Debriefing Riggs

Episode 1

Pilot – The Bank robbery/hostage situation

Looking about, Martin took in the fancy office. Well, it belonged to a LAPD captain, so it was supposed to be fancy, he reckoned. The fact that said LAPD captain kept him waiting was tactic. He knew that too. It was what his commanding officers had tended to do when dealing with upstarts like him.

It was needless to say Martin Riggs had a lot of experience when it came down to his officer in command reprimanding him for rash actions. Though, truth be told, he'd grown a thick skin and nowadays, it was nearly impossible to intimidate him into behaving. That happened when a man had nothing left to lose.

It was his first time waiting in this particular office though. He didn't known the LAPD captain yet and wasn't sure he even remembered the man's name correctly. Was it Avery or something like that? He hadn't met the man yet and realized they were already off to a bad start, but that hostage situation had needed handling. His new partner, one Roger Murtaugh, hadn't moved fast enough where he was concerned and hostages had been in danger. He hadn't seen any other solution than to go in and take charge, as he didn't want to lose momentum.

In the end, he'd saved all hostages. Sure, he'd killed the bank robbers and the building suffered severe damage, but the people who mattered were still unharmed and alive. To him, it was as simple as that, but he figured the LAPD captain saw things differently. It was bad enough IA had ordered mandatory therapy sessions, but the captain insisting on debriefing him in person was even worse. This man could request another transfer and he really didn't want to return to El Paso where memories waited for him around every corner.

He wanted to be in LA, close to her grave, so he could visit her; the woman he'd loved and failed to protect. This was on him. He should have been at her side instead of hunting drug dealers.

"Martin Riggs?" Brooks frowned upon seeing his newest detective sit motionless in the chair opposite his desk. He'd expected to find Riggs pacing, maybe even cursing, but no, the other man was poised and in control. How odd. He'd been prepared for the exact opposite.

"Captain?" Martin carefully took in the other man's appearance, who dressed in a tailored suit, was middle-aged, and looked way too soft to be a LAPD captain – that was his first impression. But he knew appearances could be deceiving. There had to be a good reason Avery had made captain and Martin decided to continue with caution. He wasn't going to underestimate his superior.

"Yes, I'm Brooks Avery," he introduced himself, trying to figure out how to proceed. Riggs had gotten to his feet the moment the younger man became aware of his presence and stood straight and tall. Was it just his imagination or had Riggs been about to salute him?

Martin stopped himself just in time. Being a Navy SEAL had become ingrained on his soul and sometimes he reverted back to saluting when in the presence of a higher ranking officer, or in this case, a LAPD captain. Some habits were hard to break.

"Sit down, detective Riggs," Brooks said as he moved behind his desk to take his seat. Most of the time he was a good judge of character; sure he made his share of mistakes, but usually he knew how to sort out the bad ones that had no business being a cop.

Studying Riggs, who slowly sat down, his instincts told him that this was one of the good guys. After reading about what had happened at the bank, he'd assumed Riggs was arrogant and cocky, but the Texan seemed quite the opposite, even a tad shy, sitting there like a child who'd been caught with their hand inside the cookie jar and expecting to be punished for it.

For the moment he was tempted to give Riggs the benefit of the doubt, but he needed more in order to make an informed decision. "I make it a point to meet everyone new on my team, detective. I like to know the face that goes with the name."

Martin nodded. "Makes sense, sir." He appreciated a captain who wanted to be in touch with his detectives, but there was more to him being here and he patiently waited. He'd learned patience when on sniper duty overseas. It had been a hard lesson, and painful, but he'd learned it well.

It seemed that Martin Riggs was full of surprises, Brooks mused. This was not the way he'd imagined their conversation would go. He'd expected Riggs to shoot off his mouth at this point, but all he got was a respectful silence. It threw him a little and he wasn't sure what to do next. Best to go with his instincts then. "Do you know why you're here, Riggs?"

Of course he did. "The hostage situation?" Best to play dumb for the moment. First he needed to figure out who he was dealing with. He had the feeling there was more to Avery than met the eye and he wasn't going to underestimate him.

Brooks studied the Texan more closely. The man merely played dumb; he knew why he was here. Yet, those brown eyes showed respect, no mockery, no disdain, no disgust, which intrigued him. Martin Riggs was tall, athletically build, and struck him as a lady's man. Guys like that usually openly showed their disgust when meeting a gay cop, regardless of his position within the police force. Riggs however merely showed him respect, which was unexpected, but very welcome. "Yes, the hostage situation."

"I didn't want to lose momentum, sir. They struck me as in over their heads, I mean, who orders a chopper on a busy street like that? And they threatened a hostage. I saw an opening and took it." He'd been in similar situations before, and had learned that the more time passed, the harder it was to get the hostages out alive.

Brooks leaned back and considered the Texan's words. He could tell Riggs was speaking the truth. This wasn't about a new detective sending out a message to his partner, or being bad at following orders. This was a Navy SEAL who had come about a hostage situation and who had acted. "I believe you," he said, curious how Riggs would react to that.

Momentarily taken aback, Martin blinked. "You do?"

"Yeah, I do," Brooks confirmed, realizing having Riggs on the team would cause him many sleepless nights, but the Texan meant well and got the job done, even though his methods left much to be desired. "I listened to the audio earlier," he said, getting to the heart of the matter. "And I want to know what happened in there. You grabbed hold of that rifle and aimed it at your head, telling the bank robber not to miss!" Hearing that had sent chills down his spine. Riggs hadn't been fooling around; the man had been serious.

Ah, now he understood why the captain himself wanted to debrief him. "Just a way to confuse the perps, sir," he offered quickly, ready to confuse and distract the other man. "You know, doing the exact opposite of what they expect of you in order to unbalances them. It's strategy, sir, nothing else." If he was lucky, Avery believed him. If not…

Brooks didn't believe a single word. He just didn't. He'd seen the look on Riggs' face just now when he'd asked about putting that barrel to his head. He'd heard a particular tone on the audio tape. That hadn't been strategy. But how to handle this? Riggs' transfer request came from the City Attorney's office and Ronnie was a good friend, whom he didn't want to alienate. Maybe he could give Riggs another chance.

Avery remaining silent wasn't a good thing and Martin knew he had to act. Maybe distraction worked best. "I got the job done, didn't I? Hostages weren't hurt, safe wasn't cracked. Sure the building suffered, but that's collateral damage and the insurance will cover that." If needed he could sweet talk the guy.

Riggs was good, Brooks had to admit to that. Also, IA was working on their report, but Brooks suspected Riggs would be cleared, as the bank robbers had been shot by their own weapon. Also, the audio tapes would eventually work in Riggs' advantage. But the thing he couldn't get over was the way Riggs had provoked the robbers to shoot him right between the eyes. What could possibly drive a man to do that? How much pain was Martin Riggs in? And suddenly he understood; the Texan was hurting.

"Captain?" Avery's expression was hard to read. The LAPD captain was lost in thought and Martin wished he knew what was going on in the other man's head. Did he still have a job to return to after his suspension was lifted?

"This is what we'll do. While IA is investigating the hostage situation you'll continue to work with detective Murtaugh, but he'll act as the senior officer. You'll follow his lead." Yes, Roger might be able to steer Riggs in the right direction. "I'll also continue debriefing you personally after each closed case." Those were his terms and Riggs could either take it or leave it, but he suspected he already knew the answer.

Well, things could have turned out much worse and Martin knew it. He could follow orders, if he wanted, and Murtaugh seemed easy going, maybe even a bit of a push over, so he didn't expect any problems there. Avery debriefing him was something he could have done without as they had already scheduled mandatory therapy session with a doctor Cahill, so he felt he was punished twice. He didn't like talking at any rate. "Fine, we can do that," he conceded eventually. He got to his feet and gave Avery his most blinding smile, hoping his Texan charm worked on his new captain.

"Now get out of here. I've work to do." Brooks watched Riggs quickly flee the office and sighed. That man was trouble, and now, courtesy of Ronnie Delgado, his to deal with.

TBC