Scarier than Evil: Chapter 5 – The Law at Work

Chapter 5 – The Law at Work

In the police radio of my car, I hear nonstop reports of riots and violence aided by superhumans who are going after people whose dirt that Edoardo leaked on the internet. I turn it off since it’s giving me a headache and focus on talking to the people at the nearby precinct who are tracking Edoardo and seeing where he’s going while sending armed and available officers after him. From what I hear, Edoardo isn’t hiding and is taking part in the chaos he is starting by going after politicians, officers, and high-end criminals on the list he gave to the public.

His followers have hacked the speakers in the city to play a recording of him that says, “Rise up! Put to death those who have escaped justice and pervert it!”

After I arm up and get my armor on at a nearby precinct, I get a call that tells me Edoardo’s exact location, so I rush there to city hall and find police, heroes, and vigilantes fighting other police, heroes, and vigilantes. The people we’re up against are those I’ve come across and worked with at one point or another. These heroes, vigilantes, and officers were once beacons of justice, and now, they seem no different than criminals and anarchists who want to break and bend the law to their will, and yet, I can’t help but understand why they’re doing this. Still, there’s no negotiating with them. There’s only fighting for what we believe in, knowing ourselves to be right while knocking down the other thinking they’re in the wrong.

In this case, I don’t think there’s a shadow of a doubt that I’m right because of all the chaos, but I won’t pretend that my enemy is completely villainous and doing this for evil reasons. Rather, their reasoning is flawed and a result of injustice, which makes this all a tragedy. Nevertheless, I have a job to do and a city to protect, whether they are innocent or guilty. I take out two assault rifles from my car, one loaded with anti-superhuman rounds and the other loaded with normal bullets, and start firing at those I once considered coworkers without hesitation, as my dad and Salvatore taught me. Thanks to us outnumbering them, my allies are able to push back the people we’re fighting against so we can enter city hall.

Inside, I’m somewhat surprised to see Alex and Kurtis entering from the opposite side, with cops and superhumans aiding them as well. I fight to get to them and help them out while they’re pinned down. Once together, we can’t say a word until another wave of opposition comes from the upper floors.

“We knew you’d be here and need our help. It’s why we’re here, by the way,” Kurtis says.

“You can thank us later. We have to bring down your uncle before he can do any more damage,” Alex adds.

“Then let’s push back and get to him! Drinks will be on me!” I say.

The three of us move forward as a three-man squad, each of us picking targets that suit us. Kurtis uses his lighter guns to take care of the normal humans, Alex uses his heavy machine gun to tear through the superhumans, and I use my assault rifles to take care of both. With the help of our allies, we push forward to the upper floors of the building. I see Edoardo entering one of the rooms and chase after him while everyone else covers me to take care of Edoardo’s backup. In the room I find Edoardo in, I see two other injured people, one who is a well-dressed official while the other is a man in body armor. I’m about to shoot my uncle until I realize that my guns are empty, and he shoots the rifles out of my hands and points his pistols at the two injured people on the floor.

“These two people are a good representation of what I’m fighting against, nephew. One is a police commander who gets rid of evidence of his crimes for himself and his friends, while his friend here pays him to do so with the money he makes in drug, weapon, and human trafficking. Both of these men have escaped justice for years and deserve to die here, and now, and yet, you would protect them because they haven’t had a fair trial or didn’t pull a weapon on you,” Edoardo says. “Explain to me the logic in that.”

“The system isn’t perfect, but it prevents chaos like this. Cops are killing cops, heroes are tearing each other apart, and friends who once worked together are now at each other’s throats,” I say.

“That’s what was happening anyway. I accelerated the conflict and made bare the true enemies we should fight against.”

“Is this what you call justice? Don’t you think that innocents will be killed if anyone just exposes another person with or without legitimate evidence?”

“It’s worth it when no one in or outside of the law gets what they deserve like these pieces of human filth!”

“You’re a cop! You’re supposed to be an enforcer of justice, not judge, jury, and executioner!”

“This is me enforcing justice!”

Edoardo is about to shoot the two criminals on the floor, but I use my enhanced reflexes to draw my magnum and shoot him, the force of the bullet sending him flying into a nearby desk and dropping his guns. I walk up to him and am about to fire the final shot.

With a smile, Edoardo looks up, smiles at me, and says, “Will you change the system? Make sure the guilty are punished and innocents protected?”

“I will, uncle,” I say.

“Heh, I hope so, my nephew.”

My uncle dies with a smile on his face without me having to take the final shot, thanks be to God. Chief Bernardo rushes into the room, sees what happened, and laments not being here earlier.

“You shouldn’t have been the one to do it. I’m sorry. He was my friend, my brother, my responsibility,” he says.

“He was my uncle, but also, it doesn’t matter our personal relation to him. Justice was carried out, and much more needs to be done today,” I say.

“What about those two, bleeding out on the floor?”

“Call an ambulance for them. I’m sure the hospital will be full of men who don’t deserve mercy like them.”

For the next couple of weeks, the chaos that Edoardo started gets cleaned up by the police and our allies in our city. However, his chaos has spread to other cities since he exposed people beyond us, but since my responsibility is to care for the people within my city, I try not to worry about what’s happening in other places. Public trust in the police and authorities and thirst for justice is somewhat satiated after Edoardo’s ill-gotten evidence of digital paper trails and witness testimonies are reviewed by independent and legitimate authorities, and the people on his list are brought to justice, either executed or given lengthy sentences. By the end of it, I’m beyond tired and given a week’s vacation by Chief Bernardo, who tries not to blame himself for what his best friend did and yet is constantly working as a self-imposed penance.

While leaving the precinct, one of the cops who will be filling in for me comes up to me and says, “Hey, you’re Renzo! You don’t remember me, but we fought alongside one another during the riots. I’ll try to live up to the amazing things you’ve done!”

“Thanks,” I say, being completely taken off guard by the man’s words. “Try not to get in over your head.”

“Yes, sir!”

Outside, I receive more compliments from civilians who call me a hero and wave at me from people who think I saved the city. The compliments are nice and make me feel better, but they’re not the reason why I’m an officer. I do it because it’s what I think God wants me to do and to protect those who can’t protect themselves. It’s not a perfect job, and it’s not full of honest, good people. What job is? When I get home, I crash on the couch and receive kisses from my family as usual. As I look at their smiling faces, I’m reminded of the blessings in life that I’m thankful for, both small and big, and relax so that I’m ready to go out and do my job as a protector and enforcer of justice during my next day of work.

 

The End