The Take Down

Madeline is preparing Stan's super, thinking about the marvelous day she had. All the praise she heard, the money she made. One couple even suggested she display her pictures at a few shops around town. "I'm on my way to the top." She smiles, scooping mashed potatoes into a bowl. " She's dreaming about wonderful life will be once she's rich and famous when Stan's voice echos through the house.

"Honey, I'm home," he announces, slamming the door too.

"Of all nights to be early." Grabbing dishes off the counter, she takes a breath of

courage. I'm not letting Stan ruin my day, she thinks, dashing through the door.

"Good evening, Stan," she says, arranging the dishes on the table.

He smiles and says, "That's what I like to see. The house smells a lot better too."

"I didn't paint today."

"I'm glad you finally gave up your crazy dream."

"I didn't, Stan. See I..."

"Make yourself useful and get me a scotch."

"Yes, Stan." She waddles towards the kitchen. A lot of things are going to change around here real soon. She smiles, remembering what she added to his food.

***

Seeing the officer running towards her, Katelyn hoists her legs through the open window

"Stop, or I'll shoot," The officer repeats, taking a shooter's stance.

Katelyn pushes herself off of the ledge, landing in the middle of the dumpster. Climbing over the top, she races away. She glances back to find another officer closing in. I'm not going back again. She thinks, quickening her pace.

She sees a pricey sports car idling at the cross-section when she gets a little further down the road. Frightened, Katelyn skids to a stop. She looks back to see the officer is a few feet away. She glances at the car again. I'd much rather take a chance with them than cops.

The driver's door flies open. Gina climbs out of the car.

"Hurry, hurry," Gina orders, motioning Katelyn along.

Opening the door, Katelyn jumps inside.

"That was close," Katelyn says, eyeing the cop in the center of the road.

"Too close." She makes a hard left onto the main road. Gagging, Gina fans her face.

"What's that god-awful smell."

"I landed in the dumpster trying to get away."

"I can tell." Gina coughs.

****

Madeline is finishing up the dishes when Stan walks into the room. "You forgot a glass," he plops it on the counter.

"Thanks, Stan."

He glances into the adjoining room. "Our porch looks better now that your art is gone."

Smiling, Madeline says, "I sold all of my paintings today."

"You what?"

"I took them to the fall festival this afternoon."

"Well, your customers probably bought them out of pity. Seeing an elderly woman trying to make ends meet. Maybe they're going to give them as a gag gift to their friend." Laughing, he walks through the door.

"That's what you think," Madeline recalls an art investor encouraging her to increase her prices, saying she's practically giving them away. "One of my pictures ended up in a fancy art gallery at the mall." She then remembers two customers outbidding each other on her remaining pictures. "I thought they were going to duke it out." She laughs. She then thinks about the list of people who put in their requests. "I'm going to make it to the big league yet, Stan."

***

Gina and Katelyn see police cars lined up on either side of the block when they pull onto Mariela's street. They then see yellow tape strung around the edges of the yard.

"What's going on?" Katelyn questions, nervously scanning the scene.

"I'm not sure." Nervously eyeing the scene, Gina speeds away.

"Where are you going?"

"Neither of us need to be there.You fresh out of prison and me with a warrant

hanging over my head."

Katelyn scans the scene again. "You're probably right about that. Reality suddenly hits her. Tears form in her eyes. What am I going to do now?" She sobs.

"You can hang out at my house if you want, but only if you take a bath."

Laughing through her tears, Katelyn says, "It's a deal."

***

The Berryville detectives have been watching Carlos Rodrigues for quite some time, and after today's surveillance, they have enough for a warrant. Joe is getting ready for the bust a block down from the suspect's home.

"I want you three to go around back. You two cover the sides. The remaining crew will come with me." Joe says. Seeing his crew nod, he continues, "Suit up and let's go."

"Captain, that was dispatch. There's been a shooting at the Carbone's. Two people are dead," Kirk advises, dropping his cell in his pocket.

"I'll go, so you and Jerry can finish your bust." Rachel volunteers.

"Take Kirk with you, and be sure to keep me posted."

"We will." The two rush to their car.

The sergeant and her detective pull up to see their crime lab diligently working the scene. The yard is tapped back, and the onlookers are away from the scene. Jeff walks towards them as they step out of their car. He's Kirk's replacement. Although he's not as good as Kirk, he shows a lot of promise.

"What do you have for me?" Rachel questions.

"The owners were lying on their couch when the intruder broke into their house. Felice Carbone took a bullet to the back of his head. His wife Mariela took one to the chest."

"Are there any signs of forced entry?"

"It looks like our killer used a screwdriver to pry their back door open. There are no signs of a struggle, and nothing appears to be missing."

"Did you find any evidence?"

"We found two spent shells. We also found mud tracks from their kitchen to the front room. We're taking impressions now."

"Are there any witnesses?"

"Their next-door neighbor said he ran to his window when he heard gunshots, and that's when he saw someone leaving their house. He couldn't give me a good description of the driver but said the vehicle is a small black sports car."

"I'd like to talk to him, please."

"I'll be right back."

"I'll go check on the house," Kirk says, walking across the lawn.

A few minutes later, Jeff returns with a short, stocky Latino man in tow.

"I didn't see anything." The man protests as he's being dragged across the yard.

"Thanks, Jeff." Rachel waits until Jeff leaves before she begins. "Why didn't you go after the shooter, Antonio? He's been their informant the last eighteen months. Six months ago, the captain decided to move him next door, hoping they can collect enough Intel to put Carlos and his crew away for good. "And blow my cover, the one I've been working on for nearly two years?"

"Why does it matter, now Carlos is in custody?"

"I thought I'd work the rest of his crew to see what comes up."

"What can you tell me about this shooting." She motions towards the house.

Our killer is Mario Abruzzi. He has a rap sheet a mile long. Spent a few years upstate." He hands her a piece of paper.

"Thanks." She stuffs the report inside her jacket. Seeing Kirk walking towards them, she adds, "Follow my lead."

"If I find out you know more, I'll personally come back and arrest you, do you understand?" she yells.

"I swear I didn't see anything else."

"Is everything alright in here, Rachel?" Kirk questions.

"We're fine, aren't we?"

The guy nods his head. "Yes, fine."

"Do you have something for me, detective?"

"Yes, the muddy footprint doesn't match either victim. So I'm having Jeff compare

patterns to try and narrow down the type and shoe size." Realizing they're away from everyone, Kirk leans in and whispers, "Did our informant tell you anything?" Seeing a puzzled look on her face, he laughs. "Jerry filled me in."

"He gave me a suspect's name and address."

"Let's go pay him a visit then."

***

Joe watches as his men get into their assigned positions.

"Are you ready, guys?"

"Let's take care of this scum bag once and for all, Boss," Jerry says. He's seen Carlos elude numerous charges through the years, so he wants to lock him up worse than the rest.

A few seconds later, Joe and his crew burst through Carlos' door.

"Berryville PD, come out with your hands up," Joe announces as his officers scatter

through the house.

"He's in here, Captain," an officer yells.

The Captain sees Carlos being escorted down his hall. His jeans and underwear are around his ankles.

"A guy can't even take a shit in his own bathroom without someone busting in on him," he complains. Noticing a female officer eyeing him, Carlos smiles. "Like what you see, don't you baby?" He winks at the young rookie.

Blushing, she turns away.

"Pull up your pants, Carlos."

"Why, are you jealous?" he asks. Throwing his pelvis out further, he swings his

manhood around.

"My four-year-old has a bigger one than that." Joe chuckles. "So, how much were you able to flush before my officer found you?" The captain inquires, walking towards the bathroom. Joe sees a plastic bag floating inside the toilet. Using a plunger, he scoops it out.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Sure, you don't, Carlos. Search his house," Joe orders.

"No one is touching a thing until I see a warrant."

Pulling out a piece of paper, the captain slaps it against Carlos' chest.

"Read it and weep, asshole." Joe smiles.

"Go ahead, search all you want, but you won't find anything." Carlos laughs.

Joe sees a bright red dot in the middle of their suspect's forehead. "Take cover," he screams, pulling Carlos to the ground.