Shoot Him Before He Runs

Detective James "Jimmy" Barlow is as street smart as any detective on the force...One of the reasons I recruited him for this elite unit of detectives.. He knew of a jack leg doctor...Dr. Leonard Bombay, who operated on people in the underworld who could afford him, but couldn't afford to go to a hospital where their gunshot wound or stab wound would immediately be reported to the police...

Early in the morning....Detective Barlow and four uniformed police officers found and arrested Dr. Bombay and two of his nefarious associates...One of Jimmy's confidential informants had told him that the good doctor had indeed worked on a tall thin,blond haired man who fit the description of our shooter just days before..

Once in custody....Duke and Tyriq took it from there...It took them less than one hour to get the whereabouts of our shooter out of Dr. Bombay...

They did this on little sleep and a whole lot of coffee....They had been on the road with FBI Special Agent,Sharon Hopkins and three of her agents in Bethesda, Maryland and Washington D.C. the day before interviewing the next of kin of both victims....including their  estranged spouses...Neither of who suspected that these two, A DEA Agent going through a nasty divorce and a material witness, just entering a legal seperation had found something in common and had fallen in love and chosen to flee rather than face a trial and then the seperation from each other...She more than likely would have been put in witness protection.

II-

Imagine this grizzled Hit man's surprise some hours later when my beautiful wife, Detective Carlotta Rodriguez Wallace appeared at the door of the apartment complex, where he had been holed up and she flashed her badge!!! What did he do? He ran for all he was worth....Down the steps with Carlotta pursuing and right into the arms of Detectives Sirena Pile and Tony Hopkins....armed with glocks...

Because it had been on such short notice...They hadn't bothered to call back up...So they took him in one car...Hop sat in the back with him....They had read him his rights and he was exercising his right to remain silent.

From what Carlotta would tell me...What followed next was an incredible sequence of events....

"That was pretty easy Lotta." said Sirena, who was driving...

''Yes...if it wasn't for the fact that he was wounded and presumed to be alone...I would have waited for back up...but there wasn't any time." said Carlotta...

"Hey you guys.." said Hop, who was riding in the backseat with the suspect..."We are being followed." he said.

''What?" said Carlotta...

They didn't have time to do much else...a huge Station wagon crashed into their car...causing the windshield and the glass in the side windows to explode and their car to spin wildly and crash into a light post....
Before they could assess the damage...Two men , armed with uzi's got out of the station wagon and began shooting...

"GUN!!! GET DOWNNNNN!" yelled Carlotta...

She and Sirena ducked ,opened the passenger side of the car and crawled out....Hop did likewise, holding on to the frightened suspect....as automatic  gunfire erupted...bullets just whizzing by them as they crawled.

Carlotta pulled her glock, squatted down behind her car and began firing at both gunmen and yelling,

"Sirena, Hop, go!!!!...Take the suspect....I got you covered.." as she continued to fire in both directions at both men...who were ducking and returning fire...

"I'm not leaving you Lotta!!!!" screamed Sirena, who squatted down behind another car and pulled out her glock and began shooting at the two men...

Bystanders ran and took cover, people screamed....A furious fire fight was in process....The battle between Carlotta, Sirena and the two gunmen raged on at full blast...A third man in the car, the driver got out of the car...Hop pulled his glock and fired several rounds at him...He ducked...He returned fire...Hop returned fire and forced him to retreat behind the station wagon...

Hop dragged the suspect across the street and took cover and then pulled out his glock again...He fired one shot...All he needed!..He hit the first man right between the eyes...The bullet exited out the back of his head and he fell dead to the ground...

Carlotta and Sirena turned and lit the other man up, hitting him multiple times....He too fell dead!...  Once again the third man , the  driver  of the station wagon pulled out a pistol and aimed at Carlotta and Sirena , who saw him and ducked...Sirena, Carlotta and Hop returned fire, killing him instantly!!!!....

The three Detectives hugged each other....Carlotta and Sirena crying profusely and shaking....While Hop dragged their suspect  over towards them...
III-

Police, CSI and Crime scene photographers arrived on the scene as well as Reporters... Sissy ,Hazel, Tyriq, Sharon, Carol, Lt. Cantrell and I also arrived...

"Chica, Sirena, Hop...are you alright?" asked a visibly shaken Lt. Sissy Van Buren...

"We are okay boss lady...and we got our shooter." said Carlotta...

"I don't care about that...I'm just glad you're okay..." said Sissy...

''All three men are dead on the scene." confirmed Hazel.

Tyriq hugged and kissed his wife, Sirena and then hugged his partner, Carlotta...He was shaken...

"Damn...I should have come with you...What the hell is going on?" he said aloud punching his fist in the palms of his hands..

"This was Malinga.....This hitman screwed up...He was only supposed to kill the girl... When he killed a Federal Agent and shot a cop...thus making national news and bringing more attention to him...He had to be dealt with.." said DEA Agent Carol Redding.

"This was quite some wing ding you guys had here...At least you have your murder suspect in custody...See..I told you these detectives are good..." said Lt. Cantrell to Carol..

Sissy gave him the side eye and remarked dryly...

''Yes...MY DETECTIVES ARE GOOD!" she said.

Sharon kind of looked at me and smiled....I smiled...I was holding my wife in my arms....

She looked over at Hop who had just finished making a statement to the officers...

"Sharon your husband was amazing...He saved us...He killed the first shooter...I did not know he could shoot that well..." said Carlotta...

Sirena agreed...

"Yessssssssssssss. I'm so glad he's my partner...I feel safer now, knowing he can shoot like that." she said..

FBI Agent Sharon Hopkins, his wife ,whispered to him...."You have no idea how incredibly horny I am right now.."

If he could have blushed..I believe Hop would have... He was certainly going to be a lucky man tonight in bed. ...I mused.

I heard it...but I didn't let on.

Duke and Jimmy drove up in another car with three uniforms.....Duke surveyed the scene....
"Wow....This looks like a party I should have been invited to." he said.

''Everybody okay?" asked Jimmy..

''Yeah, we are alright." said Carlotta.

''You guys take off...Lou...Jimmy and I will clean this up." said Duke.

IV-

 A little while later, I sat in Sissy's office with  Sissy ,DEA Agent Carol Redding  and Lt. Cantrell....

"We've got him on camera committing two murders and shooting a cop and police have recovered his gun from his apartment...It's being checked for ballistics now...if it matches...We got him cold for two murders and the attempted murder of a cop...I can try him on state charges and bury him or turn him over to you feds." I said.

"I need him talking about Johnny Malinga....Sissy...I am so proud of you...How far you've come...and all your detectives.. Rico, Duke, Jimmy, Carlotta, Sirena and your rookie...I can't believe they caught this guy and so quick...You really have a good group here...but then again...We knew them when they were starting out." she said.

Sissy smiled.. She really liked Carol...It was Ed Cantrell she was visibly upset with...It was as though he had cheated on her , the way she was acting.. When in fact he hadn't...She had rebuffed the man at every turn...There never was any relationship...What had he done wrong? I guess I didn't understand because I was a man.

"Oh My God...Is that Carol Redding?" came the voice of Detective Angie Belton.....

"Angie? Oh My God Girlllll...How long has it been?" said Carol as she hugged Angie...

"Too long girl...You're with the DEA now huh?" asked Angie.

''Yeah...I told Sissy if I had known all of you guys would be in her unit...I'd of stayed on the Philly P.D. What are you doing working IAB? You should be down here where all the fun is." said Carol.

"I've told her that...She's a natural hunter. She belongs in Homicide." said Lt. Cantrell...

Sissy breathed in deeply...Deep enough that it was noticed by Carol and Angie....Angie looked at me...I shrugged my shoulders.

Sensing the tension and changing the subject...Carol turned to Angie...

''So you and Jimmy huh?  You cougar you."

We all laughed...

"I know right? He apparently had had a thing for me for a long time...I didn't even know it...but girl, he has been sooo good to me...He loves me so much it scares me sometimes." said Angie.

"Don't you love him?" asked Carol...

"I DO...I DO...I can't believe it...I just never saw it coming." said Angie...

Sissy looked at her friend lovingly....

"Yeah love can creep up on you like that...Me and Lt. Cantrell just happened to run into each other Christmas Eve and one thing led to another and now...we kind of kickin it." said Carol.

I sure wish she hadn't of said that....Sissy and Angie both said-

''Christmas Eve???" ,But I was sure for decidedly different reasons.

"Girl ,you were up here Christmas Eve and you didn't stop in to see us?" asked Angie...

"I didn't have time...I was busy searching for my late partner and his lover....I stopped in Josies and ran into Ed and he told me that I'd just missed all of you guys." she said. Apparently she didn't miss Lt. Cantrell ,I mused to myself...

"Uhhh...Uhhh, it's been a long day...Carol, let's get some lunch...I'm starved....You like Chinese Bob's??" said a visibly uncomfortable Lt. Cantrell....I tried mightily to hold my laughter in...I turned my head and peered out into the outer office.

"Okay baby." she said meekly and softly rubbed his knuckles. "Great job guys. Sissy, Angie...we have to catch up." she said as she and Lt. Cantrell walked out of the office..again, holding hands and smiling at each other...Duke, Tyriq, Carlotta,Jimmy, Sirena, Hop and Sharon as well as the other detectives, FBI agents and policemen all looked at them and scratched their heads...I could imagine what they all must have been wondering...."HUH?"  I smiled wryly and held my head down so that Sissy and Angie couldn't see the expression on my face.

Angie looked at Sissy....

''Wow...Imagine that? Lt. Cantrell and Carol Redding dating? I'll bet you're  glad he's off your case now huh?" she said looking at Sissy.

"Yeah real glad.......He can uh grope Carol now!" said a surprisingly irritated Sissy , who gathered some files, got up and left the office...

''Hey Sis, where you goin?" asked Angie...

"Out!" was all she said and she walked briskly past everyone and exited the office with her files.

Angie looked at me funny...I just shrugged my shoulders..

"Hi Angie...Where is boss lady off to?" asked Carlotta ,who had just entered the office...

"Hey sweetie....I don't know." said Angie ,who looked understandably puzzled.

''Jimmy is waiting for you." said Carlotta.

''Okay ,thanks...See you guys later." said Angie.

Carlotta put her arms around me...

"What do you want for lunch?" she asked.

"You." I said and pulled her toward me and kissed her passionately for a long time...

"Ouuuuuu, you are so cute when you're horny..." she said playing with my shirt collar and softly kissing me some more......

I kissed her again......

"So are you " I said in between more kisses...

I was Happy for Lt. Cantrell...He had been making a fool out of himself chasing Sissy around these past few months....Throwing chinese food on the floor at the sight of Sissy and Eddie C. Now he finally had someone for himself....I didn't see where he had done anything wrong...Still despite all of that...This case was far from over....We had to work with Agent Redding...I certainly hoped that her new relationship with Lt. Cantrell wasn't going to be a problem.

(TO BE CONTINUED.....)