PART 2

"Yo, Coop, that kid's still here," the desk officer called as Cooper exited the locker room, duffel bag thrown over his shoulder.

"Did Gangs not cut him loose?"

"Yeah, he's free to go but he hasn't gone anywhere."

"The social worker didn't take him?"

"Wasn't no social worker; he wasn't under arrest so he didn't need a responsible adult."

"Okay, so what the hell's he waiting for?"

A sardonic grin. "You, apparently. You playing Uncle Coop?"

"Shut the fuck up," Cooper grinned, used to the hazing cops saw as a sense of humour.

"Go get him outta here; watch commander says he's makin' the place look like South Central."

"Tell the watch commander this ain't frickin' Bel Air. Where's the kid at?"

"Front lobby scaring the good citizens."

Cooper swung his duffel bag up, checked his gun was covered by his t-shirt. Headed through the doors into the lobby, empty except for one teenage boy in oversize jeans and a Lakers shirt.

Rico looked up, assessing Cooper's navy tee taut across his solid chest. "Yo, Officer Coop, you wearin' ma colours!"

"The only colours I wear belong to the biggest gang in this city," Cooper snorted.

Amusement danced in the kid's eyes. "LAPD homeboy, huh?"

"So what you hangin' out at my corner for?"

A shrug. "Thought maybe you'd come back."

"You not got your homeboys waiting on you?"

"Don't got nobody waitin' on me." Slumped in his chair, Rico looked cold, tired and hungry.

"When'd you last eat, kid?"

"Yesterday, I guess."

Cooper sighed, thrust his hands into his pockets. Hoisted his bag onto his shoulder. "Let's go get you a burger."

"Fo' real?"

"No, I'm shittin' you."

Rico flashed a grin, leapt to his feet with an eagerness that suggested yesterday may have been an underestimation. Five minutes later they were installed at the burger bar around the corner from the station and Rico was practically inhaling the biggest plate on the menu with indecent enthusiasm.

"Thanks, Officer Coop," he mumbled through a full mouth, barely pausing to swallow before ripping off another huge bite.

Somewhat amused by the new moniker he had been given, Cooper chewed his own fries slowly. Raised a finger to the waitress and ordered a second plate for the kid.

"Sorry if it's expensive here." Rico looked up just long enough to slurp his Coke.

"Don't worry about it, just eat."

Another quick glance. "You a'ight, man."

"You still eat like you did first time I met you."

Rico gave a wide grin. "I was pretty hungry back then as well."

"Jeez, you were turning thirteen when I stopped you smashing up that apartment and you were the smallest kid I ever put in the back of my cruiser. Look at the size of you now."

"I was damn small, huh? What you expect when I never got any food." Rico shrugged. "Foster home was shit but they fed me real good. Started to grow in like two weeks."

"You still living with your foster family?"

"Naw, man. I got sent back to my mom."

"How come?"

"She tol' the judge she was clean an' all dat shit. Dumbass believed her."

"So she's still using?"

"'Course she is, dawg. Never stopped."

"Must be hard."

"Officer Coop, everythin' hard. Don't matter if I'm wid my mom or wid Child Services, it still ain't the kinda life anybody would want."

"And banging with the Avalons is gonna make it better."

An attitude-filled shrug. "Ain't gonna make it any worse."

"Unless you get drive-by'd next week."

"Least when you dead you don't got no problems."

Cooper regarded him over the rim of his coffee cup. "You really believe that?"

Rico swallowed another bite. "Hell, man, I don't know."

"Richard…"

"It's Rico."

"Rico. I fucked up last time I saw you. I had a lotta shit goin' on and I let it get on top of me. I cut you off when you needed help and I'm sorry."

"Don't matter no more."

"It mattered then. I shoulda tried to help you. I was wrong to walk away like I did. There was a lotta stuff wrong in my life at the time and I guess I was too busy trying to get myself straight to have time for anyone else."

Rico swallowed down more Coke in reflective silence for a moment. "I shouldn't'a asked you to take me home wid you. You din't need me givin' you dat shit."

"You were scared and you were desperate."

"Don't mean I shoulda begged some cop I just met to adopt me."

"So why did you?"

Another shrug. "Felt safe wid you. Like you was strong enough to jus' make everythin' be okay."

The last remaining fries were consumed, the remaining drops of Coke chased around the cup. Finally replete, Rico sat back, made eye contact with the big cop.

"It felt like things couldn't get too bad if you was around," he said quietly. He shoved back his chair abruptly, got to his feet. "Thanks for the food, Officer Coop. I gotta get goin'."

"Can I ask you one thing before you go?"

"If you want."

"You ever keep that card I gave you?"

"Yeah." A pause. "Actually, I still got it."

"So why'd you never call?"

Another pause. Awkward this time. "Din't know what to say."

"You coulda just said hi."

"Yeah, right." Rico snorted humourlessly. "And then what? Hey, Officer Cooper, guess what? I'm wid the Avalons now. Sure you'd have taken dat real well."

Cooper pulled out his fold of bills, dropped a couple on the table and nodded thanks to the waitress. There was nothing he could say in response to Rico so he remained quiet, giving the teenager the opportunity to continue. But Rico had gone silent, staring down at his oversize Nike Airs. Cooper felt an unexpected flash of sympathy for this kid who was so alone in his young life.

"C'mon, I'll give you a ride home," he said.

"I can get the bus," Rico insisted, but he was following Cooper back to the station parking lot despite his protests. The teenager's eyes widened when Cooper stopped by the Challenger. "Dat your car?"

"Yep. You coming or what?"

Rico scrambled into the passenger seat, all pretence of disaffected cool gone. "Man, this ride is cool. I only ever seen cars like this on TV."

Cooper hid his smile. "Where'd you live?"

"The Gardens, homie."

"Big surprise." Cooper rolled his eyes at the mention of the notorious Avalon Gardens project that had sired the gang's name. Steered the car out onto the street and hit the gas. "And I'm not your homie."

Rico did an exaggerated eye-fuck over him. "Hell no you ain't."

"You got a big mouth, kid."

"Man, tell me about it. Everyone been tellin' me dat since I was like three years old. Always gettin' put outta class an' shit."

"So learn to shut up."

"Dat ain't no fun." Rico shrugged, paused a second. "Yo, man, don't be drivin' into the projects in this car, okay? It's too sweet to get beat up."

"And you don't wanna be seen with a white guy, right?"

A wicked grin crossed the kid's face. "I got a rep to keep up."

Cooper pulled over cooperatively. "You got my number, kid. Use it, okay?"

"I will." Rico held out his knuckles for a fist bump. "Thanks, Officer Coop."

He slid out of the car without farewell, closing the door gently. As he passed the open window, his words were so quiet Cooper only just caught them.

"This was a good day fo' me."

X X X

One good thing had emerged from the downfall of Cooper and Tang's partnership. One thing that had taken a lot of weight off Cooper's shoulders. Finally the issues between himself and Ben Sherman, the demons that had destroyed the bond between them, had been addressed.

Those dark times had not been forgotten by either of them, but recent events had allowed them to be exorcised at long last. And no longer did a cloud hang over John Cooper and Ben Sherman; the anger and the guilt and hurt had faded away.

Now they could meet for a beer every couple of weeks and talk about their lives. Felt able to turn to each other if it was something only a cop brother would understand. So after driving back to Hollywood, it was Ben's number that Cooper dialled.

"You okay?" Sherman asked when Cooper joined him at the bar. "You look a little freaked out."

Cooper took the beer Sherman slid across to him. "I had a weird-ass day."

"Garbage calls?"

"Nah, weirder than that." Cooper picked at the label on his beer bottle. "Don't know if you remember back when you were in Phase 3, when we picked up a kid called Richard smashing up his mom's apartment after she abandoned him?"

"That little black kid? The one you hung out with after watch?"

"Yeah, that's the one."

"I remember him."

"I met him again today. Runs with the Avalons now."

"Shit, he's a baby banger?"

"Not much of a baby. Six feet tall now, playing football. Big, strong kid."

"Shit," seemed to be the only thing Sherman could think of to say.

"Wasn't somethin' I was expecting," Cooper admitted, downing half his beer in one. "He still looked like he was starving. Ended up taking him for a burger."

"What'd you make of him?"

"Honestly, I don't think he's gone all bad." A derisive snort at his own admission. "Hate to say it, but I still liked the kid."

"Did he talk to you?"

"Just said he'd gone back to live with his mom. He seemed pretty messed up; still not getting enough food, havin' to take care of himself."

"But he's banging, Coop."

"I know." Cooper gave a crooked smile. "Not something I can easily ignore."

"You still wanna get involved though," Sherman said wisely.

"I didn't say that."

"Didn't need to. You think you can read me like a book but I learnt to figure you out pretty well."

Cooper did his best 'what the hell?' expression and swallowed down more beer.

"You think the kid needs help?" Ben asked.

Cooper hesitated a moment, then nodded.

"So we both know you're not gonna walk away from him. You never could do that to kids."

"You'd better not be trying to suggest I'm soft, Boot."

Ben shrugged. "You're the one who trod the Boulevard for an entire night for a little boy you hardly knew."

"And I seem to remember you were right next to me when I did."

A smile lit Sherman's youthful face. "Too young and stupid to know better," he grinned.

Cooper threw him a look that once would have had Ben wondering if the big man was serious or not.

"Who said you ain't still stupid?"