Special Ops: Revenge

Marcus Brewer had just gotten home from his DOD security job. He had retired from the navy 6 months ago as an E-9 Master Chief. Being a former SEAL, he had no problem getting on with the government working security. His military training with the special forces had made him a valuable asset in evaluating possible security breeches and how to tighten the belt, so to speak. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and was about to put it on the counter when it began to vibrate. He looked down at the cller ID and noticed a strange number. He answered it.

“Hello, this is Brewer.” He barked.

“Mr. Brewer, this is Detective Simmons with the Norfolk PD. We need you to come to Norfolk General Hospital. There’s been an incident involving your daughter.”

Marcus was stunned. “Is she okay? What happened.?”

The voice hessitated for a second. “I’ll explain it all when you get her. She’s okay, but you need to get here.”

Marcus rubbed his forehead. “Okay, I’m on my way.” He hung up the phone, grabbed his keys and headed back out the door. On his way to the car, he called his wife.

“Hey Babe. I’m on my way home now.” Nicole said as she answered his call.

“Nicole? Something has happened to Ashley. Meet me at Norfolk General.” He told her.

“What happened to our girl?” Nicole demanded.

“I don’t know. They said she’s okay, but meet me there. They’ll explain when we arrive.”

A shaky voice replied “Okay. I’m on my way.”

Marcus ended the call and got in his car and drove as quickly as the law would allow to the hospital. He pulled in right behind his wife. They got out and walked into the ER together. As he they entered the lobby, a large framed African American man came walking up to them.

“Mr. & Mrs. Brewer?” He looked for confirmation. “I’m Detective Simmons. I hate to inform you, but your daughter has been sexually assaulted.”

Nicole turned and buried her head into her husband’s chest. “Oh no.” she cried.”

Detective Simmons continued. “She was found down by Smuggler’s Point. Her clothes were torn and she was unconscious. Some good Samaritan’s saw her and called 911.” Marcus took in the information. His years of training put his mind into overdrive as he processed it.

Simmons continued. “The Doctor’s examined her when she came in and determined that she had been assaulted. They are doing a Rape exam collecting any evidence left behind. At this time, we don’t have any leads or suspects.”

Marcus nodded his understanding. He new how law enforcement worked. They’d do the customary investigation, but after a few days, if nothing turns up, it will get put on the back burner. No knock against the police, it’s just how it is. Heavy case loads warranted this. If they did find something, then they would keep investigating

“When can we see her?” He asked.

Simmons turned to a nurse who nodded at him. “We can take you back now.” He turned and the Brewers followed him into the hallway leading to the Trauma rooms. He stopped outside of one and gestured to the doorway. Marcus and Nicole walked in. Their daughter Ashley was sitting on the bed in a hospital gown with her knees pulled up and her arms pulling them tightly into her. Nicole ran to her baby girl.

Ashley began to cry as her mother hugged her. “Oh Baby, are you okay?” Ashley hugged her Mom back. She nodded her head and kept crying.

Simmons stepped over beside them. “Ashley? I know this has been tough on you, but I need to ask you a few questions. Can we do that?” he said in a smooth and gentle tone. She wiped the tears off her cheeks. “Yeah.” she quietly muttered.

“Is there anything you can tell me about who did this to you? What they looked like? What kind of car they were driving? Anything at all can be helpful.”

Ashley looked at her Dad then back to Simmons. “I think there were two of them.” She sobbed and wiped her nose with the back of her hand. ”After school, I had walked with my friend Denise over to her house. Around 4;30 I left to walk home. I stopped at the Jiffy Mart and got me a Coke. I came out and started heading home when someone hit me from behind knocking me down. They put a sack or a pillow case or something over my head and threw me into a car. One of them held me down in the backseat. I tried to fight them off but I couldn’t.”

Simmons wrote down the info on his note pad. “Is there anything else you can remember?”

Ashley looked at her Dad again. His eyes were stone cold as he listened to her details. “I think the car was red. One of the guys I think had long blond hair. That’s about all that I saw.”

“Anything else?”

“No. We drove for about 10 minutes then stopped. They pulled me out of the car, threw me on the ground and ripped my clothes. One of them held me down and the other one raped me. Then they switched. At some point I passed out. Next thing I knew, I was in the ambulance.”

“Okay Ashley. That is a lot of detail you’ve given us.”

Ashley looked down on the bed, then suddenly lifted her head. “The car was loud. The exhaust. Like a hot rod or something.”

Simmons placed his hand on Nicole’s shoulder as she sat next to Ashley. “That’s good Ashley. If you think of anything else, give me a call.” Simmons turned to Marcus and handed him a business card. “If she thinks of anything else, give me a call. I’m sorry we had to meet this way.”

Marcus extended out his right hand. “Thank you Detective. We’ll let you know if anything else comes to light.”

Detective Simmons walked out of the room. A few minutes later, a nurse came in with the discharge paperwork. She handed it to Nicole and went over the Doctor’s instructions. Another nurse brought in a set of hospital scrubs. Ashley went into the attached restroom to change into them.

Nicole looked at Marcus. “Do you think they will find the guys who did this?”

“I doubt it” Marcus reluctantly replied. “She gave some good info, but nothing conclusive. If they don’t turn anything up within a day or two, it will be put on the back burner.”

Nicole let out a defeated sigh. “So they get away with this?”

Marcus pulled his wife in for a hug. “I didn’t say that.”

Nicole had a serious look on her face. “Marcus? When you caught me having an affair, the day you confronted me, you made John, our neighbor die from an allergic reaction. Make these guys pay for what they’ve done.”

Marcus started to protest and state his innocence. Nicole cut him off.

“I know it was you. I know you did it for us. I was wrong cheating on you and someone had to pay. Make these guys pay dearly.”

Marcus looked her in the eyes. “I will Honey. I will.”

The bathroom door opened and Ashley came back into the room. Marcus put his arm around her and walked her out to Nicole’s car. He opened the passenger side door for her and she got in. Marcus went to his vehicle and followed them home.

Marcus took time off from work. The second day after the attack, he called Detective Simmons.

“Detective Simmons? This is Marcus Brewer.”

“Hello Marcus. How is Ashley doing?” He inquired.

“She’s doing better. Still a little shook up over the events, but she’s hanging in there.”

“Good, good. What can I do for you?”

Marcus got right to the point. “Any leads on her case?”

“No, I’m sorry to say. We checked the Jiffy Mart. They have cameras but only in the store. We canvassed the area and no one saw anything.” Simmons sounded dejected.

“So what happens now?”

“We’ll keep the case open but unless we find something else, there’s not much we can do.”

“I understand” Marcus said. “Well, thank you for your time.”

“Sure thing Mr. Brewer. And again, I’m sorry this had to happen.”

Marcus hung up the phone. He grabbed his keys and headed out the door. He hollered to Nicole and Ashley. “I’m going out for a bit. I’ll be back.” He heard a muffled “Okay” from somewhere in the back of the house.

Marcus got into his car and drove to the Jiffy Mart. He went in and asked if the Manager was in. The young clerk hollered at a guy named Joe. Joe came walking up.

Marcus looked him over. At 5’9” tall, around 240 lbs, Joe looked like at one time, he might have been a force to be reckoned with. Now he was late 50’s and time had taken it’s toll on him.

“Can I help you sir?”

Marcus leaned forward a bit, putting his hands on the counter. “My daughter was in here two days ago and was abducted as she left to walk home.”

“The police have already been here and talked to us. Our cameras don’t record anything outside. Just in the store.”

Marcus nodded his head. “I understand that. I was wondering if I could still look at your security tapes from around that time?”

Joe looked and saw the trident tattoo on Marcus’ bicep barely visible below the short sleeve of his t-shirt. “SEAL?”

Marcus looked down at his upper arm. “Yes sir.”

Joe rolled up his shirt sleeve revealing his own trident tattoo.