"Bravo, what's your 20?" Ed asked over the radio.
"West parking lot secure, coming to you." Megan replied.
"Copy that." Came Ed's reply.
"Let's be safe, ok?" Greg pleaded, "He's already shot two people today, and we're cornering him."
As Megan woke up, she rubbed her eyes, removing the particles of matter.
Another good night's sleep, she thought, the medication is working.
Thinking about her medication, she immediately grabbed for her bottle of anti-depressants and swallowed one pill whole, without water. The directions on the label were to take them before and after sleep and once during the day with a meal.
She got out of bed and started stretching right away. She did this everyday regardless if she had to work or not.
After some basic stretches, she changed into her workout clothes and did twenty minutes on the static bicycle in her room. After working up a sweat, she went downstairs and grabbed her house keys.
At the front door, she unlocked the deadbolt. Once outside, she relocked it, and started her daily run.
Halfway through the run, her phone vibrated, so she stopped to answer it.
"Hello?" she asked between breaths.
"Megan- are you gone out for your run?"
"Yeah, mom." Megan replied to Jules, "Sorry, I forgot to leave a note."
"It's ok. You want anything for breakfast?"
"No- I'll make my own."
After the conversation, the phone went back into her pocket, as she finished her run.
Once back at home, she immediately went into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water and a banana. Taking in huge gasps of breath, she took a seat at the couch in the living room, where Jules was watching Top Shot.
"Oh come on," Megan said, swallowing some banana, "How could he miss that? He's twenty feet away!"
"How was your run?" Jules asked.
"It was good."
"Did you sleep well?"
Megan looked over to her step-mom, "Did you?"
"I asked first." Jules said.
"I did." Megan said, "You?"
Jules didn't reply.
"I don't get it mom- you say you want to get over things. So you sue Greg and Ed, and you got more money than I will make in the next 10 years. Then you tell me that you're over it, that you're fine. You're not fine mom- you're still having sleepless nights, and when you do manage to sleep, you have dreams of dad."
"How do you know that?" Jules asked- who wanted to keep that last point a secret.
"I hear your talking in your sleep. To dad- talking about your day; talking about different things."
"Does it scare you?" Jules asked.
"At first it did, but now- not anymore."
Then the phone rang. Megan answered it, "Hello?"
"Megan- we need you to come in ASAP- shooting at Scarborough Town Centre." Greg said.
"I'll get changed- be there in ten." Megan said, as she hung up the phone and ran up the stairs to get changed.
Once she came back down the stairs, in full uniform, she started to put on her boots, and tie them.
"What do you feel?" Jules asked.
"I feel fine. There's times where I think I'm not, but I'm getting through it."
"No- about me?" Jules asked.
"I pity you, mom," Megan said, as she picked up the truck keys, as she had 'inherited' her father's truck, "I pity you because I know you need help, but you just won't take it when it's offered."
Megan reported to the SRU station, and immediately got into an SUV with Spike. Once on scene, she followed him into the command truck.
Spike sat down, and immediately started working on getting CCTV and building plans.
Ed entered, followed by Greg.
"CCTV?" Ed asked.
"Spike's getting it." Megan said, "I was just talking to the first responder, and he said that building security has locked down all exits. I contacted dispatch on the way, and they're dispatching more uniforms to secure the perimeter."
"Good job Meg." Ed said, "We need SRU containment- let's secure all exterior parking lots, and work inwards. Spike, call the TTC Police and Team Seven to secure the bus station."
"Copy that." Spike said, as he looked back over his shoulder, "Building plans coming up. Nice ring Megan- where'd you get it?"
Megan brought up her left hand, as her right fingers covered the thin banded gold ring on her middle finger.
"It was my mom's; she had it when she was a kid." Megan lied, not wanting to reveal the truth behind the ring that she inherited from her father's estate.
"Let's stay focused." Ed said, "Me and Megan will secure all the parking lots."
"Copy that." Greg said, "We got a person who was shot in the abdomen waiting at the east exit. I'll cover the EMTs for a safe extraction."
Megan and Ed left the command truck and immediately started securing the south parking lot.
Once at the furthest point, Ed turned off his radio, and reached over and turned off Megan's radio.
"Why'd you do that?" Megan asked, as she motioned to turn it back on.
"Don't." Ed said, "What I have to say, and your reaction to it, should be off record."
Megan didn't want anything to do with Ed, and continued back to the command truck. "I don't care what you have to say Ed. I'm starting to get through things, ok?"
Ed grabbed her arm and spun her around. "Let go of me." Megan said, "Let go of me Ed, or I'll sue you."
Ed let go of her. "I just wanted to tell you that Sam turned himself in and pleaded guilty to the charges."
"And no one told me?" Megan asked, angrily as they started to make their way back, "Does everyone think that I'm some sort of emotional time bomb, waiting to explode?"
"No one thinks that, Megan." Ed said.
"Just let me do my job Ed." Megan said, as she turned on her radio.
"I'm taking fire!" Greg yelled into the radio, "We got an EMT down!"
"Greg- where are you?" Ed asked over the radio.
"East entrance."
"I'm on my way boss," Ed said over the radio, "Spike, meet up with Megan, and secure the north and west parking lots."
"Copy that."
Megan returned to the command truck, where Spike waited, weapons ready.
Together, they carefully cleared the north parking lot, and continued working into the west lot.
"Bravo, what's your 20?" Ed asked over the radio.
"West parking lot secure, coming to you." Megan replied.
"Copy that." Came Ed's reply.
"Let's be safe, ok?" Greg pleaded, "He's already shot two people today, and we're cornering him."
Together, Spike and Megan converged with Greg and Ed at the east entrance.
"Spike- is the bus station secure?" Ed asked.
"Copy that- TTC and Team Seven are there."
"Extra uniforms on the entrances?" Ed asked Megan.
"Covered." Megan answered, "Shooter's probably inside right? Where did the muzzle flash come from?"
"Second floor." Greg answered, as an ambulance showed up, as the EMTs got out, and attended to the woman on the stretcher and the EMT who was shot in the arm.
"What are we looking at?" Spike asked, "Random shooting spree?"
"I don't think so." Greg said, "First victim was conscious, so I talked to her. Her name is Leslie Bowley. She recognized the shooter as Stephan Dion. She said that all the kids at school just call him 'Geeky'."
"Bullying retaliation?" Megan asked.
"Could be Megan, could be." Greg replied, "That or something else. I'm going to go back to the truck, see if I can learn anything more about Stephan, and why he may have shot Leslie and the EMT that was attending to her. If we approach him, we'll need a negotiator- Megan I want you to cover that."
"But I haven't done my Negotiating Examination." Megan reasoned.
"You'll be fine." Greg assured her, "I just want him to be able to connect to someone, and something makes me think he'll connect better to someone closer to his own age."
"Ok," Ed said, as Greg went back to the truck, "Fast is good, good is fast, and fast is slow."
"What?" Megan asked, as she walked behind Ed, in line with Spike, as they entered the mall.
"Don't try to figure it out." Spike commented, "It'll just make your brain hurt."
Slowly, Ed, Spike and Megan made their way to the second level, where sure enough they found a teenaged boy with a handgun.
"Why does it seem so empty?" Megan asked quietly.
"Security protocol," Ed explained, "They clear the area of the incident and contain."
Once they were about 30 feet away from Stephan, Spike and Ed formed up, and created a protective wall in front of Megan.
"Stephan," Megan yelled out, "My name is Megan, and I'm here to help you."
"Go away." He replied.
"We can't do that Stephan." Megan explained to him, "These guys, they're Ed and Spike. They do what I tell them to do, but let's pretend they're not here, ok?"
"Good thinking Megan." Greg commented over the radio.
"Ok." Stephan said.
"Stephan- can I ask you a question?" Megan asked. When he didn't reply, she just continued, "What's all this about? Is this about school?"
"You were right Megan," Greg said from the truck, "He's being bullied."
"Is this about the people who call you names at school?" Megan asked.
" 'Geeky', 'Turd' – that's what they call me."
"That hurts, right, Stephan, being called those names? If only they knew the real you, right?"
"She wouldn't say it…" Stephan mumbled.
"Leslie wouldn't apologize for calling you names?"
"She's not the one who calls me names. It's the jocks, the blockheads, the idiots."
"See what you're doing there Stephan?" Megan pointed out, "You're calling them names, when you don't want them to be calling you names. Don't you see a double standard there?"
"You don't get it!" Stephan yelled, as he pointed the gun, "She didn't either. She thought it was a joke."
"Boss- what's he talking about?" Megan asked over the radio.
"Mrs. Bowley did mention that he seemed desperate. I'll press for details." Greg said.
"What did you want from Leslie today?" Megan asked.
"She's in all of my classes. Biology, English- all of them. And every day since the beginning of school, she's been telling everyone that her boyfriend dumped her and she's looking for a date to prom."
"Are you that desperate Stephan, that you thought you'd use a gun to ask her out?" Megan asked.
"It was only a last resort!"
"If it was a last resort, then why did you shoot the paramedic?"
"If I can't have her," Stephan said, as he turned the gun onto himself, "No one will."
"Suicidal teenager!" Spike muttered into the radio for Greg's information.
"Stephan, put the gun down!" Ed ordered, "Put it down. No one should die today."
"She should die," Stephan commented, "Because if she doesn't, just another idiot will be her boyfriend and another idiot is going to break her heart."
"And you know what's going to break her heart even more?" Ed asked, "When she finds out it was because of her that her classmate killed himself- so why don't you put the gun down?"
Ed approached, as Stephan handed him the gun and Spike put on a pair of cuffs.
Back at the station, Team One was debriefing.
"1057am," Megan yelled, "Ed-'Stephan, put the gun down'- why did you interrupt my negotiation Ed? Eh? Why?"
"You lost control of the situation." Ed calmly responded.
"Just like when you lost control and my dad died!" Megan yelled, and left the room.
She immediately went for the locker room, and to her locker. She didn't open it, but instead, just sat in front of her locker, frustrated, that her father wasn't there to help her understand, and angry at Ed for taking over her first negotiation.
Then there was a knock.
"Decent." Megan said.
Spike entered.
"Hey," he said, as he sat down beside her, and wrapped one of his arms around her shoulders, "How you been?"
"I'm fine Spike." She replied.
"Are you mad at Ed?"
She looked up to Spike, "Do you think I lost control?"
"No, I just think you don't know everything yet, Textbook."
Megan laughed at the nickname Spike had penned for her.
"Look Megan, being mad at Ed, or anyone else won't bring your dad back. When Lewis died, I was mad at the world- mad at Wordy, Ed, Sam- everybody, but that anger, all it does is make you resent yourself for being alive when someone else is dead."
"Thanks Spike."
"Still mad at Ed?"
Megan smiled weakly, "No."
"Let's go sign the seal and go home."
Once Megan got home, she crashed onto the couch, with her facing the archway that leads into the kitchen.
Jules came in, with two bowls of soup.
"I'm sorry if I…" Megan started, as she sat up and accepted the bowl of hot soup.
"No, it's ok." Jules said, "I made an appointment with Laura. I'm going to need you a lot Megan, especially when the baby comes."
"I don't know anything about babies." Megan admitted, as she blew on a spoonful of soup.
"Neither do I, but I do know that you're going to be a hell of a good sister to live with."
"I was actually thinking of maybe getting my own place once I make Officer." Megan said.
"Well, you could live here for as long as you want." Jules said, "I got used to living with my family."
"We don't really have the space…" Megan thought, thinking about the two bedrooms.
"Well- the lawyers and administration took a half million, I donated a quarter million to the Fallen Officer Fund, and so I could use the rest of it to build an addition."
Megan gave her mom a look, "And by 'I', you mean 'we', and by 'we' you mean we don't hire a contractor, and do it all ourselves."
Jules smiled, "Yup."