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This story was written for Mercury. She's always been a good friend and besides, I promised. This is the first fan fiction story I write in my life so, please bear with my english, horrifying mistakes and any other things you might encounter on the way. This is a draft, no betaing of any kind (exept for my Mom who helped a lot in correcting my continuous misuse of the english language). Have fun!
June 25th, 1998

What if?
A Houston Knights Story
(Draft)
By Killash
In Stereo where available.
 
 

Part uno.

A silent dark haze enveloped the long corridor. There was only the dim light coming from the street to keep him from total blindness. The usual nervousness that got into one's stomach before an organized move like this one, was slowly creeping into Sergeant Levon Lundy's mind. He shoved it away.

"Not now" he thought, "You can panic later, but not now!"

A whisper behind him brought him back to reality. A feminine, strong, sometimes even scary, voice. A sound that had come to rule a very important part of his life. Lieutenant Joanne Beaumont’s words made him jump in fright even if the sound was low, soft...almost inaudible.
"It's your call, Lundy," she urged. "What do we do?"

“My call? Why does it have to be my call?" He asked. He knew the answer.
"You know these guys,” she said. “ You can predict their moves! Levon, come on! The unit's in place,  what’s next?"

She talked so low but he heard it like she was yelling. Her tone was as authoritative as a high school teacher's, or a drill sergeant’s.
Fortunately Levon did know what to do, he was absolutely sure about the way this particular gang was going to react to a SWAT team bursting into the little apartment. He knew just how to position the men, how to execute the plan. He knew. And still... he had this feeling. This little bug inside him ordering his brain to stop this thing and go home. This huge fear of doing it wrong, of misreading the enemy, of making a mistake.... again.

"Lundy!"  Lt. Beaumont was pushing too hard, as usual, but the decision was his and it had to be made fast or all would be lost.

He swallowed hard and closed his eyes. "Okay. Let's do it!" Levon took a long, cleansing breath before taking action. "LaFiamma!" he whispered, "Come over here," he was loud enough only to be heard on the other side of the corridor, which he couldn't see.

Joseph Anthony LaFiamma, his partner, appeared behind him like a ghost.
"Yeah!", His deep, unmistakeable voice said, " I'm right here."

Lundy jumped startled and turned to face the Italian officer, "Don't do that, LaFia......" Levon stopped in mid-sentence, staring at Joe in disbelief. The Italian officer was in full patrolman’s blue uniform, carrying a long rifle, badge pinned on his chest. Levon had never seen his friend like that, his blue eyes so bright with exitement, and the oddest thing about it...  he looked so young, almost like a teenager. "Sorry, boss," LaFiamma said softly, "Didn't mean it. I guess we're all jumpy tonight, right?"

Lundy couldn't answer. He was too confused.

Sounds came from the apartment door, in a second everyone was ready. Lundy knew there was a large number of cops around him, but darkness wouldn't let him see them. It was frustrating!

He shook his head trying to clear his mind, listening to the men as they stood by. Heartbeats. He could actually HEAR their racing heartbeats! How? Levon felt a chill running up and down his spine like an announcement from doom. All those men were waiting for him to give the orders and the signal to attack! HIM!: Sergeant Levon Lundy. Born and raised in the great state of Texas, brought up by the love of his grandmother, and the wisdom of his veteran Police officer grandfather. Him. Young, still inexperienced  in a lot of things, surely not ready to lead a SWAT team into a gang raid. Not yet anyway.

Right?

Joanne looked at him, in expectation. Levon looked at LaFiamma, his eyes even brighter and anxious like a kid waiting for his first roller-coaster ride. He couldn't understand what was going on. None of them could. But Lundy had to act, now. Time was running out!

 "Alright, Lieutenant," He finally decided, "Place the men on every exit, two on the roof above the fire escape, two here at the end of the hall. McCandless and Johnson cover the side doors down there. You and Morgan close the stairs, and LaFiamma..."
He trailed off as he felt that chill again. Joe's eyes were like a mirror and Levon only saw himself in them.

"Yeah?" Asked Joey's soft, familiar voice. Joe. His friend. Sure, why not?

"You come with me." Levon said.  Joe all but jumped with joy, his breathing anxious, a flash of a smile crossed his face "Really? Thanks, boss!" He moved closer "I won't let you down, I promise!"

Lundy looked at his partner. How strange all this was. He turned to face Joanne again but she was already gone. The game was on. Levon took another deep breath trying to calm down his own racing heart and then started moving towards the apartment door.

Joe moved forward before him. "What are you doing?" Lundy asked.

"I go through the doors first!"  He stated. The kid voice was gone. A mature, determined, stubborn Joe LaFiamma was, after all, behind that uniform. And the words were not a suggestion, they were a fact, or maybe an order.

Levon looked at him, growing more and more confused but only for a second. Noises grew louder in the room and both cops positioned themselves on each side of the door. "No time for knocking, LaFiamma, let's do it!"

Joe kicked the door and it opened violently, a shower of bullets welcomed them both. LaFiamma dove to the floor shooting his rifle, shadows fell down dead at every shot, a window was broken and soon more shooting seemed to come out of nowhere. Levon fired his gun until it was empty, he took cover behind a... something.

Darkness definitely was a problem. He could recognize no one, and nobody could see him. Just then, a little light was suddenly lit, a dark face holding a Colt, very much like his own came into view.... from behind them all, from the door. Lundy cursed at his own stupidity. He'd left no guards at the door. How did he forget that? It was so basic!

And it was so late.

The figure smiled and started shooting. Lundy was franticly reloading as fast as he could, but not fast enough. The man had already fired his six shots when Levon finally got him. The little light went off.

Dead silence came slowly. Someone in the back found a lamp, and turned it on. A quick glance around told Levon it was over.

The scene was a big mess.

The little room was full of dead bodies, here and there. As far as Levon could see, all of them were members of the band they came to bust. The SWAT team scanned the place. No survivors.

And then.

Just then,

A low moan.

A faint, painful moan from somewhere very near made Lundy stop breathing. The dreadful chill atacked him with a vengeance as he ran to the sound and found that his worst fear had become a reality.
La Fiamma, lying on the ground, shot in the back six times, by the shadow man at the door. Shot because his partner didn't cover him. His face was sad and full of fear, blood all over, a tiny stream of it on his mouth. Joe's kid face was back, his eyes staring at nothing like they usually did when anguish took over his emotions, shaking a little bit while losing consciousness in slow, silent agony.

"Oh, God!... Oh, No! LaFiamma, don't do this!" Levon was breaking apart, "Please, don't die on me man!, please!" Joe didn't seem to hear him, his deep, blue eyes were losing their previous light and acquiring a tremendously dark look of terror. “Joe!” Lundy pleaded desperately, "Come on, Joe! Fight!"

His words fell on emptyness. It was no use. In one horrible instant, Joe LaFiamma, his partner, and friend, was dead.
 
"No!" Levon felt his heart scream.

“What a waste!”  another voice, again very much like his own, said behind him.  “What an unbelievable waste!”

Lundy turned to see who was talking, but couldn't make the figure out, his sight was blurred by tears.  He screamed in desperation and out came no sound. The world exploded around him...

And he woke up.

******************************************
 
 

A trembling hand turned on the bedside lamp knocking some things on the floor. Levon was shaking, sweating and terrified. He sat on the bed trying to ease his pounding heart before it jumped out of his chest, slowly struggling to place himself back in reality: he was home and safe, there were no bullets, no dead bodies, no SWAT team. No darkness. He was having a horrible nightmare at three in the morning, and he was all alone.

"It was just a dream," he said to himself. "Just a dream".

Levon got up and went to the kitchen, to fix himself a cup of tea. It was at times like this when he missed Caroline the most. She'd had a sixth sense about bad dreams, she always knew exactly what to do and what to say to ease her husband's night fears and make him feel secure again in her arms. Boy! How he missed her!

He was too young to be a widower, his grandmother Minnie had told him once, too young indeed to carry around the ghost of a dead love. Caroline had been his whole life, she had been cruelly taken away from him and nothing had ever been the same again. Some would probably say his innocence died with her as did his power to feel safe, so when nights like these came upon him, Levon was as helpless as a newborn child.

The nightmare had been way too real but not isolated. He'd been attacked by them like this over and over again, more steadily now, as that dreadful date came closer. The ceremony. The Department was going to give Lundy a "medal", an award for outstanding performance and courage beyond the line of duty. A prize which, the young sergeant thought, was ridiculous and totally uncalled for.

He didn't deserve that thing and nobody was gonna convince him otherwise.

Of course, Joe LaFiamma had been teasing him about it for weeks now, as he usually did. The cocky Italian didn't miss a single opportunity to remind him of it, how Lundy would need to buy a new hat to go with the gold. How he'd have to put a golden bumper-sticker on the car. How he'd have to change the name of the horse to "Silver" if he was to stay on top of things... Oh, Man! The Chicago import cop knew exactly how to be a real pain in the neck, he was proud of it, and he did it remarkably well. Lundy smiled a little, remembering old quarrels, friendly teasing. It had been kind of fun so far.

A sudden, oddly familiar cold shiver ran down Levon's back and  reminded him of the horrible way he saw his partner die... in the dream. He felt a compulsive desire to call Joe up, just to make sure he was fine. But he restrained. It was stupid, he would only wake his friend up for nothing and Joe would complain about it for days. Lundy shook away the feeling and, after drinking his tea, he went back to bed. Didn't get much sleep though.

Nightmares have an annoying way of causing insomnia.

*******************************
 

The sun came up and found Joe LaFiamma listening to his favorite song on his expensive high-tech stereo while lifting weights.

Every morning, like a religious thing, he'd have a deep chat with those weights, one of the few things his forced life changes hadn't taken away from him. Joe usually reviewed his life working out in the mornings, thought deeply about his current business, his cases, his love interests, his financial state (which was always a disaster), and most times tried to relax.

His eternal quarrels and disagreements with Lundy were very exhausting sometimes, not even a full night sleep was enough rest after them, and while usually the arguments started on instinct, carrying them along through the day was a job in itself. Lundy just never learned anything. His way of thinking and acting was too slow paced and made Joe grow desperately impatient. After more than a year working together, Levon still had the Texas "Ain't gonn' do what you say 'cause it just ain't done that way"  attitude.

'Texans. Can’t live with’em, can’t understand a damn word they say!'  Oh, well! Joey had to admit it, (to himself at least). He’d made a new home in Houston, and had been accepted the way he was... kind of. Texas had been a complete adventure for him. It had put on trial absolutely ALL of his police training methods, his Italian natural raging ways, his convictions and “Ow, Jeez Louise!” His patience.  And still, Joe had survived it, come out clean, hey, he’d even conquered most of the Texas Ranger wannabes he had to work with. “Admit it Joe,  They aren’t so bad after all,” he thought, “But don’t admit it out loud!”.

The phone rang. “Right when my favorite part is coming.” He turned down the stereo and answered, drying his neck with a towel.

“Get to work, LaFiamma. You have a case.” Lundy’s exasperated voice told Joe he had been up for a while.

“Good morning to you too, Sunshine. What do you mean I  have a case? You taking a vacation?” Maybe Levon needed a coup of coffee.

“We have a couple of dead coke dealers down by the Rodeo Village store. They were killed sometime last night. Close range, no prints, no cases.  Hands tied, eyes covered, dumped by the trash cans.”

Too familiar, Joey thought. “Sounds like a good ‘ol bad guy execution to me”.

“I know.” Levon was clearly unhappy about the matter. “But you still need to come, take a look, cause they’re wearin’ designer loafers.”

Joe laughed. It was a joke, right? He tried to ease it. “Isn’t that, like not our area, dude? Why not let Vice do their job?”

“Well, Vice kind of asked for your opinion, “dude”. By name!” Levon retorted.

“What?” Joey was not sure his partner wasn’t putting him on.

“Since that time you recognized that  ‘dandy lookin’, silk suited yuppie terrorist last month, for Vice Squad, you’ve become the 'Source of all Big City Semi Human Crime Knowledge'  for these guys. Personally, I think it’s disgustin’.”

“Can’t help it if I’m finally appreciated in this town, Lundy. You should learn something from these admirable fellow law enforcement officers!” Joey smiled, enjoying the moment.

“Just get here, La Fiamma, I do have a life to live after this!”

Lundy hung up. Joe smiled. His partner was not happy about Joe’s new popularity. Great! Plus, he was moody, and he’d be easy to annoy. The day seemed to brighten up with possibilities.
 

********************************************
 

Joe LaFiamma got to the scene of the crime 25 minutes after the call. He was looking as sharp as he always did and he was in a particularly light mood. The Vice squad boys were expecting him, as was one unknown homicide detective and Sergeant Levon Lundy. The Texan looked grim.

“You look like your best pig died, Lundy. Didn’t you eat your corn bread today?” Joe said in his usual morning way.

“Waitin’ for you to get your fancy look together ain’t fun, LaFiamma, I got things to do. Where the hell have you been?” Lundy was cranky, his eyes wary. Something was surely not the same about him. Joe knew his partner very well and something was definetly wrong, they needed to talk. Unfortunately, it wasn't the right time so Joe decided to put the matter aside... for now.

“I had to wait for a herd of longhorns to cross the street before me... again,” LaFiamma said matter-of-factly “Now, what’s the deal with these guys?” He turned to the young Vice detective and recognized him from *the Last Time*. “Ahhh... Henderson, right?”

“Hanson, Sergeant, LeRoy Hanson.” He shook Joe’s hand vigorously. “The D.B's are over here.” He led the way with a very TV Cop-like walk. Joe looked at Lundy with curious eyes and grinned. Levon rolled up his eyes, LaFiamma was impossible!

Hanson stopped beside the already covered bodies. Joe lifted the white sheet and looked at the man’s face. It was a total stranger. ‘Thank God!’ He thought. Deep down, the idea of recognizing a dead person isn’t attractive, for anyone. He lifted the other sheet. The man was in his mid thirties, all dressed in black, like the other one. He showed some bruises, nothing strange for a dead man. “I don’t have a clue who these guys are,” Joe told Hanson. “I’m flattered by the attention, but I don’t think I can do much for you this time, dude.”

“See? I told you so, Hanson.”  Lundy was eager to go back to the precinct. “Most times, it’s just luck. Why don’t you follow standard procedure, instead of lookin’ for shortcuts? It’ll take less time!” Lundy made an effort to talk nice to the young man. After all, Hanson didn’t have a lot of time in Vice Squad, he needed some time to get all the tricks and turns before he could be a REAL detective.

Joe disagreed. No one liked to be patronized, not even a junior Vice detective.  Maybe he could have another look, for the kid’s sake. He lifted the sheet again and turned the body slightly. Nothing. “What was in his pockets?” Joe didn’t look at LeRoy, just assumed he was listening.

“Any papers? A key? A gum wrapper?”

“You playin’ Clue now, LaFiamma?” Levon was getting impatient with his friend’s know-it-all attitude, again.

“He had a valet parking ticket. Nothing clear on it yet. We already sent someone to the place.” Hanson sounded nervous, “The other one had a paper clip, some change, and this.” LeRoy extended a plastic bag with a little red ribbon in it. The kind people pin on their jackets to show support for this or that cause in a public event.
Not something a dealer would normally have on, and yet, it was not a thing to ignore. “How do we know they were dealers?”

Levon thought Joe was only wasting time. “They had it painted on their foreheads! Come on, LaFiamma, this ain’t our case, give your blessing and let’s go!”

The young Sergeant ignored him, reluctant to lose his good mood. His partner was starting to get on his nerves, and it was way too early in the morning for that.

“Nice dope sample in one of the deceased’s pockets.” Hanson cleared that up.

 Joe went back to the first body. He checked under the guy’s jacket, around his wrists and then, when he was about to abandon the quest, he saw it. It was a small gold chain, pinned inside the black jacket, an even smaller gold thing was hanging from it: a tiny figure that looked like an animal. LaFiamma pulled it out with caution and examined it closely. It seemed like a mouse or a cartoon dog. Something a little girl would wear.

“This is odd,” he said out loud to no one in particular, “This guy seem like a Mickey Mouse fan to you?”

Lundy came closer, reluctantly, and took the little chain from Joey’s hand. “Kind of girly, if you ask me. This hombre may’ve had more than one little secret!”

Joe nodded, thinking. “Care to check it out, wiseguy? Or you got to go feed the cows back home?”

 Lundy headed for his car “As a matter of fact, I need to feed myself. Mind if we take this to forensics LeRoy?”

“G’head, Sergeant Lundy. We got lots of work as it is anyhow.”

LaFiamma went back to his own car. “We’ll keep you posted detective, see if we can help each other once again!” Joey was being cynical this time. He’d never received an ounce of help from Vice. Oh well, someday! He got into the little sports car. Levon was already on the road, the man just wasn’t himself and that was starting to bother LaFiamma, a little bit. He looked up at the morning sky as he started his engine when

BLAM!

He saw it a microsecond before it happened, and ducked.

A shot was fired right in his direction. Missed his head by less than an inch and broke the windshield. Another shot urged Joe to get the hell out of there, and he stepped on the accelerator. The shooter was on the roof of the building next to the alley. Lundy was already way too far to even hear the shots. Not good! Hanson and the rest of the cops on the scene were returning fire, more shots were heard but Joe knew they were all aimed at him. He felt another projectile fly beside his ear, adrenaline pumping through his whole body. That had to be a very powerful rifle, to get to him so far away. The car turned around the next street and Joey hit the breaks, got out and peered around the corner at the scene, guns in his hands, ready to take action if followed.

The shooting had stopped.

Policemen were securing the area. Joe was out of sight, but definitely not out of danger, and he knew it. Those bullets had been aimed only at him. But why?

This morning was starting to get complicated.

>
>
>

When he got back to the station, Joe found Levon yelling on the phone. Lt. Joanne Beaumont was also in a dreadful mood today, Esteban Gutierrez had told LaFiamma on his way in. Apparently, everyone had gotten up on the wrong side of the bed today.  Only Joe seemed to be fine... and he’d just been shot at! Just imagine if the target had been anyone else from ‘hat office’! “Texans! Where there goes one, they go all! (Is that how it goes?)” Joe thought.

He went over to the desk, to talk matters over with his partner, but after Levon had slammed the  phone down in anger, Joey decided to tell his partner about the shooting later, when he saw him more relaxed. Right now, his friend’s face and the dark circles around his eyes were starting to worry the Italian officer.

He spoke carefully, “Lundy, I hate to say this but, you’re not your usual obnoxious self today.  Are you alright man?”

Levon was enraged, but he wouldn’t say why. “You’re late again, LaFiamma! Ain’t you thinking about working today? Maybe in Chicago you can do whatever you damn please with your mornings, but around here cases don’t solve themselves!”

LaFiamma was dying to yell back, but the strange look in Levon’s eyes stopped him  instantly. He knew his partner, he was in trouble, and it was going to be a trip to hell trying to extract the truth from him. His mouth opened to say something but a loud strong voice interrupted.

“Lundy, LaFiamma! In here right now!” Beaumont’s command was like a train whistle. Too loud and impossible to ignore. The two sergeants went inside her office, waiting to receive the lecture of the day.

************************

“Investigating a double murder? I know all about those bodies. It’s officially Vice’s case!  What in the world were you two doing there?”
Lt. Beaumont always went straight to the point. LaFiamma and Lundy weren’t her first troubles that morning. The chief had been grunting and roaring about some other business and the press had Joanne cornered with questions about another case. She was very stressed today, and now these two...

“I don’t want you to take over other department’s affairs. Concentrate on YOUR work! God knows you got enough of it! And get me something done! Is that clear?” She wasn’t kidding, her eyes sparkled with fury and neither one of the two Sergeants wanted to enrage her any more.

Joey knew he was the only one who could smooth things over, being the single civilized being in the room right now.  “I...” He started “ We understand, Lieutenant. It won’t happen again, it’s just that the squad thought they had something we could be interested in, you know, inter-department courtesy?”  Joanne looked at him with unreadable eyes. LaFiamma quickly added :“It turned out to be nothing. We’ll get straight to work now. Right, Lundy?” He looked at his partner wishing the man didn’t blow it. He had a way of doing that.

Lundy’s face was like stone. “Right” he said. And that was all. Joey thanked Heaven for that.

“Fine, get out of here!” Beaumont said, and went to answer the phone for the hundredth time that morning.
 

LaFiamma was extremely shocked about Levon’s behavior. They definitely had to talk.  But right now they couldn’t.
 

Lundy, on the other hand, was appalled by his own attitude. He never expected to take a verbal beating like that close mouthed. Or worse, to be defended by LaFiamma, of all people! What was going on with him? Levon realized his mood had been bad lately, and all those sleepless nights weren’t helping. Maybe he was letting his nightmares get the best of him. He needed to get in control, or something really bad would undoubtedly happen.

And then, what the heck was LaFiamma thinking? Since when did the man act so relaxed? He was an explosive S.O.B. by nature, but today... Well, his partner could be just showing off. After all, the Vice squad had called HIM seeking for advise. That HAD to be going to his head. Yeah, that HAD to be it!.
 

On the other side of the room, Joe got himself a cup of coffee assessing the situation. Thank God Beaumont hadn’t heard about the sniper yet. She would, eventually, but there were other problems at hand. Lundy just wasn’t himself. The hard headed Texan surely wouldn’t talk about it unless someone made him. Chicken could be some help, but the mountain of papers in Joe’s desk was bound to keep him occupied all day. When would he find the time to go ask? Not to mention the time to go fix his car windshield before Lundy saw it. That shooting needed to be investigated, but with all the tension in this place, it was better if LaFiamma did it alone.

Problems, problems! And the day had seemed so nice at first!

*****************
 

“Did you do it?” asked the man.
“Got them both good!” said the other one.
“Where are the other ones?” The man’s voice had a hint of anticipation.
“Got the address for one. Uh, Langerfield is still missing though.”
“I don’t like unfinished jobs. Get to it!” There was just no way you could say no to a menacing  tone like that. “I don’t have much time! Do you understand?”

The other man nodded. “There’s something else.” He was afraid to say it, but he had to. “A cop, well, ‘the cops’ found the bodies too early in the morning, and one of them... I recognized him... from ‘that night’,  Sir.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, he was the city boy. I knew him right away!”

“What did you do?”

“I took a couple of shots at him.”

“Did you kill him?”

“’Fraid not, Sir. He had a fast car.”

The voice was silent for a long moment. The menacing tone was still there, but it turned malicious.  “Well? Finish it! Kill him. Do not come back until you do it. And, Victor... Go get Langerfield!” With these words the man turned around and waved his hand in dismissal.

*************************************
 
 

Annie Hartung  gave Levon a piece of paper and a folder. “Nothing on that little chain, love.” She looked at her friend with a little concern. “Do you want me to check something else?”

“No, Annie, thanks anyway. I didn’t think we were gonna find anything on this but you know LaFiamma.” He spoke tiredly. He had been examining evidence reports all morning.

“Where is he, by the way?” She expected to see the Italian buried in work as well.

“He’s checking out some mug-shots with a witness.” He seemed to be relieved and annoyed at the same time about it. “They’ve been in there over two hours already.”
Annie felt bad for the young man. He looked very strange, pale and weak. “Have you eaten yet, honey? You look a bit out of shape.”

Levon knew her concern was genuine, contrary to what he *thought* about his partner’s nagging. Annie was easy to talk to and she’d always been a real good friend. Still, the man couldn’t even explain his feelings to himself, much less to a woman, no matter who she was. “I’m fine, Annie,” he lied. “Don’t worry about me. I just got a lot of work to do”

“Okay, but remember  I’m right down the hall all day, anytime, y’hear?” She started to roll her wheelchair back to the glass doors.
 Levon couldn’t let her go like that. “Hey Annie!” He called. “Much obliged!”.
“You’re welcome, kid.” She turned and smiled at him.
“For everything!” Levon finished. He tried to smile back at her. It was the least he could do.

********************************
 
 

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