“I saw books in the bedroom on aviation. Do you fly?”
“Yeah, I took it up as a hobby years ago and love it.”
“My father is a pilot. He used to take me and my sister up for rides all the time. It’s exhilarating in a small plane.”
“I have a two-seater, a Cessna Skycatcher; let me know if you ever want to go for a ride.”
“I’ll do that,” Sara said, and then she and Johnny just stared at each other until he finally broke the silence.
“About last night…?”
“Yes?”
“Was that a spur of the moment impulse fueled by booze, or is there a chance I’ll see you again?”
“Are you sure you want to?”
“Absolutely, you’re an interesting woman, Sara Blake, and more like me than you’d probably care to admit.”
“You think I’m a bad girl?”
Johnny grinned. “I know you’re a bad girl. I’d just like to find out how bad.”
On Staten Island, Sophia climbed out of bed, grabbed her robe, and found Tanner sitting at her kitchen table and cleaning his gun.
She kissed him. “Good morning, Romeo.”
“Hello there,” Tanner said. His dyed blond hair was spiked, but he wasn’t wearing the sunglasses or Romeo’s vest. He was tired of being Romeo and was ready to do what he came back to Manhattan for in the first place, to kill Frank Richards.
Sophia sat beside him and checked her phone for messages. “Mike called. We’re having a meeting with the Family on Monday and I have to be there.”
“Will that be dangerous?”
“No, but then that might depend on what happens tomorrow.”
“What’s going on tomorrow?” Tanner said, feigning ignorance.
“All the Conglomerate big shots are getting together, even the ones from Europe.”
“Will you be going?”
Sophia laughed. “They barely know I’m alive. No, only Johnny gets to be there, but wait, I guess it’s Joe Pullo now, since he’s the new Underboss. Do you know Joe?”
“No, we’ve never met.”
“I only met him once, but I know my father liked him. He’ll be at the meeting for all the New York Families, like a spokesperson.”
“How many people will be at that meeting?”
“I don’t know, dozens I guess, and hopefully things will get straightened out. the Conglomerate was supposed to be a partnership with big business, but Frank Richards thinks he owns us.”
“The mob isn’t what it once was, not since the Russians and the other gangs started taking territory away.”
“It’s not just that, it’s the Feds too, some of them are really vicious, like that bitch that used my brother.”
“I heard about your brother. Are you now saying that he wasn’t a snitch?”
Sophia lowered her eyes. “No, he turned, but he only did it to save our father.”
“The Feds wanted Jackie Verona, but settled for his son?”
“Tony, my brother, he made a deal that they couldn’t resist. He was going to give up everyone but our father.”
“This Fed, you said she was a woman, her name wasn’t Sara Blake, was it?”
“No, I’ve never heard of her. No, her name was Michelle Geary, and from what Tony said, she sounds like a bitch and a half.”
Michelle Geary watched Jake Garner as he pushed his plate aside with his food barely touched. They were meeting over breakfast to discuss Mario.
Technically, they had the day off, so they were both dressed casually. Garner had on jeans and a gray polo shirt, while Geary wore a white skirt that exposed her shapely legs, and her blue blouse, with the top buttons undone, displayed a freckled cleavage.
“No appetite? That means that something is eating you. What is it?”
“I was trying to help a friend and I think I scared her away.”
“A woman? Since when are you friends with a woman? And don’t say me, because one, we’re not friends, and two, you don’t like me.”
“It’s Sara Blake; I’ve been trying to help her.”
Geary laughed loud enough to draw attention to their table, but she took no note of it.
“Garner, the bitch is crazy; she shot you three times and nearly killed you.”
“She wasn’t trying to kill me, and I don’t think she’s crazy. She’s just hurting because she suffered a loss.”
Geary sent him a knowing smile. “You want to get her into bed. I’ve met her and she’s cute, but damn, let it go. The bitch is damaged goods.”
“Don’t say that!”
Garner had shouted so loudly that every other conversation stopped. He gave an embarrassed look as he gazed around and held up a hand, as if to apologize. When he looked back at Geary, she was smiling.
“Holy shit, you love the woman, don’t you?”
“That’s ridiculous, but yes, I care about her. But never mind Sara, what were you saying about Mario Petrocelli?”
“It looks like he’s in the hospital for one more day, but I want to drop by later and rattle his chain, both of us, or aren’t you working this case with me?”
“You know how I feel about your methods, but yes, I’ll talk to him too. I have sympathy for his daughter, but none for him.”
“Good, now tell me the truth; am I too old for you?”
“What are you asking?”
“I’m saying that you’re one serious hunk of man and I want you. What do you say?”
Garner studied Geary. She was years older than he was, but she had a body that was still young, and her blonde hair sat atop a face that was more than pretty.
He stood and placed money on the table for the bill.
“I think we should keep things professional.”
Geary stared up at him. “You really don’t like me, do you?”
“As I said before, I don’t like your methods, Michelle. As far as the offer, I was tempted.”
“I won’t ask again; you know where to find me. And I’ll meet you at the hospital at seven.”
“Fine, I’ll see you then.”
Garner had taken three steps when Geary called to him.
“When you see Sara, tell her I said hi.”
Garner said nothing and kept walking, as behind him, Geary chuckled with amusement.
131
Minor Annoyances
Frank Richards stepped off the elevator, and after traveling the corridors along the tenth floor of the Partners Building, he found Santino waiting for him outside the meeting room. Walking beside Richards was his new assistant, Robert Vance.
“What’s this about a problem?” Richards said, as he looked through the glass doors to spot anything amiss.
Santino raised up his hand in a calming gesture. “The meeting room is ready. The problem is with Saul Adamo.”
“What problem is that?”
“He’s dead.”
Richards swore beneath his breath. Afterwards, he told Santino and Vance to turn around, so that they wouldn’t see what five-letter word he tapped into the keypad that controlled the door locks.
When he was finished, the doors hissed and opened inward, which caused the lights to come on automatically.
Richards walked inside and gestured for Santino to sit. Santino did so and found Richards glaring down at him.
“What happened to Adamo?”
“He was killed by Sophia Verona and her pet, Romeo.”
“The very people you were ordered to deal with.”
“I decided not to follow those orders because I knew it was a set up. You two bastards were hoping we’d all kill each other, but I outsmarted you and Adamo both. Now, I’m the one who will be your partner.”
“I choose my partners, Mr. Santino, not the other way around.”
Santino stood in a rush, while shoving his chair backwards, then he leaned his face near Richards. “Listen to me, you blue-blooded mobster wannabe. You and I are partners now and there’s not a goddamn thing you can do about it.”
&
nbsp; Richards stiffened from the close contact, then he shifted his eyes to the left, where Vance was standing.
“Mr. Vance, I would like this problem erased.”
Santino took a step back as he reached beneath his suit jacket for the gun in his shoulder holster, but he felt his hand go numb as Vance jabbed at a nerve cluster beneath his armpit. A second later and Vance knocked Santino to his knees, then moved behind him.
As this was happening, Richards had turned away to stare out into the hallway. While he was a man who ordered violent acts be committed to further his aims, he did not enjoy seeing them employed.
The sound of a struggle came from behind him. After hearing Santino grunt, Richards heard something that sounded like a thick branch snapping in two. It was Santino’s neck breaking. It was followed by the sound of his body falling to the floor.
When Vance appeared beside him, Richards looked over and saw that the man had barely exerted himself.
“Is there any blood?”
“No, sir, and I’ll remove the body shortly.”
“Do that, I want no signs of violence detectable in this room.”
“There won’t be, but sir, who will you choose to take Adamo’s place?”
“I was thinking of Joe Pullo. The man has a soldier’s mentality and I think he would follow my orders if well compensated. However, I’ve grown tired of dealing with his kind. I don’t need one of them to help me rule them. I’ll rule them myself and they’ll accept it or die, but that comes later. My focus is on tomorrow’s meeting.”
“I’ll get together with Johnny Rossetti again too.”
“He trusts you?”
Vance smiled. “Enough for our purposes. I’ll lure him here tomorrow morning and complete the first part of your plan.”
“Good, but remember, don’t hurt him. I need him healthy if he’s to play the patsy.”
“I understand, sir, and I won’t let you down.”
“Good man, now clean up that mess and meet me back at the office. There are still a few details I want to go over.”
“Speaking of details, what’s to be done with Sophia Verona and this man, Romeo?”
Richards looked thoughtful as he weighed his options.
Vance spoke up. “I’d like to make a suggestion.”
“Yes?”
“Why not use honey instead of vinegar? Invite the woman to the meeting tomorrow. It’ll placate her long enough for your plan to work.”
Richards nodded. “That’s one option, but Sophia Verona and this Romeo person have been particularly annoying, and I want them eradicated. Send a team after them.”
“Men from one of the other families?”
“No, use mercenaries, and tell them that they’ll be paid double if it’s completed before sunrise tomorrow.”
“Yes, sir, consider it done.”
Richards turned his head just far enough around so that he could view Santino’s corpse in his peripheral vision. He grimaced when he caught a glimpse of the unnatural position of Santino’s head.
He looked back at Vance. “I should have made you my assistant sooner, Robert. It’s nice to have a man around who can handle… minor annoyances.”
“Yes, sir, and it was my pleasure to do so.”
Richards smiled and headed for the elevator, as thoughts of gaining greater power swam through his mind.
132
Nyuk, Nyuk, Nyuk
Merle and Earl entered the Cabaret Strip Club in the afternoon and took seats at the bar to speak to Carl.
“Is Johnny here?”
“Nope, but he should be soon. You guys want a beer?”
“Just a soda for me,” Merle said. “I drank enough yesterday to hold me for a week.”
Earl also had soda, then they turned on their barstools and watched the young woman who was dancing for the small Saturday afternoon crowd.
Johnny appeared a short time later and the boys followed him inside the office.
“If you’re here, I take it that means that Matthew Burns no longer walks among us?”
Merle nodded and fought back tears as he thought of Matt.
“Good work, and the cops will think it’s an accident, right?”
“Yeah,” Earl said. “They think he had a heart attack.”
“They think? I’m no doctor, but a thing like that leaves telltale signs behind, chemical changes in the blood, that type of shit. Take a seat.”
Johnny took out a phone, made a call, and asked the person on the other line to check on the details of Matthew Burns’ demise.
After ending the call, he bullshitted with Merle and Earl as he opened his laptop and signed on to check his email. A few minutes later, his call was returned. When he put down the phone, he looked perplexed.
“All right, tell me what happened.”
“What d’ya mean?” Merle said.
“The dude definitely died of a heart attack, but this isn’t the CIA, boys. We don’t have any undetectable drugs and spy gadgets. How the hell could you induce a heart attack?”
The brothers looked at each other and after swallowing hard, Merle answered.
“We got secret ways.”
“Deal me in on them; we’ll save a fortune in bullets.”
The boys exchanged glances again, and after squirming under Johnny’s gaze, Earl spoke in a whisper.
“He just died.”
“What?”
“Matt, I guess we partied too hard and he died.”
“You two partied with him?”
“He was a really nice guy, Mr. Rossetti, and he knew everythin’ about college football,” Merle said.
Johnny just stared at them for long seconds before getting up and pacing around the room.
“How many guys did you two whack before you killed Tanner?”
“None,” Merle admitted.
“None? So what, Tanner was just a fluke?”
Earl shrugged. “Uh, heat of the moment, yeah.”
Johnny laughed, but there was no humor in it. “I’ll be damned.”
“Are you gonna hurt us?” Merle asked.
“Why would I do that? Burns is dead, that was the job and the job is done, but I think I’ll find other work for you two. I should just kick you out of here, but for some damn reason I like you.”
Earl smiled. “You mean we ain’t gotta kill nobody else?”
“No, but expect a serious pay cut.”
The boys stood and took turns pumping Johnny’s hand.
“We don’t like killin’, but we ain’t afraid of work. What do you want us to do?” Merle said.
“It’s the weekend, so just chill and come back here on Monday. I’ll think of something you can do.”
“Is it all right if we hang around the bar for a while?”
“Sure, Merle.”
“I’m Earl.”
“If you say so.”
The boys left the office and Johnny walked back behind the desk, shaking his head as he went.
“‘We got secret ways,’” he says. “Hell, what happened to the third stooge?”
133
He Could Always Eat At The Y
Sophia let out a sigh of satisfaction as she collapsed atop Tanner, her skin moist with exertion.
After a moment more, she slid over to his right side and laid an arm across his chest.
“If sex is all you wanted for helping me, I think we’re even,” Sophia said.
“I would say I’ve been overpaid.”
“Seriously though, Romeo, I’ll pay you for helping me.”
“Keep your money, Johnny Rossetti already paid me.”
“Liar, there’s no way he paid you enough to compensate for all the crap you’ve been through since yesterday.”
“I don’t need more money; it was my pleasure to keep you safe.”
Sophia kissed him, and her hands began exploring, but not with sexual intention, rather, it was an exploration of his previous wounds.
“You were shot in the chest once. That’
s a serious wound, I know, because my father was shot in the same spot when I was a little girl, and he almost died.”
“Same here. I was down for weeks and didn’t get my strength back for months.”
“When was this? Where?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
“You don’t like to talk about yourself, do you?”
Tanner almost said, “Which self?” but instead, he answered, “No.”
“That’s all right, be mysterious, I’ll figure you out someday.”
Her hands moved lower, and she found the knife wound he had received courtesy of Gino Tonti, in one of his recent battles against the Conglomerate.
“How did this happen? It looks fairly new.”
“One of the ladies in my sewing circle stabbed me with her needle.”
Sophia smiled and punched him in play. “Asshole, keep your secrets. And I just realized, I don’t even know your last name.”
“It’s Montague.”
Sophia laughed and punched him again, but harder. “Jerk! I’m not illiterate. I know that’s Romeo’s name in the Shakespeare play. I’m asking about you, baby. I want to know more about you.”
Tanner rose from the bed and grabbed his boxers. “The less you know the better, and I think I’ve overstayed my welcome.”
Sophia sat up, grabbed his wrist and pulled him back atop the bed.
“I didn’t say you could leave.”
Tanner ran a hand through her thick red hair. “I do have to leave soon… and I won’t be coming back.”
“Why? Never mind, you wouldn’t tell me anyway, but when are you leaving?”
“I can stay until morning, but there’s a bit of business I have to take care of tomorrow.”
Sophia studied his face, then she gazed into his eyes as if she were hoping to find the things there that he wouldn’t say.
“All right, so we have one more day together. But let’s go out later. I want to go to dinner and see a movie, you know, normal stuff.”
Tanner gazed downward and his hands followed. Sophia was still naked and her full firm breasts felt soft as silk.
The Tanner Series - Books 1-11: Tanner - The hit man with a heart Page 40