“I can’t let him hurt my grandma.” The boy’s words were broken.
“He’ll kill you, son. Stay where you are.”
The click of a hammer being cocked caught Todd’s attention.
“Travis, get down.” The kid had to obey his order without question because there wasn’t time to try to find him and follow the sound. He had to choose. All while hoping that Officer Drane had either received the information or was paying attention to all the noise down this alley. He stepped away from the door and into the shadows away from the pool of light.
“Stop right there, or I’ll shoot her.” The voice was low and menacing, but Todd didn’t stop.
“I don’t think I will. You would have already killed her, but you wanted me to come. I don’t understand why. But I’m here. What do you want to talk about?”
“I’ll leave them alone, all I need is the girl.”
“She’s in surgery. Did you know she’s thirteen? And you’ve had two attempts to kill her. You’re not a very good assassin.”
“I took care of her brother and parents easily enough.”
“So how did a kid elude you?”
“Craziest thing. She looks like my buddy’s sister.” The man snorted. “Last time I get sentimental.”
If Todd could just keep him talking, he’d about pinpointed where he was located. Doris was on the ground due to being kicked. Travis was hiding if he’d done what Todd had told him. All he had to do was draw his weapon and fire.
“Don’t think about it. I’ve got my gun on you.”
There he was. “If you did, you would have already shot.” In one fluid, practiced motion, Todd drew his weapon. His years of LPD training had drilled it into him: you only pulled your weapon if you are willing to shoot to stop the threat. He aimed for what he hoped was center mass and fired. A blinding muzzle flash cut through the dark alley, the boom ringing in Todd’s ears. But the man anticipated the shot, twisting from the trajectory at the last second. Instead of hitting flesh, the bullet punched through the metal of the trashcan, tearing a jagged hole through the metal with a deafeningclang.
The assailant took off down the alley, and Todd ran after him.
He yelled as loud as he could.
Between the gunshot and the yelling, surely Officer Drane would hear and come.
As if on cue, the car pulled to the end of the alley just as the assailant reached the opening. Officer Drane opened his door and yelled, “Freeze, police.”
The man looked like he would shoot, but Todd tackled him from behind. They tumbled to the asphalt, and Todd fell on top of the man with a thud that almost knocked the breath from his lungs. “Drane, bring me your handcuffs.”
The uniformed officer scrambled around his vehicle, gun trained on the man.
The assassin bucked to get Todd off, and Todd scrambled to find a hold on the man. He was more athletic and wiry than Todd had anticipated from watching the grainy videos. Todd fought to hang on to the man, vowing to lay off the donuts he liked to pick up in the breakroom. This struggle emphasized how much he needed to change that. He needed to get back into the weight room.
“Stay still.” Todd grit out the words as he put his whole weight into the man.
The killer grunted and rolled. Todd held on but not before the man landed a solid blow to Todd’s jaw. Todd’s head snapped back, but years of football had his grip tightening rather than releasing. He threw his effort forward into the man’s torso and then rolled him back to his stomach.
Finally, he hauled the man’s arms behind his back and slapped handcuffs on him. “You are under arrest for the murders of Ryan, Bill, and Odette Brandenberg. You are also under arrest for multiple assaults against Eliza Brandenberg and Bridget Ellis. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.” He pulled theman to his feet and then shoved him toward Officer Drane’s cruiser.
The man crab stepped to the side, gun trained on Todd and his prisoner. “You’re putting him in my car?”
“Yep.” He didn’t bother to say more. He opened the door with one hand while shoving the man into the car. Only then did he think about how much his jaw hurt. It throbbed
“Looked like a solid punch.” Officer Drane did not look excited to have the prisoner in his car
“You could say that.” He rubbed his jaw and then moved it side to side carefully. “Is an ambulance on the way?”
“For you?”
“No. For the woman in the alley.”
