0700 HOURS

Feinstein grunted as his cell phone woke him up.

"Feinstein." The federal agent said in a hoarse voice.

"This is Detective Mason, NYPD. Did I wake you?"

"Yeah. You're the guys who have the Russian prisoner guy, are you?"

"That's' what I called about. He's gone."

Feinstein paused. Blinked. Then became wide awake.

"The fuck you mean, he's gone." The FBI man snapped.

"They took him."

"They? Who the fuck is 'they'."

"Has to be the Russians. The ones trying to take over the New York crime scene. Maybe they came to get their man so he wouldn't talk or something."

"Where, at the station house?" Feinstein couldn't believe it. Could this case get any more fucked up?

"Yeah. They came during the night. Couple guys, ski masks, smoke bombs, flash bangs and grabbed the fucker and left."

"Jesus. How many cops died?"

"That's the fucked up thing, Agent Feinstein. None were seriously hurt. They used riot gear. Tear gas and rubber bullets. These fuckers have been tearing through gangsters, civilians and cops for the past day, now they're using nonlethal gear. They went out their way to spare the cops."

"This doesn't make any-" Feinstein stopped. "Holy shit."

"What?"

"Castle. Has to be."

"The Punisher? You think he came to get that guy?"

"He wants those bastards as bad as we do, Mason. Son of a bitch. He has this thing about not killing cops. That HAS to be it."

"Yeah." Mason said "I can see it too."

"Jesus H. Christ." Feinstein said. "Okay, Mason, sit tight, I'll call my partner and the Interpol guys. We'll be right down."

"Got it."

Feinstein rubbed his face, incredulous. That crazy bastard actually broke into a fucking cop shop and busted a guy out. Feinstein didn't want to think of what Punisher might do to get information. He'd heard stories…

Fuck that. Feinstein had to call his partner O'Reilly and then Danko and Niemans, the INTERPOL guys.

0700 HOURS

Franklin's shrill cell phone ring snapped him out of his sleep. He was in a nearly run down hotel in the Bronx. The big US Marshal almost never got calls.

"Franklin."

"Marshal Franklin, this is Danko, from the INTERPOL."

Franklin sat up in his bed. He remembered the big muscular Russian cop.

"Yeah? What is it, Danko?"

"I have something you might want to see. It is beneficial to both of us."

"You got leads on Castle or Rastovillich?"

"Yes. Come to this address."

"Wait." Franklin took a pen and paper and wrote down the address. "Maybe we should call the cops and feds."

"They're already on the way."

"Ok. I'll be right there as soon as I can."

Danko hung up.

Franklin got up, showered, got dressed. He put on his shoulder holster with the .454 Raging Bull Taurus revolver and ammo. He carried a .45 acp Glock 21 on his hip. A small .357 magnum Python on his ankle.

His usual outfitting. In the trunk of his car, he had a small arsenal. His own USAS automatic shotgun. And a few confiscated assault rifles from the Russian thugs he took down. M-16s. H&KS.

On the way, he stopped by a drive-thru. Ordered coffee and some breakfast.

He hadn't slept much. He spent most of the night thinking of what he was doing. How he got to this point in his life, in his career. A certain bitterness threatened to creep into his thoughts and consciousness. But he didn't let it. He couldn't be bitter and cynical. That would be an easy way out. His father raised him better than that.

Franklin believed in the Law. He believed in Justice. Those iron clad beliefs weren't going anywhere. Instilled early by his father and reinforced when his father was gunned down on his own doorstep.

But what was Justice? Was it a higher calling, a worthier cause than the Law? Could you achieve it outside of the Law? Was Castle, and all those other vigilantes ruling the night in New York and elsewhere right?

It couldn't be. What would be the difference between Franklin and his prey if he went down that road. He almost went into that Brooklyn cop shop to beat some answers out of the prisoner. He's been rough with bad guys before, But he decided against it. Something would break this case. It had to.

Franklin was done with his breakfast and coffee by the time he made to where he was supposed to meet Danko, Niemans, Feinstein and O'Reilly.

He found a rundown building. His phone rang again.

"You're at the right place, Marshal Franklin." Danko said without introduction. "Go into the building. Take the stairs down."

He did as he was told. This building was deserted. Not even rats or 'roaches.

He felt the reassuring weight of the cannon under his left armpit. He found the right door. Something wasn't right. He pulled his .454.

He knocked. "It's Franklin."

"Come in." It was Danko.

He expected everything but what he saw.

The prisoner was strung up by his ankles, naked. Several cuts and bruises all over his body. Some burns. The man's face looked like hamburger. He had electrodes wired to his testicles and head. Another man was sitting at a table operating the torture device. Bespectacled. Caucasian. He looked like an accountant. Danko and Niemans were there. Sleeves rolled up. Another man was standing in the shadows. He was tall, over six feet, slender. He had thick black hair and deep brown eyes. He was wearing a Beretta under each armpit in a shoulder rig.

"What the fuck…"Franklin started.

"We know how this looks." Niemans said. "But this was necessary."

"You…you broke him out." Franklin said.

"Another necessary evil." Danko said. " Rastovillich has spilled too much innocent blood. He must be shut down."

"How..Who…"Franklin was dizzy. This was too much to accept all at once. Then he came back. " Did you kill any cops? Breaking him out?"

"Not one." Niemans said.

"I don't think we even broke any bones. We're not savages, Marshal. We seek retribution. Justice."

"Who are you?" Franklin said.

"We can't reveal too much." Danko said. "We're part of a group of people that deals with this sort around the world… We are…free of many of the restrictions of the law."

"Are you guys vigilantes?" Franklin said.

"Does it really matter, Marshal Franklin?" Danko asked.

"Does it really matter?" Franklin shouted. "Are you fuckin' crazy? You can't fuckin' operate like that, like a fuckin' Gestapo! This may be a piece of shit, but you can't just…grab people and torture them!"

"Neither can we let this man and other like them murder and maim innocent people so he can sell poison on the streets and profit from prosititution." Niemans said.

"You motherfuckers…" Franklin said. "You're worse than Castle."

"The Punisher?" The Oriental man said, pulling a long drag on his cigarette. "We understand him. Nobody should do what he does. What we do. But this is the reality of the situation. This is war. There's little room for mercy for this kind of scum." He said pointing at the strung up man.

"You're insane…" Franklin said.

"Are we?" Danko said. "You've seen what Rastovillich is capable of. You've seen the damage he's caused. He's completely ruthless. He's worked for crime lords and warlords everywhere. He's done everything from helping train death squads to hiring out to organized crime. He's left a trail of blood and corpses all over the worlds, him and his army of thugs. Men, women and children. He's murdered policemen and their families. That has to stop."

"And where Rastovillich is, The Punisher will be." Niemans said. "You will more than likely be able to arrest him. If him and his allies have a guest like we do…He may know what we know."

"Why me?" Franklin asked. "Why reach out to me?"

"We read up on you." The Oriental man said. "You walk on the edge. Your superiors are blackmailing you for your job. We can free you off all of that."

Franklin was silent. Then, realization hit.:" Join you. You want me to join you."

"Yes, we do." Danko said. "You despise crime and criminals. You can barely do your job and respect the law at the same time. Plus, we can free you from the hold your superiors have on you. That story with the thugs who raped that young girl. The ones you beat half to death. Rightfully so. We can make that go away."

The Asian man spoke: "The people we work for understand men like you. Even men like Castle. All of us, here, were cops like you. All of us had to deal with red tape and corrupt bosses. Some of us even lost a lot…before walking this path."

There was silence. Maybe all of them lost someone to crime. And impunity.

"We don't claim to be heroes." The Asian Man continued. "Maybe we're villains. Monsters like what he hunt and kill. We're past that point. We do what must be done. We may not be good, but the world is better off without men like Rastovillich."

"He's evil." Niemans said. "You can help us crush him."

"If not? Then what? You guys kill me?" Franklin said. "Do some memory warping voodoo so I forget all of this?"

"We let you go." Danko said.

"Just like that?" Franklin said.

"We won't kill a solider on the same side as us." Niemans said.

"With what I have on you? You'll let me walk."

"The way we see it, there's no wrong solution to your problem." Danko said. "Either join us and we stop these killers once and for all. Or you arrest us and do your duty as an officer of the law."

Franklin squinted.: "You mean TRY and arrest you. You zap my ass, non-lethally, and go on your way doing…whatever the fuck it is you do."

They answered him with silence.

"Yeah…"Franklin said. "That's what I thought."

"The decision is yours, Marshal Franklin." Danko said.

Yeah. The choice was his.

And he didn't know what to do.