Page 2 of Trigger Discipline

They pulled out of the stoplight and accelerated down a side street that they used as a shortcut. It didn’t save much time mileage wise, but it avoided the bulk of downtown traffic. It also had the bonus of driving past a donut shop. Blake lowered his window to get a whiff of the fried sugary confections.

“This one doesn’t have any vegetables. It’s about the cruelty of animals kept in captivity. They’re interviewing leading biologists and animal husbandry experts.”

Blake sighed as they drove past the donut shop. It was the little things on his shift that made his day.

“Why do they keep making these documentaries?”

“Because it’s important to raise awareness of the subjugation of animals and the cruelty they experience for capitalistic gains.”

Blake didn’t answer. He didn’t disagree with Tommy. Not in the slightest. But humans also murdered each other, so maybe their cruelty wasn’t limited to just animals. Maybe humans were just garbage.

Tommy’s phone rang. He’d set it in the cupholder so the charging cable could reach. Blake reached over and checked the screen.

“It’s your mom,” he responded. “Want me to answer?”

“Sure.”

Tommy’s mom was a surgeon at the bigger hospital on the other side of town. As domineering as she was smart, she often called to check in on her son. Heradultson, who just last month was finally allowed to move into his own place. Blake would never stop mocking him for that.

He clicked the speaker phone and held the phone out toward Tommy. It was against company policy to speak on the phone while driving, but his mother would literally not stop calling until Tommy answered. Blake didn’t mind being a biological hands-free headset if it meant some peace.

“Hello?” Tommy called out, never taking his eyes off the road.

“Tommy!” The call was laced with static. His mother’s voice cut in and out as the line crackled and fizzed. “Get…of town! There’s a…”

“What? Mom, you’re breaking up. I can’t hear you.”

“’m saying…get…town! Now!...north…there’s…”

The line went dead.

Blake glanced at the phone. The screen read, ‘call failed.’ He redialed only to receive a dead tone.

“That was weird.” Tommy glanced over at the phone in his partner’s hand. “Maybe she was in a bad part of the hospital?”

Hospitals had notoriously spotty cell coverage. But there was something strange about the dial tone. On a whim, Blake pulled out his phone and tried to call his dad.

Thumbing through the screens, he looked up to where his service bars were indicated. Instead of a couple of bars, he had a frowny face.

“No service,” he mumbled, looking down to see the same on Tommy’s phone even though he used a different carrier.

“Maybe we’re in a dead zone?”

They drove this route multiple times a shift. Blake had never had an issue with it before. Maybe there was some kindof weird update or something? He powered off his phone, waited thirty seconds, then powered it back on again.

Same thing.

As they got closer to the station, he looked up at the computer mounted to their dash. Unless they were on a call, it had a map on the screen with their location. Once a call came in, it automatically connected to the address dispatch plugged in and gave them a route. Most of the time, Tommy ignored it. He knew the city better than any computer.

The screen was blank. Blake had never seen it blank before. He tapped it, trying to see if it somehow got unplugged. The cord was fastened snugly.

Blake jumped as the radio crackled to life.

“Attention all units: we are currently in a statewide emergency. Prepare to handle mass casualties. More inform?—”

The radio popped and then went dead.

Tommy slammed on the brakes in the middle of the road, staring down at the Motorola radio latched to the dash just under the computer. Blake felt his mouth go dry.