Nolan's Journal Chapter 30
"Sergeant Phillip Cox – he goes by Phil – is fitting in pretty well at the division. His teaching methods are completely different from Tim's, so Lena has had to get used to that. However, she doesn't seem to mind. She confides in Stella, not in me, but from what I've observed, she acts pretty happy about it.
"Phil is different from Tim in more than his teaching methods. He never mentions football or any sport. He's a good enough shot to stay qualified but is not keen on having to draw a gun. He's much more of a talker and very good at finding the right words to defuse a situation. Lena is learning a lot on that score and I've picked up a few things too.
"He also likes to cook, but not stick to the ribs stuff like Bailey's chili. He spent a few summers working in an upscale French restaurant and kept his eyes and ears open. When the schedule allows, he does the cooking for his wife and kids – a boy and a girl. He's brought in leftovers a couple of times, and the break room smelled amazing.
"Cox's daughter, Marla, is a year older than Essie, but that's not too much of a gap for them to play together. The next time Bailey and I have a cookout, we're planning on inviting the Coxes. That may not be for a while, though. My free time is pretty much taken up with building the safe room.
"Bailey's fellow fire-fighter, George Bilson, the expert on fire-resistant construction, went over my plans with me. I didn't have to change much. I'll be coating the concrete with special paint to make it even more fire-resistant. Bailey and I will choose the furnishings to make them as safe as possible. Nothing I used as insulation when I built the house will give off toxic fumes if it burns, so I don't have to worry about that. And we will have breathing equipment, including some small enough to fit Essie. Bailey will make sure we keep up as Essie grows. It's depressing to think about having to take precautions like that, but it's a whole lot worse to think about what can happen if we don't.
"Talking about precautions, both political candidates are doing rallies in LA. This is unusual. California is a solidly blue state, which means that for either candidate, spending resources to court votes would normally be considered a waste.
"Still, California has had a large influx of families that moved to cheaper states like Texas, coming back, when they realized the existing energy sources down there couldn't handle the changes in the weather. Heating went out of commission in the winter and air conditioning failed in the summer.
"We also have an upsurge in tourists. These are not predictable voters and both parties are looking to snag them. Rallies mean both increased security and crowd control. That requires a lot of cops that we really don't have to spare. The commanders of the various divisions are trying to put their heads together to figure out how we can handle the rallies and keep the rest of the city safe at the same time. At the very least, that's going to mean extended shifts. Most likely, we'll have days off and vacation days canceled while the political circuses come to town. That doesn't even address the cutbacks the department will have to make to cover the additional expenditures. The candidate Smitty is so hot for is infamous for not paying his security bills. Somehow that figures. I'm more anxious than ever for the election to be over, but in the meantime, we'll all have to cope with the added load. I'll be building less and Lucy will be pulling back on her work on the sitter protection site. Fortunately for her, Jordan Neil can pick up the slack. It's strange to think that someone who turned my life upside down is now working so hard on something worthwhile. But it's hopeful. Right now, I'll take all the hope I can get."
"Almost the worst happened. We had an assassination attempt on one of the candidates. It failed, mostly. A bullet grazed his cheek, which made for bloody pictures splashed all over the media. But he wasn't killed or seriously hurt, which would have been the worst. It wasn't the candidate I plan on voting for, but any assassination attempt is disgraceful.
"What makes it even more disgraceful was the failures on the part of the Secret Service. His personal detail was fine. They jumped on top of him and got him to safety. The problem was, as an old movie said, a failure to communicate. Some rallygoers were on their way in when they noticed a guy with a rifle climbing up to the roof of a building. They immediately told the nearest cop, who happened to be from Hollywood Division. He radioed Tim, who liaised with a Secret Service Agent. Unfortunately that's as far as the message traveled. The candidate's detail was unaware of the threat.
"As soon as the shot was fired, a Secret Service sniper took the shooter out, but it was too late. Even though he didn't seriously hurt the candidate, he did kill an innocent man, trying to shield his family with his own body. That man was a firefighter. He wasn't from Bailey's house or even from LA. He'd brought his family down from Sylmar. Still, she and all the firefighters are mourning such a senseless loss. Of course politicians on both sides are calling for an investigation, but that's too little, too late. It won't bring back a good man.
"I think my candidate truly deplored what happened. She said all the right things. But she can't bring back the dead either. The Secret Service has got to get its act together.
"I'm not saying the LAPD is perfect. We're far from it. We need more officers. We need more civilians like psychologists and social workers who can intervene in situations, particularly those that involve domestic violence, before they become tragic. We need better anti-gang interventions. Unfortunately, all of that takes money, which the city doesn't have. At least it doesn't have it in the right places.
"One thing I push for as a union rep is seeing that the money the city does allocate for public safety is spent wisely. That means even more to me now that I have a little girl in school. That she should have to learn to hide in a closet there and wants Daddy to build her a safe hiding place at home is just obscene, more than any pornography could possibly be.
"Our safe room is coming along just fine. But crazies with guns are still out there, and anyone could be next. My candidate is claiming she'll fight the gun violence. So did her predecessor. It seems like I've been hearing it all my adult life. But even as a cop, until Essie had to hide in her classroom's closet, it never quite came home to me. Nothing is more important than keeping her and all the other children and their families safe. Up until now, sometimes I've doubted that becoming a cop was the right choice – especially when there didn't seem to be enough Tylenol and Icey Hot in the universe to help me keep up with the younger cops. But now I'm sure it was, and I'm determined to make all the rookies I teach understand just how vital their job is. Fortunately, I think Celina got the message and Stella is getting it too."