Tommy Tupperman

Tom Tupperman was a wide load of a man with one lazy eye and a wish to die a slow painful death equal of his life.  He stood over the body looking at the blood flowing out, the brain splattered across the wall in a stunning pattern of dismay. 

There was a room full of people there with him; they were all looking at the body taking pictures, checking for evidence and discovering the reasons for the death.  A room full of Police many with tears in their eyes.  “I just can’t believe this happened to him” was all he kept hearing them saying to him.

Tom was getting confused because no one seemed to notice he was there standing in the blood he could see his own footprints in the blood and no one seemed to care.  He was still holding his holstered weapon that felt cold to his touch.  “Move you’re in the way.” he heard from behind him.  “Ok, don’t yell at me.” he replied as they pushed him and the man next to him aside to take more pictures.  “Where is his daughter?  Has anyone called her yet?” the lead detective asked.
“She is in Iraq I think, no one has seen her in weeks.” a female officer standing over the body replied.
“Get on it, we need to notify someone.  I cannot let him lie like this any longer than is required.” he snapped.

“Ok, John relax maybe you should go get some air.  We got this.” she spoke to him softly with a hand on his shoulder a tear forming in her eye.  He walked out; Tom was right behind him asking questions.  “John what the hell are you doing in my house?  Whose body is that?”
“I don’t know Tom.  Why did this happen?” he replied appearing to hear Tom.  Tom kept walking behind him asking questions with minimal answers.

The female officer came out on the phone; “Tommy we had to enter the house and we have no idea exactly what happened ok, I will when do you expect to be back?  I will meet you there in an hour then?  Excellent thanks Tommy.” She got back into the vehicle and left Tommy had no idea where he was meeting her or how was he going to get there?

“Tommy, it’s nice to see you again.  I’m sorry it has been like this.” she said.

“It’s ok; do you know what happened yet?” Tommy replied.  “We are not sure; did you know what he was working on?”

“He rarely talked about work; he was so quiet after he got back from that place.  Whatever happened there he had no idea how to express his frustrations.” Tommy said.

They drove back to the house and Tom was waiting with a smile on his face to see Tommy home safe. “Tommy, I have missed you.” he said without a response.  They walked past him and the smile seemed to vanish from his face.

“What is going on?” he asked as a tear was building in his eyes.

“Tommy I am sorry but, you need to be sure that everything is here and show us where your father kept his gun.” the female officer asked.  Tommy pointed to the desk drawer in the south corner of the room which has been covered with blood.  “Ok thanks Tommy, Officer Escort her back to the office and take her statement.” the officer led her out as she wiped away tears from her eyes.  “That isn’t my Dad is it?” she asked the officer who shrugged his shoulders, “This way please Miss.”

Tom was now standing back into the pooled blood with his feet soaked with it; he could feel it corrupting his socks. “Crap” was all he kept saying.  “Tommy what have you done?” he asked aloud.
“Tommy we are going to move the body now.”  John had re-entered to take back control of his crowded crime scene.  “Ok.” Tom replied thinking John heard him.

They bagged the body and the face was still unrecognizable even though Tom thought he recognized the body.  “Tommy what have you done?” he kept thinking to himself that his daughter had done this but, he was wrong.  This only was found out as he saw the right forearm and the tattoo of a sniper scope etched into the skin.

“Wait, that’s Me.” he screamed.  John kept going acting like he never heard him.  He grabbed at John and missed only realizing that he was not alive anymore.  “I’m sorry Tommy.”

Three days later Tom was standing behind the darkened crowded cemetery barely noticing the rain showers soaking him to the bone.  The blood from his shoes soaking the ground beneath his feet, Tears mixed with the rain staining his ashen face as he looked into Tommy’s eyes from across the field.  She was definitely hurting and wondering how this happened after all his weapon was never found.

Tom began to search the crowd as any trained Officer would do and there he was in the back with a smirk on his face.  The death dealer himself, Tony Vega; A self made millionaire playboy with a pension for trouble and a means to take his vengeance out on anyone in his path as a former CIA operative himself he and Tom were familiar with one another in the past.

He walked up to Vega, “What are you doing here you?” Tom shouted at him but, of course by now Tom knew he was unable to hear him.  “You did this to me, didn’t you?”

It was years ago when Vega and Tom had become familiar with each other when Tom was a sniper in the Army during the first Gulf War.  Tom had done some black work for Vega and found out that he had been doing some black market trading on the side to make millions off the enemy.

Vega found out that Tom knew and suddenly Tom’s reputation seemed to be on a very thin leash as his Command was questioning his own loyalty.  One night Tom had enough of Vega and his rolling market and took matters into his own hands.  One shot into Vega’s shoulder as a warning to stay the hell away from him. 

The message was received two days later Vega shipped out and was stateside spending his millions while Tom was still sweating out the remainder of his career.  Six months later the whole ordeal had caught up with Tom; “Sergeant Tupperman we are requesting that you separate at this time.” Was all he heard the day they handed him his papers.

Tom went back home, married and had a baby girl they named Tommy though he lost his wife during the childbirth of Tommy.  He joined the force to provide a safer environment to for his daughter and the neighborhood he grew up in with his friend John, an Italian male with a pension for always doing the right thing.

He began on the SWAT team as a Sniper an obvious choice until his eyes began to grow older and the lazy eye took over for his shooting eye.  He clearly began to find other ways to engage within the force working on the Dare program for a while and working on drug related investigations within school systems.

He had been watching Vega for years seeing the flow of drugs and other illicit behavior though every time he got close to connecting Vega someone died, disappeared or backed out through threats and intimidation.  He knew it was him, but as always the DA needed more to connect Vega to the school drug cartel that was running the drugs into the schools.

After Tommy had gotten into high school, Tom would pick her up daily to make sure she was safe from Vega who clearly was looking for a way to rid himself of Tom.  One day Tom was shocked to see Tommy standing near Vega’s car talking to him leaning into the window.  “Tommy get away from him and you stay the away from my daughter or I will not miss next time.” Tom snipped as Vega rubbed his shoulder without noticing he was doing it.  “Does that still bother you?” Tom asked with a smile.

“It will be my turn really soon Officer Tupperman.” Vega replied.

“That’s Lt. Tupperman and you know it you piece of crap.” Tom replied slapping Vega’s shoulder to signal a need for some mutual respect.  “Your money is not going to keep you alive if you go near my daughter again.”

Vega rubbed his shoulder again and nodded driving away from Tom and Tommy in a hurry.  “You stay away from him Tommy.” Tom snapped at her.

“Ok Dad.” she replied looking at the ground her hair covering her face.

Tom wiped her hair out of her face as he raised her chin with his right hand, “I just want you to be safe and that man is deadly, ok?”  “Yes Daddy.” she responded putting her arm around his waist her left hand on his holstered weapon. 

She was used to that thing on his hip it used to hold her to him when she was little, it was used to keep her inline with her dates into her senior year and she was not afraid of touching weapons.  Tommy was already to join the service despite the Iraq War on in force and many of her friends who had already left were coming home, in body bags.

While she was in basic and advanced training Tom was busy building a case against Vega and was about ready to take it to the DA when she came home for leave before shipping overseas for duty; that’s when he got the envelope that changed his world to the core.

It threatened in no uncertain terms the life of his daughter while overseas by an old CIA agent with ties to the black market.  It was a picture of his daughter in uniform standing next to John Watts another former CIA operative that is now higher up in the food chain by National Operational standards.  It was a message and Tom knew what it was, back off or she will become a missing star.  Two days later Tommy shipped out to the out point in New Jersey before shipping out to Iraq.

“We need to talk.” Tom said into the phone.  “Five minutes, my house and don’t be late.”

Vega knocked at the door and Tom let him in his weapon holstered in plain view but, his badge was gone.  “What can I do for you Lt.?” Vega asked.  Tom pointed to the couch and insisted that he sit down pushing him to the couch forcefully pushing on his bad shoulder as Vega ground his teeth in pain.  “You’re going to pay for that one.” he barked at Tom in an obviously threatening tone.

They talked for several hours making vague threats to one another about how they could easily take each other out without anyone truly missing them.  They were drinking whiskey right out of the bottle like they used to do on missions.  Then the door opened and Tommy walked in. 

Tom jumped up to get in front of her; “What the hell are you doing here your supposed to be in Jersey?” he quipped at her.  She reached around putting her left hand on his hip and pulled the weapon out in an instance.  “Bang, bang, bang.” three shots rang out two hit the wall one hit Tom in the back of the neck as it ricochet off the fireplace screen spraying Tom‘s brain against the wall and the desk.

“Daddy.” Tommy cried out as Vega took Tom’s gun from her and ran out the door.

Tommy ran out the back door and got into her car driving back to New Jersey tears running down her face the whole way.  The next day she got a call from the Police and requested that she meet them back at home and she came home acting as if she knew nothing about what had happened.

Six months later Vega was found dead with one bullet hole in his head holding Tom’s gun in his right hand.  It was not the weapon that killed him, the police never found that weapon or his killer.

“Tommy it’s over now.” John said standing over Tom’s gravesite.  “No one will ever know that Vega sent me the gun with Tommy’s prints on it, I promise.” He walked away.