Chapter 24
One on your left. Two more coming from behind in thirty seconds.
The voice in his head told him- David’s voice through the earpiece the curly headed fool insisted on him wearing whenever assisting for a mission.
Fifteen.
Frank shoved the knife into the throat of the man who appeared next to his right shoulder, readying himself for the next two while trying to stay silent.
Ten. They’re right there.
His fist came first, stunning the criminal before slitting his throat- the shock hardly registering on the second man. But disposing of the first gave the second man time to come to his senses and lay some lead into him. Frank felt the bullets in the vest, and knew they would leave some awful bruises.
The drugs should be through the door in front of you and to your left.
Not done.
With a roar Frank charged at him and tackled the man to the ground- not caring if anyone else heard. If they knew what was good for them- they would know who was coming. Frank’s hands held his throat tightly, feeling the life drain out of him while still trying to fight. If it weren’t for the fact that he was dealing to minors, Frank would commend his strength and determination to stay alive- but he was scum.
Not worth the dirt on his shoe if he thought it was okay to give drugs to children- to people like Leo and Zach, and god forbid little Soph. He had to get rid of shitbags like him for her- so she could be safe at school, not worry about someone trying to solicit her.
Without a thought on weather this man could be “redeemed” Frank felt the life leave him and moved towards the room he had come for. As great as it would feel to burn all the drugs in this room and in this building- it was something else he came for.
Look for some inconspicuous place, he wouldn't hide it somewhere obvious- something subtle. Some place you wouldn't expect.
He already knew that- because he would have done the same, Frank would have put something important in a place no one would glance at twice. So he put his head to the ground and prayed his sniffer could find the item he seeked.
The bookcase in the corner caught his eye- doubting a common drug lord would be much of a reader. This is it- this is where it would be. Frank swept his arm across every shelf and around fifty books fell to the floor, and like all cheesy spy movies he saw what he was looking for. A book whose pages were scooped out and a smaller notebook laid in the square cutout, Frank picked it up and knew this was the right thing. He left the room to pick up the gasoline he left outside before returning, Frank soaked everything and began the process of leaving the part of himself that was the Punisher behind. What he did whenever he came out from his night job- Frank tried to leave behind before going back to see his girls, hopefully free of any bruises on his face.
The metal in his pocket felt heavy when he pulled it out, a lighter he had lifted off one of the bodies he left in his wake. Replacing the object he had in his pocket before, Frank put the notebook deep so it wouldn't be lost and opened the flame.
“I'll bring the notebook over on Sunday, you can scan it and analyze it then, good?”
Yeah- I can finally get some god damn sleep, you know what time it is? Way past my bedtime. I feel like i'm back in high school, watching porn under the covers in the middle of the night- praying my mom won't walk in on me waking off.
“What time is it anyway?” Frank was a few blocks past the building when he felt the hear and heard the sirens, but kept on walking knowing it was too late.
It's like four almost five, Sarah doesn't know i'm awake. You're the porn in this situation- that i'm trying to hide from mom, who would be Sarah.
“Yeah I get it, now go sneak back into bed.”
Ahh so now you're the other woman- the plot thickens, scandalous indeed.
“Shut your ass up, Lieberman- get to bed ya goof…”
Alright, alright- g’night Frank. Say hi to Karen and Sophie for me.
“I will.” Speaking for the girls left a strange pull in his heart, now a known a fact that was where he was headed later made his throat tighten.
It was another twenty minutes until he got back to his place- he couldn't call it home. It didn't feel like a home, it felt like a place he went to sit and wait until he went over to Karen’s. Not that he could call that home either- he didn't live there, but it felt more like a home than his own place. It was a strange phenomena that the place he slept every night felt lonely and isolating, yet the apartment he went to only a few nights a week felt better than this. The apartment was filled with a warmth that filled him whenever he walked in, with Sophie, and Duck, and Karen- a place where he felt whole again if only for the short time he was there.
Frank woke with a start, a feeling he couldn't ignore sat in the pit of his stomach- like an ugly hangover. Which was impossible since he would have remembered if he’d had anything to drink, but he took some pills anyway hoping to shake the feeling. Yet still half an hour later the gross feeling hadn't subsided.
An hour and it was still there- so Frank laid down thinking despite the ten o'clock sun he could grab a quick nap, but as much as he tried to fall into a dreamless sleep Frank couldn't calm down. The feeling was eery and made him feel sick in a way where he couldn't hurl no matter how much as he wanted too.
He grabbed his phone thinking he could find a book to read that would pull him into boredom which would eventually lead to sleep, Frank turned it on and immediately sat up.
Almost a dozen missed calls.
All from Karen.
Three text messages.
Frank?
All from Karen.
Answer the phone!
His heart was hammering.
If you decide to answer could u go walk Duck, I don't know how long we’re gonna be.
One voicemail.
You have eleven missed calls and one voicemail- press one to play your last voicemail.
One.
It's me Frank. Jesus, answer the phone. We’re at the hospital, don't freak out- we’re fine. Sophie had an allergic reaction, just- just call me back.
Shit.
Before anymore thoughts could run through his head, he was out the door and practically running. Where? He really couldn't say.
Not until he arrived. Frank stood outside the hospital and realized he couldn't go in, even if no one recognized him and he wasn't caught on any cameras. He wouldn't be able to get a pass to see them, he wasn't the father or the husband.
There was nothing he could do.
So he called. You've reached Karen Page, leave me a message and I'll get back to you.
Again.
You’ve reached Karen Page, leave me a message and I’ll get back to you.
Another.
And another.
You’ve reached Karen Page, leave me a messa- “Stop calling- I'm talking to Social Services Fr- Look I can't talk right now, just… Just get to my place and walk Duck, we’ll be back later and Soph is gonna want to see you at home.”
“But I'm-” Frank tried to get a word in but she wouldn't let him. The woman was obviously close since she didn't want to say his name out loud, yet he needed to know.
“I can't talk. I'll see you later, got it?”
She hung up before he could respond, and he fumed with anger and worry the whole way back to the apartment, only to be greeted by an equally jittery and nervous dog. Duck obviously hadn't taken the paramedics coming in here and taking both the little girl and Karen away- and he couldn't blame him. Frank hated this, and he didn't know what to do, or say, or even act.
Thought ran rampant through his head- good thought, bad thoughts, painful thoughts, disturbing thoughts- things he wasn't proud of.
Things he wasn't sure how to feel about, but he made the call anyway- “Come over. Now. Bring a laptop- all your shit to hack.”
A groggy response that he couldn't deal with right now, “What are you talking about?”
Shut up- just do as I asked, “Come over. With whatever equipment you need.”
“You want me to come over to your place? Can it wait? We had a long night…”
An irrational anger that he couldn't control came out of him, “NO! I need you now. Come over to Karen's- Now! I don't give a shit if your tired I will come over there and drag you here myself.:
“To Karen’s?”
“Yes! To Karen's, stop asking stupid questions! I need- I need you, please.”
The please must have made David realize this was serious, because he heard the rustle of clothes in the background.
“Did something happen?”
“Yes….” He didn't elaborate, he couldn't.
“Shit- I'll be right there.” The silence was deafening, yet David refused to be the one to hang up- knowing it had to be Frank who had the last word.
“And David….. Bring a few cameras- the tiny ones.”
“Frank….”
The line went dead and David knew it was bad, so he rushed as fast as he could over to the little apartment as quick as possible. He parked and flew up the stairs after Frank buzzed him in, wondering if the girls were injured in the apartment- dead? He had no clue.
“Frank?”
The knocking was incessantand never ending, only stopping when he yanked the door open.
“Where are they?”
“The hospital.” David looked around the apartment, searching for anything- blood, glass, any sign of struggle.
“What happened?”
“Allergic reaction, Soph- at least that's what I heard.”
“Allergic reaction?! That was the emergency? Jesus, Frank- I thought they were actually hurt.”
Frank whirled towards the man who sat on the couch, he was obviously a lot more comfortable now, “Not hurt? They are in the hospital- and I didn't know about it!! I had my goddamn phone off and they went to the emergency room last night- AND I DIDN'T KNOW!”
David's attitude shifted, knowing this wasn't just about the girl being hurt- this was about the hurt in Frank, the fear that wouldn't go away. That haunted him at every turn.
“Okay, okay- I get it… But, why do you need me- I seriously doubt you need me here just to be a shoulder to cry on, so what do you need?”
Frank’s mind was still on edge, yet his body calmed when he was asked what to do- knowing David might not approve, but if anyone would it would be him.
“I need….”
“What? What do you need?”
“I need you to put up some cameras…”
Silence. That's all there was for a few minutes- the crazy thoughts running through Franks head told him this was the only option to keep him sane.
“I don't know, Frank. It feels- it feels wrong to assist you in watching them. And I know that sounds hypocritical, but I feel like this is different.”
“How is this different?”
“I don't know- I just, I don't know… You're alive, you can be with them- I couldn't so it was my last option to keep them safe.”
“I just want to keep them safe.”
“And you can't do that? You're freaking Frank Castle- you can do anything man.”
“I can't! Look at this, I couldn't keep them safe- Soph was hurt and I wasn't here.”
“It's an allergy there's no way you could have done anything to stop that!”
Frank couldn't sit still, not when talking about the girls safety- “But I didn't know about- that's the point…. I don't want to spy on them, I don't even want to watch the feeds.”
“Then what do you want them for?”
“I want them incase anything happens- like a robbery or something worse, and then I can go back and see who did it or who has them.”
“Are you kidding? The likelihood of a robbery happening in the place you basically live, and you not being there is unlikely- the chances of that happening are almost impossible…”
Impossible? Unlikely? Him? “Do you know who I am? What are the chances my family was murdered in the park, or any of the other fucked up things i've been through- I don't, I'm not- Luck has nothing to do with it…. I need this.”
David felt something like shame flow through him when Frank told him all the reasons this was necessary, his resolve on the subject crumbling with each second.
“I guess…. Where would you out them? If I gave them to you…”
Frank took a second to think about, “I guess one in the kitchen, the living room, the door, and the window near the fire escape- nowhere private or anything, just for precaution.”
It didn't sound unreasonable, not like he wanted to watch them sleep or anything- David finally gave in with a nod, knowing this was necessary for Frank.
“So do you want the password?”
“No I don't want to watch the feeds, I want you to check in every so often and if anything looks amiss go back on the feeds and see if anything happened.”
“And if something does happen?”
“Then you call me- twice. If I don't answer you know something has happened, and if you can't get ahold of me to save them-”
“Then what?”
Frank breathed in and out, a subject they had already discussed- “Then call the Devil….”
“Him? You sure he’ll come?”
“We know who he is and where he is- but he’ll come for her.”
David nodded while keeping thoughts of how he would have to ask the man to do something for him while knowing his identity.
He couldn't do much for Frank, but he could do this. He would do this.