Author Description

There is a bite of cold in the air and fall is turning to winter in downtown Louisville. The leaves have changed to their fall colors and now lay haphazardly on the ground, waiting for the street sweeper to pick them up. Pulling onto the back lot of police headquarters, I grab my radio and the scuffed black leather briefcase holding my emergency supplies; extra notebooks, half a dozen ink pens, a bottle of water, a bag of hard candy, and two bags of potato chips. I slam the car door shut and head to the backdoor entrance just ahead of two uniformed officers. After punching in the security code, we enter the back hallway and I climb the stairs leading up to the second-floor robbery office and my assignment for the night, a civilian rider. Upstairs, I’m greeted by the lieutenant bellowing through the open door leading into his office, “Don’t sit down, Conway, you’re not gonna be here that long.” Glancing up as I poke my head in hesitantly, the lieutenant leans back in his chair and informs me that the young priest sitting in the hall is my rider for this shift. “That’s just great”, I mumble quietly as I turn to introduce myself and begin to get this impressionable young priest ready for what’s heading his way.