(no subject)
After almost a year, it's an update!
Title: Academy 22/?
Author: gatechic
Rating: PG
Characters/Pairings: Wyatt/Adora and a bunch of OCs.
Spoilers: Not sure, there might be.
Summary: Pre-series. Wyatt Cain, the son of a cattle rancher joins the Police Academy in Central City.
This Chapter: Wyatt continues to have trouble on the driving course. The cadets are called in to help with a search.
Word Count: 2,733
Disclaimer: Tin Man characters belong to the SciFi Channel, RHI, Steven Long Mitchell and Craig W. Van Sickle. But Travis, Isabelle, and Garrett belong to me (and I'll even loan them out). I also borrow from L. Frank Baum, Gregory Maguire and Rachel R Cosgrove (Payes). This is purely for fun and I’m not making a penny off of this.
A/N: This is a WIP (and it's taking me forever to complete). I would like to thank my wonderful beta, erinm_4600. Cast page can be found here.
Chapter 1||Chapter 2||Chapter 3||Chapter 4||Chapter 5||Chapter 6||Chapter 7
Chapter 8||Chapter 9||Chapter 10||Chapter 11||Chapter 12||Chapter 13|| Chapter 14
Chapter 15|| Chapter 16||Chapter 17||Chapter 18|| Chapter 19|| Chapter 20||Chapter 21
Chapter 22
This week may have ended up being Wyatt’s worst time in the Academy. Nothing seemed to go right for him and, the worst thing was, he was Class Sergeant. He was beginning to feel that he was letting not only his class down, but also his squad.
To make things a little more interesting, the Deputy Instructors decided to split the class into two squads and have them compete against each other. The big prize at the end of the training would be the title of Squad of the Year. A special honor ribbon would be attached to the Academy flag and a picture of the squad hung on the Wall of Honor.
The DIs had to come up with names and they decided on Alpha and Delta. Wyatt was on Delta, along with Ryan.
Yep, this was shaping up to be Wyatt’s worst week.
The following day, the class split up once more. Half went to the driving course and the other half went to weapons training. They still had the seven-yard qualifying test coming up and this would be a good opportunity for the DIs to get the cadets having problems up to par with the requirements for passing.
Thankfully, for Wyatt, he went to weapons training. Maybe now he could get his head back into a positive way of thinking.
“Cain?”
“Yeah,” Wyatt answered as he walked towards the range.
“What do I do again?” Jimmy asked.
Wyatt rolled his eyes in disbelief. “Seriously? You still don’t know? I thought you studied the commands.”
“If I did, I wouldn’t be asking,” Jimmy answered, slightly angered.
Wyatt breathed out heavily through his nose, frustrated at Jimmy’s lack of preparation. “It’s pretty straight forward. The Range Officer will say: ‘On command, draw, make your weapon ready and fire two rounds. Make weapon safe, holster and repeat until all six rounds have been fired.’ When you finished your last round, make the weapon safe by making sure you decock before holstering. Hold the weapon away from you, but don’t point it at anyone else; you’ll get a reprimand for that. When you’ve fired your last round and holstered, take four steps back from the line, remain at attention until the Range Officer gives you the command to stand at ease. You got it?”
Jimmy nodded. Wyatt gave him a slight nod in response. If Jimmy passed the test for the seven-yard range, he’d be amazed. Then, there were the fifteen and twenty-five-yard qualification tests. He hoped Jimmy had this down before they got to the fifteen-yard test.
Wyatt saw the instructors and immediately called the class to attention. Wyatt learned, from the mistakes of others, to keep an eye out for the instructors. They tended to appear out of nowhere. In the beginning, the class often had to do fifty push-ups because the Class Sergeants didn’t call the class to attention when the instructors arrived. Wyatt did not want a repeat of that, especially while he was Class Sergeant.
The cadets rushed to their assigned areas on the shooting range and the Range Officer called the cadets to stand at ease.
“Okay, cadets, I hoped you remember the commands and the rules of the shooting range. I don’t want a repeat of last week. If I feel that you’re not ready, I will pull you off the line and send you back to class. I don’t want anyone out here who doesn’t know what they’re doing. You understand?”
“Yes, sir,” responded the cadets.
“Good. Today is another practice for the seven, fifteen, and twenty-five-yard qualification tests. You have to pass all three in order to stay in the academy. First, we’ll practice shooting seven yards. On my command, step up to the line, draw, ready your weapon. Fire two rounds, make weapon safe and holster, and repeat three times. Cadets! Begin!”
Wyatt did as commanded and, when he was done, he stepped back and stood at attention, waiting for his classmates to finish.
Of course, Jimmy was having a problem.
“What’s the problem, Cadet Ardon?! You should know what to do,” the instructor yelled at close range. “When you’re done firing, what are you supposed to do?”
“Uh…make the gun safe, sir,” Jimmy answered, sounding unsure. He just knew the instructor heard his tone and waited for a verbal assault. He began to curse Cain for not helping him better.
“You don’t sound sure of your answer, Cadet Ardon. When you’re here, you need to be sure, for your safety and the safety of your fellow cadets. I can’t have you on the line if you don’t know what you’re doing,” the range officer said and then asked, “Where is the hammer, Cadet Ardon?”
Jimmy pointed to the sight. The range officer shook his head. “No, Cadet Ardon, that’s the sight. This is basic gun knowledge, Cadet Ardon. Where is the hammer?” The ranger office was becoming increasingly angry with Jimmy.
Wyatt rolled his eyes. ‘And they say Quadlings are dumb,’ he thought to himself, listening to the question and answer session Jimmy was currently involved in. With each answer, Wyatt thought hard, hoping that he could mentally ‘send’ the answer to Jimmy.
~*~
Later that evening, at dinner, Jimmy and Wyatt were in a heated discussion about what happened at the firing range. “You were supposed to help me.”
“I did. You never told me that you didn’t know what the parts of a gun were. We covered all that in class. I can’t be held responsible because you don’t know where the hammer is,” Wyatt countered.
“I thought you were my friend,” Jimmy retorted.
“I am your friend. You asked for help on the procedures on the line and I went over it with you. Don’t blame me for looking like a fool out there today,” Wyatt said, keeping his anger in check. He picked at his food with the fork and then stood up, pushing his chair back and making a body-cringing noise as it slid across the floor.
Ryan and his friends sat nearby, hearing the exchange, and enjoyed every minute of it. “They sound like a married couple,” Ryan said, teasingly.
“Wonder if they’ll kiss and make up later?” Mercer added and then he acted as if he was going to kiss Ryan.
Ryan pushed Mercer away, “Knock it off, Mercer, I can’t hear with your damn babbling.”
“Look, if you want my help, fine, but don’t twist your failings so you can blame me instead of taking responsibility for yourself,” Wyatt responded, narrowing his eyes. He picked up his plate and then walked away.
“Ooh, no make up kissing tonight,” Mercer added, chuckling.
~*~
A heavy silence filled the dorm room between Wyatt and Jimmy. Neither spoke to the other the entire time after Jimmy returned from dinner. Wyatt knew this game very well and he considered himself a master at it. Having Garrett for a brother certainly helped him hone his silence skills.
Wyatt was busy with homework when he heard the familiar sounds of a gun being disassembled then reassembled. Occasionally, there were groans, a few colorful curse words and the sound of a hand slapping the table in frustration. Wyatt smiled. He was not going to offer help until Jimmy asked.
What Wyatt didn’t know was that Jimmy wasn’t going to ask until Wyatt offered. Between the two egos, neither would break down and they’d just continue to ignore each other, make sarcastic remarks and throw an occasional sneer in the direction of the other.
Both had forgotten this sort of behavior was not tolerated in class. As partners, they had to work together, and that also meant communicating.
The Deputy Instructors had heard what was going on between the two - it wasn’t hard with the way word got around and it was very noticeable during dinner. But, when the call came in that the cadets were needed for a search, the two hard-headed cadets had better work out their differences.
The alarm sounded in the dorm building and the cadets scattered to line up in the hallway in front of their doors. It was always interesting for the Deputy Instructors when they had their surprise inspections or test drills; they never knew the cadets state of dress. The cadets, especially those who enjoyed sleeping naked, learned very quickly to have at least undershorts on at all times.
“Listen up, Cadets, unfortunately, every once in a while, we get called in to help with a search. But, it’s not a search for missing person, it’s a search for a body. I want you to get in uniform and be in the courtyard in five minutes. Class Sergeant, dismiss the class.”
“Class, on my command, get in uniform and be at the courtyard in five minutes. Class…dismissed,” Wyatt said and watched as the cadets rushed back inside their rooms. A body?, he thought to himself as he walked towards his armoire to put his uniform on. He had been learning how to deal with live people for so long that he had forgotten that the dead were also part of his job.
Wyatt headed out towards the courtyard once he had finished putting on his uniform. He waited for the last of the cadets to arrive and was glad they still had a minute to spare. The last thing he wanted was the class to be in trouble again. He called the class to attention and then Chief Elliot took over.
“Well done, Cadets. We’re going to load up on two transport trucks and head out of the city to an area where a killer has admitted to burying a body. You will be given these rods.” He held up the one in his hand for the cadets to see. “These will help find any changes in soil depth. There’s no farming around here, so the soil underground should all be pretty much the same. If the rod sinks into the soil with ease, and deeper than normal, then stop what you’re doing and call out. Do not attempt to dig. Leave that to the investigators. The investigators will give more instructions when we get out there. Class Sergeant, move them out,” Chief Elliot said and then walked away to join the other Deputy Instructors.
Wyatt moved the class out and they jogged to the waiting trucks.
~*~
The cadets fanned out with rods in hand to cover a large swath of land. The lead detective gave them the order and they began their search. Other than using the rods, the cadets were also instructed to look for signs of a disturbed area of ground.
Wyatt wondered what kind of person would do this to another human being. It made his desire to become a Tin Man even greater. He wanted to find criminals, he wanted to help people and he wanted to stop people from committing crimes; all the reasons why he wanted to be a Tin Man were there in front of him. The purpose of the lessons, the hard work, the studying and the physical training began to come together for him.
The cadets walked in silence, pushing the rods into the soil, looking for disturbed ground; anything that would help them find closure for the family.
Seconds ticked by, turning into minutes, and minutes turned into hours, very long hours. Beyond the backdrop of the mountains, a storm rumbled - announcing its impending arrival - in the distance. It wouldn’t matter; they would keep searching, regardless of weather conditions, with the exception of lightning.
The cadets didn’t speed up their search. They maintained their pace, making sure all areas were explored.
Wyatt sighed as he glanced over his shoulder at the large area they had already covered. He was beginning to think that the self-professed killer may be sending them on a wild goose chase. There was always the possibility that this was nothing more than someone who wanted to grab some publicity for himself or spend some time in jail because he was homeless. A roof over their head, free food and a hot shower are all things that were worth some time in jail, especially when those things were hard to come by.
Wyatt glanced skyward as the heavens’ rumbling became louder. The wind shifted and the cool breeze against his face revealed just how close this storm was. Winter was coming and the cool mornings would be a welcome relief during their runs.
Before the first bolt of lightning could be seen, a cadet to Wyatt’s left called out, waving his torch frantically. The cadets were commanded to mark their positions with tiny flags as lightning lit up the sky above them.
The cadets scrambled for cover inside the trucks and watched where the investigators were digging. After a few moments, one of the investigators waved and other officers brought out a tent to cover the area. Some of the cadets lowered their heads, knowing that their search had concluded, but the family’s real pain began.
~*~
Wyatt stood under the shower’s spray as the storm unleashed a torrential downpour on the city, outside the walls of the dorm. The warm water cascaded down his bare back, loosening up the tension in his muscles. He wasn’t thinking about Jimmy; he was thinking about the family, thinking about what he would say if he was ever in the position to tell a family that a loved one had been killed.
He turned the knob and the water ceased pouring from the showerhead. Wyatt smirked at the idea of having the power to turn the water off outside. Some parts of the lower levels of the city had a bad habit of flooding. People also had a bad habit of driving poorly. The police, fire department and hospitals were facing a long night of accidents, injuries and power outages.
It was definitely the first big storm of the season.
Wyatt dressed after drying off and quietly entered his room. Jimmy appeared to be asleep, since sounds of snoring were coming from him. Wyatt rolled his eyes, tossed his towel across the back of the chair and then slipped between the covers.
The cadets had all talked about finding the body first - to be the hero, in a way - but, in the end, Wyatt was glad it wasn’t him. He stared towards the ceiling, the visions of the family when word reached them that a body had been found would not leave his mind. The cadets were promised they would be told if a positive identification was made. But, for now, according to the description, it seemed pretty certain that it was their missing loved one.
Wyatt couldn’t get the vision of the family out of his mind and it would be hours before he was able to fall asleep.
~*~
The following day, Wyatt found himself back on the driving course, but performing better after his first attempt of the day. All he needed was some confidence, and not having Jimmy in the car with him, yelling in his ear, helped.
After Wyatt’s second attempt around the course, the Deputy Instructors decided to add some fun: they turned on the sprinkler system to simulate rain.
“Alright, cadets, let’s go around again,” the driving instructor said with glee in his tone. He was looking forward to this.
“Rain,” Wyatt mumbled, “great.”
The first couple of cadets were the luckiest, the sprinklers were set on a timer and, at first, it was a slow drizzle, then, water burst from the sprinklers as if it were a winter storm. The only thing missing was the wind that would swirl around the buildings, causing whirlwinds on the streets.
When it was Wyatt’s turn, he sat behind the wheel, both hands at the right positions. He settled on the seat and, with all the concentration he could muster, pressed down on the accelerator. He made the first turn and the second. His turn at the course was going great and, perhaps, he became too relaxed as, on his second go around, the car hydroplaned, taking out cardboard images of a group of citizens waiting for a watervator.
Wyatt was able to get the car back under control, but not until he caused serious injuries to innocent bystanders. His forehead rested on the steering wheel.
Jimmy shook his head, “Nice one, Cain,” he mumbled, laughing at his partner’s expense.
Title: Academy 22/?
Author: gatechic
Rating: PG
Characters/Pairings: Wyatt/Adora and a bunch of OCs.
Spoilers: Not sure, there might be.
Summary: Pre-series. Wyatt Cain, the son of a cattle rancher joins the Police Academy in Central City.
This Chapter: Wyatt continues to have trouble on the driving course. The cadets are called in to help with a search.
Word Count: 2,733
Disclaimer: Tin Man characters belong to the SciFi Channel, RHI, Steven Long Mitchell and Craig W. Van Sickle. But Travis, Isabelle, and Garrett belong to me (and I'll even loan them out). I also borrow from L. Frank Baum, Gregory Maguire and Rachel R Cosgrove (Payes). This is purely for fun and I’m not making a penny off of this.
A/N: This is a WIP (and it's taking me forever to complete). I would like to thank my wonderful beta, erinm_4600. Cast page can be found here.
Chapter 1||Chapter 2||Chapter 3||Chapter 4||Chapter 5||Chapter 6||Chapter 7
Chapter 8||Chapter 9||Chapter 10||Chapter 11||Chapter 12||Chapter 13|| Chapter 14
Chapter 15|| Chapter 16||Chapter 17||Chapter 18|| Chapter 19|| Chapter 20||Chapter 21
Chapter 22
This week may have ended up being Wyatt’s worst time in the Academy. Nothing seemed to go right for him and, the worst thing was, he was Class Sergeant. He was beginning to feel that he was letting not only his class down, but also his squad.
To make things a little more interesting, the Deputy Instructors decided to split the class into two squads and have them compete against each other. The big prize at the end of the training would be the title of Squad of the Year. A special honor ribbon would be attached to the Academy flag and a picture of the squad hung on the Wall of Honor.
The DIs had to come up with names and they decided on Alpha and Delta. Wyatt was on Delta, along with Ryan.
Yep, this was shaping up to be Wyatt’s worst week.
The following day, the class split up once more. Half went to the driving course and the other half went to weapons training. They still had the seven-yard qualifying test coming up and this would be a good opportunity for the DIs to get the cadets having problems up to par with the requirements for passing.
Thankfully, for Wyatt, he went to weapons training. Maybe now he could get his head back into a positive way of thinking.
“Cain?”
“Yeah,” Wyatt answered as he walked towards the range.
“What do I do again?” Jimmy asked.
Wyatt rolled his eyes in disbelief. “Seriously? You still don’t know? I thought you studied the commands.”
“If I did, I wouldn’t be asking,” Jimmy answered, slightly angered.
Wyatt breathed out heavily through his nose, frustrated at Jimmy’s lack of preparation. “It’s pretty straight forward. The Range Officer will say: ‘On command, draw, make your weapon ready and fire two rounds. Make weapon safe, holster and repeat until all six rounds have been fired.’ When you finished your last round, make the weapon safe by making sure you decock before holstering. Hold the weapon away from you, but don’t point it at anyone else; you’ll get a reprimand for that. When you’ve fired your last round and holstered, take four steps back from the line, remain at attention until the Range Officer gives you the command to stand at ease. You got it?”
Jimmy nodded. Wyatt gave him a slight nod in response. If Jimmy passed the test for the seven-yard range, he’d be amazed. Then, there were the fifteen and twenty-five-yard qualification tests. He hoped Jimmy had this down before they got to the fifteen-yard test.
Wyatt saw the instructors and immediately called the class to attention. Wyatt learned, from the mistakes of others, to keep an eye out for the instructors. They tended to appear out of nowhere. In the beginning, the class often had to do fifty push-ups because the Class Sergeants didn’t call the class to attention when the instructors arrived. Wyatt did not want a repeat of that, especially while he was Class Sergeant.
The cadets rushed to their assigned areas on the shooting range and the Range Officer called the cadets to stand at ease.
“Okay, cadets, I hoped you remember the commands and the rules of the shooting range. I don’t want a repeat of last week. If I feel that you’re not ready, I will pull you off the line and send you back to class. I don’t want anyone out here who doesn’t know what they’re doing. You understand?”
“Yes, sir,” responded the cadets.
“Good. Today is another practice for the seven, fifteen, and twenty-five-yard qualification tests. You have to pass all three in order to stay in the academy. First, we’ll practice shooting seven yards. On my command, step up to the line, draw, ready your weapon. Fire two rounds, make weapon safe and holster, and repeat three times. Cadets! Begin!”
Wyatt did as commanded and, when he was done, he stepped back and stood at attention, waiting for his classmates to finish.
Of course, Jimmy was having a problem.
“What’s the problem, Cadet Ardon?! You should know what to do,” the instructor yelled at close range. “When you’re done firing, what are you supposed to do?”
“Uh…make the gun safe, sir,” Jimmy answered, sounding unsure. He just knew the instructor heard his tone and waited for a verbal assault. He began to curse Cain for not helping him better.
“You don’t sound sure of your answer, Cadet Ardon. When you’re here, you need to be sure, for your safety and the safety of your fellow cadets. I can’t have you on the line if you don’t know what you’re doing,” the range officer said and then asked, “Where is the hammer, Cadet Ardon?”
Jimmy pointed to the sight. The range officer shook his head. “No, Cadet Ardon, that’s the sight. This is basic gun knowledge, Cadet Ardon. Where is the hammer?” The ranger office was becoming increasingly angry with Jimmy.
Wyatt rolled his eyes. ‘And they say Quadlings are dumb,’ he thought to himself, listening to the question and answer session Jimmy was currently involved in. With each answer, Wyatt thought hard, hoping that he could mentally ‘send’ the answer to Jimmy.
~*~
Later that evening, at dinner, Jimmy and Wyatt were in a heated discussion about what happened at the firing range. “You were supposed to help me.”
“I did. You never told me that you didn’t know what the parts of a gun were. We covered all that in class. I can’t be held responsible because you don’t know where the hammer is,” Wyatt countered.
“I thought you were my friend,” Jimmy retorted.
“I am your friend. You asked for help on the procedures on the line and I went over it with you. Don’t blame me for looking like a fool out there today,” Wyatt said, keeping his anger in check. He picked at his food with the fork and then stood up, pushing his chair back and making a body-cringing noise as it slid across the floor.
Ryan and his friends sat nearby, hearing the exchange, and enjoyed every minute of it. “They sound like a married couple,” Ryan said, teasingly.
“Wonder if they’ll kiss and make up later?” Mercer added and then he acted as if he was going to kiss Ryan.
Ryan pushed Mercer away, “Knock it off, Mercer, I can’t hear with your damn babbling.”
“Look, if you want my help, fine, but don’t twist your failings so you can blame me instead of taking responsibility for yourself,” Wyatt responded, narrowing his eyes. He picked up his plate and then walked away.
“Ooh, no make up kissing tonight,” Mercer added, chuckling.
~*~
A heavy silence filled the dorm room between Wyatt and Jimmy. Neither spoke to the other the entire time after Jimmy returned from dinner. Wyatt knew this game very well and he considered himself a master at it. Having Garrett for a brother certainly helped him hone his silence skills.
Wyatt was busy with homework when he heard the familiar sounds of a gun being disassembled then reassembled. Occasionally, there were groans, a few colorful curse words and the sound of a hand slapping the table in frustration. Wyatt smiled. He was not going to offer help until Jimmy asked.
What Wyatt didn’t know was that Jimmy wasn’t going to ask until Wyatt offered. Between the two egos, neither would break down and they’d just continue to ignore each other, make sarcastic remarks and throw an occasional sneer in the direction of the other.
Both had forgotten this sort of behavior was not tolerated in class. As partners, they had to work together, and that also meant communicating.
The Deputy Instructors had heard what was going on between the two - it wasn’t hard with the way word got around and it was very noticeable during dinner. But, when the call came in that the cadets were needed for a search, the two hard-headed cadets had better work out their differences.
The alarm sounded in the dorm building and the cadets scattered to line up in the hallway in front of their doors. It was always interesting for the Deputy Instructors when they had their surprise inspections or test drills; they never knew the cadets state of dress. The cadets, especially those who enjoyed sleeping naked, learned very quickly to have at least undershorts on at all times.
“Listen up, Cadets, unfortunately, every once in a while, we get called in to help with a search. But, it’s not a search for missing person, it’s a search for a body. I want you to get in uniform and be in the courtyard in five minutes. Class Sergeant, dismiss the class.”
“Class, on my command, get in uniform and be at the courtyard in five minutes. Class…dismissed,” Wyatt said and watched as the cadets rushed back inside their rooms. A body?, he thought to himself as he walked towards his armoire to put his uniform on. He had been learning how to deal with live people for so long that he had forgotten that the dead were also part of his job.
Wyatt headed out towards the courtyard once he had finished putting on his uniform. He waited for the last of the cadets to arrive and was glad they still had a minute to spare. The last thing he wanted was the class to be in trouble again. He called the class to attention and then Chief Elliot took over.
“Well done, Cadets. We’re going to load up on two transport trucks and head out of the city to an area where a killer has admitted to burying a body. You will be given these rods.” He held up the one in his hand for the cadets to see. “These will help find any changes in soil depth. There’s no farming around here, so the soil underground should all be pretty much the same. If the rod sinks into the soil with ease, and deeper than normal, then stop what you’re doing and call out. Do not attempt to dig. Leave that to the investigators. The investigators will give more instructions when we get out there. Class Sergeant, move them out,” Chief Elliot said and then walked away to join the other Deputy Instructors.
Wyatt moved the class out and they jogged to the waiting trucks.
~*~
The cadets fanned out with rods in hand to cover a large swath of land. The lead detective gave them the order and they began their search. Other than using the rods, the cadets were also instructed to look for signs of a disturbed area of ground.
Wyatt wondered what kind of person would do this to another human being. It made his desire to become a Tin Man even greater. He wanted to find criminals, he wanted to help people and he wanted to stop people from committing crimes; all the reasons why he wanted to be a Tin Man were there in front of him. The purpose of the lessons, the hard work, the studying and the physical training began to come together for him.
The cadets walked in silence, pushing the rods into the soil, looking for disturbed ground; anything that would help them find closure for the family.
Seconds ticked by, turning into minutes, and minutes turned into hours, very long hours. Beyond the backdrop of the mountains, a storm rumbled - announcing its impending arrival - in the distance. It wouldn’t matter; they would keep searching, regardless of weather conditions, with the exception of lightning.
The cadets didn’t speed up their search. They maintained their pace, making sure all areas were explored.
Wyatt sighed as he glanced over his shoulder at the large area they had already covered. He was beginning to think that the self-professed killer may be sending them on a wild goose chase. There was always the possibility that this was nothing more than someone who wanted to grab some publicity for himself or spend some time in jail because he was homeless. A roof over their head, free food and a hot shower are all things that were worth some time in jail, especially when those things were hard to come by.
Wyatt glanced skyward as the heavens’ rumbling became louder. The wind shifted and the cool breeze against his face revealed just how close this storm was. Winter was coming and the cool mornings would be a welcome relief during their runs.
Before the first bolt of lightning could be seen, a cadet to Wyatt’s left called out, waving his torch frantically. The cadets were commanded to mark their positions with tiny flags as lightning lit up the sky above them.
The cadets scrambled for cover inside the trucks and watched where the investigators were digging. After a few moments, one of the investigators waved and other officers brought out a tent to cover the area. Some of the cadets lowered their heads, knowing that their search had concluded, but the family’s real pain began.
~*~
Wyatt stood under the shower’s spray as the storm unleashed a torrential downpour on the city, outside the walls of the dorm. The warm water cascaded down his bare back, loosening up the tension in his muscles. He wasn’t thinking about Jimmy; he was thinking about the family, thinking about what he would say if he was ever in the position to tell a family that a loved one had been killed.
He turned the knob and the water ceased pouring from the showerhead. Wyatt smirked at the idea of having the power to turn the water off outside. Some parts of the lower levels of the city had a bad habit of flooding. People also had a bad habit of driving poorly. The police, fire department and hospitals were facing a long night of accidents, injuries and power outages.
It was definitely the first big storm of the season.
Wyatt dressed after drying off and quietly entered his room. Jimmy appeared to be asleep, since sounds of snoring were coming from him. Wyatt rolled his eyes, tossed his towel across the back of the chair and then slipped between the covers.
The cadets had all talked about finding the body first - to be the hero, in a way - but, in the end, Wyatt was glad it wasn’t him. He stared towards the ceiling, the visions of the family when word reached them that a body had been found would not leave his mind. The cadets were promised they would be told if a positive identification was made. But, for now, according to the description, it seemed pretty certain that it was their missing loved one.
Wyatt couldn’t get the vision of the family out of his mind and it would be hours before he was able to fall asleep.
~*~
The following day, Wyatt found himself back on the driving course, but performing better after his first attempt of the day. All he needed was some confidence, and not having Jimmy in the car with him, yelling in his ear, helped.
After Wyatt’s second attempt around the course, the Deputy Instructors decided to add some fun: they turned on the sprinkler system to simulate rain.
“Alright, cadets, let’s go around again,” the driving instructor said with glee in his tone. He was looking forward to this.
“Rain,” Wyatt mumbled, “great.”
The first couple of cadets were the luckiest, the sprinklers were set on a timer and, at first, it was a slow drizzle, then, water burst from the sprinklers as if it were a winter storm. The only thing missing was the wind that would swirl around the buildings, causing whirlwinds on the streets.
When it was Wyatt’s turn, he sat behind the wheel, both hands at the right positions. He settled on the seat and, with all the concentration he could muster, pressed down on the accelerator. He made the first turn and the second. His turn at the course was going great and, perhaps, he became too relaxed as, on his second go around, the car hydroplaned, taking out cardboard images of a group of citizens waiting for a watervator.
Wyatt was able to get the car back under control, but not until he caused serious injuries to innocent bystanders. His forehead rested on the steering wheel.
Jimmy shook his head, “Nice one, Cain,” he mumbled, laughing at his partner’s expense.