CHAPTER EIGHTY - Bullets, Bloodshed and Brothers Bonding

WE LEFT POOR CIVILIAN 911 DISPATCHER RICKY ALVAREZ SCREAMING AND CRYING FOR MERCY AS HE WAS PULVERIZED BY PERILOUS PUB-DARTS BY TWO HENCHMEN JUST OUT FOR A FRIENDLY GAME OF SKILL. AFTER THE FIRST ROUND, THE DARTS WERE PULLED OUT OF HIM AND THEY WANTED TO GO TWO OUT OF THREE, THEN

"HEY! What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Cheese it - it's the boss!"

"I told you idiots to watch this kid. Why is he crying and screaming?"

"He's homesick - he just wants to get outta here."

"I don't think so."

LOOKING OVER RICKY'S BODY, HE SEES FRESH WOUNDS ON HIS ARMS AND HANDS AND TINY RED PINPRICK HOLES IN HIS TEE-SHIRT.

"The boy's bleeding - what did you do to him?"

HE WAS ABOUT TO SAY THE WORD "DARTS", BUT REMEMBERED THIS GUY WASN'T A COP - WASN'T ANYBODY WHO COULD HELP - ANYBODY WHO WOULD CARE WHETHER HE LIVED OR DIED DOWN HERE. THE BOSS EYED A PAIR OF DARTS STICKING OUT OF ONE OF THE HENCHMEN'S HANDS AND GRABS THEM "DARTS? You were using him as a dartboard?"

"We couldn't help ourselves."

"Excuse the fuck out of us, we got bored."

"Oh, yeah? Well, my miscreant minions, I get bored, too. How would you like it if I did THIS!"

WITH THAT, HE PLUNGES A DART IN EACH OF THE HENCHMEN'S SHOULDERS AND THEY SCREAM IN PAIN AND GO DOWN.

"COME ON BOSS - GIVE US A BREAK - PULL THESE THINGS OUT - FUCKING THINGS HURT!"

"Of course you didn't think about that when you were throwing them at Ricky a few minutes ago - DID ya!"

ONE OF THE NOW SOBBING HENCHMEN ASKS, "What're ya doing back so soon?"

"I never left - I was upstairs the whole time, monitoring you morons. I came right back down when you started playing your sick little game."

"And as for you..."

THE BOSS TURNS TO RICKY AND RAISES HIS HAND AS IF TO TAKE ANOTHER SWING AT HIM, THEN HOLDS BACK AS RICKY STARES RIGHT AT HIM WITH MOIST RED EYES. HE'S QUIVERING.

THE BOSS STARES RIGHT BACK AT HIM THEN SOFTENS HIS GAZE

"No. I can't do this."

HE KISSES HIM SOFTLY AND PUTS HIS HANDS ON HIS SHOULDERS.

"I can't go on with this."

RICKY'S HANDS AND FEET ARE UNCHAINED. THEN HE TIES RICKY'S HANDS TOGETHER IN FRONT.

"Don't let him go!" YELLS ONE OF THE HENCHMEN

"Maybe he's finally gonna finish him off!" YELLS THE OTHER.

THE BOSS TAKES A GUN OUT AND AIMS IT AT THEM BOTH.

"No, it's you guys who are finished. I have other plans for the kid."

BOTH HENCHMEN ARE SHOT TO DEATH

RICKY SCREAMS IN HORROR, COULD HE BE NEXT?

"No. It's not your death I want. It's your loyalty. You're staying with me."

HE TAKES THE BOY TO ANOTHER ROOM - A BEDROOM - AND CUFFS ONE OF HIS HANDS TO A BEDPOST.

"You'll stay here for a while. I have a couple of things to do, but I'll be back for you."

MEANWHILE, BACK AT MIKE AND EDDIE'S;

EDDIE - I went through all those traffic-cam photos - it was getting frustrating going through all those pictures of basically the same thing. But I had to find out what happened before the dash-cam went on. I, for one, would never want to pin anything on a police officer, but he wasn't in much of a position to be interviewed at this point in his recovery. We had to have hard-core evidence. We had to win this thing. We had to hang in there, though - sure it was monotonous, but this is what we had to do to save Ricky Alvarez's life.

MIKE - Dash-cam video stills are pretty blurry sometimes. I was going through all the photo manipulation programs I had, trying to clear up this number once and for all. Problem was there are tons of vehicles out there that look exactly alike at first glance. We were up for hours. Holy midnight oil as Eddie would say. If it wasn't for my Boy Friday, I don't know how I would've gotten through this. A case can sometimes really take a lot outta you. After I got what looked like the number, I ran it through DMV records and found there were several names attached to it.

"How are ya comin' along, Eddie?"

"My eyes are gettin' a little irritated, a little itchy, but I gotta stay focused. I don't care if this takes all night."

"Good boy."

"You havin' any luck?"

"I finally did get the image cleared up, but there's a bunch of names attached to the one plate. I dunno if it's a bunch of other people or maybe a bunch of aliases."

"Read some of the names. Maybe there's a pattern."

"Let's see - Floyd Pinkerton - Jerry Fillmore - Jeff Butterfield - Rubin Hoffman - Joe Fisher - Mitchell Woods...all in their late 20's"

EDDIE - Oh, there was a pattern all right. As Mike read off the names, a funny feeling came over me - all of those names sounded familiar for some reason. Then it hit me. Then I hit the desk I was sitting at and I blurted out:

"Holy psychedelia!"

"Huh? I don't getcha."

"Mike, think about it - Floyd Pinkerton? Pink Floyd - Jerry Fillmore equals Jerry Garcia playing at the Fillmore West - Jeff Butterfield becomes Jefferson Airplane and the Butterfield Blues Band - Joe Fisher, Country Joe and the Fish - Jerry Rubin, Abbe Hoffman.."

"OF COURSE! These all represent the 60's counter-culture, where...COPS WERE PIGS!"

"And the ages, Mike - think about the age..."

"NEVER TRUST ANYONE OVER 30!"

"This guy's a throwback! A COP - - OVER 30 yet - was shot and the younger guy, also with the police department, even though he's not really a cop, they just thought he was, was kidnapped."

"If that is the pattern, that is the sickest thing I ever heard of - corrupting our law-abiding youth and murder, attempted or otherwise, of the establishment."

"But Ricky is NOT gonna be corrupted and Officer Burke is NOT gonna die!"

"NOT IF WE HAVE ANY SAY IN THE MATTER - LET'S GO, EDDIE! THESE DUDES ARE, LIKE, BUSTED!"

"I dig yer message, man!"

AS OUR HEROES RACE TO THE SCENE, OUR VILLAIN HAS JUST LEFT RICKY UP IN HIS ROOM, HANDCUFFED TO A BEDPOST. ALL OF THIS HAS HAPPENED IN LESS THAN ONE DAY. RICKY BEGINS TO THINK OF WHAT WAS GOING ON WHEN HE GOT UP THAT MORNING, GOT READY FOR WORK, JOYFULLY RODE ALONG WITH OFFICER BURKE. A DAY THAT HAD STARTED OUT WITH SUCH PROMISE IS LOOKING TO BE THE BIGGEST NIGHTMARE OF HIS LIFE.

"Oh, God, what's gonna happen to me?"

HIS QUESTION IS ABOUT TO BE ANSWERED, AS OUR HEROES ARRIVE UPON THE SCENE. OUR VILLAIN IS WALKING OUT TO HIS CAR AS A VOICE HE WOULD RATHER NOT HEAR CALLS OUT.

MIKE - We spot the bad guy comin' outside, ready to head out somewhere, but he's not goin' where he thinks he might be. Oh, no, me-n-Eddie have a chage of plans for him.

"Get the shields ready, kid, he could be armed,"

"Right, Boss-Man."

We fold up the shields behind us before we make our approach.

"Floyd Pinkerton - alias Jerry Fillmore, alias Jeff Butterfield, alias Joe Fisher"

"What the hell do you want?"

"I want you - behind bars - you're the ringleader behind the shooting of Officer Jack Burke and the kidnapping and shooting of Ricky Alvarez, and you're coming with me - right now."

EDDIE - The bad guy reaches for his piece - I warn Mike

"Watch it, Boss-Man, he's got a gun"

The shields come out. I fire a lucky shot, knockin' his piece outta his hand. He flees back inside, we go running after him.

EDDIE - I catch up with the bad guy, land a punch in the face and demand to know where Ricky's being held.

"You'll never get that out of me. He's mine now!"

He takes off running again, with me almost right on top of him. He heads into a room and I follow suit, kicking the door in and see Ricky handcuffed to a bedpost. He uncuffs him, holds his body up in front of him and aims a smaller, more concealed weapon at me.

"Hands up, boy. Make one move and the kid cop gets it!"

"Holy human shield"

"You - kid cop - search Prince Valiant for any weapons - and don't try to pull anything or else this'll be one bullet I won't try to remove."

Ricky walks over to me to search me - I have my hands up. I'm loking right at his abductor, with weapon in hand. I plot my next move. I figure gettin' popped with a gun of such small size can't do very much damage, and I'd kinda be a movin' target, anyway, so the odds of dodgin' gunfire are in my favor, more or less. We're standing at a distance that's narrower than my height, if I could just leap up nd try to kick the gun outta his hand. I whisper to Ricky, "grab my right hand - and duck."

He does just that, and I take my leap. It worked! My feet kick the bad guy right in the face, and he fires a shot, but none of us are hit. He's knocked against the wall and I move in for the kill, so to speak. As I cuff him to the bedpost, I shout out, "how many more of you in this place?"

"You'll find out soon enough, and you won't like it!"

"We'll see about that."

MIKE - With piece and shield at the ready, this is gonna be some bust, all right, but then, I'm sucker punched, and fall to the ground, but I bounce right back up again. Bullets fly, but none hit me.

EDDIE - Ricky and I take off to look for other possible henchmen, then I hear Mike's voice and some shots.

"Holy blitzkrieg! Mike's in trouble - we gotta get 'im out!"

We see him being pummelled by two thugs. I say to Ricky, "the shield's gonna hold out - it always does, but we gotta get one of 'em to start shootin' over here - lighten the Boss-Man's load. Here, get behind me behind this - grab onto my waist - I got a plan."

I took out a flash grenade - nothing lethal or harmful, but just something to put them off their aim, but unfortunately, when the flash cleared, one of the goons started firing on us, but fortunately, we had the shield to protect us -

Ricky started to panic - his breath was rapid and labored, as was his heartbeat, which I felt pumpin' away as he was right on my back, I felt every breath, every heartbeat, even every drop of sweat.

"Just hang in there, kid, this'll be over before ya know it."

See, I knew they were bound to run out of ammo and have to reload - and THAT'S WHEN WE GOT 'EM! As soon as they took out the empty magazine and reached for the other, Mike jumped on one and I shouted to Ricky, "MOVE! NOW!" and the three of us beat the bejesus outta the two of them. Ricky continued to wail on our guy as I'd seen that the kingpin, the big boss-man himself was fleeing for his life. I tackled him but good.

"Oh, no you don't!" I shouted as I slammed him into a wall and cuffed him right then and there. As I was subduing the suspect, I heard a cracking noise. I called out to Mike who said he was okay - he subdued his guy, then I turned around and caught Ricky standing above his guy. The kid was shaking.

"Ricky, what's up there, pal? What's the matter?"

"He's - he's dead, Eddie - I snapped his neck."

We called the cops, who came and got 'em all.

MIKE - They were about to grab the cuffed kingpin but then I snarled at him, "well, well, well...you guys were out to snag all of us, but it's the other way around, now, isn't it!"

EDDIE - I added to the mix, "cop-nappin', cop-shootin', not good stuff, Maynard"

But then Ricky stepped in.

"No, that's not true - sure he had me kidnapped, but he didn't want me shot. In fact, he even removed one of the bullets."

MIKE - Of course I asked, "why not both?"

"The risk of nerve damage to the leg was quite high. I thought it would be best to just leave it in."

"Just like Officer Burke."

"See, I used to be a Surgeon."

"I love it, goin' from a saw-bones to a psycho. Guys, take this away, it's makin' me sick."

"Kid, I'm not sure ya shoulda said that - it might give 'im a lighter sentence."

Eddie interjected, "he had to, Mike - it was the truth. No matter what, we always have to be just and righteous."

"Sad but true, kiddo. Sad but true."

- - - - -

IT'S BEEN A COUPLE OF WEEKS SINCE THE WHOLE EPISODE PLAYED ITSELF OUT. RICKY GETS CALLED INTO THE OFFICE OF THE CHIEF OF POLICE.

"You wanted to see me, Chief?"

"I sure did - I'd like to know the meaning of this."

"Hey, it's just as it says - it's my letter of resignation."

"Uh-huh? Why's that?"

Ricky drew a heavy breath and explained, "After my ordeal out there - while I was recovering from everything, I got to thinking this might not be a good line of work for me."

"I see. You have plans after this?"

"Yes, sir, I do. I'm going to work for my cousin's insurance agency - I'll be in Sales."

"I don't know - Where's Ricky and what have you done with him?"

"Excuse me?"

"You're taking up his body, whoever you are, but this is not Ricky Alvarez, the kid who'd do anything just to be involved in public service - sayin' it was in your blood."

"Well, sir, I guess it wasn't after all."

"Sure it was!"

MIKE - Yep, that was me. Me-n-Eddie were standin' in the chief's office doorway hearing everything- believin' nothing. See, the Chief called us in to see about this little matter.

"It still is. How long's it been since this whole thing happened - two - three weeks, is it?"

"Uh, something like that."

"Uh-huh - and in that time, you went to a proper hospital and were told the same thing about your leg, that they have to leave the bullet in there to avoid nerve damage. How's it feelin', kid?"

"My foot doesn't really hurt or anything - just a little tender."

"Hmm, I see."

I walk over to him, stickin' my hands in my pockets, my coat open, behind my arms, Eddie - same thing. My head tilted back a little, a sinister look on my face that says, "yer fulluvit", the occasional raised eyebrows. I got this kid - I got 'im. I always do. Eddie does, too.

EDDIE - I pull out a chair for him and motion him to sit. He does have a bad foot, now, don't forget. Me-n-Mike stood on either side of him, the Chief standin' nearby with his arms folded. This wasn't just a "gave it the ol' college try, now I'm movin' on" type of deal. Naw, once you get a taste of this life, you're ready for the banquet. Oh, uh, one thing, instead of all this he-said he-said hooey, I'm jottin' down our initials by what we said, so you can get the whole picture as it happened. This is the last "I said", here, so I said:

"So, when you were in the hospital, and recovering at home, betcha told everyone about what happened."

RICKY - "Yeah."

E "I can hear it now - 'see? I told you this was a dangerous job - I knew you were gonna get in trouble - you have got to leave the police department and get a job in an office'..."

M "...settle down...."

E "....meet a nice girl...."

M "...do the 9 to 5 thing, scramble to make that bottom line and maybe you won't get an ulcer by the time you get laid off..."

RICKY - "Hey, this is my cousin's insurance company - I'm not gonna get laid off."

M "Oh yeah? What about profits? What happens when they go down? You sell this and that, but a customer might find a better deal somewhere else."

E "This great cousin of yours is sweatin' it out - lots of closed-door meetings, lookin' worried all the while, but he sees ya walkin' in and suddenly it's , 'Hi, Ricky, how ya doin'!' You say 'ya look a little down - you all right?' 'Aw, yeah, couldn't be better - heh-heh- couldn't be better...' and guess who's got a bottle of booze in his bottom drawer then he gets the picture he's gotta cut the crap with ya..."

M "...as he sits ya down in his office, wipin' the sweat off his forehead and sayin' this is the end of the line, kid..."

E "...and ya collect 5 minutes of severance and stand in the unemployment line and pound the pavement - with a bullet in your leg."

M "Lookin' for all the world like a little professional with a briefcase, the resume, the I'm Gonna Get That Job Today attitude - with a bullet in your leg."

E "You may get two, maybe three interviews - get asked if ya got any illnesses, accidents, anything of that nature..."

M "And you say no..."

E "But then ya get a little irritation down there, maybe your skin breaks out.."

M "...you get a cramp as it shifts inside you..."

E "Hey, there, what's the matter - you okay? What's wrong with your foot?"

M "Ah, it's nothin' - got a bullet in my leg, that's all."

E "(GASP) Holy Workmen's comp - ya think he's gonna pin that on us, make a few extra bucks?"

Finally Ricky cracks wide open - knew he would. Me-n-Mike look at each other and wink "Yep - we're gettin' 'im"

"What's all this about? Where're ya getting all of this?"

EDDIE - I take a chair, turn it around, sit on it backwards, I put my hand on his shoulder and peer eye to eye.

"What we're doin' is the same thing your folks are probably doin' with you. In the outside world, a young kid like you hobbles around on one of his bad days, people always askin' about what's wrong and all, and ya gotta keep explaining it to 'em. A couple of yuppies might go on about 'hey, check it out - he got shot! Can we see it?' But you won't get any of that here. We all know what happened. We've all been through it. You're a member of the family here. We're your brothers."

Mike bends down to his ear and says right into it, "and brothers are thicker than cousins and yuppies."

"You - you guys have been through this? You all got hit on the Job?"

"You bet. Me-n-Eddie got popped twice in the ribs the first real case we worked together. You think he quit?"

"Naw, no way I couldn't wait to get back out there!"

"You think I quit? I'm still standin' here with a porkpie hat and a trench coat, always at the ready - my head spinnin' about clues, light bulbs goin' off, me-n-the kid leapin' into action."

"I - I was also tortured with darts and chained to a wall..."

"Us too"

"I got smacked around a lot - tied up..."

"Haven't we all!"

"But you guys are real strong - nothing gets to you - you were born for this sort of thing. I was screaming and crying and trying to break loose when they were throwing those things at me, and laughing and carrying on like that. I wasn't very strong about it - I couldn't take it!"

"And we could, huh?"

"We don't like the things that happen to us out there. We rather they didn't, but it's all par for the course."

"And we all get hurt - and we all feel it - how many soldiers in war get hurt and captured, beaten, shot, and re-enlist as soon as they're okay..."

"How may cops get clipped - run to the repair shop and are back on the beat the minute they're okay?"

"It's their life, Ricky. It's in their blood. They have that same love for the public, the wanting to protect them, to serve them, to be there for others the way they'd want others to be there for them, just like Sweeney was on the phone when you called about your pop."

"Sweeney thought a lot of you - Jack Burke does, too. When he heard you were free, he couldn't wait to see ya, but ya didn't go visit him."

"It didn't seem like a good idea - I wanted to"

"Then why didn't ya? Man, you missed out on the best bonding experience ever. There you are, two guys - each with hearts of gold - - and bullets in your legs."

"Every time you walk on it, put your shoes on it, press the brake and the gas pedals with it, you'll know it. That bullet will always represent what you did for the Job and the life you love the most."

"Like the holes in Christ's hands, feet and side."

EDDIE - Ricky put his head down, stared right at the ground, then started nodding -

"Yeah...yeah...it's true - my family did talk me into leaving. It wasn't my idea. I didn't wanna quit. I even told 'em I wasn't always out on the beat like that, that I was just in training that day, that I'd be on the phone, and all...But I do wanna stay. It's a great buncha guys in the communication center. I know it looked like I was just runnin' away when they were kidnappin' me, but I was really runnin' for the squad car radio, hopin' I could call for back-up, but I was shot before I could get there."

"It's all on the video, kid."

"I had a great time ridin' around that day. Officer Burke was pretty cool."

"He still is, kiddo. He misses ya - he wants to see ya."

"I'll go after my shift. I'll go visit him - I will. Can I have my letter back?"

"Thought you'd never ask."

The Chief gives him the letter back and he tears it up.

"So, whatcha gonna tell your family?"

He looked at all three of us and said, "I'm gonna stay with my brothers."


MIKE - Ricky had a bittersweet reunion with Jack Burke, tellin' him all about the bullet they had to keep in his leg - they had that in common. They bonded over bullets.

Sadly, though, Officer Burke died of his wounds. As he and Ricky were talkin', he started to flatline. Ricky got the doctors in there as fast as they could run, but it was too late. They couldn't save him. Ricky watched him die. The funeral was three days later. Ricky was in full dress uniform, as was everybody, includin' us. He was buried next to Officer Sweeney - the sidekick who never left his hero. Ricky was also one of the pallbearers - in fact, he was one of the guys in front, pickin' up the casket and walkin' to the burial plot - with a bullet in his leg.