Author: Pandora Pine
Category: LGBT
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“It had to do with Dragonni, right?” Ten sure the hell hoped that there wasn’t any more bad news that he wasn’t yet aware of.
“It did. There was some kind of jail break this morning and your pal, Cruz Clemente, was shot. He didn’t want to hand The Dragon over to the people who were there to get him, so they put a bullet in him for his trouble. He’s fine, but the prosecutor on the case is dead.” Bertha wore a grimace.
“Damn,” Ten mumbled. “These two were going to kill me too when I was finally able to tell them where Tony was being kept.”
“How did you manage to avoid that?” Anger burned in the depths of Bertha’s blue eyes.
“I told them that the U.S. Marshalls were getting ready to move him and if they killed me, they wouldn’t know where he was going next.” It had been a stroke of genius on Ten’s part. He was just so thankful that Marco and Paulie saw the logic in taking him with them.
Bertha’s shrewd eyes narrowed on Tennyson. “Are they getting ready to move Tony?”
“They should be. If Dragonni is out of federal custody, they have to think the reason for that is to come after Tony. If I were in charge, the first thing I’d do is move him. Unless, of course, one of the men guarding him is working for Dragonni.” Shit, this just kept getting darker and darker. Ten hated thinking that way, but it seemed that’s how these families worked. It was easier to bribe people into working for them than it was to kill them.
Bertha nodded her head. She seemed to be following along with Tennyson’s train of thought. “I don’t think Ronan and the others have considered that. I’ll tell them your thoughts on the matter.”
“What others?” Ten asked.
“Ronan and Fitzgibbon put out the call once they realized you’d been taken. Faulkner was with Cruz in the hospital, they’re both at the precinct. Cruz is hilarious, still coming off the anesthesia from his surgery. Carson and Cole are there and so are Jude and Copeland. Cisco is working on things from Salem, trying to track this car, but I guess that point is moot.” She started to cackle.
Tennyson was touched that so many of their friends had come together to look for him. It surprised him though that Clemente was there. “Why did Clemente leave the hospital?”
“Aside from him feeling responsible for what he did to you and Ronan, it also turns out that Dragonni is responsible for his brother’s death. He’s been obsessed with returning the favor ever since. He admitted to Ronan that he didn’t care what he had to do to get you to agree to work with him. All that mattered was bringing The Dragon down.” Bertha wore a look that said she’d like the chance to kick his ass too.
It made sense to Ten, but that didn’t put him in much of a forgiving mood. “None of that really matters now. What I need you to do is get my information back to Ronan. Tell him Tony is at the Boston Harbor Hotel. Paulie and Marco are on their way there now. I don’t know if they’ve told Dragonni where Tony is, or if they plan is to grab him like they grabbed me. I can’t imagine Dragonni wanting a gun battle like there was at the Ritz Carlton.”
“No, I imagine not, but I’ll get this information to Ronan. I understand that you want them to be able to save Tony, but my priority is saving you, Tenny.” Bertha pressed a kiss to Tennyson’s forehead.
Ten was touched by how much Bertha loved him. “Can you see the license plate on this Cadillac?”
Bertha nodded. “I’ve already got it memorized. Do you have a message for Ronan?”
Ten had been thinking a lot about that since Paulie and Marco had grabbed him. “Tell him that the plan he came up with when he was trapped by the explosion was a good one. He’ll know what it means. Also, tell him that I love him and that I’m sorry for all of this, Bertha.”
“Will do, Tenny. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” With that, Bertha was gone.
Now that Ten was alone in the trunk, he started looking around. He wasn’t going to take her reporting back to Ronan as an absolute guarantee that he was going to be rescued in time. He had no idea where he was in relation to the Boston Harbor Hotel. The car could be an hour or only seconds away from getting there. Depending on traffic, it could take at least ten minutes to travel the one and half miles from the police barracks in Southie to the hotel and that was with lights and sirens blaring. Ten needed to be ready to defend himself when the time came.
Feeling around in the dark, Tennyson found an ice scraper, not a very big help against mob thugs with guns. He kept moving his hands and found the tire iron. He might be able to use that to pry the links of his handcuffs apart if there was enough time left in the ride to the hotel. If not, he could slide it into his pants and have it to defend himself if that gun came out again.
The one piece of good news Bertha brought was that Ronan seemed pretty desperate to find him. It sounded like he’d had some kind of change of heart about the way he’d acted yesterday. While Tennyson was glad to hear that, it didn’t erase the harsh memories he carried in his heart. Ronan, in his mind, had every right to be upset at him, but he’d taken things a bit too far in telling Ten that he’d be in touch when he could deal with Ten again.
For starters they had a surrogate who was only a few short weeks away from giving birth to their daughter. Even though Ten knew the birth was going to go seamlessly, Emilyn could need them at any time for support or early labor. Ronan shutting his phone off and being unreachable put him in a bad position with Em.
Doing that put Ronan in an even worse position with Dragonni. If he were being honest with himself, Tennyson hadn’t even given the mob boss a second thought last night or this morning. It was why he’d yanked the front door open without looking through the peephole. If he and Ronan had been in their right minds, one or both of them should have been on high alert for something like what happened with Dragonni making a jail break. Both of them had seen the fury in the man when Tony walked into the courtroom yesterday. They should have known a man like Vito Dragonni wouldn’t have taken the reappearance of Tony Abruzzi lying down.
The fact that they’d both let their guards down was what had led to this, Ten being handcuffed and locked in the trunk of a Cadillac heading to the Boston Harbor Hotel for a confrontation with Tony Abruzzi. All he could do now was pray that Bertha could get this information back to Ronan in time to stop Marco and Paulie from executing whatever insidious plan they had in store for Tony Abruzzi.
27
Ronan
When Ronan burst through the door of the conference room, he could hear a pin drop. Everyone was sitting in their seats, their attention focused on Cole.
“Good, Ronan. Mom’s here and has information for you about Tennyson.” The psychic was wearing a relieved look on his face.
“Is he okay?” Ronan sat hard in his seat. His heart was pounding. He prayed whatever news Bertha had was good.
“For now.” Cole nodded to Carson and Fitzgibbon who had just come through the door of the room. “Kevin, Bertha is here. I was just telling Ronan that Ten is okay for now.”
“Where is he?” Kevin asked breathlessly. He sat heavily in his seat.
“He’s in the trunk of a black Cadillac. The car is being driven by two guys named Marco and Paulie. They work for Dragonni. Mom says the license plate is Massachusetts 8514KN. The car is on its way to the Boston Harbor Hotel. That’s where Tennyson saw Tony is being kept by the Marshalls.”
Kevin’s green eyes narrowed on Cole. “What’s going to happen when they get to the hotel?”
Cole shook his head. “Ten isn’t sure. He’s suffering from a bit of a concussion. I’ve tried reading the situation and I’m not getting anything either. It looks like everything is up in the air, which means a plan hasn’t really been hatched out yet.”
Ronan growled at that news. “Those bastards hurt him?” Anger churned in his gut. If he had his way, none of Dragonni’s men were going to walk away from this confrontation alive.
“We thought as much when I lost my initial connection with him, remember? I assumed they didn’t want him to s
ee where they were taking him. Hurting him like they did backfired on them because it knocked his gift out of commission. Ten was able to stall them by telling Marco and Paulie that he needed food and painkillers before he’d be able to work again.” Carson grinned. “It was a smart move on his part to buy time.”
“Marco was one of Dragonni’s men who brought a briefcase to the meeting in Jamaica Plain.” Ronan’s mood grew even darker.
“I was going to ask if that was the same man,” Fitzgibbon said as he was scribbling on his pad. “Do you have anything else for me, Cole?”
“Ten doesn’t think whatever is going to happen is going down at the hotel. He’s of the mind that Marco and Paulie are going to do some kind of scoop and run with Tony like they did with him this morning. Dragonni is at some kind of third location where his final showdown with Tony will take place. Before you ask, Kevin, Tennyson has no idea where this will be.” Cole looked frustrated by his lack of information.
“I’ll put a BOLO out on the car.” Kevin stood.
“Hold on, Cap.” Ronan was tapping a distracted finger on the table. “If these two guys spot lights or sirens, it’s going to blow the whole thing. We need someone to follow them discreetly to this second location, but without any kind of large-scale police presence.”
Kevin nodded before he left the room.
Ronan turned to Faulkner. “I need you to get a list together of all of Dragonni’s properties. Things that are out of the way, city limits kind of things. Warehouses. The kinds of places where Tony would have been running those guns back in the day. Dragonni strikes me as the kind of man who likes synchronicity. He’s going to want to take Tony out in the place where his time with the family began.”
“Come on, Cruz. Let’s get you more coffee.” Faulk hauled the half-awake FBI agent out of his seat and dragged him out the door.
Ronan looked around the table at his remaining friends, Carson, Cole, Jude, and Copeland. “Hi, Bertha. Tell me the rest of what’s going on with Tennyson.”
Carson and Cole exchanged a silent look. They both appeared as if they didn’t want to speak to Ronan at all.
“She’s fucking pissed at you, Ronan,” Copeland said, breaking his silence. “Tennyson is alone and scared. You were pretty selfish leaving him the way you did yesterday, shutting him out then turning off your phone.” Cope took a deep breath. “They pistol whipped him and forced him to tell them where the U.S. Marshalls were keeping Tony. When he was finally able to tell them, they stuck a gun in his face and were seconds from pulling the trigger.”
Feeling his heart stop in his chest, he tried to take a ragged breath. “What saved him?” Ronan was terrified to ask.
“His own cunning.” Copeland shook his head. “He lied, telling his captors that the Marshalls knew that Dragonni had escaped and were in the process of moving Tony to another location. Ten told them that if they killed him now, they’d never know where that second location was. Apparently, both men are more afraid of what Dragonni will do to them if they come back without Tony than of what he’ll do to them if Tennyson is still alive.”
Ronan’s heart felt like it was being squeezed in a vice. This was all his fault. “I should have realized Dragonni would arrange something like this. I saw the look on his face when Tony walked into that courtroom. The only reason he gave himself up and walked off that private jet was because he knew that if he was alive, it would give him another shot at killing Tony Abruzzi. Rumor has it, he was out of his mind later on that night when he was told Tony died in the hospital.”
“That was the ruse you used to get him into custody?” Copeland asked.
“It was Fitzgibbon’s idea. He didn’t think anything would get him off that plane. He thought we were going to have to kill him. I wish we had. None of this would have happened. Ten wouldn’t have had to lie about Tony being dead. No one would have gotten kidnapped. I wouldn’t have acted like I did toward Tennyson.” Ronan would swear he could feel his heart ripping apart in his chest. He’d never felt pain like this, not even when he’d been shot three times. He’d give anything right now to be able to trade places with Tennyson.
“Cut the shit, Ronan!” Carson said. “There will be time to feel bad for yourself once Tennyson is safe.” Tennyson’s best friend shook his head. “That’s pretty harsh, Mom.”
Ronan snorted. He couldn’t help himself. Bertha Craig had always been a ray of sunshine in his life. Now she was dropping the hammer. She loved Tennyson like he was one of her own sons. It must have killed her seeing him handcuffed and locked in the trunk of a car. “I’m so sorry for the way I acted, Bertha. I promise that once we’ve rescued Tennyson and dealt with Dragonni I’m going to do everything in my power to make this up to him. In the meantime, can you please be with him and…” Ronan trailed off. He wasn’t sure what the hell to say next. He could feel his emotions rising up, threatening to get the better of him.
“Comfort him, Bertha,” Copeland added. “Let Ten know that we’re working as hard as we can to find him and the second location that we think he’s being brought to. We need you to relay this message and come back. Faulkner is going to have some addresses we’ll need you to check out. Can you do that for us?” Copeland started to laugh. “Bertha said there had better be a badge in her future, Ronan.”
“I’ll pin it on your chest myself if it gets me off your shit list.” Ronan grinned. “Tell him I love him and that I’m sorry.” Ronan turned to Copeland who was nodding. “What?”
“She left, but didn’t have anything else to say to you, Ronan.” Copeland wore an embarrassed look on his face.
He knew he deserved that. Ronan didn’t really care so long as they found Tennyson and he was safe.
“Okay everyone, let’s give Ronan a break here.” Jude stood up from his chair. He walked over to Ronan, taking the empty seat next to him. “None of us could have possibly known this is what was going to happen today. We’ve all had arguments with people we love and none of them ended in kidnappings. Ronan needs all the love and support you can give him right now. I know all the focus is on Tennyson here, but the big guy needs you too. Once Ten is safe again, you all can go back to thinking Ronan is king asshole, but for now, he needs us.”
“Gee, thanks, Jude.” Ronan rolled his eyes at his friend.
“You know I’m on your side, but we both know you need to work on your Irish temper. Agreed?” Jude elbowed the cop.
Ronan nodded. He knew Jude was right. “Please keep reaching out to Tennyson.” He looked from Carson to Cole to Copeland.” Getting out of his seat, he walked out of the conference room. There was something he needed to do alone before the real shit hit the fan. He needed to pray.
28
Tennyson
The moment Tennyson had been dreading arrived. He felt the Caddy come to a stop. The engine cut off and both doors opened. He braced himself. He knew the trunk was going to pop open next. When that happened, Marco was pointing a gun in his face. “Say goodbye, Tennyson.”
“Hold on!” Ten raised his hands in front of his face. “Do you have any idea where Tony is? What room he’s in? Or how you’re going to get him out of his room and away from the Marshalls guarding him? Not to mention how you’re going to get him out of here?” Ten was talking so fast he hoped his captors could understand him. “He’s guarded by members of the U.S. Marshalls who train for these kinds of scenarios. It’s not going to be like it was this morning with me where you ring the doorbell and grab him. I’m as weak as a kitten, where Tony’s trained in self-defense and has had five months to recover from getting shot. He’s going to put up a fight even if you’ve got guns in his face.”
Paulie exchanged an impressed look with Marco. “He’s got a point.”
“Tony knows me. He’s going to trust me when I knock on the suite door.” Ten felt his stomach revolt at the thought of using their friendship to put the detective in harm’s way, but if it meant buying time and Ten surviving to be there for the birth of his daughter, he was going
to do it.
“What the fuck are you talking about?” Marco pulled the gun back. “Why the hell would you show up here at the hotel?”
“To get Tony to a safe place. Why else? Is the news of Dragonni’s escape all over the news?” Ten looked back and forth between them? He had a feeling that like every breaking news story, this one was everywhere. Wall to wall coverage on all of the major Boston television stations, along with frequent updates on radio. He also imagined there was a larger police presence on the streets while they’d been driving into town.
“Yeah, the news is all over the radio,” Paulie said. “We also saw a shitload of police cars all over the place.”
“Okay then, so if the public knows, then so do the Marshalls, right?” Ten shot them both a knowing look. “The people guarding Tony are going to be ready for something like this.” He lifted his cuffed hands to point back and forth at the mob goons. “If I show up at the door, Tony will be able to verify who I am. I’ll say I used my gift to find him and that I’ve got Ronan waiting in the car keeping an eye out for you assholes. Then when he comes to the door, you can grab him, like you grabbed me.”
“That idea isn’t half bad.” Paulie shrugged. “It sure as fuck is better than the idea we had of just going in there shooting.”
“Fuck that. I say we go in there guns blazing.” Marco wore a sour look on his face.
“You’re just looking to die. Aren’t you, Marco?” Ten shook his head. He wiggled himself into a sitting position. “It’s obvious what you’re planning. Dragonni wants to kill Tony himself, so you’re here to grab him. There’s no way you’re getting Tony out of that room without some help. The Marshalls know what all of you guys look like. They’ll see your face at the suite door and start shooting. That won’t happen with me.” Ten shrugged. “But if you want to die today…”