Stand Off

“Stand Off”

by: Roger Alderman

The door to the Post St. John Children’s Hospital burst open into the heavy pouring rain. Karen in blood-soaked blue hospital scrubs rushes out of the door and turns to slam it closed. She scans the rooftop and spots a copper pipe lying nearby.

Karen lays her swaddled package on the ground and grabs the pipe. Quickly she wedges the pipe into the handle ensuring no one can follow her. The door jars, as police and security officers begin to bang on the door.

Karen snatches up her package and runs to the edge of the rooftop. She pauses and looks at the swaddled package, “They don’t understand!” She unwraps the package to look in the face of her tormentor, a newborn blonde hair blue eyed baby girl. 

Karen looks below through the pouring rain and sees a group of police officers and their cruisers watching. She steps back from the edge, as a helicopter comes within view circling the hospital rooftop. Karen panics, “She’s possessed by the devil! She made me hurt that poor nurse.”

Karen stands in the pouring rain sobbing and whispers, “I’m saving the world. Why don’t they don’t understand.” She looks at the baby, as the shock of the cold pouring rain causes her to cry out. “Stop it!” She yells into the baby’s face, “You’re turning them against me, I know your tricks!”

“KAREN!” A voice calls from below, “Mrs. Dane this is watch commander Kelly, please return the baby to the Hospital Nursery. No one else needs to get hurt.” Karen looks over the edge seeing the rotund policeman with a megaphone and shakes her head in disbelief. The baby screams, as the stormy weather increases in intensity announced by booming thunder.

Karen paces back and forth along the edge of the rooftop glaring at the baby in her arms. “Back off or I’ll throw her I swear!” she screams out loud in hopes the police will realize she’s in control not them. She cast her eyes skyward, “the soldiers of the adversary are upon me. Protect me!”

Karen steps back in shock, as the copper pipe bends allowing the police to flood onto the roof. Thinking quickly, she climbs onto the exterior edge of the rooftop with the baby. Cruiser and Helicopter searchlights flood the rooftop. Karen raises her empty arm to obscure the disorienting bright lights.

Curtains get the thrown open in windows along the patient room building nearby. Numerous patients and their families gather watching the commotion one building over. Below the police spring into action pushing the growing crowd in the parking lot back beyond perimeter barriers.

Panic firmly takes hold of Karen and her footwork in the pouring rain starts to fail her, as she slips to one knee. The police on the rooftop rush at her, as the crowd below, screams out fearing the worst. Karen catches herself and rises quickly, as she glares at the approaching officers. She extends the arm holding the child out front the ledge above the parking lot.

The officer quickly retreats back several yards fear for the baby’s safety hangs on each face above and below. “Get Back!” booms the voice of the watch commander through the megaphone. “Karen, you have to calm down.” Karen sneers, “I don’t HAVE to do a damned thing you say.” 

“Mrs. Dane, its Doctor Crawford,” a familiar voice bellows from below.” Karen’s surprised by the voice and looks down and sees her psychologist standing among the police holding the megaphone, “what are you doing here Doctor Crawford? Our appointment is not for two days.”

Dr. Crawford steps away from the police with concern hanging heavy on his face. “Karen, listen to me. This is not the way you want to do things,” Dr. Crawford pleads, “please come back down and we can talk. You don't have to wait.”

Karen shakes with rage, “Talk, Talk, talk that’s all you do. That or you make them force me to take those pills.” She flips off the doctor below, as the helicopter adjusts its light ion the pouring rain to illuminate her. “I’ll drop this evil little bitch if everyone doesn’t back off,” Karen dangles the baby out from the ledge again and begins to cry profusely.

Sgt. Kelly holding anger in his expression turns a flustered Dr. Crawford to face him, “What is her deal?” Sgt. Kelly wags and angry fat finger in the doctor’s face, “You get her down or we’ll have to use force.” Dr. Crawford shakes his head, “That’s not gonna work. She’s clearly off her meds and hearing the voices…”

Sgt. Kelly pauses for a moment, as anger builds then gestures to Karen, “So this crazy bitch under your observation broke into a nursery, attack a nurse, stole a baby, and is in the biggest standoff in Brevard County history. Because the voices told her too?” Dr. Crawford nods in agreement, “that’s pretty much it.”

Karen smiles, nods, and whispers, “I understand.”  She pulls the baby back into her breast and smiles affectionately at it.” The looks to the police officers and nods again. The officers on the roof are confused.

“She is surrendering,” Dr. Crawford declares aloud. Sgt. Kelly exhales, “I really thought…” Karen hugs the baby and leans backward allowing gravity to take over. The rooftop officers rush to attempt to grab her and the child. Sgt. Kelly and Dr. Crawford look away, as Cellphone cameras capture the fall.