Jail's Bait: Parole's Victim (Book 4)

Out in the ER waiting room everyone was still sitting or quietly talking when the sound of a loud report blasted down the west hallway, making everyone in the vicinity jump. Knowing the sound for what it was, it took about 6 seconds before most of the waiting room people, the ER nurses and even the bored-looking security guard started screaming, running towards the exit. Pandemonium ensued as the members and friends of the Hill family looked at each other- and as one jumped up and rushed the other way, heading for the west hallway towards the direction of the gunshot- the same direction Malik's triage room was located.

********

It was like slow-motion. Suddenly everything and everyone in the room ground to an 8-second count delay for Malik… in horror he watched the punk cop accidentally pull the trigger, and he almost fancied that he could see the bullet blast its way out of the chamber and travel forward, a creeping, deadly pace- the bullet’s roar a muted echo. And the bullet reached its mark before he could blink- everything returned to real-time, and Lamar crumpled to the earth in a heap.

The nurse began to scream, and shouts were heard from outside the door from a distance, but none of this registered on Malik’s mind. He knelt to the floor beside Lamar quietly as the nurse screamed her way out of the room, and automatically checked his pulse. He felt it- a weak, thready rhythm that was nevertheless steady. Lamar was unconscious, bleeding- but still alive. The growing tightening in Malik’s chest lessened somewhat, fear being replaced by fast-rising anger.

The cop stammered, “L-l-look now, I was being threatened,” he started to say, lowering the gun to his side.

Malik slowly turned his face towards the cop as he knelt beside the unconscious Lamar. Fire blazed in his eyes as JOOP answered-

“Ya wanna see whut threatz look like…?”

And with that Joop launched himself full force at the suddenly frightened cop, who tried to bring his gun to bear once more-but this time he was not fast enough.

********

Struggling to get through the sudden crowd of rushing people, the Hill family and friends attempted to push their way slowly towards the crowded west hallway- but Marquis made it through first, leaving the others behind. Running at top speed, he reached the triage area and collided with the screaming nurse, who was too busy being incoherent to talk, but instead pointed towards the door she had just run from. Other more level-headed nurses were trying to move their bed-ridden patients to other locations, and there were no security guards to be seen.

Marquis suddenly heard the sounds of a struggle coming from inside the room the nurse had indicated. He ran to the doorway, looking in- and stopped short, the scene before him unfolding with slow horror.

Malik- no, it was ‘Joop’, Marquis instantly knew- was straddling a uniformed cop and raining blows on his face, one after the other. By this time the cop had obviously passed out, and his broken nose spurted bright red blood. There were various cuts on his face, and both his eyes were swollen shut.

“Malik- JOOP- what are you-”

-But just then Marquis saw Lamar lying on the floor, his eyes closed and a reddening splotch on his chest. Seeing the discarded gun underneath the battered cop put all the pieces together for Marquis, whose eyes glazed over red. He went over to the cop and started kicking him in his side as hard as he could, tears of fury in his eyes-

“HEYYYY YO,” Kap yelled from behind, running into the room and grabbing onto Marquis, pulling him back- “fall back, Key!! What are yall doin??? Joop- STOP, he’s a COP!!!”

Joop looked up, saw Kap holding back Marquis, pleading with them both- and he got up off the cop, who lay there dormant and bleeding. “Fuck dis nicca,” he spat.

Marquis looked at Joop, and stopped struggling with Kap, looking down at Lamar. “He-Uncle Mar isn’t-isnt..?”

Joop looked back at Marquis. “If Mar was dead, do ya think I was gonna stick wit jus my fists on this nicca,” he indicated towards the unconscious cop with chilling resolve. “Mar’s alive.”

Just then Joe and Danny came running into the room. “What in the-” Danny began, seeing Joop, the boys and the dormant cop- but then his eyes fell on Lamar. With a cry he dropped to the floor and started searching Lamar for signs of life. “LAMAR- son- please wake up…”

“He got a pulse,” Joop said to Danny then, rubbing both sets of knuckles and grimacing. “I checkd.”

Danny looked up at Joop gratefully. “Thank god,” he said. “There’s an exit wound,” he said, gingerly checking over Lamar’s body as Joop knelt down beside him, grabbing a piece of tissue paper from the exam table and holding it to Lamar’s chest with a groan. “It came out right through the back,” Danny said, looking around.

Kap’s eyes fell on a small dark hole in the white-painted walls nearest the window. “Uncle Dan, is that where the bullet went?”

Danny’s eyes followed the boy's gaze. “Good eye, Michael,” he said, turning back to Lamar. “That was the confirm I needed that the bullet is not still inside his body.” He looked over at Joe, who had taken it upon himself to shut the door to the room. “Joe, get one of those gurneys, would you,” Danny asked as he tried to position Lamar on the floor for comfort. “And if you can find a doctor, ask one of them to come inside too,” he added.

“I’m on my way.” Joe started for the door, looked down at the cop- and stopped. “Wait- I know this guy,” he said, bending down to get a closer look.

“Joe, face-place later, gurney NOW,” Danny said then. He had gotten himself in a kneeling position behind Lamar’s head and was holding it in his lap, his face pale from worry. Joe nodded, still frowning down at the battered cop, and left the room, closing the door behind him.

Marquis turned to Joop then. “The way you were attacking him… I thought that Uncle Mar was-was…” and he trailed off helplessly.

Joop looked back at Marquis, wincing as he reached out and stroked Lamar’s face with his free hand. “Sorry ya thought dat, but I woulda did mo than jus pound on this fukkin po-po’s face if dat shyt hadda happened.”

Joe returned with the gurney and two doctors, then resumed his study of the cop’s bruised face as Lamar was accessed and the two doctors, Joop and Danny lifted him onto the gurney. The others came rushing in then, Joan giving a loud cry as she saw Lamar on the ground. “Ahhh Jezus,” she said as she came into the room, “Lamar, baby..! Are ya awake..? Who shotya?”

“Joan, he’s alive, let the doctors do what they can,” Joe said, kneeling down by the knocked-out officer. “Can you come over here..? Look at this.”

Joan gave another glance of fright at Lamar, and then went to her husband, gazing down at the beaten cop- and then she paused. “Why do I know this guy,” she said absently.

“You too, huh..?” Joe looked back at the cop’s face- and then realization dawned on him. “Oh, my god… I know who he is…”

********

Carmen and Angelina went over to where the boys stood. “I was going to yell at you for running towards the gunfire instead of the other way,” Carmen said to Marquis- “but now I see you did the right thing.”

“Well damn, what happened NOW,” Angelina asked exasperatedly.

“I-I dunno,” Marquis said. “I came in and found Uncle Mar already shot, and Joop was pounding the shyt out of the cop,” he indicated to the officer, still unconscious. “I was about to stop him but- I saw red. So I joined in.”

“You are getting your father’s temper,” Marquette observed gravely. She reached over and cupped his face with her palm. “You gotta stop that NOW, baby, before it swallows you whole like it did him.”

“Ma, I do TRY,” Marquis responded somberly; “I just don’t know why its growing so strong all of a sudden. It runs in the family I think; Malik got all ‘Joop’ on the cop too.”

“I got through to both these loose cannons,” Kap interjected then, smiling grimly, “I stopped em before they killed this guy off.”

“You think that you might get in trouble..?” Carmen asked then, her eyes wide. “Will you get arrested..?”

“Let’s cross that bridge… yada yada,” Marquis said then, looking over at Lamar.

********

“There’s not as much bleeding as it would be had the bullet hit any vitals,” one doctor was saying to Danny and Joop. “A minor surgery; we’ll put a stop to the bleed and then rush him to x-ray. If I’m correct, the scan will show that all your son will need afterwards are stitches and antibiotics to ward off infection.”

“Let’s find out if you’re right, doctor,” the second doctor said. “It’s good we didn’t have two major surgeries back to back, eh?” he inquired of the other doctor.

“What’s this- are you guys just finishing up a surgery,” Danny said then, worry-lines across his face. “Are you sure you two are up to-”

“We can handle this,” the first doctor said reassuringly. “This is mickey-mouse, compared to the procedure we’ve just finished.”

“A woman came in a little earlier tonight, her face had been mauled by an animal,” the doctor said then, repressing a shudder- “a lion, of all things!”

Everyone in the room went still with shock, and Joop looked to Danny, his startled eyes searching- then he turned to stare at Marquis.

“…What..?” Marquis said defensively.

“We barely just got her face stitched back together and stopped the bleeding,” the other doctor continued he grabbed the front of the gurney, and the two doctors began to wheel Lamar towards the door. “But we were working without a guide for a while, we had no picture of her original face to work with.”

“So… she’ll look differently, then,” Danny said, an ashen pallor on his face.

“Well, let me tell you,” the first doctor said as he pushed the gurney before him, “I heard that this happened on one of the Hill Family properties, and that she also might be related to them. That would be a good thing for her because they’re rich, but they might not have any money left after all the cosmetic surgeries she’ll need, once those bandages come off and she gets a good look at herself,” the doctor sighed. “We’ll get word to you on your son’s condition; keep your fingers crossed.” And with that the two doctors wheeled Lamar out of sight.

Joop’s jaw dropped. He looked over at Marquis. “What da fuk happened, did Leo attack somebody- somebody related to US...?”

“You and Rah-Rah going over the side of a mountain wasn’t the only thing that went down tonight,” Marquis sighed then. “We have to catch you up.”

“Clearly,” Malik said, sighing heavily. “I’ve calmed down,” he said to everyone in the room, then looked over at his parents, who were both kneeling by the still-unconscious cop. “Mom… Dad, what are you doing..?”

Joe looked over at his son. “I’m trying to figure out why the EMT who originally drove your cousin Rah-Rah to the asylum the night Trey was shot, is lying here on the floor, dressed as a cop,” he replied blandly.