Broken (16 page)

18

Civilian Targets

Shreveport, Louisiana

January 3, 2028

T
wo
civilians were already dead by the time the banks closed on Monday. The tall, muscular state police officer topped the ladder to the rooftop where one of his fellow officers, a sharpshooter, lay flat on his stomach and took aim toward the bank across the street. It was his assignment to take out the two perpetrators inside the facility. He put his hand to his ear device. "Copy that. I hear him now."

As the second trooper inched his way toward the sniper, a flash from the bank caught his eye. A rumble of thunder drowned out the shot, but the sharpshooter lay dead, blood pooling around his half-missing head.

Realizing there was a third robber on the rooftop of the bank, the man who had just come onto the roof picked up the sniper rifle, found the shooter on top of the opposite building, and fired before the third bank robber knew what had happened. With a stern look on his face and a glint in his hazel eyes, he wiped freezing rain from the top of his shaved head. He reloaded and took aim through the barely cracked blind of the bank. A second robber hit the marble tile floor as the hostages took matters into their own hands and brought down the third.

The following Monday morning the assembly applauded as the governor pinned the medal of valor on the officer who had acted quickly and heroically when his colleague fell. As a result of his quick thinking and action, he was being decorated and claiming a spot in the elite brotherhood of sharpshooters for the state police, a position he had aspired to for a long time.

The twenty-nine-year-old orphan of military parents had waited an eternity to be in a place where he could avenge his mother's death. At long last, it was here. His grandmother had taught him that revenge was "a dish best served cold." After nineteen years, this dish was frigid, rock solid. The smile on his face was not joy, or even pride. On the contrary, it was anticipation of being able to vent his hatred and anger of a lifetime.

Eau Boueuse, Louisiana

January 23, 2030

Opening his eyes from remembering a special day, Lloyd punched the wall of his apartment, leaving a gaping hole in the sheetrock. Raiford Reynolds was making his goal more difficult. He only had two more people to make Reynolds's life a living hell. He laughed out loud. "Oh, Reynolds, do you really think you need those bodyguards? I have no intention of killing you. I want you to feel as empty as I've felt my whole life. I'm not totally heartless. I'll leave you your kids unless Parker gets in the way. Then, he'll just be collateral damage.

"So, you've made my job a little harder. I love a challenge. Yes, I'll leave your kids alive, but I'm gonna have some fun with them before the little wife sees my mom."

Biloxi, Mississippi

February 23, 2030

Larkin hated inaction as much as her husband, but she would protect her children. Christopher and Courtney had always loved summers at their grandparents' house on the beach. However, this year everywhere they went, armed police officers went with them. Cherie, her and Ray's youngest, was undaunted by the presence of a police officer; Larkin and Sheena went everywhere with her anyway. Cherie loved spending time with Sheena and her mother. It made her feel grown up, even if she was only five and a half.

The first week in Biloxi, the family spent almost every day at the beach. Although it was still quite chilly, Larkin home-schooled on the beach to keep them from feeling like prisoners. Christopher and Courtney did not wander far from their mother's watchful eye, but they began to feel like caged animals. Larkin and Sheena felt a bit restricted too.

In an effort to burn some of their energy, Larkin and Sheena dressed up and visited the Grand Casino. They told the two plain-clothes police officers who insisted on going with them that they had appear to be two men with two women. Dorothy Reynolds patted one of the officers on the arm. "Don't argue. Just do it," she said.

Looking like two couples, Larkin and Sheena hit a blackjack table with their escorts standing behind them for moral support and applauding their winnings. After several hours and many drinks, the ladies left tipsy, laughing, and, between them, five thousand dollars richer.

Lloyd watched the two women from a healthy distance. He liked the idea that they were risk-takers. He had a momentary twinge of conscience about ridding the world of one of them.

Biloxi, Mississippi

March 23, 2030

Weeks became a couple of months. Christopher approached his mother. "Momma, there's a beach party tonight. Courtney and I would like to go."

"Okay," said Larkin.

The seventeen-year-old rolled his eyes. "Momma, the other kids won't want cops there."

"Are they going to be doing something illegal?"

"Maybe. They might at least have beer there, and some of them might not be drinking age."

"Then, you can't go. Don't argue. Daddy would have a fit."

Christopher sighed, "I had to try."

"I know you did." She patted his cheek. "Christopher, don't sneak out. I will
personally
check your bed."

"I figured you would, Momma." The boy left his mother's room.

"Well?" Courtney asked in the hall.

"Forget it," said Christopher. "We'll have to make the next one, but we won't ask."

The next day at the beach, Christopher was surrounded by barely-clad females. All of them wanted to know why he had not made the party the night before.

"It's sort of hard to lose the troops," Christopher said dejectedly and jerked his head toward his mother and the police escort.

One cute blonde slipped her arm around Christopher's waist. "Christopher Reynolds, do you recognize me?"

Christopher stared at the girl for a minute. "Kimberly LaFontaine?"

"You got it!"

"Wow!" His eyes roved over her body. "You've changed. You look a lot different from the Christmas cards."

"You too."

"Are you gonna be at the party tonight?"

"You bet. Try and find me."

"Will Kyle be there?"

Kimberly shrugged. "I don't know. I don't hang with my twin much these days." She wrinkled her nose. "He's the one that's changed."

"How so?"

"He shaved his head. He got a tattoo—that same grotesque two-headed serpent that Dad had. Mom nearly flipped when she saw it. Some of his
boys
are downright slugs." Her tone dripped disdain for her brother's
boys
.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Christopher shivered at the mention of the tattoo. The LaFontaine twins were a year younger than he was—too young to legally get a tattoo.

"I'm not a slug." Kim's words cut through his thoughts. "But I do like to party. Try and come tonight. I'd like to hang out."

"Any chance of hanging out alone?" Christopher asked with a mischievous grin, putting his disturbing thought to the back of his mind. A pretty girl was more important.

"You never can tell. I gotta go. My friends and I are going to the mall. We've gotta get a new
spring wardrobe
." She giggled.

As Kimberly drifted away, Christopher called, "Hey! Wait! Can I call you?"

"Sure." Kimberly wrote her phone number on his palm with a Sharpie she pulled from the small shoulder bag she had.

When Christopher returned to the family Larkin asked, "Who was the girl that was all over you?"

"Kimberly LaFontaine."

"Really?" She looked back toward where the teenage girl that was almost the same age as Courtney walked toward a modern Volkswagen Beetle.
Looks a lot different from the one I had when I met Ray
. "We haven't seen the twins at all in three years. Mr. and Mrs. Blackwell came for Aunt Chris's funeral, and Uncle Raif has seen Saul Blackwell since he's the firm's attorney."

"Yeah. I got her number." He waved his palm in triumph.

"That's interesting. Where's her twin."

"I don't know." The boy shrugged. "She says he's not very nice these days. He's a lot like his father, I guess."

"That's too bad."

"Yeah. Kim seems sweet. She sure has, um, grown up."

Larkin eyed Christopher. "Where are they staying? It's spring break."

"I didn't ask. They used to have a beach house in Gulfport, didn't they?"

"Yes, they did."

"I guess they still do, then. Hey, Court, you want a slushy?" He jerked his head toward the food vendor a little way down the beach.

"Sure," said Courtney, springing to her feet.

The brother and sister walked a few yards down the beach to a concessions vendor.

"Okay," conspired Christopher. "Kim wants me to come to a party tonight. If you help me get out tonight, I'll help you another night. Deal?"

"Deal." They bumped fists.