The Tanner Series - Books 1-11: Tanner - The hit man with a heart

by Remington Kane

  Afterwards, he climbed back into the motor home, which was parked twenty yards away.

  After returning the greetings of his companions, Tanner started the massive vehicle and headed for the exit.

  As he drove around the corner of the building, he saw that a black SUV had joined the limousine, and that four men were talking to the limo driver.

  Tanner halted and watched as Richards appeared and pointed back at the building. He then saw two of the new men go inside, while the other two stayed in front of the store.

  Tanner drove on. When he reached the exit for the parking lot, Richards’ limo was behind them. They stayed in tandem for two blocks, then Tanner turned left, while the limo went right.

  Cindy joined him up front and sat beside him in the RV’s other Captain’s seat.

  “How did the meeting go?”

  Tanner nodded. “Just as I expected.”

  27

  It’s Time To Get Paid

  Ramone walked into Rossetti’s office and saw an open briefcase full of cash.

  “You giving me a bonus, Boss?”

  “You wish, no, that’s the money O’Grady wants for Tanner.”

  “About that, I got news.”

  “Yeah?”

  “I talked to a guy in Denver, Al Rivers, he runs the sports book up there and he filled me in on O’Grady. The dude owns some big ranch and there’s a town named O’Grady too, but it’s a small place and everyone in it works on the ranch.”

  “It’s like a company town, hmm?”

  “Yeah, O’Grady owns the whorehouse, controls the gambling, and sells weed, but it’s small-time shit. Rivers said they looked at it a few years ago and decided it wasn’t worth their trouble, plus, the place is in the middle of nowhere.”

  Rossetti stood from behind his desk and paced.

  “This guy O’Grady stumbles across Tanner, sees a chance to make an easy fifty K, and puts the squeeze on me. I’ll tell you something, Ramone, once we take care of Tanner, I’m gonna teach O’Grady some respect.”

  “There’s one more thing.”

  “What’s that?”

  “O’Grady sent some troops here; Rivers says maybe a dozen.”

  “He can’t be thinking of going to war with us, can he?”

  Ramone shrugged.

  Joy appeared and gave a tentative knock on the open door. Rossetti glared at her.

  “What?”

  “There’s a man on the phone. He says that he works for someone named O’Grady?”

  Rossetti looked down at his desk and saw a light blinking on the phone. He waved Joy off with a sweeping motion of his hand. When she was gone, he spoke to Ramone.

  “This must be the call to set up the swap.”

  Rossetti picked up the receiver and stabbed the blinking button with a stubby finger.

  “Talk to me.”

  Miles away, Buck took a deep breath and prepared to play his part. Buck told himself just to think of it as playing a role, a part in a play. Tanner had coached him on how to react and what to say and he was more than ready to do it, because he figured if he shined in his role that Tanner would let him have a return engagement with life, instead of closing the curtains forever.

  Tanner could have made the call himself and changed his voice, but he hadn’t wanted to risk having his voice recognized by Rossetti or Ramone. By using Buck, it also gave Tanner an opportunity to evaluate Buck, and judge if he was trustworthy.

  Buck was seated at the fold-down table inside the motor home with Cindy, Billy, and Tanner.

  Tanner had the Mossberg lying atop the table with the barrel pointed in Buck’s direction. Sitting in the middle of the table was a cell phone on speaker mode.

  A clicking sound came from the phone, then a deep voice made a demand.

  “Talk to me.”

  Buck let out a breath and began his role. “Rossetti, this is Joe Preston. I’m Mr. O’Grady’s foreman and I’m ready to hand over Tanner. Do you have the money?”

  “I got it.”

  “Fifty grand?”

  “Yeah, goddamn it, I said it was ready, didn’t I?”

  “Calm down, fat man, this is just business. There’s no need to get excited.”

  The phone was silent, but Buck could feel a sense of malice emanating from it. When Rossetti spoke again, it sounded like he was doing it through gritted teeth.

  “Let me talk with Tanner.”

  “He’s here, hold on.”

  Across the table, Tanner let several beats pass before speaking.

  “Rossetti?”

  “It’s me, Tanner, and I’m about to get my hands on you.”

  “Screw you.”

  “Yeah, I got plans for you, tough guy, and let me tell you, you’re not going to like them one bit. Preston?”

  “I’m here,” Buck said. “Are you ready to meet?”

  “When and where?”

  Buck gave Rossetti the name of a nearby mall.

  “That’s kind of public, isn’t it?”

  “That’s the whole idea. I’ll bring Tanner, your man brings the cash, we make the trade, and no one gets hurt. Got it?”

  “One man each?”

  “That’s right?”

  “How is one man gonna handle Tanner?”

  “Don’t worry; we’re going to juice him up with an animal tranquilizer, just enough to make him nice and tame. People will think he’s a happy drunk.”

  “I know you have more men here.”

  “We do. They’ll be ready to bring the hellfire down on that house of yours if I don’t call and tell them the switch happened without any grief, capeesh, paisan?”

  “All right, one man each at the damn mall, but when?”

  “Thirty minutes.”

  “That’s crazy; we’ll need time to—”

  “You heard me, Rossetti. Now do as you’re told.”

  And with those words, Tanner reached over and ended the call. He looked at Buck.

  “Not bad.”

  “You’re really going to let me go after the switch?” Buck said.

  “I’ll let you go, but not until later, if I let you go too early you might warn O’Grady.”

  Buck made a face. “To hell with O’Grady. I’m not going back. I’ve always wanted to go to Hollywood, and once I survive this, I’m going. I’ll be just another starving actor, but I’m going anyway.”

  Tanner grabbed the Mossberg and stood.

  “It’s time to get paid.”

  Back at Rossetti’s, Ramone watched a purple vein pulse at his boss’s temple and was glad that he was neither Tanner nor O’Grady.

  “Go to the mall and get Tanner.”

  “I will, but we need more guys here in case O’Grady makes a move.”

  “I’ll take care of that while you’re getting Tanner.”

  “Those two from this morning, the Carter brothers, they’re not much, but they’re a couple of more bodies.”

  “Yeah, I’ll tell Vinny to let them go and send them here. Once you have Tanner, take him to Vinny, but let Vinny know that Tanner is a handful.”

  Ramone shut the briefcase and picked up the money.

  “I better get a move on. The damn mall is a hike.”

  “Ramone?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Don’t get fancy. Just make the trade and we’ll deal with O’Grady later.”

  “I guess we’re going to war, huh?”

  Rossetti sneered. “O’Grady is gonna wish he never heard of me.”

  Ramone left with the briefcase in hand and Rossetti picked up his phone. It was time to bring in the troops.

  28

  The Illusion Of Security

  Ramone walked toward Tanner and Buck amid the crowds in the mall. He grinned when he saw that Tanner’s hands were behind his back, and likely bound together beneath the suit jacket draped across his shoulders.

  He figured that Buck was Preston, the man Rossetti had spoken to on the phone, and thought that he was unimpressive in person. It wa
sn’t until he stood before them that he noticed Buck was sweating and that Tanner looked calm.

  Ramone stared at Buck. “We had a deal, Preston.”

  Tanner moved his hands around to the front and Ramone saw that he was palming a small gun.

  “What the hell is this?”

  Tanner spoke to Buck. “Get the briefcase and hand him the phone.”

  Buck stuck out a hand. With a loud sigh, Ramone handed over the money, while taking the cell phone, Cindy’s cell phone.

  “What’s this phone for?”

  “There’s one number in the address book. It belongs to O’Grady. He’s willing to stand down if Rossetti pays him a million.”

  “A million?” Ramone said, and spoke the words so loudly that the people passing by them stared at him in shock. Ramone calmed himself and spoke to Buck.

  “Preston, Rossetti is going to roast your balls for this. Why are you assholes helping Tanner?”

  “I outbid Rossetti for my life,” Tanner said. “And I’m also paying O’Grady to help me take down your boss. The million bucks would be enough for him and he’d tell his men to walk away, but I won’t, I’ll just keep coming until Rossetti is dead.”

  Ramone stared at Tanner in disbelief and asked a question.

  “Can I walk out of here, or are you planning to waste me in front of all these people?”

  “I’ll let you do what you do best—play errand boy. Go back to Rossetti and tell him I’m coming for him; I’m coming for him and I won’t be alone.”

  “Damn it, Tanner, none of this shit is even necessary anymore. The contract on Rossetti was cancelled while you were in prison. Walk away. Walk away and maybe I can get Al to call a truce.”

  “I was paid to kill Rossetti and I never fail on a contract.”

  “You’re a fool.”

  “Leave, Ramone. If you’re smart, you won’t be anywhere near Rossetti when I come for him.”

  Ramone gave Tanner a look of disgust, then spun around and marched off.

  Buck let out a gasp. “Shit, Tanner. My heart’s beating a mile a second.”

  “We’re not done yet, so calm down.”

  “Oh Christ, what’s next?”

  “Now it’s time to shakedown O’Grady,” Tanner said.

  He pulled Buck along by the arm and into a clothing shop, where he walked through the back room to shouts of protest from the woman who managed the store.

  “Hey! You two can’t just walk back in here. Who are you?”

  Tanner ignored her and grabbed two mannequins, which he passed to Buck. After taking a roll of money from a side pocket, he peeled off a few hundreds and placed them atop a stack of boxes.

  The woman looked on in confusion, but when Tanner and Buck headed for the rear door where deliveries were received, she shouted at them again.

  “I’ll call security!”

  “There’s no such thing in this world,” Tanner told her. He opened the door, held it for Buck to pass through, then climbed aboard the waiting motor home, with fifty thousand dollars of Rossetti’s money.

  29

  Gang Rape Is Icky

  Tanner instructed Billy to drive the motor home around to the other end of the mall and park.

  This time, Cindy was accompanying Tanner and Buck, as they went to meet with her father.

  Tanner spoke to Billy.

  “You remember where to pick us up?”

  “Yeah and I’ll be there, don’t worry.”

  Tanner wasn’t worried. He was leaving the kid alone with fifty grand in a briefcase, but he figured Billy would never leave Cindy behind, even if the cash tempted him.

  The trio left the motor home and headed for the nearest entrance. Cindy was dressed in an oversized hoodie that hid most of her face, along with a pair of loose cargo pants, which Tanner hoped would disguise her shapely figure.

  They had bought these items before scheduling the meet, and it was Cindy’s job to alert Tanner if she spotted anyone she recognized other than her father.

  Buck had told Tanner that O’Grady had ordered Preston to hand over the money, get Cindy back, and then stay out of the way while the other men attacked Rossetti.

  O’Grady’s men had orders to follow wherever Cindy’s cell phone signal led them. If that were true, then O’Grady’s men were following Ramone straight back to Rossetti’s, since Tanner had given Ramone Cindy’s phone.

  Cindy trailed along behind Tanner and Buck, while scrutinizing the faces around them. She had lived on the ranch her entire life and would recognize anyone from the ranch or the nearby town. However, the only familiar face she saw was that of her father, who stood in front of an ice cream parlor, holding a briefcase and looking fearful and out of place.

  Buck spoke to Preston and Tanner could tell that the man recognized him.

  “Mr. Preston, this is Ramone, he works for Mr. Rossetti.”

  “Why are you with him, Buck, have you switched sides?”

  Buck feigned anger.

  “Hell no, but they caught me snooping around that house where they were holding Cindy and captured me.”

  “You’ve seen Cindy? Is she all right?”

  “Yeah, she’s good.”

  “Rossetti’s men haven’t… touched her. I’m not sure that Mr. O’Grady’s son would still want her if she were soiled that way.”

  Buck glared at Preston, his disgust plain to see.

  “She hasn’t been raped, and I don’t think she gives a damn what Ricky O’Grady thinks of her.”

  Preston made a show of checking his watch before speaking to Tanner.

  “You’re late, and where is Cindy? I thought we were making a trade? I’ve got the money right here.”

  As he mentioned the money, Tanner revealed the gun in his waistband, which was beneath his suit coat.

  “Hand that over, pass it to Buck.”

  “Where’s Cindy?”

  “The money, Preston, or you’ll never see Cindy again.”

  Preston hesitated, but then he handed Buck the briefcase.

  Tanner smiled. “There’s been a change of plans. Mr. Rossetti has decided that a million dollars would be a fairer price for Cindy.”

  Preston looked at Tanner as if he were crazy. “What? No. O’Grady won’t pay that, not even to please his son, and he’ll be furious at losing the money in that briefcase. Ramone, you don’t know O’Grady, the man… he’ll attack you. Tell him, Buck, tell him about the attack.”

  “I already did, Mr. Preston; he threatened to kill me if I didn’t talk.”

  “I can stop it. Give me back the money, my daughter, and that boy Billy too, and I promise you I’ll get Mr. O’Grady to calm down.”

  Tanner sighed. “Mr. Rossetti asked me to give you a message to take to Mr. O’Grady.”

  “What is it, a way to end this?”

  “Not exactly, he wants you to tell O’Grady to go fuck himself and that if he tries anything other than paying the million, he’ll kill him.”

  Preston reached for the briefcase in desperation and Tanner pressed a hand against his chest.

  “Don’t be stupid. Just turn around and walk away.”

  Preston stood there, his mouth open in shock. Then, he asked Buck a question.

  “How many men are guarding Rossetti?”

  “Six,” Buck blurted out, before Tanner gave him a sharp look.

  Preston smiled. “All right, if it’s a war you want, you got it. Come on, Buck, we’re going.”

  “He stays with me,” Tanner said. “He’ll be one less gun in the fight.”

  Preston accepted that logic, sent Buck an apologetic glance, and walked away.

  Buck spoke to Tanner as they watched him leave.

  “How’d I do?”

  “Good, if they think Rossetti only has six men guarding him they’ll get overconfident.”

  Cindy joined them, and Tanner saw that tears had formed in her eyes, but had yet to fall.

  “Did he ask about me?”

  “In a way,” Tanner
said. “He was worried that you might have been gang raped by Rossetti’s men and become soiled and unacceptable for O’Grady’s son.”

  That made the tears flow, and Cindy brushed them away.

  “Bastard.”

  Tanner handed her the briefcase. “That’s money for a new start, paid for by O’Grady.”

  “You’re letting Billy and I keep this?”

  “Yes.”

  Cindy shed more tears, but their source was not one of sorrow. She stood on her toes and kissed Tanner on the lips.

  “Thank you.”

  Tanner started walking toward the exit where Billy was waiting.

  “Let’s get out of here. I don’t want to be late for the war.”

  30

  Hard Where It Counts, Soft Where It Matters

  Sara spoke to the FBI agent in Colorado and learned that over a dozen of O’Grady’s men had boarded a private jet bound for Vegas.

  That news puzzled her, but then she learned that O’Grady was in some sort of dispute with Rossetti, and she wondered if a gang war was in the making.

  Garner shook his head in confusion. “What the hell would those two be fighting over? Their turfs are nearly a thousand miles apart.”

  Sara thought about it. When she came up with an answer, a wide grin covered her face.

  “It’s Tanner. The bastard is starting a war between those two as a distraction. That’s why he saved those kids from O’Grady’s men. He’s using them as some sort of lure for O’Grady and probably blaming everything on Rossetti, while Rossetti thinks that O’Grady is giving him grief.”

  “Are you serious? Is Tanner that devious?”

  “Oh, you have no idea what that man is capable of.”

  “So, this also means he’s still alive, but what should we do about this?”

  Sara stood. “I’m going to camp out at Rossetti’s and wait for the fireworks to begin. Once they do, I’ll know Tanner is on the scene.”

  Garner grabbed his jacket off the back of the chair. “You know, we could defuse this by warning either Rossetti or O’Grady. We’d save a few of their men’s lives in the bargain.”