Disclaimer - This is a complete work of fiction. None of the events described actually happened. I don't know Lanie Gardner and don't ever expect to. If you know her, please feel free to inform her that this story exists. It is my most fervent hope that she would enjoy it.
Lanie is a wonderful singer and, if you aren't familiar with her I urge you to look her up and experience her angelic voice for yourself.
Please let me know if you enjoy the story, or if you don't. I've made every effort to fix any mistakes but it's always possible that I missed something. If so, please let me know.
This story contains a brief violence and foot play. If either of these bother you maybe you should skip it.
All participants are over 18 years of age at the time of the story.
LTL
It was raining, almost sleeting, in Nashville as I walked the city streets. It was late, nearly midnight and I knew I needed to find a place to sleep soon.
I had arrived about an hour ago, having driven for about 10 hours from my home in Florida. I was here for, well, no good reason actually. I'd never visited and decided, on a whim, to change that.
I had parked my car in a city lot and set out on foot to find a beer or maybe 3 and then a hotel for the next few days to serve as my base while I explore the city. So far I'd had no luck with either. In fact, I was starting to think I'd picked the wrong part of town.
I was just about to turn around and head back to the car when I heard what sounded like a muffled scream from an alley to my left. "What the fuck", I wondered as I stopped and looked down the darkened alley.
As I headed into the darkness I reached inside my coat and drew my weapon. The small 45 caliber pistol was heavy and comforting in my hand and I picked up my pace a bit; seeking the source of the sound I had heard.
Suddenly I heard a girl crying loudly and, between sobs, almost groaning, "No, no, no".
To my right I could see someone, no, 2 people. A large man stood over a smaller woman on the ground. He was unbuckling his belt and his intentions were obvious. "Stop!" I yelled as I pointed my weapon at his back.
"Fuck you" he said, and turned to face me. He was big, at least 3 inches taller than my 5 foot 9 inches and likely outweighed me by at least 30 pounds. A big, sloppy drunk redneck by my estimation. My weapon was now aimed directly at his chest.
"You have 5 seconds to walk away asshole, " I snarled. The fucker laughed.
"You don't have the balls to shoot me." He took a menacing step towards me. I shot him twice in the chest.
The sound of my shots was incredibly loud in the confined alleyway and the muzzle flashes lit the night as he flew backwards onto the now openly screaming woman on the ground.
I holstered my weapon, knowing he wasn't going to be a problem going forward, reached down and grabbed him by the hair. I dragged his body off of the sobbing woman, knelt in front of her, and spoke to her for the first time.
"You're OK, he's dead. " I said in my most comforting voice. "My name is Tom, I won't let anyone hurt you."
"Thaaaank you," she sobbed as knelt down next to her. She threw herself into my arms and hugged me desperately. "He was going to raaape me. " she almost whispered.
"I know, but he can't hurt you now. He can't hurt anybody any more."
As I held her the alley was suddenly lit bright with flashing blue lights as 2 city police cars screeched to a halt behind us.
"Stand still and keep your hands where I can see them." a big cop growled at me. I obeyed without speaking, standing,slowly turning, and bringing my hands up to shoulder height, palms facing outward. The cop had his weapon pointed at my chest and I could see in his eyes that he was ready to shoot me. A second cop grabbed the woman's hand and pulled her firmly away from me.
"No, don't shoot him! He saved me!" screamed the woman.
At this the big cop noticeably relaxed and I sucked in a deep breath. "My weapon is under my coat, left side. " I told the cop as he stepped towards me. I could see the second cop, a woman, holding her own weapon at the ready but not pointing directly at me. She now had one arm around the woman's shoulders. Weirdly, it almost seemed like she knew her already.
"She needs an ambulance, he doesn't. " I told the cop as he reached into my jacket and removed my weapon. "Don't bother. He's deader than Kelsey's nuts" I said to the lady cop as she reached down to check the big redneck's pulse.
"Yep, code black", she agreed. "Did you already check?" she asked me.
"Didn't need to, I knew where I hit him. " I responded. She nodded thoughtfully.
"You on the job?" she asked me.
"No, former military." She nodded once again.
After a few minutes an ambulance arrived and took away the girl I had helped. She looked back at me and said "thank you" with a light southern accent. This was the first time I got a chance to see her in the light and I was struck by how pretty she was.