[Finished] Living Among the Dead

13. Coda

I'm cleaning Dawn's desk as she works out on an old bike workout machine. She radios her people, "Shepherd, Lamson, what's your 20?" There isn't any answer. "I need status on that gunfire. Do you copy?" Again, no response, Shepherd would have answered by now. "Licari, do you copy?" Again no response. "Does anybody copy? Damn it."
I turn around, "You think something bad happened?"
"No, they don't always radio back and it drives me crazy."
I nod, and move a picture frame I finished polishing onto the desk to be stopped, "Wait, no, no, no. Antionette, no, not there. Up by the badges." I nod, and do as she says, to which she thanks me.

I walk into one of Dawn's men; O'Donnell yelling at an older gentleman, who's obviously scared, "No, Percy, tell me. Should I use smaller words? Is the directive fix the hole in my sleeve too complicated for you?"
"I'm sorry. I forgot."
"Well, here's an idea. Don't forget."
I step forward, "Yo! The dude apologized; back off!"
"Who asked you? You any good with needle and thread?"
Dawn walks through the doors behind him saying, "I need her. Sorry, we have a lot of work to do. Come on, Antionette."
I follow Dawn, a little confused.

Later that evening, I'm sitting at the elevator shute, for the first time in forever debating jumping; not to escape... but just to end this existence.
"Percy's going to be okay," Dawn's voice surprises me, I never heard her approach.
"That makes one person here," I respond, bitterly.
"Are you going to jump?"
"Thinking about it," I respond, honestly.
"Well, I know you're not going anywhere."
"I guess I'm not. But I could. It's better than being your punching bag and held up in this place; never to see my-"
"This place saved you. I saved you. Twice. The others don't know what you did. They think Joann was trying to get back at me and that Gorman and Jeffries were in the wrong place at the wrong time."
"Gorman was in the wrong place at-"
"Bullshit. I saw the smashed jar. I closed up my office and I fixed it before it could be a problem. You're a cop killer."
"I'd never killed a cop-"
"But you did. What do you think would happen if the others found out? I protected you. And we helped that patient. I didn't have to, I wanted to. But there's a way things have to happen here. Don't you get that?"
A door opens and closes, and for the first time, I look away from the elevator and stand up, seeing O'Donnell.
After a long drawn out silence, Dawn asks, "What are you gonna do?"
"No, Dawn, what are you gonna do? Starting with her."
"She's my ward. It's my call."
I go to say that 'she' is right here, but he continues talking before I get the chance.
"Fine, but your people deserve to know who they're working for. So, you gonna tell them or am I?" He begins walking towards both Dawn and I, so I tense up my muscles, ready for this to be a fight.
"You don't get to threaten me."
"That's not a threat. But these are the facts. You look like shit. The guys are talking. They think you're cracking. This is Hanson all over again. It's time to make a change." He turns around, ready to leave the area.
"O'Donnell;" Dawn is getting her gun out. "You're wrong," she aims the gun at him as he stops at the door. "I'm nothing like Hanson. I was the one who killed him, remember that? I was the only one who could go through with it."
O'Donnell turns around, "Lower your weapon, Dawn. All I have to do is shout."
"All I have to do is say you came at me. Antionette, get out of the way."
I move to the side, kind of curious how this'll play out, but also want to take my chance and run.
"You're not gonna do this," O'Donnell mocks.
"You're not giving me a choice." She moves her weapon to get him to walk towards the elevator opening, "Go."
He starts walking forward, "We were rookies together. You knew my wife. You were here in this hospital having cigars with me in the parking lot when my kid was born."
"Don't. That guy is gone. We're supposed to protect people. To help them. But look at you. You're beating the old man. You're laughing with your buddies about that poor girl getting raped. That's who you are now."
"So who the hell are you?"
"Somebody who's not gonna let it happen anymore."
Their standing facing each other in the narrow part of the hallway, he's stopped walking. "That's not what this is about. It's about holding on to what you have."
"What the hell do I have?" Dawn throws back.
"This isn't you. After Hanson, you changed," he then jumps her, landing on top of her, and Dawn's gun is thrown from her hand.
The fight is pretty evenly matched; Dawn is even able to throw a punch that knocks O'Donnell to to other wall; before he comes back, bending her arm backwards and hitting her. As they wrestle and throw punches and kicks, it's become hard to see who's going to make it out on top.
Well, until he literally picks her up off the ground by her throat; slamming her against a wall and screaming, "You think you're better than us?!"
This is where I jump in, ripping his shoulder, so he loosens his grip off of Dawn and punching him, I feel the bones in his nose break under my right hook.
He shoves me to the floor yelling, "Stay in your lane, bitch!"
But the distraction is enough for Dawn to punch his throat, which after he's pushed back, I instinctively shove him and he falls down the elevator landing with a crunch; quickly followed by the sounds of the dead making him their next meal.
"Thank you."