Chapter 10

Two weeks later

Erin's hospital room was filled with flowers and cards from well-wishers. She was sitting in the chair having just finished thirty minutes of physical therapy. She was tired but feeling so much better than she had in a long time. Nicky had stayed as she promised, and Erin was looking forward to going home and being able to spend time with her daughter. She had to tell Anthony that right now wasn't the time for her to run for District Attorney for Manhattan. She needed to recuperate and truly decide if that was the path she wanted. She loved doing trial work and being the DA was truly a political job with all its issues and difficulties. She still hadn't been able to speak to Maria again but that would be her most important task once she was home. Danny had stopped by twice, but the visits were brief. They had a new case keeping them busy, but Eddie had told her that Danny was very happy. Yesterday Erin had been given a list of goals to accomplish so she could be discharged home rather than going to another facility to continue doing rehab. Her goal was to be discharged on Friday so she could attend family dinner with her family. Jack would arrange the meal and it would be at Erin's home. Danny and Jamie would move the furniture around a bit to accommodate another table so they could all sit together.

Danny received a summons to 1PP. He dressed carefully and made sure he brought anything with him that would be considered property of the NYPD. He drove to 1PP using the fleet vehicle intending on leaving it in the parking garage. He took the elevator up to the floor where he was to meet with Lieutenant Gormley. He knocked on the door and was surprised when his father opened the door.

"Hi, Danny, come in, please," said Frank.

"I thought I was meeting with Sid to complete the return of my equipment so I can start my retirement."

"Yeah, about that, I was sure that if I reached out, you might not come to the meeting." Frank walked around the desk and sat down. Danny sat in one of the chairs in front of the desk.

"Well, to be honest, I thought about just mailing the few things I still have but couldn't figure out how to mail the car." He reached into his pocket and pulled out the car keys and put them on the desk. He put the laptop he used at home on the desk as well along with his phone. "Maria is waiting downstairs for me. Is there anything else you need from me before I leave?"

Frank picked up the phone on the desk, "Baker, Detective Baez is waiting outside for Danny. Please convince her to come to my office upstairs. Danny and I will be waiting for her there." He hung up the phone and asked Danny to join him in his office on fourteen. "Danny, bring all that stuff with you." Frank stood up and waited for Danny to follow him.

Abigail went downstairs looking for Detective Baez. She had parked in the parking garage and was sitting on a bench outside the building playing with her daughter who was sitting in a stroller. She observed the detective for a few moments remembering when her boys were that young. "Your daughter is absolutely gorgeous, detective." Maria looked up at the woman currently working as Frank's assistant.

"Thank you, Detective. Are you here to tell me that Danny isn't coming out?"

"The Commissioner has requested that you join them in his office. I can watch her for you, if you like. Just in case the language becomes something she shouldn't be exposed to at this young age." Elena was waving her arms trying to get Abigail's attention. She reached out to the baby and began interacting with her.

"Well, maybe I should keep her with me to keep the men in line."

"That could work as well," Abigail paused for a minute. "Shall we, ma'am?"

Maria looked around to be sure there was nothing to pick up. "I suppose we should. What was the mood?"

"Well, I didn't see them but Frank appeared to be calm when he called me." Together they walked into the building and took the elevator to the fourteenth floor. Abigail held the door open for Maria as she pushed the stroller in front of her. Frank requested coffee for them and asked them to sit on the sofa. Maria took Elena out of the stroller and Danny moved the baby's bag close to Maria. Elena reached out for Danny and he put her on his lap.

"My, she has grown, Maria. She'll be walking soon and that's when the fun begins. I don't think we ever told you about the day we couldn't find Danny. He was about fifteen months old and getting into everything. While his mother's back was turned, Danny crawled into one of the kitchen cabinets and fell asleep. My mother and my wife searched the house and only found him two hours later when he woke up and didn't know how to get out of the cabinet. But that was typical for Danny."

"Gee, thanks, Dad."

"But old family stories isn't why I asked both of you up here. Now, Danny, did you know that Maria has taken the Sergeant's Exam three times? And that she scored in the top five each time?"

Danny looked at his partner. "Really? You never said anything."

"Well, I hadn't expected to remain a detective for my career. And the only way up was to take the exams."

"But, you never took the position, why not?"

"Well, the first time was a month before your house burned down and Linda passed away. I couldn't desert you then. The second time was after Eamon was killed but the only positions were in Staten Island or in Fleet. The last time was after I adopted Elena. It's expensive to raise a baby on one income. Yes, my mom helps but day care costs more than I could imagine."

"Why didn't you say anything, I would have helped you."

"Danny, you did so much for me and Elena, I couldn't ask for anything more."

Frank spoke up, "Now, we have the perfect position for Maria, if she wants it." He proceeded to describe the pilot program to reduce the frustration of the officers and attorneys and make sure that the proper steps were being taken, there was enough evidence for warrant requests and that the detectives provided sufficient evidence to ensure an indictment and conviction. Maria had a few questions but asked for time to consider this new position. She would no longer have Danny as her partner in the field but they would be at the same precinct.

"Now, I don't need an answer at this moment but would you both consider not retiring right now? Finish out the month as the most productive detectives. Then, we'll find Danny a new partner that he can work with while Maria starts her new job." Danny and Maria looked at each other.

"Dad, can we have a few days to talk about this?"

"Of course, and if you have any questions, just call me."

Danny and Maria rescinded their retirement papers and continued solving cases together. She was still contemplating putting on the sergeant stripes and being the assistant to Lieutenant Gee, boss of the Major Case Squad and home of the best detectives in all of the NYPD. When the statistics were reviewed and solve rates, number of defendants found guilty, cases finally closed were calculated the top three teams in all of the detective squads were teams at the 5 4 under Lieutenant Gee. With the other teams picking up some of the slack, Danny and Maria were no longer working fourteen-hour days, six days a week. They had time to enjoy being with each other, taking care of their wonderful child and building their life together. Danny was at Family Dinner each week, but Maria rarely attended. Frank understood what Maria was feeling and hoped that in time, she would be there more often. The baby was growing so fast - she was trying so hard to walk by herself.

Joe Hill had another close call probably due to the way he skirted around the rules and regulations. Maria decided it was time to take the promotion and bring Joe into the 5 4. Danny had finally learned to work within the constraints of the Patrol Guide, and it was hoped that by making him partner with Danny he would learn the lessons faster and easier than Danny had done while being partnered with Maria.