The Shark's Sting

The rain just stopped hitting my mask, finally I could light one. The rain didn't bother me since the alley behind the supermarket I chose as a meeting place provides no cover. The hours long wait with no smoke did. This was a perfect vantage point though, one entrance, two exits. The street perpendicular to the alley in front of me and behind me, a ladder to the roof where the rooftops led to my vehicle a few blocks down. My plan was flawless in my own mind.

As I finish my last smoke, the suspects arrive in a red 4x4 pickup. I grab the satchel next to me and watch as three young men stepped out. "Get a load of this faggot in the mask!" "Yer too early for Halloween!" Clearly highschool dropouts. I charge my knuckles to let them know I'm here for business, not pleasure. They seem a little startled by the electricity arcing from my hand, not enough though. "Hey man we were just..." I cut him off, "Do you have the goods?" "Yeah, man..." "Slide it over here and when I know you aren't ripping me off, I'll give you payment," I say holding up the satchel. "Wait! How do we know you aren't a cop?" "You don't but this paycheck is bigger than your fears." They look at each other for a moment and we do the exchange as planned. I watch and gauge their reactions carefully as I slip quietly to the corner where my bat was concealed.

"Aaah! What the f... is this?!" It worked, the old garter snake in the bag of 100 dollars trick. All they saw was a snake and tossed the bag, causing enough confusion for me to charge them. I take the leader out with one well placed hit. The second ,still focused on the snake was another easy takedown. I feel metal on the back of my head. Shit. I was too careless to not notice the third guy reaching for a gun. "Turn around man. You think this is a f...ing joke?" I need a plan though nothing comes to me. I face the guy with the gun, dropping the bat, hands in the air. I notice he is tweaked out of his mind, another complication. I look at his shaking arm holding the gun. That's when it hits me. "You do realize that a gun is only useful if the safety is off?" "Eh?" His moment of confusion as he looks at the gun gives me a small opening to plant an electric punch to his throat. The tweaker was so blitzed, that he didn't even realize that that specific model handgun has a trigger safety. I was lucky, too lucky.

I open the bag of dope, meth, lots of meth. I go to my bag and let the harmless snake go, leaving the money. I take into account what has happened and snap pictures for evidence. Each brick and every dollar. After this, I make my way to the roof. Once up top, I make a 911 call on an old trac phone. "Please you have to hurry," I say in my most convincing voice, "I saw some thugs in the alleyway behind the market get beat up! One of them had a gun! Looks like a bad drug deal!" "Sir, get back in your house, officers are on their way." The bait is set. Now to wait for my true target.

Ten minutes it takes the county's "finest" to show up. I lay on the roof watching, camera ready. I see them move stuff around. Two cops total with two different vehicles. I watch the one counting the drugs. He signals to the other to go to his car for something. There! SNAP! I got it. He put 3 bricks into another bag. Clearly not evidence. I keep watch. SNAP! Money going into pockets. The hubris these civil protectors have is astounding. Laughing as if they hit their own payday. I snap a few more and leave. They are too caught up in "police work" to notice. I go home and print out my evidence and wait till the next night to deliver it to the courthouse. I know the cops won't be tried, corruptions tendrils go too far up. However they now know that someone is watching.

The people say they want a hero, instead they elect corrupt officials. These public servants show that fact. I thank God that they aren't all like this. These scumbags ruin the name of those who actually want to do good. For them I feel justice, no, retribution is to be payed by bringing the evil to light. A famous vigilante once said, "The whores and politicians will look up and shout save is...and I'll whisper 'No." At first I thought it was typical comic book style writing to instill emotion. Now, with eyes opened, I understand the weight of that statement. The people need to see the lies they are fed. The true monsters of this world need to be revealed. Hopefully I can make it happen in atleast one person. Then I would know my sacrifice is for nothing. I am no hero, just a person sick of seeing this joke passed off as justice. I am The Shark.