Disclaimer: I do not own The Punisher and other licensed memorabilia. All characters portrayed were fictional and were not meant to be based off of real life indivduals. The Punisher, Kingpin, Jigsaw, Bullseye, and others are properties of Marvel Comics Inc.

In the Shade of Black and White: A Punisher Story

"Men are not punished for their sins, but by them."

-Elbert Hubbard

As soon as the bullet flew itself into the flesh of Joe Providence, undercover DEA agent Frank Castle knew that this arrest was going to be messier than usual. As Frank dodged behind a corner, he heard a whiny voice screaming profanities with no end in sight.

"Fucking cop! I knew I couldn't trust your rat ass! I'm going to blow you to fucking pieces and feed your ashes to your whore back at home!" yelled the man as he feverishly pumped Ingram ammo into the cover that Frank was hiding behind. Eddie Barini was the rising star of the drug underworld, dishing out cocaine, speed, and heroin like they were Ferraris. "Fast Eddie B" was his nickname for taking care of drug deals with ease and efficiency.

It was ridiculous that Eddie had gotten this far without getting busted. DEA cops always seemed to cower in fear at the potential Eddie had of splitting their skulls wide open. Frank was no idiot though. There was an ultimate reason why DEA cops were so afraid of Eddie Barini, green paper.

By the looks of things, Eddie Barini was a scrawny kid with a loud mouth and a cocky, annoying, chauvinistic attitude. First impressions tell you everything and at first glance, Eddie looks like he could barely hold a gun. The main reason why DEA cops were afraid of Eddie was because of his mysterious benefactor, the Kingpin. Kingpin basically bought the entire city and gave Eddie the benefits he needed to run his drug business.

Frank knew it was time to send this place down to the pits. He volunteered himself to pose as an undercover drug lord even if it meant dying his hair a disgusting shade of red and gaining pounds at a rate that would make sumos blush in shame. For three months, Frank was Neal Grady, the smartest and meanest chief druggie in nearby Valleyville. Luckily for Frank, the red hair and 15 pounds did its job and fooled Eddie into tripping into a grave.

The meetings went well until this one. As Neal met Fast Eddie B on the Paragon #14 Dock, he noticed big Joe Providence with him holding a baseball bat and a Beretta, two tools of fun unless you were at the receiving end of both. Frank realized his cover was blown and he immediately opened fire at a charging Providence. Like a heavy barbell, the big mob enforcer fell to the ground with a thunderous crunch as Eddie looked on in horror, rage, and fear.

Now, Frank was dodging a myriad of Ingram bullets as openings for a clean shot at Fast Eddie B closed before a blink of an eye. Strangely enough, help was on the way. Not all the cops in the Paragon DEA were corrupt. Frank still had plenty of backup in the form of 50 cops ready to send the prince of drugs behind bars or in a casket. It all depended on the cooperation of Eddie and right now, it seemed like Eddie was going to need to find some pallbearers soon. Deep inside, Frank feared the same thing for himself.

Frank tensed himself as he felt the Glock slip into his hand as Eddie began to shout off more insults and profanities. It was all of only three things that determined life or death for Frank in these quagmires. You needed lady luck to be on your side for once rather than turning her back on you like a cheap hooker. You also needed timing since one slow move; one mistake could end up in getting your head blown off. The final thing was a lack of compassion. You needed to ruthlessly end this guy's life if necessary; no room for the faint of heart.

Frank released himself from vegetation and shot a crisp shot from his Glock into the heart of Eddie Barini's lungs. The prince toppled over and dropped his Ingram. Frank kicked aside the Ingram cruelly and prepared for the shakedown. He hated this part. There was no glory in standing over a victim as you pompously shot the life out of him with your Glock. You kept telling yourself you did it out of pity, that he was suffering in pain and you had the remedy. The fact was, you should have shot him in the head and saved yourself the shakedowns.

Eddie Barini was coughing up blood like a fountain as he gasped for air and flailed like a fish out of the water. Frank couldn't bother to take it anymore. He emptied one Glock bullet into his head to stop the nasty sight. Frank had seen his share of killing. Frank saw young men get blown to bits. The sight of Eddie Barini didn't faze him one bit. That didn't mean that Frank felt no guilt.

Frank walked over to the seemingly lifeless body of a homeless man with a bullet wound in his chest. As Frank reached over to find some sort of identification, the man suddenly grabbed Castle's arm.

"Don't let me die," he said weakly. "I didn't do anything."

"Don't worry. I'm not a killer."