Page 99 of Rigid

He looked right at me.

Hesitation will cost someone’s life.

Shoot first, make up a story to cover your ass later.

I looked him in the eyes. All the fear escaped me. I squeezed the trigger.

A blinding flash of light and a horrific boom happened at the same time.

Somehow, I was no longer holding the pistol.

I looked around me and realized I couldn’t see very well. The flash had come close to blinding me. Sobbing, I fell to my knees, and crawled toward the outline of the bodies.

My sight slowly returned, and it was clear her attacker was dead. Half of the lower portion of his face was missing.

And, Eddie wasn’t moving.

I shoved the dead man off her, leaned down, and wiped her blood-soaked hair away from her face. “Eddie?”

Her eyes were swollen shut, and her face was a battered mess.

A gurgling sound came from deep inside her throat. “My…ring…”

She’s alive.

Thank God.

I blindly searched for the phone that was beside her, picked it up, and dialed 911.

I wasn’t a doctor, but I knew if an ambulance didn’t come quickly, I’d lose her.

“911 please state the nature of your emergency.”

There was only one way I knew to get an ambulance, and get it quick. But, it would require me to tell a lie.

And, just this once, it was okay to lie.

I cleared my throat. “Uhhm. A police officer has been shot, and he’s wounded. Send an ambulance. He’s dying.”

“Your location?”

I had no idea what my new address was.

I glanced toward the porch light.

10378.

“10378 La Quinta,” I said.

“Ma’am, can you provide a description of the shooter? Is he still on the scene…”

I threw the phone in the driveway, laid down at Eddie’s side, and held her in my arms.

“It’s okay, baby. Help is on the way.”

It had only been a matter of seconds, but I could already hear the approaching sirens.

“Hear that, baby? They’re coming to take you to the doctor. After you get cleaned up, we’ll have milkshakes.”