Cajun Protection by Whiskey Starr

let it go to voicemail
before walking out the back and shutting the door.
    Today we took Hawk’s jeep instead of my
truck. I know we stand out like a sore thumb, but in this area we
need to find this rat bastard, we want the attention on us. Both
Hawk and I jump out of the Jeep and look around to see people
sitting on old steps and makeshift patio areas. You can tell this
is an area that was hit hard during Hurricane Katrina, but they
didn’t take the help. Many people look like they live in filth or
are high or drunk. It sickens me to see children running around the
street this broken glass and other items littering the ground. Even
the smell makes me sick. But that’s what you get when you’re down
in these parts. It’s a small bounty, guy skipped bail, and just
looking at his track record, it’s easy to see he would go home. I
take lead and Hawk flanks behind me, checking my back as we walk up
the small stairs. The smell of cat piss and dog shit hit me like a
baseball bat to the head. Not to mention the mixture of vomit and
alcohol. I step over what I really hope is puke and find the door
we need. The white paint has chipped off leaving the dark grey of
the under door exposed. I listen for a second and hear voices
yelling. I nod to Hawk to stand at the end of the step and keep
cover. Raising my hand, I knock.
    “Who is it?” a woman’s voice yelled out.
    “Mrs. Foret, I’m from Wild Bounty, I need to
talk to you about your husband, Leroy.”
    “I’m sorry, he’s not here, and I don’t have
any information.” She isn’t opening the door. This is where it
becomes tricky. I can’t legally open the door; I have to get her to
open it, or draw him out, which is what I really want anyway.
    “That’s fine, ma’am. Can I give you my card,
so if he does come back you can give us a call?” I pull out my card
to the shop and wait for her to open, no such luck.
    “Just slide it under the door. Thanks.” I
know that is a simple fuck you and leave me alone term, so I back
away from the stairs. I make sure she watches me go down, while
Hawk stays at the bottom. I give a small signal for him to stay put
while I get in the Jeep. But I only park enough out of the line of
sight and Hawk stays under the stairwell. I creep around the back
of the apartments and wait for him to make the first move. Huntin’
like this is like a game of chess. We move a piece, and see how
they respond. Except in the end we are the ones who go check mate
and catch the bounty.

     
Hawk

    Hiding behind a bush, I wait. No sooner than
twenty minutes have passed that I see a back window open and
someone climb down a small fire escape ladder. It’s pretty rickety
and even if he wanted to be quiet, there is no way he could. I’m
shocked the damn thing even stays up. I send a message to Hawk as I
continue to watch.
    Once his feet hit the ground, he looks around
and doesn’t see me. With great luck, he walks closer to my
location, and once I know for a fact I can grab him, I try to bring
him to the ground. But the little shit starts to fight me. His head
comes back and cracks my nose, making me loosen my grip enough for
him to get a hand free.
    “Let me go you fucker.” I see him grab a
piece of glass from the ground and try to cut me with it. I dodge
each move he makes and I finally have had enough. I bring my fist
up and hit him square in the jaw making his head snap back and he
is out cold. Thank God.
    “Dude, you couldn’t wait two seconds, could
you? Shit, he got your nose good too.” Hawk comes running up and
helps me hog-tie him with zip ties. I watch as people start yelling
at both of us, either because we are taking him, or yelling how
happy they are he is going. Very strange area. With him secure in
the Jeep and unable to move, Hawk takes off to the jailhouse. For
the first time, I don’t have paperwork to fill out once I get there
other than my name. I am loving having Zoey in the office.

     
    Zoey
     
    It was nice to have things