I held onto MacClure's shoulder as Officer Jenkins and I waited with him out by our patrol car. In theory we could have taken him back ourselves for assaulting Officer Jenkins, but because of my size, it was more practical for us to call for "backup". He struggled a little, but my grip was firm and there was no way he could overcome that, even with my claws sheathed.
"This will probably mean that there are bullet casings that match the one we got from the body of Joshua Marksman," Officer Jenkins mused as she looked down the road, "he realized that we'd get something he could be arrested on, and he panicked."
I nodded, "Hopefully the other officers find them then."
Officer Jenkins nodded in agreement.
"Stupid traitor!" MacClure grumbled under his breath, though it was loud enough that even Officer Jenkins could hear him. He still seemed betrayed by Beauregard and unable to understand why Marksman would defend him.
I wasn't in much mood to argue with him, and simply held him there. Officer Jenkins merely looked out at the road as we waited for the officers that would be taking MacClure back to the station arrived. Thinking back on the brief "fight" that had gone on in the house, I found myself chuckling at the whole incident.
"You did well in dealing with him in there," I commented with a chuckle, remembering the pained gasp MacClure gave when Officer Jenkins' knee met his groin.
"Well, of course," Officer Jenkins gave a confident smirk of her own, "I went through the same training as any other officer of the law. I may do a lot of the desk work normally, but I'm still trained in all the moves used by officers to restrain potentially violent criminals."
She then gestured to MacClure.
"And to be honest, out here, with mostly scattered ranches and small towns, there are very few opportunities for private martial arts classes," Officer Jenkins shrugged, "and unless someone has military or police experience, the standard method of fighting in a one on one battle would be to move forward and use all your strength to pound the opponent. And that appeared to be MacClure's strategy here. I'm obviously a woman and he figured he could tackle me to the ground and pound me until I was out cold."
"He would not have gotten that far, even if he had been successful," I told her.
"I'm sure," Officer Jenkins replied, "but he fell right into the training in both basic self defense and in the training related to the police work that has to be done... and he obviously left his nuts wide open to attack. I took that route, used his own momentum to sling him on his back, and the fight was over."
I cringed slightly at the thought of receiving a blow to the groin, but nodded.
"And that it was," I nodded, "and as I said, you did well."
We waited about ten minutes before the first sign of other officers appeared on the road ahead of us. It turned out to be Officer Howard, the normal dispatch officer, and another patrol officer. They all slowly approached with eyes on MacClure.
"He hasn't given you any further problems, has he?" Officer Howard asked as they approached.
"No, sir," I responded as I handed MacClure over to the other patrol officer.
He and the dispatch officer took MacClure back to his car and prepared to return to the station with the prisoner.
"So, what do you have so far?" Officer Howard asked.
"We obviously have the gun," Officer Jenkins reported, "though the ammunition we found with it didn't match the tracing numbers on the round we received from the autopsy. But since he's been using his property as his own private shooting range, I had the others begin searching the grounds for the bullet casings or the bullet themselves if it's still in a block of wood. I then went to update Officer Wayne on our progress..."
"Which is when MacClure flipped and attacked Officer Jenkins," I cut in, "and she defended herself rather easily, which leads us to suspect that the rounds that have tracking numbers that match he one we got from the autopsy are somewhere on the property and he knew it."
"And he feared official prosecution," Officer Howard surmised.
"That's our best guess," Officer Jenkins nodded, "he got desperate to escape and did the first thing that came to his mind... though even if he had got away, it's not going to help him any. Charges of assaulting an officer will only be added to the murder charges if we find the round casings."
"Most people that end up getting into these actions generally prove to be rather stupid that way," Officer Howard commented, "maybe not stupid in the intellectual sense... but they're obviously not thinking when they pull these stunts."
"I tend to wonder why at times," I told him with a slight shrug, "certainly he should know that such an action would get him in more trouble."
"I'm sure he does," Officer Howard replied, "but as you well know, it's an instinctual thing... one that humans probably don't recognize anymore. You can because you had your past as human and can recognize the feline instincts that obviously differ from the human instincts you and your wife grew up with."
"The whole "fight or flee" concept?" I asked, "wouldn't every animal have that?"
"Yes," Officer Howard nodded, "but humans have evolved past the point where we think we do anything instinctively. It's only in times of stress or desperation when those sort of things kick in to try and insure basic survival. He realized he was caught... or likely be caught... and the urge to escape and live overpowered anything else, even if his conscious mind knew that you weren't going to eat him and that the other officers weren't going to shoot him if and when they find the matching bullets. It's something humanity believes it has evolved out of."
"It's all crazy," Officer Jenkins told him.
"Yes, yes it is," Officer Howard agreed, "but then so many things are crazy these days, seemingly."
Officer Jenkins and I nodded. At that point, one of the other four officers that had come with us to search the property came running up toward us. He addressed Officer Jenkins first.
"Ma'am, I believe we've found the bullet casings you were looking for," the officer reported, "we found them in a garbage can in his barn, along with a ton of other pieces of spent ammunition... and there are some weapons in there that look like they've been modified."
"Modified?" Officer Jenkins gasped.
"For an increased rate of fire," the officer answered.
"Damn," Officer Jenkins only grumbled.
"Thank you for the report," Officer Howard said to the officer, "keep checking to make certain as to whether or not these weapons have been modified illegally or not. The law allows presently allows private citizens to own military grade weaponry, but certain modifications to those weapons are illegal... and if MacClure has done that... he's in trouble for more then murder."
"Yes, sir," the officer acknowledged the order.
Officer Howard then turned to Officer Jenkins and I again.
"I'm going to have you two tail your "back up" back to the station," Officer Howard instructed, "If MacClure tries anything, I'm sure Officer Wayne, that you might be needed. I will take over what is left to be done here... and if they've found the casings that match what we got from the autopsy, your work is done... and finding illegally modified weapons goes beyond what we have official permission to search."
"It would still be acceptable as evidence, correct?" I wondered.
"Only because it was found in the course of executing the warrant," Officer Howard sighed, "it is a search warrant that allows you to search for evidence of the murder. Which I'd assume is what you did?"
Both Officer Jenkins and I nodded.
"So MacClure has no legal ground to say you lied," Officer Howard replied, "you we searching for evidence related to the murder and found evidence of illegally modified weapons in the course of it. It was an "accident" that the weapons cache was found and an accident that MacClure will pay for. Now, you'd best get going."
"Yes, sir," Officer Jenkins and I answered.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++
MacClure caused no serious trouble while being taken back to the station. He struggled a little and looked visibly grumpy as he was taken to the cells that we had, but there was no major disturbance. No attempt to flee. No further attempts to fight, and he was even somewhat quiet as we took him into the cells. Once we had him in the cells, we returned to the front desk area where the dispatch officer had returned to the position among the radio equipment to speak with officers out on patrol and with those calling 911 or the Columbia Falls police department directly.
"And so another exciting chapter concludes," Officer Barnes quipped as we returned, "everyone okay this time?"
"In terms of officers, yes," I nodded, "MacClure, however, took a bit of a beating."
"You mauled him?" Officer Barnes smirked.
"No," Officer Jenkins replied, "I got him where it hurts the most."
"Ah, his pride," Officer Barnes chuckled.
"That's one way of putting it," I chuckled.
"So what'd he do that deserved such a "beating", may I ask?" Officer Barnes wondered.
"I think he got a little too excited," I shrugged with some humor in my voice, "lunged to "hug" Officer Jenkins and WHAM, she let him have it."
"I told him he wasn't my type," Officer Jenkins chuckled.
"I should hope not," Officer Barnes replied, "it'd leave me without good company."
"You know that you were always my type, Mr. Barnes," Officer Jenkins replied with a somewhat playful smirk, "You've been so good to me and my daughter."
"We can't do this while on duty," Officer Barnes replied in a somewhat uneasy voice, which made Officer Jenkins chuckle.
This part was still a "sideshow" in comparison to most of the things in my life, but for the moment it seemed like a pleasant one. It was like both Officer Barnes and Officer Jenkins had truly liked each other and were now able to express that openly. That felt right to me, and was glad that two people who had become fairly friendly with me were able to be happy with each other. Just as I was happy with Molly.