by Laura Acton
Before pressing call, Fulco turned to Arbor. “You explain while I call Jason. This doesn’t sit well with me.” As the phone rang, Fulco wandered towards the little kitchen area.
Sucking in a breath, Arbor’s gut turned. “He’s contacting our man out front. Dan’s been under protective surveillance since he provided us with the evidence necessary to bring four dirty cops to justice for horrendous crimes against the elderly.
“Besides Dan’s training officer, Brogan Snow, one of them is Alfred Riqueti. Though Jason followed Dan home last night, my gut isn’t happy that Dan didn’t answer our calls and he’s clearly not home.”
Hanging up after a short conversation, Fulco related what he discovered. “Jason never saw Dan’s face. His ball cap was pulled down covering his features, but he wore the same lightweight jacket he had on when he entered Snow’s earlier. Jason said Snow stood on the doorstep as Riqueti slung Dan’s arm over his shoulder and walked him to Bozonnet’s vehicle.
“Right before they drove off, Snow told them Turner would be staying the night on his couch, so they didn’t need to come back to take him home after delivering Dan to his apartment.”
Arbor’s mind worked quick. “Did Jason actually see Turner?”
Shaking his head, Fulco replied, “No. I don’t think so because right after Bozonnet left, Snow went inside, closed the door, and turned off the living room lights. What are you thinking?”
“Turner and Dan are similar in height and weight, and they’re both blonds, though Turner’s is ash blond and Dan’s is golden. With a hat and at night it would be difficult to distinguish them.” Arbor fisted his hands. “Dammit … somehow they must’ve found out Dan is working with us.”
Wilson heard enough. The scenario fit together for him. “I know where they are located … or at least where Bella’s purse is.” At the perplexed expressions, Wilson explained. “I fitted all Dame Ridgewater’s purses with GPS tracking devices for just this type of event.”
Fulco grinned. “Well then, we aren’t at square one. Come with us to TRF Headquarters, and we will devise a plan with Commander Gambrill’s men to find both of them.”
At the mention of Gambrill, Wilson smiled. Walter would do all in his power to locate and rescue his godson and William’s godmother … tidbits he kept to himself. “Lead the way.”
The Value of Family
39
May 2
Warehouse District – Derelict Building 10:40 a.m.
Having his fill of beating Broderick for now, because the ratfink remained limp and didn’t cry out, Charley shifted his gaze to the old bat who sat with teary eyes. Angry that she figured out the louder she demanded he quit hurting her Danny, the more vicious his kicks became. He growled at her, “You’re not so high and mighty now, are you?”
Bella squared her shoulders, and though she couldn’t stop her tears, she clenched her jaw to prevent her cries. Danny bore the thrashing stoically, only occasionally emitting soft moans. When he opened his right eye partially, she focused all her love and silently sent it his way, wishing to do more.
Charley’s slow and continual assault kept Dan teetering on the edge of oblivion, close to going over, but each time he was about to give up, he thought of Bella. Dan refused to leave her alone, even if it meant relief from his suffering. Somehow, he found the stamina to hang on and gaze up at the mother of his heart … the caring lady who opened her home to him, sheltering and embracing him with maternal devotion when cast out and isolated. The one person he would willingly and without regret give his life to protect.
The tears in her eyes broke Dan’s heart and, in some respects, hurt more than any physical agony he endured. Thoughts of escaping had long gone … he was in no condition to rise, and Bella couldn’t walk with a broken hip. He only hoped Arbor and Fulco or Wilson would arrive in time to save her.
Dan’s Guardian Angel, Hamon, placed his hand over Daniel’s chest and a golden glow emitted as he did his best to take his descendant’s pain away. Many of the feathers on his wings were crushed, broken, and missing from using them to shield Daniel from the onslaught of kicks meted out by the evil Turner, who was egged on to commit such acts by the demons sent by Samael.
Needing to recharge, but unwilling to abandon Daniel, Hamon prayed. “Lord, give me the power to fortify Daniel. The world needs his light. Help me sustain him through this trial and defeat Samael’s desire to blacken his soul.”
Dan’s breathing eased ever so slightly, allowing him to take in a fuller breath as he made peace with dying. His father would be happy he was finally dead, and in the end, Dan would be glad to join Sara because he was tired, so very tired of struggling to belong someplace and trying to measure up to the impossible standards set by General Always-Perfect.
The sapphire orb Bella gazed at reflected defeat, and it frightened her more than anything she ever encountered. “Danny, don’t give up. Fight. My precious boy, you are loved. So loved. Stay with me.”
“Shut up, Bitch!” Charley hauled back and slugged Ridgewater in the face, knocking her out of the chair and splitting her lip.
The pained cry from Bella as she hit the concrete floor infused Dan with strength he didn’t know he possessed. His wrists freed from the rope, Dan surged upward as if lifted by wings. He flew into Charley, headbutting the man’s gut, sending Turner backward into the old workbench.
Yowling in pain as the serrated metal on the bench impaled his back, Charley’s hands went to the wound, attempting to stem the flow of blood soaking his shirt. “I’m gonna kill you! You’re dead. do you hear me, Dickhead?”
His screaming alerted the others, and they rushed to his aid, shocked Broderick was on his feet and fighting back. Closer than either Al or Brogan, Robert ran towards Broderick with an angry scowl, ready to put the mangy dog down for the final time. He stopped and prepared to kick the ratfink’s back, hoping to break every damned rib.
Before he could make his move, Robert dropped to his knees groaning as his hands moved in a protective measure to his family jewels … somehow Broderick managed to rack his balls.
Dan followed up his spinning hook kick with a roundhouse kick, connecting with Robert’s head and down went Robbie-steel-toes. Turning to confront Al, Dan lashed out lighting fast with a left uppercut, catching Al’s chin, whipping Riqueti’s head back and sending a tooth flying.
From her position on the floor, Bella’s eyes opened wide and round watching with utter astonishment as Danny roared and fought like a wild lion. Dear Lord, please protect my boy.
Unable to move as fast as the others, and using his head instead of speed, Brogan stopped to pick up a five-foot length of two-by-four. As Broderick got another lucky gut punch in on Al, doubling him over, Brogan swung his makeshift bat at Broderick’s head. A resounding thwack joined with Bella’s scream as Dan crumpled to the ground.
The four men, three of whom nursed various injuries, converged on Dan’s inert body and began kicking him as he lay insensible. Bella’s broken sobs, begging for them to stop were overridden by many loud, authoritative male voices yelling variations of, “Police, stand down.”
Although told to wait outside, Wilson dashed in and went straight for Bella. He used the knife hidden in his unique belt buckle to cut the binding on her wrists then cradled her head. “I’m here. You’ll be alright,” he crooned taking stock of her battered condition, disappointed he had not arrived sooner.
“Danny, help Danny,” Bella sobbed.
Glancing over at Dan as the TRF officers took the rotten cops into custody, he got his first glimpse of Danny’s brutalized body. Gently he laid Bella’s head down and rose to go to the son of his heart.
Arbor crouched next to the kid, his fingers searching for his carotid. “Gotta pulse, but he’s not breathing. Need medical STAT!”
Swiftly, Wilson knelt and used his blade to slice open Dan’s shirt. “I’ve got medic training.” He did a quick assessment. “At least one broken rib. Punctured lung. With each breath, air is le
aking into his chest cavity. I must relieve the pressure now, or he will die.”
“What do you need?” Arbor asked.
“A pen, a tube, anything like that, plastic, and alcohol. I need to make a one-way valve.”
Delta Team Sergeant Daily pulled off his headset and showed the mike tubing to Keswick. “Will this do?”
“Yeah.”
Overhearing, Bella said, “They were drinking whiskey near the crate on the other side of the warehouse.”
Fulco glanced around and spotted the bottle. “I’ll get it.” He sprinted off.
“Plastic, rubber?” Wilson peered up at the others as Daily used a knife to cut the tubing for him. Another TRF officer handed him a latex glove. “Thanks, this will work.”
Returning with the whiskey, Fulco handed it over to Wilson as he asked, “What’s the ETA on paramedics?”
Daily gave the piece of the headset to the bodyguard as he peered at his tactical lead who answered, “Two minutes, Sarge.”
Wilson doused Dan’s chest in alcohol and splashed some over the narrow tubing and his blade. He cut off a fingertip of the glove and wrapped it around one end of the tube before passing it to Arbor. “When I incise, I need you to insert this. Use my blade as a guide.”
“Got it.” Arbor’s hand shook as he moved the makeshift valve close to Dan’s torso where Keswick made the incision. He pushed it in as directed and sighed with relief as Dan let out a soft gasp.
Fulco raked a hand through his hair, his expression one of rage as he shifted his gaze from Dan’s bloody visage to Snow and the others. His voice ice, he said, “If he dies, you will never see another day outside of prison. That young constable has more honor in his pinky than all four of you combined.”
Snow sneered. “The rat bastard got what he deserved. He crossed the blue wall of silence … he has no honor.”
Arbor shot to his feet, his fists clenching, itching to wipe the smug expression off Snow’s face. “Get them out of here before I save the city the cost of their trial.”
Two sets of paramedics rushed in with gurneys and boxes of supplies. They set to work on Bella and Dan as Charley groused that he required medical attention too. The TRF officer holding him yanked his arm to get him moving and said, “You have a minor cut, they’ll tend to you in due time.”
Wilson went to Bella’s side, and he clasped her hand as she reached out to him. “I’ll call your sons and daughter. Should I contact General Broderick or Mrs. Broderick?”
As an oxygen mask was fitted over her mouth, Bella squeezed Wilson’s hand. “Thank you for saving Danny. Call Willie … he can break the news to Yvonne … she isn’t doing well at the moment.” Bella softly moaned as they cautiously lifted her on to the gurney, careful not to aggravate her hip.
Once both gurneys were on the way out to the waiting ambulances, Wilson let his eyes roam around the room as his shoulders slumped. He pulled out his phone and selected Bella’s eldest son’s number … not a call he wished to make. Hovering over the button, he felt like he failed in his job to safeguard her. If only I spotted the note last night, I might’ve prevented both their injuries. He pressed call as he walked out. “Hello, Curtis, it’s Wilson …”
Present Day – May 10
Ridgewater Chalet – 2:00 p.m.
As Dan sipped his mostly melted strawberry shake, he realized that it was almost exactly a dozen years ago when he nearly died at the hands of Snow, Riqueti, Turner, and Bozonnet. Their first attack on him happened twelve years and nine days ago on May first, and the second one occurred three days ago on May seventh. If not for Wilson’s foresight to tag Bella’s purses with GPS locators and his Special Forces medical training, Dan wouldn’t be alive today.
God, I hate those four men. But if I’m honest with myself, there is one good thing to come from my experience. I learned the value of a real family. They opened my eyes to the difference. Dan conceded it had been an excruciatingly painful lesson and resulted in creating many masks which he used to hold people at a distance to protect himself.
Family are the people who always care about me, give advice when requested … and sometimes not wanted but needed, help resolve problems, provide comfort, forgive me when I mess up and make amends, and make me laugh when I’m down. I’m not alone … I never have been, though, I often believed I was. But losing family hurts too much. Sara, Brody, Ripsaw, … the team … Lexa.
Dan’s eyes welled with tears at the thought of losing more family. I don’t want to lose my family … especially Lexa. I’ve lost too many, too often and I can’t hack losing anyone else or starting over yet again. Can I fix this or are things beyond repair? Salty liquid ran down Dan’s cheeks. His mind, body, heart, and soul all in agony, Dan groaned as he lifted a hand to wipe away the physical evidence of his pain … he didn’t want anyone witnessing him crying.
Although recognizing he was at a crossroads again, just as he had been when he returned to the Fourteenth Division once he recovered from the beating and when he was given the option of early release from the military after he shot Brody, Dan didn’t possess the energy to make any decisions today. He needed time to work through things … and a mind not addled by painkillers.
Respite from his anguished thoughts came in the form of Wilson as the man he trusted whole-heartedly entered his room.
A grin lit Wilson’s face as he noticed Danny consuming the strawberry shake his mother left him. “Have a good nap?”
Dan sighed. “Didn’t mean to fall asleep.”
“You need all the rest you can get.” Wilson lowered himself into the comfy chair beside the bed.
Taking another long draw on the straw, enjoying the last of the fresh strawberry treat, Dan gave Wilson a slight nod to acknowledge the comment.
The slurping which indicated to Wilson that Dan finished drew another smile. “Sounds like you drank every last bit.” He reached for the empty tumbler and placed it on the table for Dan.
“Doc says I need to rinse after eating. Would you mind bringing me a glass of water?”
Wilson stood, went to the bathroom, and upon returning he held up a toothbrush and tube of toothpaste in one hand as he carried a basin and a small plastic cup in the other. “Go you one better. Want to brush your teeth?”
Dan ran his tongue over fuzzy teeth, desiring to rid himself of the ickiness, but he wouldn’t be able to make either arm cooperate with the simple task. Lifting the shake had hurt, and he imagined the pain would amp up if he tried to do the back and forth motion required to clean his teeth. “I’ll just rinse.”
Noting Dan’s averted of gaze, Wilson realized the problem. He set the cup and little bowl on the nightstand and proceeded to squeeze paste on the brush. He dipped the loaded brush in the water to wet it as he said, “Did I ever tell you about the time Dutch broke both arms?”
Dan eyed Wilson. “No.”
“Well, it was during our training cycle. The rope snapped when Dutch was about fifteen feet in the air. He probably would’ve only broken one if I hadn’t grabbed for him. I ended up going over too, and he cushioned my fall. His left broke when it hit the log below, and my extra weight snapped his right one.” Wilson moved the toothbrush closer to Dan.
Wilson grinned. “I became quite adept in brushing Dutch’s teeth for him. So, open up and let me show-off my skills.”
Dan lowered his gaze, breaking contact with Wilson and if he weren’t so colorfully bruised, his face would reveal the blushing of his discomfiture of not being able to take care of himself.
“Don’t be embarrassed. I want to help, and it is important we do all we can to stave off any potential infection.”
Opening up, not wanting to deal with complications, Dan closed his eye and tried to imagine he was doing this himself instead of acting like an invalid. When the brushing finished, and the cup touched his lips, Dan peered at Wilson, finding a neutral expression, which he appreciated. He sipped, rinsed, spit, and repeated the process three times. As Wilson returned to the bathroom, Da
n said, “Thanks.”
“No problem,” Wilson responded over his shoulder, happy Danny allowed him to assist him. “Do you need to take a piss?”
“No.” Dan’s eye shifted to the scene outside, again wishing he could be outdoors rather than stuck in this bed. That thought brought back another one. “Wilson, did you find out about Loki and Kinsey?”
Ambling back into the room, Wilson resumed his seat. “Baldovino suffered overexposure to chloroform. Enough to knock out an elephant. They’re keeping him for observation, but so far appears to be doing alright. Peltora ended up with a bruised jaw from a kick that knocked her out. They released her the same day.”
Relieved to learn both were okay, Dan yawned and winced as his jaw moved. “Wish I was there for Loki. Being in the hospital must unnerve him after the last time.”
“What happened?”
“A BDC gang member tried to kill him with a heroin overdose. Hope the team is staying with him.” Thoughts of all he lost intruded again, causing his breath to hitch as he fought the prickle of tears. Dan hated being so out of control of his emotions. He peered at Wilson. “Can you do something for me?”
“Anything!” Wilson noted the pain visible in Dan’s expressive blue orb.
So F.I.N.E. he wanted to run from his heartache, Dan couldn’t stop the tears welling again. “I want enough pain meds to knock me out for hours. This all hurts too much to think about now. I’m not ready to cope with everything.”
Coming close, Wilson said compassionately, “You got it, my boy.” He rose, drew up the dosage, and administered it as he said, “Sleep is the best thing for you. I’ll be here when you wake.”
Dan’s recollections of twelve years ago caused him to ask, “Wilson, did my parents ever come visit me the first time Snow and company beat the shit out of me?”
Surprised by the question, Wilson lowered himself in the chair. “You don’t remember?”
