Previously on Old Man Young and the Bronx Avenger
When a man accepts a life of crime as his life’s work, he is accepting the grim reality that he may one day have to take a life. Some men do so with little reservation; the idea of killing someone is not particularly troubling to every person. For others, it is a reality that they bury until the time comes and they are faced with the hard choice, and depending on the choice they make, they are either able to continue their criminal endeavors, or they seal their own fate and become doomed for imprisonment or death. Some would say that choosing to be a killer makes a man a bad person and others would say that even the most egregious sins can be justified. Think about it, men who choose a life of crime are sometimes left with little alternatives to feed loved ones or to ensure their own preservation and if they are unwilling to kill, then they must accept the fact that either they or someone they care about will die.
The first time that Fire killed a man, he was fifteen years old and he wanted to prove himself to a local drug dealer that he was worthy of being more than a corner boy. The drug dealer was having a problem with some of his workers stealing and in order to teach them a lesson, he knew that someone had to die. Without consequences, criminals will continue to do what yields results, it is their nature. The drug dealer told Smoke to kill a boy that he had known since the two were in elementary school, but Smoke did not bat an eye; he had resigned himself for a life of crime very early because he was motivated to be something more than anyone around him had ever even conceived of. The next day, when Fire saw the boy at the basketball court, he pulled his gun without even thinking and shot him three times in the back. He never served any time for the murder. The police weren’t very motivated to solve a drug related murder and no one in Fire’s neighborhood would snitch on a boy who was fearless enough to open Fire in broad daylight with no reservations.
The first time that Smoke killed a man, it wasn’t actually a man. It was one of his prostitutes and he hadn’t actually meant to kill her. Smoke had been involved with prostitution for much of his life. The first time he had sex at twelve years old, it was with a woman that his father employed. When he was twenty, he had three girls of his own and he knew that it was important to have a strong hand with them, but he knew that killing them was a dumb business move; a dead prostitute can’t make money. But when one of his girls got pregnant and threatened to leave the game forever, he decided to hit her with a car hoping that she would miscarry and would come back to him in her grief. Only, she did not survive the accident and Smoke was forced to find a replacement. He mourned her death until he was able to find another girl to take her place.
Men on the right side of the law must accept the heavy burden of taking lives as well. Some may relish the opportunity to rid the world of the bad elements of society, but others take the badge with the hope that they can help prevent any loss of life. Regardless, law enforcement is unpredictable and even the most honorable of men must do what’s necessary in the line of duty.
The first time that Detective Paul Young had killed a man, he was new to the police force and he had received a call about a domestic disturbance. When he arrived on the scene, a man was threatening his wife with a gun in the front yard of their home as neighbors looked on horrified. Young approached with his gun drawn and yelled at the man to drop his weapon, but the man didn’t seem to hear him or care that he was there. Young called many more times to no avail and when it looked that the man was about to pull the trigger, Young beat him to it. Even though Young knew that he had saved the young woman’s life, he’d hope that the man would survive the shooting. He did not and for weeks afterwards, Young had trouble sleeping. Eventually, he realized that it was the life that he had chosen and he would do what he could to protect innocence, there was no other reason to wear the badge.
Next time on Old Man Young:
A young man will be forced to take a life for the first time and he will never be the same. But Detective Young will be one step closer to putting an end to the madness in his city. Only, he will regret that a young man who never asked for a life in law enforcement will be forever changed.
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