The cashier discreetly raised the broom he kept behind the counter and used the handle to hit the extended arm of the hardened criminal. The nudge was enough to make him loose his aim, which Boscorelli was more than a little grateful for. Getting shot was definitely not on his list of fun things to do, however, he briefly pondered, an arm wound would be preferable to a chest wound any day.
Bosco felt the bullet enter and exit his upper left arm. The subtle jolt of the shot was enough to push his left side into some shelves, scattering various canned goods onto the floor. Momentarily distracted and somewhat shocked, he instinctively grabbed his arm and felt a warm wetness on the shirt sleeve.
Wasting no time the thief charged for the exit, gun and bag in hand.
"Call 9-1-1!" Bosco ordered the elderly man who, he realized, may very well have saved his life.
Damn! He felt pain but not enough to stop him from chasing the gun toting perp out of the store. "Stop jag-off!" Bosco shouted, his anger flowing freely. There was no way the bastard was gonna get away...
Dodging vehicles and pedestrians alike as he pumped his legs to their limit, he was well aware of the dull, throbbing sensation his wounded arm emitted. He didn't care about the discomfort. He wasn't about to let some skel get away with stealing while he was witness to it, and he surely wasn't going to let him get away with shooting him.
"Get out of the way!...Move!" He yelled to the unsuspecting individuals going about their business as he chased the shooter. "Step aside!" He pleaded to a woman pushing a stroller.
"Central to any available units, respond to an armed robbery call on King and 124th. Young, Caucasian male suspect on foot wearing a light blue hooded sweatshirt and dark jeans last seen running Southbound on King reportedly with an injured off-duty police officer in pursuit. Be advised, suspect is armed and has fired a weapon..." The dispatcher's voice reiterated.
"5-5 Charlie to Central..." Davis responded. "Show us in route to King and 1-2-4!"
"It's too early for this crap!" Sully exclaimed as he turned on the lights and siren while making a U-turn in the middle of a moderately busy intersection on Amsterdam and 130th.
Faith packed the few groceries she purchased into the truck. She was anxious to get home and finish her chores and perhaps relax for an hour or so before her shift. Well, the relaxing part was, anyway, more or less wishful thinking. The little free time she allowed herself always seemed to fly by much too quickly. She hoped to be home before midnight and was determined to spend some quiet time with her husband. She knew Fred felt neglected lately so she planned to surprise him with a quiet and romantic, although very late dinner.
Faith put the pick-up in drive and was just about to pull away from her parking spot as she heard the call from Central on the scanner. Aware that she was only a few blocks from the general location of the robbery, she decided to head home that way. Since an off-duty officer may have been injured, she knew she needed to assist in any way possible.
Sully sped down King and continued South until he arrived at 124th. Five-five Edward was already on the scene as Sullivan slowed the RMP while opening the driver's side window. He carefully maneuvered the squad to the opposite lanes of the street, blocking some of the Northbound oncoming vehicles.
"We've got things covered here Sully...keep heading south! A witness claims two individuals on foot were heading in that direction. One of them had possession of a handgun!" Gusler's partner, Roy Hansen hurriedly informed 5-5 Charlie's occupants.
"Thanks Hansen!" Sully replied as he continued the pursuit.
"Clear here Sul!" Davis relayed to his partner as they merged into the right lane of traffic and were once again Southbound.
They continued for a few blocks while scanning the sidewalks and cross streets for any sign of the suspect and his pursuer.
"I don't know Ty...we should have seen them by now." Sully uttered in dismay. "Maybe I should turn around and back track."
Within moments, Davis caught sight of someone ahead, on foot, quickly turning the corner and proceed West on 119th. "Turn right on 118th!...I just saw somebody in gray sweats head West on 119th...maybe we can cut them off! And Sul...it kinda looked like Bosco!" Davis exclaimed in disbelief.
"What the hell...?" Sully responded almost knowingly. "Why am I not surprised!" He added in exasperation.
"There, Sully!" Davis exclaimed, finally noticing the fleeing perpetrator on the next block matching Central's description.
"I see him!" Sully noted while attempting to turn the corner and block the armed subject, who, noticing the approaching squad, cut across the street and ran on the opposite side of the road and into a nearby alley.
Faith pulled up to Gusler who was reaching into his RMP. "Everything okay here?" She asked.
"Faith?...Hi!...Yeah...We're just getting some information together for the report." A somewhat surprised Gusler answered her.
"I was in the area and heard something about an off-duty officer pursuit on the scanner." She said as she motioned to the apparatus. "Shots fired?" She added.
"Yeah...5-5 Charlie's somewhere around 118th. I think I heard something about the pursuit leading into an alley." Gusler informed her.
"All right Steve...thanks! I'll see you later...stay out of trouble!" She teased.
Bosco's arm ached but he wasn't about to stop now. He'd been shot before but luckily his vest stopped any serious injury. This was the first time a gun shot wound he had the misfortune of being the recipient of actually drew blood. He didn't dwell on his sorry state though. He wanted this collar for himself and if memory served him right he was pretty sure he never arrested anyone while off-duty before.
The culprit was fast. Faster than he himself. He couldn't let the skel get away he vowed as he gained a yard or two while the mope picked himself up after he tripped on the sidewalk. "You might as well stop asshole...!" The officer called to the designated idiot. "Your gonna have to decide if you wanna spend tonight in the pokey or the hospital, dimwit!"
Bosco lost sight of the guy for a second or two as the young man ducked around the corner of a boarded up building on 117th. As he turned the corner after him, the jag-off fired the .38 in Bosco's direction. Fortunately, he missed his target, twice, and hit the wall of the building instead. This caused the police officer's anger to escalate even more. He was actually afraid of what he was capable of doing to the moron when he would finally catch up to him.
"Sully...look...it definitely is Bosco! No doubt the off-duty officer giving chase!" Davis said noticing only his co-worker just as they heard a couple of rounds go off.
"5-5 Charlie to Central...I need back-up on Arthur and 118th! Shots fired! I repeat...shots fired!" Sully shouted into his radio.
"10-4 Charlie...available units respond to..." Sully heard the dispatcher begin as Davis opened his door to exit the currently slow moving vehicle.
"Let me out, Sul! I'll go around the block and meet up with Bosco." Davis informed his driver while he removed his .357 from it's holster.
"Be careful, Davis!" Sullivan yelled to his on the run partner as he blocked the alley with the patrol car.
Faith was unable to control the growing anxiety she began to develop. Call it gut instinct or maybe woman's intuition but she knew she wasn't going to like whatever she encountered upon her arrival at 5-5 Charlie's location. Sully's most recent call to Central certainly did nothing to alleviate her fears.
Bosco noticed a squad pause a block away as he kept his eyes on the running fool. He would never get away now - not with another officer in pursuit. The bastard's ass was grass!
Boscorelli headed for the alley knowing the perp was out of ammo. The clicks of the gun he fired were audible to him earlier. He was more concerned that he would lose sight of his prey than of any further injury he might sustain.
Bosco turned the corner of the brick structure into the alley rather cautiously, at least he thought so, and was immediately greeted by the impact of a hard object connect with his left shoulder. He crumbled to the ground in excruciating pain as he attempted to catch his breath from the unexpected attack.
The robber and cop shooter dropped the lead pipe he swung at the officer and cleared a fairly high wooden fence as he made his hasty get away, never looking back at his pursuer.
Davis rounded the East Side corner of the building as he witnessed the suspect swiftly maneuver the fence. He rushed to the barrier and looked over it but the subject was gone. Turning back to the building he just passed, he saw Bosco lying on the street, grasping his left shoulder with his right hand.
"Bos...you okay?" Davis called to him as he grabbed his radio while rushing to the fallen man's side. "Sul...in the alley...Bosco's down! I'll call for a bus!"
"No!...Davis...don't call...please...I'm fine...just help me up!" His fallen, breathless friend asked as he clutched his injured upper arm.
"Bosco...your arm...it's bleeding!" Davis observed as Sully cleared the corner.
"It's just a scratch." Bosco replied, trying to catch his breath as he slowly stood, aided by the younger officer. He leaned forward holding his shoulder, silently thankful for the help Davis bestowed. The pain was clearly evident on his face.
"Here...sit down on this crate." Sully ordered and Bosco didn't argue. "You call for a bus?" The older officer asked his partner.
"No!...I don't need one!" Bosco protested giving them both a look they understood all too well. "You sure he's gone?" He directed his question to Davis as he gradually regained his ability to breathe more easily.
"Yeah...he's outta sight Bosco...I'm sorry man." Davis apologized as he took a step closer to the injured officer.
"Look, Bosco...if your not going to let us call for a bus then your only alternative is to take a ride to Mercy with us." Sully demanded as the sound of approaching sirens announced the arrival of reinforcements and a figure no one immediately noticed.
"What happened? My God...Bos...are you all right?" The female half of 5-5 David asked as she approached the trio.
"What are you doing here, Faith?" He asked, totally unprepared by her unexpected presence. The same thought occurred to the other two officers but they did not vocalize their query.
"I was shopping nearby, heard the call on the scanner and felt the need to check things out. What happened to your arm?" She questioned, the concern evident on her face.
"He was shot by some skel he was chasing and won't let us call for a bus or give him a ride to Mercy." Sully announced, obviously annoyed at the younger officer's lack of cooperation. "Maybe you can talk some sense into him, Faith." He stepped away for a few short seconds and acknowledged the arrival of their backup and noticed Davis filling in the officers on the situation.
"Bosco...whether it's a scratch or not, you still need to go to a hospital...Mercy's the closest...you'll probably need a few stitches and a Tetanus shot." Faith, in mother mode, informed her partner. "If you don't want to ride with EMS, I'll take you in the truck."
"Are you kidding?...There's no way I'm getting into Fred's Special Edition Harley-Davidson Truck. He hates me enough, Faith!" Bosco stated. "All he needs is to see a drop of blood...especially my blood...then what...you know he'd go ballistic!"
"All right! That's enough Bosco!" Sully had had it. "Davis and I are taking you in the squad. Either you get in unattended or we'll drag you but we're leaving...now...let's go!" The senior officer stated with no nonsense authority.
Bosco was outnumbered and knew there was no point arguing the matter. "Okay...okay." He gave in and begrudgingly walked to the RMP as Davis opened the door.
"You'll thank me tonight when the pain medication kicks in." Sully reminded the stubborn off-duty patrolman.
"I'd be more thankful if you woulda caught the jag-off." Bosco stated with some sarcasm. He knew they were probably right about the medical attention but it could have waited. Tracking down the perp before he got too far was much more pertinent.
"I'm riding along Sully...you can bring me back for the truck later." Faith stated as she rushed to the RMP.
They arrived at Angel of Mercy in record time, undoubtedly due to the lights and siren Faith insisted they use, to Bosco's chagrin.
"I'll get a wheelchair..." Faith announced as Sully opened the door for her.
"What...no way! I can walk!" Bosco couldn't help but express with some annoyance. He was more than capable of walking a few yards.
Though his wait was minimal, there was way too much fuss exhibited for a minor flesh wound, he briefly mused as he was attended to.
Shortly after their arrival, the second shift Lieutenant and Sergeant showed up to check on Bosco for themselves and were plainly relieved the injury wasn't more serious. Even though Bosco insisted he was more than fit for duty, his supervisors were unmoved by his protests of staying home the rest of the day and restricted duty for at least a few days thereafter. He knew that no amount of arguing on his part would sway either man and he finally gave in. His only consolation was the fact that he would be allowed to view the surveillance film and precinct mug shots as soon as possible.
Bosco entered his apartment and savored the sight of his well used sofa. He appreciated the ride home from Faith and her temporary partner, who came back to the hospital to pick him up after roll-call, but he was convinced he would surely go insane if she asked him if he would be all right one more time!
It was a long day and Bosco was relieved to be home. The robbery, getting shot, the fugitive perp, eighteen stitches and one Tetanus shot later caused the afternoon to fly by. Dr. Hickman, the ER Physician, wrote a work excuse for a few days of rest but he was able to finagle a bit, convincing her his arm really did feel pretty good after all, and got her to change her initial recommendation to two days of rest and a less amount of light-duty shifts than she originally insisted on. He planned to present the note to Lieutenant Swersky later tonight. He decided he wanted to get a look at the film and pictures while the incident was still fresh in his mind.
Bosco took a Vicodin the Doctor prescribed and laid down on the sofa, TV remote in hand. He was asleep in a matter of seconds which turned to hours, totally oblivious to the eleven o'clock news broadcast, highlighting the events in the little store on the corner of King and 124th...
At the same moment, the clerk at an all night market on Bleecker and 110th lay dying in a pool of his own blood as a young white male, wearing a light blue hooded sweatshirt and dark jeans, ran unnoticed from the building - a bag of cash and a .38 gripped firmly in his hands.
Please take a moment to critique! I would love to hear from all who have read!