Dead of Winter

Louis looked back at him over his shoulder. “No, sir.”

The chief came back to stand before Louis. “Could you?”

“Yes,” Louis said. “But I hope I never have to.”

The chief smiled.

He was blowing this. He could feel it.

“You ever had to fire your weapon at a human being?” the chief asked.

“No, sir.”

“Ever been reprimanded?”

“Once.”

“What for?”

Shit. Keep it simple. “Insubordination.”

“Define insubordination.”

Louis wet his lips. “I did something – ”

“I don’t care what you did. Define the word.”

“Technically, it’s a refusal to carry out a direct order by a superior.”

The chief shook his head, smiling. “It’s not as simple as that.”

What was simple with this guy?

“When an officer chooses a course that is not aligned with that of his commander then that is mutiny of sorts. And that is not acceptable. Do you understand?”

Louis nodded.

The chief turned abruptly, going back behind his desk. He grabbed the pack of Camels and pulled out a fresh one. “These are rules and listen good,” he said. “First, never tell me smoking is bad for my health. You’ll get a suspension the first time and I’ll fire your ass the second time.”

He was hired. Shit, that was all?

“Sir, will there be an oral board?”

“I am the oral board.”

“Testing?”

“You passed it once, didn’t you?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Second rule, you will always wear a full uniform. That includes your gun. I catch you out of uniform, I’ll suspend you. You’ll be issued all your leather. You own a.357?”

“No, sir, a thirty-eight.”

“In this department everyone carries the same weapon. That’s the third rule.”

Louis suppressed a sigh. He couldn’t afford a new weapon.

“We’ll give you one at twenty-five dollars a week,” the chief said. “You damn well better last long enough to pay it off. And don’t lose it. It’ll cost you five hundred dollars to replace it.”

Plus I’ll be suspended, Louis thought.

“Plus you’ll be suspended.” The chief paused, his eyes seeming to warm a bit. “Loon Lake is a good clean place, Kincaid,” he said. “And this is a good clean department. We may be small in size but not in spirit. These men are top-notch officers, all good honest cops. And we are a tight unit.” He pointed to a small plaque on the wall. “We have a motto here. Gens una sumus.”

Louis waited but no translation seemed forthcoming. “Latin, sir?”

“Yes. ‘We are one family.’ Never forget it. Your fellow officers are your brothers.”

Louis nodded. The chief went to the door and opened it. “Firearms testing is the first Thursday of every month. You fail you go on suspension. Any questions?”

“None that I can’t ask the other officers.”

“Let’s go then. I’ll turn you over to McGuire.”

Louis followed him to the outer officer. Dale jumped up and came hurrying over.

“We share desks here,” the chief said. “This is yours for the day shift. It’s Ollie’s at night. That’s Ollie over there, sucking down the caffeine. Wickshaw, say hello to our new man, Kincaid.”

The tall skinny man at the coffee pot nodded. Louis nodded back.

“McGuire will get you started on your paperwork,” the chief said. “You need to go home and get your things?”

Louis glanced at the wall clock. It was after eight. He would have to stay the night. “Yes, sir.”

“Fine, you can start Monday morning.” The chief thrust out his hand. “Welcome to the force. I hope you’ll be happy here.” He smiled. It was a frosty effort, but not completely forced.

Louis shook his hand. “Thank you, sir.”

The chief walked back into his office, closing the door. Louis stared at the door. The chief was an odd bird, what with the French and the quotes. He was also a bit too spit-and-polish but he seemed to lean in the right direction and that was all that mattered.

Louis surveyed the room, the fireplace, the tinsel-draped computer, the photograph of Thomas Pryce. He felt a twinge of guilt that another cop had to die to make his chance here possible. But it felt right, this town and this job. For the first time in his life, things felt right.

“Welcome to Loon Lake, Louis.”

Louis shook Dale McGuire’s hand. “Thanks. You know, no one told me the chief’s name.”

“Gibralter.”

“Like the rock?”

Dale smiled. “Yeah, Brian Gibralter. But don’t ever call him Brian. Or God forbid, Rocky. Nothing will get you suspended quicker.”

Louis rubbed his face, suddenly tired. “I can’t believe there’s no test, no oral board.”

“That’s the way he does things.”

“But fifteen minutes? What can he tell about me in fifteen minutes? What did he do with the other candidates?”

“He only saw three,” Dale said. “He kept telling me none of them looked right.”

“What?”

Dale’s eyes drifted to the photograph of Thomas Pryce. Louis followed his gaze.

“He hired me because I’m black?” Louis asked. “What, to fill some quota or something?”

“Hell, no,” Dale said quickly. “Chief doesn’t care about that stuff. You must have just said something in there he liked.” He nodded toward the photograph. “Like him.”

Louis shook his head. “I don’t follow.”