Concept: Cop on the edge
AKA: Wesley, when he was a much younger man was very keen on the idea of becoming a make-up/special effects guy in Hollywood. As such, he got the nickname “Fex” which has stuck. Most people who know him casually know him as “Fex”.
Desc: Average height and build. Thinner than he used to be. Bags under his eyes because he’s not sleeping well. He’s also periodically checking out of conversations, got that thousand yard stare. you know? His laugh has a sharpness that didn’t used to be there before. Most of his cop friends haven’t noticed. But his wife and kid have. Has an eye-twitch that flares up from time to time.
History: Cops in this town have seen some shit. Heck. Cops in nearly ANY town have seen some shit. Some of the things may be supernatural in nature. and others may just be the garden variety awfulness that human beings perpetrate on one another. Add to that the fact that most police are meeting people in a stressful-to-worst-day-of-their-lives social situation and you can probably see that it’s not surprising that police are suffering from PTSD just as much as any person who’s spent time in a war zone. Wes has been a patrol officer for almost 8 years now. He got into police work because a friend who was doing it talked it up to him and Fex was at a point of being sick of dead end jobs. Also, He and Nadine had just gotten married, and his daughter Carly was already on the way. Fex went to the academy and did decently well, and not long after his probationary period was over, he and Nadine plunked down a chunk on a lovely little place in the burbs where Carly could grow up safe and happy. And you know what. Fex was a pretty decent cop and husband and father. There have been good times mixed in with some of the rough.
But things haven’t always been cuddles and hand-jobs. Crime is up, and gang violence is on the rise (especially during the summer) It’s easy to fall into a siege mentality and come closer and closer to considering all civilians to be “Potential scum-bags”. Not family or friends obviously, but any dirt-ball you don’t know, could be the guy who looks completely harmless, and then sticks a kitchen knife in you because you got too close and let your guard down.
No. It didn’t happen to Wes. But it did happen to a guy Wes knew as he was pulling up to assist with the traffic stop. IAB, for their part, ruled Officer Ullman’s shoot as justified and sent him home for a few days.
The combination of constantly feeling endangered on the streets, along with a triggering event, has been the one-two punch for Wesley’s mental well-being. Now he doesn’t sleep well. He’ll hear a noise and have to go look, gun drawn. (He came within a hair’s breath of accidentally shooting Carly. He definitely scared the daylights out of here by yelling at her. Then, of course, he felt like a giant ass.) Nadine has taken to walking on eggshells around him, as there is literally no telling what will set him off. He’s never so much as raised a hand to her, but Nadine can’t help but think that if he ever did...She might be dead before it cleared off for him. He mother is counseling her to get clear of Wes until he gets some help.
Wes of course, doesn’t know that anything is wrong with him other than he seems to be unable to relax without alcohol being involved. He’s worried that he’s going to get put on psychiatric leave or some crap, and frankly, he can’t afford that and incidentally HE’S FUCKING FINE since you asked...
Attitude: “I nearly killed that guy. I had my gun in his fucking face and I would have opened him up if you hadn’t been there. Shit, I don’t even have anything against Latinos, not like some of the guys...What the hell is wrong with me sometimes? Man...I need a drink or something. I just gotta calm the fuck down...”
Skills: He’s a pretty decent physical specimen. Likely has Strong Back and other things like that. Has police training so he’s got some hand to hand skill, and maybe some dots of combat marksmanship. He’s a likable guy in ordinary circumstance and he’s not stupid, but his mentals and socials aren’t super special or anything. He still has a few dots in crafts: special effect/Make-up from his high school days and he’s the sort of dude who knows who Greg Nicotero and Tom Savini are.
Gear: As a patrol officer he’ll have a pistol, a taser, pepper spray, and a snap baton on his belt rig. Like many patrol officers, he also has an ankle holster with a holdout piece in it. The back of his patrol vehicle is also home to a riot shotgun which is locked in place for safety. Fex also has 3 additional handguns and an additional shotgun at home. They are locked up in his gun safe. Which only he and Nadine have the combo for. He’s taught Nadine how to shoot as well. Which could be bad news for him if he ever snaps completely and threatens her or Carly, Nadine’s a pretty good shot.
Home: As mentioned, He and Nadine have a lovely little place in the burbs with an inflatable pool out back. His gun safe and his work table, are safely ensconced in the basement. Wes has a little carpentry, although not as much as he thinks. and so occasionally he comes down here and works half-heartedly on projects. (Really, more of an excuse to drink out from under the eyes of his wife and child.) All of his old “FX” gear is tucked away in a metal cabinet in the corner. He breaks it out every Halloween and scares the living shit out of the neighbor kids.
Circle: Cops, obviously. Although not much pull with brass, or the detectives. People in his neighborhood, old school friends on Facebook, and the people he likes at his church.
Story Uses:
“Mister. You move your hands another inch and I’m going to burn you down.”
Yes. it’s fairly certain that bumping into Fex Ullman on a bad night, especially if your errands aren’t exactly completely innocent, could make for the worst night of your life. Granted, if you’re not exactly allergic to high-velocity projectiles, it might not be fatal...but complicated. Yeah, definitely that.
“I didn’t know who else I could talk to about all this...”
On the other hand, it may be that you’re a friend of his and concerned about his welfare, or maybe looking for someone like him to employ for your own nefarious purposes and the fact that his judgment is somewhat compromised, might play to your strengths. Either way, you may have to do some work to get this guy back to a place where’s he likely to be useful and less of a loose cannon.
Connections:
* Like most fellows who have been in for a while he knows Miss Virgie Hawkins. But he hasn't really bumped into her in a while since she stopped slinging drinks. If she DID bump into him at this point, she'd probably stop and make him sit down and talk to her, for as long as it takes. She's seen too many cops take their own lives.
*Went to high school with Ezekiel Stubbs and has the distinction of being one of the few cops that Zeke doesn't fucking loathe. Which is not to say that each of them isn't careful in their interactions with one another, but Wes, unlike other cops in the department had the OTHER side of that whole story because he knew Zeke growing up.
* Has met and is relatively friendly to Joseph Cartolano. What cop is ever going to bust the donut delivery guy? Also, he tends to deliver cakes to the local cop shop. On occasion, Wes has been riding the desk when Joseph rolls in.
*Has met Norman Cayce and Detective Bela Janofski. Both of them decent guys he tends to think.
* "State Police? Yeah...I thought about applying to them, but I couldn't get in. I scored too high on the entrance exam and my parents were married." Officer Honus Brightwater didn't think that joke was funny AT ALL.
* Cops normally need to be shuffling Charlie along or hauling him in to sleep it off. Charlie don't mind. It's three hots and a cot to him.
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