Monster Nation(18)

He forced himself to relax by grabbing his keys in his pants pocket until the jagged edges bit into the ball of his thumb. The discomfort helped him focus. He studied the layout of the denied perimeter the sheriff's office had created. The hospital was a three story building studded with windows. On the side that faced the street it had only a single entrance, a wide lobby of automatic doors leading into the emergency room. Blue and red light flashed across the glass: the deputies had formed a wedge with their patrol cars, a covered forward position for the negotiation phase.

Beyond the doors darkness filled the building like a fluid.Clark saw occasional flashes of motion in there but he could never make out any details. Just inside the emergency room, illuminated only by the police lights, he could see what looked like a leg'the wrinkled sole of a foot, the bumpy shape of an ankle'as if someone had collapsed in the shadows. 'There,'Clark said, pointing it out. 'Do you see that? It looks like a man down. Can you get someone in there to retrieve casualties?'

The deputy glared atClark but then he looked away and lifted his radio handset to his mouth. He uttered a few quick strings of police code numbers and after a moment three SWAT troopers in full armor emerged from a truck behind them. Two of them took up station in short range of the entrance while the third conspicuously put his weapon down on the ground and advanced. He kept his hands in plain view as he ducked under a flapping cordon of caution tape and advanced on the doors. No weapons fire or any other indication of resistance came from the hospital so the trooper moved in closer and then slipped quickly and silently through the glass doors.

Clarkcouldn't see him after that. 'This is SWAT Two, 10-97,' he heard crackling over the deputy's radio. '11-44.'Clark knew that code'it meant 'possible fatality.' 'Oh, man,' the trooper said, his breath heavy as it roared out of the radio. 'Oh, man, it's just a leg, it's been torn off''

'Is there anyone else in there?' the deputy asked. 'Anybody alive?' He looked like he might be sick.

'10-6, 10-6,' the trooper insisted, asking them to stand by. 'I see six, maybe more males'it's very dark, they're approaching my position.'

Clarkstiffened. He squeezed his keys until the pain made him wince. 'Get your man out of there now,' he demanded.

The deputy waved at him is dismissal. 'SWAT Two, are they armed?'

'SWAT Two here, negative' 10-6, okay, okay, one of them tried to grab me''

The radio crackled with silence. Vikram put a hand onClark 's shoulder and he realized he'd been about to jump up and run inside. He let out a deep breath and then sucked in a new one when the door of the hospital slammed open.

'Fuck, f*ck, fuuucckkk!' SWAT Two screamed as he came barreling out, the severed human leg clutched in one hand. The trooper dashed to cover as the doors slid open again and three badly wounded men came staggering out.

Blood covered one's face. Another wore no shirt andClark could see he'd been disemboweled. The third's left arm dangled at his side, the skin flayed off down to the elbow. They made no sound at all as they limped toward the fleeing SWAT trooper. They didn't even look up when the deputy demanded that they halt.

A firearm went off very close toClark 's head and he instinctively ducked. When he looked again the three injured men were spinning in place, the dark craters of bullet wounds tearing open their flesh. 'Hold your fire!'Clark shouted but the deputy bellowed over him, demanding that the SWAT team fire at will. 'What are you doing?'Clark demanded. 'Those men are unarmed! They need medical attention!'

The deputy set his mouth in a hard line. He studiedClark 's face for a moment, then turned away to spit on the ground. 'I have had just about enough of this shit,' he said. 'I don't care if they've got rabies or ebola or what the f*ck ever'six of my men are in that hospital right now and who knows how many civilians and I know just one thing. This. Ends. Here.' He pointed at the ground to emphasize his point.

Clarkshook his head sadly. This was where it would truly begin.

In the red and blue light the three men jittered and danced as the SWAT team, their eyes vacant as they tried to walk forward through the hail of gunfire.Clark knew that look. It was the same one he'd seen at ADX-Florence.





Monster Nation





Chapter Twelve


'He was just leaning against the ' standing there, he looked kind of confused and every once in a while he would knock on the door. With his fists, you know, maybe he was trying to break it open but' he wasn't my husband, not anymore' I didn't know what to do!' [Caller on the 'Buzz Linklee Show', 1290 AM KKAR,Omaha , 3/19/05]