“Maybe, but paternal love is strong.”
Tanner arched an eyebrow.
“Everything has its limits.”
23
Welcome Back To The World
Conrad Burke came through with the assistance Tanner needed and Carlo Scallato began receiving the proper medication for his condition.
Tanner spent time with the man, but he saw no improvement the first week. When he wasn’t with Carlo, his time was spent with Sara, as the two of them grew closer in their new intimacy. When Sara was alone, she shopped, something she hadn’t done much of in years. Most of it was shipped home, but Tanner saw that her wardrobe was attaining a European flair.
He likewise was dressing like the natives, as he bought five new suits that fit him like a glove. These, he mixed and matched with casual shirts, sweaters, and a host of accessories such as watches and ties.
By their third week in Genoa, Tanner and Sara could pass as natives to the casual observer and were blending in quite well.
That was a necessity, for if they stood out their presence might be questioned by the wrong people. Tanner would deal with Bianchi and Bruno Allende at a time of his own choosing, once he had gotten all he could from Carlo Scallato. Tanner maintained a rigid routine of checking for surveillance and any hint of Maurice Scallato. He felt as if he had underestimated the man in California. He did not intend to make that mistake again.
Tanner never thought of Scallato as his equal, because Tanner was certain he had no equals. The only man who came close was his mentor, Tanner Six. As the seventh Tanner, he was the best assassin in the world, not Maurice Scallato. Then again, a bullet in the head from a runner-up could kill you all the same.
When Carlo Scallato’s treatment entered its fourth week, Tanner met Sara for dinner to update her on the elder Scallato’s progress. They ate inside their room, since it made sense to limit their time in public. Whenever Sara did venture out, she wore a blonde wig and sunglasses.
After they’d consumed their meal, they sat out on the suite’s balcony with a bottle of wine. As Sara lay back in his arms, Tanner gave her the good news.
“Carlo is talking more. Most of it is a confused jumble of events from the past, but the doctor says that we could see further improvement.”
“That’s great, and is the fresh air helping any?”
“Yeah, Ginevra makes sure that he gets outside for an hour when the weather is good, and I bought him a box of cigars and a bottle of Scotch whisky.”
Sara laughed.
“Why did you do that?”
“I don’t know, wishful thinking maybe, but I remember hearing that the old man liked his Scotch and cigars, Cuban cigars, of course. Maybe seeing them nearby will make him feel more like his old self.”
“What about that new drug they were going to try?”
“He’s been on it for only a few days; I guess we’ll have to wait and see.”
“I hate to follow your good news with bad news, but I received some today from Conrad Burke.”
“What about?”
“Dan Matthews escaped. He was one of several prisoners that went on the run after a prison transport van was in an accident.”
Tanner placed his wine glass upon the coffee table with a loud clunk.
“That bastard sold me out to Alonso Alvarado, but wait, he also has a grudge against you, doesn’t he?”
“Oh yes. I tracked him down in his island paradise in Panama and handed him over to the CIA. That was after I had him beaten to give up his money.”
“What did Burke have to say about it?”
“He said if you wanted to thank him for the help you received, you could put a bullet in Matthews someday. Don’t forget, he betrayed Burke too.”
“Maybe I’ll make Matthews a priority once Scallato is dead.”
Sara sat up, turned around, then kissed Tanner.
“Matthews can wait. I want to go visit Nadya and Romeo, and see the baby.”
“Right, but you may get to meet Tanner Six too. Romeo and Nadya will be coming to the states soon.”
“I thought they had come already?”
“That was cancelled when the baby developed an ear infection.”
“Where does Tanner Six live?”
“His name is Spenser; he lives in Cody, Wyoming,”
“He lives in a town that has your real name?”
“He says that’s why he settled there.”
“It sounds like he loves you.”
“We’re kind of like father and son, although he’s only a few years older than I am.”
“If he’s so young, then why did he pass on the Tanner name to you?”
“He lost an eye and had to go through a long period of adjustment. Also, he knew I was ready.”
Sara leaned back in his arms again and Tanner held her close.
“Do you have any plans to go back to New York?” Sara asked.
“Yeah, probably once we leave Spenser’s place. Joe Pullo wrote and said he had some work for me, but that it could wait.”
Sara laughed.
“Imagine Pullo’s face if he saw us now.”
“I know, it amazes me that we’re together. I can just imagine how Joe will react.”
Sara tilted her head back so that she could look at Tanner.
“I know, but we’re good together, and I don’t want it to end.”
“We’re just beginning,” Tanner said, and kissed her.
Tanner arrived at the nursing home and entered through a side door with the use of a key.
Ginevra was practically living at the home since Carlo Scallato began his treatment, and Tanner was surprised to see that the patients had been left alone. He calmed one man by picking up and handing him the pair of socks he liked to hold, as he noticed that Carlo was missing from the day room.
As he moved toward the ward where the beds were, Tanner saw an overturned wheelchair. Without having to give it conscious thought, his gun appeared in his hand.
The wheelchair was near the last bed in the row, Carlo’s bed, which was near the windows. As Tanner drew closer, he saw that one of the window panes was broken, and a cool breeze was drifting through the room.
Then, he saw a disturbing sight. Someone clad in pajamas was lying on the side of the bed, although only their lower legs, socks, and slippers could be seen.
Tanner was moving to investigate when he realized his mistake. It was a trick, and one he had used more than once himself. There was no body, only a pair of pajama bottoms stuffed with a sheet from the bed, along with the slippers.
Tanner spun around with his gun at the ready and placed the barrel of it against the chest of his would-be attacker.
It was Carlo Scallato. The old assassin was barefoot, wearing a pajama top and an adult diaper. In his right hand was a jagged piece of the window glass. He was holding the other end of the shard after having wrapped a pillow case around it.
The old man displayed no fear of Tanner’s gun, but he appeared annoyed because his ruse hadn’t worked. He looked Tanner up and down and asked a question in Italian.
“Chi diavolo sei?” which in English translated to “Who the hell are you?”
Tanner lowered the gun.
“Welcome back to the world, Carlo Scallato.”
24
The Ghost
Carlo had forced his nurse, Ginevra, into a supply closet by threatening her with his makeshift knife. After Tanner freed her, she explained to Carlo about his dementia and that he was a patient of the nursing home.
Despite having been threatened by Carlo, Ginevra still smiled at the old assassin as she helped him get back into bed.
“I don’t even understand how you can walk,” Ginevra told Carlo. “Most men in your condition would have needed weeks of physical therapy after having been bedridden for so long.”
Carlo answered her in his craggy voice.
“I’m not most men, and you’re one good looking woman.”
Ginevra blushed, t
hen leaned over and kissed Carlo on the cheek. After that, the old man went to sleep.
Tanner stayed beside the bed hoping to speak with him when he awoke, but when Carlo came around again, he was back to being confused and living in the past.
The doctor told Tanner that the new medication was experimental, but that Carlo’s episode of normalcy should expand into longer periods of the same.
It was another three days before the doctor’s words proved true, and Tanner settled in a chair beside the old man, as Carlo sat up in bed.
“Have a nice reunion with your nephew, Signore Rizzo,” Ginevra said. “I’ll be back in a short time.”
“It’s a date,” Carlo said.
When Ginevra was out of sight, Carlo threw a thumb after her.
“Why is she calling me Rizzo and thinks that you’re my nephew?”
Tanner explained it all to the old man, ending it by telling him that his name was Tanner.
“I knew a Tanner once. Are you one of those Tanner’s?”
“You knew my mentor, Tanner Six; I’m Tanner Seven.”
“Yeah, your mentor was so young when I knew him, but he beat me to the target, and I lost money on a bet we’d made too.”
“Your son and I don’t get along as well. We’re trying to kill each other.”
“You are a dead man then, Tanner. My son, Maurice, is the deadliest and most heartless killer who ever lived. He even killed his own brother.”
“You knew that, and you still allowed him to follow in your footsteps?”
“I did, because I had no proof, but I knew. I knew the second I saw that ring on his finger.”
“What ring?”
“It’s a ring we all wear. It was made from the slug that killed my great-great-grandfather’s first target. That was Gino Scallato, and he dug that slug out of a man who had raped and tortured two women.”
“So, you’re saying you never gave it to Maurice?”
The old man’s face reddened.
“I gave that ring to my oldest son, Bernardo. He died while making a hit. The next day, I saw that Maurice was wearing the ring, and I knew, oh yeah, I knew, but it was years before I could say the words.”
“Tell me where I can find him, and I’ll make him pay for killing his brother.”
Carlo wagged a finger.
“He is still my son, and anyway, I have no idea where he might be. The day I finally confronted him about killing Bernardo was the last day I saw him. I was in a hospital then with a broken back. I retired completely, and Maurice took over. Now he is Il Fantasma, The Ghost, and you Tanner, you will never kill him.”
“I will kill him, Carlo. He’s no ghost, he’s just another assassin.”
“The day you see him, Tanner, that’s the day you die.”
“We’ve already tangled once, but he got away.”
“Are you serious? You survived a meeting with my son?”
“And he survived me, but he won’t keep surviving me.”
“I would make a bet with you, but dead men can’t pay up. Anyway…I… the dog…the dog… the dog, somebody let the damn dog out.”
Tanner was confused for a moment, but then realized that Carlo was slipping away into his dementia. He tried to bring him back, but the old man spoke to him as if he thought he was someone else, then, simply babbled.
Figuring that there was no longer any point in staying by his side, Tanner stood to leave. He was at the door when Carlo spoke again.
“I went away, didn’t I?”
“Carlo?”
“Yeah, for now. Sit down, Tanner, and let me talk some sense into you.”
“What’s that mean?” Tanner asked, as he sat again.
“Maurice, he was never right, but he is a perfect killer. He’s not one of those sickos that can’t feel, no. I will never believe that, even though I accused him of that once. Still, he can turn off emotion and erase feelings at will. I’ve seen him do it. He loved Bernardo when he was a child, but ambition became more important.”
“That happens to many men.”
“Is it happening to you? If you were to kill Il Fantasma, you would be an instant legend in all of Europe.”
“I don’t care about that, but I don’t run from a fight or hide from any man.”
“Is this all you have, boy, this being a Tanner? Or is there something else in your life?”
Tanner thought that over and was surprised by the answer.
The truth was that he wasn’t sure. Being a Tanner had been everything, but Alexa had shown him that there was more to life. He had no plans to give it up, but he thought that maybe there could be something else as well. When he thought about that, Sara Blake came to mind.
“I have… someone.”
“Then take that someone and hide, boy, or you will die.”
In answer, Tanner shook his head.
Carlo shook his head as well, but it was in a sad slow motion.
“We Scallato’s have a tradition, Tanner. Something we do to test the killer instinct of our sons. When Bernardo was fourteen, I handed him a shotgun and told him to kill three kittens I had put in a box. He couldn’t do it. There was no disgrace, about half of us fail the test, but you see, a few months later, Bernardo told Maurice about it. I arrived home from a hit a week later to find my wife in tears. Maurice had stolen the litter of five puppies from a neighbor’s house.”
“He killed them with a shotgun?” Tanner asked.
Something like shame passed across Carlo’s face, then, he answered.
“Maurice strangled them with his bare hands. He was only nine-years-old.”
Tanner sat with the old man until Carlo fell asleep.
25
Follow The Bouncing Thug
Although Carlo turned out to be no help in tracking down Maurice Scallato, Tanner still had a plan that might lead him to the Sicilian.
He and Sara followed the nursing home director, Bianchi, into a rough looking section of the city. The car Bianchi was riding in wasn’t a limo, but it was as big as one and a luxury automobile. The two bodybuilder types were with Bianchi again and one of them was doing the driving. After turning down an alleyway, Bianchi picked up a short hooker who was standing among a group of taller women, and the car rode off.
Tanner followed, saw the car turn down a second alley, and realized that it was a designated spot.
“They’ll park back there, and have the hooker do her thing,” he told Sara. “Afterward, they’ll leave. We should approach on foot, otherwise, they might take off.”
They left their vehicle parked by a dumpster and began walking down the alley. The two goons were standing outside the car, and watched them approach, but made no move to reach for a weapon, nor did Tanner.
“What’s your plan,” Sara whispered.
“I’ll beat the hell out of them and grab up Bianchi.”
“You’re going to beat up those two giants?” Sara said, and Tanner smiled at the disbelief he heard in her voice.
“Yes, but stay back so I have plenty of room to work.”
“All right, but why not use a gun to threaten them?”
“A gun will be too noisy. I’ll only use it if I have to.”
“Be careful, Tanner.”
“I will.”
As Tanner hoped they would, the bodyguards just watched as they approached. There was enough light in the alley to see that their hands were empty, and the two giants thought he and Sara posed no physical threat to them. As they came within yards of the men, one of the hulking figures took a step forward.
“Return the way you came. It’s private back here.”
“In a smelly alleyway?” Tanner said.
“Turn around or you’ll be in for a world of hurt.”
Sara stopped walking when she was ten feet away, but Tanner kept going. One of Bianchi’s bodyguards folded his arms across his chest. He was wearing a sleeveless T-shirt and the sheer size of his biceps was impressive. The other guard held up a hand and then went to push T
anner backwards. That was his undoing.
Tanner grabbed the man’s thumb with one hand and gripped his palm in the other, then yanked, dislocating the thumb. Even as the first hood was howling in pain, Tanner was using him as a brace to deliver a kick to the kneecap of the other one. The kick to the knee was followed by an elbow to the side of the second thug’s head and the man was down and moaning.
The first thug pushed aside the pain of his thumb and reached for a gun he had at the small of his back. Tanner sent a foot flying into the man’s groin. That doubled the thug over and he was fed a knee to the face. The blow was so hard that a tooth flew out of his mouth. After kicking the man’s face, Tanner took his gun, then, he gave his buddy a kick in the face for good measure.
The back door of the car flew open and Tanner raised the gun.
“Don’t shoot!” cried a small voice in Italian.
It was the hooker, and makeup or no makeup, Tanner could tell she was just a child of no more than twelve. Through the back window, Tanner could see Bianchi pulling up his pants. Tanner walked by the hooker and dragged Bianchi out of the car, to drop the man on his ass.
Bianchi was crying and whimpering as he begged for his life. Meanwhile, the hooker had pushed past Sara and said she didn’t see anything.
Sara spoke to Tanner.
“Shouldn’t we go after her, help her somehow?”
Tanner shook his head.
“Dragging her off the street won’t help. She’d just be back out here tomorrow.”
“I know you’re right, but did you see her… she’s a baby.”
“A damaged baby, and men like Bianchi make exploiting her profitable.”
Bianchi was still crying and begging for his life when they transferred him into the back of their car. Sara sat to his left while pointing the gun of his own bodyguard at him.
Bianchi stopped crying long enough to realize that he had met his abductors before.
“I know you. I know both of you.” He snapped his fingers as it came to him. “Rizzo, you’re old man Rizzo’s son, no wait, nephew, right?”
[Tanner 16.0] To Kill a Killer Page 14
