the next day:
"So, all right, all right. Settle down. I just got a disturbing video. Never seen anything so horrific. So prepare yourselves." grey said as he walked into the room call room.
he switched on the TV at the front of the room and it started out as someone running.
wait-
that's nolan running.
the video showed nolan getting stuck in the fence chain and everyone started laughing. i looked over at nolan and he looked petrified.
"Such grace and athleticism has never before been seen in the LAPD. Is that a gazelle wearing the blues? Or a dinosaur from a long forgotten age? Now you will see Officer Salvatore execute a perfect flying tackle."
he said and everyone clapped.
"All right, fun's over. This is a BOLO for Mr. Lance Selby,-" he began walking around, handing out papers.
"who violated his parole yesterday. Scale from 1 to 10, this guy's a 12. Did a nickel for attempted murder with a claw hammer. So whoever gets him off the street will get a sincere handshake and Super Bowl Sunday off. That's it. Be safe out there."
——————————————-
"I've decided on your punishment." Bradford said.
"punishment for what?" i said.
he looked at me with a 'really?' face.
i sighed. " you wanna tell me what it is?"
"More of a "show you" kind of guy." he said and got out the shop.
i sighed and followed him.
" Ghost Head." he walked up to two guys on the side walk, who began to walk away.
"No, no, hold up a minute." he said and the guy in the brown shirts stopped.
"Yo, this is harassment" ghost head? what kind of name is that, said.
"What? No, it's just good customer service. Kind of like a frequent flyer program for dirt-bag drug dealers. Search him, Boot."
i sighed and the man turned to look at me.
"turn around and grab the wall." i demanded.
"Make me,...Boot." ghost head said.
i looked at the guy and walked over to him but, he swung at me. i ducked and grabbed his arm. he pushed me against the wall and tried to grab my duty belt.
"no!" i said and punched him in the face.
"Keep your hands up, Salvatore. Don't let him get on top of you!" Bradford said.
i grabbed the side of ghost heads face and head butted him, then brought his face and slammed him against the wall. i kneed him the the stomach then kicked him where the sun don't shine.
i pushed him down on the ground and he tried to get back up but i kicked him in the face and pushed him back down and cuffed him.
"you're under...arrest." i huffed out to ghost head.
"That was my punishment?" i said and turned to Bradford.
"Yep. Plus I got to see if you could handle yourself, so it's really a two-fer." he said as he walked towards me, grabbing ghost head.
"When you're telling this story in lock up,you might want to leave out the part where you got your ass kicked by a girl." he said to ghost face as he put him in the back off the shop.
"Hey! Hey! Hey, let him go! Come on." a women yelled as she ran out the convent store.
"You all right here?" i asked as i looked the woman up and down. he didn't answer he seemed frozen.
"For real." the woman said.
Isabel?" Bradford asked as he walked towards her.
"isab- Isabel- it it's it's me. It's Tim. It's okay. I've been trying to find you just- just to make sure you were okay. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine. I'm fine! Get off me!" the woman said.
"I just want to help." he said and he sounded so...desperate. "I just want to help."
"You want to help me?" she said.
"Yeah."
"Give me all your cash."
"What?"
"Give me your money."
"God, I'll get you rehab."
"I don't need rehab! Come on. Please."
he thought for a second but then he started digging in his pockets and pulled out a wad of cash. she snatched it form him and took off.
"Hey. What- What do you want me to do with this guy?" i asked.
"Just let him go." he said and he sounded so...defeated.
"just let him go" he said and got in the shop. i let ghost head go and got in as well.
"Let's go." he said and started to start the shop.
"What the hell just happened?" i asked.
he thought for a second before speaking. "That was my wife. I haven't seen her in almost a year."
"I won't tell anyone." i said.
"You're damn right you won't."
"7-Adam-15. Requesting additional unit to meet us at 1350 Bellview Street. Possible location of our BOLO suspect. We are en route." bishop said as she came on the radio.
"7-Adam-19. Show us responding." Bradford said into it.
"7-Adam-19, be advised, we are approximately five minutes away."
Bradford began driving down the street until we came across a house.
"That's the address for Selby." i said.
"All right, we'll set up in the alley behind in case Selby rabbits when Bishop and Nolan come calling." Bradford said. i nodded.
we pulled up in the alley and see two men standing next to a car with the trunk open.
"That's our guy, Selby." i said.
"Call it in. Backup and airship." he said.
i graded the radio. "7-Adam-19. Show us code 6 on BOLO suspect. Need backup and airship."
he began to get out the shop so i followed.
"No, no, no, you stay here till we clear them from that car." he said and then turned to the men. "LAPD, gentlemen. Step away from the car and show me your hands."
"There a problem, officer?" selby said.
"There will be if you don't show me those hands. Now!" Bradford said.
selby and the other guy stood for a moment before they both pulled out weapons from the trunk of the car and open fire.
we both began firing back. i crouched down and went over to tim's side seeing him laying on the ground.
i grabbed my radio. "Adam-19. Officer down. Shots fired. In the alley of Bellevue and Clinton. I repeat, officer down! Please send help right away!"
i looked at tim. "Don't worry about me! Shoot back!" he said.
the other guy selby was with got into a car and began driving away but he crashed into another car when he swerved to avoid nolan and bishops shop.
selby kept shooting at me but he was missing causing him to hit the crashed car which, caught on fire.
my eyes widened and i grabbed Tim and pulled him away from the fire.
i looked up no longer seeing selby or nolan. "fuck" i said as the ambulance began to drive up the ally.
"you ok?" nolan asked as he ran up to us.
"No! I got shot! You go get him, Boot! Just go" he said as me and nolan being to pursue selby.
i ran out the ally-way with nolan behind and seeing a limping selby run away.
i ran after him seeing he grabbed a blond women and pointed his gun to her head.
he tried shooting once he saw me but he was out of ammo. he threw his gun and grabbed a knife, holding it to her throat.
"Drop it! Drop the knife!" i said.
"I'll kill her! Shut up!" selby yelled.
"You don't have to do this. You shot a cop, but it seems you only managed to piss him off. You're not a murderer yet." i said.
"Get back!"
"I can't do that!" i said
"Now!" he said.
"I can't do that! Look, Selby, we are in this moment together, all right? What happens next could change both of our lives. Look, I became a cop to help people, not kill them. But if you hurt her,I will pull this trigger, and you will die. I'll see your face every time I close my eyes, but you'll never see anything ever again." i said and started to lower my gun.
"Here's what we're gonna do. I'm gonna lower my gun, and you're gonna let her go, okay? Nice and easy. Lower that knife. Nice and easy. You're gonna let her go. I'm lowering my-"
i shot him in the leg. he falls to the ground, releasing the hostage. i ran over to him and cuffed him.
"Facedown! Facedown! Put your hands behind your back!" i yelled at him.
i successfully cuffed him and kicked away the knife. standing up i backed away from him.
"call it in officer Salvatore." bishop told me.
"Suspect in custody. Code 4." i said in my radio.
—————————————————————
the next day:
"Okay, let's get to it." Anderson said and she walked into the room.
"Officer Bradford should be getting out of intensive care today. If you have some time after your shift, I'm sure he won't appreciate it." she said causing everyone to laugh.
grey erased the white board, leaving just the word "today." on it.
"Today. See, every day, we start fresh, because we can't affect the past. But we damn sure can make a difference today. All right. There was a carjacking last night on Western and Wilshire. Description matches the crew we've been hunting, so we need to hunt smarter. Lopez and West, I want you to live in that RD today. So Bishop and Nolan, coordinate with the robbery table..."