The commissioner knocked on the
door frame. "Hi, Gwen. How are you doing?"
"Oh, about the same as when
you were here a half hour ago," She answered with a smirk.
"I'd like to talk with you
about the task force for minute, if I can."
She raised the head of her bed a
little more. "Of course. What's up?"
"Well as you know, Greg's
eyesight is starting to return. He may not get his full eyesight back, however.
I've convinced him to stay on and help train new recruits, should, God forbid,
that be the case. With the exception of his eyesight, he's made a full
recovery.
"With you making a full
recovery, that just leaves Kevin. Should his paralysis, and again God forbid,
be permanent, I have a couple of ideas how he can still be a contributing
member of the task force and the police department." Gwen's raised eyebrow
prompted him to continue. "The first would be to send him to forensics
school and put him in the lab."
"He wouldn't like that.
Although forensic science fascinates him, he'd be restricted to only working on
our cases that need forensics. Plus, he'd have to work outside cases that may
have a higher priority."
"You just said basically
the same thing Greg said. The other idea would be to make him a researcher for
the task force."
"Researcher?" Gwen asked,
her curiosity piqued.
"Yes. He'd research
criminal backgrounds, case histories anything and everything involved with the
active cases. I've noticed he has a good analytical mind. I think he'd be a
great asset to the task force. This is something I've wanted to do for a long
time, but I just didn't have the manpower."
"You know what,
Commissioner? I think he'd really like that, even if he does get the use of his
legs back."
"Up to visiting your
brother?"
"You bet!" As quickly
as she was able, she was up and out of the bed, grabbing for her robe.
Peeking into his room revealed a
sleeping Kevin. "We'll do this later, Gwen." The commissioner
whispered.
"I'm not asleep. Come on
in." Kevin said, slowly opening his eyes.
Gwen sat in the chair closest to
the bed while the commissioner walked around to the other side, placing his
hand on Kevin's shoulder. "How're you doing, son?"
"As well as can be
expected." A lone tear escaped his right eye. "The doctors have told
me at this point it's extremely unlikely I'll ever walk again. Looks like my
career as a cop is over." He said softly.
"Not if you don't want it
to be." Kevin shot a startled look at the commissioner. "You're a
good cop and have been an asset to the task force. I don't want to lose you. I
have a couple of ideas I'd like to run by you."
"Okay," he said
slowly.
"Your sister has told me
how much you love working with the task force and how dedicated you are. My
first idea is to send you to forensics school and put you in the lab. The
upside of this is that you'll still be actively involved in some of the cases.
The downside is that you'll only be involved in cases when the lab has to
process evidence.
"Also, you may have to push
task force cases aside temporarily in favor of higher priority cases." The
look on Kevin's face pretty much confirmed what everyone thought his reaction
would be to that idea. "The other idea is to make you a researcher."
"A researcher?"
"Yes. You'd be looking into
backgrounds of the suspects and victims, looking for any kind of criminal
records. You'd also be searching for anything connected to the crime scene,
evidence, people involved and so on. You could use that sharp mind of yours to
analyze any and all information collected by yourself and the task force, and maybe,
just maybe, discover something they have missed."
A glimmer of hope shown in his
eyes. "Can I really do this?"
"I don't know. Can you? The
choice is yours."
Kevin looked at Gwen who smiled
and nodded encouragingly. "Okay. Sounds good. What do I have to do?"
"Get yourself out of here, Sergeant Jordan." Both Gwen and
Kevin shot the commissioner startled looks. "Your official title will be
Research Analyst. We'll have an ADA compliant office built for you in the task
force squad room, which we're going to be expanding anyway. The increased case
load requires additional personnel. A squad car will be modified for your
exclusive use. You will answer only to Lieutenant
Peters and Captain Jordan. And, of
course, myself. You will only be required to work task force cases. You may, at
your discretion and caseload permitting, assist other departments."
Sharp intakes of breath and
expressions of disbelief followed the commissioner's statement. Gwen's mouth
dropped open so far that you could drive an 18-wheeler in, turn it around with
plenty of room and drive it back out. "I told you I was thinking of
restructuring the task force. Does this meet with your approval, Captain?" Gwen could only nod.
"Kevin, I'll have our IT
guy come in and talk about what you want for a computer system and I'll have
furnishings management talk with you and your doctor about what kind of
furniture you'll need. You'll have complete access to all police case files,
archives, DMV, and public records. I want everything set and ready for when
you're released back to duty."
"I don't know what to
say," Kevin said in a voice choked with emotion. When the doctors told him
that it was extremely likely that he'd never walk again he became depressed
over not being a cop anymore. Now he was able to continue in a job he loved,
although in a capacity he never expected.
"Your facial expressions
say it all. I'll leave you to talk over things. I'm looking forward to having
the three of you back to work. See you later."
"Bye Commissioner and thank
you so much."
"Yes, thank you
Commissioner."
"You're both welcome."
Right after the commissioner
left, Dr. Sims, the neurologist assigned to Kevin's case came in. "Kevin,
how are you feeling today?" Anticipating bad news, he simply shrugged.
"Gwen, could you give us a few minutes please?"
"Sure I'll be right
outside."
"Okay, Kevin. Let's take a
look at you." The doctor stripped the covers off him. "Can you wiggle
your toes for me?" After a few seconds Kevin shook his head. "Can you
lift your legs?" Same result. "Okay, how about your hips." This
Kevin was able to do. "Let's try touch sensation. Let me know if you feel
anything."
The doctor touched his groin,
hips and various points along his legs and feet. With the exception of the
groin and hips, Kevin felt nothing. Doctor Sims covered him back up and called
Gwen back into the room. Sitting down, he delivered his prognosis. "I'm
afraid all indications are that the paralysis is permanent. I'm so sorry,
Kevin." This is so fucked up. The
kid's only 22 and now he's going to have to spend the rest of his life in a
wheelchair.
Kevin was devastated, even
though he pretty much expected the diagnosis. It was one thing to expect it, a
completely different thing to hear it said. His world was coming apart at the
seams. What am I going to do now? No more
bike riding. No more rugby. The one thought that hurt most of all was, no more Perry. Huge wracking sobs
practically shook him apart as he reached for his sister, who was equally
hysterical.
Completely spent, they fell into
the sleep normally associated with the emotionally exhausted. About an hour
later, they woke to see their parents, Harry and Phyllis Jordan, sitting in
chairs watching their beloved children sleep, completely unaware of Kevin's
diagnosis. "Mom. Dad. Hi. Kevin, mom and dad are here."
A weak 'hi' was about all he
could manage. His mother sidled up to him and took his hand in hers. "How
are you doing, my darling son?" The floodgates opened again and he was
rendered speechless. She turned to first her husband then her daughter,
completely bewildered by Kevin's unexpected reaction.
Gwen reached out to both
parents. "Mom, dad, Kevin and I just found out that his paralysis is
permanent." Predictably, Phyllis fell apart and was pulled into her
husband's arms who himself was distraught over the news.
In a shaky voice Phyllis asked,
"Does Perry know?" Both parents were very proud of both their
children and they supported them 100%. They both loved Perry as one of their
own and couldn't think of a better person to be Kevin's boyfriend of 3 years.
“No. We just found out about it
ourselves.” Gwen answered.
“He’s supposed to come by this
evening when he gets off from work. I’m not sure I want him to now.” Kevin said
sadly.
“Why not, son?” His father
asked, getting in to the conversation.
“Do you really think he’ll want
to have deal with not being able to hold me, go bike riding, and play rugby,
all the things we used to do? I doubt it. He needs to move on with his life and
find someone who can do all those things.”
Only Phyllis noticed Perry
standing in the doorway listening, his eyes moist. “What if I don’t want to
move and find somebody else just because you’re paralyzed? Do you really think
I’m that shallow, that the only reason I’m with you doing all these things
because I just want to fuck you? No, baby, I’m not. I love you for you, not for
the things we do together. They’re just icing on the cake.
“I can still hold you. So what
if we have to be horizontal instead of vertical.” Perry got a wicked gleam in
his eye. “Besides, being horizontal is more fun. Seriously, though, I enjoy
bike riding with you more than playing rugby. When I get through playing I feel
like I’ve been smashed flat by a steamroller, even though I do like rugby.
“Did you know that they make a
special bike that is pedaled using your arms? It’s made especially for people
who are paralyzed from the waist down. We can get you one of those.”
“That’s all well and good, but
what about getting into and out of my apartment? Cooking, cleaning, showering,
all that kind of stuff.”
“I’m sure we can do something
about that.” Phyllis jumped in. “In the meantime you can come stay with us.
It’ll be easier since everything is on the ground floor.”
“Ah, mom? You may have changed
my diapers when I was a baby, but in case you hadn’t noticed I’ve kinda grown
up. I’m not sure I could handle you showering me, wiping my ass, that sort of
thing.”
“I think that’s where I come in,
baby. I’ve seen you naked in the locker room many times so I don’t think you’d have
a problem with me helping you take a shower. As far as wiping your ass goes,
I’m pretty sure you can handle that on your own.”
“There is some good news that
goes along with all of this.” Gwen interjected. “Sergeant Jordan is still going to be with the task force. He has a
new job, Research Analyst.” She went on to explain what the job entailed.
“That’s awesome, baby. I know
how much the task force means to you. I love you so much and I’m so happy for
you.” Perry climbed onto the bed and pulled Kevin into his arms. “See? I can
still hold you.”
Gwen said, “I don’t think anyone
really heard what I said, so I’ll expand on it. The commissioner has decided to
restructure the task force. It will be headed up by Captain Jordan,” she pointed to herself. “Training and recruitment
will be handled by Lieutenant Peters,
and Sergeant Jordan,” she pointed to
Kevin, “will play a very valuable part as Research Analyst.”
Everyone stood gaping when they
heard about the promotions. All pandemonium broke loose. Kevin couldn’t help
but smile. Perry was still part of his life. With all the support he was
getting, he knew he’d be okay.
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