Tuesday, April 24, 2007

Entry #27

Loyalty Above All Else, Except Honor
by Mark Best


Something had died in here, and it wasn’t the owner. I had been a cop long enough to recognize that smell. Judging by the condition of the kitchen, I was guessing a rat. My partner, Eddie, looked around. “She skipped.”

I wasn’t sure. She was scared…anyone testifying against a police officer would be…but she wanted him to pay. So did I. It made being a cop hard when goons like Jenkins disregarded the law. Eileen knew she was in danger, but I didn’t think she ran. “Someone got to her,” I said.

Eddie walked over to the oak hutch and opened the lower right cabinet. “Her purse is gone. I say she got scared and ran.”

At that moment, I hated being a good detective. “It’s nice that you knew exactly where she kept her purse, since you’ve never been here before.”

Eddie shrugged. “Jenks is one of us. Cops don’t do time, man.”

“Jenkins stopped being one of us when he crossed the line, the same line you crossed when you killed Eileen Hanratty.”

“You never did get it, did you Mike? You never really understood what being a cop was all about.” Eddie reached under his jacket. He had always prided himself on being a fast draw. I was faster.

I looked down at my partner, holding his bleeding shoulder and crying. I picked up his gun. “You’re wrong, Eddie. Sometimes I think I’m the only one who gets it.

12 comments:

Scott said...

Very good, indeed. You really told a story here.

Joni said...

Great storytelling with a perfect CSI worthy line at the end. This is very good.

Beth said...

Good story. I'm amazed what all of you saw from the picture.

Anonymous said...

Wow! You blew me away with this one. Great story!

Esther Avila said...

Nicely done. I did not see that coming. Yet when I returned and read it again, all the clues were cleverly hidden there. Very nice.

Pallav said...

You call that an aim??
Should have shot through the head ;)
Suppose the guy who shot was in love with the girl?!

he he

N

heather said...

very good, i enjoyed this one. :-)

Anonymous said...

Oh, good one, real noir.

Bernita said...

Very satisfying.

chong y l said...

Nice plot -- wished I had done this done!

Anonymous said...

Nice story. All the elements are there and that twist at the end. Great last line too.

Anonymous said...

You packed quite a story and twist into this short space. Not an easy achievement! Well constructed.

High marks for pacing, technical use of language, and storytelling.