The characters of "Nash Bridges" are the property of CBS and Paramount
Television. No profit is made. Copyright 2002 by Mel Roberts. Apologies to
Frank Capra.<G>
It's a Wonderful Life. Sorta.
Bells were ringing. Chestnuts were doing their thing. A static-
riddled version of “Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer�
issued forth from someone’s portable radio, and there were no
less than three Santa’s in the holding cells for one offense or
another. Someone had brought in a large tin of rather potent rum
balls, and now there were two tipsy witnesses who were no longer
certain of what they’d seen.
All in all, your normal everyday Christmas at the SIU.
At least the ‘Cuda was still in the parking lot, there wasn’t a
stranded busload of orphans, Harvey wasn’t currently with
anyone so he wouldn’t be getting dumped, Nash hadn’t had
any disasters with gifts, and thus far…Angel hadn’t made an
appearance.
Speak of the devil…uh, angel. Nash mentally kicked himself for
even thinking of the strange little man in wings. It didn’t bode
well that this time, Angel had brought a friend.
Grinning from ear to ear, the grimy self-proclaimed angel made his
way through the hustle and bustle of the ferry, dragging his taller
friend with him. The newcomer was skinny, with a shock of white-
blond hair receding a tad at the temples. He darted glances at the
people milling around the desks, and Nash noticed the man’s
grey eyes held the same sort of benign peace that Angel’s did.
Holding his arms wide as he approached Nash’s desk, Angelâ
€™s face beamed. “Nash, I had a feeling I’d be seeing you
today.�
“Why do I always get a bad feeling when I hear you say that,
Angel?� Nash nevertheless stood and allowed Angel to give him
a quick embrace.
Gesturing to his friend, Angel made the introductions. “Nash,
this is my friend Clarence. He’s an angel, too.�
Shaking the man’s hand, Nash smiled. “Where’re his
wings?�
“He hasn’t earned them yet, Nash.�
Coming up behind Nash with a form to be signed, Harvey laughed
quietly. “Seems I’ve seen this movie before.�
Giving Harvey his enigmatic smile, Angel gestured to his gangly
friend. “I admit there’s an intriguing similarity to the name
of Frank Capra’s erstwhile angel, but Clarence is as real as me.â
€�
Knowing Nash couldn’t be pleased to see Angel on that
particular day, Harvey decided not to push his luck or the issue and
simply grinned, handing the form to Nash for his signature. Having
accomplished his task, Harvey shook his head and headed back to
his own desk, profoundly grateful that he didn’t have a â
€˜guardian angel’ like, well, Angel.
Nash rubbed a hand across his forehead, anticipating a headache. â
€œWhat can I do for you, Angel?â€�
“It’s not what you can do for me, Nash, but what we can do
for you.�
“Just give it to me in English, Angel.�
“Clarence is here to earn his wings, Nash. Today, someone here
will need his help. It is by helping one of you, that Clarence will
truly be an angel.�
Oh, yeah. He had a headache. “Angel, that’s very sweet of
you, but I think we can handle whatever the day has to offer.�
“It’s not up to you, Nash. It’s in the hands of a higher
power.� Again Angel simply smiled innocently, believing in his
purpose.
Groaning, Nash dropped his head in his hands for a moment.
Looking back up, he ran a hand through his hair with a sigh. â
€œAngel, why don’t you go back there to that table behind
Harvey and have some rum balls. I think there’s some cider,
too. I’ve got work to do.�
“Thank you, Nash. We’ll be here when the moment comes.â
€� Guiding Clarence to the table of goodies, Angel beamed at
everyone they passed.
“I can hardly wait.â€� Just what Nash needed-two angels. â
€œIt’s gonna be a long day.â€�
~~~~~***~~~~~
“Uh, Harvey?�
Looking up from his paperwork, Harvey noticed Evan waving a
hand at him. Sliding his chair across the narrow aisle, Harvey
bumped up against his partner’s desk. “Yes?�
Flicking a glance over to the snack table, Evan narrowed his eyes at
his partner. “Have you noticed that Angel and his weird friend
have been staring at you for, like, an hour?�
“You know, I find something fundamentally wrong with the
statement ‘Angel and his weird friend’.� Shaking his head,
Harvey nevertheless stretched his arms, casting a quick look behind
him. The two did seem to be interested in his and Evan’s
conversation. “Well, hopefully they’ll get bored and go away
soon.�
“I hope so, Harv. The skinny guy is giving me the creeps.�
Laughing at the look on Evan’s face, Harvey pushed away from
the desk and slid back to his own. He tried to get back to work, but
he could feel Angel and Clarence staring at him. After a while, he
noticed he wasn’t the only one being scrutinized by the two
men. Clarence seemed to spending just as much time observing
Evan and Nash, as the afternoon dragged by. Nash had given Joe
the day off to spend with his family, or he’d probably be getting
the same treatment. It got to the point that they were grateful
whenever a call came in requiring them to leave the ferry. Except
that wherever they went, they could swear they caught glimpses of a
pair of grubby wings.
~~~~~***~~~~~
After a quick check of his watch, Nash sighed in relief. It was
almost quitting time. He hadn’t been able to convince Angel
and his friend to leave, and he was beginning to get the heebie-
jeebies. Glancing back at Evan and Harvey, Nash realized he wasnâ
€™t the only one.
Looking at Harvey, Nash brought his hand up to his mouth to hide a
smile. Harv was in the process of doing the paperwork involved in
handing over custody of a juvenile offender, and it was obvious to
Nash that the inspector seemed to have more than a professional
interest in the young thief’s social worker.
With a shake of his head, Nash got up to get himself a cup of coffee
then headed outside to get a little fresh air…and to get away from
Angel’s constant scrutiny. Leaning his elbows on the railing,
cup cradled in his hands, Nash looked out across the bay. He was
looking forward to getting home. He would be spending Christmas
Eve with Lisa, Cassidy, Nick, and Stacey. Joe and Inger might even
stop by for some eggnog. Nash loved Christmas. The whole
holiday season just seemed to radiate hope.
Glancing down at his cup, Nash frowned. The uniformed officers
had decorated the ferry with colorful lights, but the strand where he
was standing had come loose and was dangling too far down.
Putting his cup aside on the railing, Nash leaned over to fix the
errant strand of lights. He had to really stretch to reach it, standing
on his toes and trying to maintain his balance. He was totally
unprepared for what happened next.
Clarence had decided to check on Nash, fearing he might be the one
he was there to save. Stepping outside, he saw Nash leaning over
the railing and, thinking the man was about to jump, sprang forward
to stop him.
“No, don’t jump!�
Running toward the apparently suicidal inspector, Clarence
misjudged both his speed and the slippery conditions of the ferryâ
€™s deck. Unable to stop his momentum, the so-called angel
barreled into Nash, sending them both flipping over the railing. The
impact with the water was quite a shock to both of them.
Harvey had been on his way to retrieve the young delinquent for
Miss Quint, the attractive social worker, when he heard the shout.
When that was followed by the distinctive sound of something
heavy hitting the water, Harvey grabbed the nearest life ring and ran
outside. Shortening his stride to compensate for the slippery deck,
Harvey skidded to a stop against the railing and hesitated a moment
in shock. What in the world was Nash doing in the bay?
His boss was obviously in trouble. Nash was trying to gain control
of the situation, but Clarence didn’t seem to be able to swim
and in his panic, seemed to be trying to climb out of the water using
Nash.
With a groan, Harvey realized Nash wouldn’t be able to get
them both over to the dock. The water was cold, and both men
were already losing strength, not to mention that Clarence seemed
intent on drowning them both. Slipping out of his shoes and jacket,
Harvey began swearing under his breath. Flinging his beret onto the
deck he looped one arm through the life ring and went over the side.
The shock of the cold water was enough to take his breath away.
Keeping the ring between himself and the struggling pair, Harvey
closed the gap between them. Once he got close enough, he
shouted to get their attention. “Clarence! Stop struggling and
grab this. It’ll keep you afloat.�
For a moment, Harvey wasn’t sure Clarence had heard, or
understood, but the scrawny man finally let go of Nash and made a
grab for the red and white preserver. Making sure Clarence kept
both hands on the life ring, Harvey looked over at his boss. â
€œYou okay, Nash?â€�
Teeth chattering from the frigid water, Nash nodded and swam
slowly over to the dock. His arms felt like lead and he was already
beginning to feel sluggish. The climb up the ladder to dry land was
almost more than he could manage.
He’d known something was going to happen that day.
Something always did when Angel showed up.
Shortly after they all got back inside the SIU, Nash and Harvey
were sitting at their desks. Wrapped in gray wool blankets from the
holding cells and huddled over small electric space heaters, they
listened to Clarence try to explain why he’d done what he did.
Maybe it was a message from a higher power, or just the look on
Nash’s face, but the two angels decided they needed to be
somewhere else. Blowing kisses, Angel beat a hasty retreat, towing
his friend behind him.
Poking his hand out of his cocoon of blankets, Nash checked his
watch. It was closing time, thank goodness. He could go home,
take a hot shower and head over to Lisa’s for some eggnog.
The good kind. The kind that took away the bone-numbing chill
from a dip in the bay.
Spinning his chair around, Nash chuckled. Harvey was being fussed
over by the social worker, and appeared to be loving every minute
of it. Knowing he would be alone this Christmas, Nash decided to
invite Harvey to join his family for the evening. After all, that’s
what the season was all about…friends and family.
“Hey, Harv, you wanna come with me to Lisa’s for
Christmas tonight?�
Tearing his eyes from Miss Quint for a moment, Harvey smiled at
his boss. “Thanks for asking, Nashman, but…I’ve been
invited to spend the evening with someone else.�
Laughing quietly, Nash shook his head and stood to leave, pulling
his blanket a little tighter. What do you know…Harv got a date out
this whole fiasco. Now I don’t have to worry about him
spending Christmas alone. I don’t think that was quite what
Angel had in mind, but whatever works.
Ronnie walked by, dragging a man dressed as Santa’s elf. The
bell on the elf’s hat tinkled musically when he tripped on the
ridiculously curled toes of his shoes. Smiling, Nash thought…what
the hell. “Atta boy, Clarence.�
END
Television. No profit is made. Copyright 2002 by Mel Roberts. Apologies to
Frank Capra.<G>
It's a Wonderful Life. Sorta.
Bells were ringing. Chestnuts were doing their thing. A static-
riddled version of “Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer�
issued forth from someone’s portable radio, and there were no
less than three Santa’s in the holding cells for one offense or
another. Someone had brought in a large tin of rather potent rum
balls, and now there were two tipsy witnesses who were no longer
certain of what they’d seen.
All in all, your normal everyday Christmas at the SIU.
At least the ‘Cuda was still in the parking lot, there wasn’t a
stranded busload of orphans, Harvey wasn’t currently with
anyone so he wouldn’t be getting dumped, Nash hadn’t had
any disasters with gifts, and thus far…Angel hadn’t made an
appearance.
Speak of the devil…uh, angel. Nash mentally kicked himself for
even thinking of the strange little man in wings. It didn’t bode
well that this time, Angel had brought a friend.
Grinning from ear to ear, the grimy self-proclaimed angel made his
way through the hustle and bustle of the ferry, dragging his taller
friend with him. The newcomer was skinny, with a shock of white-
blond hair receding a tad at the temples. He darted glances at the
people milling around the desks, and Nash noticed the man’s
grey eyes held the same sort of benign peace that Angel’s did.
Holding his arms wide as he approached Nash’s desk, Angelâ
€™s face beamed. “Nash, I had a feeling I’d be seeing you
today.�
“Why do I always get a bad feeling when I hear you say that,
Angel?� Nash nevertheless stood and allowed Angel to give him
a quick embrace.
Gesturing to his friend, Angel made the introductions. “Nash,
this is my friend Clarence. He’s an angel, too.�
Shaking the man’s hand, Nash smiled. “Where’re his
wings?�
“He hasn’t earned them yet, Nash.�
Coming up behind Nash with a form to be signed, Harvey laughed
quietly. “Seems I’ve seen this movie before.�
Giving Harvey his enigmatic smile, Angel gestured to his gangly
friend. “I admit there’s an intriguing similarity to the name
of Frank Capra’s erstwhile angel, but Clarence is as real as me.â
€�
Knowing Nash couldn’t be pleased to see Angel on that
particular day, Harvey decided not to push his luck or the issue and
simply grinned, handing the form to Nash for his signature. Having
accomplished his task, Harvey shook his head and headed back to
his own desk, profoundly grateful that he didn’t have a â
€˜guardian angel’ like, well, Angel.
Nash rubbed a hand across his forehead, anticipating a headache. â
€œWhat can I do for you, Angel?â€�
“It’s not what you can do for me, Nash, but what we can do
for you.�
“Just give it to me in English, Angel.�
“Clarence is here to earn his wings, Nash. Today, someone here
will need his help. It is by helping one of you, that Clarence will
truly be an angel.�
Oh, yeah. He had a headache. “Angel, that’s very sweet of
you, but I think we can handle whatever the day has to offer.�
“It’s not up to you, Nash. It’s in the hands of a higher
power.� Again Angel simply smiled innocently, believing in his
purpose.
Groaning, Nash dropped his head in his hands for a moment.
Looking back up, he ran a hand through his hair with a sigh. â
€œAngel, why don’t you go back there to that table behind
Harvey and have some rum balls. I think there’s some cider,
too. I’ve got work to do.�
“Thank you, Nash. We’ll be here when the moment comes.â
€� Guiding Clarence to the table of goodies, Angel beamed at
everyone they passed.
“I can hardly wait.â€� Just what Nash needed-two angels. â
€œIt’s gonna be a long day.â€�
~~~~~***~~~~~
“Uh, Harvey?�
Looking up from his paperwork, Harvey noticed Evan waving a
hand at him. Sliding his chair across the narrow aisle, Harvey
bumped up against his partner’s desk. “Yes?�
Flicking a glance over to the snack table, Evan narrowed his eyes at
his partner. “Have you noticed that Angel and his weird friend
have been staring at you for, like, an hour?�
“You know, I find something fundamentally wrong with the
statement ‘Angel and his weird friend’.� Shaking his head,
Harvey nevertheless stretched his arms, casting a quick look behind
him. The two did seem to be interested in his and Evan’s
conversation. “Well, hopefully they’ll get bored and go away
soon.�
“I hope so, Harv. The skinny guy is giving me the creeps.�
Laughing at the look on Evan’s face, Harvey pushed away from
the desk and slid back to his own. He tried to get back to work, but
he could feel Angel and Clarence staring at him. After a while, he
noticed he wasn’t the only one being scrutinized by the two
men. Clarence seemed to spending just as much time observing
Evan and Nash, as the afternoon dragged by. Nash had given Joe
the day off to spend with his family, or he’d probably be getting
the same treatment. It got to the point that they were grateful
whenever a call came in requiring them to leave the ferry. Except
that wherever they went, they could swear they caught glimpses of a
pair of grubby wings.
~~~~~***~~~~~
After a quick check of his watch, Nash sighed in relief. It was
almost quitting time. He hadn’t been able to convince Angel
and his friend to leave, and he was beginning to get the heebie-
jeebies. Glancing back at Evan and Harvey, Nash realized he wasnâ
€™t the only one.
Looking at Harvey, Nash brought his hand up to his mouth to hide a
smile. Harv was in the process of doing the paperwork involved in
handing over custody of a juvenile offender, and it was obvious to
Nash that the inspector seemed to have more than a professional
interest in the young thief’s social worker.
With a shake of his head, Nash got up to get himself a cup of coffee
then headed outside to get a little fresh air…and to get away from
Angel’s constant scrutiny. Leaning his elbows on the railing,
cup cradled in his hands, Nash looked out across the bay. He was
looking forward to getting home. He would be spending Christmas
Eve with Lisa, Cassidy, Nick, and Stacey. Joe and Inger might even
stop by for some eggnog. Nash loved Christmas. The whole
holiday season just seemed to radiate hope.
Glancing down at his cup, Nash frowned. The uniformed officers
had decorated the ferry with colorful lights, but the strand where he
was standing had come loose and was dangling too far down.
Putting his cup aside on the railing, Nash leaned over to fix the
errant strand of lights. He had to really stretch to reach it, standing
on his toes and trying to maintain his balance. He was totally
unprepared for what happened next.
Clarence had decided to check on Nash, fearing he might be the one
he was there to save. Stepping outside, he saw Nash leaning over
the railing and, thinking the man was about to jump, sprang forward
to stop him.
“No, don’t jump!�
Running toward the apparently suicidal inspector, Clarence
misjudged both his speed and the slippery conditions of the ferryâ
€™s deck. Unable to stop his momentum, the so-called angel
barreled into Nash, sending them both flipping over the railing. The
impact with the water was quite a shock to both of them.
Harvey had been on his way to retrieve the young delinquent for
Miss Quint, the attractive social worker, when he heard the shout.
When that was followed by the distinctive sound of something
heavy hitting the water, Harvey grabbed the nearest life ring and ran
outside. Shortening his stride to compensate for the slippery deck,
Harvey skidded to a stop against the railing and hesitated a moment
in shock. What in the world was Nash doing in the bay?
His boss was obviously in trouble. Nash was trying to gain control
of the situation, but Clarence didn’t seem to be able to swim
and in his panic, seemed to be trying to climb out of the water using
Nash.
With a groan, Harvey realized Nash wouldn’t be able to get
them both over to the dock. The water was cold, and both men
were already losing strength, not to mention that Clarence seemed
intent on drowning them both. Slipping out of his shoes and jacket,
Harvey began swearing under his breath. Flinging his beret onto the
deck he looped one arm through the life ring and went over the side.
The shock of the cold water was enough to take his breath away.
Keeping the ring between himself and the struggling pair, Harvey
closed the gap between them. Once he got close enough, he
shouted to get their attention. “Clarence! Stop struggling and
grab this. It’ll keep you afloat.�
For a moment, Harvey wasn’t sure Clarence had heard, or
understood, but the scrawny man finally let go of Nash and made a
grab for the red and white preserver. Making sure Clarence kept
both hands on the life ring, Harvey looked over at his boss. â
€œYou okay, Nash?â€�
Teeth chattering from the frigid water, Nash nodded and swam
slowly over to the dock. His arms felt like lead and he was already
beginning to feel sluggish. The climb up the ladder to dry land was
almost more than he could manage.
He’d known something was going to happen that day.
Something always did when Angel showed up.
Shortly after they all got back inside the SIU, Nash and Harvey
were sitting at their desks. Wrapped in gray wool blankets from the
holding cells and huddled over small electric space heaters, they
listened to Clarence try to explain why he’d done what he did.
Maybe it was a message from a higher power, or just the look on
Nash’s face, but the two angels decided they needed to be
somewhere else. Blowing kisses, Angel beat a hasty retreat, towing
his friend behind him.
Poking his hand out of his cocoon of blankets, Nash checked his
watch. It was closing time, thank goodness. He could go home,
take a hot shower and head over to Lisa’s for some eggnog.
The good kind. The kind that took away the bone-numbing chill
from a dip in the bay.
Spinning his chair around, Nash chuckled. Harvey was being fussed
over by the social worker, and appeared to be loving every minute
of it. Knowing he would be alone this Christmas, Nash decided to
invite Harvey to join his family for the evening. After all, that’s
what the season was all about…friends and family.
“Hey, Harv, you wanna come with me to Lisa’s for
Christmas tonight?�
Tearing his eyes from Miss Quint for a moment, Harvey smiled at
his boss. “Thanks for asking, Nashman, but…I’ve been
invited to spend the evening with someone else.�
Laughing quietly, Nash shook his head and stood to leave, pulling
his blanket a little tighter. What do you know…Harv got a date out
this whole fiasco. Now I don’t have to worry about him
spending Christmas alone. I don’t think that was quite what
Angel had in mind, but whatever works.
Ronnie walked by, dragging a man dressed as Santa’s elf. The
bell on the elf’s hat tinkled musically when he tripped on the
ridiculously curled toes of his shoes. Smiling, Nash thought…what
the hell. “Atta boy, Clarence.�
END
