A/N: Well this turned out much longer than expected. Merry Christmas AussieOkie! I plan on adding a second part to this story either tomorrow or Sunday, Enjoy!
David Ressler was one of the fastest rising cops to ever work for the Detroit Police Department. He began his career as a beat cop in the city, but he moved with his wife Linda and son Donald to Berkley in the suburbs soon after the boy was born. Crime there was much less frequent and violent than the streets of Detroit and the public schools ensured that Don received a good education.
David was the best detective at the local police department, but the cases he handled were for the most part theft and possession busts. The latter made Don fairly unpopular in high school.
"Oh my god! Donnie, what happened?" Linda exclaimed as Don walked into the house, clothes and hair ruffled with cuts on his forehead and blood on his face.
"I don't know, why don't you ask dad?" He replied before storming off to his room.
Linda looked at David with a scowl.
"What did you do Dave? I warned you not to make fun of him in front of-"
"It was work, Linda," he said.
"What happened at work that caused our son to get beat up?"
"We're trying to find a local dealer and today we did a group search at the high school. No dealer, but we busted a bunch of kids in his grade for possession. Instead of getting mad at themselves, they took it out on Donnie."
"So you risked our son's safety for some failed raid at a high school?"
"This bust was meant to protect our son in the long run. To protect kids like him," Dave said.
"Dave, I know you want to make a name for yourself, but kids will be kids. I hate the fact that Don's surrounded by kids who do drugs, who rough him up when they get in trouble for doing them, but I'll gladly take it over him living in a violent community where he gets half the education that he gets here," Linda said.
"I actually wanted to talk to you about that."
"What do you mean?" Linda asked.
"I mean that once he goes off to college, I'd like to consider moving back to the city."
"Dave, there is no way in fucking hell that I am moving back to Detroit. Not unless you tell me you're going into the car industry or sports for all I care!" Linda said, ready to leave the conversation.
"What ever happened to stopping the bad? To living by our principles? You wanted to cultivate the minds of tomorrow, I wanted to make sure that they had a safe place to live. This place doesn't need us. These rich families with their big houses have it covered. But they don't have that in Detroit and I can do more than make a small drug bust to make it a better place."
"This is something that we will need to have many more discussions about so this may not be needed, but I swear to god Dave, if you get as caught up in your job as you did last time-"
"I won't. I promise."
Within four years, Don was playing baseball under an athletic scholarship at the University of Maryland, Dave was a highly-ranked detective for the Detroit P.D., and Linda was teaching sophomore English at a private high school in the city. The Resslers rented a cheaper apartment in the city so that they could buy a small cabin in Prince George's County, not far from College Park. Linda visited Don often and tried to take advantage of any long weekends in the spring so that she could catch a few of his games.
Dave was busy. He was engrossed in a mid-level drug case that he was on the brink of solving when he got assigned a new partner, Tommy Markin. Tommy had a greater knowledge on the case than Dave expected. Their relationship started out rough, they argued how to go about handling the case and they never did anything outside of work to build up their partnership.
"Donnie, this guy is getting on my nerves," Dave said.
It was a late Friday night at the office. Tommy had gone home to his fiancé, but Dave was still at the office filling out paperwork. When he was working late nights he would sometimes call Don. Conversing with Linda would just turn into a fight that would blow over in a few days, but never come to an actually resolution. It was better to come home after she had gone to sleep. Tommy was aggravating and Dave couldn't stand the thought of spending any extra time with him.
"I know, but you both want to solve this case, get justice. You guys are working toward the same goal," Don said.
"It's not that simple kid. This isn't the suburbia P.D. we're talking about. The decisions we make regarding our cases could mean life or death and neither of us want to be wrong."
"But there's nothing you can do about that Dad. The most you can do is try and get along with these guys. We've got a game in Ann Arbor in two weeks, why don't you bring Tommy with you?" Ressler suggested.
"I appreciate you trying to help, but I don't feel like he will be interested."
"C'mon dad! Just please ask him. For me, okay?"
"Okay Donnie, I'll ask," Dave said.
Tommy didn't go to Ressler's game against Michigan and neither did Dave. The day of Ressler's game was the day of the drug bust. Don was disappointed that his father missed one of his few college games that he would ever play close to home, but in his mind, his dad made up for it by taking him out to dinner with none other than Tommy Markin.
"I finally got to meet dad's partner," Ressler mentioned to his mom, trying to spark a conversation.
"You met him? That's great! My son who lives 500 miles away got to meet my husband's partner before I did," Linda scoffed.
"It's not dad's fault. Tommy's a pretty cool guy, but it took awhile for Tommy to-"
"You know what Don? I'm not interested in listening to you make excuses for your dad. He missed the last official baseball game you'll ever play in Michigan."
"I'm not making excuses for him! He made up for it." Don said.
He wished he could show his mother all the good that his father has done for the community, if she really can't see it for herself.
"Donnie, there is something that I need to tell you. It's probably going to make you upset and you're going to fight me back on it."
"I don't like where this is going," Don said with a chuckle. "I actually have some big news for you guys too!"
"Why don't you wait for your dad to get home. Hopefully he doesn't act like a coward and-"
"Hey mom, that's not fair!"
"Okay, but if you have exciting news, I think you should share it with both of us."
It took awhile to convince Linda to even consider letting Don join the Federal Bureau of Investigation after he graduated. The family settled on the idea for him to wait two years and feel out other job opportunities before reconsidering. Within those two years, the Ressler's got divorced, upsetting Don in the process.
"I get that it was hard mom, but you always told me how dad was the love of your life. How could you let that go?" Don asked her.
She took him out for dinner the day that he got accepted to the academy. Linda didn't want to, but she had faith in her son to fight for justice without becoming like his dad.
"He was the love of my life, but that's not it. He's so consumed in his work and it scared me that he's always in these possibly fatal positions."
"Isn't that why you need to stick by his side?"
"He was never home. And when he was it was always drug case this or murder that. I couldn't live like that any more. I get that your father is constantly in vulnerable positions, but he never made any effort to make life a little less miserable for the both of us," Linda said.
Don just nodded. He understood his mom's position, but the impact of his father's dedication to being a good cop for the benefit of the city could not be lost upon him. His influence was why he was more excited to be stepping foot on the Quantico campus than he was when his name was called over the Shipley Field loudspeaker for the first time.
A few months later, Don finally got in the habit of responding to "Ressler". It was midway through his training at Quantico and he was working as hard as possible to be at the top of his class. Although Ressler was there because of what his father had accomplished, he hoped to eventually work on cases much bigger than drug and crime rings that his father was still bringing down.
"Are you going to be an American hero, Donnie?" Dave asked over the phone.
They both laughed in response.
"I can't lie, the exercises that we've done are pretty intense. I can't believe in a few months that this will be my job."
"How are you doing?" Dave asked.
"Top of my class I hope," Don replied.
"That's what I like to here. We need a successful Ressler in the family," Dave joked, prompting a laugh out of Don.
"Speaking of success, how's work going? Any big cases?" Don asked.
The line went silent for a moment.
"Dad? Did the line go dead or something?" Don asked when his father didn't respond.
"Nope. It's just-"
"Just what? You can tell me, right?"
"Okay Donnie, but I need you to just listen to me," Dave said.
"Okay," Don hesitantly responded.
"You know that me and Tommy have been trying to clean up the system, right?"
"Yeah, you're always talking getting rid of those crooked cops," Don said.
"Well, we've been chasing this drug lord for months and every time we've gotten close, he's been one step ahead of us. So last week we find his payroll, it's a good lead, but as we look closer we find two detectives from our precinct are on it. No wonder he's been outsmarting us at every turn, right?" Dave said.
"So you're going to report these guys. It's tough but I get it," Don said.
Dave went silent again.
"You're going to turn these bastards in, right?" Don pleaded.
"It's not that simple, Donnie. Tommy suggested that we layoff for now, keep our info on the case off the books."
"Okay," Don sighed.
He disagreed with the choice his father was making, but he couldn't deny that his father has been on the force along time, a lot longer than Don's been at Quantico.
"Bye Dad."
"Bye Donnie. I'm going to try to make it to your graduation."
Don hung up the phone, he didn't need another promise from his father that would probably turn out to be a disappointment.
Don avoided calling his parents in the following weeks, instead focusing his time and energy on becoming the best trainee in his class. A routine case exercise gave Ressler goals to accomplish not only as a trainee, but also as a special agent. Ressler researched some of the F.B.I.'s biggest targets and one in particular caught Ressler's attention more so than the others: Raymond Reddington. Even after the exercise ended, Ressler spent extra time in the library reading about and researching Reddington. All of the news reports about this "notorious criminal" were nothing in comparison to the information the F.B.I. had on him.
Despite his attention to Reddington, Ressler still managed to complete his training as best he could. Ressler's hard work paid off and after twenty weeks of training, he was not only a special agent, but the top of his class.
"I'm so proud of you, son!" Dave said as he enveloped Don in a hug after the graduation ceremony.
Don felt slightly awkward, neither his father nor himself were big on hugs or any remote affection, but the pride that radiated from his father brought a smile to his face.
"I'm so glad that you could make it! Where's mom?" Don asked.
"She said that she couldn't go if I was going. She assumed I wasn't going to be able to make it," Dave said with a laugh.
"I thought you guys were civil," Don said with confusion.
"We are, it's just...You're mom thought that if you had some time to think, especially after the divorce, that you would decide to become a doctor or something else instead. Look Donnie, I hurt your mom, but I love my work and it just became too much. Your mother wants you to follow your passion, but I don't think she can stand that you got that passion from me and that my passion for it is the reason she got hurt."
"I don't think you've ever told me that before." Don said.
"I didn't think I needed to yet. Just promise me wherever you end up, whomever you end up following, that you keep in mind the people in your life who aren't criminals."
Dave drove Don back to Maryland, the two were going to spend the weekend celebrating at the cabin. Dave surprised Don with a detour to Washington D.C. and a dinner at a fancy resturaunt.
"Wow, this place is nice," Don commented, in awe of his surroundings.
"Yep, you know if you're going to be working here someday, I expect that you take me out for a fancy dinner every once in awhile when I come to visit," Dave said, prompting a laugh out of Don.
"I don't think I'm going to make that much money, Dad."
Dave forced a laugh and looked at Don with questioning eyes. He didn't know whether to tell him or not.
"What is it? I know you've got something on your mind," Don said, catching on quickly.
"You know that case I told you about a couple of months ago."
"Yeah, I wouldn't have sat on the fact that there are dirty cops in your precinct, but I'm glad that you and Tommy are-"
"Markin's the issue, Donnie," Dave said.
"What are you talking about? Didn't you saw that he's the most...I mean second-most stand up guy on the force?" Don questioned with a grin on his face.
Dave frowned at his son. He didn't know the half of it.
"The whole thing that happened with the dealer, Tommy not wanting to go to our captain immediately, it got me thinking."
"About what?" Don asked.
"Markin, his involvement in this case. Once Tommy and the corrupt detectives left, I started looking back through our records on this guy. Most of our leads are made precinct-wide knowledge in case we need back-up, but we had one good lead that we worked after hours and we had to call another precinct for back-up. Guy gets away again, but it's only Tommy and I with the lead that night."
"Couldn't it have been one of the cops from the other precinct?" Don asked.
"I wanted to believe it was, but Tommy told me not to do anything about it yet."
"He's your partner, dad. You're really just going to report him without clear evidence?" Don asked, concerned.
"I'm so conflicted over what to do Donnie. I keep thinking we're going to finally wrap up the case and my suspicions are going to be proven wrong, but we keep missing our mark time after time. I just want to enjoy this weekend, okay kid? Let's keep it to strictly your job."
Don smiled as he dug into his dish. This was a first.
The weekend was nice, and surprisingly relaxing. On Saturday, they went to the Maryland football game and bought a bucket of crab legs to share at the cabin. On Sunday, they ventured into D.C. and checked out everything from the White House to the F.B.I. Headquarters where Don was to be stationed out of starting Monday. Dave helped Don check out some apartments as well. Don was planning on living in the cabin until he found something better in the city. They found an apartment near Logan Circle that Don would be able to move into by the end of his first week. Don was happy with his choice of apartment. I was a nice place, but not too big or too expensive for a young, single, government employee.
"Are you sure you are happy with this place, Don?" Dave asked when Don said he would take the apartment.
"Yep," Don said. "I like it."
Dave just laughed. He couldn't help that his son didn't give much of a reaction to purchasing an apartment so easily. He guessed it was just something that came with the Ressler DNA. Dave led Ressler to the rental car after they left the apartment so they could head back to the apartment.
"While you were checking out the bedroom I got a call from my captain. I'm needed back at the precinct first thing tomorrow morning," Dave said.
"Do you know what it's about?" Don asked.
"Nope, but I need to pack my stuff and book a flight out of Dulles tonight so that I can get back in time. Are you going to be good on your own?"
"I'll be fine, Dad."
Dave looked over at his son who was staring out the window. His response was void of emotion, but Dave couldn't miss the glint in his son's eye that reflected off of the car window.
Soon after, Dave was off to the airport in a cab and Don was truly on his own. With the exception of phone calls from his parents, he would be back to being called "Ressler," or now "Agent Ressler" and soon he would be commuting to work by train rather than car in a city he's barely seen since college. Ressler sighed as he thought about his future, his hopes and dreams slowly lulling him to sleep.
Two weeks into Ressler's new job at the FBI, he received a call that worried him. His mother had called many times to check in on him, but his father hadn't made contact since they had parted ways. He had just moved into his new apartment the night before, the white walls blank and floor covered in boxes. Ressler sat down on his new couch, one of the only pieces of furniture he had set up before moving in, and sighed as his father spoke to him over the phone.
"Something's up with Tommy," Dave blurted out as soon as Don answered the phone.
"What?"
"I got an anonymous tip last night after Tommy left. I followed it to find one of our dealer's boys. He asks me point-blank if I would go on the payroll in exchange for protecting the dealer. I refuse, but not before he shows me the list. It's longer than the one that we found weeks ago and guess who's name's on it?"
"Tommy Markin," Don said in shock. "Did you tell your captain?"
"Yep," Dave said. "He told me the guy must be playing us both or something. He said I could investigate on my own tomorrow morning, see if I can find anything without Tommy involved."
Don breathed heavily into the phone.
"You sure that's a good idea?" Don asked.
"It's all I can do at this point," Dave said.
"Okay, be safe, Dad."
"I will...I love you kid," Dave said. "I hope you know that."
Don was taken aback for a second. He never assumed otherwise, yet he couldn't remember that last time his father had spoken those words to him.
"I love you too."
The following morning, Ressler was settled into his new routine of taking the train to work. Perhaps that's why his superior officer, Special Agent Martin Wall, whom he had known for just a short period of time was the one that had to break the news to him. Ressler worked in a third floor office with seasoned agents. His team was talking about college football, rather than discussing the dead end case they were trying to solve. When they saw Agent Wall walking toward the office they changed the subject back to the case.
"So the gun that he was using in-" One of Ressler's fellow agents started as Wall walked into the room.
"Agent Ressler, may I speak to you?" he said, concerned.
The other agents looked around at each other. Usually Wall had a good poker face, they never knew if one of them was going to be yelled at or praised in private, but this time something was clearly wrong.
"Sure, what is it?"
Wall tipped his head at the room to his left. Ressler nodded and followed him out of the office.
"Is something wrong with the case, sir? If it is you should probably be speaking with Agent-"
"It's not about the case Agent Ressler," Wall said.
"Then what is it about?"
"I got a call from the Detroit P.D. this morning. They said that they had trouble reaching you and instead found a way to contact you through me."
"My father works–Is everything okay? Did he need something?...Is he in the hospital?" Ressler asked as he started pacing around the cramped room.
"I'm so sorry Donald. Your father was killed in the line of duty this morning."
"No...no, that can't be true? I mean, it has to be wrong, how could've they gotten your number anyways, they would have called my-"
"It was your father's partner that called, Detective Markin I believe. He said that he wanted you to hear it from him or at least from him via me."
That was the moment when the tears building in his eyes and his trembling hands turned from denial to anger.
"That son of a bitch!" Ressler yelled.
He knocked a mug filled with pencils onto the floor and flung a stapler against the wall. The noise alerted the agents in the room over. They quickly ran in front of the office with glass windows and looked in shock at the agent. Agent Wall mouthed at them to back off and they slowly retreated. He then stood behind Ressler who was staring out the window and placed a hand on his shoulder. He could see tears dripping down the agent's face in his reflection.
"You can take off as much time as you need, Ressler. The F.B.I. is in the process of arranging your travel plans so that you can make the memorial service. Call me a week from today and we'll talk about putting you back in the field, okay?" Agent Wall said.
Ressler stood there, his superior's words going unacknowledged. Agent Wall patted him on the back and gave Ressler space to mourn.
His father's captain called to speak in person with Ressler later that day. Ressler went to the precinct directly from the airport. His father's captain explained the details to Ressler that he had already figured out by their phone conversation. The captain mentioned how his father had refused to go on the payroll of the dealer he had been tracking down for months, and the next day, the dealer put a bullet in his head. Detective Markin and back-up were too late to save him or catch the dealer. Ressler hinted many times about corruption in the system, and the captain acknowledged the strangeness of the situation and told Ressler that they would be sure to investigate further.
The funeral was four days later. Linda came to the service, she was more upset than Ressler thought she would be. Unlike him, she surely didn't think that his father was invincible. The mother and son sat next to each other and Linda wept while the memorial services that were custom for the Detroit P.D. were performed. Ressler was done crying and grieving, he hadn't cried since the day he was told of his father's death.
After the service took place, the department held a reception in a private room at the church. Only designated personnel were invited.
"Oh Donnie, I'm so sorry. You must be devastated. I know how much he meant to you," Linda said.
Ressler nodded his head and gave his mom a tight smile. They stood there awkwardly drinking the punch provided by the department. He was definitely going to need something stronger later.
Linda offered Ressler her couch for as long as he needed, but he decided to fly back to D.C. the night of the funeral. Linda let Ressler keep the flag from the memorial service that had been draped over his father's casket. When Ressler arrived back at his near barren apartment, he sunk to the floor. His entire body felt weak.
Ressler woke up the next morning, still in his black suit from the funeral and sore from falling asleep on the ground. He took a scalding hot shower, trying to wash away his thoughts and pain with the water. Agent Wall wasn't expecting him to come into work that day, especially appearing to be fairly put together.
"Agent Ressler, What are you doing here?" Agent Wall asked. "It hasn't even been a week, I don't want you back in the field yet."
"I'm good to go," Ressler responded showing no signs of emotion.
"I'm sorry, I can't put you out there," Agent Wall stressed.
Ressler stood for a moment, thinking about how he could argue his way out of this one.
"My father...He was one of the best detectives the Detroit P.D. ever saw," Ressler said. "He believed in the system and he fought to make it the best it could be. The only way for me to carry out his memory is to do the same for the bureau."
Agent Wall pondered Ressler's words for a moment before finally caving.
"I'm gonna start you off with some easier cases. Once you prove to me that you can work on them without having an emotional breakdown, I'll move you up."
For the first time since his father died Ressler smiled a real smile. He may no longer have his father or the same connection to his mother that he once had, but at least he had a job in which he could do some good for the world.
A/N: I'll be uploading a part two either tomorrow or Saturday that covers more events that have actually happened on the show and what could happen in the future based on some the information we have learned about Ressler. Thanks for reading and Merry Christmas!