by Carol Lynne
Once again the move to LA came to mind. He laid his head on Moody’s chest and hugged him.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Moody asked, threading his fingers through Angelo’s hair.
“Everything but this,” he mumbled. He realised how true the statement was. For the first time in his adult life, something had topped his list of priorities besides work.
Chapter Seven
Moody woke to the buzzing of his cell phone. He reached blindly towards the bedside table and grabbed the instrument before it woke Angelo. “Torrence,” he growled.
“Turn on the news.”
“Rico?” Moody asked, opening his eyes.
“Yes, now turn on the news.”
Moody fumbled on the nightstand and found the remote. He turned on the television and flipped to one of the local news stations. There on the screen was a handcuffed Paul Overton, William Overton’s father, being led into a police station. “What the fuck is going on, Rico?”
“We arrested Paul for conspiracy to commit murder. He paid off one of the guards to let Billy James Maxwell into William’s cell to do the deed.”
Billy James was the informant who had fingered Rico for passing off the key to Overton’s cell. Moody suddenly remembered something Rico had said. “We? You said we arrested.”
“I’ve been working with the California Bureau of Investigation trying to figure out who paid off the guard and Billy.”
“What?” Moody felt Angelo stir beside him, and reached out to run a hand across his lover’s hip.
Rico sighed. “I’m not as inept as you seem to believe.”
“I never said…”
“Whatever,” Rico interrupted him. “I just wanted you to know.”
“And Carl Blakely?” Moody questioned his nephew.
“The CBI thought it would be a good idea for me to infiltrate Blakely’s group. We had no idea who’d paid to have William murdered. Turns out it was the guy’s own father.”
Relief washed over Moody. “So you don’t agree with Blakely’s teachings? And the stuff you said to me?”
There was a moment of silence before Rico spoke. “I don’t believe anything that asshole spouts, but I guess some of what I said to you was the truth.”
Moody rubbed his chest as the words sank in. “What parts?”
“I’ll never be the cop you are, and I know it. I’m done being compared to you. I’ve accepted a job with the CBI. I’ll be transferring to the San Diego office as soon as Paul Overton’s trial is over.”
He felt Angelo’s hand land on his back and glanced over his shoulder with a smile. It was obvious his nephew harboured a great deal of resentment towards him, but he still didn’t know whether it was because he was a damn good cop or gay. Moody would have to accept the fact he may never know the real truth.
“Congratulations, Rico. You should be proud of yourself.”
“I am. I’ve got a ton of reports to fill out, so I’d better get to it.”
“Wait! Can I ask you a question about Blakely?”
“You can ask, but I really wasn’t able to get close enough to the arrogant sonofabitch to find out anything.”
“Did you notice any signs of weakness? Like has he been sick or anything lately?”
“I only saw him once the entire time I hung around over there. He stayed in his room for the most part, but I did see him open the door and call for Travis, his right-hand man. Why?”
“Jake said it looked like Blakely had lost weight since William Overton’s trial.”
“Yeah. I can see that. I didn’t give it much thought at the time, but now that you mention it, he did seem thinner.”
“Okay. That’s all I needed to know. Will I see you before you leave town?” Moody asked.
“Probably.”
Rico hung up and Moody tossed his phone onto the table.
“Something wrong?” Angelo asked.
Moody laid back down and pulled his lover into his arms. “The CBI just arrested the people involved in William Overton’s death, including Paul Overton. Evidently he wanted his fag son silenced before he could do the family any more damage.”
Angelo leaned up on one elbow. “So that’s good, right?”
“Yeah.” Moody sought Angelo’s mouth in a deep kiss. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever get over the guilt of believing his nephew was capable of having something to do with the murder.
Angelo broke the kiss and narrowed his eyes. “What aren’t you telling me? Is it about Blakely?”
Moody knew the guilt over Rico was something he needed to work out internally, telling Angelo what an ass he’d made of himself wouldn’t serve any purpose. He decided to divulge his theory about Carl Blakely instead. “I think he’s sick.”
“Well we already knew that.”
“No. I mean medically sick,” Moody clarified.
Angelo rested his head on the pillow beside Moody’s. “What does that have to do with going after me?”
Moody shook his head. “I’m still working on that. Jake said something that’s got me thinking. He wondered why Blakely would suffer my wrath for a few minutes of news coverage.”
“And?” Angelo asked, kissing his way down Moody’s chest.
“And, I don’t know. I need to go into the station though. There are a couple things I want to check out.”
Angelo insinuated himself between Moody’s thighs. “What about the poker game later? You told Bobby you’d be there.”
Moody threaded his fingers through Angelo’s hair as his lover engulfed his cock. “I’ll be there.”
* * * *
After several hours on the computer, Moody struck gold. “Jake, look at this.”
His partner walked up behind Moody and peered over his shoulder. “Okay, I’ll bite. What am I looking at?”
Moody pointed halfway down the column of names. “Carl Blakely’s sued an oncologist in his hometown. Looks like the case was settled out of court for an undisclosed amount.”
Jake whistled. “Sounds like you were right on the money about him seeking medical treatment here.”
Moody nodded. “If he’s dying, maybe his goal wasn’t to provoke an attack, but a murder.” He brought up the snapshot of the IM conversation between Angelo and Carl. “See, right here.”
AP: That doesn’t mean anything and you know it. I know you have people watching me. You need to understand that Detective Torrence is after you. He won’t let you continue to get away with this.
CB: That’s what I’m counting on.
“I think Blakely was hoping he’d push hard enough for me to kill him.”
“What would he gain if he was dead?”
“If he’s dying already, maybe he’s trying to make a martyr out of himself. Can you imagine the headlines his death would receive? Especially if it was at the hands of a queer.”
“You’re a cop. He can’t honestly be that stupid.”
Moody leaned his head back to stare up at his partner. “You’re kidding me, right? This is Carl Blakely we’re talking about. He thinks all fags are immoral anyway. I bet he thinks we’re one hissy fit away from murder.”
Jake walked back to his desk, still shaking his head. “If you’re right, what’re you going to do about it? We’re still a long way from having enough hard evidence to have him arrested.”
Moody leant back in his chair and propped his feet up on his desk. “Carl Blakely wants to be in the headlines, so maybe we give him what he wants, only not for the reason he wants.”
“Is this a riddle me this, Batman, question?” Jake asked.
Moody grinned. A plan was forming in his mind, but he’d need a lot of help from his friends to pull it off. “Okay, here’s what I need you to do…”
* * * *
Angelo glanced up at Moody. “Are you sure he’s not going to shoot us or something?”
Moody rested a hand on the small of Angelo’s back. “With the television cameras around? Not a chance.”
Angelo leaned against Moody’s si
de. He was having a hard time putting everything Moody had told him into perspective. On one hand, he understood that even if the police were able to get enough evidence that Blakely was behind the harassment, the likelihood the man would spend time behind bars was slim. So he’d gone along with Moody’s plan to teach Blakely a lesson through kindness instead of retribution.
“Oh, there are the news crews. I’ll be right back,” Moody said, kissing Angelo before he ran off.
Angelo studied the gathering crowd. After placing a call to his closest friends, they’d all agreed to start a GLBT phone tree of sorts. They’d each called everyone they knew in the vast San Francisco GLBT community, to ask their help in serving Carl Blakely a slice of humble pie.
Of course the majority of the people they’d contacted jumped at the chance to put Blakely in his place. How dare the man try to spread his vile gospel in one of the largest GLBT areas of the country?
He waved above the crowd when he spotted Zac, Eric, Trey and Cole. Zac waved back as they headed towards Angelo.
“Great turnout,” Trey commented, glancing around.
“Julian’s swinging by the marina to pick up Bobby, and Kent will be here. Unfortunately, Marco won’t be able to make it, but he said to give you his love,” Eric told Angelo.
“We’re ready,” Moody called, jogging over.
Angelo opened the back passenger door of his car and pulled out the large sheet cake. Now that the time to present his gift to Blakely was at hand, Angelo started to feel silly.
Moody must’ve picked up on Angelo’s thoughts, because his lover bent down and whispered. “Just remember what this man cost you. Your job, your peace of mind. He had one of his goons paint your car, your friends’ home…”
“Yeah, I remember.” Angelo didn’t need Moody to go over everything Blakely had ordered done to him. He just wanted his life back. “I hope this gets him off my ass.”
“He isn’t stupid enough to continue the harassment once the media puts a spotlight on the two of you.”
Angelo squared his shoulders and tilted his chin up for a kiss. Moody didn’t disappoint and laid a good one on him. It wasn’t until Moody extracted his tongue from Angelo’s mouth that he noticed the cameras.
Shit. Well, there goes getting a job in this town. He nodded at Moody and started to walk towards Blakely’s rented house. The closer he got, the more he began to feel like the gay pied piper.
A quick glance to his left and right made him feel better. His friends were all there with him, save one, but he knew Marco was there in spirit. With a deep breath, he stood on the small concrete front step of Blakely’s and waited for Moody to ring the doorbell.
The three news stations that had shown up positioned themselves to get a good shot of the ‘goodwill gesture’. The door opened and someone Angelo had never seen before stared out at the gathered crowd.
Moody nudged Angelo. “Is Reverend Blakely here?” Angelo asked.
“Who’re you? What’s going on here?”
Angelo held out the cake. “We heard the Reverend was ill and wanted to offer him our well wishes.”
The guy narrowed his eyes. “You’re that fag aren’t you?”
“Yes, I am a homosexual.” Good Lord, nothing like coming out to an entire city. Not that he’d been in the closet, but he’d never openly advertised his sexuality.
“No. I mean you’re the guy who…” The man at the door snapped his mouth shut. “Carl’s not up to visitors.”
“What the hell are all those people doing in the yard?”
Angelo grinned as Carl Blakely’s voice yelled the question loud enough for the news reporters to catch on their microphones.
The door shut and he could hear voices being raised. After a few seconds, the door swung open and a gaunt-looking Carl Blakely stood in front of Angelo. “What’s the meaning of this?”
Once again Angelo held out the ‘Get Well Soon’ cake. “Despite our differences, we heard you weren’t well. We came together today to bring you this.”
As Angelo held his breath, Blakely’s face began to turn red. Angelo counted the reverend’s heartbeats in the throbbing vein on the man’s forehead. Carl’s eyes flashed from the cake, to Angelo and then to the cameras.
Angelo gave the bigoted son-of-a-bitch the biggest smile he had in his arsenal. “I hope we can put all our issues behind us.”
He knew he was laying it on thick, but he was starting to enjoy himself. The asshole in front of him had done his best to make Angelo’s life hell. He deserved to be humiliated by the ‘Goodwill Queers’.
“Thank you, but I don’t eat cake. If you’ll excuse me,” Blakely ground out between clenched teeth before closing the door in Angelo’s face.
He turned towards the cameras, still holding the cake. “Well, we tried. I only hope Reverend Blakely will see the gesture in the spirit it was meant.”
Moody cleared his throat and Angelo gave the cameras his most innocent grin.
* * * *
Sitting in the passenger seat, Moody couldn’t contain his laughter. “I need a trip to the dentist. I think you gave me a cavity with all the syrupy sweetness you were pouring out back there.”
Angelo chuckled along as he pulled into Bobby’s driveway behind Kent’s big pickup. Before getting out of the car, he leaned over the console and gave Moody a kiss. “I figure after that, Blakely will either kill me, or run for the hills.”
Moody kissed Angelo again, thrusting his tongue deep in Angelo’s mouth. He broke away and stared into Angelo’s eyes. “Don’t even joke about that.”
Angelo pursed his lips. “Love you.”
Moody rolled his eyes. “You’re already learning how to work me, aren’t you?”
Angelo grinned and opened his car door. “Would you be the big strong hero and grab the cake out of the back while I get the beer?”
Moody got out of the car and flexed his muscles, much to Angelo’s delight. He heard a groan come from behind him and turned to see Marco with his mouth hanging open.
“Close your mouth, you’ll draw bugs,” Angelo teased.
Marco laughed and continued towards them. “Sorry I couldn’t make it earlier. I had something I couldn’t get out of.”
Angelo studied Marco as he neared. He’d seen a number of different expressions on his friend’s face, but he didn’t know that he’d ever seen Marco look so…happy. “What’s different about you?”
Marco’s smile widened. “Can you keep a secret?”
Angelo wondered if the man was in love. Marco seemed to be absolutely glowing. “Sure, but who am I keeping the secret from?”
Marco gestured to the house. “I’m just not ready to share it.”
Angelo glanced at Moody. “Would you mind taking the cake inside for me?”
Moody nodded and headed to the front door. Angelo turned back towards Marco. “Okay, spill.”
With his hands in his pockets, Marco looked down at his feet. “I lied on my job application.”
Confused, Angelo scratched the top of his head. “Huh? What job application?”
“The one I filled out when I started working for Ken,” Marco mumbled.
Angelo hated to see Marco’s high spirits plummet. He put a hand on his friend’s shoulder and squeezed. “What did you lie about?”
“He said he wouldn’t hire me unless I had a high school diploma. The truth is, I was only sixteen at the time. My dad was a mean drunk who couldn’t keep a job. He ran my mom off two years after she had my baby sister, Maria. With no money, I had no choice but to quit school and try to take care of my brothers and sister.”
“I think that’s commendable. You’ve worked for Kent for a while though. I can’t believe he hasn’t discovered your true age.”
Marco shook his head. “Kent doesn’t know anything about me. He’s never bothered to get to know the real me.”
“So what’s changed?”
“The baby, Maria, is ten now. I’ve spent eight years helping raise them, now they’re
at the age when I can leave Maria with Bruno or Nicky.” Marco reached into his back pocket and withdrew a sheet of paper. “I’ve been going to night school. I took my GED test, and I passed. We had our ceremony earlier. I know it probably sounds corny, but I wanted to walk across the stage in front of my brothers and sister and show them that you’re never too old to get an education.”
By the time Marco finished, the happy man of a few minutes earlier had tears in his eyes. Angelo pulled his friend into his arms and thumped him on the back. “I bet they were so proud of you.”
Marco nodded.
“So we should celebrate.” Angelo gestured to the house. “We’ve even got cake.”
“No! I don’t want to make a big deal out of it. Please?”
“But it is a big deal. We love you, you big dork.”
Marco didn’t say anything. Angelo knew his friend was thinking of Kent. Even though he’d basically raised three kids, and gone back to school, Marco still felt he wasn’t good enough for the business owner. As much as Angelo wanted to shake Marco and make him see the truth, he knew from his own experience that Marco would have to discover he was worth it on his own.
“I won’t say anything, but when you’re ready, I’m coming back here and throwing you the biggest party you’ve ever had.”
“What do you mean you’re coming back here? What’re you talking about?”
Shit. He hadn’t meant to say that. “I don’t know for sure, but I might need to move out of the area to find another job in radio.”
“That’s bullshit. You’re gonna leave that fine looking man you’ve got wrapped around your finger for a fucking job? What the hell’s wrong with you?”
Leave it to Marco to put things in perspective. “Okay, first of all, Moody is in no way wrapped around my finger.”
“Really? Am I mistaken or did he not just carry a fucking cake into a house of virtual strangers for you.”
“They’re not strangers. He’s been around the guys before.”
Marco nodded. “Is he here for you?”
“Yeah.”
“Then maybe you should think about being here for him.”
