"this country used to be free!" someone shouted.

"yeah!"

"it still is numb nuts, if you keep your nose clean." lissell replied.

"bullshit!" several hollared.

"look! i'm going off duty in a while, and i don't want any trouble, if you think things are unfair, then i suggest you go to the next town meeting, i'm not going to fuck with any of you!" lissell spouted.

"yeah, and where's our friend leroy on this fine evening?" razzi asked.

"when you go around assulting children you do the time, you, of all people should know that razzi." the window gave, there was enough space for me to wiggle in. i put the evidence in first, then squeezed through. finally! i headed for the closet. there was a sudden clash of voices outside.

"hold her aaron!!" razzi shouted. "ha, you're not so big and brave with a razor to your neck, are you bitch!" razzi shouted.

oh my god! i had to get out of here. every hair on my body was standing up. i heard a shot.

"release that officer or i'll shoot, ambrose." a new voice said.

"fuck you jack!" then i heard lissell scream. someone shot, and something exploded. people were scrambling up the stairs, and heavy noises came from the street. i had never been as frightened in my life. i started to get up and run, when someone rammed leroy's door. my god in heaven, i didn't think anyone knew i was in here. another heave, and his door flew open. i could see someone's outline from the lights in the hallway. footsteps towards leroy's bed. i quivered. i heard his phone being dialed.

"johnston, this is sanchez, i need ems, fire and the riot squad down here at st. james court muy pronto. i'm by myself, an officer's down and my car's on fire, signal 10 traffic johnston. and by the way, the downed officer's that pretty redhead you've been tryin' to fuck, her hair ain't so long anymore."

oh god, poor lissell. he left, but i was still stuck in this closet. i just had to get to her, help her. i heard sirens, many of them, i hoped ems was first. it sounded like a war outside, i heard gun shots, heard the powerful water from the firehoses.

"my god! call jewish stat and tell them to get at least four units of both o pos and negative ready, and let's pray that this young lady is one or the other."

"how much blood's she lost doc?"

"it's hard to say, but a lot, the surgeons will have to work on this neck. wilson, what in the fuck happened here?"

"i'm not sure doc, stacey didn't have any business here, as far as we know, it's like they just jumped her."

"hell of a note, she's really pretty too." the doctor said.

"will she make it?"

"dunno, hope so."

"alright, go, go go! give her 100% o2 and start an iv with lactated ringers. radio me her blood pressure and what you see on the screen."

"sure thing doc."

"anyone else hurt?" he asked.

"over here doc." someone said.

"hmmm, a little late here, better take this one to the morgue."

i was crying in the closet, god, i wished we had never come here. the noise had calmed down outside, i wondered if it was safe to get out. i could barely move when i got up, i had practically set up in the closet. i crumpled up the paper bag that i had gotten the evidence from into my black pants and walked toward the window. the air was horrible, smelled like gasoline and smoke. i heard some men talking a few feet from the window, it wasn't a safe escape, hell, out the front door would be as safe. i walked slowly to leroy's door, sticking my head out and looking around, i could see nothing, and everything was quiet. i stepped out onto the plush blue carpet of the hallway. i creeped toward the front door, then rushed down the front stairs. i started to run, but, there it was, the place where lissell was slashed. blood was everywhere, much of her beautiful hair lay in the mess, probably eight inches of it. i hoped they had killed razzi, i really hoped that. i noticed two patrol cars across the street, that's who i heard outside of his window. i couldn't be seen here, i had to leave quickly or all of our plans might be wasted, as if they hadn't been already.

by the time i got to central park, i was so winded that i sat down on a bench. it was after nine-thirty and pitch black, as i caught my breath, i felt a hand on my left shoulder. i was as cold as death, i jumped.

"freeze, freeze mad'am, it's just me, i ain't gonna harm you."

"oh, dewalt, you scared the shit out of me." i said. he walked around to the front of my bench.

"it's awful late for you to be out, and wif all the commotion down the block." i needed to think at this point. dewalt was leroy's friend, he knew about the "commotion," he had seen me coming from it, hmmm.

"yes, i heard the sirens and walked up there. a police car was bombed, and a female officer was being carried away in an ambulance, i'm afraid it was my friend lissell."

"what makes you think that?" he asked.

"it looked kind of like her, but i couldn't tell for sure. i'm very worried dewalt." he put his arm around me and smiled. he was all teeth.

"you heard about the king, didn't you mad'am?"

"i heard he was arrested for hurting sidney, and he should be."

"naw, naw, there's other stuff." i looked at dewalt intently. "they sayin' that leroy's involved in a bunch of other shit, like murder."

"murder?"

"yeah, four people dead on his account, maybe more." i couldn't trust dewalt, i had to be careful with my words. it was more than interesting that he knew about four killings, but how did he know? maybe he was just guessing, seeking information, after all, i had questioned him about leroy and violence.

"recent killings?" i asked. like my neighbor, my girlfriend in college, god, i would sound as guilty as he.

"dunno." he said. "like a girlfriend of his in jersey. poochy wasn't too specific."

"who the hell is poochy?" i asked.

"you know mad'am, poochy weinberg from television, she hangs at the d.t.s some."

"oh, the newscaster." yes, i had seen her on tv, a dykish looking heavy set lady, i had wondered about her too. a police cruiser turned the corner and headed up st. james.

"ain't safe out tonight mad'am." he stated. i looked at my watch, ten fifteen. i thought i knew what that was about.

"dewalt, i have to go, it's really getting late. by the way, what are you doing here?"<

"just hanging out, i'm on stage tonight at the d.t., you should come by and see, i'm the star at eleven oclock." i smiled.

"do good dewalt."

"i will mad'am."

god, if he wasn't a trip. i knew there was a leak of information, most likely from the police station. i needed to talk with someone, detective zimmerman, lissell. lissell, poor baby, i had to find her. i made several calls after i walked home. the police told me that she was at jewish hospital, in intensive care. i was glad she was there, i knew jewish, the people there were good, and very caring. i changed my cat burgler outfit to a pair of jeans and a sweatshirt. i called jewish to find out lissell's condition.

"ccu, how may i help you?" a pleasant voice answered.

"i'm inquiring into miss lissell stacy's condition." i said.

"are you family?" what in the fuck difference did that make.

"yes." i rudely replied.

"immediate?"

"yes, i'm her sister." i knew she didn't believe me.

"miss stacy's in surgery at this moment, but should be out soon, i'm afraid i have no account of her condition at present."

"thank you." i said. surgery, well, at least she was alive. i hurried on down to jewish. there were about a dozen people in the ccu waiting room. i instantly recognized sist...margo, yet i couldn't think of her last name. maybe i had never even heard it. she nodded at me.

"is she out of surgery yet?" i asked her.

"she's been in her room around twenty minutes." she replied. i went to the unit. through the window i could see lissell, she was on a ventilator, god, how terrible. there was a little girl standing at the head of her bed. she had her hand on lissel's forehead. i tapped on the window and got a nurse's attention. she got out of her chair and opened the door.

"yes mame?" she asked.

"i'm mrs. mccord, miss stacy's sister, i called you earlier."

"of course. i remember. miss stacy came through surgery very well, her condition is still heavily guarded, but the doctors think she's going to be fine." she explained. i smiled.

"is she conscious?"

"drowzy, but yes, conscious. you may see her when that young lady leaves." the young lady turned around, and i recognized her from her photographs. brianna, how beautiful; she couldn't have been more the five foot three, and didn't look a minute over seventeen. she was blonde with magnificant blue eyes, and straight white teeth, she was smiling.

"i think she's going to make it miss eversole." the nurse put her arms around her and agreed. brianna's waist couldn't have been any wider than my hand outstretched, she was delicious to look at and seemed very friendly.

"hi there." she smiled and said to me.

"hello, is she alright?" i smiled and asked.

"i think so, i hope so." as briana chatted with nurse eversole, i walked over to lissell. god, he had cut most of her hair off. her neck was bandaged and she had a tube in her throat. the machine was breathing 14 times a minute for her, but she could take extra breath on her own if needed. she tried to smile, then motioned for me to hand her a clip board and a pencil.

"please take this with you when you leave." she wrote. "did you get your work done?" i nodded affirmatively. "good. didn't leave the sack did you?" i shook my head. "good, but there's another problem honey." i raised my eyebrows. she wrote "second-to-none."