Help Me Heal

Chapter 3

"What's this guy's name?" Hank asked as he, Kevin and Kalinda approached the house.

"Michael Barry. Goes by Mikey," Kevin said. Reaching the front door, he knocked loudly on it. "Mikey! It's Officer Atwater! Get down here!"

"Doubt he's going to want you to keep shouting that in this neighbourhood," Kalinda said with a flicker of amusement. If people got the idea Mikey was helping the police rather than being investigated by them, he would be in a world of trouble.

"That's what I'm going for," Kevin said. He banged on the door again. "Mikey! Chicago PD!"

"Get down here before we kick the door in!" Hank shouted. They actually couldn't do that as they didn't have a warrant. But threatening it wasn't against the rules. He found that his voice often had an intimidatory effect on people.

Maybe that was why the door opened within ten seconds. A fat, pasty-faced man with scruffy brown hair and what looked like yesterday's clothes on stood there.

"Jesus, Officer Atwater. Keep your damn voice down," he protested.

"Shut up and get inside," Kevin said, pushing Mikey inside and going in with him. Kalinda followed, then Hank, who closed the door behind them.

"What do you want?" Mikey asked grumpily.

"We're looking for someone who's pushing dodgy Molly to hookers," Kalinda said. "We've heard the name Vulcan, and that he's possibly Russian."

Mikey looked at Kevin with a smirk on his face. "What's this, bring your sister to work day?" It was a very lame attempt at casual racism.

"He's black, I'm Asian, you twat," Kalinda snapped. "Now, talk, before I lose my patience."

Mikey, like most pimps, didn't like a woman getting above her station, as he obviously saw it. "And what if I don't?" he fired back.

Hank didn't intervene, and neither did Kevin. They were both getting their first sense of how the team's new recruit could handle herself in an adversarial situation. Hank didn't have any doubts.

"Then I'll spend the rest of my day spreading the news that you've been a CI, dropping names to Intelligence Unit. I wonder how long you'll have that set of teeth in your head? I'd bet they're gone by the end of the day, along with your kneecaps."

Mikey reacted angrily, but directed it at Kevin. "What the hell? You told me you'd never tell anybody I was feeding stuff to you."

"I won't," Kevin said calmly. He motioned towards Kalinda with his head. "It's her you've pissed off. If I were you, I'd do something about that pretty fast."

With an angry scowl on his face, Mikey came to the realisation that he was backed into a corner.

"Just tell us who this guy is and where he is, and we'll be out of here," Kalinda said, softening her tone a bit.

"Alright," Mikey snarled. "His name's not Vulcan, it's Volcan. And I think he's Ukrainian, not Russian."

"Good," Kalinda said. "Now where does he live?"

"In an apartment block over on Ridge Street."

"Which apartment?" she demanded.

"I don't know!"

"Sounds like BS to me. Not a good idea," Kevin said, making like he was helping Mikey out.

"Apartment 22," Mikey grumbled. "You didn't hear any of this from me. I mean it."

"We were never here," Kevin assured him.

"Let's move," Hank said. He was impressed but not surprised by Kalinda's work, having put on an excellent good cop/bad cop routine with Kevin. He knew she was skilled of course, that was why she had made the team. However it was still nice to see his selection verified.