A Stainless Steel Cat (12 page)

Royce had practiced hard to perfect his knife throwing technique. He could throw downwards, sideways out, sideways in, and even underhand with deadly (if he so chose) accuracy. His natural agility helped his accuracy, and timing was everything when releasing the blade.

The second blade found its mark in the second gunman's bicep, making him lose control and drop his pistol. The man pulled the knife out, and tried to retrieve his gun.

Darnell walked towards the corner, and reloaded as he ran out of bullets in the magazine.

As he slapped the new mag in and went to rack a round, Royce reappeared and threw his last throwing knife straight at Darnell's head.

Darnell took a split second to register what was happening, but that was a split second too long as the knife slammed into his left eye.

Darnell screamed and fired off blindly, shooting his own man through the leg before regaining his equilibrium and pointing back at the corner through his tears that were streaming from his one good eye. He felt the ceramic throwing knife with his fingers, and gingerly removed it, screaming again as he felt it tear out of his eyeball.

The one man left standing looked at Darnell. "Shit, man! You didn't say nothin' about no fuckin' special forces assholes! Fuck this, I'm outta here!"

"The fuck you are!" Darnell snarled as he shot the man down in cold blood, his bullet punching through the gunman's skull. He looked at the other man who was upright and shot him too. 'Fuckin' amateurs!' He thought to himself.

Darnell could hear sirens in the distance, and knew that he could at least kill Royce before they got here. He tossed the ceramic blade aside and put his hand over his eye to control the bleeding as best he could. He then walked toward the corner, pretty sure that if Royce had any more knives, he would have used them already.

Royce had drawn the blued steel dagger from behind his belt, and was holding it blade down as he anticipated Darnell coming around the corner. He was crouched down, waiting on the big man. He saw the shadow coming and kept as loose as possible, then the first foot appeared and Royce lunged upwards, slashing through the tendons of Darnell's right wrist, causing him to drop his gun.

"FUCK!" Darnell shouted.

"Leave now, Darnell. I don't want to kill you, but I will if I have to." Royce said relatively calmly. "The cops are on their way."

Darnell was completely insane with rage, and swung wildly at Royce. Royce ducked, slamming the butt of his knife into Darnell's nose, breaking it and causing the blood to gush out. He spotted Darnell's Glock on the ground and kicked it away before starting to circle the big man again.

Royce and Darnell circled each other. "You know, Darnell, I think Viagra could help with your... little problem."

Darnell was now completely off his rocker, and charged Royce blindly. Royce dodged to the side as he saw the black and white police cars, sirens blaring and lights flashing, pull into the parking lot. He swiveled quickly to see that Darnell had knocked himself cold against the wall of the apartment building. His jaw dropped open when he saw the spider webbed crack in the wall where Darnell's head had struck.

The cops drew down on him until he dropped the knife and put his hands up. Tam came out of their place and looked on as Royce was handcuffed and led into a waiting squad car. EMTs were treating Darnell as best they could, bandaging his eye and wrist and tending to his other injuries.

Detective Raines was there as well, and walked over to Tam. "I'd say it's good to see you again, Miss Jenkins, but I'm not sure it would be appropriate under these circumstances."

"Please let Royce go, Detective. He was just defending me and himself." Tam said as she took in the carnage. Two men were dead, and two more, including Darnell, were injured.

"Well, I'll get him out of the back of the squad, but I'm still going to need to question both of you." Raines nodded, then ordered a uniform to retrieve Mr. Royce from the back of the car and bring him over to her.

"Good to see you, Detective." Royce smiled as he was led to them with the cuffs still on his wrists.

Tam laughed in spite of everything. Royce was fine, his shirt, pants, and face splattered with blood, very little of it his. He had a slight graze across his shoulder from one of Darnell's 9mm rounds, but other than that, he was fine. Most of the blood, it turned out, belonged to Darnell himself.

Tam and Royce took turns telling the Detective what had happened. Mostly Royce after Tam went inside to call them. They neglected to mention where they were returning from, but that wasn't of any consequence right now.

"Officer Rollins, get these cuffs off Mr. Royce, please." Raines told her subordinate. "This boy is getting a medal if I have to pin it on him myself!"

"Yes, ma'am." The officer replied, unlocking Royce's cuffs. As soon as his hands were free, he threw them around Tam's waist and held her close.

"Don't you ever do something that damn stupid again, baby!" Tam whispered urgently in his ear.

"As long as we aren't ambushed again, I won't, sweetheart." He promised.

"I don't think there's going to be any danger of that, at least not from Mr. Dutton." Raines said with a smile. "Let's go inside where we can talk, though."

They led her inside their new apartment, and Raines had to smile at the place. In only a few short weeks, the two lovebirds had moved in together, presumably for safety and to cut back on the rent each paid. They all sat in the living room, Raines on a chair and Tam and Royce on the sofa, with Tam leaning against him.

"Ok, this is what I see happening..." Raines said without preamble. "Darnell is facing a lot of charges. Unlawful Discharge of a firearm, Assault with a Deadly Weapon, Violation of Probation and Restraining Order, Two Counts of Murder Two, etc. The list right now is too long to count."

"So we'll never have to see him again?" Tam asked, shuddering as she held onto Royce tightly.

"Except at the trial, no. You will both be called to testify. I don't see him getting a plea deal for this one." Raines was shaking her head. "The two gang members out there have been identified, and they have a lot of friends in the penal system. Even if Darnell makes it to trial, he's going to be in Solitary Confinement for probably the rest of his life."

"Thank God." Royce closed his eyes and crossed himself unconsciously. His years in the orphanage had ingrained certain behaviors in him that he didn't even realize, but he didn't care at that moment.

"I would thank him too. Also, I'm pretty sure I can get the D.A. to not press charges on you for the knives. Yes, we found your throwing blades out there, and we've taken them as well as the dagger as evidence." Raines informed them.

"Ok by me. I'll just buy more, and more of them this time." Royce shrugged and smirked grimly.

"Baby, how did you learn to throw knives like that?" Tam asked.

"I was bored in the orphanage one day..." He started, and Tam laughed. Raines joined her as he told the tale of how he'd taken up knife throwing as a hobby. "... and since I don't like guns, and even if I did most of them are illegal here, I decided to go with knives as self-defense weapons."

As he finished, he smiled innocently at the Detective and Tam.

"Ok, this is too good." Raines smiled and shook her head in amusement. "The funny part is that it's completely believable."

"My Man has many talents." Tam said in a sexy voice as she kissed his lips sweetly.

"Baby Girl, I need a shower!" Royce said in a flustered voice as he saw Detective Raines looking on in amusement.

"Don't let me stop you." She assured them with a grin. "I have to get going anyway. This paperwork is going to be a pain in the ass, especially after CSU is done."

"Well, thank you, Detective." Tam said with a genuine smile as she rose and let the Detective out.

"Anytime, Miss Jenkins. Mr. Royce." She waved to both of them as she walked back to her partner and the waiting uniforms.

Once everything was taken care of, Royce and Tam collapsed back on the couch together.

Darnell, with his eye and wrist bandaged, was led into the holding cell. 'Fuckin' shit, man.' He thought to himself. 'That little punk ass better watch his back when I make bail!'

He couldn't believe that the punk had beaten him! He hadn't just fought him to a standstill, he'd beaten Darnell outright!

Darnell's mental health had quickly degenerated even further after he'd been fired. He didn't think about the fact that he was lucky to be alive. He had focused on revenge, pure and simple. His biggest mistake had been underestimating his enemy. He knew the kid was a bastard when it came to hand-to-hand combat, but he was unprepared for his proficiency with throwing knives. The kid was deadly accurate, and he would never see out of his left eye again.

As Darnell sat in the holding cell, he was suddenly jarred back to the present by the next man to be shown in. He was a big man, even bigger than Darnell.

"Hey, man. I heard you got fucked up by a white boy." The newest arrival sneered at him.

"Fuck you, man." Darnell shot back. He wasn't in the mood for this punk.

"Hey, man. We've all been there." The man sat down, his tone a bit friendlier. "Listen, they didn't search me as well as they could have. I got somethin' here to take the edge off your pain, brotha."

That perked Darnell up. He looked at the man with his good eye. "How much?"

"Nada, my man. Just call it a consolation prize." He said, handing Darnell a little blue capsule. "Guaranteed to get rid of the pain. Better than any prescription."

Darnell smiled. He was in a lot of pain from the cut to his wrist, his left eye, and his head from where he'd plowed into the wall after bullrushing that fuckin' cracker.

"Thanks, man. I owe ya." Darnell said as he popped the pill and swallowed.

"Nah, man. You don't owe me shit. Oh, and you can thank Mr. Wolfe for that pill." He said as he stood up.

Darnell felt it taking effect on him as soon as the larger man mentioned Wolfe's name. He looked at him in shock.

"Yeah, he warned ya. He said don't go near Tam again, didn't he? Well, I hate to say it, but..." And that was the last thing Darnell ever heard.

"He's dead..." Tam whispered as she watched the morning News. She shook off the shock at the news. "ROYCE!" She shouted in alarm, and he came in from the kitchen.

"What is it, Baby Girl?" He asked, concern etched on his face.

"... So far, it appears to have been a massive heart attack, but Darnell Dutton, former associate of Anthony Wolfe, was found dead in the 6th Precinct Holding Cell when the guards finished shift change and checked his status." The reporter said it with a grave expression on his face.

Royce's eyebrows shot up at that news. "Son of a bitch." He whispered.

"I know, right?" Tam said, laughing nervously.

"Five will get you ten that Wolfe found a way to induce that 'massive heart attack', Sweetheart." He scowled. As much as he wanted justice to be served, this was too much.

"No bet, Baby." Tam said in a small voice. 'Why do I have a lump in my throat?' She asked herself silently. 'He was a complete asshole... but he wasn't always like that... unless the first six months were really just an act...'

"Are you ok, sweety?" Royce asked as he saw the anguished look on her face.

She looked at him, his steel gray eyes full of concern for her. She didn't trust her voice to speak, so she just nodded.

Royce pulled her close. "Sweetheart, listen to me. I believe you when you say he was different before, better than what he became. It's ok to mourn the man you loved, if not the man you grew to hate." He said it softly, barely above a whisper.

Tam heard his words and burst into tears. She pushed her face into his chest and cried out her grief, while he stroked her back lovingly. Tam loved him even more for that. For telling her that it was alright to grieve for a man who once meant so much to her. He held her for hours, and she finally fell asleep from emotional exhaustion.

Royce laid back on the couch, with his head on one arm and her head on his chest as she slept. He stroked her back and her hair, shedding a tear for her grief. He knew that part of her still loved Darnell, but he was willing to accept that. She loved him, and that was enough.

Secretly, or maybe not so secretly, he was relieved that Darnell was dead. He prayed to God that nothing like this would ever happen again.

Lisa finished her last phone call to the gang leaders she had hired for her 'cleanup' projects in L.A. Most of them had agreed to go their separate ways with no hard feelings, but she was already preparing the evidence against one of them for the police, to be delivered anonymously. It detailed every transaction the gang had done and named every single gang member. All of them, if this information came to light, were looking at upwards of twenty years in prison. But Choca, as he was called, had vowed that her entire family would die if she reneged on their deal. She had sent the final payment for services rendered, but he wanted more.

Then she had a better idea.

"Hello?" Royce said in a whisper.

"Hello, David?" Royce's eyes shot open as he heard his mother's voice.

"Mom, how did you get...?" He started to ask.

"I got ahold of the police report from Detective Natalie Raines. I asked for a copy of it for my crusade against crime in L.A. You gave her your number in your contact information." Lisa said with a smile.

"Oh. Well, you've reached me." He said, still keeping his voice quiet.

"Why are you whispering?" She asked.

"You heard about Darnell on the News, right? He was Tam's ex boyfriend, and she did love him before he turned into a complete asshole. Anyway, I'm holding her, and she's sleeping right now." He explained quickly and quietly.

"Oh, I'm sorry, sweety. I hope she feels better soon." Lisa said, her heart breaking for the poor girl.

"Thanks, mom. I have a feeling that isn't the reason you called, though." He replied.

"Actually, I need your... well, the Steel Cat's help with something." She said, her voice nervous.