Chapter 21
Unlike his sister, whose Irish temper tended to flash over and then recede, Daniel Reagan was more prone to simmer to a boil if the spark was just right, and he was not as easily swayed by his father's demonstrations or the cute blue eyes of a little girl he had not met yet. If there was one thing he absolutely despised it was to be ignored and to this point his brother had wholly refused to take any of his calls or answer a text for nearly a week now. Danny's blood was bubbling by the time he arrived at work on Thursday morning and found himself being called into Lieutenant Carver's office with his partner Maria Baez.
"Orders came down from 1PP this morning," his superior informed them. "You two are taking over that armed robbery case out of the 3-5; there were two more incidents this week and they're getting increasingly violent… one of the perps pistol whipped a salesman at a jewelry store on 9th last night and sent him to the hospital with a fractured skull. He may not pull through. Detective Anderson and his partner have been yanked. Get over there and grab the files from them and get started before I start hearing from the Commissioner's office myself," she added as she dismissed the pair.
"So we're headed over to the 3-5," Maria observed as she watched the wheels turn in her partner's brain, fully aware of the trending strife between the two Reagan brothers and knowing that Jamie was currently on modified duty so would be in the precinct when they got there. "This could be interesting," she muttered as she grabbed her coat and followed Danny's quick exit out of the squad. His little brother wasn't going to be able to hide from him much longer.
###
"How are things going with those summons, Mahoy?" Jamie frowned as he looked across his desk at the stack of paperwork piled up next to his rookie who had not yet managed to put an appreciable dent in it. After a series of blundering mistakes were reported earlier in the week while he was out on leave, Jamie did not trust sending his trainee back out on patrol with a different TO while he was still stuck behind a desk on modified duty, so he had set George up with a laptop on a small table in the corner of his office and was determined to work out some of the new officer's wrinkles himself. So far all he had discovered was that the young man typed at an unusually fast pace and was a virtual savant with statistical numbers, but constantly went back to double check himself even though the work was essentially correct each time. Jamie knew he was going to have to find a way to boost the kid's self confidence before he crashed and burned out of the force. Second guessing oneself on paperwork made for a long office session, but doing that out on the street was going to wind up getting someone killed and as his father had hoped, Jamie had a new focus now and no intentions of leaving Kaylin an orphan again.
He turned back to his own computer with a sigh. Being cooped up in an office for a few weeks wasn't his idea of fun either, but the situation was affording the opportunity, on his Lieutenant's orders, to straighten out the vast rat's nest of paperwork for this platoon that had been left behind by his predecessor. Sergeant James Michael had long been a fixture at the 3-5 but had seen recent troubles in the precinct. On the short stick for retirement, he'd also found himself swept up in controversy when his nephew Philip had been placed on extended modified assignment after being accused of a serious hit and run while on patrol. The incident was now the subject of a large wrongful injury lawsuit being brought against the department and run through the legal department at 1PP. Jamie was now charged as Philip's commanding officer and the older sergeant had been banished to another shift. There had been some misgivings against a brand new untested duty officer taking charge after the upheaval, especially one with the same last name as the commissioner, but all in all things had gone well on that front for Jamie, although he was always looking for ways to create more harmony and a team spirit within the group.
As such, a particular memo in his inbox had just caught his attention... it was a call for sign ups for the annual fall NYPD softball tournament. Jamie smirked a little as he considered it and tagged the email for further review. Sergeant Renzulli's team out of the 12th had been the long-reigning division champions and he didn't imagine that his old TO would appreciate a new challenge to his perennial crown, especially one led by his former star shortstop, but it might just be what he needed to start a healthy rivalry with their sister precinct to the west.
George was still plugging away on his pile when Jamie flinched as he heard a distinct voice in the distance down the hall.
Danny was coming.
He could pick out his older brother's baritone from a mile away. Jamie had known he was playing with fire by first throwing him out of the hospital and then ignoring all forms of contact including Sunday dinner, but now it seemed the time had come to pay the piper, and it would no doubt be an angry one at that. Jamie considered taking George and making a break for the back door but it was already too late as a scruffy-faced presence filled the doorway.
"Harvard!" his older brother challenged in a tone that seemed friendly to outsiders, but made Jamie squirm a little on the inside. This was a hot situation that needed to be handled with kid gloves to avoid a potential blow up, and that was not going to happen in front of his new squad and rookie partner. "Funny running into you here!"
"Detective Reagan," Jamie replied coldly, using the title as both a not-so-subtle reminder to his older brother that he was now on a more equal footing and a warning to keep things civil and on point at work. Danny chose to ignore that and started straight in anyway.
"Wow, so you go all superhero on everyone's ass and they reward you by giving you your own secretary, huh?" he said as he eyed George seated at the table in the corner. He had heard the chatter about the new recruit and knew exactly why Jamie had chosen to keep his trainee at the precinct while he was stuck inside as a house mouse. The youngest Reagan was not about to fall for the bait though as they sparred in their normal fashion. "Must be nice. I'd get at least a three-day rip for that."
"Officer Mahoy, please inform Detective Reagan when a new rookie will rotate into the office with me and you will go back out on patrol?" Jamie asked.
"When a one-handed Sergeant Reagan cannot complete his paperwork faster and more accurately than me, sir!" the young officer replied smartly.
"Excellent answer, George! And why is that important?"
"Less time and mistakes in the office makes for better outcomes on criminal cases filed and more cops on the street instead of behind a desk, sir."
"Bingo! Thank you, George. You're gonna be officer of the month material soon," Jamie smiled as he deliberately threw another folder in the completed bin.
"C'mon, can we talk, kid?" Danny replied in exasperation. Jamie had managed successfully to thwart him and it was annoying the older man. "This is really stupid."
"I always have time for you, Detective Reagan, if this is regarding an official matter. If it's personal, leave a message and I'll get back to you when you concur with everyone else that I'm able to make my own decisions. Until then I have nothing further to discuss."
"Okay, it's official then," Danny snarked back. "Baez and I caught that armed robbery case now… what can you tell me about it that's not in the damn report?" George had straightened up in his chair at the change in tone in the detective's voice; even he could read the situation now and no one on the job wanted to be in the middle of a Reagan family personal fray if they could avoid it.
Sensing his rookie's discomfort, Jamie decided to let him off the hook instead of continuing to use him as a sort of human shield. "George, why don't you take a break and go grab some coffee, and then I want you to head down to records and filing and have them pull all those logs we talked about from the first of the year onwards. You're going to convert them to an online spreadsheet for me."
"Yes, sir!" George replied as he hurried out of the room. He didn't need to be asked twice.
"So that's your partner," Danny said smugly as he closed the office door behind him and took a seat in front of Jamie's desk. "He's a real winner from what I've heard. Should have been canned before he even got out of the academy… I mean you don't even trust sending him out with another TO while your wing is healing, and you're making up busy work to keep him off the street. How's anyone else out there gonna feel when he's supposed to have their back?"
"George has potential," Jamie replied, although he had to admit that his older brother was dead on as usual with his assessment. "And it's not busy work. Jimmy Michael left this place in such a mess I'd think he did it deliberately to hide something if I hadn't met the man. He's a real piece of work."
"Well, Sergeant Reagan," Danny sniped, not to be distracted. "It doesn't look like you're much better. If that rookie's not cut out to be on the streets you need to do your own job and fire his ass. He's a probie and you don't need cause. Stop picking up strays."
Jamie's eyes shot up with that same cold look that he'd had in the hospital and Danny sensed that maybe he had pushed things too far with that last comment; so much for fixing things as his grandfather had ordered. That wasn't the way he had intended bringing up Jamie's new role as a foster dad. Perhaps he would be the one to be uninvited to Sunday dinner instead this week… it would be better than facing the further wrath of his father and Henry if things remained unresolved between the brothers. "The armed robbery case," Jamie redirected in an icy tone to match the glare, leaving no doubt that all personal conversation was off the table once more. Damn, he inherited Grandpa's look… that's where it came from, Danny realized with an uneasy start. Where the hell had that been all the kid's life?
"Yeah, so... Anderson and his partner are complete tools," he said as he tried, but ultimately failed, to break the stare before blinking himself. "There's no leads or anything useful in the file and Ghormley is going to be all over my Lieutenant if Baez and I don't come up with something quick."
"They're smash and grabs, which would indicate that the perps are disorganized, but they never fail to hit when the stores have their most expensive inventory in stock. My guess is it's someone connected to the shipping manifests or deliveries," Jamie revealed as he turned his attention back to the computer screen. He'd had his fill of his older brother for the day, and any hope for resolution between them did not look promising. How dare he think of Kaylin as one of my poor strays! Jamie seethed. That comment had fired up a paternal anger within him and had been enough to make him see red again.
"Oh, so now you're a detective too?" Danny sniped after being dismissed once more as he failed to stop himself from digging an even bigger hole in their relationship.
"Whatever, Danny," Jamie responded without looking up. "You asked for my opinion. If you don't want to take it then you have no further business here. Get out. I have work to do."
Danny pursed his lips and bit back one last snide retort before turning to stalk out of the room. "We're not finished with this yet, kid," he muttered before leaving and slamming the door behind him.
Jamie looked up and watched through the window as his older brother disappeared down the hall. "You've got that right," he agreed with utter disappointment as he turned back to his work.
###
"You're really quiet tonight," Eddie observed as they cleaned up in Jamie's kitchen after the evening meal. "Everything okay?" she asked knowing that an unresolved rift was probably still at the heart of Jamie's angst. Sunday dinner was fast approaching, and it hadn't seemed like any progress had been made on smoothing things over with Danny. She was unaware of the events that had occurred at the 3-5 precinct today and the current vastness of that understatement.
"Oh, yeah. Sorry about that," he deflected, not really wanting to get into the continued strife with his brother again since he thought it still made her uncomfortable. At least the patch with Erin was holding strong. "Just got a lot of things on my mind from work today."
"You always hated being a house mouse," Eddie mused as she dried another dish. "It's good to see you're able to take that boot off every day for a while though. You'll be back to running the streets in no time."
"Can't wait… just not cut out for the desk I guess," he smiled as he packed up some leftovers. Meal planning had become quite the adventure lately as it became apparent that Kaylin had not been exposed to a lot of vegetables in her life and Jamie was a confirmed rabbit. Although she tried not to let on, it amused Eddie to no end when the little girl asked for a cheeseburger or a hot dog at every occasion. As tiny and thin as Kaylin was for her age, it really did no harm at this point except for the obvious malnutrition, but Jamie was determined to break that cycle and have the toddler eating healthier. It was the first line in the sand being drawn in their rather short father-daughter relationship and Eddie wasn't entirely sure at this moment who would eventually win out. He had caved with a grilled cheese sandwich tonight. Point one for Kaylin.
"So how are things working out at that daycare?" she asked. Adele Renzulli had been babysitting for the past two days while Jamie was at work, but she had a good friend with a conveniently located and well-respected child care facility located only a few blocks from the 3-5 and had been taking the little girl over there each day to acclimate her.
"So far, so good," he answered. "She's starting to play with the other kids and not hide in the corner or under the furniture so much. Mrs. Henderson's been working with her too. They all think she just needs a little time to come around. She hasn't really been socialized much at all."
"Well, Erin's been asking about this weekend," Eddie said, chewing her lip a little nervously. "She called and wanted to be sure that I knew I was welcome to come to dinner, but I told her that I didn't know what you had decided yet."
"Are you ready for that?" he turned around and asked a little bluntly. With the way things stood with Danny he hadn't really considered it a possibility. "My brother and I aren't exactly seeing eye to eye just yet. He came by the precinct today to pick up that armed robbery case… let's just say that it didn't improve anything."
So that was it, she thought, the reason behind his mood. "I guess… I mean I'm fine, I think. I've already met your Dad, Henry and Erin. I know you said you weren't going to go back until things were all settled, but I think it's important for Kaylin that you take her and let her start to get to know the family. I can hold off on coming until later if you think that's best. Your sister was wondering about having a cake for the birthday... you shouldn't wait too long to do that… she's already missed out on so much and she's just two."
"Well if you're game, then so am I," he sighed. "To hell with Danny, and you're not missing Kaylin's first cake with us either. Just remember what I told you about letting things slide and being ready to come out swinging."
Hmm, wonder how that will go? Next up, George finds an opportunity to shine and Jamie has his first run in with Paul Denison (remember him from Follow Your Heart?) in this version of the series as some pieces to the corruption scandal within the departments start clicking in place.