by Jake Biondi
As the men hurried to the police station, Jesse unlocked and entered the bedroom where he was holding Ben. When he opened the door, he saw that the room was in complete disarray. The bookshelf was toppled over, books and clothes were scattered everywhere, and a table was knocked over. Ben was nowhere to be seen.
Jesse stepped into the room cautiously and suddenly Ben jumped out at him from behind the door. His hands still partially taped together, Ben put his arms over Jesse’s head and pulled back violently against his neck, choking him.
Gasping for breath, Jesse elbowed Ben and kicked his leg. The two continued to struggle, Ben trying to strangle Jesse and Jesse fighting to break free from Ben’s grasp. Jesse reached behind him and grabbed Ben’s shoulders. Then, leaning forward, Jesse flipped Ben over him. The tape around Ben’s wrists gave way and Ben landed on his back on the floor.
Jesse jumped on top of him, pushing his knees into Ben’s chest, and grabbed Ben’s neck. Ben reached to his right and grabbed a lamp lying on the floor. He quickly raised it and hit Jesse in the side of the head, knocking him to the ground.
Ben stood up and kicked Jesse in the gut. Then he lifted Jesse off the floor and threw him onto the bed. Jesse struggled with Ben, trying to get free of his tight hold; however, Ben climbed on top of him, pinning him down.
“Now, doesn’t this look familiar?” Ben said with a smile. “I’ll be damned if I’m going to go to jail for something I didn’t do.”
“You bastard,” Jesse said.
“When are you going to learn, boy? You can’t beat me.”
Jesse spit at Ben and Ben punched him in the face. “Aren’t you bruised up badly enough from your father? Do you really want more?”
“Let go of me.”
Ben reached down and pulled some neckties up from the floor. He used them to tie Jesse’s hands to the headboard.
“These aren’t ideal, but I didn’t come prepared like you did,” Ben said. “They’ll hold you long enough.”
“You can’t keep me here.”
“Besides, you’re used to this position, aren’t you, pussy boy?”
While Ben tied Jesse to the bed, Jacqueline waited for Michael in his office at the police station. When he entered, she stood up from the chair to greet him.
“Michael.”
“I got here as quickly as I could. Logan and Max are with me. I asked them to wait in the lobby.” Michael held up Ben’s phone in the evidence bag. “And I have Ben’s phone with me as you asked.”
“Good.”
“So what’s up?”
“I wanted to share something. I’m not sure it’ll help at this point but I thought I’d tell you anyway. One time when Ben and I were arguing, he told me that he was monitoring Jesse’s whereabouts on his phone.”
“Oh?”
“He pulled out his phone and pressed a button or app or something and a map appeared. He showed me a dot on the map and said the dot was Jesse. I didn’t mention this sooner because Ben is smart. With his phone lost, I’m sure he has probably disabled it by now. He’d never allow for it to lead us right to him.”
“Let me get my tech guy in here. Be right back.”
Michael left his office and Jacqueline sat back down in the chair.
Ben remained seated on top of Jesse, his knees pinning his chest down. Jesse struggled to free his arms from the ties holding them to the headboard. Ben looked down at Jesse’s bruised face and ran his fingers across it.
“Such a handsome face. I fell it in love with it...once. That seems so long ago now.”
“You don’t know what love is.”
“To think your own father distorted it -- and caused these bruises and scrapes.”
“I told you never to mention him to me.”
“And yet your body is still as hot as ever,” Ben said, ripping open Jesse’s shirt. He ran his hands over Jesse’s chest as Jesse began to breathe more nervously. He leaned forward and kissed Jesse’s nipples, tickling them with his tongue. “If only there were time for that. Time for some fun. One last time.”
“Get off of me,” Jesse demanded, kicking his legs violently.
Ben grabbed another tie and wrapped it around Jesse’s head, gagging his mouth. “I always tell your mother that you talk too much.” Ben leaned back and held down Jesse’s legs. “I think it’s time to silence you once and for all.”
Jesse tried to yell out but his voice was muted by the tie gagging him. Ben picked up yet another tie and held it at both ends. Then he wrapped each end around his hands until about a foot of it remained between his hands. He pulled it tightly.
“Such a shame,” Ben said. “We could have been so happy together. But you wanted something better, someone better. I wasn’t good enough.” Jesse continued to struggle to get free. “I have a child coming now. He’s doesn’t need to know about my past with you. And your mother doesn’t need to worry about you anymore.”
Ben lowered the tie to Jesse’s neck and began to push down tightly. Jesse struggled as Ben continued to press harder and harder.
Then the sound of sirens in the distance caught the attention of both Jesse and Ben. They looked at each other for a moment before Ben leapt off the bed and fled from the room. Jesse breathed deeply and struggled to get free.
Moments later, Michael rushed into the room, his gun in his hand. He ran over to the bed and untied Jesse, first his mouth and then his hands.
“Are you okay?”
“Ben just ran out!”
“My men are outside. If he’s still here, they’ll get him.”
Jesse sat up, rubbing his wrists and neck. “He was going to kill me.”
“Well, you’re safe now. We can talk about all that later.”
Another police officer brought Jacqueline and Logan into the room. “Jesse!” Jacqueline rushed over, sat down on the bed, and hugged her son. She pulled back a moment, ran her hands over his bruised face, and then embraced him once more.
“I love you, Mom,” Jesse said. “I’m so sorry for everything.”
“Shh,” Jacqueline said, holding her son tightly.
Logan approached the bed and Jesse looked up at him. Jacqueline finally let go of her son. Logan’s eye filled with tears as he leaned forward and hugged Jesse.
Michael stepped back and walked toward the door as Max entered the doorway.
Seeing Max, Jesse began to yell. “You get out of here! Get the hell out of here!”
Michael looked at Max, then Jesse, then back at Max.
“Get out!” Jesse screamed again.
“Come on,” Michael said, gently putting his arm around Max and escorting him from the room.
“Get him out of here!”
Later that evening, Marco and Rachel were dining in Chicago’s famed Pump Room restaurant. Their waiter refilled their wine glasses and then stepped away from the table as they continued to enjoy their meal.
“So you now own eight percent of Mancini Global, is that correct?” Rachel asked, taking a sip of her wine.
Marco nodded. “No thanks to my brother, Gino.”
“What?”
“Never mind about that,” Marco said. “You are correct; we own eight percent of Mancini Global.”
“Which means that each of the remaining four Mancini brothers owns twenty-three percent.”
“Clearly, you got straight A’s in math,” Marco said.
Rachel smiled. “Well, what if I told you that I am about to get control of one of those twenty-three percent shares?”
Marco put down his fork. “What are you talking about?”
“I am about to take twenty-three percent ownership of that company.”
“How?”
“Never mind about that,” Rachel said, repeating Marco’s words from earlier. “The fact of the matter is that I am. And that twenty-three percent combined with your eight would give you a majority vote at the company.”
“It would. Thirty-one percent to each of their twenty-three.”
“Clearly, you
got straight A’s in math, too,” Rachel said, with a smile.
“Just what are you up to?”
Rachel took another sip of her wine. “Me? Nothing. Just putting control within your reach.”
“And what do you want in return?”
“What’s makes you think I want anything in return?”
Marco laughed. “I know you, Rachel. A missionary, you’re not.”
“Well, maybe I do want one little thing in return,” Rachel said, smiling.
“What is that?”
“To be your wife. I want you to marry me.”
Before Marco could reply, his cell phone began to ring. He looked to see who was calling and then stood up from the table. “Excuse me, I have to take this.” Marco walked into the lobby of the restaurant and answered the call. “Mr. Strauss. How are you?”
“Good, thank you,” the man on the other end replied.
“I gathered the information that you requested and emailed it over to you just now.”
“Excellent. Thank you. And the one painting in particular that I asked about. Were you able to locate who purchased that one?”
“We keep very good records here. We had the information on all the artwork in the collection. The painting you asked about, called ‘The Nursemaid,’ was sold to someone named Todd Smith in Chicago.”
“Thank you so much, Mr. Strauss. You have no idea how helpful you’ve been.” Marco ended the call and put his phone into his pocket. “One step closer, Mother. One step closer.”
Still not feeling well, Emmett was sound asleep in his bed. The bedroom was dark and quiet until Jensen discreetly opened the door. The light from the hallway entered the bedroom, dimly lighting it.
Jensen stood silently watching Emmett sleep. Then he quietly approached the bed. He carefully pulled the covers up over Emmett as he slept. Fluffing the pillow, Jensen made sure that Emmett looked comfortable.
Then he knelt down next to the bed. He stared closely at Emmett’s face, listening to him breathe. He gently ran his fingers through Emmett’s hair and leaned forward to kiss Emmett on the lips. When the brief kiss ended, Jensen stood up and left the room, closing the bedroom door behind him.
While Emmett slept, his brother Derek was in bed with Cole in the corporate condo of Derek’s company. The room was dimly lit and the lights of the Chicago skyline were visible from the window near the bed. Moonlight from outside the window highlighted the contours of Derek’s and Cole’s naked bodies as they made love.
Lying on top of Derek, Cole kissed him, raising his hands above his head. Cole’s tongue explored Derek’s neck and shoulders as well as his armpits, while Derek’s hard cock pressed against Cole’s abs. Derek’s legs massaged Cole’s as Cole buried his face in his lover’s chest. He looked up at Derek’s face as he bit his nipples and tugged on them. Derek lowered his arms around Cole, his fingers massaging Cole’s back. As Cole’s hips spread Derek’s legs apart, Derek slapped Cole’s athletic ass.
Cole pulled Derek’s legs up and pressed the bulging head of his dick against Derek’s hole. He looked into Derek’s eyes and pushed harder, trying to get inside of him. Derek clenched his teeth and dug his fingers into Cole’s back as Cole’s penis hit against him.
“Please, Derek,” Cole whispered, adjusting his legs and pushing even harder against Derek.
Without responding verbally, Derek flipped over on top of Cole, pulling his legs over his shoulders. He kissed Cole deeply and pressed his erect penis into Cole’s ass. Cole ran his fingers down Derek’s shoulders and along his arms. The ring on Cole’s chain sparkled in the moonlight against his sweaty chest.
Cole wrapped his legs around Derek, who pushed deeper into Cole. Holding the back of Derek’s neck, Cole kissed him deeply, his tongue working its way deep into Derek’s mouth. Derek’s thrusts became more violent and Cole gripped Derek’s back for support.
Finally, Derek let out a groan and filled Cole. Then Derek reached over to the dresser and grabbed the two glasses of champagne that were standing on it. He handed one to Cole, who immediately drank from it.
“Lots to celebrate,” Derek said. “My successful meeting today. And you officially being on the Mancini payroll.”
“And us,” Cole added.
“Of course,” Derek said, kissing Cole.
“Why did you want to meet here in the corporate condo?” Cole asked. “It’s nice but we have never met here before.”
“Just thought it would be someplace different,” Derek replied, sitting on the end of the bed and pulling on his clothes.
“It’s nice,” Cole said, looking around the condo.
“You’ll be able to stay here if you want whenever you return to town,” Derek said, standing up and buttoning his shirt.
“What do you mean, when I return to town?”
Derek walked over to the window and looked out onto the city. “Well, you’ll be moving to California now.”
Still naked, Cole got up out of bed. “California? What are you talking about?”
“I told you that our public relations department is currently located in California and that you’d be working with the current department head until he retires.”
“Yes, but you didn’t say anything about California.”
“I told you that moving the headquarters here would be a long process. Being done over time, department by department.”
“Yes.”
“Well, it turns out that public relations department will be one of the last to move. Hopefully within two years.”
“Two years?” Cole joined Derek at the window. “I can’t move there for two years. I just moved here.”
“It’s only temporary.”
“Temporary? And what about us? We can finally be together.”
“I told you it was complicated.”
“Complicated? This is bullshit.” Cole paused a moment. “Wait a minute. You did this on purpose. You knew about California all along. Even before you made me quit my job.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. It’s an incredible job opportunity for you.”
“You’re trying to get rid of me, so you don’t have to deal with us being together.” Cole watched Derek turn and walk toward the condo door. “That’s the truth, isn’t it?”
“We can talk about this later. I have to go.”
“You can’t do this me,” Cole said, walking over to Derek and grabbing him. “I love you. You said you loved me.”
“I have to go,” Derek said, shaking himself loose of Cole’s grip and leaving the condo.
“You can’t do this!” Cole walked back toward the window. Then he quickly turned toward the door. “You can’t do this! I hate you!” Cole ripped the chain from his neck and threw it at the door. Complete satisfaction is often elusive.
Episode #30
The moon hung high over the city of Chicago, casting its warm glow on everything beneath it. In anticipation of St. Patrick’s Day, Chicago buildings and landmarks bathed in green light as Chicagoans ventured outside to take advantage of the warm March evening.
Jesse Morgan and Cole O’Brien sat out on their back deck enjoying the night air and drinking beer. Jesse had his foot up on the deck railing and Cole was looking toward the downtown skyline.
“It’s good to have you home, bro,” Cole said.
“Cheers to that.”
“You had everyone pretty worried.”
“I’m sorry.”
“You and I have been through a lot over the years together,” Cole said. “And we’ve never kept secrets from each other. We both know everything about each other.”
“What do you want to know, Cole?”
“I know what you told Michael about what happened. But I think there’s more to it. I don’t think you told him everything.”
Jesse smiled. “You know me well.”
“You know you can trust me.”
“Of course,” Jesse said, sipping his beer. “Ben didn’t kidnap me. I kidnapped him.”
“What?”
“I needed a way to get rid of Ben once and for all. Even if my mother and I never spoke again, I wanted her rid of him. So I came up with an idea to get him arrested for kidnapping me. I wasn’t entirely prepared to do it just yet, but when he came to my hospital room the other day, I realized it was now or never.”
“What did you do?”
“Remember when I told you that my mom had texted me about Ben monitoring me?” Cole nodded. “I checked his phone a while ago and, sure enough, he was. So I used the same feature to track his phone as well.” Jesse paused to drink his beer. “When Ben came into my hospital room, I injected him with the sedative that the doctor was giving me through my I.V. Once he was out, I planted his phone in the hospital bathroom so it would be found there. I had to knock Tyler out to make it look like I had been kidnapped.”
“And then you wheeled him out of the hospital using Tyler’s card key just as Ben would have if he had kidnapped you.”
“Exactly. I took him to the apartment he had just rented for him and my mom. I was able to tell when they found his phone in the hospital bathroom, so I knew it would only be a matter of time until they used that phone to track me down. Then he’d be locked up in prison where he belongs.”
“But?”
“But he overpowered me at one point and tied me up. He was going to kill me. If Michael hadn’t arrived when he did--”
“Well, thankfully, you’re okay.”
“But Ben got away.”
“Do you think now maybe you’ll stop with these crazy ideas? You’re two for two -- and not in good way.”
“I was desperate,” Jesse said. “I needed to get Ben out of the picture. At least now there’s a warrant out for his arrest. Once they find him, he’ll be locked up.”
“For a crime he didn’t commit.”
“You and I are the only two who know that,” Jesse reminded Cole
“And him.”
“Yes, which will make it even more sweet,” Jesse said, smiling. “He’ll know that in the end I finally brought him down.”