Manhattan Hit Man (A Tanner Novel Book 18)

by Remington Kane

  “Yeah, and by then, things were a mess. Still, the kid had shown that it was possible to hit the Giacconis and get away with it when he took the town of Killburry without a fight.”

  “That was Pullo showing respect to Moss Murphy by not killing his kid outright, but trust me, Joe wasn’t about to give up territory.”

  “That was what I figured and I told Moss as much. Anyway, when the hit on you went wrong, Moss knew he had entered a tunnel that had only one exit and that there was no way to turn around and go back. They had to kill you and Pullo, or they would be killed themselves.”

  “Murphy should have explained things to Joe. Liam is young enough that he would get a pass, for a price.”

  “We think alike Tanner, because again, that was my advice to Moss, but no, he listened to little Liam, and now his house is in shambles, men are dead, and he’s in deep with the AK’s.”

  “I’m not sure handing over Liam will stop the war.”

  “It stopped you. That’s all I was after. If you kept going after Moss’s hide tonight, more people would have died, and some of them are my friends.”

  “Going after Moss Murphy wasn’t a contract. If it were, I’d kill him no matter what.”

  “I understand.”

  Tanner had informed Joe by text that he would be back in the city before dawn. To his surprise, he received a text back telling him that everyone was still at the club. Tanner had Kelly drive around to the rear of Johnny R’s, where the limo sat. The metal beast was catching the first faint rays of daylight across its tinted glass.

  Kelly pointed at the damage visible on the car’s rear.

  “Pullo’s chauffeur should be more careful.”

  “In more ways than one,” Tanner said.

  The rear door of the club opened and Pullo stepped out with Bosco and Rico. Seeing Finn Kelly standing beside Tanner made a look of surprise appear on each man’s face.

  Tanner jerked a thumb at Kelly.

  “He’s with me.”

  “And like a good guest, I brought a gift along,” Kelly said.

  Later that morning in New Orleans, Sammy left Missy in his motel room while he went out to take care of a little unpleasant business.

  It was time to pay the snitch.

  Being a disagreeable task even when things went well, having to hand over more money to resolve the Ricky Valente mess grated on Sammy.

  He was in the same trailer park where Ricky had died and Julie had lived like a hunted animal. The snitch’s trailer was located at the edge of the main section and sat up higher than its neighbors.

  Sammy’s knocking on the thin metal door was answered by an old woman whose face broadcast her distrust of him. A former hooker, her beauty, if any, had long departed, and left behind a wrinkled crone.

  “If you’re selling I ain’t buying.”

  “I’m here to pay you for the information you passed on to New York City.”

  “Huh? Oh! Wait, yes, yes, come right in. I should have pegged you for an errand boy, as young as you are.”

  Sammy stepped inside and saw the two cats at the same moment he smelled the odor of their litter box.

  “I’ve been waiting for you to show up, and I’m so glad to see you’re not the other guy.”

  “What other guy?”

  The old woman smiled with one corner of her mouth as she made her fingers into a gun. It wasn’t a good gun, because the fingers were crooked, but Sammy got the idea.

  “You’re talking about the shooter?”

  “Oh yeah, and he gave me the creeps, but tell me something, why frame that girl? Did she screw with the Giacconis too?”

  “You’re saying you saw the hit go down?”

  The lopsided smile appeared again, but this time it was accompanied by a wink.

  “I filmed it. I got him coming and going from both trailers. See, I placed a camera up on the roof of this thing, one of them little ones. That Ricky was worth money. I wasn’t letting him pack up and leave without me knowing it.”

  Sammy stared at the old woman for a moment without saying anything. Was it possible he was going to be able to help Julie after all?

  “I need to see this video, and I’ll pay you for a copy.”

  “How much?”

  “I’ll give you five hundred, along with your payment.”

  This time the whole mouth smiled.

  “You can have it, but you know you can’t do anything with it.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Think about it, boy. If you sold this to a TV station and they put it on the air, the man on the film would kill you too, or one of his friends, goombas they call them.”

  “You’re right, but I still want a copy.”

  “Let’s see the money.”

  Sammy handed her the envelope of cash he carried, then he pulled five-hundred from his wallet.

  “Now, let’s see this video.”

  Julie was in a jail cell, convinced she was going to prison for years.

  She had told her improbable story to half a dozen cops and an assistant DA, and saw the disbelief in their eyes. When Fenner was found in the church parking lot with two wounded knees, one of the cops, a female detective, spoke with her again. She was a middle-aged woman who had grown hardened by her tough job, but not so callous that she didn’t care about seeking the truth.

  While talking to the female detective, Julie thought the woman might believe her, although she hadn’t said so. But the woman seemed unsympathetic once she’d come back from visiting Victor Fenner in the hospital.

  Victor Fenner. At last, Julie knew the name of her tormentor. But Fenner was respected by the cops, and was an investigator himself, although not a police officer.

  Fenner’s story of a carjacking rang false to the female detective, she admitted that much, but she hadn’t been ready to accept Julie’s tale of stalking without more evidence.

  Meanwhile, the evidence that she killed Ricky Valente was enough to see her convicted. The court-appointed attorney was already talking about taking a plea bargain arrangement that would place her behind bars for many years.

  On top of everything else, Missy was gone off to who knew where and had spent the night out in a rainstorm.

  Julie felt the tears welling up and this time she let them come. When the key turned in her cell door, it made her jump and she wiped at her wet face with her sleeve.

  It was the female detective… and she was smiling.

  “Wipe those eyes, girl. You’re free to go.”

  “What?”

  “Video evidence has come to light that all but shows Victor Fenner killing Ricky Valente. It damn sure shows him framing you.”

  Julie stood.

  “Are you serious?”

  The detective grinned at her.

  “You’re free, Julie, and you no longer have to look over your shoulder for Victor Fenner.”

  “Free,” Julie whispered.

  More tears came, but they were birthed by joy.

  28

  It’s For You

  Julie was released from jail, while arrangements were being made to move Fenner to a hospital ward. It was a move Fenner’s lawyers were fighting, but the video evidence against him was damning.

  His veneer of normalcy had slipped when he’d been shown the video taken by the old woman. Knowing that Julie was out of his reach had enraged him so much that he slapped at the laptop displaying the video. After punching a nurse in the face, Fenner had to be tranquilized, and was being considered for a psych evaluation.

  The female detective, whose name was Karla Cooper, had been kind enough to call around to animal shelters in the area where Missy had run off. She had no luck finding a dog matching Missy’s description, and Julie planned to go looking for her dog.

  She had nothing but the clothes on her back and her old car. Her rented trailer was part of Fenner’s crime scene, since he had hidden the bloody sneakers and the murder weapon there, and it would be another day until she could enter it again
.

  That didn’t matter a damn to Julie. She was finally free of Victor Fenner’s threats, although, she’d have to live with the results of his past actions.

  There was still no proof that Fenner had framed her for the charges that sent her to jail in California. Also, as a condition of the plea agreement, she had admitted her guilt in that case.

  She was still banned from working as a nurse, and it was likely she always would be. Despite that, Julie was happy, and once she found Missy, she’d be able to move ahead in life without the shadow of Fenner clouding her days.

  She was headed toward the bus stop when she spotted Sammy. She was going to catch a bus that would take her back to the trailer park, so she could get her car.

  Sammy was surprise enough, as Julie figured he had gone back to New York City, but she was shocked to see him holding Missy, and to her amazement, Missy was licking Sammy’s hand. It seemed her dog had finally met a man she liked.

  Julie ran to them and took Missy in her arms.

  “Oh, my baby. I thought I might never see you again.”

  “I knew you liked me,” Sammy said.

  Julie laughed.

  “I was talking to Missy, but I’m glad to see you too. How did you find her?”

  “By looking for her, and she spent the night in my motel room getting kibble all over the carpet.”

  Julie smiled at Sammy.

  “Thank you, that was very kind of you.”

  “Why don’t we talk over lunch? It’s my treat.”

  “Could we make it food from a drive-thru? I don’t want to leave Missy alone for a while yet.”

  “I’ll do better than that. Since it’s a warm day, I’ll get take-out from a restaurant and we’ll eat in the park.”

  “Okay, but tell me something, is Sammy really your name?”

  Sammy sighed inwardly, thinking his next words would scare Julie off, but, he might as well get it out in the open.

  “I’m Sammy Giacconi.”

  “That name sounds familiar, especially when I connect it to New York.”

  “My grandfather was Sam Giacconi. You might have heard of him.”

  Sammy knew Julie remembered the name when her eyes went wide.

  “The Giacconi Family… and you’re a member?”

  “In good standing, and I’ll understand if you don’t want that lunch anymore.”

  Julie nibbled her bottom lip.

  “You came down here to kill Shane, I mean Ricky, and get back that money you told me about?”

  “I did.”

  Julie studied Sammy’s face.

  “Are you always so sad? You look so sad at times.”

  “Um, I lost someone. I guess I’m still…what about lunch?”

  “Only if we get shrimp somewhere. I have such a craving for shrimp.”

  “Deal,” Sammy said.

  As planned, they ate in the park, while Missy sniffed trees and rolled atop the grass. Sammy mostly listened, as Julie relayed how good it felt to have Fenner behind her, and lamented the loss of her nursing career.

  Sammy excused himself and made a call while Julie cleaned the table and deposited the debris from their lunch in a nearby trashcan. When she sat across from Sammy again, he handed her his phone.

  “I have someone who’d like to talk to you.”

  “Who?”

  “She’ll explain.”

  Julie reached over tentatively, then placed the phone to her ear as if the sound of an air horn might emanate from the tiny speaker.

  “Hello?”

  “Hello, Julie, my name is Laurel Pullo.”

  Julie talked to Laurel for over twenty minutes. When the conversation ended, she told Sammy she wanted to go to New York City with him.

  “Well, not with you, not like that, I mean, together, but like on the same plane.”

  “Right,” Sammy said. “And I’m glad about it. You’ll get a fresh start.”

  “Thank you for connecting me with Laurel. She sounds great.”

  “She is.”

  Missy walked over and put her front paws on Sammy’s leg, asking to be picked up.

  Sammy lifted the dog onto his lap and petted her behind the ears.

  “Missy is a good dog.”

  “Yes,” Julie said, “and maybe a good judge of character too.”

  29

  That First Step Is A Doozy

  Gina Rossetti and Liam Murphy were seated beside each other in a pair of straight back chairs that were positioned in front of Joe Pullo’s desk.

  Tanner and Finn Kelly were present, along with Bosco. Liam had elbowed Bosco in the ribs, in an attempt to escape. Bosco put a stop to that by jamming his fingers hard against the nerve cluster in Liam’s shoulder, which made the punk cry out in pain.

  Gina, with a bruise on her chin, gazed over at Joe with defiance, while Liam’s cocky look never wavered. Bosco and Kelly stood on either side of Joe, with Bosco on his right. Tanner was positioned just behind Liam’s chair, in case the boy needed a reminder to behave.

  “Hey Finn, my old man is going to have you sliced into fish bait.”

  Kelly ignored him and took out a throwaway phone. He had texted Moss Murphy and let him know that they needed to set up a secure line for communication. Murphy, or one of his people, texted Kelly back minutes later with a time, a phone number, and a method to use.

  “Mr. Pullo, once I get Moss on the line I’ll place the call on speakerphone.”

  “Do that. He’ll need to hear from all of us.”

  The call was answered swiftly. Kelly activated the speakerphone and Moss Murphy’s voice filled the room while in mid-sentence.

  “—do with my kid? So help me, Kelly, if that boy is dead I’ll not only kill you but I’ll hunt down your family back in Ireland as well.”

  “Liam is still in one piece, Moss. He’s in New York City with Mr. Pullo, Tanner, myself, and Pullo’s man, Bosco. There’s also a lovely young lass named Gina Rossetti, apparently, she was Liam’s informant.”

  “A girl? He was making major moves based on information from a girl?”

  “She’s smart, Dad. She was the one who came up with the idea to use the gas at the bakery.”

  “Liam? Boy, are you all right?”

  “Not a hair out of place, and don’t give in, you hear me? Pullo knows that if he so much as touches me there will be hell to pay.”

  “You’re damn right there will be hell to pay. Pullo! Joe? You there? Say something.”

  “You’re gonna give me what I want, Moss, or else. There’s no need for me to spell it out.”

  The line was silent, then came the sound of a throat clearing.

  “I understand you’re soon to be a father yourself, Joe. I’m sure there’s no need for me to spell out what I mean by that.”

  “Murphy, this is Tanner. You’re going to beg Joe to forgive you for what you just said, or the next sound you hear is your son’s right arm breaking.”

  “He threatened my boy, Tanner. Two can play that game.”

  “Your boy is a man and a member of organized crime. And Murphy, I do not bluff.”

  “Put a leash on Tanner, Joe, then we can talk.”

  Tanner grabbed Liam’s right wrist with one hand and raised the arm high, while pushing on his shoulder to keep him in the chair. He then brought Liam’s forearm down in a blur, where it collided with Tanner’s rising knee.

  There was an audible Crack! which was followed by Liam screaming, as he gazed in horror at his misshapen arm.

  Seated beside Liam, Gina Rossetti was making a face of disgust, as she leaned away from her lover.

  “He broke my arm! Dad, Tanner broke my arm! Oh, damn it hurts like a motherfucker.”

  “Tanner, you son of a bitch! You touch my boy again and there will be nowhere you can hide.”

  “Hide? Murphy, that was me at your house last night, remember? You threw your best at me and I tore it to shreds. Joe better start hearing a tone of respect coming out of your mouth or next time I won’t
stop until you and your kid are dead.”

  There came the sound of labored breathing amid muttered curses as Moss Murphy tried to control his temper. When he spoke again, he sounded calm.

  “Pullo… tell me what you want.”

  “I want twenty-five million dollars.”

  “Are you insane? Where do you get that figure from?”

  “I like the sound of it. Give me your decision. Liam or the money, you can’t have both.”

  “This is blackmail!”

  Liam leaned toward the phone and shouted.

  “Send a fucking army here, Dad, our people, the AK’s, some mercs. Use that twenty-five million to put Tanner and Pullo in the ground.”

  “That is an option, Pullo. Liam’s right. I could do that.”

  “You could, but your boy would be dead. Liam or the money. You can’t have both.”

  “Fuck that! How about you send Liam back here now or I use those millions to hire that army.”

  Tanner cocked his head as he looked down at the phone.

  “Joe, I think Murphy can’t grasp the concept of his boy dying. I would like to change that.”

  Joe stared up at Tanner. He had no idea what Tanner might do, but he knew Liam wouldn’t like it.

  “Do what you think is best, Tanner.”

  Liam was yanked from his seat by his hair as Tanner gripped his broken arm. The pain made the young thug weak, as he cried out in agony. Tanner left the office while dragging Liam along, as he headed to the left of the elevators.

  There was a staircase there consisting of eighteen blue concrete steps with a black metal handrail above them. The stairs were brilliantly lit by fluorescent lighting, which reflected off the surrounding cinderblock walls, which were painted a stark white.

  Without any preamble or warning, Tanner tossed Liam Murphy down the stairs, headfirst.

  Liam screamed while instinctively stretching out his arms to brace for impact. When his right hand collided with a step, a piece of bone from his broken arm tore through his skin. After flipping over, Liam’s left leg slammed hard against the edge of a step. The sound of the thigh bone breaking was as loud as the snapping of a tree branch. As he neared the bottom of the steps, Liam received a nasty slash across his handsome face when his head collided with the edge of the handrail.