Justice is Not Blind ☠ The Punisher

Chapter 6: One Shot, One Kill

It took Karen the night after they had left each other at the diner to find something, calling Dani to come and meet her at the Bulletin. But she needed to know what was going on before they brought it back. While this guy Karen talked about, Ellison, could help them get what they needed to further what Karen had found, Dani wanted to make sure that what she found was even worth bothering the editor of a major newspaper over.

"You remember the John Doe I was telling you about? The report that the medical examiner falsified?" Karen asked, Dani already on her third cup of coffee since they got there. She had forced Karen into getting lunch and spending it not solving crimes, just two people catching up or acting like it anyway. They were still early in whatever relationship was forming here and Dani just couldn't stand talking business all the time, but Karen had other ideas.

"Yeah." Dani shrugged. "What about him?"

Karen pulled out a folder. "These were taken the day that- anyway. Just look."

She looked down at the photo. It was like any typical crime scene photo she had seen on TV. Except that somewhere among all that carnage had been where the bodies of people she loved had their last moments. Dani did her best to focus on what was in front of her. Two bodies sprawled out on the ground. "Okay..."

"All right, you see him?" Karen pointed to the body of a man on the left side of the photo.

"Yes."

Karen threw down another photo on top. The body Karen had pointed to and the one next to it were both gone. Dani leaned back in her seat. "You sure he wasn't bagged and tagged?"

"That's what I thought, but I checked and I couldn't find any death certificate. Whoever he was, it's like he was never there," said Karen. "What if he is our John Doe?"

Dani nodded. The amount of passion she had for figuring out the truth was wonderful. Putting in all this time and effort to help her brother meant the world to her. But there was something else here that was eating away at her. "He could be. But Karen, I have to ask. Why are you doing this? I know you said you want the truth and all, but why does all this mean so much to you? Why my brother? Why his family?"

Now it was Karen's turn to lean back in her seat and think. It was a fair enough question. It wasn't like there weren't other crazy cases out there she couldn't solve. She chose her next words carefully. "Something's going on here. Something bigger than all of us. Frank deserves the truth."

"I know he does, but I just don't get why him," said Dani. "I get you two have some sort of connection. That's hard to miss. Pretty sure Murdock could've even sensed it if he spent more than two seconds on the case."

There was another pause, this one different. Full of tension. She was right. There was something between Karen and Frank. Whatever was going on between them had to be what was driving this case for them both. And given their penchant for trouble, they were going to need her. Dani flagged the waitress down, saving Karen from having to answer her. It was time to take this to the next level.
_______________

"I don't know about this." Karen clutched the file she had to her chest as they got to the floor where this Ellison guy worked.

Dani rolled her eyes, wrapping an arm around Karen's to keep her from running. "You said you wanted to find out the truth and you said he could help. We're doing this."

"Karen Page." A man stopped them, keeping them from bumping into him. "Well, you guys had a hell of a day in court. Front row seats to the trial of the decade. Did you bring me a T-shirt?"

Karen chuckled nervously. "No. Uh- I might have something better."

The man looked towards Dani, snapping his finger before pointing it at her. "You're the sister. Castle's sister?"