The men of the Blue Ridge Precinct had their new rituals to compensate them for the old ones … they sort of gathered outside their temporary trailer home together with their coffee and whatever other breakfast items they wanted at around 8:45am to just get themselves ready to face whatever their new captain might throw at them.
But, by mid-December, they had sort of started to notice … those strong enough to survive were actually a little better off than they had been.
Muscles had returned. Weight had been shed. Physiques were getting on point. Abilities and skills half forgotten had returned and been sharpened. Intellects were brightening. Industriousness had slopped over and the effects were filtering down into these officers' personal lives as well.
It was not so clear because there was still tremendous resentment toward the new captain for him taking them out of their peaceful, half-retired existence … but the reality was creeping up on the men of the precinct a little more every day.
And then, there were those moments when Captain Henry Fitzhugh Lee showed what they already knew but did not want to admit just yet: he was not against them, but for them, for them becoming the best officers they could possibly be, and having all that they needed to do that.
There were a couple of things about Captain Lee that were obvious. The first was that he was the body double of his well-known ancestral uncle, Robert E. Lee. That was as plain as the nose on the captain's living-marble face. The second was that he was even more deadly, considered pound for pound. Old General Lee had never killed a man with a look, however much he might have wanted to. Captain Lee his nephew had done it twice – and Acting Commissioner Tate had jumped through a plate glass window at the sound of his voice. No Civil War needed for the nephew in order to bring out the deadliness – he was the walking, talking Angel of Death.
The third thing: both Lees were generally quiet, calm, and composed until they weren't – and woe be to whoever it was that got them into their temper. Both of them could make you wish you were dead even if they didn't go on and make it happen, and it was one of those phenomena that, if you weren't the subject, you felt singed being nearby, but, you still couldn't look away …
8:56am – the officers of the Blue Ridge precinct headed toward the door of their trailer and toward the light that had been on before they arrived. Captain Lee was already there, and on this day had not only put out coffee but brought more of those good, fresh apples his men loved. He himself was in preparation for the workday in those hours, reading and reviewing information and making phone calls and such … just quiet things from a generally quiet man.
But on this day, the precinct's men filed in to see something not seen in Virginia for 149 years. Captain Lee was reading a report, and all of the sudden that statuesque head went from white to bronze to plum, and the veins started to stand out. The eyes turned to balls of dark fire – hellish prediction for somebody's day – and that neck jerked around as his sinewy hand snatched up that phone –.
“See, this right here is why we come in early,” Officer Baxter whispered to Officer Riker. “Imagine having that man looking for your number on a morning like this.”
“Right, right,” Officer Riker said. “I'm not even a Christian and I want to thank God I'm not on the other end of that line that he's calling.”
Captain Lee remained a gentleman even in his rage; a receptionist picked up and he was very kind as he asked for whom he wanted to speak to. The kindness went out the instant he had that man on the phone.
“I've just read your excuse for a response to my requisition. I'm going to give you exactly five minutes to explain and then reverse yourself before I explain to you exactly how it is going to get done whether you want to or not.”
“Oooh – I felt that over here!” Officer Treatmore said.
“Sssssh – are you trying to get us on the receiving end?” Officer Burns said.
The man on the other end of the phone wasted his explaining time yelling back over the line at Captain Lee.
“Oh, he's as good as gone,” Officer Lattimer whispered. “Henry Fitzhugh Lee is not the one.”
Captain Lee let the man yell himself out; he tapped a button on his computer keyboard merely made notes until the five minutes was up.
“Time's up,” he thundered after exactly five minutes. “You have now completed my record of your providing substandard materials for the needs of officers in this department and taking no responsibility for the consequences. I have documented everything that you have just said, in light of your chronically under-supplying the Blue Ridge precinct for the past ten years. I have all the receipts, and in the time you spent showing the complete and utter fool that you are, they have gone where they needed to go!”
“I have been waiting on you to try the same foolishness on me that you got away with while Captain Trent was here. I have been waiting on you to confirm your motive for your gross negligence, and thus your role in the collapse of the old station and what would have been the death of every man in the precinct! All I asked for were two winter-ready temporary buildings to house my men through the worst of the year – if you had any sense you would have just done that and lasted a little longer before I caught you! You could have spared yourself for your family over the holidays, although you have no such compassion upon my officers!”
“But today, you have put yourself in my hands, and I will see your department whittled down TODAY until we reach whoever it is who is going to do precisely what I ask for these officers! Pack your desk! I give you my solemn word that I will see my requisition honored and its purpose completed long before you sit in front of any desk in any position of authority in Virginia again! The rest of the adventures I have planned for you and your ship of fools today you will discover on your own – in short order!”
Captain Lee was what is called among singers a dramatic tenor; he normally kept its fullness soft, but without a microphone he could be heard in his full voice in a stadium, right up to the bleachers. So: that was quite a voice to experience in its power, confined to a rickety trailer.
“I might have to get saved – God, please, please, please don't let me ever be on the other end of something like that,” Officer Riker said.
“Yeah, but, he's doing it for us,” Officer Baxter said. “Captain Lee is doing that for us.”
“Well, we deserve that after putting up with how he tortures us every day,” Officer Kern said.
“Yeah, but, still,” Officer Lattimer said. “Lee isn't the kind of man that has to do things for people. He's still looking out for us, in his own horrible way.”
Officer Riker was the communications officer, and he was unofficially designated to keep track of what happened next.
9:30: “Yep, So-and-So just got fired.”
9:45: “Yep, the whole office just got fired.”
10:00: “Yep, So-and-So and half his office just got arrested – embezzlement, mail fraud, blah blah blah … the list is long … .”
10:30: “The survivors are sending over their representative so that Captain Lee can receive their unconditional surrender – I mean, to see what it is that we need.”
The representative arrived at 10:55am.
“Good morning, Captain Lee,” he said, and there was no hiding the nervousness in his voice. “I understand that there are some requisitions you've been having trouble getting through, and so I thought I would come and see what can be done.”
“How very kind of you, sir,” Captain Lee said, his voice and smile cordial. “I trust the trouble has been cleared up.”
“Um, yes, sir, it has.”
“Excellent. I trust you have familiarized yourself with the details of my requisitions for the precinct.”
“Yes, sir, I have, but I wanted to go over them in person to make sure nothing is missed.”
“How thoughtful of you, sir.”
The new representative went carefully over Captain Lee's requisitions and entered them in his laptop on the spot … meanwhile, the captain served him coffee and apples, neatly sliced.
“Oh … what a surprise … these apples are delicious!”
It was a pleasant interaction, all together, and the captain walked the representative out with a smile.
“Let the folks back in your circles know: you make sure my men have what they need, and you'll have no trouble from me. If it was not so clear before, let it be clear now: I don't get up in the morning planning to eat men's entire careers and lives for breakfast. I would like to remain just as pleasant and as cordial as you see me now.”
“Oh, yes, Captain Lee … I hardly expected to have such an easy working relationship, but you really weren't asking for anything unreasonable, and you seem to be a perfectly reasonable gentleman.”
“That's because I am, until the people I am responsible for are not treated properly,” Captain Lee said. “If it was not so clear before, let it be known where it needs to be known: I get just a little irritated when my people are needlessly endangered.”
“Captain Lee, if today was just you getting a little irritated, I don't think anybody wants to see you get mad!”
“You're right. You don't. I'd rather not show anyone that side of me. But let it be clear: I will if there is no other way.”
Captain Lee's smile disappeared.
“You will have these requisitions fulfilled by December 30, won't you?”
“Oh, yes, sir, it will be done by then!”
“I will not have to call through to your new office to check on this on January 2, will I?”
“Oh, no, sir!”
“Thank you very much, sir,” Captain Lee said, and showed his smile once more. “Enjoy your day, and the holidays with your family.”
Captain Lee's officers just watched all of this with guarded admiration.
“Those city officials are like putty in his hands!”
“Well, what do you expect after what he is able to do to us every day? If he was just a little more relaxed, we could be living good again around here!”
“Look, man, we have to take the good with the bad – if he was more relaxed and let things slide like Captain Trent, we would have been dead in October and dripped on in January.”
“That doesn't make any sense, Lattimer.”
“Yes it does,” he said. “Not that both could have happened concurrently, but you know exactly what I am saying. We have to take the good with the bad. Lee is a killer, to the bone. We're going to be the best officers in the city or die trying; no two ways about that. He ain't got it out of his system for today, either – we're about to go through it after lunch, I'm sure. But hey: he is willing to go kill for us, and at least when we are not suffering through the winter, we will be warm and comfortable as we rest and recuperate in the new setup.”
“We have gotten down to accepting this little out of life,” Officer Kern said.
“I don't see where we have a choice,” Officer Treatmore said. “We need our jobs. This is the only way.”
“We're stuck with Lee,” Officer Baxter said, “but at least Lee is sticking with us, too. Better get ready to have a short lunch, y'all … he's checking the weather out the window and on the computer, and as soon as it stops pouring rain, you know where we're going.”
All of them groaned, but, just a little bit, their attitude toward their new captain had changed for the better – at least until he interrupted their lunch and put them out in all that rain for yet another drill … .
The graphic was created by the author, Deeann D. Mathews -- it is a fractal art representation of the sun in a smoky sky ... not so clear...
Hi, @deeanndmathews your post have been randomly picked by @text2speech
below is the link to the audio version of your post hope you will and other users will enjoy this.
audio of the post
this is an introduction post have a looks and know more about this account.
Introduction Post
The problem is that you are committing COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT. No one gave you permission to take my work and put it on a YouTube channel. That's theft, and theft is not a new concept. I don't take kindly to it and will not allow it.
@hivewatchers, step in here -- @texttospeech is taking content off the blog without users' permission and building itself a YouTube channel based on theft of users' content. Here is a screenshot of the page on YouTube in case it disappears (because it may well do so when I am done reporting it), and the page itself. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjdSReS4G3q9I2ywv5VS-mw
Here is the unauthorized audio, a clear copyright violation under the laws of the United States where I reside (U.S. Title Code 17), and also the WIPO Copyright Treaty of 1996, with signatories of nearly every country in the world.
I am leaving the video unflagged long enough for you to confirm my claim, @hivewatchers -- unless @texttospeech removes it, I will be taking appropriate action on the YouTube end in about 24-48 hours.
Here also is @texttospeech's introduction post -- he or she is attempting to promote a paid service based on FIRST stealing content from other users.
https://ecency.com/introduceyourself/@text2speech/the-introduction
sorry this is my bad, yes you are absoluty right that I have to take permission from all the users.
I have deleted all the videos I hope this is good now!
I totally agree with you. I have to change a lot in this all stuff
This is satisfactory ... forgiveness can always be extended when the right thing is done. Thank you.
@hivewatchers, the situation has been resolved by @texttospeech, and I withdraw my complaint.
Thanks a lot mam.
I am glad that you have don this all things.
I have a favor to ask would it be great if I upload the audio version of the post in the google drive instead of the YouTube I just need space to save the audio version of the post that are good to read.
Is there any better idea then please let me know.
THE FIRST THING YOU NEED TO DO IS ASK PERMISSION. You didn't ask for permission to use any of those files, so just delete them. Make sure you delete mine ... now you have me worried that I will have to start looking around for my material, and you don't want me to be worried about that. Delete all files you made from material you didn't ask permission to use, and start over.
OK mam I got that all the things are crystal clear to me now.
Don't you worry I have deleted all the uploaded files if you don't believe then you can see the link that I have posted in your post that will show that there is no such video in the channel.
Ok mam thanks a lot for your help. I will try to make a new post with some new rules and I hope this new way will work.
I think first I have to ask the user if he/she wants to make the audio version of there posts or not if they say yes then there will be no problem for me .
Thanks have a great day.