“You're looking really good. I don't think I've seen you since your dad's funeral.”
“Yeah, I was thinking that same thing earlier today. That day seems like such a long time ago…sometimes anyway.”
“That was a sad day…”
“Yeah. Losing him was pretty hard to take,” I admit.
“For everyone.”
“I never really heard much of the details of what happened that day—I mean, the day he got shot. I guess it was because I was only twelve, just a kid you know. Maybe no one thought I should hear about it.”
“But you're curious now?”
“Yeah, wouldn't you be?”
She nods. “You bet I would.”
“That's not why I called you today. But I guess… just because—”
“Would you like to hear my story about that day, Samantha?”
“I kinda would.”
So she begins to tell me about how it was just a typical day. “It was midmorning, quiet, nothing much going on. We got the call at 10:43. A neighbor was complaining about the house next door and how they'd been making a lot of noise. We went in thinking it would just be a routine investigation— we'd write out a warning and be done with it. But when we got to the house, I got this feeling that something was amiss.”
She glances at me now, almost as if she wants to see if I'm tracking with her. So I nod and she continues. “I toldCliff that I was worried, but he didn't seem too concerned. And to be honest, it wasn't anything I could really put my finger on. Just a feeling, you know?”
“I know…” 3
“Anyway, we knocked on the front door, and no one answered. But we heard a grinding noise that seemed to o be coming frorm beneath the house. So we walked around and discovered a side entrance with a steep, narrow staircase that went down into what we figured must be a basement. The noise was coming from down there. I started to go down first, but Cliff said that he would lead the way. And since he was the senior officer, I didn't argue. But still I was worried. And although Cliff didn't remove his gun, I decided to have mine ready, just in case.”
She takes a deep breath as she turns into the deli parking lot, then parks the car and shuts off the engine. She turns to me and removes her sunglasses. I can see tears in her eyes.
“It gets a little blurry here, Samantha. It all happened so fast. But Cliff knocked and no one answered. Then he tried the door and found it unlocked. He barely had it open when the shots went off. I shot and wounded the man with the gun. The other man just put his hands up, and then I called for backup. I did what I was trained to do, but I've never been so scared in my life. And the hardest thing I've ever seen was your dad just lying there, not moving.”
She reaches over and puts her hand on my arm. “If I could've done anything differently…if I could've changed the outcome…! would've. I've pfeyed this scene over andover in my head, and my only one regret is that I didn't listen to that feeling—that sense that something was wrong.”
“Why didn't you?” I ask in a quiet voice.
“Because I'm a cop, Samantha. And I was a rookie cop at that. We weren't trained to listen to our feelings. We were trained to act and to react. To remain in control and to follow the book. But now things are starting to change.” A faint smile lights up her dark brown eyes. “And in my line of work, I've learned to rely on intuition even more.”
She opens the car door. “You hungry?”
As we walk toward Rosie's, I mentally replay what she's just told me. Although I'm relieved to hear some of this, it's also really hard. I wasn't prepared for this. As we go inside the deli, I'm surprised at how familiar it feels. I'm sure I haven't been here since Dad was alive. It almost feels like I'm going to start'cryihg. I hope I don't. “Dad really liked this place,” I say in a slightly gruff voice as we step up to the counter.
“Yeah, I know.”
We place our order. I get the pastrami and Swiss on rye, just like Dad used to. And
“Yeah, I was thinking that same thing earlier today. That day seems like such a long time ago…sometimes anyway.”
“That was a sad day…”
“Yeah. Losing him was pretty hard to take,” I admit.
“For everyone.”
“I never really heard much of the details of what happened that day—I mean, the day he got shot. I guess it was because I was only twelve, just a kid you know. Maybe no one thought I should hear about it.”
“But you're curious now?”
“Yeah, wouldn't you be?”
She nods. “You bet I would.”
“That's not why I called you today. But I guess… just because—”
“Would you like to hear my story about that day, Samantha?”
“I kinda would.”
So she begins to tell me about how it was just a typical day. “It was midmorning, quiet, nothing much going on. We got the call at 10:43. A neighbor was complaining about the house next door and how they'd been making a lot of noise. We went in thinking it would just be a routine investigation— we'd write out a warning and be done with it. But when we got to the house, I got this feeling that something was amiss.”
She glances at me now, almost as if she wants to see if I'm tracking with her. So I nod and she continues. “I toldCliff that I was worried, but he didn't seem too concerned. And to be honest, it wasn't anything I could really put my finger on. Just a feeling, you know?”
“I know…” 3
“Anyway, we knocked on the front door, and no one answered. But we heard a grinding noise that seemed to o be coming frorm beneath the house. So we walked around and discovered a side entrance with a steep, narrow staircase that went down into what we figured must be a basement. The noise was coming from down there. I started to go down first, but Cliff said that he would lead the way. And since he was the senior officer, I didn't argue. But still I was worried. And although Cliff didn't remove his gun, I decided to have mine ready, just in case.”
She takes a deep breath as she turns into the deli parking lot, then parks the car and shuts off the engine. She turns to me and removes her sunglasses. I can see tears in her eyes.
“It gets a little blurry here, Samantha. It all happened so fast. But Cliff knocked and no one answered. Then he tried the door and found it unlocked. He barely had it open when the shots went off. I shot and wounded the man with the gun. The other man just put his hands up, and then I called for backup. I did what I was trained to do, but I've never been so scared in my life. And the hardest thing I've ever seen was your dad just lying there, not moving.”
She reaches over and puts her hand on my arm. “If I could've done anything differently…if I could've changed the outcome…! would've. I've pfeyed this scene over andover in my head, and my only one regret is that I didn't listen to that feeling—that sense that something was wrong.”
“Why didn't you?” I ask in a quiet voice.
“Because I'm a cop, Samantha. And I was a rookie cop at that. We weren't trained to listen to our feelings. We were trained to act and to react. To remain in control and to follow the book. But now things are starting to change.” A faint smile lights up her dark brown eyes. “And in my line of work, I've learned to rely on intuition even more.”
She opens the car door. “You hungry?”
As we walk toward Rosie's, I mentally replay what she's just told me. Although I'm relieved to hear some of this, it's also really hard. I wasn't prepared for this. As we go inside the deli, I'm surprised at how familiar it feels. I'm sure I haven't been here since Dad was alive. It almost feels like I'm going to start'cryihg. I hope I don't. “Dad really liked this place,” I say in a slightly gruff voice as we step up to the counter.
“Yeah, I know.”
We place our order. I get the pastrami and Swiss on rye, just like Dad used to. And
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