Page 4 of Unlocking Hope

Ian and Bella said bye before he swiped the end button on his phone and dropped it into the console.

When she ran past an elderly woman watering the lawn, the woman narrowed her eyes and shook her head. Cole wanted to keep his distance, so he slowed to a stop and continued to watch her run down the street. She hadn’t turned her head once to see if he was following her. When she rounded another corner down a side street, Cole found a parking spot a few feet away from the alley. He put the Range Rover in park and looked around him. He was in the crime-ridden area in downtown known for drugs and prostitution. A dim-lit alleyway was not the best place for Kate or any woman. Cole leaned over his center console, opened his glove box, and grabbed his Glock.

People walked up and down the sidewalks, not paying attention to anything around them, including the woman who turned down the alleyway. Nobody took the time to stop Kate and ask if she needed help. Instead, they walked by her and continued with their day, not giving her an ounce of their attention.

A man dressed in suit pants and a white button-down shirt turned down the side street, flanked by two taller men with short dark hair. Cole’s jaw clenched as he saw the outlines of guns under the taller men’s shirts. He could no longer see the two men and knew Kate was still down the side street. Cole wondered if these men were the ones she was worried about.

Not knowing what he was about to head into, he quickly dialed Officer Ander’s number. It rang a couple times before his long-time friend answered.

“Hey, Cole.”

“Where are you?” Cole grabbed the door handle and pushed open the door.

“I’m working a homicide downtown.”

Cole let out a little sigh. “How quick can you get someone to the corner of Sixth and Fourth Street?”

“I’m finishing up my report now. I can meet you over there in twenty.”

“Can you send someone?” Cole gripped his gun. “I think a woman might be in trouble and not sure I can take on three men at the same time.”

Max spoke to someone in the background. “I’m radioing dispatch to send the closest unit. Don’t go down there until you have backup. It will take me at least ten minutes to get to your location.”

A scream echoed from Kate’s location. “I need backup now.” He swiped to end the call and placed the phone in his pocket. Cole ran down the sidewalk and turned the corner to see the woman on the ground, clutching her side. Kate was on her knees twenty feet away, her eyes shut tight. The man in dress pants had a gun pointed at her head.

Cole raised his Glock and aimed for the man’s leg. He squeezed the trigger. The bullet whizzed out of the gun and hit the target perfectly. The man screamed and dropped to the ground, clutching his leg. Blood seeped out of the man’s wound. His two men fell to the ground next to their boss and tried to help stop the bleeding. Kate slowly opened her eyes; she looked from the man on the ground holding his calf to Cole. She eyed him for a couple seconds before jumping up and running toward the back of the alleyway, and Cole cursed under his breath.

The man on the ground yelled for his men to kill Cole. Cole never took his gun off the three men. One man favored his right leg and limped when he took a step toward Cole. Neither of them had picked up the gun from the ground.

“Leave,” the one without a limp shouted.

“How about you guys go, and we forget what happened? I’ve already radioed the cops, and they will be here any second.”

The man on the floor grunted, “Fuck,” as he gripped his hand around his bleeding leg.

“None of this is your concern,” the man in the suit shirt shouted.

Cole slowly took another step to the side. He wanted to get to the woman in the back of the alley, hunched over a few cardboard boxes. He needed to get her attention so he could wave for her to leave.

“Here is what is going to happen: the police will be here in a few minutes, and you can explain why I found you with a gun to a woman’s head.” Cole’s eyes never left the three men threatening his and Kate’s life. In the distance, he could hear the faint sound of a cop car.

Hearing the sirens, the two men looked at each other then rushed back to their boss and helped him stand.

The man wearing the gray suit pants glared at Cole. “The cops won’t do a thing.”

Max had told Ian and him about how the police department had a few corrupt cops, and they’ve been working to clean up the department. “Well, the cop coming isn’t on your payroll. He’s a friend of mine.” Cole smirked and motioned with his gun for them to leave.

The two bodyguards hunched down and helped their boss stand. “Don’t think this is over. I will find you and make you wish we’d never met.”

Cole never took his eyes off the three men until they turned the corner. Once they were gone, Cole rushed down the dirty alleyway to Kate’s side. She had her hands pressed to the side of a man lying on the ground. The metallic smell of blood overpowered the scent of body odor and old food. He breathed out of his mouth to keep from gagging.

Years of medical training kicked in, Cole pressed his fingers to the man’s wrist, he could faintly feel his pulse. Two cop cars came to a screeching halt at the entrance of the alleyway, Kate stiffened next to him as Max ran toward them.

“We need to get him to an ambulance.”

“Please don’t let him die,” Kate begged.

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