Behind the Badge by J.D. Cunegan

Jill tucked herself into the blow and let the bearded man soar over her. He slammed face-first into the rear bumper, falling to the sidewalk in a heap.
    Well, that was disappointing...
    The redhead tackled Jill from behind, sending her face-first into the sidewalk. Jill had turned her head just before impact so the metal plate on the left side of her face would take the brunt of it, and by the time the woman pushed Jill onto her back, Jill responded by tucking her legs back into herself and pushing the soles of her combat boots into the redhead's abdomen. The force of the blow sent the woman skidding along the pavement as Jill leapt back to her feet and cracked her knuckles -- a rather unnerving sound given her skeletal enhancements.
    “Officer Stevenson, I presume,” Jill said, reaching for the redhead. But the other woman rolled out of her grasp before sweeping Jill's legs out from under her. Her movements were impressive, considering she only had use of one arm. Adrenaline was likely overwhelming whatever pain she felt in the moment, and Jill almost felt sorry for her when it would eventually wear off.
    By the time Jill landed chin-first on the sidewalk, the other woman had climbed on to straddle her back, wrapping her good arm around Jill's neck. As the redhead tightened her grip, Jill gasped for air. “So,” Kayla spat through gritted teeth, “ this is the infamous Bounty. Frankly? Not impressed.”
    “Sorry...” Jill grit her teeth and slammed the heel of her boot into Kayla's left knee. She sprung free once Kayla released her grip and crumpled into a heap. “Sorry to disappoint.”
    When Jill's boot caught Kayla in the chin, it instantly knocked the redhead unconscious.
    Diving back into the rear of the van just as the fire engine had arrived on the scene to tend to the hydrant and the massive puddle left on the road, Jill leaned against the wall and broke into a coughing fit. Once the coughing had subsided, and Jill could no longer stand to rub the raw spot on her neck, she crawled over to Colonel Downs. He still had a pulse, but was now unconscious. With another sigh, Jill sat with her back propped up against the left side of the van, fishing a black flip phone out of her left boot. Her free hand snaked through her hair as the call connected.
    “Captain Richards,” she greeted, as if she didn't consider the man on the other end a second father, “got four perps for you. And Colonel Downs needs medical attention.”

CHAPTER 18
     
     
     
    As Bounty, Jill wore her hair down, used black lipstick, and didn't bother with the skin graft that normally covered the left side of her face. Short of a mask and disguising her voice, it was the best way Jill knew to hide her identity. But as Baltimore homicide detective Jill Andersen, she wore her hair in a tight ponytail, often went without lipstick altogether, and the skin graft made her face as normal as anyone else’s. The graft was so detailed that to someone who wasn't paying close attention, her left eye resembled her right eye.
    Her colleagues all swore they could still see the infrared underneath, but Jill couldn't help but wonder if that was because they knew her secret or if they could actually see her true self underneath the mask. Knowledge, for all of its power, could play tricks with the mind on occasion.
    Ramon often joked that Bounty was her true identity and that Jill was her mask, but truth be told, she sometimes worried that was actually the case. In some ways, it seemed like Jill Andersen had died the night Dr. Trent Roberts operated on her and Bounty took her place. But for right now, it was Jill's turn behind the proverbial wheel.
    She fought the smirk threatening the corners of her mouth when she barged into Interrogation Two – which, for some reason, was twice the size of Interrogation One -- and saw the four suspects wearing black outfits from head to toe. Three men and one women, with bruised and bloodied faces, looking as if they had been