After The Disaster

It was all over the news...ABC, CBS, NBC, FOX, CNN,MSNBC..Al Jazeera...You name it...It was being called the worst mass shooting in the city of Philadelphia's history...

18 people wounded...4 seriously...and 11 people dead..Among the dead, a police officer, Sgt. Devon
Lawson...an eleven year veteran.. and one of the shooters, the one believed to be the mastermind..18 year old Evan Alexander Clayton.... Shot and killed by Captain Edward Cantrell....His identity was not made known...All the public knew is that the shooter had been shot and killed by police..

I was on the television around the clock the next few hours giving a rough statement about what we knew about our two shooters, which wasn't a hell of a lot and the confirmed victims.....

Police Sgt. Devon Lawson was not married and had no children...He was left to be mourned by his Mother and Father and his younger sister who came down to the M.E.'s office and identified the body...

Naturally...they were all quite shaken up...

Hazel did the best she could to comfort them....She had ten other bodies to attend to...including one of the teenaged shooters...

At Criminal Investigation Division headquarters....I arrived with hot breakfasts for everyone on the task force....headed by Captain Eddie Cantrell and Lt. Sissy Van Buren...

I was so glad that Lt. Tragg was "out at sea.." to stay on the marine boat...he would have milked this situation for all it was worth on the Television making satements after statements...and just getting in the way of the investigation...

My uniformed officers passed out platters of hot steaming breakfasts from Sam Mothers Diner,complete with Orange Juice and Tumblers of coffee to everyone present..Sissy and her detectives,

Sharon and her FBI agents and several uniformed officers and plain clothes officers assigned to us...

"Sissy girl..We'll give you any help you need as usual."said Sharon...

Captain Ed Cantrell spoke first...

''We still have tactical units on the ground.. We recovered one AR-15 rifle and a .38 bulldog revolver..We believe the pistol was used in two of the murders....including one of our own." he said..

Sissy spoke next...

"We have one active shooter at large....I want this guy brought in...Chica...You, Rico and Jimmy start looking at Johann Storm's friends, relatives, places he might have worked...his schools...the works...Find him!!! Take as many men as you feel you need...Plain clothes and uniforms...and I want you all wearing kevlar and trauma plates around the clock until I say you don't have to anymore.."she said.

I had never seen her more serious...

"I'll run point on this...okay?  I'll do a profile on him and start interviewing his friends and relatives.."said Carlotta...

"Okay Top...I'm going to look into that gun, try to find out where he got it..where they got em from..."said Tyriq...

''And I'll check out his jobs, the schools he went to and his financials...if he has any..."said Jimmy...

"Sirena, you and hop go over the dead guy's , Evan Clayton's...last 48 hours.....Give me the book on him.." said Sissy...

''Got it Boss Lady...Sharon and I already started doing a profile on both shooters.. I'll start  interviewing his friends and relatives.."said Sirena..

''On it.We are doing a profile on both shooters and I got a team triangulating all of the Traffic,Street and ATM CAMS."said Sharon..

''I'll check out his jobs, the high school and his financials."said Hop...

"I'll co-ordinate with Top,Rico and Jimmy's team and Sirena and Hop's team." said Duke..

"I'm going to charge Johann Storm with 10 counts of first degree murder..and recommend the death penalty.."I said, surprised at how furious I had become...

''We are looking for a cop killer guys...It had to be him...because the dead guy had a bead on Detectives Hopkins and Barlow, when I come up on him and I heard what sounded like a pistol shot just minutes before we entered that alley."said Ed Cantrell...

My wife Carlotta had a funny look on her face....

Sissy and I both knew that look.....and we both asked her..

"Something wrong ?"

"No...I heard that shot too...We found the .38 Bulldog revolver on the bus...Hazel got Evan Clayton's fingerprints and DNA off of it...and Evan Clayton only had the AR-15 on him when he was killed..."said Carlotta...

''What are you saying Top?" asked Tyriq.. Carlotta had been his partner most of her career as a detective...Although he had mentored and taught her..He had learned to respect her instincts...

"Nothing....I'm just saying...Johann Storm ran into that alley lugging an AR-15...We heard a pistol shot...It was loud...louder than a bulldog .38...Did he have an extra piece?  " she asked..

"That's a good question...He must have....It was dark and smokey in that alley...It was like a maze.."said Ed Cantrell...

"That's what I was saying..." said Sirena...

''We didn't hear but that one gunshot...None of the officers in that alley fired a shot.."said Sissy.

"Not my three."said Ed Cantrell..."But there were two other guys in that alley with Lawson...Find out who they were and ask them."said Captain Cantrell.

"It's nothing...When we find Johann Storm...we'll get his other weapon..."said Carlotta.

We all somberly ate our breakfast....We knew what we had to do...We had to find a mass killer who was still on the loose , who might still kill some more...

II-

At the medical examiner's office....Detective Angela Belton brought lunch to Forensic Investigator,Dr. Hazel Hunter-Baylor...

"Hi Haze...I brought us some lunch.."said Angie...

Hazel smiled...

"Thank you Angie...I've been working through the night...I'm bone tired.." she said.

Angie scanned the bodies lying on the tables...She shook her head....

"I can't believe this...All this death...All nine of these people were just out ,having lunch...They probably were planning what they were gonna do when they got off work...they didn't know that two lunatics were going to kill them..." said Angie...

"I know right?  It's a shame..."said Hazel...

Angie then looked at the tenth victim...Police Sgt. Devon Lawson.....

''Wow...Devon Lawson..." she said.

"I take it you knew him?...Carlotta and Jimmy said they were in the academy with him and my husband, Duke and Tyriq and Sirena all said that they knew him too!."said Hazel..

''Yeah ,I knew him...He tried to get me in bed a number of times...He was something else...If this guy hugged you, you had to check to make sure you hadn't just had sex.."she said laughing...

"Ohhhhh, He was that type huh? Wandering hands..."said Hazel laughing...

"Oh yeah and fast too.....I just can't believe he's dead....He was a good cop...I always wondered why he never became a detective...He always said that he liked being on the street,right in the thick of the action.." said Angie...

"Something weird about his death..."said Hazel...

"Really?" asked Angie..

"It's nothing...but eight of these people were riddled with bullets from the AR-15 rifle.....as were all of the 18 wounded......One guy here was shot and killed on the bus with a .38 bulldog revolver..I pulled the fingerprints and DNA of our dead shooter Evan Clayton off of that."said Hazel.

"Yeah? And?" asked Angie...

"Devon was shot with a pistol...but the fragments we pulled out of his head were not from the bulldog...and besides..We already had the bulldog in our custody...The hole in the back of his head and the fragments look like they came from a glock nine.."said Hazel...

"The other shooter had another gun right?" said Angie.....

"That's what Sissy, Duke and Captain Cantrell seem to think..."said Hazel..

"You think it might have been friendly fire?" asked Angie...

"It couldn't be...None of the tact squad officers or any of the other officers fired their weapons in that alley....The only person we know fired a weapon was Captain Cantrell and he was with your husband and Hop, in another part of the alley...They killed the first shooter.." said Hazel...

Angie looked at the body....

"The other shooter had another gun...That's probably what it was...It was dark and smokey and noisy and he probably got the drop on Devon and shot him...Which was how he made his escape."said Angie...

''Yeah you're probably right.."said Hazel.

''This guy kissed me..had his hands up my dress...grabbed my boobs...He was a mess..I never imagined him dead though...I always thought somebody's husband or boyfriend would be the one to take him out...if he had to die violently....Never thought he'd die like this...Almost a hero...Chasing a mass murderer...Wow!...If he was going to write his epitah ,this is how he would have wrote it."said Angie ,smiling at her memory of him and shaking her head..

III-

Detective Tyriq Pile and six plain clothes policemen walked into headquarters some hours later with a suspect...A tall white male with graying hair and tattoos on both arms...

He smiled at Sissy, Carlotta, Jimmy and me..

"You guys might want to see this...This is  Jacques Storm...Johann's older brother and a gun runner..."said Tyriq...

The officers marched him into the tank and sat him down...

Carlotta and Jimmy followed Tyriq into the '"fishbowl " and sat down....

 "Mr. Storm...I'm Detective Carlotta Rodriguez-Wallace....I don't have to tell you how much trouble you're in...You sold two deadly weapons to your younger brother and his friend..plus smoke bombs and concussion bombs." she said.

"Those were legal sales...plus they are both legal adults...My brother is 19 and Evan is 18...I think." he said.

"You think?" said Jimmy...

"Let's cut the crap Jacques...Those guns were purchased by Aryan Hamilton.....Aryan Hamilton has been dead for six years....The handwriting matches yours...You have a weapons conviction,so you're not even supposed to be selling or having guns in your possession...You're going back to the joint to do at least five years for this stunt..."said Tyriq..

"Plus accessory to 10 murders including the murder of a cop....That could put you down for the rest of your life Jacques."said Carlotta..She was pulling no punches..

He was frightened...

"Look..I'm ready to deal.."he said.

"You are ,are you?  How are you ready to deal?" asked Jimmy...

"Look...I sold them those guns and the smoke and concussion bombs...but I didn't want to...I was afraid ....Evan is crazy...He's a real scary dude...He has had my brother under his sway for a long time...Both of them told me to get those guns for em or they was gonna kill me...I swear....I swearrrrrrrrrrrr."he said ,now crying and bawling something crazy...

Sissy looked at me and exclaimed...

"Oh My god  is this guy for real?" she asked...

"I think he is.." I said.

He pleaded with Jimmy, who like him was white...

He couldn't relate to Tyriq, an African-American or Carlotta, a Latina...He considered them foreigners..

He pleaded...

"Look I can't go back to jail....I can't do that kind of time man...If I help you get my brother, will you overlook the weapons violations?? I had no idea they were planning to do something like this...Nobody did...His mother and father and sister are just as mortified about this as everybody else is." he said.

''Where is your brother?"asked Tyriq...

''He has a girlfriend...She put him out about a week ago...but that's who he'd hole up with...if he was desperate.."he said.

 "Name and phone number ace..." said Jimmy...

"Her name is Jessie...Jessica Mooney."he said.

He wrote everything down....

"You'll talk to the D.A. right?  You'll cut me some slack right?" he asked...

''We'll see."said Carlotta as they got up...

 Captain Ed Cantrell stood by watching...He gently grabbed Sissy's arm as she walked by...He hadn't touched her or really talked to her in awhile...Gone were the days when he had lusted after all and tried to kiss her and grope her...

"Sissy?" he asked...

''Yes Sir?" she answered.

''Come on girl, you know you don't have to call me that...We are on a first name basis...I-I just want to say that you have a great bunch of detectives and cops working for you and they're doing a great job...I'm going to get out of your way....I know this is stressful for you...but I'm just so proud of you and Duke , Tyriq and Sirena..I don't know what to do...because even the guys I didn't train like Carlotta,Jimmy and Hopkins are following your great example and teachings..You guys are all very good and I know you'll bring this case in..." he said.

Sissy looked around to make sure nobody was looking and she gave Captain Cantrell a warm embrace....

"Thank you Ed." she said and kissed him on the cheek...

"Lawd Jesus girl don't go gettin me all excited like this in the middle of the damn day." he said ,smiling from ear to ear..

"I'm sorry...I just got carried away."said Sissy...

''Aint nothin wrong with that.."he said smiling and hugged Sissy..

''I'll see you later...if you need anything...you know my number."he said.

Sissy smiled....

IV-

The Elevated train roared above.....Sissy looked around...We had purposely not brought any uniformed cops...or squad cars....We had located the house...

"The lights are on...I hear a television...Somebody's home.."said Sissy..

"Siss...I got three good guys...We'll take the front door...Hop and Sirena will back me.."said Duke..

 Hop and Sirena usually took the back door...Sissy had decided that they had progressed enough to take a front door...Duke,Carlotta,Tyriq and Jimmy agreed...

"I'm going up too..Rico, Chica and Jimmy have three plain clothes guys...They're going in through the back right now."said Sissy.

Tyriq, Carlotta and Jimmy and three plain clothes cops...all entered the back stairs and headed up.... Sissy ,Duke,Sirena and Hop and three plain clothes cops entered the front...With badges showing and glocks drawn..they took the door...

Inside was a badly beaten young white male in his boxers and a t-shirt...he was bound and gagged..

Jimmy untied him...Sirena and Hop entered the other rooms...

"CLEAR" they yelled....

Carlotta,,Jimmy,Duke and Tyriq surrounded the young man..

"WHO ARE YOU?" they demanded...

''I'm Tim...Timothy Delight..I'm Jessica Mooney's boyfriend..."he spat angrily..

 ''You're her boyfriend?  We were told she was Johann Storm's girlfriend.."said Sissy...

"She was dating that loser...but she dropped him about a month ago...She was lettin him crash here for a little while...I didn't like it...but she told him he had to get his crap out of here and leave...That she was seeing me now..." he said...

By now I had walked up into the apartment...

He looked at me..

"All you coppers are too late..he come here last night and pulled a gun on me..If I had of known it was empty..I'd of clocked his ass...He got the drop on me and he took my gun...a .45...It's legally registered...and he tied me up and he took Jessica with him...Jack ass...I hope you guys kill him,cause if you don't...I will."spat Timothy....

"So we are too late...He came by here..We went to his parents house last night and his aunt's house and a cousin's house...He wasn't there...We didn't know about the girlfriend until today and none of them told us."said Sissy...

"Yeah well him and that crazy friend of his shot up downtown....Man, none of us thought either one of them would ever do something like this..All they were was a lot of talk...until yesterday....both of em..big losers....We saw on the news that you killed his HERO, Evan Clayton...With his fearless leader dead..he won't know what to do.."said Timothy...

"You have any idea where he might go with Jessica?" I asked..

He shrugged his shoulders..

"I don't know..He stole my car and he took $250.00 off of Jessica...They might be anywhere..."he said.

"I need all the information you can give me on that car....We are going to cast a net so thick around this city that he's not going to be able to breathe.."said Sissy...

Catching a mass murderer, cop killer...All in a days work for this team...We'd get him....At least I hoped we would...The eyes of the nation was on us...Maybe Lt. Tragg liked this kind of publicity...but I most certainly did not...I sure hoped my guys could come through once again.

(TO BE CONTINUED)