Castillo was slightly confused. He momentarily considered the fact that he woke up at all was a miracle in itself. He could only think of one or two times in his career that he had ever heard of someone surviving a gunshot wound to the head at point blank range. He made a conscious effort to wiggle his toes and fingers.
No paralysis. And I already spoke so no loss of speech either, he thought to himself.
His mind began to process the implication at an incredibly quick rate, especially for someone coming out of a coma, Castillo figured. He licked his lips and took a painful deep breath before he asked the question he was afraid to hear the answer to. “Doctor, I seem to be nothing more than a bit battered, but is the bullet lodged in my brain? Do I still have to worry about paralysis or even worse?”
Levine offered a soothing smile. “You’re going to need some time to heal; there’s no question about that. You’ve got a bad fracture to your skull, but the good news is that the swelling on your brain has gone down, there is no apparent brain damage and there are no foreign objects inside of you to be concerned with.”
Castillo took in the information before asking, “So did you have to operate to get the round out or was it a through and through?
“Mr. Castillo, you suffered severe blunt force trauma to your head and ribs. You weren’t shot.”
Castillo’s eyes went from Levine to Sharon. They narrowed in a state of confusion. “But I saw him with the gun to my head; I heard the shot.”
Just then, the door to the hospital room opened and Tom Galvin and Tim Keegan entered. Levine turned and nodded in recognition then he turned back to Castillo. “Maybe these two gentlemen can fill in the blanks for you. They’ve been here almost as much as your wife and daughter over the past few days.”
With that, Levine left the room. Castillo was confused and searched for answers. Sharon stood up and gave both men a hug before leaning in to give her husband a gentle kiss on the cheek. She took Jessica by the hand. “Come on, Jess. Let’s go get a cup of coffee so Tom and Tim can talk to your father.” The ladies exited the room and closed the door.
Galvin stood closer to Castillo, resting his hands on the metal bed guards; Keegan at the foot of the bed with his hands uncomfortably in his jeans pockets. Galvin was the first to speak. “How are you feeling, Louie?”
He answered with a manufactured smile, “pretty shitty…but really confused.” He paused and took a sip from the cup of water before forging on. “They told me I wasn’t shot, but I know that I was. I was walking back to the unmarked car on Linden Boulevard just outside the Halal restaurant. I heard someone run up behind me, but before I could turn around, I saw stars and fell to the ground.” Castillo put his hand to the back of his head as he recalled the assault, demonstrating where he’d been struck. “I tried to get up, but I was dizzy and on the verge of passing out. I looked up and I saw Ahmed Hatif standing over me. He kicked me in the chest; I felt my ribs crack. I collapsed back to the ground; I heard him yelling at me. I started to reach for my gun as I glanced up at him, but he already had his gun pointed at my head. I was so weak and dizzy that I couldn’t even find my gun with my hand. That’s when I heard the gunshot. I don’t remember anything else until I woke up here.”
Castillo glanced over Galvin then to Keegan waiting for an explanation. Then another question came to mind. “Hatif…did he shoot any other cops? Did we get him?” He saw Galvin smile and knew the answer.
“Hatif is dead,” Galvin began to explain. “Nobody aside from you was hurt.”
Castillo breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank God for that! How did we get him?”
Galvin pulled a chair close to Castillo and sat. “I was scheduled to come in a little later in the day. Talbot told me to report direct to 26 Federal Plaza, but I wanted to see for myself where the explosives had been hidden.” Galvin looked at Keegan. “That was a hell of a hunch by a rookie, wasn’t it, Louie?”
“It was,” Castillo agreed as Keegan displayed an awkward smile. “Tim pull up a chair, you don’t have to stand.”
Keegan declined. “I’m okay, Louie.”
Galvin then continued. “When I pulled up there was a parking spot almost directly across the street from the restaurant. The bakery delivery truck was parked in front. I saw you emerge from behind it on the phone, and then, suddenly, Ahmed Hatif came up behind you. I was too far away to do anything. I witnessed him assault you and point the gun at your head. I took my gun out but it was too late. I heard the shot and I saw you go down. I knew you were dead.”
Castillo suddenly had the chills engulf his body, as his demise was being narrated to him. “Yet, I’m sitting here as you’re explaining to me what happened, so clearly I wasn’t killed.”
Galvin agreed. “A split second after you collapsed, I saw Hatif slowly spin, his knees buckled and the gun fell from his hand as he crumpled. When I finally got across the street, I had my gun trained on him, but he was dead. Blood began to seep from his head. Now keep in mind that my view was obstructed by the delivery truck the entire time. I peaked around the corner and saw Timmy with his gun trained on Hatif.”
Castillo’s eyes softened considerably—almost to the point of forming a tear—as they met Keegan’s. “You shot Ahmed Hatif, Tim?”
Keegan nodded. He seemed almost embarrassed. “Yeah. Just like Sarge, I wanted to see the scene too. I called him to see if I could pass by on my way to the New Year’s Eve detail and Sarge said it was okay. I parked my car around the corner, on the same side of the street as you were. As I started to walk up the block, I saw Hatif from over a half a block away. He was hiding behind the truck and then he came around from the back of it and began to jog slowly up the block. In my heart, I knew that it was him, but my mind couldn’t process that he’d come back. I was in uniform for the detail, but I didn’t have a radio to call for help or warn anyone. When he passed the building line, he was temporarily out of my view, but I ran as fast as I could to the corner. He never saw me coming from behind. When I made the corner, you were already on the floor. I saw that he had a gun in his hand, but he kicked you first. That gave me time to draw my gun, and I yelled for him to drop it. He was yelling at you and I’m not sure if he ignored me or didn’t hear me, but as soon as I saw him raise the gun, I fired.”
Keegan took a deep breath, his eyes became watery. “I was a marksman in the academy, but this was at least a twenty yard shot. I knew that taking the shot was the only chance to save your life. When I fired my gun, you went down a split second before Hatif did.”
Castillo could see Keegan swallow hard before he went on. “In my mind, I thought I missed him and hit you by mistake. I don’t know how I could have ever gone on if that had been the case.”
Castillo now also felt a rush of emotions, not just for his almost near death experience, but also in empathy for Tim Keegan. He spoke in a soft and heartening voice. “If you hadn’t taken the shot Tim, I’d surely be dead. Maybe Tommy too…maybe even you, or the other cops on the scene.”
Keegan pulled a deep breath and held it in his cheeks for a moment. “I know. It just scared the shit out of me when I thought that I’d shot you.”
Galvin once again joined in the dialogue. “It got scary again for a quick second after Hatif went down. I still had no idea what was going on, and in my mind, I thought that maybe Hatif had brought others with him. When I reached the edge of the delivery truck, I spun and pointed my gun in the direction of the gunshot. In essence, I drew down on Timmy until I saw the uniform.”
Keegan would add, “Yeah, and I still wasn’t sure if I had killed Hatif or if he was just injured. It also went through my mind that you may have been hit by my shot as well. Furthermore, like Sarge, I didn’t know if Hatif was alone or not. The first thing that I saw as I walked along the edge of the truck covering Hatif, was a 9mm emerge from the front of the truck. My focus immediately switched from Hatif to the new threat which turned out to be Sarge; thank God neither one of us shot the other.”
Kee
gan licked his lips before he continued. “Once we realized that there was no further threat, Sarge told me to cover Hatif so I pointed my gun at him while Sarge moved in and cuffed him. His gun was lying right next to him on the pavement where he died. Frank and the guys from the Crime Scene Unit came running outside with their guns drawn too. They heard the shot while they were still in the basement. They all thought you were dead too.”
Keegan paused for what seemed like an eternity to Castillo, listening to what could have been a transcript of his own death. Galvin then picked up the narrative. “Frank was really shaken up, Louie. He started yelling about how this can’t happen on your last day before you retire. He even went over and kicked Ahmed Hatif’s corpse before we pulled him away.”
Galvin motioned to Keegan. “Tim, Frank, and I picked you up and put you in the back seat of the unmarked car and drove you here to Jamaica Hospital. We had the lights and sirens going the entire way. The precincts did a great job of shutting down traffic for us, and we were here in a matter of minutes.”
Castillo remained silent, digesting all that he had learned. He looked each man in the eyes; all three of them were undoubtedly emotional. Castillo had to hold back a tear as he asked the next question. “Who told Sharon what happened?”
“Frank insisted that he go right after we got you here,” Galvin responded. “Sharon and Jess were here as soon as we could get them by your side. I don’t think they’ve left for more than a shower and a change of clothes the entire time.”
Castillo’s head began to throb. The numbness caused by the captivating story began to wear off and Castillo suddenly began to be aware of his injuries again. He reached down and pressed the button to release a dose of morphine into his IV drip. He sat and closed his eyes thinking how close his life had been to ending, and him never seeing his wife again or his daughter graduate from college. A tear fell free from his eye and slowly rolled down his cheek.
Galvin stood up from the chair and placed a hand on Castillo’s shoulder. “Louie, we’re going to let you get some rest. Don’t hesitate to call me if you need anything. They’ll be a uniform guarding your room around the clock until you’re released. Doctor Levine said you should be home in another day or so.”
Galvin turned towards Keegan, “C’mon, Tim, Let’s go.”
As Keegan began to follow, Castillo raised his voice a bit louder than he had since awaking from the coma. “No, Keegan, don’t leave. I want to speak with you.” Without delay Castillo put a hand to his throat. He took another sip of water in an attempt to soothe it.
Keegan looked at Galvin; the confusion on Keegan’s face was evident. Galvin shrugged his shoulders. “Go ahead. I’ll wait outside.” Galvin closed the door behind him as he left.
“Have a seat, Tim.”
He did and pulled the chair in close to the bed making sure Castillo didn’t have to strain his voice again. “Yeah, Louie, what is it?”
Castillo thought it out carefully before he answered. “Tim, I’m not telling you this because you saved my life. It’s important that you understand that.” He paused, waiting for Keegan to acknowledge, but he never did. “Tim, do you understand that?”
“Yeah, Louie, I understand…tell me what?”
“I’ve given you a hard time since we first met. It had nothing to do with you. You’re a good cop—hell you’re a great cop,” he corrected himself.
Keegan shrugged it off. “Don’t worry about that, Louie. Just get healthy.”
Castillo became a bit flustered and his head started to throb again. He closed his eyes and took a shallow breath, trying to avoid putting more pressure on his aching ribs. “Listen, Tim, I told you to be your own man. I told you to stop living in your father’s shadow, and I didn’t say it in a very nice way. There’s something that I need to tell you.”
Castillo could see the concern come over Keegan as he hung on Castillo’s words. Keegan responded very cautiously, obviously trying to figure out where the conversation was headed. “Okay, Louie.”
“I told you that I crossed paths with your dad many years ago. I knew him a little bit better than I led on to you. I know the type of cop that he was and I know the type of person that he was. We didn’t see eye to eye, but as far as his policing skills…he was a good cop.”
Castillo stared the son of James Keegan in the eyes; they were full of concern and rightfully so. “I also know the type of cop that you’re becoming and the type of person that you are. What I want you to know…what you need to know for your own peace of mind is that you’re already a better cop than your father ever was.”
Keegan remained silent—possibly even in shock and didn’t respond.
Castillo did. “Did you hear what I said, Tim?” Castillo looked to the sky and as much as it pained him to do, he lifted his right hand to the sky, braving the pain from his ribs. “My hand to God, Tim; you’re a better cop than your dad ever was.”
Epilogue
Kate Keegan sat on the blue folding chairs set up in the rear of One Police Plaza in lower Manhattan. On either side of her, were her thirty-one year old son, Kevin, and her twenty-four year old daughter, Kerry. It was a very bittersweet day for the fifty-six year old widow of hero NYPD Lieutenant, James Keegan.
There was a soft June breeze just as there had been the last time she sat in these very seats, nearly twenty years ago, to receive the posthumous NYPD Medal of Honor on her late husband’s behalf. The sun was beating down hard on the crowd. The temperatures were in the mid eighties; a bit on the warm side for early in June in New York City. While Kate was oblivious to the heat, many seated around her were sipping on water bottles or using their program as a fan to combat the warm air. She nervously straightened her black knee length skirt as she pretended to listen to the introduction of the dais.
Kate Keegan was proud of her son, just as she had been proud of her husband. As it turned out, they were both heroes to the NYPD as well as the nation. Kate had managed to keep two of her children from pursuing careers in law enforcement, but Timothy would not be dissuaded. Having had her husband murdered in the line of duty, it was a mother’s worst nightmare that her son would follow in his father’s footsteps. The nightmare nearly became unimaginably worse last November when Timothy had nearly been killed by the same group of terrorists who had assassinated her late husband.
Kate watched as Timothy walked up to the stage. He glanced in her direction, and she did her best to manufacture the most sincere smile that she could. In truth, her heart was racing. Kate reached out to both sides, taking a hand from Kevin and Kerry for support. She held them tightly as Timothy Keegan was awarded the NYPD Department Medal of Honor; the most prestigious medal that the NYPD has to offer. The medal was awarded very sparingly and when it was awarded, it was often posthumously, as it had been with her husband.
Kate swallowed hard as her middle child was first congratulated by the Police Commissioner and then the Mayor of New York City. She had severely mixed emotions. On one hand, she was beaming with pride on the man that Timothy had become. She was proud of his accomplishments in such a short period of time in the New York City Police Department. On the other hand—and probably more important to her —she wished that he had chosen a different career; any other career. But he hadn’t; he was NYPD to the core…just like his father.
*
Louie and Sharon Castillo sat five rows behind the Keegan family. They had met before the ceremony had begun and offered the Keegan family words of praise regarding Tim Keegan. Louis Castillo wore blue Dockers and a white short-sleeve shirt; the top two buttons were open. For the first time in nearly three decades, Louis Castillo was at Police Headquarters without having a firearm strapped to his side.
Sharon, also unarmed, wore a Florida style sun dress. Although the sun was strong, her tan was noticeably darker than those who still lived in New York. Sharon grabbed a hair tie from her hand bag which had been set down on the floor in front of her. She corralled her hair and captured it in a pony tail as the
ceremony went on.
She turned and leaned into her husband. In a voice just above a whisper, “So, do you miss New York, or the NYPD?”
Louie responded without missing a beat. “Nope” he flexed his leg. “My leg hasn’t hurt nearly as much since we moved to Florida.”
He turned to face her when an offensive ray of sun reflected off the windows of police headquarters. He momentarily shielded his eyes before retrieving the pair of sunglasses which he had secured on the second open buttonhole of his shirt. After putting on the sunglasses, he continued. “It’s weird being back here. I figured once we moved out of state, that I’d never see this building again.”
Sharon agreed. “You and me both; but you had to come to see Keegan get his medal for saving your life.”
“Yeah, I definitely owed him that.” He looked at Sharon shaking his head. “Can you imagine a cop being awarded the Department Medal of Honor and the Medal of Valor in the same Medal Day ceremony…and to receive them as a rookie is just unfathomable. Think about it, I bet you can’t even name another cop that you know who’s been awarded those two medals over the course of their entire careers, let alone in the same ceremony.”
Sharon would further the point, “According to the article in the newspaper, a rookie has never been awarded the Department Medal of Honor prior to today. The press is really eating up the whole hero cop angle. I saw the newspaper this morning. They had an article comparing Tim to his father. It was on page three; it got a full page! The article was titled; Legacy and Redemption; the story of a father and son’s heroic battle against terrorism.”
Kate further went into the details of the article, which went on to say how the younger Keegan followed in his dad’s footsteps taking on the terrorists who ultimately ended his father’s life.
Looking at his wife, “Well you and I both know that James Keegan was not the man the public believes him to have been. Tim on the other hand—only time will tell if he becomes a great cop or not, but he certainly has an amazing start.”
Legacy and Redemption Page 29