Rus Lane sat at the edge of his chair, irritable and angry. He’d been resigned to a desk job for the next few weeks or months, until he recuperated from his gun shot wounds. He was angry for several reason’s. The main one being the reason why he’d been shot in the first place.

Rus lived every day out on the streets as a cop. He’d been on the Fort Lauderdale Police Force for eleven years. He’d been attacked, shot at and run down on numerous occasions. But no one had ever succeeded in gunning him down.

Rus had always thought that God was on his side, protecting him from all the vigilantes and criminals out on the road. He’d always considered himself lucky and blessed. Now he’d barely walked away from a shooting, a shooting that never should have happened in the place.

Rus ground his teeth together. He leaned back in his chair making it groan . He clasped his hands behind his neck. He closed his eyes remembering the day so vividly.

Everything had started out so routine. He’d been out at lunch at the local burger stand when a call had come in announcing a burglary in progress with a potential hostage situation. He had been just a few blocks away and had called in to report he was on his way to the scene.

Barricades had been put in place and several officers had been stationed around the site to keep it safe. No one was suppose to have been able to get out or in. The site should have been secured off. But somehow someone had been asleep on the job and it had nearly cost him his life.

This made Rus really upset when he took the time to think about it. He knew the incident was being investigated and if any wrongdoing was found to have taken place, then those responsible would be dealt with accordingly.

This gave Rus little satisfaction. He wanted justice. That was certain. And he was never one for vengeance. But this time things had gone a little to far. He’d almost been killed. This did not set too well with him. Not when he had a fifteen year old son to raise on his own.

He thought of Ricky then and the argument they had gotten into that morning before Rus had left for work and Ricky to school. It seemed every morning it always started out the same way. Ricky was always in some kind of mood. He was so discontented with his life ever since his mother had left them nearly a year ago.

Rus tried to be patient and understanding. He knew the boy was hurting deep inside. But Ricky was changing in ways that his father didn’t like. Rus was losing his son and that scared him.

Ricky was turning impetuous. He’d started wearing black leather jackets and thick black boots with chains on them, and had even resorted to carrying a knife with him. Rus had confiscated the knife which had only turned Ricky more defiant than ever.

Every day was a new experience. One day it was blue hair. Another day it was a tattoo of a snake coiled the length of his arm. Rus didn’t know what was next, or even how to stop it.

He tried to be a good father. Honestly he tried. He’d never give up trying. But Ricky never made it easy on him. He was heading down a one way street with no way of turning back. And at the end of the road was a twenty foot drop off. Rus thought about it wholeheartedly and felt his son was just about one step away from the edge. One step and he would take the final plunge. Then Rus would truly be left alone in the world. No wife, no son. Not even a dog or a cat. All he had right now was this crummy desk job. A job that, at the moment, he hated.

Rus was a good cop. Everybody knew it. He’d been given many awards and citations. He’d been honored by some of the top officials in Florida. He’d even been working on some freelance work for the police department. Even that, now, was being put on hold until he recovered from the gunshot wound.

This made Rus irritable most of all. He’d been on to something. He was certain of it. He had felt it in his bones. He and a few other officers had been asked by the Captain of the force to go underground to uncover some crooked cops that were laundering drug money and stealing weapons from the police inventory and using them during illegal activities.

The Captain wanted to prevent the media from finding out as well as others that could have a negative impact on the police force. Just as they were about to make an important discovery in the investigation, Rus had been shot.

Was it a coincidence? Or was the bullet meant to kill him? The more he thought about it, the more upset he became. He’d been pulled from the investigation because he was too personally involved now. And why shouldn’t he be? He’d nearly been killed. The suspect was one of his own.

He thought, once again, of the day of the shooting. He remembered running southbound down the sidewalk in front of the bank building. The gun men where inside, apparently holding ten people hostage. He’d responded immediately when he’d seen a woman step out of her car.

He will never forget that day. Or forget the face of the woman. She was beautiful. Her hair had glistened from the sun the moment she had stepped out of the car. She had moved with a practiced elegance. She’d been dressed in casual attire, but the way her clothes had molded to her figure was incredible. But beautiful or not, he was livid with anger at the woman. She had been so oblivious to all that was happening around her. It was as if she had been blind or ignorant. He wasn’t sure which.

Rus didn’t usually take to people in such away. In his officer’s training, it had always been stressed to him to be compassionate and understanding. But with this woman, he couldn’t do anything but despise her. He hoped he’d never see her again because if he did . . . if he did, she would live the rest of her life regretting the day she messed with Rus Lane.