Triple rows of police officers in dress uniform flanked each side of the street. The "thin blue line" was never more obvious than when saying farewell to one of its own. Cops from all over the country came to pay their respects and offer silent support. Each officer knew when they left home each shift it might be the last time. That so many did it willingly each day all over the country; often for poor pay and little recognition was something the uninitiated never saw.
This particular farewell was even more heartbreaking because the officer was so young, only on the force two years. The bagpipes set up the mournful dirge that would headline the evening news as a background to the riderless horse. Those who watched would have varying reactions depending on their opinion of or relationship to the police, but no one would understand the grief of one Jim Ellison as he watched the procession.
"What do you want for dinner, Jim?" Sandburg asked as they drove home from an uneventful day of paperwork and meetings. "I'm in the mood for Italian."
Jim looked across that cab at his partner. They had been official partners for two years, but Jim included the prior four years when counting anniversaries. After the dissertation disaster and Blair's agreement to join the police force officially, Jim decided it was time for some drastic changes. While he, and the others in Major Crimes, routinely referred to Sandburg as "the kid" he wasn't really. He hadn't been when they met; he just always seemed so much younger than everyone else with his energy and innocence. While that innocence had been tempered over the years with the laundry list of attacks, kidnappings and difficult cases they faced together; Blair's constant positive attitude and encouragement was a relief in a world often overshadowed by tragedy, death and evil.
"Sounds fine to me. You want to call the order in so it'll be ready when we get there?"
Blair pulled out his cell and speed dialed Tony's, just as the phone connected the radio in "Sweetheart" came alive.
"Any units in the vicinity of Markham and Edison please respond. We have a 10-32 in progress at 529 Edison Avenue. Respond with caution we have reports of shots fired."
Blair closed his cell phone and picked up the mic with a sigh.
"One-zebra-one responding, ETA five minutes."
"So much for our quiet day." Jim answered as he stuck the light on the roof and headed toward the location.
The call heralded an anxious five hours as a strung out teenager was holed up in a ramshackle house with the girlfriend of the dealer he'd shot. The kid was so high he could have achieved orbit, making negotiations nearly impossible. As the senior officer on the scene, the best Jim could do was control the perimeter and pray the kid gave a sniper a shot or collapsed when he came down. Unfortunately, the dealer had enough drugs stashed in the house for the kid to stay high for the rest of the year. Blair tried talking to him every hour or so in hopes that enough of the induced haze had lifted that he could convince the teen to give up. Progress was slow, but the situation was reasonably contained so Jim was willing to let it play out rather than risk rushing the house since that almost always guaranteed deaths.
Unfortunately for the success of Jim's plans the news media decided this was the perfect opportunity to run a live report from the scene. Since it was past dark by this time, the remote news van hauled out the ridiculously bright broadcast light and turned the area into a blazing sight. The teen, in his strung out state, was convinced aliens had landed and were going to kidnap him. As a result, he started blasting into the light and shouting he wasn't a science experiment.
The sudden lighting change served to blind the SWAT snipers using night vision gear. Jim was also sidelined when his sight was overwhelmed by the unexpected changed. Blair had been in the middle of another attempt to talk the kid out when the chaos erupted. The light managed to make him the perfect target and stray bullets were flying in all directions as the kid fired at his hallucinations.
The funeral was nearly over and the Commissioner was waxing eloquent about sacrifices and shared pain. The words washed over Jim without understanding; he was furious about the events surrounding the scene. The death was completely avoidable, not that the media would ever admit to their share of the blame. The kids parents were well off and decided to sue the news station for their interference. They settled out of court since the live broadcast showed in vivid detail several officers firing at the teen when nothing else would stop the hail of bullets. In a gesture of that shared grief, the family turned much of the settlement over to the family of the downed officer. An occurrence that Jim would normally have applauded since the police were usually cast as the villains in such situations. But in this instance, nothing would soften the blow.
Finally, the flag draped coffin was lowered into the ground and the folded flag was handed to the stoically reserved mother. The red hair outlined the stark whiteness of her face, but she refused to disrespect her son's sacrifice by giving in to her grief publicly. As she was helped into a waiting car Jim finally broke ranks and walked across the cemetery. As captain, Simon couldn't get away as easily so Megan had volunteered to stay back and chauffeur Jim to the Loft. She would stay until Simon could relieve her.
Jim managed to get control of his sight in time to see the officer fall a few feet in front of him. It took some time before the scene was secure and paramedics could reach the victim. It was obvious that the bullet in his head caused instant death. A lucky shot had found its mark in the one vulnerable place not covered by Kevlar. Afraid what would happen if he let himself handle the news van himself he sent another officer to deal with them. Once the reporter, who was still broadcasting, realized the combined disgust, blame and outright hatred focused on him by the assembled police, he didn't protest when he was ordered to leave the site. His excitement at such a marvelous report was short lived. The public outcry at the blatant disregard of police safety in a ratings boosting effort had an undesired effect. The ratings for the station tanked; the reporter was fired and much of the upper management was replaced.
Walking aimlessly into the Loft Jim headed upstairs to relieve himself of the uncomfortable dress uniform. He didn't begrudge the respect it represented, but he couldn't wait to get it off. Finally back downstairs he sat on the couch across from Conner.
"Good funeral. If there is such a thing." He commented.
"He deserved it." She returned.
Lost in memories they missed the noise of a door opening.
"You doing okay Jim?"
"Just wishing it didn't have to happen that way."
"I wish I could have been there. Chad deserved it."
"He would have understood Chief."
Rushing to the fallen officer Jim was surprised to see two bodies, one covered by the other. In the confusion and with shaky sight, Jim hadn't seen the cop launch himself the few feet necessary to bring Blair to the ground. His efforts resulted in a concussion, broken leg and deep laceration from a sharp stone at landing for Blair and death for himself. The doctor had insisted that Blair remain home during the funeral. The placement of the laceration meant the leg needed to be kept straight almost all the time. The laceration meant he couldn't sit and the broken leg meant he couldn't stand.
"I went through the academy with him, he would have made a great detective someday. He had the skills necessary; he just needed the experience."
"That's what everyone was saying." Jim answered.
"Chief, what does it say about me that I was nearly in tears when I discovered you weren't the one dead? I mean, I'm sorry about Chad, but I know who I would have picked if the decision were forced on me."
"It's a normal reaction Jim. I think I know who you would have picked if it had been between you and Chad. I would have done the same. We're cops; we'll always pick the other guy to survive. And we'll always pick our partner over the other guy if it comes to it. I think anyone in uniform understands that. Chad did."
Simon arrived and the night ended with the brothers (and sister) in blue silently honoring a fallen comrade.
No major character death