You Can Run
but
 You Can’t Hide
 by: Miguel Sanchez

© 2007 by the author

The author retains all rights. No reproductions are allowed without the author's consent. Comments are appreciated at...

After a luxurious shower, we headed off to lunch. Hans had to drive his own car as I wouldn’t have time to take him back home then be back at the Academy by 1. We had a nice lunch and since I only had 90 minutes to let it digest, I had a chef’s salad with steamed shrimp. I gave my lover a kiss on the lips then returned to the Academy.

Chapter 19

I drove back to the Academy then went and changed into my workout clothes. I went out to the field and started loosening up. Just then Frank and David came out and started warming up. David started running in place the mouthing off. “Well old man, this is make it or break it day. That test was a piece of cake and I know I aced it. Now I’m going to run your ass into the ground.”

I thought this guy talks a great fight, if the chips are down I just hope he can cash the checks his mouth is writing. He was still running off at the mouth when Frank came up behind him and slapped him on the back of the head. “Now shut your mouth David. That lunch you ate is going to come back on you.”

The others started coming out then Lt. Ambrose got everyone’s attention. “Ok men, listen up. The physical portion of these tests will count 25% towards your final grade. It takes a total of 80 in order to pass so everyone WILL need to pass this AND qualify at the range. My advice to you all is put out 100%. Now, let’s head over to the first event.”

We all headed to the obstacle course and this time I was ready for it. I was steady and didn’t fall on my face. David had the best time but he was winded and started to double over. I walked over to him and patted him on the back. “What did you have for lunch?”

“Just fuck off man. I saw you and your boyfriend at the Red Lobster. We don’t need no fucking fags on this department.”

Just then Frank came over. “David, shut up.”

“Shut up Frank?” David shouted. “Shut up? Who the hell do you think you are? I’m going to ace the rest of this test then go out and kick ass on the streets. This guy here is a fag. I saw him . . .”

SLAP Frank had had enough of his cousin’s mouth. “What are you going to do now cousin? Are you going to call your Daddy to pull strings for you? Daddy, help me again. I can’t make it on my own so I need you to pull strings. Let me tell you something cuz, your Daddy ain’t gonna help you out here. You barely passed the PT portion in the Marines. I don’t know how in the hell you managed to make Corporal.”

“Shut up Frank,” David howled. “What are you, a fag lover?”

SLAP Frank let him have it again. “I’m not homophobic. What people do in the privacy of their own bedroom is no ones business.”

“I’ll go in and kick their asses,” David said puffing his chest out. “Fags have no rights.”

I saw Frank ball up his fist just as Sgt. Grainger blew a whistle calling us back over to get ready for the next event. “This isn’t over by a long shot David.”

I was determined to go out 150% on the rest of the events. David made this personal and I was going to bury him the best way I could. On the hand over hand monkey bars I had the fastest time and out did David on the man carry and low crawl. When it came to the mile, I was going to do a sub 5 minute one so he would see my back the whole way.

After the low crawl, Frank was right and David’s lunch came back to haunt him. He was doubled over puking his guts out. Frank went over and looked at him. “Are you alright?”

After several minutes David finally stood up. “You’re really happy about this aren’t you?”

Frank just stood there. “No cuz, I’m not but your wise ass attitude has come back to haunt you. You’ll be back here tomorrow because I know you’re not going to be able to run a mile under 6 minutes.”

David was glaring at his cousin. He was about to speak when Lt. Ambrose told us to head for the track. He blew his whistle and I took off. I settled into my sub 5 minute pace and held it most of the way around. I pushed a little too hard on the other events and I was tired. David was seeing my back but I wasn’t going to make it in less than 5 minutes. I crossed the finish line at 5 minutes and 13 seconds. David surprised me and finished in 5 minutes and 57 seconds which was good enough to pass. There were 3 people who had to come back tomorrow to rerun the mile then it was on to the pistol range.

After taking a shower, Frank and I walked to the range. “Lee, personally I don’t care if you’re gay or not. Is there any truth to what David said?”

I knew I could lie but I had no way of knowing if David took a photo of Hans and me or not. “Yeah Frank, I’m gay. I went to lunch with my boyfriend and he lives with me. I served my country in the Army and kept my personal life just that, personal but I never had a boyfriend when I was in the military.”

Frank patted me on the back and smiled. “For you to make E-8 and earn a Master’s Degree in Criminal Justice speaks for itself. I really hope you pass here and become a member of the San Antonio Police Department.”

We entered the range and took our places as the range safety officer came in. “All right gentlemen this first event is 5 rounds to be fired in your weak hand. If you’re right handed, you will fire with your left hand. Ear protection on then lock and load.”

He blew his whistle and the firing commenced. I fired my 5 rounds then when everyone had finished, we brought our targets in. As it got close, I was amazed. I fired 47 out of 50. Damn, that was the best I’d ever done. When we finished for the day, I’d bettered my first score by 7 points firing a 242. The safety officer loaded the scores into the computer then printed them out handing it to Lt. Ambrose. “Alright men, everyone qualified.”

David let his mouth overload his ass once more. “Hey Lieutenant, who was high man?”

Now David really thought he had the best scores and he did because I was two lines down from him. Sgt. Grainger looked at him. “Do you really want that announced Carnes?”

He nodded his head with a smirk on his face. Lt. Ambrose took the paper and looked it over. “High man with a score of 242 is Lee Jennings.”

Carnes’ face sunk. “What? How can that be? What did I shoot?”

The lieutenant looked at the sheet again. “You had the 5^th highest score Carnes. You fired a 229.”

Carnes was about to storm out of the range when Sgt. Grainger stopped him. “Carnes, we need to see you in our office after you’ve cleaned your weapon. Everyone else, clean your weapon and we will see you tomorrow night.”

Frank and I cleaned our weapons then headed for the showers. I finished getting dressed as Frank came over. “Hey Lee congratulations, looks like we both made it.”

I shook his hand then gave him a high five. “Congrats to you too man. I wonder why they wanted to see your cousin.”

Frank was shaking his head as David came in. “Well Jennings, you ought to be real happy.”

“What are you talking about cuz?”

“What am I talking about cuz?” David yelled as he pushed Frank. “Your fudge packing buddy got me booted from the Academy.”

“What the fuck are you talking about David?” Frank asked as he shoved him back.

“You know exactly what I’m talking about,” Carnes hollered as he reached into his locker and pulled out an ASP.

“That’s enough Carnes,” a voice said. “Jennings didn’t say anything to us and neither did Barnes. You failed the written test. You’ve been so busy running off at the mouth putting down Lt. Jennings you didn’t bother to put forth any effort.”

Lt. Ambrose let the cat out of the bag to Frank. Carnes’ head snapped around. “Lt. Jennings? You mean he’s already on the department?”

Sgt Grainger walked over and took the metal baton out of his hand. “That’s right Carnes. He took the test 8 weeks ago when he was hired and passed it. He’d qualified with his weapon the same day. All he needed to do was learn Texas State law and San Antonio law.”

Carnes thought he’d play a trump card by outing me. “You mean you allow fudge packing queers on your department?”

I could see Sgt. Grainger turning red but Lt. Ambrose stepped in. “What a person does on his own time is their business. If it doesn’t affect their performance, it’s not a problem to the department.”

Carnes glared at me. “Carnes, if you had put forth as much effort studying as you did running you mouth, you’d have passed. You have the brains.”

Frank came over to me and extended his hand. “Congratulations Lee. I’ll see you tomorrow night. David, get your shit together and come on. Your Dad is going to have a fit over this.”

I looked at them. “Frank, who is his Dad?”

“His Dad is a city commissioner but this is one time he can’t pull strings.”

I didn’t want to be in his shoes when he got home. As Frank walked passed, he whispered into my ear. “His Dad is gay and David just can’t accept that.”

I just smiled and patted him on the shoulder. Sgt. Grainger came over then. “Lieutenant, is what David said true? I know it’s none of my business.”

I nodded my head. “Yeah Sergeant, it’s true. My boyfriend is in college and we’re foster parents too. Do you remember the shooting I was involved in?”

Lt. Ambrose nodded his head. “Yeah, I remember that. You did one hell of a job out there. Are you fostering those boys?”

“Yep,” I smiled. “The boys, Hans and I got close when we were in the hospital and they didn’t want to be separated nor did they want to be fostered by anyone else.”

Sgt. Grainger came over to me. “I’m gay too and my boyfriend is an officer here on the department. I heard part of what Carnes had said earlier and it had pissed me off. The last thing this department needed was a homophobic bigot but his personal beliefs were his and if he kept them out of here, we had no reason not to make him an officer provided he passed. When we got his test results back, that all became a moot point.”

Sgt. Grainger and I walked out of the locker room and Lt. Ambrose was standing there waiting. “Lee, since you’re now officially a member of this department, I have your assignment. You’re being assigned to Juvenile and I need you to follow us over to the Police Administration Building so we can issue you a vehicle.”

My eyes got big when I heard that. “What about my Hummer? I’m not leaving that here or out in the parking lot.”

He smiled then. “Don’t worry Lee; you can park it inside the locked fence where the other police cars are. That lot is never full so it won’t be a problem. You can come over and pick it up anytime.”

I felt a lot better. We walked outside and I followed them to the PAB. The first place we went was to the second floor where the Juvenile Division was. We walked inside and there were about 15 detectives. Some mulling around talking and others were at their desks. I followed Lt. Ambrose to an office. He knocked on it and a voice shouted, “Enter.”

We went inside and I looked at the man behind the desk. He reminded me a lot of the Provost Marshall I used to work for. The man looked up the stood, extending his hand. “I’m Capt. Blair. It’s nice to finally meet you Lt. Jennings. Please have a seat and try to relax.”

I shook the man’s hand then sat down. I saw Lt. Ambrose turn and leave with Sgt Grainger. “It’s just the jitters; I get them all the time. What are my duties?”

“Right now, we’re shorthanded so you will be on the street doing investigations. You’re also second in command. You’ll be working the day shift which is 7am to 7PM. You’ll be working 4 days a week with alternating weekends. Also, on my days off you’ll be running then division.”

I went from having the jitters to being out right petrified. “Did you say running the Division?”

“Relax Lee,” he said, using my first name. “I know your background. You’ve been in command before. I know you were a First Sergeant but you never wore the stripes but you had men under you since you were an E-5 Sergeant of the Guard. It will take a couple days to get up to speed but I’m confident you’ll do a great job. There are 3 other lieutenants in the division so you’re probably wondering why you are second in command. That’s simple, I’ve read your file and I like what I read in there. The other lieutenants are just waiting to retire and I don’t want my number two man to be just going through the motions. I know you’re not that type of person.

“Are you working this weekend?”

He nodded his head. “Yeah, this is my weekend.”

“Do you think I could come in for a little bit on Sunday and pick your brain and watch how you do things around here?”

He smiled as he nodded. “I knew I was right about you. Sure, come in anytime. By the way, here are the keys to your car. It’s the dark blue Crown Vic parked in spot J34.

“I still have my personal vehicle here. Lt. Ambrose said I could park it in the same lot.”

“Sure,” he said getting his jacket. “Park it in any spot the starts with the letter V. I’ll see you sometime on Sunday.”

We went down stairs then he followed me to my Hummer. “Nice vehicle Lee. How’d you like to use that as your department vehicle?”

I hadn’t thought about it and it could get me places where a Crown Vic couldn’t. “Is the department willing to put all the necessary equipment in it?”

Capt. Blair nodded his head. “Oh yeah Lee, we’ll even pay for the fuel and maintenance. We’ve found it’s more cost effective than buying new vehicles because the officers tend to take better care of them. I’ll take it over to the garage for you. They can have the work done in less than a day. In the mean time, use the Crown Vic I gave you.”

I pulled the Hummer into the back lot then moved my rifle into the Crown Vic. I grabbed my jacket and put it on so my weapon would be concealed. “Give me a call when it’s ready.”

He nodded his head. “Oh damn, I forgot to give you a charger for your hand held radio. Come back upstairs before you leave. There is one in the car and one will be put in your Hummer but you’ll need one at home. Your unit designation will be 1828.”

I parked the hummer and gave him the keys then drove the Crown Vic around to the front door. I got my charger then headed home. Before I left I called Hans and let him know I’d passed. He was very happy for me and said he’d have something special planned for dinner and desert. I had a pretty good idea what desert was.

When I got in the car, I looked it over so I knew where everything was. I looked on the dash and the package tray and didn’t see any lights. I flipped the lights on and then saw there were 2 on the passenger side visor. I got out and walked around the car noticing there were some hidden inside the grill and in the tail lights. I checked out the siren and then the radio. Once I was satisfied I knew where things were and how they worked, I headed home.

I was listening to all the calls then almost called in to respond to one then I remembered I was a detective and not a uniformed street officer. On the way home I passed the uniform shop then remembered I had not picked my uniforms up. I went in and showed the man my ID and he took me over to the fitting room then brought my uniforms out.

The first thing he handed me was my hat. I tried it on and it fit nicely but then I remembered Capt. Michaels only gave me 1 badge. I called his office and he told me to come by tomorrow morning and he’d issue me a hat badge. I went into a changing room and put on the uniform. I came out and looked at myself in the mirror and I was really impressed at how I looked. The short sleeved shirt had been tapered and it fit snuggly around my biceps. I swear I could almost see the guy drooling. “Lt. Jennings, you look good in that. The tailors did a very good job. How does the waist feel? It’s not too tight is it?”

I took in a deep breath then let it out. “Nope, the waist feels fine. Do you have my Sam Browne belt?”

He went into the back and got that then we put the accessories on it like I was used to. He handed me 5 keepers (they go around my uniform belt and the Sam Browne belt to keep it from riding up) and I put them in place. I liked the way the uniform felt. The next order of business was my shoes. He showed me several pairs and I went with the standard low quarter. Once I was satisfied with everything, I changed back into my street clothes then headed home.

I left the clothing store and took my time going home. I knew the boys had to walk two blocks from the bus stop to the house so I thought I’d surprise them with my police car. Just as I was about to turn onto our street, I saw the bus pulling away so I waited a few seconds before turning. I saw the boys walking home then noticed a group of 4 boys huddled together. One boy took a video camera out of his backpack and started filming themselves. Then another boy started walking ahead of the others as the one boy continued to tape.

I looked up and saw Jamie and Kevin walking with their arms around each other’s shoulders. The lone boy with the group was walking at a fast pace as if he was trying to catch up with Jamie and Kevin. I turned the AC off and rolled down the windows so I was able to hear what was going on. The boy caught up with Jamie and Kevin and I was getting a feeling this was not going to be a friendly chat. I stopped the car and listened to the conversation. I was far enough back I could hear everything but none of the boys were paying any attention to me instead they were watching the lone boy with Jamie and Kevin. “Well, well lookie what we have here.”

Jamie turned around to protect Kevin. “What the hell do you want Hank? You know you’re gonna get suspended if the headmaster hears about this?”

“Oh I’m shaking in my boots Janie,” the boy replied deliberately calling Jamie Janie. “What’s wrong, you can’t fight your own battles?”

Jamie shook his head. “It’s not that dumb ass and you know it. I just prefer not to fight.”

About this time, the other 3 boys caught up with the one called Hank. I eased up a little closer then put the car in park. I turned the volume on the radio down then grabbed my portable and put it in my back pocket. I got out of the car and closed the door quietly then watched. Hank stepped a little closer to Jamie. “Well I prefer TO fight. I love kicking the shit out of faggots.”

“What makes you think we’re gay?”

“Oh come on cocksucker,” Hank yelled. “I’ve seen the way you two look at each other.”

“Excuse me,” Kevin interrupted getting bolder. “Jamie and I are in different grades. But I’ve seen the way you check the boys out in the locker room and shower after PE so I’d watch who I called a fag if I were you.”

“Oooo Hank, he got ya dude.” The boy with the video camera said, getting in a dig.

“Shut your fucking mouth Sonny,” Hank spat. “I ain’t no fucking queer.”

Just then another of the boys popped up. “Is that so? Then how come you come out of the shower with a boner?”

Jamie and Kevin started laughing at that. Jamie had his eyes on Hank even though he was laughing. “Shut up Charlie and you two queers will get yours right now.”

Hank took a swing at Jamie but he pushed Kevin out or the way then side stepped the punch. He balled up his fist and let fly with a right that nailed Hank in the nose sending blood flying everywhere. He dropped to his knees holding his bleeding schnoz as tears started falling. “You cocksucker, you broke my nose. Just wait you bastard, I’ll get you for this.”

I ran up to the group just as everyone started to take off running. I reached out and managed to grab the boy with the video camera by the backpack. “Hey let go.”

Two of the other boys helped Hank up and they all ran off together. “Relax kid and don’t fight me.”

Just then, Jamie and Kevin came running over as I was leading the boy to my car. “Hey Pop,” Jamie said looking at my new wheels. “I didn’t start this.”

The boy tried to defend Hank’s actions. “Yes you did, I saw you. You tossed the first punch.”

I took the video camera out of his hand. “Is that what this will show then?”

“Gimmie that back,” the boy yelled. “Who are you, some pervert?”

Kevin went to him and flicked his ear. “You better watch what you say to my Dad!!”

The boy tried to get brave then. “So like father like son. Both of you are fucking fag perverts.”

I saw Kevin’s eyes get big as he walked over and grabbed the boy by the hair. “You better just shut your mouth right now before I put my fist in it,” he wailed as the tears started to fall. “This man here saved Jamie’s life after some bastard killed our real Dads.”

After he heard that his whole attitude changed. “Oh my god I didn’t know,” he said as he started to cry. “I’m so sorry. Can’t you forgive me but I can’t blame you if you don’t.”

I reached into my pocket and pulled out my ID. “Alright son, here’s the deal.”

His eyes got big. “I suppose you’re going to put me in jail for this, aren’t you?”

“Not necessarily,” I replied. “What’s your name and how old are you?”

The boy composed himself then stood up straight. “My name is Sonny Bates and I’m 14. My Dad is gonna kill me when he finds out I borrowed his video camera.”

“I’ll smooth things out with him,” I said as I opened the back door of my car. “Get in and we’ll talk about this at our house.”

Jamie and Kevin were looking around the car. The boys came over and Jamie was the first to hug me. “Wow Pop Lee, this is cool.”

They got inside then we were off to the house. I pulled into the drive way then I opened the back door because we keep the child locks on at all times. Sonny got out and looked around. “Nice house Lt. Jennings.”

I led Sonny inside and had him call his father. After several minutes Sonny handed me the phone. “My Dad wants to talk with you, sir.”

I took the phone from him as I saw Hans walk past with a tray that had some cookies and milk on it. “This is Lt. Jennings.”

“Lieutenant this is Sonny’s father, Calvin Bates” the man said. “You have my permission to do anything you want to him for this. If you want to take a strap to his ass, you have my permission.”

I wasn’t going to go that far with him and it scared me that a parent would give a total stranger that kind of permission, even if he was a police officer. “That won’t be necessary sir but I would like to talk to him about an incident he was involved in.”

“He what?” Calvin shouted into the phone. “Where do you live sir?”

I gave him my address. “Calm down sir, your son wasn’t directly involved.”

“Thank you for calling Lt. Jennings and I’ll be over in a few minutes.”

I hung up then went into the living room. “Sonny, rewind the video please, I’d like to see it?”

He took the tape out and handed it to me. “Here you go sir. Umm, was he really pissed at me?”

I nodded my head. “Yeah he was a little.”

Sonny’s smile left his face and he looked worried. “I knew it, he’s really gonna kill me.”

Now my concern went from the attempted assault of Jamie to the possible abuse of this child. “Sonny, has he ever hit you before?”

He looked around and saw the boys looking at him. His eyes then dropped to the floor and he shook his head. “Umm, no sir, he’s never hit me.”

I lifted his chin. “Sonny, is that the truth?”

I heard a car’s tires squeal to a stop outside and I knew who that was. Sonny looked at me then shook his head. “No sir, he has hit me before. He’s gonna strap my butt good this time.”

There was a loud bang on the front door. “Boys, take Sonny up to your room and don’t come down unless I call you.”

The boys took him by the hand then headed up the stairs while I went and answered the front door.

I opened the front door and was face to face with a drunken jerk. He staggered two steps then grabbed on to the door frame. “Excoose me Lt. Jennings, I’m Calvin Bates. I’ve come to pick up my schoon.”

To be continued...

Posted: 05/30/08