Page 33 of Special Agent Raven
“True. It’s getting dark earlier, and with the power still out in many places, it reminds me of a village out of a horror movie.”
Raven looked his way. “What about you? Are you hanging around to help?”
“Yeah. I actually contacted my boss in the city before we left Winona’s place and told him what happened. He’s given me the go-ahead to stay and help Noah for now. I guess the brass are having a hell of a time trying to gather enough men to send to all the places in trouble. Seems not only did the flood hit Carlton Place, but it also devasted many other communities. The whole area is a real mess. And though the bigwigs are trying to find cops who’ll step up, seeing as how their numbers are down, it’s become impossible.”
Raven’s husky voice asked another question. Surprisingly, he didn’t have a problem with her like he’d had recently with almost anyone probing into his business.
“Weren’t you on vacation? I seem to recall you saying something about camping.”
“Camping yes. Vacation… not exactly, though I had months of personal leave coming to me. Truth is, I walked out and didn’t return their calls. Guess they’ve been looking for me.” He shook his head. “Go figure. I’d have bet money they’d fire me after pulling such a stunt, but surprisingly, they’re just thrilled that I finally called in. And Stuart, the Deputy Chief, seemed happy for me to stick around here for a few days. But he wants me back as soon as possible. Appears as if the others covered for me, kept my position open, but they made me promise to return.”
Cane thought back to the other men he’d worked alongside of for years and who he had a good rapport with… one they’d built up over many cases that could have broken any good man. He should have trusted that the guys would look out for him. Fact is, they’d been warning him for months that he was heading for a breakdown. In fact, his two closest partners had been after him to get help, and he’d blown them off time and again.
A warm feeling washed over him at the thought of the scheming they would have enacted with the bosses to cover his ass, and yet it seems like they did so. Probably payback considering how many times he’d been there for them. Funny thing, it’s strange when it happens to you though.
Raven’s voice broke into his thoughts. “You must be important for your co-workers to behave like that. How long have you been gone?”
“From the office. Three weeks. I… ahh, had a problem with booze for a while. Ended up going to meetings, and they were helping, but the shit just keeps coming, doesn’t it? And so many of our assignments were dark, you know? They ate away at me until I guess I snapped.”
“What’s your position with the department?”
“I’m one of the three assistant chiefs…field operations command to be exact. Last job I worked on happened to be a series of drive-by shootings by two different gangs out to score off the other. The last one, the gang opened fire on a family, killed three young kids, their parents and injured the nanny and baby. That’s the day I walked out.”
“Jesus, Cane, it must have been brutal. Don’t know many who could blow off a horrible scene like that and call it just another day.”
“Yeah, guys were losing their lunch left, right, and center. And I’m talking hardened cops with years on the job. Don’t know if I can go through another event like that without totally losing myself.”
“I get it. Every time, I hit a wall in my own work… think that’s the worst it can get, another pervert appears on our radar, and I’m shown how naive I really am.”
“You’re with what department again?”
“Child exploitation program. Pat answer – we track offenders online using cyber intelligence to identify and stop thedistribution of child sexual abuse material. At times we set up a sting and take them down. I’m good at my job, but it eats at you… know what I mean?”
“Oh yeah.”
“So, every time I swear I can’t take more of the deplorable, stomach-wrenching garbage, I try and leave, but they talk me out of it. I’m worried that one day I’ll be pulling a stunt like you and going MIA before they can stop me.”
He looked her way and caught her eye before she turned back to the road. He saw the naked truth in her gaze, and the answer came before he could stop himself. “Raven, I’ve been mulling on this stuff for a long time. Took to reading the bible, searching for answers. Tried motivational videos and looked into different religions, again hoping to make some sense of all the shit. I finally decided on one simple truth. Humanity is in trouble. Folks are losing their empathy, and it’s frightening. The only thing holding us together is the people like us who care, who do our jobs every day to protect those who are weaker, and help the needy who can’t help themselves.”
Raven pulled to a stop in front of the well-lit jailhouse and turned off the jeep. When she reached for Cane’s hands, he gave them over to her slowly, hesitantly. Worried… no, down-right terrified that she’d mess with his space.
Surprised that he’d been able to explain his reality, he still kept a tight rein on his personal business. Though Raven had gotten closer in the last two days than anyone had since his accident, he still bristled from opening doors he’d previously slammed shut.
Yet… he had to face it. He’d shared some of the most intimate details with her, and that shocked the hell outta him. He’d told her things he’d never said before to another living soul. And though he trusted her instinctively, it still left him alarmed at the gaping sores he’d aired.
Taking her time, Raven clutched his hands, and he saw her weighing her words before saying anything. Appreciating how serious she took their discussion, he waited. And what she said shocked him speechless.
“I hate the weak connections parents nowadays have with teenagers who feel adrift and lonely. More and more, I’ve come to realize that all the “do-gooders” we’ve let loose might have made many of our problems worse. Think of it this way. In not wanting to punish bad behavior, even laughing at their naughty antics, right from the start we’ve continuingly allowed a baby to be disobedient… and then we wonder why the child grows up to be such a brat.”
Listening to her truth, he couldn’t take his eyes off her.
“I’ve come to the conclusion that the time to curb bad behavior in our young is at the beginning. For years our society has been making excuses and allowing atrocious actions from our youth. And when we’re forced to face those consequences, when the troubled little ones are old enough to really screw up, it shocks us. That’s when we wash our hands of them and say… hell, we did the best we could.” She searched his features. “Is it me? Do I work too close to the problem? Am I the crazy one here?”
“No. Not at all. You’re more sane than anyone I’ve talked to in a long, long time.”
She smiled sadly. “Maybe, but how do we get the population out there to listen and see the sanity in those words?”
He didn’t hesitate. “Maybe start a podcast and share your views.”