Loose Ends (20 page)

The piercing scream of a police siren cut the night air, followed by screeching tires. The flash of a red light reflected off the wall as it approached the opposite end of the alley.

“Let's get the fuck out o' here!” yelled Wizard.

All three men scrambled back into the car and sped off in the opposite direction. Five minutes later, they pulled into another alley.

Lance retrieved a container of gasoline from the trunk and doused the car. He lit the rag on a beer bottle half-filled with a mixture of gas and oil and threw it on the car. Seconds later, the three men drove away from the blaze in another car.

“Get hold of the boys,” said Wizard. “I want someone at every hospital and clinic there is. If this rat-fucker doesn't die first, I want him dead before some fucking doctor gets his hands on him!”

“Will do,” replied Rolly.

“You and Lance cover off the nearest hospital and clinic. Get reinforcements. Try and whack him before he enters. Be less witnesses to take care of.”

“Where ya goin'?” asked Rolly.

“Red. She's a loose end. If the rat makes it to the cops, they'll know she helped set 'im up. I'll let The Suit know what happened, too. Just in case he hears anything.”

The tires of Danny's car screamed as he rounded the corner into the alley. There were no other cars in sight and he realized that the Volvo had backed out the other side.

He stopped briefly by the Dumpster and was relieved not to see Jack's body. He jumped back in his car and continued on. At the end of the alley he saw a fresh patch of blood smeared by tire tracks. Fear ravaged his body as he slammed on the brakes and leapt from the car. His knuckles were white as he gripped his gun.

Seconds later, Jack crawled out from under a parked SUV. Danny helped him into the car, and Jack fell over on the seat and hit the switch under the dash. The siren stopped instantly. Jack yanked the light off the dash.

“What the fuck are you doing?” yelled Danny, scrambling into the driver's seat. “You're hurt! I'm taking you to the hospital!”

“No! I'm okay. They think I'm a rat! Let them keep thinking that.”

“You're bleeding like a stuck pig! I'm taking you to the hospital.” Danny hit the gas and the car shot out of the alley and onto the street.

“It was Wizard and two others. I recognize their faces from the pictures but can't remember their names. If you take me to a hospital or clinic they're liable to finish the job. I don't want them to know what happened to me.”

“Jesus Christ! I knew this would happen! You keep usin' the fuckin' alley — how am I supposed to protect you? Now you're telling me not take you to the hospital! Goddamn it!” Danny hit the brakes and pulled over to the side of the road. “Turn around, I'm takin' a look!”

Danny pulled up Jack's sweatshirt and he yelped in pain.

“You've been stabbed in the back!”

“Did you teach them that?”

“Jesus Christ! Your arm! Looks like a bullet hole! You've been shot, too!”

“Went clean through. Lucky break.”

“Yeah, you're real fuckin' lucky,” said Danny sarcastically. “I'm taking you in. Then I'm calling in the troops and we're going to find Wizard.”

“The hell you are! Putting him in jail won't help!” Jack grabbed for the cellphone.

Natasha Trovinski looked in the mirror and quickly brushed her hair. She was pleased that Jack had finally called, asking if he could drop by.

She hurried into the living room, grabbed some books from the coffee table, and replaced them on the bookshelf. Would she have time to vacuum before he arrived?

The apartment security buzzer answered her question.

Moments later, she tried to hide her disappointment. Jack hadn't mentioned that Danny would be with him.

“What a pleasant surprise! Come on in, you two. I'll put some coffee on.”

Natasha looked again.
They're arm in arm. Jack is staggering…. Have they been drinking? Jack's sweatshirt — it's stained with blood!

“My God! What happened? Get him in here!”

“I just want to make it clear that I did not fall on broken glass,” said Jack.

“He's been shot and knifed,” said Danny, as soon as she closed the door behind them.

“You fools!” said Natasha harshly. “I'm calling an ambulance. You should have gone to the hospital!” she added, rushing to the telephone.

“No! Don't do that! It's not that bad,” Jack insisted. “I don't want anyone to know I've been shot. At least not now. I need time to figure this —”

“A hospital or clinic might not be safe!” interjected Danny. “It might be a policeman responsible for Jack getting shot! Please! You've got to help him!”

Natasha stared at the two men, then hung up the phone.

“Okay, let me take a look,” she said calmly. “Sit on the kitchen chair.”

Natasha quickly retrieved a first-aid kit from her bathroom vanity. She used scissors to cut off Jack's sweatshirt, then she examined his wounds closely.

A purplish line bored its way from near the centre of Jack's back up across his rib cage, where it disappeared. A small puncture hole in the back of his arm looked black, but the flesh had closed in around the
wound and there was little bleeding. Natasha gently raised his arm to expose an exit hole on the opposite side that was still oozing blood.

“It looks like you were only shot once. I think the bullet reflected off the left side of your rib cage before travelling up through the biceps on your arm. I take it you were bent over at the time or in a prone position?”

“I tried to make as small a target as possible, while running like hell.”

“There's another injury, exposing part of your left shoulder blade. You were slashed with a knife.”

“That happened first. I didn't really feel it much then, but I do now.”

“So it's not too serious? He's going to be okay?” asked Danny, sounding hopeful.

“Have you been coughing up or spitting up blood?” she asked, ignoring Danny.

“No, but it hurts like hell to talk. Even breathing causes pain.”

“You should be x-rayed. I'm sure you've got some fractured ribs. The humerus, too, but it's your ribs I'm concerned with. A fractured rib could puncture your lung. The slice across your shoulder blade is going to require quite a few stitches. How long has it been since it happened?”

“About half an hour,” replied Danny. “It was a policeman who did this?” asked Natasha, as she cleaned the wounds in preparation for the dressings.

“Not exactly,” replied Jack. “I set up a couple of City narcs to think I was an informant. Three bikers tried to kill me, thinking I was an informant. They don't know I'm a cop. Someone is leaking information. Could be one of the narcs, or maybe a secretary in their office.
They were also dealing with our Homicide Unit, so it could be someone out of our building.”

“You should be taken in and x-rayed.”

“No. The guys who did this belong to a big organization. They'll have every hospital and clinic covered. Even if they don't finish the job, we'd never find out who's behind the leak. If you will just patch me up, I'll be on my way.”

“I have to report all gunshot wounds to the police.”

“Now you decide to talk to the police!” said Danny angrily.

“You didn't let me finish, Danny. You're a policeman, so consider yourself informed. I won't inform anyone else,
providing
Jack stays here where I can keep an eye on him for a few days. If his condition worsens, I will call an ambulance,” she said firmly.

“I can't do that to you. I'm sure I'll be fine once I —”

“You're not going anywhere until I say so! I'll sleep on the sofa and you'll use my room. I'm going to start you on antibiotics. Have you had a tetanus shot within the last ten years?”

“Uh, no, I guess I haven't.”

“I'll go to the clinic and pick up what I need. Danny, I want you to hold this compress tight to his back until I return.”

“These people are really dangerous,” said Jack. “We can't trust anyone. I probably shouldn't even be here. I think I should leave as soon as —”

“You'll leave when I tell you to! Tomorrow is my day off. We'll see how you are then.”

“I think you should listen to her,” said Danny. “It's not safe for you to go home like this.”

Jack moved slightly, and the pain caused him to clench his teeth. “Perhaps you're right. I don't feel like travelling very far tonight. Sorry, Natasha. I'm
sure that being a doctor on your day off wasn't what you had in mind. Be careful. We don't know who we can trust.”

“You said they were bikers?”

“Satans Wrath.”

Natasha arrived at her clinic twenty minutes later. She walked past a car in the parking lot parked near the front entrance. Two men were inside. The driver was drumming the steering wheel with a nervous energy. Natasha noticed the numerous rings across their fingers.
Oh, shit!

She found a plastic bag in her office left over from buying a new pair of shoes. She filled it with what she needed, but her mind was still on the two men outside. She took a scalpel and held it in her jacket pocket as she walked to the car. She needn't have worried. The two men paid her little attention and continued to stare at the front door of the clinic. She drove away from the clinic and breathed a sigh of relief when the other car remained where it was.

It was three o'clock in the morning when Natasha ushered Danny out the door.

“Don't worry about him. I'm sure he'll be fine,” whispered Natasha. “I gave him some medication to ease the pain and help him sleep. Say hello to Susan.”

Danny nodded solemnly and said, “I'll drop back around noon to see how he's doing. And Natasha … thank you!”

It was noon when Jack woke up to the aroma of fresh coffee. He groaned as he eased over to the edge of the bed and put his feet on the floor.

“How's my star patient this morning?”

Natasha stood in the doorway. She was backlit by a beam of sunlight.

“I hurt!”

“Pain is a common consequence of being shot and stabbed. Does this happen often?”

“No, I just thought it would make a good excuse to see you again.”

“Next time try phoning and inviting me out. It's easier.”

“Thanks for the suggestion.” Jack saw a clock in the bedroom and said, “Hey, it's late! I can't believe I slept this long. Especially with this sling on my arm.”

“The medication helped you sleep. You needed to.”

“Well, at least I'm not spitting up blood, so my lungs must be okay. If I can borrow your phone, I'll have Danny drop by and pick me up.”

“You're not out of the woods yet, buster! Infection could still set in, or a fractured rib or bone fragments could still cause serious problems.”

“Well, I'll take it easy and I'm sure I'll be —”

“First thing I want you to do is get in the tub and I'll give you a sponge bath. Then we'll take a look and change those dressings again. Your sweatshirt has had it, but I'll wash the rest of your clothes while you're soaking in the bath.”

“That's not necessary. I'll phone Danny and then —”

“Just do it and quit giving me a hard time!”

“Some bedside manner you have! Are you this rude with all your patients?”

“Only those patients who think they know more than the doctor.”

Jack eased the sling off his left arm but gripped his right shoulder with his fingers as he stepped into the warm bath. Moments later, Natasha entered and used a sponge to gently wash his back. Jack hunched forward
in the water, hoping not to embarrass himself, or if he did, to make sure that Natasha didn't notice.

“Sit up straight, I'll wash your front,” she said.

“No! That part I can do myself!”

Natasha seemed amused. “An undercover cop who's bashful. Interesting. Okay, soak in here for a while and I'll wash your clothes.”

Jack relaxed when Natasha left the room. He had to admit the bath did feel good, and the warm water seemed to ease the pain. He heard Danny arrive so he got out of the tub and carefully patted himself dry and replaced the sling. When he was finished, he wrapped a towel around himself and walked into the kitchen where Danny and Natasha were having coffee.

“How do you feel?” asked Danny.

“A little like they succeeded in driving over me last night, but I'll be okay.”

“They tried to drive over you, too?” Natasha asked.

“Yeah, don't you hate nights like that?” replied Danny with a grin.

“Danny, I'm sorry. I never even thanked you last night. If it hadn't been for you, I wouldn't be standing here. I owe you one, brother.”

Danny's expression became sombre. “After hearing the shots and seeing the blood on the road, I figured they had taken you to either finish you off or dispose of your body. You don't know how relieved I was to see you! I wasn't thinking that you would use Marcie's trick.”

“Marcie's trick?” asked Natasha.

“He hid under a car.”

“I knew they would find me pretty fast,” said Jack. “I saw their feet as they followed the blood up to the curb. It wouldn't have taken them long to find me.”

“You mentioned Marcie,” said Natasha. “Is this the same Marcie I treated earlier? You've seen her again?”

“Seen her!” said Danny. “Jack's got her living with his sister and brother-in-law out in the Valley. We were concerned that Social Services might have a leak too.”

“She's been there less than two days,” said Jack quietly. “I don't know if it'll work out.”

Natasha looked at Jack.
This guy is pretty special.

Jack flinched as he eased himself into a chair.