Revenge on the Reagans

Chapter 14

The ride to the precinct seemed like deja vu. Frank sat in the backseat of his SUV thinking about the recent events. He was about to see the man who had attempted to kill his son. Just the mere thought of it sent a chill down his spine. Today he could've lost his oldest over a grudge that had been held against him for a long time. Part of him felt like it was all his fault. That if things had been different back then, if he had done something differently, things would be different now. But he also knew that this could not have been prevented. This man was a monster who would have gone through with his plan no matter what. His mind began to replay the events of that night; the night Daniel Palmari died. After barely getting anywhere with their case, they found the man they were looking for. Daniel Palmari. The chase was a long one and Frank had known that it wasn't going to end well. And he was right. Daniel was cornered, they had tried to negotiate with him, then he raised his weapon. Shots were fired. Daniel's bullet riddled body fell. He died. Frank never thought much about it. Never wondered 'what if'. It never felt right taking a life, but at the time there was a voice in his head constantly telling him, 'It was a good shot. You did what you had to do, what you were trained to do.' But now, if he had tried a different approach if he hadn't fired a fatal shot, would things still be the same? He was then pulled out of his thoughts when they pulled up to the precinct. He entered the building and alerted the attention of every officer he passed. He threw up a salute then walked over to the box and starred at the perp through the one way glass. It was hard for him not to get angry at the very sight of him. He wanted to break through the glass and just strangle the man with his bare hands. Make him pay for what he did to Danny. But he continued to sit on it. Frank watched him. He studied him. Derrick sat up in his chair looking confident and open. Like he had nothing to hide. Like what he had done left him with enough pride that he would see his confession as boasting. Proving that the Reagans weren't bulletproof. But the look in his eyes told a different story. They were laced with panic and fear. His cheeks were damp from his tears and his eyes were red and puffy. The whole situation was terrifying to him, and it was obvious that he had been crying longer than he had been there. Something about those eyes stemmed the belief that he was roped into this with no intentions of hurting anyone. He wasn't a killer. He was a man who's grief was taken advantage of. Palmari's father probably manipulated the truth to convince him to go through with this. Convinced him that Frank had something to Sonny's death, and that he was some sort of monster. He let his anger and sorrow fuel him into making the decision, then realized in Danny's room that picking up the gun was easier than firing it. Frank grabbed the file on the case and walked into the box. He watched as Derrick looked up and the anger and sorrow returned to his eyes at the very sight of him. It was slightly different reaction from the glare filled with pure rage that he showed when they last saw each other at the hospital. Frank casually took a seat across from him as a death glare was sent in his direction.

"Do you know why I'm here?" he started breaking the heated silence.

"I tried to kill your son," Derrick responded, "I assume you want to know why."

"Oh I already know why," he said, "Daniel Palmari. His father made you do it."

"I have no idea who you're talking about," Derrick denied.

"Sure you do," Frank insisted, "he convinced you to kill my son. And he used your brother to get you to agree."

"You don't know nothing," he angrily discarded.

"I know that you still grieve the loss of your brother," Frank challenged, "I know that when he died you wanted revenge, but in time that desire to get even disappeared. That was until you met Palmari's father , or the more likely scenario, he found you. He reminded you of your family's pain and convinced you that the only way to get over it was to get even."