her and the cop.
Then she saw Susan emerge from the store and begin running toward the car.
“What the heck was that all about?” Tatiana asked, as Susan climbed into the car and slammed the door shut.
“Shut up and drive!”
Tatiana was about to say something when she saw the look of sheer panic on Susan’s face.
“Drive!”
She pulled away from the curb, tires squealing, and headed down the street.
“Turn left,” Susan ordered, followed a moment later by a command to turn right.
Tatiana dutifully followed her directions, whipping the car in the announced direction, as Susan led them out of town. Once they were clear, she began to slow down.
“Fuck,” Susan said, as they saw a marked police car coming toward them with its lights and sirens activated.
She slid down in the seat, waiting for it to pass, and then sat back up.
Both women looked back, waiting for the car to turn around and come after them, but it continued heading in the direction of the store.
“What the hell happened back there?” Tatiana asked.
“I don’t know,” Susan replied. “It all happened so fast.”
“What do you remember?”
“I got the beer and I was walking toward the front when I saw one of my old teachers. I got nervous, so I ducked into another aisle and started walking toward the front. Next thing I knew I heard this screaming and people started crouching down on the floor, like some serious shit was going down up front, so I got down too.”
“Did you see anything?”
“Not at first, I tried to get a better look, but then I saw that female cop come in so I tried to put some distance between us. Next thing I know I heard a gunshot. I thought we were all fucked, but then I saw everyone begin to run out of the store and so I made my way to the front.”
“Did anyone see you?”
“No,” Susan replied. “Everything happened way too fast for that.”
“Well you dodged a helluva bullet on that one,” Tatiana said.
“I did, but I’m pretty sure that cop is screwed.”
“Why? What makes you say that?”
Tatiana watched as Susan reached into her jacket and removed a small, stainless steel snub-nosed revolver.
“Where the fuck did you get that from?”
“I saw it slide across the floor and it went underneath a display. So, in all the confusion, I just reached down and grabbed it as I went out the door.”
“Let me see that,” Tatiana said.
Susan handed the gun over to her.
Tatiana examined it, alternating her gaze from the roadway in front of her to the gun in her lap. She opened the cylinder and examined it, noting that none of the rounds appeared to have been fired.
“It looks like the gun shot you heard was from our lady cop friend,” Tatiana said. “This gun hasn’t been fired.”
“Well, then it looks like someone might have a bit of explaining to do,” Susan replied.
As they pulled out of town Tatiana felt a wave of relief wash over her. She tucked the revolver into her waistband and pulled her shirt over the top of it.
“It certainly does indeed,” she said with a smile.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Alex sat in the Penobscot Police Department’s small interview room. Across the table were Captain Thomas Blackshear of the New Hampshire State Police, Major Crimes Unit and the Scott Nichols, the county’s state’s attorney.
“Okay, let’s go over this one more time, Alex,” Nichols said.
“This is bull
shit, Scott, and you know it.”
“Alex, I’m not that bad guy here.”
“Fine, fine,” Alex said with a tone of annoyance, as she reached into her jacket and withdrew the pack of cigarettes.
“You can’t smoke in here,” Nichols said.
“Arrest me,” she said, as she lit up the cigarette. “Let’s not forget that you’re in my house, Scott, not yours.”
Blackshear began shuffling through some papers, as he fought to stifle a laugh.
Nichols sighed, “We don’t have to make this adversarial, Alex. I just need to know what happened.”
“Whatever. Just ask your questions, again.”
“Okay, so what happened when you first walked into the store?”
“Jesus, Scott, did you write any of this down? I told you, it was dark so I couldn’t see clearly at first. Once my eyes adjusted I realized something wasn’t right.”
“What about the scene didn’t seem right to you?”
“Well, for starters most folks don’t crawl on the ground to do their shopping.”
“Well, were they crawling, kneeling, bent over?” Nichols asked. “I mean what were they doing that made you suspicious?”
“Are you serious, Scott?” Alex asked, taking a drag on her cigarette. “When was the last time you walked into a grocery store and saw a bunch of folks cowering on the floor and thought to yourself, ‘hmmm, I wonder what kind of sale they are having on that shit down on the bottom shelf?’”
Blackshear laughed, dropping his head into his hands, as Nichols shot him a dirty look.
“Really, Tom?” he asked. “That’s not helping.”
“Look,” Blackshear said, “I get it, you have to ask the questions, Scott, but you and I both know that you don’t walk into a store wearing a mask to get a gallon of milk.”
“What I know and what I can explain to a grand jury are not always the same,” Nichols said, “and under the circumstances I have a lot of explaining to do.”
He turned to look back at Alex. “So please, for the love of God, humor me.”
“Based on my experience, I could see that the shoppers were clearly in distress and hiding from someone.”
“Okay, then what did you do?”
“I drew my sidearm and began scanning the interior of the store for threats.”
“So at what point did you encounter the deceased,” Nichols said, skimming through his papers. “Mr. Chase Akins?”
“When the deceased pointed his gun at me which ultimately lead to his deceasededness.”
Nichols removed his glasses, setting them on the table-top and rubbed his eyes.
“Alex, how did you know it was a gun?” Nichols asked.
“For Christ’s sake, Scott, you think this is my first rodeo? That I never saw a gun before?”
“No, Alex, I don’t,” Nichols replied angrily. “In fact it’s the second shooting I have handled with you. You know how many shootings the chief’s in Penobscot have had prior to your arrival? Zero,…… Combined. That’s how many.”
“Okay folks, I think it’s time we took a little break here,” Blackshear interrupted. “Maybe get a bit of fresh air.”
“Sounds good, I need a breather,” Nichols announced, as he got up and headed for the door.
Alex crushed the cigarette out on the floor, as she took a sip of the now cold coffee.
“This is bullshit, Tom,” Alex said, when Scott had left the room. “Do you think I shot that kid for shits and giggles? I saw the damn gun.”
“I’m not saying you didn’t, Alex, but we don’t have that gun and that’s a big fucking problem.”
“You think I don’t know that. Is there any chance the crime scene folks might have missed it?”
“They’ve been over the place twice already and I have them going over it a third time,” Blackshear replied. “They look any harder the place won’t have a floor or walls left.”
“I appreciate that, Tom,” Alex replied. “I’m not trying to be an asshole here, but I didn’t shoot that kid because I was bored.”
“I know you didn’t, but what I think, or what Scott thinks for that matter, isn’t going to mean much to a grand jury.”
“Then I’m royally screwed.”
“Let’s stay positive,” Blackshear replied. “I made sure they bagged the kid’s hands. At least they can check and see if he had any residue on them when they do the autopsy.”
Just then Nichols returned, carrying a cup of hot coffee.
“Truce?” he asked, handing the container to Alex.
“Truce,” Alex replied, accepting the proffered cup. “Any luck with witnesses?”
“Two of them stayed at the scene and were interviewed,” Scott said, “One was an old woman who has vision issues and didn’t see anything. The other one said she heard a man yelling and waving something around, but that she got scared and didn’t get a good look at what it was.”
“Well that has to at least corroborate what I said.”
“Waving a gun around and waving something are going to be seen as two entirely different things, I’m afraid.”
“What about the owner, Sanjay?” Alex asked.
“He said he had just come in from dropping off some boxes in the recycling bin and the next thing he knew it was lights out,” Blackshear replied. “He couldn’t tell us anything more.”
“What about video?”
“It’s Penobscot, Alex, no one has video,” Nichols said.
She took out another cigarette and lit it up. “You know, I keep hearing that shit, but every time I turn around this little gem of a city is looking a lot less like Paradise and more like Peyton Place.”
“We have to play the cards we are dealt, even when it’s a shitty hand,” Nichols replied.
“There had to be at least a half dozen people in the store when I got there,” Alex said. “Someone had to have seen what went down before I arrived. Those folks weren’t hiding for the fun of it.”
“I’ve requested additional investigators,” Blackshear said. “We’ll do our best to try and come up with the missing witnesses.”
“Okay, so getting back to after you fired the shot, what did you do?” Nichols asked.
“I approached the suspect, I kicked the gun away and then I checked for a pulse.”
“Why didn’t you secure the gun?” Nichols asked.
“I didn’t have a chance,” Alex replied. “I had no backup and I had no idea if there was anyone else around. I didn’t want to lean down and try to pick-up a gun when I didn’t know the condition of the perp. So I just stepped on it and slid it back away from him with my foot. I guess I slid it harder than I thought.”
“Did you check the condition of the suspect?”
“I did. I didn’t find a pulse.”
“Did you administer aid?”
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Before I could do anything I heard a noise from the back of the store and feared that there was a second perpetrator.”
“Did you investigate the sound?” Nichols asked.
“Yes, that’s where I found Sanjay,” she replied. “I then made my way out to the back parking lot, but didn’t see anyone else.”
Nichols looked over at Blackshear. “You have anything Tom?”
“No, I think we’ve covered as much as we can.”
Nichols looked back over at Alex.
“Listen, I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but this shit has already hit the airwaves, Alex.”
“What’s that supposed to mean to me?”
“It means that the usual suspects down in Concord are beating the drum that this was another police murder of an innocent child.”
“Innocent child? Are you friggin’ kidding me, Scott? You saw the arrest printout. That little shit had a record longer than your dick, including, I might add, a charge for armed robbery. So cut the crap, he was far from innocent.”
“And those charges were all juvenile and you’re not supposed to
know that because his record is sealed,” Nichols said. “More importantly the grand jury won’t know it either.”
“That’s such bullshit,” Alex said angrily. “Next it’ll be the 6th grade graduation photo and how he couldn’t wait to go to college nonsense. They’ll make a martyr of a career criminal while they try and fuck me dry for doing my job.”
Silence gripped the room. Both men knew she was right, but their opinion didn’t matter.
The local television satellite trucks were already arriving and it wouldn’t be long before the cable ones showed up as well. What might have been a little blip on the media radar had the unfortunate bad luck of coming on the heels of a questionable police shooting in Chicago that was caught on video and immediately uploaded to social media. As a result, the media was looking to cash in on anything they could tie-in for a bump in their ratings.
“There’s no easy way to say this,” the man said. “So I’m just going to. Alex, you’re not being suspended, but your being suspended. Call it an unplanned vacation.”
“What?” Blackshear said.
“You can’t be serious, Scott.”
“I am and before you ask this wasn’t my call to make, I’m just the deliveryman.”
“Who?” Alex asked angrily.
“The board,” he replied. “Don’t ask me which member, because I can’t tell you, but I need you’re shield.”
Alex sat there seething, but knowing there wasn’t a damn thing she could do. Finally she stood up. She reached over and unpinned the shield from her jacket.
“Tell them they can kiss my ass,” she said, “but, if I’m only on vacation, then I pick who fills in while I’m gone.”
“Well, that went well,” Blackshear said, as Alex stormed out of the room.
She made her way out to the squad room where Abby, Hutch and several other officers were standing.
“What’s going on, boss?” Abby asked.
“Oh, it looks like I just hit the lottery, Abs, and I won an all-expense paid vacation at home.”
“Are you serious?” Hutch asked.
“Oh, yeah, I’m as serious as a heart attack, Hutch,” Alex replied, “but guess what.”
“What?” Hutch asked.
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