The Person- Wesley 'Wes' Corbett, the Unfailing Police Officer
Chapter 11- WE aren't in Sync
Xxxxx
2007 San Angeles Ave
Angel Grove, CA
The coffee's aroma instantly crowded into the town home belonging to my brother, sister, and I. A bright smile curled upon my mouth, and I let the air exit in a form of a yawn. Still in my red boxers and nothing else, since I loved the cool, crisp air of winter, I climbed out of bed. God blessed me with another day of work, and even though, I wasn't a Catholic boy, though I do believe in heaven and hell, I was still thankful. I descended the stairs, and there, I saw my lovely little sister making some pancakes and eggs.
She loved the taste of salty and sweet together. Trust me, I know my younger sister, since there have been countless times I needed to add Junior Mints to popcorn.
"Good morning, Wes." Kira greeted me gladly, and I had a clue she was up to something. My coffee was already made, and she was in the process of preparing a healthy start to our day.
"Alright, what do you want?" I presumed, since this wasn't typical. Also, she never needed to butter me up; I would happily help my sister with anything. Leo, on the other hand, no.
"Just a ride to work, if that's not too much." She fittingly answered, and I nodded. "Thank you. I just want to head in early, so I can practice my music."
"Ah." I plainly followed, and another thought entered my head. "Let me guess, is it because you can't do this in the confines of your own home?"
"Ding, ding, ding, we have a winner!" She jokingly mocked out loud. "I do mind his needs. Hell, we have neighbors." She tacked on frustratingly. "They aren't complaining. He just does!"
"Hey." I consoled her the best way a big brother could. "Don't worry about him. He's probably jealous that you're a great singer."
She displayed a devilish smirk, and I wanted to contest verbally. "Like how you're jealous of Leo's great body?" She slightly joked with me. I knew she loved to tease me about the one and only time I did get jealous of Leo. I rolled my eyes grouchily, as she really was my sister and knew me too well! "Come on." She beckoned in a kiddy tone. "It's okay if you are."
"Shut up!" I snapped.
"You shut up! Or, you can always go to the gym instead of eating coffee and donuts on the job." She uncouthly remarked with another evil smirk.
"Go fuck yourself!" I angrily fired back, since I was already self conscious. I crossed my arms over my chest and wondered why she even made me this breakfast if she really thought that about me. I sheepishly pushed my plate back.
"Sorry, Wes, I already have someone that does that." She countered with a flabbergasting comment, and I was about to fall out of my chair in shock.
"YOU HAVE BEEN DOING WHAT?" I indignantly demanded for some answers. My God! My sister cannot be tainted, she can not have a guy enter her down there! Whoever this motherfucker was; I was about to introduce him to some stainless steel holders, and I would throw the damn key away.
Kira smiled at me, and she had to roll her eyes. "Wes, I'm kidding. Trust me, I'm a virgin. My seal is tightly on lockdown, and there will be no guy granted entrance." She assured me, and I released a light breath. "Besides, all my guy friends know you are a cop, and none of them, and I mean none of them will touch me, even it was with a 10 foot pole."
I felt better, and I could continue with my breakfast in somewhat peace.
And then, the personification of TENSION entered the room. Kira and I exchanged expected glances. Don't get us wrong, we love Leo, after all we came from the same set of parents and we share the same DNA, but when he was robbed and held at gun point, he transformed into someone else. It's as if we hardly knew him. He sat down, and Kira and I wasn't sure if we needed to leave the table.
"There's still more pancakes and eggs." Kira spoke up, and she went to put her empty plate in the sink.
"Are you going to clean that?" Leo irately asked her, as he turned in his seat to look at her.
"Yes…" Her voice trailed off, and she looked at me to help her.
"Leo, lighten up, will you. You just woke up, and she was nice enough to cook breakfast for us. Meaning, she woke up earlier than you." I played the middle man, and Leo's blue eyes faced me with fire behind them.
"She didn't have to do that. None of us asked her to." He returned with his opinion, and I had to get up.
"Leo, you need to lay off Kira, and you need to adjust your attitude. Get over yourself!" I yelled at him, and I gave my full attention to Kira. "Be ready in at least an hour, I'll take you to work."
"Thanks, Wes." She acknowledged, and she retreated to her room.
Leo and I stared each other down maliciously. He got up and went to get the last of the cooked food. Although, I wanted to punch him in his face for the way he treated Kira, I had to restrain myself. With Leo's muscle mass, he could potentially beat the shit out of me. Calming down, I headed to my room. I had other things to worry about.
Xxxxx
1995 AG Lane
Angel Grove Police Department
I parked my car at work.
Even with the detour to Kira's work, I was still able to come on time. Kira and I ignored Leo's departure. Honestly, it was never supposed to be this way.
We did come from privilege. Our paternal grandparents were owners of their own television company. I don't know where the idea came from, but either way, it happened. Soon after that, they had kids and had a net worth of 1.1 billion dollars. They had kids, and that's when my dad was the second to the last born. He definitely had the the title of best dressed, the newest car, and he participated in equestrian type of activities. Hand and foot he was waited on. Yet, my dad's parents wanted him to be level headed. So, he worked and learned the value of a dollar.
Very much, he acted as if money wasn't readily available.
In college, dad and mom met; it was during English class. Both were very smart, but they had intellectual differences. Sometimes they would clash inside of the classroom, but outside the two fell in love. He eventually revealed he was of money, while she explained to him she had dreams of being a rock star and school was really boring except for English class. Their backgrounds were never an issue, mom grew up dirt poor, and they married. Mom left the rock star life behind, and Dad became a police officer since that was his passion in life. After dad's parents passed away, he was left a lot of money because of the will. The television station went to our youngest aunt.
Before Kira came along, there was Leo. We were really close, and we practically did everything together. Consequently, we were a year apart, and they treated us like we were twins. When Kira was born, she was treated like a princess, and we were chosen as her protectors. If anything, it was Kira that used to beat on his. We couldn't control her 'no fear' personality. As we got older, our parents distilled heartfelt values into the three of us and what was right and what was wrong. They wished for us to never be livid with one another too. They also wished for us to never leave each other's side.
Until Leo's altercation with an unknown African American gangster, which changed the family dynamics. After that occurred, he was never the same, nor was the relationship between the siblings the same. Leo strayed from us, and he did his own thing, while Kira and I became attached at the hip. Even though our age difference was five years apart, we still did almost everything together. I screened her dates, while she screened mine. Leo stayed to himself. I think he's still a virgin.
As soon as Eric and I became police officers, whatever relationship I had left with Leo ultimately dwindled. I don't know if he felt threatened of Eric, or because he hated that Eric was a man of some kind of color, there was never a full explanation of Leo's hatred toward my partner in crime fighting. Eric couldn't place his finger on it either, but I assumed it was because of his troubled relationship with his own brother. Furthermore, I wasn't going to keep arresting a man of color upon my brother's request. At that moment, I knew my brother went off the deep end.
As of right now, the only genuine relationship I have is with Kira. I am not involved with a female because that was the last thing on my mind. Honestly, I stood firm on this issue, the only way I could ever get myself involved with a female, would be when Leo decided to man up and accept he was robbed by an unknown assailant and let go of his distorting views of the African American race! Unfortunately, I put my family's needs before my own.
I exited my car, and I walked to my desk. Pretty soon, I was bogged down with an emergency alert about a house fire on Ocean's Bluff Ave. I was really not a man of cussing, but shit, couldn't the call come in half an hour. I just got here, I whined like a baby.
Quickly and with no more hesitations, I jumped into my cop car. I turned on my blaring signal, and I sped over there.
"Wes, this is Eric, come in." I listened, as my partner connected to me.
"Yeah, Eric, this is Wes. Did you hear?" I presumed he was en route too.
"Are you heading over there?"
"Yup, as of right now. I'll see you there." I told him with confidence.
As an officer of the law, I had a job to do.
Xxxxx
2008 Ocean's Bluff Ave.
At a fast and furious- which was one of my favorite movies- speed, Eric and I jumped out of our car to assess the scene. First of all, the heat was unbearable, not even the cool winter morning could deter the raging flames that were escalating towards the sky. Next, there were a lot of daunted bystanders. They had no comprehension of what had happened, and third, Eric seemed to find one of his thugs that he had argued with a long time ago. I rolled my eyes, since that was not the priority.
The priority, regrettably, was rescuing the pregnant mother jailed inside of her own home by an agitated inferno. I sighed, as I kept seeking for some answers. Damn it, no one had a single clue as to what happened. I couldn't even ask any more questions because an unnecessary issue had sparked between a firefighter and a paramedic.
"This is no time for arguing!" I admonished them, as if they were children, and ordered them to snap back into focus. "Get her to Angel Grove Regional, now!" The nerve of them to argue over a simple task of putting the woman on a damn stretcher was so inconsiderate. Hell, if it was such a big deal ask Eric or I! Now, there was no time to lose, it wasn't even a person's life at stake, it was an innocent child. An unborn child!
Then, I watched the ambulance leave. Yes, the man was definitely drunk. His breath had the signs of alcoholism all over it, and I shouldn't have allowed him to leave. The battle inside of me was great, but I decided the best decision. She needed to be there. If a demising consequences were to arise, I'd take full responsibility.
"Are you crazy?" Eric passionately approached me, and that question had formed in my mouth before it was asked. He was even holding a breathalyzer. Well, damn.
"I know, but there was nothing else we could do. She needs to be there." I disconnected the eye contact with Eric, since the ground looked more important.
Carter's a great man, even after saving the woman and barging through the flames and even participating in a fight with the lunatic of a paramedic, he redressed into his gear and continued to distinguish the fire. The people at the scene started to leave, and then the my boss, along with the news crew headed over to where I was. Advised by the chief, Eric and I were sent back to the precinct for some work, and then I was told the parents were heading straight to the hospital. I just couldn't head back to work, so I decided to head there too.
"Hey, maybe I should head to the hospital." I told Eric, and he nodded.
"Alright, I'll see you later." He concurred, and I knew deep down, he was convinced my empathetic nature was needed there.
I climbed into my car and drove to the hospital.
Xxxxx
Shortcut to the Hospital
Mariner Bay Lane
"Wes, are you there?" My sister asked me after she had put me on hold.
We had been on the phone for a few minutes before her boss asked her to do something.
"Yeah." I replied, while I came behind a yellow car.
"Alright, great, so tonight, you'll be here?" She had great news. Tonight, she was performing at the Youth Center. It was great exposure for her, and she wanted to let me know about it. Of course I would be there. Me not see my little perform? That was absolutely ludicrous!
"I wouldn't miss it for the world, sis."
"Thanks. I love you."
"Love you too."
The yellow car in front of me was fairly old, and one tire was a spare. I felt bad for the driver, since no one really knows the life span of a spare. I wanted to refer the driver to the best tire company for cheap prices, so I sped up just a little. Then, I saw her plates had expired tags. I cursed under my breath, since I should've stayed back. What I didn't know, didn't hurt me, I dreadfully pondered, but now, I couldn't exactly ignore it. I decided to at least warn the driver with a ticket.
Right away, I turned on my lights. The car began to readily come to a stop. At least the driver minded the traffic laws. I exited my car, and I had my citation pad in hand. I hoped this driver wasn't a killer, or upset that I had stopped them, and I was going to suffer a stab to the heart or a massive beating. Officers understand the risks, but still, I'm only 24. I approached the car, and there was a woman inside. She didn't dare look at me, and she looked very skittish. I regretted stopping her, but I was simply attempting to warn her.
I tapped on her window a few times. She took a minute, and I began to question her mental stability. Finally, she put her window down. Her eyes were very red, and it wasn't because of a certain herb, it was because of her whack emotions. There was definitely fear behind her eyes, and the futile attempt to face me bravely was dissipating at a rapid pace.
"Ma'am, I'm sorry to bother you, but you do understand your tags are expired and you are driving on a spare." I quickly apologized, but also informed her of the situation at hand.
"I'm sorry." She merely opened her mouth.
I sighed, and I started to write her ticket. "There's a local insurance company that can help you with your tags." I mentioned, and I placed the card on there. "It's quicker than going to the DMV. Also, this is just a warning. I hope you can get this squared away."
"Thank you." Again, she barely opened her mouth.
"If you are stopped again, just give the officer my name." I handed her the ticket, and she took it. "What's your name?" This was for clarification purposes. Her eyes were definitely haunting, but the fear slowly went away. She appeared less shaken than before, and I hoped I wasn't too harsh with her.
"Trinity Kwan, but I go by Trini." She answered with more than two words. "Thank you for letting me off with just warning."
"No problem." I smiled cordially at her.
"Excuse me." I was stopped by the young Asian. "Can you point me in the right direction to the Youth Center?" She asked me, and I had to laugh out loud. She definitely furrowed her eyebrows at me.
"I'm sorry, Trini. My sister works there, and that's no problem." I gave her the directions to 1996 Eltar Rd. She gave me a thankful smile, and it was a great look on her. "You should come by again tonight. She's performing there."
"Maybe. Thank you again. You are the second man that I've encountered that's been really sweet." She weirdly mentioned to me, but I still nicely nodded. "I think I'll like Angel Grove, and it will be a good start for my sister and I."
"Glad to hear. Have a nice day ma'am, and please, fix the tags and tire." I reminded her, and I needed to get going. "Bye." I returned to my cop car, and I booked it to the hospital.
Xxxxx
1995 Angel Grove St.
Angel Grove Regional
I parked my car in a spot designated for cops. I heard the motorized noise of the doors open for me, and I went to the nurse's station. I asked about the victim from Ocean's Bluff Ave., and she pointed me to the direction of the devastated parents. The news of her demise rattled me, and I made a phone call to Eric.
"Eric, you need to come to the hospital." I sadly updated him without saying too many words. He hung up on me, and I knew he had been in the middle of something. The rude end of our phone call didn't hurt me too much, since I went to the parents. "Hello, my name is Officer Collins, and I am one of the responding officers. I am very sorry for your loss."
"Thank you for your concern." The father responded, as he cried some more. Men were the stronger of the sexes, but with this, how could a man remain calm?
"How did this happen?" The mother cried, and she buried her face into her hands. Her husband protectively engulfed her into his arms. "She was so young, and she was ready to be a mother!" She couldn't control her emotions if she could. "And the poor baby, we haven't even been in to see her. We can't bring ourselves to see her."
Oh God, how could they not see their own grandchild? That was sad, but they must've still been in shock. "The police chief and the firefighters are investigating the scene, as we speak." I answered them to give a little peace of mind. "If there is anything you two need, just let me know."
The peculiarity of the next thing to exit their mouth stunned me into silence.
"Help us find the father to our grandchild." The father pleaded, and there was no way I could say no to something of that importance. They just lost their child, and now, I was appointed to find their grandchild's father. I had no clue where to start.
A doctor came by us, and I supposed that was the responding doctor. I introduced myself. "Good afternoon, Doc. My name is Officer Collins. Is there any idea of how she passed away? Also, how is the newborn baby doing?" I tossed inquiries her way.
She panicked, as her face presented her emotion. "Sorry, I apologize. I'm just a resident doctor. I came by to pay my respects to the family." She responded, and she looked at me like I was crazy.
Immediately I blushed at my mistake. "I'm sorry about that. I really thought you were the doctor." And then, my cell phone rang. I turned to the parents. "I'll be right back." I whispered to them.
The events of this morning played in my head. It started off great; my sister had made me breakfast and we quipped back and forth. Then it got bad, since Leo was acting like his usually asshole-self. After that, I barely arrived at work and respond to a shocking house fire. Then, my sister informed me of her performance tonight, and I invited a traffic violator to watch her sing. Only to be followed by the victim of the house fire has died with her newborn, now, inside of the neonatal intensive care unit, and the parents putting me on a case that was meant for a private investigator. And because of the officer I was, an unfailing one that possessed heroic traits, I would do so.
Fuck my life, what else was going to happen?
I headed towards the outside, so I could accept the phone call. I felt my arm being yanked, and I was vehemently turned to a woman. I furrowed my brows, though, the woman was definitely not a bad thing to face. She had long light ash brown hair that was slightly wavy or curly, I could never keep up with the styles of woman, she had brown doe eyes, and she was dressed in a white shirt with a pink jacket over it, jeans, and some boots. She also had on light makeup, but it looked very smudged.
"I'm so sorry." She apologized to me sincerely, and a very tall man walked up behind her. There was a slight similarity there. I would've left her side, but she kept looking at me with curiosity. Her beautiful, brown, doe eyes stared me down, and I felt like I would've caught on fire if she ogled any harder. This could've been the wrong time to ask for a cup of coffee, and even though I wished to date after Leo and I had a much more stable relationship, I did not care. This woman was definitely my type!
"Sorry about that, Officer Dude, but she's not exactly all there." He updated me, and he looked at the smaller woman. "Jen, that's not him."
"So your name is Jen?" I quickly interjected.
"Yes." She answered and tears came into her eyes, while my mouth gaped open. She buried her head into the other guy's chest.
I couldn't even continue with my introduction. This day was getting more and more bizarre by the minute. Darn it, and just to think, I thought Jen and I were in sync.
Up Next: Chapter 12- Jennifer 'Jen' McKnight-Scott, the Oblivious Widow.