Last night an officer I have known for ten years took his own life. He was one of the officers that inspired The Meanie Twins from my unpublished novel, A Friend to The Watch.
His locker was next to mine at my current assignment, so he and I would interact on a weekly basis at least. Though we were not terribly close, I recently recognized his pain.
“You got somewhere to go with it?” I asked him.
“For what?” he asked me.
“To scream all that shit out. I like to climb up a nearby hill and wake the coyotes.”
“Heh. I might,”he answered, putting his uniform on.
I went on about my business and he his.
I didn’t do enough. I should have done more. We should all do more.
Shit.