Cop Story Part 5

Bank Robbers and Spiders:
Why spiders? Because they and I really mean that one spider figures in to the bank robbery story.
First, I was with the past director of the reserves on patrol as 5-paul-
10. When he left the directorship, he returned to the job of district sergeant.
We got a radio call telling us that a liqueur store owner was being cased for a hold-up. As we pulled up, we saw two real unsavory characters. Sgt. D approached them, and I went into the liquor store. The clerk confirmed the radio call and asked if we couldn't remove the men. To make a long story short, they both had records but were clean now, so we filled out FI cards on both, an FI card is a field interview card, it documents the contact and is filed for later use, Maybe.
When we got back in the car, D said, "give me some of the FI cards under your sun visor, I am out." I reached up and pulled them out and as I did something dropped onto my leg. It was the biggest spider I had ever seen. I brushed it off and tried to climb the seat to get away from it. It was on the floor not moving. I looked closer and saw it was plastic. I looked at D and he was smiling from ear to ear.
Now to the bank robbery. A few months later D and I were on patrol and radio put out a robbery in progress at a bank in our area. We acknowledge and headed to the bank. Before we arrived, radio advised that the robber had left in the direction of Coyote Creek.
Being the hero type I told D to drop me at the creek and I would walk it to the bank. This was mid-summer, and the creeks would be dry.
It rains here from late fall to early spring. I got to the edge of the creek and started down the side. The edge was lined in tears of sandbags that must have been mixed with cement because they are rock solid. They formed steps and they were covered with spider webs, my hero status just faded away.
I went down to the creek bed and all around me were spider webs. They were on over hanging branches and bushes that lined the banks. They were even on downed tree trunks that had fallen into the creek. I holstered my gun and took out my baton to move the web infested things out of my way. Smart right?
I am going to face a man with a gun, and I got a baton.
I made it to the exit point and climbed to the top over all the spiders using my baton. D was there to meet me. He came over and began to dust me off. He held up his hand to brush off my shoulder and just as quickly pulled it away. I looked to see why and there was a big spider. I brushed it off. It flew about two feet away and landed on its back, yes, the plastic spider again. I picked it up and gave it back to him saying, ''the FIRST bullet will be for the spider."
That's the end of the bank robbery but not the spider. When I retired from the reserves D and his team took me to lunch at an Italian restaurant in his district. At that lunch D presented me with the spider. I put it in a folder with some photos and put the folder in my briefcase.
End of story, not on your life. It was several years later that I decided to clean out that briefcase and put it on my desk. When I opened it I saw the folder and pulled out the pictures, the spider came with them and the same result. I told D about that, and I think he is still laughing.
Just as an aside at briefing the morning I retired the department had a large cake and I was presented with a gold retirement badge. The badge said, ''Chief of Reserves Retired'' and badge number 209A, my number is 009A. I gave that badge to my youngest son Andrew. At the end of shift, radio announced my leaving the watch.