Around 9 p.m., near the dam bridge in Karmac, the Red Rooftop Bar was bustling with patrons coming and going early on Christmas Eve.
Bars are naturally hotbeds of conflict, with alcohol, music, and the opposite sex stirring up trouble among those not in their right minds.
Therefore, the Karmac Town Police Department specifically arranged for officers to patrol nearby, ready to provide support at any moment.
For a village town police department, their jurisdiction is merely the town itself, mostly locals and acquaintances, so the police work isn't usually busy.
On Christmas Eve tonight, it's clear many chose the bar as their gathering spot. Since nightfall, officers had already mediated three disputes.
After 9 o'clock, several people were cursing and yelling as they were escorted out by the bar's security, while a few others outside waited to enter. At that moment, conflict erupted between the ejected individuals and a man waiting outside, beginning with shoving between a couple of them and escalating to several assaulting the man. Other than one person making a police call, the rest were merely spectators.
Two Karmac police officers dispatched by the control center arrived on the scene, and the assailants scattered in all directions, leaving the police to chase after one of them.
The police's environment for responding to incidents is just like this, as offenders often scatter, outnumbering the police, who can only rely on luck to pursue one or two.
Karmac police informed the control center and requested backup from other nearby officers, but the village town police force had only a handful of officers and three patrol cars. After chasing down a street, the suspect suddenly turned and fired a shot at the police before continuing to flee.
In such an incident, the police can't just start with guns blazing, emptying their magazines. They were merely holding flashlights as they pursued and were startled when the suspect suddenly fired at them. Although nobody was hit, they had to take cover and notify the control center that the suspect had opened fire.
Since the suspect had fired his weapon, the officers couldn't recklessly chase after him but hoped others would intercept him upfront and notified the county police and surrounding city police for support.
Noah was on duty nearby today. After receiving the call from the control center, he drove straight to Karmac Town. Based on the address provided by Karmac police, Noah stopped his car at an intersection ahead, aimed his gun down the street, and when the suspect appeared, shouted, "Stop, don't move, Plaskey County Police."
His demand was met with gunfire. Upon seeing the police car, the suspect fired at Noah. Noah, crouching by the front side of the car, had previously taught Jimmy that only the engine and wheel hubs of a police vehicle were fully bulletproof. But even he couldn't do anything about a shot from divine providence. The suspect fired several random shots; only one hit the police car, and the rest missed, but one bullet hit Noah in the right shoulder.
"FXXK, A47 calling control center, code 999, officer down, need support, I need an ambulance, Karmac."
Noah turned and sat down on the ground, leaning against the front wheel, while the shooting suspect continued to flee along the street.
The officers following behind received the report and rushed to the intersection to give Noah emergency aid, while another officer had already gone back to get a car and was now on the way to continue the pursuit.
Once the 999 call went out, all nearby officers headed towards the scene, requiring a few minutes to arrive, while the suspect had already run towards the Arkansas River.
The pursuing officer had to abandon his car after a short drive and chased on foot. The area is close to the Arkansas River, and the suspect had dashed over the roadside barriers, something a police car couldn't manage.
As officers progressively reported the suspect's location, incoming police cars also adjusted their positions, attempting to get ahead for an interception.
The suspect's escape route headed towards the dam bridge, which only had a pedestrian path inaccessible to police cars. To evade the police, he had to choose this method of avoiding a vehicle pursuit.
Dozens of officers were in position, their cars stopped outside the dam bridge, pursuing on foot across the bridge, and the control center had arranged for officers on the other side to be in place. Other than jumping into the river or taking flight, there seemed no way out for the armed suspect.
Jimmy arrived at the dam bridge at this time, running onto the bridge along with other officers. Passersby from the night stroll were now scattering in panic.
Seeing himself surrounded by police on both ends, the suspect promptly took a bystander hostage, using them as a shield for a standoff.
Jimmy, standing behind the officers, drew his handgun and aimed at the suspect. With bystanders still not cleared, firing now could cause significant casualties. Therefore, all officers could only encircle from afar, not daring to approach, waiting for the crowd to quickly escape the impending gunfight.
During this time, Jimmy asked a nearby officer which department the shot officer belonged to. When he learned it was a county police officer who was supporting them, he had a bad feeling. It was Cage Sergeant and his squad who were on duty in the Northwest Division, formerly Jimmy's own patrol team, comprised of all familiar faces.
Jimmy took out his phone and called Cage.
"Cage, I'm supporting at the dam bridge. Who's been shot? How is he?"
"It's Noah. He's been taken to the ambulance. I'm on my way to the dam bridge."