The Tears Devourer

II

    Rachel pulled off the curb into the dedicated bike lane. Without realizing it, she ran the first red light going down the main avenue of the county, she turned right to the first corner she reached, going back up to the sidewalk when she had no more personalized track.

    The bike-girl dodged a bulldog that had just finished marking territory in one of the neat gardens that 302 shines in its streets, veered left at an intersection, and took 412 diagonally to the street where she was; jumped a bump, and almost lost the balance, but the rush was more certain than her clumsiness, for now. She swung through two entire blocks, dodging pedestrians and small children playing on the ground, took Washington, seeing it half empty and wide for its not-so-straight lines that she left behind, and walked with ease between the cars, which by law were not more than sixty, entered 504, not to stop at the second red light, and boldly cross the intersection with 1403.

    A patrol car parked in that street realized the recklessness, activated the annoying alarm to everything that the speaker behind the car gives, and started the engine with a muffled roar, a sound that completed the archaic facade of the patrol. 'Stop immediately' was heard from the officer's speaker, that robotic and serious voice.

    Rachel, not scared by what was happening, but concerned for her little sister, ignored the warning and continued on her way, there were only two blocks left to reach her goal. The patrol picked up its pace and caught up with her to the next block. The officer stared at her unfriendly, and warned him for the last time to stop, now that it was still possible to negotiate punishment.

    Rachel stopped at the end of 506, admiring the empty elementary school from afar, and hoping that her sister was still safe and sound inside. She looked back and watched the patrol door slowly open. A foot hit the asphalt, and it stopped for a moment.

    A tall, thin young man in an officer's dress got out of the patrol car and glared at her. He adjusted his pants, even though it was securely fastened with a tremendous black leather strap, which matched the shoes and the ridiculous sunglasses that he wore hanging from the left pocket belonging to the blue uniform shirt. The policeman walked briskly to where Rachel was, holding on to the seatbelt the entire journey.

    "Do you know how fast you were driving, miss?" Asked the officer, removing his peaked cap, revealing the short dark brown hair, stuck to the skull at the sides, but loose and wavy on top. When the girl looked at him closely, she realized that she was wrong at first glance, the officer was not as tall as she thought.

    "Yeah sure," Rachel answered boldly. "It was clear as water on the screen."

    "You don't want to play smart, miss," he scolded her, pursing his lips. "You were going forty-two, in a zone of thirty, and in the case that you didn't realize it either, the light was red when crossed 1403."

    "Excuse me, official, but I'm late to pick up my sister, and..."

    "Your personal matters are not my problem," the policeman interrupted. "I assume you are not of legal age, am I right?"

    "Not official," Rachel replied. "I'm fifteen."

    "Very well..." The officer opened his left shirt pocket, the one where his glasses were hanging, and took out a small notebook that he carried around with him. "So I must ask you to accompany me to the police station. I must warn…" Rachel opened her mouth, in an attempt to claim and complain, but the officer silenced her by raising a finger to the air and resting it on his own lips. "Kid. When an adult speaks, children listen." Rachel's face creased, and she flushed slightly as she silently gritted her teeth. "You must accompany me to the police station to notify your parents..."

    "Central. Do you copy me?" The officer's radio sounded. "Garb? Are you there? Over." The officer took the radio from his belt and held it to his mouth.

    "This's Garb. What happened? Over," the officer replied.

    "We have a 10-16 in progress, Jarred." Said the radio. "What's your location? Over."

    "I'm on 506 with 1503," the officer informed him. Rachel was watching intently and gaping at his side, still uneasy about all the time she was wasting in this strange situation. "Tell Melina to assign you someone else, if you really need it. Over."

    "The door won't budge, and groans are heard inside the house. I have no idea what to do, Jarred. Seriously, I could use a hand in this pal." The radio answered, and he paused for a long time before Officer Jarred Garb broke the silence.

    "If you're not going to talk anymore, you must say 'over'," he reproached his mate in a gentle tone.

    "Oh yeah, right. Sorry officer." The voice on the other end sounded a bit nervous, a little uneasy perhaps. "I'm at 510-G. Actually, you are the closest officer."

    Officer Garb explained to the recruit that he was in a significant arrest, obviously exaggerating the situation Rachel was in, and that is that he could not excuse himself from a 10-16 in progress, only because of a fifteen-year-old girl who went overboard a red light. About two or three more minutes was all it took for the cadet to convince Officer Garb to heed the 10-16 call and bring with him the 'significant arrest' at hand.

    "So?" Rachel said, a hint of sarcasm in her voice. "Will you take your dangerous criminal in the back seat, to show off to the newbie?"

    "I was thinking of letting you go with just a warning, but that comment cost you your bike."

    The officer made a feint to take the bike, between complaints and small tears that came from the tormented Rachel, but then his radio beeped again.

    "All units, we have a 990 in 1203. All officers without an assignment are asked to report immediately to 1203. Over and out." The officer's face went from amused to a deeply serious one, with small hints of sadness on top.

    "What's a 990, officer?" Rachel asked, noticing that Jarred Garb had suddenly turned pale.

    "Go get your sister, child," the distracted policeman managed to reply. "But if I catch you again skipping a red light or running recklessly through pedestrians, I'll take that bike with me, okay?"

    Rachel only managed to nod her head, before Officer Garb shot off toward his patrol. The car started with a loud roar, veered the other way, and accelerated before she could even settle into the synthetic seat of her 2004 Argon. She wondered as she pedaled the remaining two blocks to Dells Elementary School, what would make a 990 so desperately important?