Unholy Shepherd by Robert Christian (rooftoppers txt) 📕

his buddies to come to his aid. No one moved, so he raised himself slowly off the chair to make use of his frame. He looked down at Manny with cocky self-assurance.

“Now look here, you smug little asshole,” he said, poking Manny in the chest with his sausage of an index finger. “We all know that kid was a little flipper. We’ve wasted a lot of time and manpower looking for him every time Sandra got scared after twenty minutes and called us. And what always happened? He’d find his way right back home. Every time. Safe and sound. So you tell me why I should’ve thought this time was any different?”

Manny clenched his fists in hatred for this blob of a man. Wentworth knew full well that dealing with a missing child, especially one the whole town knew was on the spectrum, should never be taken lightly. He had a thousand and more words for the man, but not a single one could get past his throat.

“Yeah, that’s what I thought,” Wentworth sneered. “So don’t come at me like a big man when you got nothing on me, you spineless, self-righteous little spic!” He gave Manny a hard shove in the chest and turned to sit down.

Manny remembered nothing from the moment he lunged at Wentworth until the moment he felt the hands of the Henderson twins grab his arms and drag him off their ringleader. Manny blinked, and the face of the sergeant, awash in crimson, came into focus. As he regained some semblance of composure, he felt a throb in the knuckles of each hand that told him he’d landed some blows.

Captain Wellner had placed himself between the two men, and Wentworth was on one knee with his hand to his nose, trying to pinch off the flow of blood. “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!” the captain shouted. “Benitez, my office. Now! Wentworth, get cleaned up. I’ll deal with you in a minute.”

Manny shrugged off the grip of the twins and stalked behind the captain. Captain Wellner shut the door behind them, shuttered the blinds, and took his place behind the desk.

“Sit down,” he said, smoothing his tone.

Manny took a seat in front of the captain’s desk. He knew he was about to face serious consequences for his actions and cursed himself for his lack of discipline. He was supposed to be there when this case was solved. He owed the victims’ families that.

Captain Wellner heaved a sigh as he took his seat behind his desk, rubbing circles into his temples. “Detective,” he began, looking up at Manny, “I have a lot of respect for your passion and commitment to your hometown and this department. I remember the day you came back and asked me for a job here at the station. I looked over your credentials and your performance reviews, and I thought you were nuts. I asked myself, ‘Why would someone with your education want to sit at a desk and have so little to do?’ I’ve watched you since then, and I’ve been proven right.” The captain rose from his chair and moved around to sit on the front corner of the desk.

“This place is killing you,” he continued, leaning in closer to Manny. “The monotony of the job has sucked you dry and turned your ambition into some kind of hot-headed ego trip. I mean for God’s sake, Manny, we’ve got two dead children in a town that has never had a single homicide in my time as Captain, the FBI breathing down our necks, a department full of officers who are way out of their depths, and when I look at you, I almost feel like you’re enjoying the chaos!”

Who could be happy when children are dying? “Listen, Arthur,” he said, daring to use the captain’s first name, “I’m not—”

“Let me stop you right there. I hate to do this, Benitez, but I’m taking you off the case.”

“You’re what?!” Manny shouted, erupting from his seat. “What for? ‘Cuz I finally gave that piece of shit Wentworth what he deserved? He’s the reason Evan Locke is dead, you know! He’s the one who’s been sliding by in this place for years!” He spat the last few words at the captain in disgust, figuring he had nothing to lose. He may as well get it all out.

“I’m not the one with the problem around here,” he continued, pacing back and forth in front of the captain’s desk. “This department is nothing but a boys club for the former high school kings. Everyone outside this room is half the officer they should be. You know Wentworth’s a fat pile of useless crap. Scottsdale can barely read. McKeegan’s only here ‘cuz he likes to drive the police car and use his uniform to get laid. The Henderson twins do nothing but follow the other three around like little puppies! You know Yancy and Hanson are just here cashing a paycheck. Collins is the only one with any real drive, but that kid is so wet behind the ears, he’s still learning the goddamn Miranda Rights! But no, I’m the one with the ego issue, and I’m the one you’re tossing from the case.”

“You’re not giving me any choice, Benitez. I can’t have officers getting into fist fights in the bullpen.”

“He shoved me first, and you didn’t hear what he called me. I won’t repeat it, but I will say that I thought we had grown beyond that type of racial slur as a society.” He gritted his teeth at the thought of the word. “I guess I was wrong.”

“Look, I’m not suspending you. You can still come in and work on anything else we have for you. As for Sam, I do plan to put him on administrative leave while we have an internal investigation into the handling of the Locke situation.”

“So he gets to sit at home and collect a paycheck?” Manny scoffed. “I’m sure he’ll be heartbroken.”

“You’d rather I just fire him?”

“I don’t know, why