“We thought he was you, but you were there too?”
Dawson laughed.
“Hoyt was angry that I killed the girl. He wanted another go at her first. He kicked my ass good. Hell, I was laying on the other side of the couch. If Hoyt hadn’t taken my gun away I would have shot you two assholes in the back.”
“I’m going to kill you, Dawson.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re a scumbag who causes nothing but grief, but I’m also going to give you a chance to do a good thing before you go.”
“What would that be, buttercup? You want me to blow you?”
Tanner sent a kick into Dawson’s crotch, causing the man to moan in pain, then fall over on his side, groaning.
Once the man recovered and sat up, Tanner tossed a pad and a pen onto his lap.
“You’re going to write a last will and testament. In it, you’ll declare that you’re committing suicide because you can no longer live with yourself. You’ll also state that you want your kidneys to go to your daughter.”
Dawson’s head shot up.
“My daughter? You know Stephanie?”
“I overheard you two talking the other night outside the coffee shop. I would have killed you then… but your daughter needs you to die a certain way.”
Dawson tossed the paper aside.
“I won’t do it. You’re going to kill me anyway, so why do I care?”
Tanner grabbed Dawson by his hair and stared into his eyes.
“Write what I tell you to write and I’ll give you a quick death. Refuse, and I’ll take you somewhere and make you suffer like no one has ever suffered before. In a week you’ll be begging to write the note.”
Tanner released Dawson’s hair, only to pinch a nerve cluster in the man’s neck. Dawson struggled to get free as his eyes bulged in their sockets. By the time Tanner released him several seconds later, Dawson was panting as if he’d run a mile.
“Shit… that hurt.”
“That wasn’t even a taste of what I’ll give you. Write the note, Dawson. Do the right thing and save your daughter’s life.”
Dawson eyes looked left, then right, as if he were seeking a route of escape. Seeing this, Tanner took out his gun.
“Try anything and I’ll blast a kneecap.”
The fight left Dawson then, like air leaving a balloon. He slumped back against the metal door with eyes growing moist from tears.
“I don’t want to die.”
“No one does. Your daughter doesn’t either.”
“Can’t we make a deal? Stephie only needs one kidney.”
“You have two choices, Dawson. Die well or die slow, but believe me when I tell you you’re going to die.”
“What’s your name. I don’t remember it.”
“I’m Tanner.”
“But the other guy was Tanner.”
“Pick up the pad, Dawson. I’ll tell you what to write.”
Dawson’s tears increased. Tanner knew they were genuine because the man was crying over his own woes. He wondered if the dirt bag had shed one tear for his daughter’s condition and predicament. Likely not.
When, at last, Dawson had written the note, Tanner placed the gun to the side of Dawson’s head.
“Donna Hoyt, Ray Hoyt’s sister. The cops think she was killed by a burglar, but that was you, wasn’t it?”
Dawson grinned an evil little smile. “Figured that out, did you?”
Tanner pressed the gun against Dawson’s temple and felt a shiver pass through the man, while the scent of urine filled the air.
“I’ll see you in hell,” Dawson said.
“No, you won’t,” Tanner said. “I have other plans.”
Tanner pulled the trigger.
Sara appeared as Tanner was pressing Dawson’s prints onto the gun. Dawson’s hand had been beneath the gun when it was fired. Tanner assumed enough gunshot residue would be discovered if anyone bothered to test Dawson for it.
Sara was talking on the phone and summoning an ambulance. Dawson’s corpse had to reach a hospital while his kidneys were still viable. She gave Dawson’s body only a glance as she walked by it, then took Tanner’s hand.
“You did a good thing.”
“Twenty years too late,” Tanner said, then they got in the car and drove away.
49
Endings And Beginnings
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA, APRIL 1998
Appropriately, it rained during Anna’s funeral. It was the first rain the region had seen in weeks, and the drops may not have equaled the tears cried by the many mourners who attended.
Cody held Barbara’s hand, as Romeo clasped Monique’s. The boys were dressed in somber suits of black that they had bought for the occasion.
Anna’s parents looked devastated, and far older than their years, while her two sisters cried continually, and her little brother appeared both angry and confused.
The police had discovered the body of Ray Hoyt at the bottom of the pool and identified the dead girl. In Hoyt’s pocket was a pawn ticket for a gold necklace that had belonged to Anna. The mourners took some solace in the fact that Anna’s killer was dead, but it would not bring her back.
Cody and Romeo said goodbye to the girls later that evening as they dropped them back at home. The day had been an emotionally exhausting one for Barbara and Monique, who looked as if they would sleep until noon.
“I won’t ask you to call me,” Barbara told Cody. “But I want you to keep your promise to come back here someday.”
“Our boss has to come back to take care of some business in the fall. That will be in Phoenix, but I’ll make it back here.”
Barbara gave him a long kiss, then laid her head on his chest.
“I was going to ask you in, but I’m dead tired.”
“I understand.”
One more kiss and they parted. The boys had to join Spenser at the hotel. They had some packing to do.
BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO, APRIL, 1998
Although they had driven along the blue Pacific coast on their way to the training camp, there was no water to be seen anywhere at their final destination. Unless you counted the air. The humidity level was off the charts, as was the temperature.
Some of the cactus were huge, and vegetation such as yucca plants and ball moss stretched to the horizon. There was even the odd elephant tree, discernable by their short, stout branches.
Home for the foreseeable future was a pair of old motor homes. One was for Spenser, while Cody and Romeo would share the other.
The boys’ red sports car had been left back in a rented garage in San Diego. The low-riding vehicle wouldn’t have fared well in the desert. They arrived in Spenser’s pickup truck, the bed of which was laden with supplies.
Romeo pointed at the trailer he would be sharing with Cody.
“I hope that thing has a toilet and shower.”
“And separate beds,” Cody added.
Spenser laughed. “Yes, to all three. Don’t worry, we won’t be living primitively.”
“What’s on the agenda?” Cody asked.
“For tonight, we unpack, now tomorrow, that’s a different story. I’ll be placing you on a path to hell.”
“I can’t wait,” Cody said. Oddly enough, he meant it. He would walk through hell if it meant he’d come out the other side as the man he wanted to be.
“Let’s get settled, guys,” Spenser said, and they headed into the trailers.
50
Mixed News
NEW YORK CITY, SUNDAY, 3:42 a.m., JANUARY 2018
They watched from a booth where they’d been sitting for over an hour. Their waitress, Stephanie Dawson looked more drawn than she had just days earlier, but her problem would be corrected soon.
It was a pair of cops that delivered the news, one graying veteran and a rookie who looked young enough to be in high school.
The older one did the talking in a gentle tone, but the news still hit Stephanie like a sledgehammer.
She reall
y loved that bastard father of hers. Tanner thought.
“Do you think they’re telling her about the note?” Sara asked.
“Yeah, and she’ll get the chance to read it soon.”
“I’m glad she won’t find out the worst until after she has the transplant. Right now, she doesn’t need to know that her father will be implicated in an abduction, and likely several murders.”
Before leaving the construction site in New Jersey, Tanner had tossed a credit card from Dawson’s wallet inside the van. In his “suicide note” Dawson alluded to having done terrible things for which he asked his daughter’s forgiveness. Dawson’s dark side shouldn’t come as too great a shock to Stephanie, after all, the man had done time for possession of date-rape drugs.
The note Tanner had Dawson pen concluded with the words, “Daddy will always love you, Stephie-bear. Have a good life.”
Those were words composed by Dawson. Tanner had to admit that even that sick bastard wasn’t all bad.
They rose from the booth as Sara left a hundred-dollar tip on the table. Behind the counter, Stephanie was hugging her friend, the other waitress.
“I’m going to live,” Stephanie sighed in a soft voice, her face was bright with a smile, while her eyes were saddened by tears.
YOUNG GUNS 3 - BEYOND LIMITS
51
The Fastest Gun In The West
BAJA CALIFORNIA, MEXICO, MAY 1998
Cody and Romeo completed a fifteen-mile run through tough desert terrain and were pleased to see that they finished in less than two hours. In their first attempt weeks earlier, they had taken over three hours to make the trek.
On their first outing, which had only been six-miles, the boys had marveled at how difficult running in sand was compared to moving upon a regular surface. They needed to grow accustomed to not only the uneven terrain, but also the Mexican desert’s humid climate, and also its high elevation. They were well over three-thousand feet above sea level and their lungs had to adjust.
Romeo made another adjustment when he asked Spenser to cut his long blond hair to a regular length. The long hair had been making the back of his neck sweat or was getting in his eyes as he ran. With his hair cut, Romeo looked more mature.
The first few runs had been only six miles. Spenser had doubled that to the twelve-mile mark after only a week, then later to fifteen, and he was making another change.
“Thirty miles?” Romeo said. “Dude, that’s more than a marathon, and you want us to do that every day?”
“You’ll adjust,” Spenser said, “and it won’t be every day, just every other day.”
“Will we be going the same way twice or do you have a new route planned out for us?” Cody asked.
“There will be two new routes, which you’ll alternate on. You’ll be walking separately from now on as well.”
Romeo smiled as he sensed a challenge. “We get to race each other, cool.”
Spenser winked. “A little competition should make you both move faster.”
“All this running is leading up to a test, isn’t it?”
“Yes, Cody,” Spenser said, “and that test will determine if your training continues.”
“Will we get to practice with the sniper rifles on the days we don’t walk?” Romeo asked.
“Yeah, along with more handgun training. Both of you are good shots, but you can improve. Now go take a shower, then we’ll have lunch.”
After lunch, Spenser handed out holsters and handguns.
“Before we move on to the sniper rifles I want to see you practice with pistols. While aim is important, so is speed, and that’s what we’ll be working on today.”
Romeo smiled. “You want to see if we’re quick on the draw?”
“Being quick is just half of it. Once the gun leaves the holster you have to be able to shoot what, or who, you’re aiming at. They’ll also be shooting at you.”
Once the holsters were secured, Spenser pointed at Romeo.
“Let’s see how fast you are.”
Romeo whipped his gun from the holster before the eye could blink, then saw Spenser smile in approval.
“You’re quick, Romeo. That’s good. While most can improve at it, being fast on the draw seems to be a natural ability that we’re either born with or not.”
“Are you quicker than anyone?” Romeo asked.
Spenser drew his gun in answer and was faster than Romeo had been.
“I’m fast, but I’m far from being the fastest. Tanner Five was faster than me, and he said that Vince Ryker was even faster than he was.”
“Vince Ryker?” Romeo said. “That’s the dude who almost became a Tanner before you, right?”
“Ryker had all the skills to become a Tanner, but he didn’t have the heart of a Tanner.”
“What’s that mean?” Cody asked.
“Never mind Ryker. Let’s see how fast you are, Cody.”
Cody drew his weapon. At least, Spenser assumed he drew the weapon from the holster, because he never actually saw it. All the eye could make out was a blur of motion and then Cody was holding the gun.
“No way!” Romeo said. “Cody, that was freakin’ awesome.”
Cody smiled. “I’ve always been quick, ever since I was a little kid. My grandfather bought me a toy gun when I was three and I used to practice the quick draw all the time.”
“Do it again,” Spenser said.
Cody placed the gun back in the holster and let his hand drop to his side.
“Say when, Spenser.”
“Go!” Spenser said, and as if by magic Cody was holding the gun out in front of him.
Spenser let out a little gasp. “I’ve never seen anyone move that quick. Let’s see how you do at hitting a target afterward.”
Spenser had rigged up a makeshift shooting range for handgun practice by placing empty tin cans on boards set atop sawhorses. The three of them settled about thirty feet from the cans. There were groups of six cans for each one of them.
“When I say go, we all draw. Without taking careful aim, see how many cans you can hit.”
Spenser gave the signal and the firing commenced. When it was over, all the cans had been blown off their perches.
Spenser walked over and studied the cans. Both Romeo and Cody had placed every shot near the center. Spenser began laughing, and soon tears formed in his eyes from the mirth he felt.
“What so funny?” Romeo said.
Spenser wiped at his eyes.
“Tanner Five spent decades looking for the right apprentice. I’ve only been a Tanner for a few years and I’ve already got two of you, and you’re both as good as I was at this stage.”
“This test you’ve got planned for us,” Cody said, “it’s tough, isn’t it?”
Spenser’s expression grew somber.
“It’s make or break tough. If you fail it, you’re done.”
“What is it?” Romeo asked.
“I’ll tell you when the time comes, until then, train as hard as you can.”
Two days later, the boys each set out for their first thirty-mile run, and they would be alone. Spenser had driven the routes with them the day before and showed them where he would be leaving provisions for them. They would each have access to plenty of water and food, but it would be far tougher than the fifteen-mile runs they’d grown accustomed to doing.
The two routes started from the same position and ended at the same point. The terrain was hilly in spots and offered little shade, while the shifting sand made walking or running a strenuous effort. Being only May, the temperature wasn’t brutal, but there was little relief to be found from the sun.
The boys wore light-brown hiking boots that resembled sneakers and were rather bland in their appearance. The tough boots were made for desert conditions and were also lightweight. Over the boots they wore cloth gaiters, which covered the boot and kept out the sand.
Cody and Romeo each carried a canteen, along with a combination watch and compass. Strapped around their waists we
re small packs that contained first-aid kits, a change of socks, spare shoelaces, and salt tablets.
The packs contained one other item, a small pistol. Spenser wasn’t about to send them off unarmed, despite how unlikely it was that they would meet trouble.
They left just after dawn. Cody finished first, and over eight hours had passed. Romeo came straggling in just minutes later.
They were both quiet as they climbed inside Spenser’s air-conditioned pickup, and they gulped greedily at the cold water left on the seat for them.
“Running twice as much seemed four times as hard,” Cody said.
“It’ll get easier,” Spenser said.
“You trained like this?” Cody asked.
“I did.”
“What was your best time running the thirty miles?”
“Under four hours,” Spenser said, “and I ran full-out the whole time.”
“No way,” Romeo said.
“That came after weeks of training and on a cloudy day. Had there been full sun I would have been moving much slower.”
“I’ll get faster,” Cody said.
“Me too,” said Romeo.
Spenser smiled. “I don’t doubt it for a second.”
52
More Than Meets The Eye
NEW YORK CITY, MARCH 2018
Tanner, going by the name of Thomas Myers, approached the door of his neighbor, Eric Tang. Tanner was wearing the unique glasses that refracted light in such a way as to thwart facial recognition technology. The lenses had an added bonus of softening his intense gaze.
He was dressed casually in a pair of tan chinos and a black V-neck sweater. In his hand was a bottle of wine that Sara had picked out.
Young Guns Box Set - Books 1-4: A Tanner Series (Young Gun Box Sets) Page 18
