She Will Be Mine

Chapter 13: Des

​I slumped down to the ground where Charlie lay. We had failed. The man had been smarter than all of us.
​Looking up, I saw Danny walking towards me, covered in grime and blood flowing from a cut in his forehead. "What happened?" He asked, holding a towel to his head to stop the flow of blood. "One minute, I'm in my truck, the next thing I know I'm being thrown into an alley,"
​He kneeled down beside Charlie and Victor. "Are these guys alright? Where is the chief?" I shook my head, just as confused as he was. "I'm going to go and look for him. Holler if you need anything," Danny patted me on the head and began to walk on the house. I took off my coat and made a pillow under Charlie's head. He was breathing, but there was a nasty bruise under his ribcage. I touched it, and he groaned.
​Rubbing his side, I tried to see if I could wake him up. He seemed to be coming too when Danny ran back. "I found the chief!" He yelled. "It doesn't look good," I left Charlie and followed him around the house.
​Murphy was lying on his back under the bushes, right where we had left him. He had a walnut size bruise emerging from the side of his head, but he was breathing. Together, the two of us carried him back to where the others were.
​Pulling out my pager, I called for backup. "We are going to need help if we want to attempt catching him again," I said, looking at Danny's head. I walked over and tried to look at his cut. There was dirt encrusted into it, making it hard to even see where the blood was coming from. He groaned when I pressed on it. "Sorry Danny, I'm almost done," I muttered as I ripped up the towel and wrapped it around his head. "Thanks Des," he smiled at me and walked off to see when our backup would arrive.
​I sat back down with Charlie until he woke up. He grabbed his side and unsuccessfully tried to sit up. I pushed him back down and he realized it was me. "Des, how?" I smiled down at him and rubbed his head.
​"Not now," I spoke to him. "I will explain everything later," Charlie smiled up at me and closed his eyes.
* * *
The man slammed his hands into the steering wheel. This was not how it was supposed to go! He turned around the corner and stopped. I have to get her! She will be mine!
* * *
​When the units arrived, medics loaded the 4 of them into the ambulance and drove off. I hailed a cab and went home. I am getting too old for this, I thought as I climbed up the steps to the apartment.
​By the time I actually made it home, it was four in the morning. I had been assigned the fun jobs of talking to all of the news reporters that came to the scene, and the one to talk to the family of the murdered woman.
​The Rodriguez family had been devastated when their eldest daughter, Maurine, disappeared in the middle of the night. Only 16 years old, she had been a caring soul, they said. She had loved helping everyone, and she would be dearly missed. Speaking to them after they had seen their daughter's mangled body would be tough on anyone, but a sleep deprived investigator? That was a whole other topic right there.
​It was dark and musty inside my little apartment, and I barely made it to the couch before collapsing. My shoes fell off with a flick of my ankle, and I pulled my socks off before I got up to grab food. My fridge was bare and full of echoes. Turning to the pantry, I grabbed a box of Cheese-It's and sat back down. The news was abuzz with the events of the evening. My favorite reporter was on, blabbing away.
​"The Private Investigators office did not have much information for me, but they did say that they are even closer to solving this whole thing once and for all. The details they gave me this evening suggest that finding this awful man should be easier from now on.
"As I spoke to the lovely Rodriguez family this evening, they shared with me what a heartfelt woman Maurine really was. We looked over pictures of her, and it can be seen how genuine a person she really was. May she rest in peace.
And to all of the hard working officers and investigators out there, good luck to you as you finish your touch case before you. This is Stacey Lynn reporting to you live from New York City," Her fake enthusiasm made me want to hurl.
​My snack was gone faster than I would have liked, but fatigue was fast setting into my body. I threw the remains onto the counter, knowing I would just do it later.
Walking up the stairs, I shed my dirty clothes and pulled on something much softer. I was asleep before my head even hit the pillow.