The Enemy

Chapter 14

Chapter 14: March 2018 - The Met

Emma emptied the last round of her Glock pistol into the practice target with precision, never hesitating. She fired the final shot, and the gun clicked as she pulled the trigger. Breathing heavily, she kept her arms raised and ready despite the gun's now relative uselessness. She didn't let her arms fall until they began to shake.

The memories of the past three months seemed to fall away with every shot, if only for the moment. She reloaded. The Breakup. Bang. Mary Whittenmoore. Bang. The press. Bang. Failure with de Ferrers. Bang. Beck. Bang. Howards. Bang. A few more perfect shots and she'd emptied her twentieth magazine.

"Shit." She bit back a sob and pulled off her fogged-up shooting glasses. Hot tears pooled in her eyes, but she mashed them away with a fist. No. She wouldn't allow herself to do it. She walked the weapon over to the safety station to confirm it was dry with a snap of the slide. Then, she marched down range to her target and tore off the page of the newspaper that had served as her catharsis. She'd just happened to pass it on her way down here from Ward's office, figuring there was no better way to spend her time than visiting the shooting range while Ward's secret source showed to deal with the whole confirming-her-school-nemesis-was-actually-alive thing.

Emma swallowed. From the article, her own face stared back at her and though the text was now unreadable, she had nearly every word memorized.

The Met Botches Response at Harrow School

By: Viper Sharp

Shots and explosions signalled the return of a group of criminals assumed dead for almost a decade. Robert de Ferrers and his armed group of xenophobic, militarized guns-for-hire haven't surfaced in the UK since the devastating attacks at Charterhouse in 2008.

Yesterday afternoon, a member of Met SCD 1 broke protocol and arrived on the scene without the support of the special division teams. This person's actions led to the failure to capture Robert de Ferrers in his only known appearance in ten years. Though the officer was masked, several eyewitnesses commented on the person's slight stature with some implying that it could have been Emma Stapleton herself, despite it being reported that she left the force months ago. If that's the case, the Met has not only managed to lose an armed-and-dangerous fugitive, but to additionally breach several serious laws.

"For her, it's a personal fight," reported one local police officer. "She showed up in a marked car and started yelling orders. She was kitted up and looked well experienced with her pistol." Stapleton was an esteemed member of the Charterhouse Clay Target League and is known for her marksmanship.

She pursued a widely publicized career in law enforcement after graduating with honors from King's College. While working at the Met, Stapleton spearheaded several initiatives to expand city-wide video surveillance and improve safety at area schools. Once a total unknown, she was plunged into the limelight when she escaped the clutches of de Ferrers when he attacked her school, Charterhouse, in the 2008 scandal involving the late George Howards. Stapleton narrowly escaped death thanks to the actions of fellow student Beck Howards. He and his mother were later murdered by de Ferrers.

Many presume Stapleton's career in law enforcement stems from this public and traumatic event in her childhood. Unfortunately, if it was her at Harrow School, her actions yesterday resulted in the catastrophic. Three professors and seven children were injured at—

She ripped the shredded paper in half, tossing it in a bin. She turned off the lights for the indoor range, shoved her kit into her locker, and pulled out her phone. Emma sat down on a bench and leaned her head back against the locker's cool metal. She felt infinitely grateful this place was deserted right now.