The Badge
By Milford
Characters do not belong to me, story is for entertainment purposes only.
Steve has some questions after the events of Retribution. This is just a short piece but it will be continued when time permits. I think that the events of Retribution would cause Steve, and Mark, to reflect – for so many reasons.
No warnings apply.
Steve shut the door slowly behind Chief Masters, and as he did he found himself deep in thought. He should have been jubilant, thrilled to be officially back on active duty after the last few turbulent months. Instead, he was unusually reflective and more than slightly disturbed and he wasn't quite sure why. The return to duty was a sign that life could and would return to normal…so surely he should be feeling confident.
The sounds of laughter interrupted his thoughts and he turned to look at the laughing figure of his father. Surrounded by friends, Mark Sloan was in his element, celebrating his release and the end of a truly horrific chain of events. It was good to see him so relaxed and happy, although Steve was sadly aware his father had aged somewhat recently. He knew it was a combination of the hardship of prison, but also the all-consuming worry and fear he'd experienced after the shooting. Steve's memories of that day were mercifully blurred but he was only too aware of what it would have meant to his father. Even now, although he was now fully recovered, he knew remnants of that day remained. Sighing deeply, Steve felt the sudden need for solitude, so he turned away from the party and left the beachhouse quietly, with the sounds of laughter and happiness following him. He walked slowly down to the beach towards the log which he had long ago claimed for himself. It was a peaceful place, hidden slightly from the main beach, and he sank gratefully down. Only the occasional voice floated down to interrupt his thoughts. He knew he needed some time alone to gather his thoughts. Adrenaline, along with the strong love he felt for his father, had kept him going during a period when he really should have been recuperating. The desperation he'd felt after the sentence of death had been passed on to his father had given him strength and now it was all over, and they were both at home again, he was feeling very weary. For the first time, he allowed himself the luxury of thinking and trying to come to terms with all that had occurred.
The badge. He stared at his badge in some wonderment. It was a small token but it meant so much to him. He'd fought hard and long to achieve it in the first place, and it epitomized all that he believed in. He knew he was old-fashioned in some ways but he did believe in fighting the good fight, and standing up for those who could not, or would not, defend themselves. He possessed an inbuilt belief in the justice system but the recent events had thrown his life into turmoil on so many levels. Firstly, he'd had to fight for his life after the shooting. He'd sustained many injuries over the years and he was aware of the risks. This recent event was by far the most serious, and he knew he'd been very fortunate to survive. His own mortality had been brought home to him and in the normal course of events, he would have been faced with some serious soul searching. Unfortunately he had not even had a chance to contemplate what had happened for as soon as he'd regained consciousness he had been faced with the knowledge his father was in jail. His gentle, compassionate father had been charged with the murder of the man behind his shooting. Steve looked into the sky as he tried to grapple with his thoughts.
Despite being groggy with drugs, and uncertain about what exactly had happened, the memory of finding out the terrible truth was etched in his mind forever. How could this happen? How could the justice system which he believed in so deeply have gone so wrong? His own partner had followed the leads and come to the terrible conclusion that his father had committed murder. He couldn't blame anyone but the bad guys but it was still an eye-opening incident. The justice system was indeed flawed. There were probably other innocent people in jail. Steve turned the badge over as he allowed his thoughts to develop. Not normally an introspective man, Steve was finding his thoughts disturbing.
The reality was, the justice system had let him down. Let his father down. His father who would never hurt anyone and who deplored violence had been thrown into a violent world of prison, and then condemned to death row. The insanity of such an act had given him the determination and courage to discharge himself out of the hospital and to find the real murderer. Now it was over, or it should be. Steve traced the outline of his scars as he sat there. Covered up, it was impossible to detect the level of damage the bullets had caused, but he was faced with the truth every day. The thought that he could be shot again was frightening but the thought that was even harder to bear was the knowledge that the system he'd believed in for so long could be so terribly wrong. The scars he'd sustained from the shooting were still very visible, but for the first time, Steve allowed himself to accept the fact he had sustained other, not so visible, scarring. He'd had cause to question the system over the years. When he saw slimeball criminals getting low sentences, or worse still, getting away with it due to some slick lawyers games, he'd certainly questioned it. But invariably he'd managed to keep the faith and to keep believing that they would finally meet their justice. He'd even arrested people who had turned out to be innocent but never before had he been faced with such a serious miscarriage of justice – an innocent man condemned to death. He wasn't naive, he knew it could happen, but the fact it had happened to his own father, and that his own colleagues had been involved, was something he was trying very hard to deal with. His father who shared with him an innate belief in justice and bringing people to justice. So instead of feeling on top of the world at being officially back on the job, he was feeling rather doubtful. Could he continue on in a job he was no longer sure he believed in? He didn't know, he just didn't know. He was deep in his thoughts as the footsteps approached and he wasn't aware of company until a warm familiar hand squeezed his shoulder.
"Steve?"
tbc