Bill Harper's 'An Excerpt From The Chase'
Act One
The First Act
The Chase
The time: just past midnight, cold winter of December 1959 The place: downtown Manhattan, the seediest of all underbellies
The name: Detective Bill Harper, who’s asking?
Sweat stains my overcoat and I realize, this outfit costs more than this bastard’s life. Say what you will about the blacks, but these people can run. We’re out in the open now, sprinting down a dirty main street, dodging streetlights and lots of blacks. It’s safe to assume they all have knives, so I juke wildly and make it obvious that I’m armed. The sawed-off shotgun in my hands isn’t exactly police regulation, but desperate times desperate measures.
“Put your god damn hands up and get on the ground!” I scream, but he keeps …show more content…
I could see it in his big, sweaty eyes. “The only thing that’s wrong with me is a big gun and an even bigger heart, chief.” “Don’t give me that bullshit! Do you even know what you’ve done? What you did last night?!” “I brought down a rapist the only way I knew how. It may have been harsh, but that’s justice.” “You god damn shit! You shot an unarmed man with an unregistered sawed-off twice in an alley!” “The man definitely had arms, boss.” Greenfield sneered. “You fool! He was an innocent man! He looked nothing like the rapist! The rapist, who, by the way, is still at large!” I was more than a little bit confused. I had been positive that I found the perp. “Now wait a minute-“ “No, you wait! You just sit the hell down and wait. You, god damn you, you blew that man’s face off. The man has no face …show more content…
Maybe he should have been the one to lose his fat pink face. “What the hell did you just say?” Shit. I hadn’t realized that that was out loud. He shook his head. “Why were you carrying around a shotgun, anyway? What happened to your pistol? You know, the one you’re supposed to use on duty!” “I dropped it in the toilet.” That wasn’t true. I had given it to my nephew for his fifth birthday, but I wasn’t going to tell Chief Greenfield that. I didn’t want to look like an idiot. “Do you understand what this means? For you, for me, for the department?” “No. I have absolutely no idea what this means.” “It means you’re suspended. We can’t have a jackass like you ruining everything we work for. Give me your badge and…” “Toilet.” “God damn you.” He stood up and started pacing back and forth. It probably wasn’t a good time to tell him that he looked like a manatee. “You look like-“ “-a manatee, I know. The wife tells me every night. What you need to understand is that you’re going to be crucified for this. You ever been on trial before? Didn’t think so. Here’s what we’re going to do. The department’s going to set you up with a lawyer, his name’s John Braxton and he’s the best. You’re going to meet him tomorrow at this address,
The First Act
The Chase
The time: just past midnight, cold winter of December 1959 The place: downtown Manhattan, the seediest of all underbellies
The name: Detective Bill Harper, who’s asking?
Sweat stains my overcoat and I realize, this outfit costs more than this bastard’s life. Say what you will about the blacks, but these people can run. We’re out in the open now, sprinting down a dirty main street, dodging streetlights and lots of blacks. It’s safe to assume they all have knives, so I juke wildly and make it obvious that I’m armed. The sawed-off shotgun in my hands isn’t exactly police regulation, but desperate times desperate measures.
“Put your god damn hands up and get on the ground!” I scream, but he keeps …show more content…
I could see it in his big, sweaty eyes. “The only thing that’s wrong with me is a big gun and an even bigger heart, chief.” “Don’t give me that bullshit! Do you even know what you’ve done? What you did last night?!” “I brought down a rapist the only way I knew how. It may have been harsh, but that’s justice.” “You god damn shit! You shot an unarmed man with an unregistered sawed-off twice in an alley!” “The man definitely had arms, boss.” Greenfield sneered. “You fool! He was an innocent man! He looked nothing like the rapist! The rapist, who, by the way, is still at large!” I was more than a little bit confused. I had been positive that I found the perp. “Now wait a minute-“ “No, you wait! You just sit the hell down and wait. You, god damn you, you blew that man’s face off. The man has no face …show more content…
Maybe he should have been the one to lose his fat pink face. “What the hell did you just say?” Shit. I hadn’t realized that that was out loud. He shook his head. “Why were you carrying around a shotgun, anyway? What happened to your pistol? You know, the one you’re supposed to use on duty!” “I dropped it in the toilet.” That wasn’t true. I had given it to my nephew for his fifth birthday, but I wasn’t going to tell Chief Greenfield that. I didn’t want to look like an idiot. “Do you understand what this means? For you, for me, for the department?” “No. I have absolutely no idea what this means.” “It means you’re suspended. We can’t have a jackass like you ruining everything we work for. Give me your badge and…” “Toilet.” “God damn you.” He stood up and started pacing back and forth. It probably wasn’t a good time to tell him that he looked like a manatee. “You look like-“ “-a manatee, I know. The wife tells me every night. What you need to understand is that you’re going to be crucified for this. You ever been on trial before? Didn’t think so. Here’s what we’re going to do. The department’s going to set you up with a lawyer, his name’s John Braxton and he’s the best. You’re going to meet him tomorrow at this address,