Jim Street smiled broadly when TJ thumped down the stairs. Two shifts with a backup long-gunner out of Sunset was more than enough for Jim. TJ looked relaxed and calm.
Not surprisingly, TJ was called into Harrelson's office as soon as he'd gotten dressed. Jim had poured him a cup of coffee, handing it to TJ as he passed on his way to face Harrelson.
Dom thundered down the stairs, running late. Jim poured a cup of coffee and set it on Dom's desk while Dom changed into his uniform.
"Why are you so late?" Jim asked.
"Traffic jam coming in," Luca said, half out of breath.
"You're six blocks away," Jim said, confused.
"Wasn't at home. Out by Ridgeway." Luca hopped on one foot getting his left shoe on.
"Ridgeway? What were you doing way out there?"
Dom just smiled at Jim.
"Oh, that."
"Hey, TJ's back." Dom sipped his coffee, glancing into Harrelson's office.
"If he passes the Hondo Test," Jim stated. He'd had to face that particular test a few times.
"How'd he seem?" Dom refilled his coffee cup.
"Relaxed."
Jim reached for the ringing phone, but Harrelson had picked it up first.
Several seconds later, Harrelson and TJ burst out of the office. "We've got a domestic. Man with a rifle, the wife's inside."
"Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning," Dom muttered.
###
"TJ," Harrelson called. "That neighbor's roof."
TJ nodded and ran.
"Deke, perimeter."
Deke crouched and ran, circling the home.
Dom handed Harrelson the bullhorn, held the tear gas launcher.
"You, in the house," Harrelson said through the bullhorn. "This is the police. You need to let your wife come out and then you, with your hands on your head. No one needs to get hurt here."
The man yelled out through a broken pane in a front window. "You guys don't know what you're talking about. This is police brutality." He poked his rifle out the broken window and fired two shots.
"You're the only one shooting, Mister," Harrelson said. He was beginning to have a bad feeling about this guy. "Your only chance is to put that gun down and come out."
"You guys don't know nothing. I'll shoot every one of you." Again, two shots fired, seemingly aimlessly, toward the line of police cruisers.
Deke hustled next to Harrelson. "The bedroom window is unlocked. His wife is on the bed, tied and gagged. If you keep him occupied up here, we can get her out and then take care of him."
"Good. Take Street and Luca. They go in and hand her out to you, then go after the shooter." Harrelson motioned his men to go.
"TJ," Harrelson said into his radio mike, "Street and Luca will be entering the house at the back right bedroom. Hostage rescue then neutralize the shooter."
"10-4. Standing by," TJ answered.
Harrelson picked up the bullhorn again.
Jim cut the cord tying the woman to the bed. Her wide eyes filled with tears – of joy at being rescued, he hoped. To be safe, he did not remove the duct tape across her mouth. It felt cruel, but it wasn't unusual for a hostage to yell or scream, either in relief or to sympathetically warn their captor. He held her arms so that she couldn't remove the tape just yet and Dom lifted her feet out the window.
As soon as Deke had the hostage, he ran with her out of sight, to safety. Jim and Dom flanked the bedroom door. Dom cracked it open. They'd heard the man yelling back to Harrelson, curses coloring his remarks as his temper boiled. Dom scanned the empty hallway, nodded to Jim, and they crept out of the bedroom.
They kept to the inside wall of the hallway. Across from them hung photos of an ordinary looking family, making Jim wonder what had gone so horribly wrong.
Dropping to his belly, Dom crawled across an open area that led into the living room – where the gunman stood by a front window. The only thing between the shooter and Dom was a couch. Jim covered Dom from the hallway opening.
A deep growl froze both Jim and Dom. In seconds, a large dog had Dom's arm in his mouth. Dom wrestled the animal for his life. Jim lunged forward to aid his struggling teammate and get out of the line of fire. He did not see that the gunman had already turned.
###
Dom rolled onto his back just in time to raise his arm to protect his face and neck from the snarling animal. The training flashed into his thoughts – mostly that dog encounters tended to end poorly for the attack-ee. He shoved his forearm far back into the dog's mouth, forcing the jaws wide and countering some of their power. He maneuvered and grabbed the bottom jaw with his free hand, thrusting his thumb hard into the soft floor of the dog's mouth. His skin tearing as the dog tried to shake free and continue its attack felt remote to Dom as adrenaline roared through his veins.
Hearing a shot, Dom figured Jim had taken out the gunman. When Jim fell back into the hallway with blood flowing from his head, a cold chill blanketed Dom. Keeping low, he pushed the angry dog back down the hallway, pushing with his arm trapped in the dog's mouth. Paying little attention to the crashing noises behind him, Dom leaned against the wall for support, believing his teammates would take care of the gunman, praying for Jim. He steered them into the bedroom the woman was rescued from. He heard a second shot – the familiar crack of the M16.
With his foot against the dog's chest, Dom pushed the dog into the master bathroom, jerking his arm free from its mouth, and quickly pushed the door closed as the dog's paws slid on the slippery tile.
Exhausted, he pulled the cover sheet off the bed and wrapped it around his arm.
###
Watching from the patio glass doors, Deke heard the dog bark and knew the men inside were in serious trouble. He grabbed a concrete planter and slammed it into the glass door. The glass bulged and popped out of its molding just after the gunman inside fired a shot. Deke kneeled and readied to shoot. He'd heard Harrelson give TJ the green light over the radio, but no shot came. With the shooter's back to him, Deke took aim and shot as the man brought the gun back to his shoulder for another shot at the men inside his house.
When the gunman crumpled to the floor, Deke rushed in, keeping his gun ready for the dog. He kicked the rifle away from the shooter and cuffed him, not entirely sure he was still alive. He stood and looked over the couch. Jim was down in the hallway and a lot of blood was smeared down the wall. He didn't see Dom.
Deke grabbed his mike. "Men down. Need ambulance. Shooter neutralized."
Cops burst through the front door and poured into the house. Deke ran to Jim. It appeared he took a glancing shot above his left eye, not unlike Harrelson had a short time ago. Although unconscious, Jim didn't appear to be gravely injured. Deke rose and followed the blood smears down the hallway. They stopped at a bedroom doorway. Deke entered, finding Dom sitting on the bed with a blood stained sheet wrapped around his left arm.
"Where's the dog?" Deke asked.
In a shaky voice, Dom answered, "In the bathroom." He used his chin to indicate the door beyond the end of the bed.
Deke helped Dom walk down the hall. Jim was on his feet now holding a towel to his head as Harrelson talked to him.
"Walking wounded," Deke said to Harrelson. "Not too bad."
"He's staying overnight and having all the recommended tests." Harrelson tilted his head in Jim's direction. "I know all about these graze head wounds."
"I'm all right, Lieutenant," Jim insisted. "I was diving for cover and got nicked." He swayed slightly when Harrelson let go of him. "That's all."
"And I insist otherwise." Harrelson looked over at Luca. "How's the arm."
"Still attached," Dom said. "Just a few extra holes." He looked at Jim. "How's his head?"
"Hard as ever," Jim answered for himself.
"Ambulance is here." TJ entered the house. "Holy shit," he exclaimed, looking at his bleeding teammates.
Harrelson steered Street out the door, meeting the ambulance attendants running toward the house. Deke had Luca following closely behind. TJ stared from the doorway.
Deke reentered the house, collecting Jim's and Dom's rifles. Harrelson met him as he exited the bedroom. The dog remained in the bathroom, snarling and barking angrily.
Harrelson held out the cuffs.
Deke took them. "Didn't make it, huh?"
Harrelson shook his head.
"I don't like shooting in the back." Deke bowed his head. "It just doesn't feel right."
"Sometimes you're not given a choice." Harrelson took one of the extra rifles. Turning, they saw TJ staring at them.
"Everyone will be okay," Harrelson said to TJ. "Let's head to the hospital to see how they're doing."
"I didn't have a shot," TJ said. "I couldn't tell where they were. I couldn't shoot not knowing."
"Okay," Harrelson said, looking closely at TJ. "I understand that."
"I couldn't just shoot," TJ added. "I didn't have a shot."
Deke put a hand on TJ's shoulder, turning him toward the door. "We took care of it, TJ. It's okay."
"They got shot." TJ's shoulders slumped as they walked to the van.
"Jim was grazed. Dom was attacked by a dog." Harrelson stepped into the back of the van. "They're both going to be fine."
"A dog?" TJ asked, stepping into the van last and closing the door.
"Yeah," Deke said, "toothy one too, going by Dom's arm."
Harrelson sat at the comm bench, rubbed his hand over his eyes. Hell of a way to start the day.
"Luckily for Jim, the guy only had a .22 rifle," Deke added.
"Some luck," TJ mumbled.