Putting Everything on the Line Page 10

  ‘Well, Sergeant, it seems I underestimated you this time, doesn’t it?’ he replied as he got down on the floor.

  ‘Yeah, you could say that now, couldn’t you’

  ‘How did you work it out so fast? That is unusual for the NYPD because normally, I have done a job, escaped and it takes them days to figure out it was even me.’

  ‘Well, Kathy helped with that one. It seems you underestimated her, too.’ Will answered as he went over to him.

  ‘She managed to hold on, did she? Well she is good, can really see what you like about her, perhaps the leg was the wrong place to put the bullet, next time I will have to change that.’ He paused for a moment ‘Well I think I will stay quiet now, till I speak to my lawyer.’

  Will stood over him, crouched down and put a gun to his head.

  ‘Go on, Sergeant, shoot me’

  ‘Will, what are you doing? Put it down, you don’t have to do this, we have him now.’ Tom said as he went over to him.

  Will went to pull the trigger, and paused, his heart was saying ‘do it pull the trigger, kill him it’s what he deserves.’

  ‘WILL!’ Tom reacted.

  Will put the gun down and Tom breathed a sigh of relief.

  ‘They wouldn’t want me to, I joined the force to do what’s right and my parents and Kathy feel the same, and it will give me more satisfaction to see you behind bars for the rest of your life, you bastard.’ Will stepped back putting his gun away.

  Just then, Detective Franks and fifteen officers came in and took the six men into custody.

  ‘Sorry I ever doubted you, Sergeant, I should have known better, and I am really sorry I got one of yours shot, too.’

  ‘It’s all right,’ Will said putting his hand on Detective Franks shoulder. ‘We have him now and I reckon he would have used any excuse to shoot her. He didn’t want her spoiling his plan, but he never realised how strong she is.’

  ‘Well, I hope she is OK.’

  ‘Thanks, all right guys, let’s go’ Will said as he left the store with a satisfactory smile on his face.

  ***

  All Will wanted to do now was write his report and get to the hospital to see how Kathy was doing. He was exhausted, as were the rest of the team. These last three days had been hell for all of them. Will got a coffee and was heading towards his office when he saw three detectives walk in and head for the Captain’s office. He went into his office, sat down in his chair and was about to close the door when he heard the Captain shout.

  ‘Falco, get in here!’

  ‘What now?’ he thought. He got up and went next door.

  ‘Yes, Captain?’ he said as he walked in. ‘I was just going to write up and get to the hospital.’

  ‘No, you are not, Sergeant, you have to go downstairs with these detectives.’

  ‘What the hell for?’ Will said angrily. He was not in the mood to be messed about now.

  ‘There is still the matter of the bank hold up to sort out and now we have a reporter saying that you threatened her life.’

  ‘You have got to be kidding me. Can this not wait till the morning?’ Will was getting angry, he had had enough for one day.

  ‘No, it can’t wait, and I wish it was a joke, but apparently she has you on tape, saying you will shoot her.’

  ‘Shit!’ Will hit the filing cabinet next to him. ‘Captain, it was a slip of the tongue, I just wanted her out of my way. We were on our way to find Hill and…’

  ‘Well, now Sergeant, you have to go and explain it to these detectives downstairs, because that reporter has filed a complaint with them.’ He stood and walked over to Will. ‘Listen, I know you have had a shit couple of days and all you want to do is go to the hospital and be with Kathy. But now you have to go and sort this mess out and no more ‘no comment’ bullshit like earlier. That’s if you want to keep your job. I just hope this has not gone too far.’

  ‘Am I being arrested for something? Do I need a lawyer or my rep?’ Will asked.

  ‘No, not yet anyway, and I have managed to keep your team out of it, being as it was only you that made the threat. This is serious, I won’t lie to you. So, co-operate and we will try and sort this.’

  ‘Thanks, Captain. Do we know how Kathy is yet?’

  ‘They said she lost a lot of blood, but you found her just in time. She had surgery to remove the bullet and repair some of the damage. She is going to be fine, just off work for a while,’ the Captain explained. ‘You did the right thing, but you went about things in the wrong way.’

  Will reluctantly agreed to go downstairs. As they were walking across the office, Tom came over to Will.

  ‘Sergeant, what’s going on?’

  ‘They just need me to go and answer some questions about today. Do me a favour and go and sit with Kathy till I get there?’

  ‘Yeah, sure, no worries. I was going to pop in anyway. I will see you there soon?’

  ‘I hope so, I really do.’ Will replied as he exited the office with the three detectives.

  Chapter Twenty

  Will had been sat in the interview room for two hours, the same room he had been in earlier in the day. He had answered questions about the bank ten times over and had just answered one question about the reporter incident. He was tired and frustrated. He should have been at the hospital hours ago, not stuck here. He was pacing up and down in an attempt to stay calm but the trouble was, it wasn’t really working. They had decided that no further action would be taken over the hold up and the matter was now closed, due to the circumstances in which it was undertaken, and they had discovered who it was that had been tipping him off. It had all been arranged, that Will would be working the witness move, and it had been the same detective that had tipped off the press to his name and details. He remembered him, as he had been one of the detectives in the park, he had been the inside man through the last few years. Will felt better as he now knew the whole story.

  Now though, there was still the stupid comment he had made to that reporter in the heat of the moment, and something told him he wasn’t going to get away with that so lightly; the press didn’t always paint his unit in a good light, made out that suspects were victims and he had been a target on a regular basis, but they had never got something like this on him before. He was more angry with himself, than he was with them or even her; he knew better than to let his emotions interfere but these past few days that was all he had done and he just wanted it all to be over, whatever the cost.

  The door opened and Captain Bridge and two of the detectives came in.

  ‘Sergeant, we have been in talks with the TV station and the reporter,’ the Captain started.

  ‘So, what’s the situation now?’ Will sat down. Captain Bridge sat opposite as the detectives stood behind him by the door.

  ‘They are prepared to drop the charges and not show the tape and destroy it on three conditions,’ Captain Bridge continued.

  ‘Why do I reckon I am not going to like these conditions?’ Will responded with a tone of sarcasm in his voice.

  ‘You don’t have to like them, Sergeant, you just have to do them.’

  ‘And if I refuse?’ Will queried.

  ‘You will be charged for threatening her life and lose your job, so I would say you are going to do this.’

  There was a pause. Will stood and walked to the two-way mirror. Without turning around, he asked, ‘So what are these conditions?’

  ‘First, an apology in person to the reporter and her camera man. Second, you will be required to pay a $100,000 fine, which will be donated to charity. You can pay it over time if you need to’

  ‘Well the money is easy enough if they accept cheques. The apology, I think I can manage. So, what’s the third?’

  ‘You are not going to like this bit, but you have to give a press conference on the events of the last three days, leaving out the personal details which got you into this of course, though I am sure the press would love those bits. We don’t want that on the front page. It will b
e the day after tomorrow.’

  ‘You are joking, right? Me give a press conference? You know that is not going to go well.’ Will turned and looked at the Captain.

  ‘Yes, you, and a message from the Chief. You have got to be nice and polite, no swearing, shouting or signs of aggression in any way. We have some damage control to do with the public and media after all this, and being as you are responsible for that, you are going to front it. You mess this up and…’

  ‘And what?’ Will responded sternly, arms folded.

  ‘You lose your team.’

  ‘Lose my team? As in, no longer have one? Or as in, I get a crap heap of a team?’

  ‘As in no longer have one. You will be off SWAT and on traffic duties for the rest of your time in the force. Sorry, Sergeant, this was the best I could do.’

  Will shook his head. He had done this, and he didn’t have the best record of staying out of the Captain’s office. This time, he had to pay the price.

  ‘Yeah. I know, this is my mess so I guess I have to be the one to clean it up. I am not sure why you keep me sometimes, Captain, I am more trouble than I am worth.’

  ‘Sometimes,’ said the Captain as he got up and they walked to the door. ‘But life would be dull without you around and you know you are the best I got.’ He smiled. ‘Now get to the hospital. You can finish your reports next shift in. I am going home to my wife, and Sergeant, you did all this to save her, don’t throw away how you feel for a job, you will regret it.’

  As they left, the two detectives hung back for a moment.

  ‘What the fuck? How can a cop afford that much money?’

  ‘I don’t know, man, but I do know if that had been anyone else, they would have been off the force, for sure. Maybe we should do a little detective work into Sergeant Falco’

  ***

  Will packed up, got changed and headed for the hospital. He had so much going round in his head. His parents and how he lost them, and now the woman he was falling for had almost died at the hands of the same man. People kept telling him what the Captain had said, that he was the best, but how could he be? The last six years, he had been fighting inside and out, he knew that he had been so angry; at friends, Tom had seen him through most of it and his work had become so much of a focus. He wanted the guy so bad that he couldn’t see that he was been set up till it was too late, and that emotional attachment to it all scared him. He had also thought that when the man who killed his parents was caught, it would be all right and he would find some peace. He now though he just felt empty inside and guilty. The events of the last three days had all happened because of him and now he didn’t know what to say or do to make it right. He just knew what he had to do now.

  When he arrived at the hospital, he headed for the front desk.

  ‘I am looking for Officer Kathy Hill.’

  ‘Yes, let me check for you,’ The receptionist looked on the computer. ‘Third floor, room twenty-one.’

  ‘Thanks very much.’ Will smiled and headed for the elevators. In the elevator, he tried to figure out just what he was going to say to Kathy, with the Captain’s last words going round in his head. He got out and walked down the hall, looking for room twenty-one. He got there, he acknowledged the police officer still on guard at her door. Tom was still sat with her, as promised. When he saw Will, he came over to the door.

  ‘Hey man, how are you doing? What happened with the detectives?’

  ‘I’m OK, just some crap over that reporter at the car. She really wanted my blood. I have to apologise, pay her $100,000 and do a press conference, at which I have to be nice and polite or I am off the unit.’ He tried to laugh it off but inside he was furious, mainly with himself.

  ‘That is bullshit, with everything that was going on at the time, how could they try and do you for that?’

  ‘I know, but she got it on tape so I have no choice, it was either that or work traffic for the next twenty years or so. How is she, anyway? He asked, gesturing towards Kathy.

  ‘She is all right, I guess. She lost a lot of blood and had surgery to remove the bullet. She is in a hell of a lot of pain as you would expect, but she will be fine. She was asking for you before she went to sleep,’ he paused and looked at Will, whose eyes were fixed on Kathy. ‘Listen, I best go or Lynne is going to kill me. See you tomorrow?’

  ‘Yeah, sure thing. I’ll be in. Night.’

  Tom got his things and left. Will walked across the room. It was a private room with large windows covered by the closed blinds, all kinds of monitors and tubes everywhere. She looked so peaceful lying there asleep, even after all she had been through. He bent over and kissed her on the head and sat in the chair next to the bed.

  Five minutes later, he was asleep.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  It was morning when Kathy woke, she moved and cringed with pain. She looked around. There he was, next to her, asleep. She smiled. She wasn’t sure what was going to happen now, they hadn’t had chance to speak about the kiss or what would happen now; she knew what she wanted but he had jumped away so fast, she wasn’t sure what he would say or do. It all depended on what the Captain chose to do about the new team and if, in fact, she had passed her exams.

  A nurse came in. She opened the blinds and the sunlight poured in. Kathy smiled at the warmth of it, then turned to the nurse.

  ‘Has he been here all night?’

  ‘Since about three, I believe,’ the nurse replied as she was checking the monitors and drips, and then her dressings.

  ‘Can you do me a favour, please?’ Kathy asked her.

  ‘Of course, what can I do?’

  ‘Bring him a coffee with milk and four sugars.’

  ‘Four sugars?’ the nurse reacted in shock.

  ‘Yeah, four, thanks very much.’ she smiled.

  Kathy lay there watching him sleep till the nurse came back with his coffee. She wondered for a few moments what he had been through these last few days; she wasn’t sure what was going to happen with the fact he robbed a bank either but she was happy he was sat there at that moment.

  ‘Here we are,’ she smiled as she put the coffee down next to Will. ‘The doctor will be in soon to talk to you and check your leg’

  ‘Thanks,’ replied Kathy.

  As the nurse left, Kathy reached for Will’s hand and shook it gently.

  ‘Sergeant. Hey, Sergeant, time to wake up.’

  He slowly opened his eyes, then sat up, quickly when he realised exactly where he was, then he smiled when he saw her.

  ‘Morning, Sergeant, did you sleep well?’

  ‘Not really, how are you doing now?’ he asked, standing up and moving to release the stiffness from sleeping in a chair.

  ‘Right now, I could scream with pain.’ Her eyes following him as he moved around the room. ‘But I am OK. The doctor will be in soon, so I will know more then. They said you got to me just in time, so thank you for that and Tom told me you caught him so thanks for that as well.’

  ‘Are you kidding? It was my fault you ended up like this, and I am glad you were still awake to make sure we got him. He won’t be hurting anyone else for a very long time. What time is it?’ Will asked while looking round for a clock.

  ‘Around eight, there’s a coffee there for you,’ she smiled.

  ‘Thanks,’ he smiled back and walked towards the window. ‘I have to get going in a minute, I am on shift today.’

  ‘No, you are not, Sergeant,’ came a voice from the door. ‘You and your team have the day off; your shift is covered.’

  ‘Hi, Captain.’

  ‘Morning, Hill, how are you?’ Captain Bridge asked as he walked into the room and sat in the chair where Will had spent the night.

  ‘Not great, but I’ll be fine,’ she smiled, putting on a brave front.

  ‘Sergeant, you look like crap, go home get a shower and a couple of hours. I don’t want to see you till at least twelve, I will sit here till then.’

  ‘But Captain—’ Will responded.


  ‘No buts, Falco. Go home.’

  Will finished his coffee, got his stuff and headed for the door. He knew he wasn’t going to get his way, so he thought he might as well head home for a sleep. He turned to Kathy. ‘See you later.’

  ***

  He went home, he had something to eat and then got a shower. As the water flowed over him, he felt relief. Kathy was going to be all right, he knew it would take time for her to be back on duty and he would be short for a few months, but that would not be a problem as she was coming back. He still hadn’t decided what he was going to do now; he had crossed a line with that kiss. Maybe he should talk it over with Kathy and see what she wanted. Tom was right, they couldn’t ignore what had happened, and maybe deep down he didn’t want to. But for now, he would play it by ear and see what happened. After his shower, he laid down. Within minutes, he was asleep.

  At one p.m., he woke, feeling better than he had in days, so relaxed. He looked at the clock and jumped out of bed. He should have been back at the hospital by now. He paused. He knew she would have had plenty of people visiting though, she was popular through the whole department. He got ready and had decided he would wait for her to talk about what had happened; it was better than him presuming what she wanted. He couldn’t even begin to guess what it would be now.

  ***

  There was no longer an officer on her door, so he walked straight into her room. Gina was sat with her; they were chatting and laughing, it was a wonderful thing to hear, Will thought. Gina worked in SWAT dispatch and had done for ten years. She was responsible for taking all SWAT calls into the unit via phone or radio and paging or radioing the appropriate team, so on a day to day basis, she was often in contact with Will. The New York SWAT unit had designated teams, and Gina had to sort all the calls; they had their own dispatch unit, to make it much easier on the PD dispatch, especially on busier days, though there was only a handful of people that worked with Gina. She was dedicated to her work and loved the job. She was also probably one of the best at it too; she avoided sending Will to jobs that another team could handle and only called when Will’s and his team’s expertise and skills were needed. She got on with everyone and was always the life and soul of any party. She was only five feet tall, but made up for it with her bubbly personality. She was thirty-five and her mother was of Caribbean descent. She had had a bit of a fling with Will when she had only been on the unit a few months. They were now good friends and she knew his past and wanted the best for his future. She was better friends with Kathy, though. They had hit it off when Kathy came to New York three years earlier, but she still kept Will’s secrets; a fact he appreciated.