Prologue : No Justice, No Forgiveness
There’s no
such thing as closure, there’s no such thing as forgiveness, Patrick Brenner thought as he watched
the lady detective from his hiding spot outside her home. Nothing could bring
back his nine-year-old son, especially since one of Baltimore City’s finest had
helped his son’s killer escape justice in one of the most egregious
miscarriages of justice the city had ever seen. Since then, not a day had
passed when he hadn’t thought of pleasant memories of Little David’s cheerful
giggle, followed by torturous images of him being forever taken from the world in
which his son had been raised.
And now revenge
was on his mind as Patrick sat alone in his car, a broken, distraught father
who had worked so hard to build a better life for David. He rested his
binoculars on the passenger’s seat, stretched his short stubby legs, and rubbed
his flaky head. Years of poor dieting and lack of exercise were finally taking
its toll. Not that he cared. In fact, he didn’t have anyone to care for. His
universe had collapsed. The small little world that he had built around himself
had caved in. Nothing mattered anymore.
Detective Jessica
Galloway was on her way to speak with Irene before she checked in to work that
day. Irene. Her name once slipped off his tongue with a subtle sweetness. Now
it filled his mind with disgust. She was the gorgeous redhead he’d vowed to
spend the rest of his life with. Yeah, so he had a few issues and took them out
on her from time to time. But did that mean she had the right to take his son
on a joyride when she knew she was drunk out of her mind?
No. Of course
not.
Upstairs on
the second floor of Jessica’s Canadian Victorian-style home, the lady detective
flinched as she slipped into her shoes. Patrick froze, but decided against
ducking down into his seat for he knew this woman was smart, alert, and a
sudden movement would draw her attention. Patrick couldn’t afford the
attention. That chilly December evening was far too early to give himself away.
Irene,
Detective Galloway, and her annoyingly aloof boyfriend who was now in federal
witness protection would pay soon enough. They would learn what it was like to
have the one thing, the one person you loved more than anything, taken from
them.
Patrick
waited until Jessica dressed and grabbed her police-issued handgun from a
nearby nightstand before he started the ignition of his Toyota Camry and peeled
away from the street. In the upscale side of Baltimore City, he was more than
confident that she’d heard him pull away from the curb in the low-crime area.
Good, he
thought. Let her wonder a bit.
Patrick took
a left at the next intersection and began pulling out of Fell’s Point. He
switched on the radio and rolled down the window to let the frigid air shock
him into oblivion. An old Jimmy Hendrix song blared through the speakers. Hey
Joe, I said where you goin' with that gun in your hand? He and Irene had
fallen in love listening to that song. The bitter irony was aggravating. The
anger returned. The time for tears was over. The time to get even had come.
As he drove,
the rest of the world floated by without paying him any attention. He was an
alien among the humans. An ominous sense of despair that threatened to ruin the
city’s holiday spirit. As he pulled the Camry to a halt at the next
intersection, Patrick looked down at the last picture he still had of he and
his son. Resistance was pointless. The tears flowed freely. And he let them.
He sobbed
quietly until the driver behind him beeped his horn, yelling a few choice words
that would normally have inspired Patrick to exit the vehicle and start
swinging at anything that moved. Instead, he continued to the Interstate, towards
the meeting place. By the time Irene realized what was happening, she would be
gone forever…
Chapter One : Paradise Lost
The sky was
dark. The stars shined bright. And Detective Jessica Galloway
There’s no
such thing as closure, there’s no such thing as forgiveness, Patrick Brenner thought as he watched
the lady detective from his hiding spot outside her home. Nothing could bring
back his nine-year-old son, especially since one of Baltimore City’s finest had
helped his son’s killer escape justice in one of the most egregious
miscarriages of justice the city had ever seen. Since then, not a day had
passed when he hadn’t thought of pleasant memories of Little David’s cheerful
giggle, followed by torturous images of him being forever taken from the world in
which his son had been raised.
And now revenge
was on his mind as Patrick sat alone in his car, a broken, distraught father
who had worked so hard to build a better life for David. He rested his
binoculars on the passenger’s seat, stretched his short stubby legs, and rubbed
his flaky head. Years of poor dieting and lack of exercise were finally taking
its toll. Not that he cared. In fact, he didn’t have anyone to care for. His
universe had collapsed. The small little world that he had built around himself
had caved in. Nothing mattered anymore.
Detective Jessica
Galloway was on her way to speak with Irene before she checked in to work that
day. Irene. Her name once slipped off his tongue with a subtle sweetness. Now
it filled his mind with disgust. She was the gorgeous redhead he’d vowed to
spend the rest of his life with. Yeah, so he had a few issues and took them out
on her from time to time. But did that mean she had the right to take his son
on a joyride when she knew she was drunk out of her mind?
No. Of course
not.
Upstairs on
the second floor of Jessica’s Canadian Victorian-style home, the lady detective
flinched as she slipped into her shoes. Patrick froze, but decided against
ducking down into his seat for he knew this woman was smart, alert, and a
sudden movement would draw her attention. Patrick couldn’t afford the
attention. That chilly December evening was far too early to give himself away.
Irene,
Detective Galloway, and her annoyingly aloof boyfriend who was now in federal
witness protection would pay soon enough. They would learn what it was like to
have the one thing, the one person you loved more than anything, taken from
them.
Patrick
waited until Jessica dressed and grabbed her police-issued handgun from a
nearby nightstand before he started the ignition of his Toyota Camry and peeled
away from the street. In the upscale side of Baltimore City, he was more than
confident that she’d heard him pull away from the curb in the low-crime area.
Good, he
thought. Let her wonder a bit.
Patrick took
a left at the next intersection and began pulling out of Fell’s Point. He
switched on the radio and rolled down the window to let the frigid air shock
him into oblivion. An old Jimmy Hendrix song blared through the speakers. Hey
Joe, I said where you goin' with that gun in your hand? He and Irene had
fallen in love listening to that song. The bitter irony was aggravating. The
anger returned. The time for tears was over. The time to get even had come.
As he drove,
the rest of the world floated by without paying him any attention. He was an
alien among the humans. An ominous sense of despair that threatened to ruin the
city’s holiday spirit. As he pulled the Camry to a halt at the next
intersection, Patrick looked down at the last picture he still had of he and
his son. Resistance was pointless. The tears flowed freely. And he let them.
He sobbed
quietly until the driver behind him beeped his horn, yelling a few choice words
that would normally have inspired Patrick to exit the vehicle and start
swinging at anything that moved. Instead, he continued to the Interstate, towards
the meeting place. By the time Irene realized what was happening, she would be
gone forever…
Chapter One : Paradise Lost
The sky was
dark. The stars shined bright. And Detective Jessica Galloway
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