Rangers Apprentice AU-Police Force

Episode 11 Villains and Vivacious Friends

 Will braced himself as the patrol car swung around a sharp corner before picking up speed again. The wail of the siren droned on in a never-ending pitch but he hardly noticed it anymore. As they swung right, a row of non-descript buildings came into sight and Halt swiftly parked.

 "Take the back, cover the exit." He barked, yanking his door open.

Will followed suit, passing the sidewalk where a crowd of excited onlookers bunched together, his eyes scanning the alley as he rushed through. The building was a small grocers, with several floors of apartments above it. They'd had a frantic call that a man was robbing the place and had made the proprietor a hostage. 

 He found the door, and gingerly tried the knob. It turned, and inch by inch, Will pushed it open, peering through the widening crack. It was a small storage room, none of the rows of boxes tall enough to hide a man but he was careful all the same. Loud voices rose from the front of the room, and he could make out Halt's clipped tones as his partner argued with the robber.

 "You think I'd steal from this crummy joint? I'm taking my own stuff, officer-this man refused to give it back until I paid his ridiculous raise in rent, so I told him I was leaving!"

 Sliding between the table and a stack of apple crates, Will approached another door that led into the grocers. Careful to remain unnoticed, he felt his heart pick up as he saw the man standing only ten paces from himself. He was focused on Halt and hadn't heard anything from the room at his back. Standing before him was a short man in his fifties, wearing silver spectacles and a work apron across his ample middle. Will caught a gleam and saw the knife in the other man's hand as he shifted his arm across the grocer's chest. He didn't like how gray the little man's face looked. If he had a heart condition, this extra strain could be fatal to him. Shifting his gaze he looked toward Halt; his partner's face was grim and Will had no doubt the other man had already taken in the condition of the hostage.

 Their robber held a brown-paper sack in his other hand. It was an awkward position to hold, but unaware of the officer at his back he took several steps backwards, towards the storage room.

 "I said, put the knife down and let's talk," Halt barked. 

 "I haven't done anything more than this skin-flint deserves," the other man replied. He wore a suit but there were threads hanging off the cuff edges and Will noted the growth of a beard on his jawline. "This guy has no business trying to keep my property!"

"And you have no business to beat him up," returned Halt. He had noticed Will, despite the young man's efforts to stay hidden. "Put down the knife and step outside. This matter should be settled without violence."

 "It will, if you don't keep trying to come closer. I am not a fool, Officer-now, just stay where you are. I'm leaving."

 Will's muscles tensed as the man took another step. Without warning, the grocer gave a moan and sagged in the man's grip. He was too heavy for a one-armed support and the other man was caught off balance, letting the little grocer drop. Launching himself from the doorway, Will knocked into him, one hand already gripping the wrist of the hand that held the knife. They slammed into the opposite wall and he felt the fingers around the handle go slack. With a quick movement he knocked it out of the man's grip and braced himself, keeping the would-be robber pinned against the wall. 

  "Hold it right there!" Halt barked. Will felt the man relax but remained vigilant for any tricks, as he turned him about to walk him to the car.

 "Will, call for an ambulance while you're out there." Halt passed him, eyes on the man slumped on the floor. As Will stepped outside into the bright sunshine, a woman he took to be the man's wife, rushed into the store. Cuffed and seated in the back of the car, the man kept angrily reiterating his innocence.

"You guys think he's such an innocent old man? He's a skinflint! The man's no better than a thief, and yet I'm the one sitting in the car. Justice? Ha!"

 "I don't suppose you could have found a way to get your things back legally, without giving him a heart-attack," Will replied tiredly. 

He radioed in their position and the request for an ambulance and replaced the mike with a sigh. It had been a long day, and he felt stiff in every joint. Leaving the prisoner in the car he jogged back across the street to do crowd control and make way for the medics when they arrived. Most of the people had been passing by, and lingered to make sure they didn't miss anything. A couple were renting apartments above and Will got an earful of "I knew it" and "Just like him" from them as he waited out front. A glance inside had reassured him as the grocer was sitting up and leaning against the cheese counter, Halt scribbling notes alongside him. He was relieved when the station wagon arrived and the officer rejoined him on the street, buttoning his notebook in the front pocket of his shirt. He eyed the remaining folks on the sidewalk and something in the officers eyes must have reminded them that they had other things they really should be doing, because the group began to break up. 

 "Is he going to be alright?" Will asked, and was relieved when Halt nodded briskly.

"Lets go drop our little friend off at the station and take seven. I need a coffee."

With a grin Will turned to follow Halt back to the patrol car just as a female voice caught his ear.

"Will? Will Treaty!"

A blur moved in the tail corner of his eye a second before two arms wrapped themselves tightly around his neck and an excited voice squeaked in his ear, "I thought it was you!"

 He had a fleeting impression that Halt was watching with a raised eyebrow as he stepped back, sucking in a breath to replace the one that had been squeezed out of him. The girl placed a hand to her head to settle her hat back on her blonde curls, blue eyes crinkled in delight.

 Will blinked, feeling oddly like he had stepped back in time. "Jenny?"