Thanks to all who have read, alerted and favorited this story. As well as ki4pak, Pharmergirl, kirbyschoice, Donnie88, alex, and jlmayer for reviewing the last chapter. I had intended to post this chapter this morning but noticed something missing so I had to go back over it.
Contains references to 2x20, 2x21, and 2x22
Soon Jamie was parked in the parking lot of the cemetery in Brooklyn. He switched seats with Anna and settled into the back seat. "Okay, what's first?" Danny asked, looking at his daughter.
"Start the car and go?" Anna asked, hopefully.
"No, try again," Danny said a hint of a smile on his face.
"Adjust your seat and mirrors. You want to be able to reach both the wheel and the pedals while sitting back in the seat. Once the seat is adjusted, move your mirrors so you can see."
"Good job," Danny said.
"Next, put your seatbelt on. Safety first. Also you have to wear a seatbelt because you're in the front seat but Uncle Jamie doesn't because he's over 16 and in the back."
"Reagan rule, if you're in a car and it's moving you wear a seatbelt unless it's a cop car and you're on duty," Jamie said.
"Right," Anna said as she buckled her seatbelt. "Next make sure you know where the wipers, lights, turn signals, and hazard lights are and how to work them," Anna said, locating all of the switches and levers. "Then check your mirrors again and start the car. Right?" Anna glanced at her dad, hoping she had gotten it right.
"Yep," Danny said, "now?"
"Start the car," Anna said. Danny nodded and Anna turned the car over. "Now, turn off the radio so you can focus." She did so. "Then shift into reverse and carefully, using your mirrors, back out of the spot."
"Good, go ahead," Danny said.
Anna pulled on the gear shift. "Uh?" Anna looked at the gear shifter on the dash and tried again. "It uh ..."
Jamie looked over the seat and smiled a bit. "It won't shift into reverse unless you press the brake pedal," he said gently.
"Right, I knew that," Anna grinned and stepped on the brake.
"It's okay to admit what you don't know. That's what we're here for," Jamie said.
"Try it again," Danny said.
Anna pressed down on the brake pedal and shifted into reverse. The car still didn't move though. "Uh?"
"Slowly let off the brake and while keeping your eyes on your mirrors back up, if it's clear," Danny coaxed. Anna nodded following his words.
"Now, start turning the wheel the direction you want the back of the car to go," Jamie said.
"So that way?" Anna asked, pointing the opposite direction they came in.
"Not exactly. Try again," Danny said. After successfully backing out of the spot, she shifted in to drive and began to slowly drive around the graveyard. The more she drove the more relaxed both she and Danny became. Even Jamie was impressed with how well she was doing. "Are you sure you haven't done this before?" Danny asked.
"You mean aside from the go kart track? No," Anna said. "That gave me the handling skills and the rest comes from reading the handbook and watching you drive. As long as you have the concept, the application should be pretty easy."
"Should be. Take a left up here," Danny said. Anna nodded and after slowing down to look both ways, she carefully turned left. A few turns later, Danny told her to pull over. "Right up there and get out," he told her.
"Okay, what did I do wrong?" Anna asked as she got out.
"Nothing," Danny said as he jerked his head towards a set of headstones. Anna looked around and realized where they were. She nodded and walked over to the graves he indicated. She smiled at her grandmothers' names then looked at her uncle's. She stood there in silence as her dad and uncle hung back near the car. "You really haven't been taking her out behind my back?" Danny asked his brother.
"I'm not Joe, Danny. I love my niece but for the first couple of times, I think you should take her out and teach her. I know it hurt when you almost missed her first steps and her first words."
"Yeah. She's just so good."
"You're a good teacher, most of the time."
Danny smirked and nodded. "You haven't told her about the Sanfinos, have you?" Danny asked softly.
"It's need to know. I only told you because I knew you could handle it and have some advice. Undercover work killed Joe and I'm not sure how Anna will handle me being under. I don't want to push her away. I think it's best if I don't tell her at least until it's over. Maybe not even then," Jamie answered just as softly.
"Probably not," Danny said. "Has Anna told you anything lately?"
"Anna tell me a lot of things," Jamie said vaguely.
"Jamie," Danny said.
"Danny."
"I just want to know what's going on. If she still feels like she's in the middle of a twister with no one there to catch her."
"Not that I know of. Anna tells me about petty fights with her girlfriends, about how she feels about Nicky, about nightmares she has, about the occasional detention; your typical teenage drama, it's never anything big. If it was something major, being stopped by the police, the fifth detention in a month, her failing some class, physical fighting, being harassed, something as major as that, you know I'd tell you in a heartbeat."
"Like the Blue Templar?" Danny asked, staring his brother down.
"Okay, not telling you about that when she first asked was a mistake, but I had to be sure how much she knew. I won't do it again, Danny. I love my niece and I trust her. I want her to trust me. Telling you about her first detention in six weeks and you confronting her about it, means she doesn't tell me about the guy who has been harassing her for three weeks."
"You don't tell me about that and I don't know what's going on with her."
"We all make mistakes. We learn from them. Remember the dead body Nicky saw? Who told Erin about it?"
"You're right. I just don't like being the last to know," Danny said.
"And you won't be, but the minor teenage drama, it's the kind of stuff you wouldn't have bothered Dad with either. Especially not when you were Anna's age," Jamie told him.
"Dad?" Anna said walking up to them. "I'm hungry."
"Ice cream?"
"Sounds good, can I drive?" Anna asked.
"No," Danny said. Anna sighed but climbed into the back seat of the car. That night Anna video chatted Sofie and told her all about it.
Sofie agreed that it was great then brought up an uneasy topic. "Heard from Uncle Jimmy today," Sofie said, hesitantly.
"What did he want?" Anna asked, trying not to get angry. Jimmy was a sore subject between them but neither wanted to fight with each other over it.
"Just to congratulate me. Said he saw my pic in a magazine and was impressed."
"He didn't want nothing?"
"No, at least I don't think so."
"That's right," Anna said, "You're his favorite niece, he never wants anything from you."
"Are you saying that's the only reason he calls you?" Sofie asked.
"Maybe he thinks that I sympathize with him. I'm always in trouble so I'll understand."
"Understand what?" Sofie asked, concerned.
"That not everyone's perfect and that people screw up."
"Give Uncle Jimmy a break, it's hard being the middle child between two perfect sisters."
"The way he tells it, they weren't perfect."
"Eventually we all figure that out about our parents aren't perfect."
"Yeah. At least he never comes to your mom looking for a place to lay low."
"Only because he knows she'd never take him in. Aunty Linda is the one that always feels sorry for him. Come on, Anna, what if he was a Reagan?"
"If he was a Reagan he wouldn't have been in and out of trouble since I could walk."
"I'm sorry, we're getting off track. You had fun driving?" Sofie instantly changed the subject.
"It was great. Dad wasn't as spazzed as I thought he'd be but that could be because Uncle Jamie was in the car too," Anna said.
"Spazzed?" Sofie asked.
"Oh you know what I mean. I gotta go. Mom's on her way up. Church tomorrow and all."
"Okay and tell Sean I'm sorry I missed his birthday." They said goodbye then climbed into bed.
The following day Danny took her out driving again and promised to do the same later that week. On Monday Drew pulled Anna away from the team as they ate lunch in the courtyard. "We need to talk," Drew said.
"I don't think we do," Anna answered irritated.
"We do. Listen, about the game on Saturday. I know that you're mad about what I did, I understand. If I thought someone was tanking their game to give me a chance I'd be upset too. However, I know that scholarship is practically a lock and one game isn't going to make it disappear. I've been on fire for the past couple of weeks and the scouts have seen the other games but you know what? I can count on one hand the number of times your father has been to a baseball game since you started St. Agatha's. Your dad actually showed up for once and him seeing how good you are at baseball is more important than any scholarship I could ever win," Drew explained. "Jim had nothing to do with that. He was as angry as you were until I explained why I did it."
"One game could be the difference between full ride and a partial scholarship," Anna answered.
"Except I'm not going to college to get a leg up on the MLB. I'm going to college to be a teacher and I know that's expensive, especially in New York but it's all I've ever wanted to do. So full ride or not, I'll be okay."
"It's noble why you did what you did, but it doesn't make me feel any better about what you did."
"I know, and I'm sorry. Is there anything I can do to help you forgive me?"
"No. Just don't back down from that stance you took on Saturday."
"Jim always said you were sweet." Drew kissed her check then walked back over to their friends. Anna sighed and shook her head.
Later that week, when he was supposed to take her driving, Danny had a case come up. A case tied to her aunt's most recent trial. After one witness was killed they found another and her dad was put on the protection detail to keep the same from happening again. When Linda broke the news, Anna was a little upset but she understood and wasn't all that surprised. Besides without a game that weekend, it's be on Monday instead, she'd pick up a shift at the diner which she headed to after spending the morning with her friend, Sarah.
Sunday all talk was centered around Erin's job and part of her trial. "First the Giants win the Super Bowl," Henry started.
"Hey!" Anna protested since he said it like it was a bad thing.
Henry waved her off, "and now my granddaughter is going to become a crooked politician." A few days earlier the mayor had offered Erin the job as deputy mayor.
"Politicians run for office, Grandpa," Erin told him, "the deputy mayor is appointed."
"Yeah, Erin's going to be a corrupt city official," Jamie said. Henry laughed.
"Thank you for that," Erin said sarcastically.
"Well, no matter how you put it, it's a dirty business," Henry said.
Then Sean brought up the fact that Jack was running for class president which, under a stern glare from Linda, Henry clarified that it was a completely different thing. After that things got a little tense when Frank admitted out loud that he wondered if the job offer had something to do with Erin being a Reagan. Jamie and Linda gave Erin some support but Jamie did mention that if Erin took the job, she'd be able to get Frank in trouble if he stepped out of line. Sensing the tension, Henry changed the subject to Erin's trial. However Erin's lack of faith in the task force caused a fight between her and her dad that ended with Frank saying that he honestly believed Erin couldn't understand how inexact witness protection was because she wasn't a cop.
"Wow, what's today? Dump on Aunt Erin day?" Anna asked. "Can't we—shouldn't we be supportive of her here?" Everyone looked at her. Anna swallowed. "Yes, with Dad on the taskforce specifically assigned to protect this witness, Aunt Erin should have a little more faith in him. I mean it's not like he'd ever intentionally tank a case or lose a witness. He always does his best to protect them like they're family but bad things do happen. You lose this witness and you lose the case, most likely and the last thing anyone in this family wants is for that to happen. Dad's going to do his best to make sure that doesn't happen. He is really good, just like you're really good at your job. I also think that it's a shame this family isn't more supportive of you while you're trying to decide if you want this job or not. We should be making it easier on you, not harder." Anna's eyes jumped to her grandfather then back to her aunt. "It's a very difficult decision, one that's hard on you and puts you in a difficult position both personally and professionally. The last thing most kids want to do is to be asked to pick between their family and their job. I'd say if it's something you want, then go for it. You're part of this family too and it would be nice to have a city official that you know can't be bought or blackmailed."
"Thank you, Anna."
"Besides, isn't it better the devil you know than the devil you don't?" Anna asked.
Frank looked at her for a moment. "How's the driving coming?" Frank asked.
"Only been out a couple of times and only to the graveyard. Driving's not so hard when you're only doing 15 miles an hour."
"At least you're getting hours," Jamie said.
"There is that," Anna said.
After dinner Erin stepped outside with Anna. "I want to say thank you. I know I was hard on your dad especially since he's not here to defend himself," Erin said.
"Maybe not, but I think you're worried about this case as well as something else," Anna said.
"What's that?"
"You're worried about Dad." Anna stated, sure of herself. "Something I've noticed about this family, the harder you are on someone, the more scared you are for them. Even if you have complete faith in Dad's ability to protect your witness and himself, this could go very bad. The guy you're prosecuting is a very dangerous criminal who has already killed at least two people, on top of everything else he's done. He could very well go after Dad and if that happens, you're going to blame yourself. You wouldn't be able to stand losing another brother."
"That did occur to me, in the very back of my mind. Just like it does every time Danny puts himself in danger. I try not to think about it. Instead I remind myself that Danny is very good at his job and I trust him."
"Are you still considering the job?" Anna asked.
"Shouldn't I?" Erin asked.
"Of course you should. Like I said you're really good and if it's what you want then go for it," Anna said. "Granted you won't be putting really bad people in jail anymore but you can excel at whatever you put your mind to."
"Thank you, Anna," Erin said. "You know, sometimes you remind me of Joe. He was always the one to try to see both sides and come to the defense of whoever was being jumped on. Your defense in there, reminded me of him."
"Thanks." Anna paused and looked down. "Does it make me contradictory if part of me wants to be like my dad?"
"Not at all," Erin said. "I've always believed the best people take the greatest characteristics from those who come before them. Your dad is really good at what he does. And I know that any case he gives me is one that he's sure of the suspect and the conclusions he's come to. You work as hard as he does and there's no telling what you can do."
"Thank you," Anna smiled and hugged her aunt.
"You're welcome," Erin answered, hugging her back.
A few days later, Anna heard that her dad and aunt made up and that she had turned down the job. Though Anna was a little disappointed, she understood her aunt's reasoning. She enjoyed putting bad guys away and wasn't quite ready to give that up.
When it came to the case of the week that next week, there wasn't much to discuss. The victim died after a round in an underground boxing match. The more interesting case was what Jamie had been semi-involved in. The adults would only say a little bit in front of the kids, but Anna gathered that some gangster had a hit out on a guy and Jamie had found out about and told the guy. Danny said that Jamie should have stayed out of it the way he would have. As the tension grew in the dining room, Henry looked at his two great-granddaughters who sat on either side of him, Nicky first then Anna before jerking his head towards the kitchen. "Boys, help me and Anna clear?" Nicky suggested.
"But I'm not finished," Sean protested.
"Then bring your plate to the kitchen and you can finish it there," Anna said as she and Nicky stood.
"Right," Sean said. He and Jack also stood.
"Thank you, girls," Frank said. The kids went into the kitchen and Anna, being last, shut the door between the kitchen and the dining room.
"What do you think they're talking about?" Jack asked.
"We'll never find out," Nicky said.
"Will we ever be included in those discussions?" Jack asked as they sat down at the kitchen table.
"When Sean's 14," Anna said.
"For now though, we'll just have to wander," Nicky said. Soon their moms entered the kitchen with more plates and Anna peaked into the foyer to see Jamie leaning against the inside door jamb and Frank opposite him. They were talking about something but Anna wasn't sure what. Sean and Jack were sent to clear the rest of the table and the ladies moved into the sunroom where Henry joined them.
"What do you say us girls go out?" Linda said. "Next weekend, a little shopping a little pampering?"
"Next weekend is Mother's Day," Anna said.
"So Saturday the four of us spend some time together and then have the traditional meal here. It can be your gift to us. Spend some time with your mothers."
"That sounds great," Erin said, "Girls?"
Anna looked at Nicky who smiled. "I would love that," Nicky said brightly. Anna bit her lip, unsure. "Come on, Anna, don't you want to spend time with your mom without your brothers?"
"I—"Anna looked at her mom then nodded. "Okay."
"Yeah?" Nicky asked.
"Yeah, sounds like fun," Anna agreed.
"Pops would you mind watching the boys?" Linda asked, turning to the patriarch.
"Not at all," Henry said.
"Are you sure? I know it's last minute."
"It's fine, Linda. We'll have fun." Henry assured her. Linda nodded deciding to focus more on the upcoming shopping trip than worrying about leaving her boys with their great grandfather.