Vigilante Justice

The squeal from the police scanner woke Harry from a deep sleep. He scanned the room unsure where he was.

“Officer down in Gateway Center,” the voice coming from the scanner brought Harry back. “Gunman headed toward Point State Park,” a female voice said.

Harry jumped out of bed and quickly dressed. Harry plugged in his earpiece, grabbed the portable scanner and walked out the door.

It was dark by the time Harry got over the river into the city. He stepped quickly toward the park, the last known direction of the gunman. Flashing lights surrounded the park’s entrance. Harry took the Three Rivers Heritage Trail along the river to avoid being noticed. Getting busted for being a good Samaritan wouldn’t look good. Good Samaritan, hell. This was vigilante justice.

The closer he got to the fountain at the point, Harry saw a shadow of a man sitting on a bench. He was taking to himself, but Harry couldn’t make out what he was saying. He must have sensed Harry behind him and began to jog away from the fountain.

Harry saw him trip on the step and fall to the ground. A uniformed officer rushed in and slapped the cuffs of him. He screamed that his nose was broken as the cop led him toward the flashing lights.

Herry exited the park withing being noticed. Ducking into a bar until the commotion died down, whisky never tasted so sweet.