Strange Robby (35 page)

His comlink buzzed, and then the voice in his ear said. "Cars are on the way."

"It's about fucking time." He looked at the two men in front of him. "Here comes the cavalry, when they get here you fuckers . . . " They weren't listening. They were focused behind him. Tommy started moving forward just as something cracked him in the back of the head. He spun and kicked and the guy went into the lake again. But the blow had temporarily blurred his vision.

"Finish him," one of them said.

"You finish him. I'm getting the hell out of here."

They grabbed their fallen comrades and took off. Tommy tried to give chase, but when he started to run the world started spinning.

He sat down and took several deep breaths. He was still seeing stars and the fuckers were getting away. Damn, how could he have been so stupid? You never, ever left anyone alive or kicking. He'd been a cop too long.

When back up finally got there, the perps were long gone. They loaded Tommy up and hauled him off to the hospital. He had a slight concussion, and a huge knot on his head, but nothing that wouldn't pass in a couple of days. Still, he was only too happy to go home for the day even though it meant Laura had to come and get him.

Laura looked at his swollen lip. She hugged him and kissed his forehead. "Come on, Baby, let's get you home."

On the way home Tommy told her all about the fight.

"I don't get it. Why? Why did they attack you?"

"Who knows?" Tommy said with a shrug. "They were thugs, thugs don't need reasons to do things. Maybe they wanted my money; maybe they wanted my fish and tackle. Maybe they just wanted the sheer pleasure of beating the living hell out of someone."

"And maybe it's those So-what-if guys," Laura said.

"Come on, Honey, you're starting to sound like Spider. I should never have told you anything about it," he said.

"Well, I'll be glad when Spider goes back to work. I feel better when you're working with her. I know she'd never willingly let anything happen to you, and that gives me comfort."

"God! My head hurts," Tommy said.

"When we get you home we'll put some ice on it."

"Oh, good! Then it will hurt and be cold."

 
"For man also knows not his time: like the fishes that
are taken in an evil net, and like the birds that are
caught in the snare; so are the sons of men snared in
an evil time, when it falls suddenly upon them."
Ecclesiastes 9:12

 

Carrie, Laura and George had gone to lunch, although it seemed to Carrie that they had done more working than eating.

"Enjoy your meal, DA Long?" the host asked.

"Very much, thank you." Carrie started out the door, Laura followed, and George as always was bringing up the rear. Carrie opened the car door and slid in behind the wheel. She had just put the key into the ignition when she heard a strange popping sound. Laura let out a startled scream and fell to the sidewalk. Carrie, thinking that Laura had tripped on the curb, got up and ran around the car to help her up. To her surprise George slammed into her, knocking her to the ground.

"Get down! I think someone's shooting." George sounded like he was talking into a vacuum. For a minute it didn't register. None of it registered.

"Laura! Laura, are you all right?" George screamed

"I . . . I don't know." She sounded like she was miles away instead of just a few feet across the sidewalk. "I've been hit."

Carrie didn't really remember how she got out from under George, but the next thing she knew she was at Laura's side, and George was crawling along the ground yelling at her for taking chances.

She heard the sirens coming, and the next thing she knew, cops had surrounded them. Carrie saw the wound in Laura's arm and wondered what was taking the goddamned ambulance so long.

"It doesn't look bad," Carrie said.

"Well, it sure doesn't feel good." Laura was panicking, looking shocky.

"George, give me your jacket," Carrie ordered.

George took off his jacket and handed it to Carrie.

Carrie wadded it up and used it to apply direct pressure to the wound. It was bleeding badly.

"How's that?" Carrie asked.

"Better, I think," Laura said.

Carrie was aware of police running around like crazy all around her. No doubt they were looking for the shooter.

"There's a silencer on the weapon!" George shouted to the police. "But I thought I saw something up there." He was pointing at the parking garage across the street.

"Carrie, aren't the paramedics here yet?" Laura asked. She was scared, and who could blame her?

"Where is the fucking ambulance?" Carrie screamed.

"It's on its way, Sir," one of the officers said. "Should be here any second now. I already called Detective Chan, and he'll meet us at the hospital."

The ambulance showed up then. The paramedics that ran up to help were wearing flak jackets. They started working on Laura. The woman paramedic pushed Carrie gently away. She pulled up the jacket, looked at the wound and smiled at Laura.

"Now that doesn't look bad at all."

The other one was spitting out vital statistics that meant nothing to Carrie, and then they were lifting Laura onto a stretcher and loading her into the ambulance.

Carrie followed. "I'm going with her."

The female paramedic nodded.

Carrie noticed that the police were putting a layer of bodies between her and everyone else, and when she got in the ambulance a cop went with them.

"Carrie?" Laura said.

"Right here, Laura," Carrie said.

"You think . . . was it the SWTF?" Laura asked.

Carrie realized then what had just happened. Someone had tried to shoot her. Laura just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. Carrie wondered what the hell Laura knew about the SWTF. Carrie laughed nervously, looked at the officer and shrugged.

"Of course not, Laura. Just some lunatic. I get death threats every single day. I'm sorry, Laura, it should have been me."

"Too many coincidences, Carrie. Too many damn coincidences," Laura mumbled and then she was out.

Tommy paced the waiting room. It wasn't supposed to be like this. It was never supposed to be like this. Laura had a "safe" job. She wasn't supposed to be in danger.

"Tommy, she'll be all right," Carrie said from where she sat in the waiting room.

Tommy glared at her. "If you had taken the police escort that they wanted you to have . . . "

"I don't see what good that would have done, Tommy, but if it will make you feel any better we'll have one from now on."

Spider rushed in then, hugged him tight and released him. "I just heard. What the hell happened?"

Carrie walked over and hugged her. "It was terrible . . . " By the time she had finished telling Spider everything that had happened she was in tears. Spider held her and patted her back. She looked at Tommy.

"What happened to you?" she asked looking at his swollen lip.

"I had a run in with some thugs down at the dock." He didn't elaborate. The last thing he wanted to hear right now were any of Spider's conspiracy theories. "What is taking so fucking long?"

The doctor walked out then and called, "Mr. Chan?"

Tommy ran over to him.

"You're wife is going to be fine. The bullet didn't hit anything vital, and we were able to remove it without any real trouble. She's up and she's asking to see you."

"Thank God!" Carrie said under her breath.

Tommy followed the doctor closely, obviously wishing he would walk a little faster.

Spider sat down next to Carrie and was silent.

"They didn't find anybody, did they?" Spider asked.

"No, but . . . "

"And the men who went after Tommy yesterday on the dock?"

"No. What does that have to do . . . Someone just tried to kill me!"

"Shush," Spider ordered. She lowered her voice. "It's them, Carrie. It has to be them."

She looked at the cop who was supposed to be guarding Carrie. Spider didn't recognize him, he felt OK. Wasn't worried, didn't seem hostile, but that didn't mean he wasn't one of them, either. You just couldn't be sure.

"You can't trust anyone, Carrie. Remember that."

Spider had insisted on seeing Laura. Carrie hadn't been sure it was such a good idea. Spider had been acting weird even for Spider, but now she was acting perfectly "Spider" normal, which was almost scarier.

Laura looked tired, but seemed otherwise to be fine. Carrie remembered the last time she had visited someone in the hospital. Then it had been Spider who was shot. She decided she definitely did not like guns.

"I know it probably has something to do with the fact that I'm higher than a kite, but it really doesn't hurt that much at all," Laura said.

"Technology has certainly advanced since the first time I got shot, I can tell you that," Spider said. "Took me about half the time to heal this last time.

"Well, isn't that nice!" Tommy glared at Spider. "My wife is not going to make a habit out of getting shot."

"I didn't say she was," Spider said.

"I have to get back to work." Carrie started for the door.

"You're fucking kidding, right!" Spider screamed. "Some lunatic may be trying to shoot you, and you're going back to work?"

Carrie was a little shocked at Spider's outburst, but managed to keep her cool. "I'm the DA. I have to go back to work. I'll have police escort and full time security now. I may be hard-headed, but never let it be said that I don't learn from my mistakes."

Spider nodded

Carrie kissed her cheek and then left.

Spider sighed. She looked at Tommy. He looked scared, and Tommy never looked scared. It was more than a little unnerving.

"I wonder if you can get this shit legally?" Laura said looking at her good hand as if she were seeing it in a whole new light.

The phone rang. Tommy answered it. "Hello . . . " He pulled the receiver away from his ear and looked at it. Then gave Spider a puzzled look.

"It's for you." He handed her the phone.

Spider took it as her stomach finished flipping over.

"Yes?"

"A little to my right, and that could be
your
old lady laying there or in a coffin somewhere. It's all up to you, fly girl. You can give us what we want, or you can watch us pick off your friends one at a time. It's your decision."

Spider walked away from the bed and whispered. "Midnight, same place we met last time. I'll be alone, you be alone, too. I see anybody, and I'm way out of there."

"Sorry can't do that. I'm not about to go in there and let you rip my fucking head off. I'll have people there—lots of people. But they'll stay back as long as you behave yourself."

"No deal," Spider said.

"You don't get to deal, chick. You don't have any bargaining power left. The boys at the top are getting tired of dicking with you. They're ready to play hardball, and I don't think you're up for the pitch."

Spider looked from Tommy to Laura. "All right."

She walked over and hung up the phone.

"What was that?" Tommy asked.

"I need to talk to you," Spider said.

Tommy didn't ask why, he just followed her out of the room.

"What's wrong?"

"No one was trying to shoot Carrie. They're afraid to shoot Carrie, or at least that's what I'm counting on. They shot Laura on purpose to make a point."

"For God's sake! Give them this guy," Tommy said, shaking her till her teeth rattled.

"It's not that easy. If I give them what they want, then I become expendable. We
all
become expendable. These aren't the sort of people who ever leave lose ends. You have to get Laura and get the hell out of town tomorrow morning first thing. Pack your car and tomorrow morning when you check her out you just keep going. I don't think they'll try anything in the hospital, but . . . Just go, and don't tell anyone where you are going. Don't let anyone follow you, either. Make damn sure you don't have any tracers or links on you. You'll also have to get into the lieutenant's office and take yourself off line."

"This is all crazy. I can't do this. I can't give up my life."
"Then you're asking me to give up mine in a very permanent way, because at this point the only way I can protect you if you won't protect yourself is to put a bullet in my own brain. And even that's not a safe bet if they think you know too much."