This is a snippet from THROUGH GLASS DARKLY :
The silence seemed to stop the hands of time as Olivia stood helplessly. The sound of Donte’s voice shattered the quiet as he asked, “How much she mean to you, man? You look nervous,” the knife digging a little further into her skin.
“Listen to me,” Danny continued, “I will shoot you. I will not hesitate. I can’t let you kill my partner, Donte.”
“I said, ‘I ain’t goin’ to jail, man, and you can kill me or they can kill me. Don’t make much difference.’”
“We can work this out. But right now you’re holding an officer hostage. That’s pretty serious.”
“If you so sure we just goin’a talk, then put your gun down and we’ll talk,” Donte said.
“I can’t do that,” he said shaking his head slightly.
“Whatchu goin’a do ‘bout this, Knight? Huh? It’s my life or hers.”
The twitch of Donte’s hand on the knife’s handle clearly indicated the intent. He was going to slit Olivia’s throat and then be taken out by gunfire. Danny knew this was the plan, too and he took aim at Donte’s shoulder. He didn’t want to kill him, he just wanted Olivia safe. Still, he feared that shooting him would cause the knife to slip and Olivia would pay the price.
“We can calmly talk, Donte. I know you’re afraid for your life and your family’s life. This isn’t what you want.”
“They goin’a kill my daughter, man. If I talk, she’s dead.”
Suddenly, other cops were on the scene. Danny saw four standing behind Donte, but gave them the signal to stand down. Behind Danny, more backup arrived. Everyone stood still, nonetheless.
“Donte, you know me. My word is good. We can protect you and your family, you just have to put the knife down and let my partner go.”
“I was a heroin addict,” Olivia said quietly. “It’s not worth dying for, Donte. I’m not worth dying for. Trust us. We can help you get out of this.”
Danny watched as Donte’s grip loosened on the knife, and it fell to the ground. Donte’s hands rose to the blackened sky as one of the backup officers came up behind him and cuffed him.
Olivia stood still, frozen with shock, her eyes wide with fear. Danny put his gun back in his holster and rushed to her. Walking behind her, he pulled a knife from his boot and sliced the zip-tie from her wrists. She put her hands to her throat, trying to access the damage done by the blade. Danny then stood in front of her, lifted his hands, and cupped her face in his palms, observing her expression and watching her terrified eyes.
“You okay? How bad is it?”
“Not too bad,” she whispered still holding tightly to her throat.
“Let me see, Livy,” he said as he moved her hands away slowly. He examined the wound as the sirens blared in the background. “It’s not too bad. You’ll probably need a few stitches.”
Olivia felt stiff, but her brain worked perfectly. She knew her life was spared because of Danny. “Thank you,” she whispered, tears brimming in her eyes.
“You’re welcome,” he said. “You sure you’re okay? Medics are coming.”
She nodded, her lower lip quivering a little, the tears now streaming down her face. She hated feeling so vulnerable and victimized. It made her look weak again, like she couldn’t handle the job. This angered her.
“Come here,” he said pulling her into an embrace. She trembled in his arms. “It’s goin’a be okay. I got ya.”
No comments:
Post a Comment