Thanks to those sent feedback, all of you! I'm always thrilled to know that someone likes what I write.
Each time I've watched GGGOH, I've noticed that Rachel Harris gets no screen time after pulling that trigger. I understand, of course, that there were time constraints and dramatic reasons to focus on Clark and Lois at that point, but that's where all us FOLC come in and fill in the background spaces.
In the real world, as Marcus pointed out (at least in the US), every police shooting these days is investigated thoroughly. The officer is almost always placed on paid administrative leave and ordered to see the department's therapist, either the one on staff or one contracted and paid on a case-by-case basis. It usually takes between three and ten days to wrap up the investigation, depending on the size of the department and the workload, and most of the officers who are judged to have behaved within the limits of both the law and department procedures return to duty soon afterward.
As Ann has pointed out both here and in other places, the taking of another person's life is a drastic event. It always changes a person for life, assuming that the person taking the life isn't already a dyed-in-the-wool sociopath. And I think it would hit Rachel very hard, because of her youth and her lack of experience (despite her evident skill) and her previous relationship with Clark and her feelings towards him. I've always wondered how she might have reacted, and since I couldn't find anything on the archive dealing directly with the subject, I decided to try my hand.
Ann, thanks for your kind comments. I know how much you hate killing, and I'm glad that you agree with just about everyone that there was simply no other option with Trask at that particular point than to shoot him, in order to save innocent lives. I agree that killing him for what he knew or for what he might have done in the future would not have been justified.
Angie, are you sure Martha has a calm and controlled facade? That would mean that she shows the world a false front. I'd rather think of her as a very strong person who's been shaken by recent events, but who also has the strength to overcome those events and be real.
Mrs. Mosley, Dandello, Laurach, thanks for the kind words! They warm my heart.
Elisabeth, you think I'm a poet? Maybe in free verse! Seriously, thank you for the compliment.
Caroline, I think we're all vulnerable in some way. Clark's physical weakness is Kryptonite, but we all know that he's completely helpless before Lois Lane. Yet we all overcome our weaknesses somehow and do what we have to do in life, just as Martha gets on with the business of living despite her recent harrowing experiences.
Marcus, I guess police shootings are pretty much the same over the free world. And yes, with the weight of testimony and the evidence, combined with the fact that Trask was a known and very dangerous loose cannon, Rachel would be cleared of any wrongdoing in this matter.
Again, thanks for reading and commenting, all! It's one of reasons I do this.
