Read Baltimore Chronicles Online
Authors: Treasure Hernandez
Baltimore Chronicles
Volume 1
The Take Down
Detective Derek Fuller splashed water on his face, took a deep breath, and looked up at himself in the small, dull mirror that hung in the men's bathroom inside the station house. He noticed the bags that were starting to form under his eyes, but he knew those came with the territory. Fighting against the Maryland drug trade was not an easy win. Shaking off his jitters, Derek stared at himself. He thought that despite those bags, his smooth cinnamon-colored skin and chestnut brown eyes still made him a fine-ass dude.
Refocusing, Derek spoke to himself. “Let's get it, niggah. This ain't no time to have second thoughts.” He checked his gear, shifted his bulletproof vest, and shrugged into his raid jacket. It was six o'clock in the morning, and he had to get into the right state of mind for the task at hand. Walking back out into the squad room, he put on his game face.
“I hope everybody is ready for Scar. Let's fuckin' roll and take this niggah out. This mufucka only thinks he's the leader of the bitch-ass Dirty Money Crew,” Derek announced to the four officers who comprised his unit. They all stood at attention and started gathering their battle gear.
“Yo, Fuller, can I bring this baby with me?” Officer Rodriguez asked, picking up the brand new MP-5 they had just acquired. The big weapon looked out of place in the petite woman's hands. To the average eye, she would appear weak and out of her element, but Fuller had come up in the academy with Rodriguez and knew never to underestimate her. She had the gumption that most men never mustered, and she was an asset to his team. He trusted Rodriguez with his life, and in the game they played, that meant a lot. She never hesitated to pull a trigger, and if he was the first man through the door, she was always right behind him.
“Damn straight,” Derek replied, flashing his perfect smile and leading his unit out the door.
Derek felt powerful in his new position as a lead detective with the Baltimore Narcotics Unit of the Maryland State Police. Living and working in the roughest part of Baltimore, Derek had put in work, moving up from a car-chasing, ticket-giving state trooper to a narcotics street officer, and now leader of his own narcotics interdiction unit. Derek's unit was charged with taking down the so-called Dirty Money Crew and their notorious leader, Stephon “Scar” Johnson.
Everyone in the Baltimore area knew about Scar and his powerful drug ring. He ran cocaine up and down the interstate with ease. On top of that, he was a jack of all trades. He had his hand in everything from extortion and illegal gambling to prostitution. If there was money to be made in the underworld of B-more, then Scar was getting it. Scar had been reigning terror on the streets for years now. He was considered the Rayful Edmond of Baltimore; only difference was he didn't get caught. He deemed himself untouchable and moved like a ghost through the streets, getting money but going unseen most of the time. Rumor had it that on his climb to the top, Scar had taken out ten police officers and two government officials; but with no proof and witnesses who always turned up dead or missing, it had been an almost impossible undertaking for the over-matched and undermanned state troopers to touch Scar.
That did not stop Derek's unit from pursuing Scar. Derek was aware of what he needed to do to prove himself to his bosses and the crime syndicates in the streets. His success as a detective depended on the attention he would receive for taking Scar down.
As Derek and his unit arrived at their destination in the worst hood in Baltimore, Derek shook his head and smiled. It was just like the confidential informant had told the unit; Scar was making a very rare early morning creep appearance at one of his most lucrative trap houses. When Derek noticed Scar's tricked-out black Escalade, complete with its candy paint job, parked on the side of the trap house, Derek felt his dick jump in his pants. He was that excited by this opportunity to shine.
“Here we fuckin' go!” Derek mumbled under his breath, geeking himself up for the task at hand. His heart was beating so fast that it threatened to jump out of his chest. He turned to Cassell and asked, “You got the warrant?”
“Signed, sealed, and delivered,” Cassell replied, revealing an edge of the warrant from out of his breast pocket.
Some would say he was being overcautious with the warrant, but Derek wasn't about to make the same mistake twice. A few years back, due to his recklessness, he had busted a local drug dealer without a warrant. Needless to say, the drug dealer was set free. That incident didn't help his reputation within the police force, and he had worked hard to gain back respect.
Satisfied that everything was in order just how he'd planned it, Derek was ready for the raid. Yanking his Glock out of his hip holster, Derek barely put his vehicle in park before he swung the door open and jumped out. He waved his hands over his head, placed his fingers up to his lips, and made a fist, signaling his unit to get into their rehearsed raid positions.
They all silently exited their black Impalas. Ducking low, they fell in line one behind the other and stacked on the door. Derek was first in the stack; he would announce their arrival. The ram holder stood on the opposite side of the door, and the rest of the unit knew their roles in bringing up the back of the stack. Derek raised his right hand and silently counted down.
Three, two, one.
At that, the ram holder sent the heavy duty metal crashing into the shabby plywood door. The wood splintered open with one hit. Inside, bodies began scrambling in all directions.
“Police! Police! Put ya fuckin' hands up now!” Derek screamed, waving his weapon back and forth, pointing it at all of Scar's scrambling workers for emphasis. All of the members of the unit trampled inside, grabbing whomever they could and tossing them to the ground.
Derek continued into the house with his gun drawn, keeping his back close to the walls. He had his eye on the prize, and he was not going to stop until he had it in custody. Derek came to a closed door at the back of the house. With his gun trained on the door, he kicked it open.
“Damn, man, put the gun down. You ain't gotta go all hard and shit,” Scar said calmly as he exhaled a cigar smoke ring in front of him, poisoning the air surrounding him.
Derek shook his head. He needed this take down to be as dramatic as possible, and Scar's laid-back attitude wasn't helping.
“Put your fucking hands up, mu'fucka!” Derek screamed, pointing his gun right at Scar's head. “Now! Show me your hands!”
“A'ight, a'ight. Calm down, cowboy,” Scar said, smirking and stubbing out his cigar on the table he sat behind.
Derek was getting more pissed by the minute. He didn't want to look like a punk in front of his unit, while Scar was looking cool, calm, and collected.
“They pay you to act all extra?” Scar asked, still smiling.
“Let's go! Stand the fuck up, niggah!” Derek barked again.
“I got one better for you. I will put my hands out so you can cuff me.” Scar chuckled, his smile causing his severely disfigured charcoal-colored face to contort into a monstrous mug. Pushing away from the table, Scar lifted his six foot three inch gorilla frame up from the chair. Laughing like he had heard a joke, Scar turned around and assumed the handcuffing position.
“Cuff this son of a bitch!” Derek spat as one of his officers moved in swiftly to lock the cuffs on Scar's thick wrists.
“Son of a bitch? Ain't that the pot calling the kettle black?” Scar replied, still laughing.
Derek grabbed the cuffs roughly, making sure they were clamped extra tight so the metal would cut into Scar's skin and shut him up. That would teach him not to play games. There were just some things that shouldn't be said in front of the members of the unit. No need to arouse anyone's suspicions.
Derek led Scar out of the house, and just like he had planned, the media trucks and cameras were right on time to get coverage of the raid.
“Detective Fuller, how did you do this so smoothly when no other law enforcement units could take down the notorious Stephon âScar' Johnson?” a female reporter yelled out as Derek rushed passed her with Scar in tow.
“It was all in a day's work,” Derek wolfed out as he pushed Scar's head down into the back of the police car.
Derek looked and felt like a hero. He had taken down the big, bad drug kingpin. He could not contain his proud smile. He was the man.
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Derek and his unit pulled into the prisoner drop-off area in the back of the station house and unloaded Scar and some of his crew.
“Ay, man, when all the pomp and circumstance is done, maybe we can break bread, you know, have a drink and shit,” Scar said, smiling at Derek mischievously.
“Nah, buddy. You'll be breaking bread with your fellow inmates soon enough,” Derek said smoothly, slapping five with some of his unit members and walking away, leaving Scar to be processed.
Derek continued to crack jokes with his unit as they proceeded to the front of the station house. Pushing open the door, they were surprised by the way they were greeted. It was like the other officers and staff at the station house had planned a surprise party. They all stopped to turn and see the unit enter, and they were cheering and whistling loudly.
Derek could not contain his pride. He loved the attention, especially when he noticed Chief William Scott standing in front of the uproarious crowd. The chief stepped forward, placing his hands up to quiet the cheers so he could speak. He loved to hear himself speak.
“Here they are, the untouchable Baltimore Narcotics Unit. They have done in one day what every other law enforcement agency in Maryland and the feds have tried to do for years. Led by one of the finest detectives in state trooper history, Derek Fuller,” Chief Scott announced, placing one hand on Derek's shoulder and grabbing his other hand for a firm handshake. The crowd of state troopers and administrative staff erupted in cheers again.
Derek bowed his head slightly, trying to act modest, but he loved the attention. He basked in it. It was what he had waited so long for, to be considered great.
He returned the chief's handshake. “I couldn't have done it without the best unit aroundâRodriguez, Bolden, Archie, and Cassell. Thank you all for being brave soldiers. This take down was only possible because of the hard work of every member of my team. We have all dedicated countless man hours in the pursuit of justice, and now today is our day,” Derek said for good measure. In his head, he was thinking it was all him. Little did they know that he could have singlehandedly taken Scar down, but that was a secret he would have to keep.
“Come down to my office, Detective Fuller. I want to speak to you,” Chief Scott leaned into Derek's ear and whispered as the crowd began to break up and surround the other unit members.
Derek's heart jumped in his chest. Everyone knew that it was hard for a black man to get ahead in the Maryland State Police. The fact that this white chief, who was known to be a redneck, wanted to speak to him alone made Derek feel important. It was all working out exactly as he had envisioned it.
He followed the chief downstairs to his office, where Chief Scott offered Derek a seat on his famed leather couchâanother rare occurrence. Usually an invitation to Chief Scott's office was only for troopers to get an ass-chewing or disciplinary action taken against them. Derek knew this time would be different.
Chief Scott slid his fat stomach behind his desk, put a finger full of chewing tobacco into his cheek, and looked at Derek seriously. “Detective Fuller. I don't call many people to my office for compliments, but what you did today was beyond remarkable. Taking down one of the biggest bastard drug lords the state of Maryland has ever seen was more than a simple task. Those fucking DEA federal bastards couldn't do it this long with all their corrupt agents and payoffs. You have exceeded any expectations I had ever dreamed of for your unit, and for that, I commend you.”
Derek leaned back and smiled. “Thank you, sir.”
“Detective Fuller, I truly think you have what it takes to be higher up in the department one dayâ¦maybe even sit at this desk as chief,” Chief Scott said seriously, spitting his gooey, chewed-up tobacco into a can on his desk.
Derek was glowing from the accolades he was receiving. “Well, Chief, I appreciate the compliment. I just want to work hard and continue to make you and the department proud. It took months of surveillance and lots of footwork on the streets,” he said, continuing the act he'd been performing all day, “but at the end of the day, that bastard Scar Johnson deserved to go down. I'm just glad it's over.” Derek stood up from the couch. “Now, after I finish the paperwork, I'm going home to my family, who I have neglected for the last six months. I'm sure my wife will be happy to see me,” Derek said. Just thinking about his beautiful woman made him smile again.
“I've seen your wife. I would be on my way home too,” Chief Scott commented with a smile, sending Derek on his way.
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Derek turned his key in the door to his modest single-family home, and he could already smell the aroma of his dinner wafting through the house. He loved his wife so much. She was a triple threatâa good mother, a working professional, and a damned good wife. “Hello?” Derek called out and then waited.
“Daddy! Daddy!” he heard his kids screaming as they ran toward him at top speed. They were not used to him being home at night. Most of the time, he would come in after a long stakeout and they would already be asleep, so his presence was a welcome surprise.
“Ay, baby girl and my big man,” Derek sang, picking up his two-year-old daughter and rubbing his six-year-old son's head.
“We saw you on the news today!” his son announced proudly, holding onto his father like he never wanted him to leave again.
With kids hanging onto him, Derek moved slowly toward the kitchen, where he knew Tiphani waited for him. Just like he expected, his sexy wife stood by the stove with her back turned, her long jet-black hair lying on her back and her apple bottom looking perfect in her fitted jeans.