A MAN OF RESPECT
A Tanner Novel - Book 23
Remington Kane
Contents
Introduction
Join My Inner Circle
Acknowledgments
1. The Park After Dark
2. Oh, Baby
3. Personal
4. The Commission
5. To Be Me Once Again
6. Peek A Boo
7. Making Waves
8. Just A Matter Of Time
9. Planning A Road Trip
10. Sam Browne
11. Bad Cop, Bad Cop
12. Ratted Out By The Ex
13. Bingo!
14. Mercy Me
15. Why Couldn’t There Be Two?
16. A Woman With A Gun
17. Payback
18. Good For The Tummy
19. A Doctor In The House
20. Deaf Ears
21. Doc In A Box
22. From Bad To Worse
23. Interrogation
24. Escape & Evade
25. Drunk And Disorderly
26. Into The Fire
27. One Down
28. In The Nick Of Time
29. Laugh Or Cry
30. A Favor From An Enemy
31. Three Down
32. One To Go
33. Someday
34. I’m Back!
TANNER RETURNS!
Afterword
Join My Inner Circle
Bibliography
Make Contact
Introduction
Members of the Mafia’s commission deploy an unusual tactic to deal with Tanner’s murder of Boston mob boss Moss Murphy.
While visiting his brother in California, Tanner helps Stark take on a gang of murderous thieves.
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Acknowledgments
I write for you.
—REMINGTON KANE
1
The Park After Dark
Tanner noticed the first man who was out to kill him because of the cheap green suit the guy was wearing. It made the gun he carried on his hip bulge like an erection.
Tanner and Sara had just returned to Manhattan from a three-day trip to Florida, where they had visited Romeo, Nadya, and baby Florentina, who had celebrated her second birthday. The trip had relaxed Tanner, but he was on full alert now.
“What’s wrong?” Sara asked, after noting the change in Tanner’s demeanor. They were walking back to their car in the airport parking lot when Tanner spotted the guy in the green suit.
“There’s someone following us, but he’s staying back. My guess is that he’s not working alone.”
Sara fought the desire to swivel her head about to look for the man and asked Tanner where he was.
“He’s at our eight o’clock position and three rows over. And, I just spotted two more up ahead. Whoever they are, they don’t appear to want to make trouble at the airport. That’s a wise move, given all the cameras and armed security that are here. They’ll follow us and wait for a better opportunity. I don’t think they’re aware that I’ve noticed them.”
“How did they know we were here?”
“Maybe they tracked my car. It’s often parked outside Johnny R’s when I’m visiting Joe Pullo. If they have connections, they may have been able to locate it here and then staked it out.”
That thought caused Tanner to scrutinize the vehicles parked near his, and that’s when he spotted two more men sitting inside a gray van. The windows on the van were heavily-tinted, causing the men to be two indistinct shapes.
Tanner gripped a travel bag in his left hand, while Sara was pulling a suitcase on wheels behind her. She was unarmed, but Tanner was carrying. He had traveled while using the Homeland Security I.D. given to him by Thomas Lawson.
Sara turned her head as she pretended to cough, so she could steal a glance at the thug in the cheap suit.
“They’re not from Ordnance Inc.,” Sara said. “None of them have on red ties or sunglasses.”
“I think they’re hoods from out of Chicago. It looks like the mob’s commission has finally decided to deal with me.”
“If that’s true, they would send more than three men.”
“I’ve counted five so far, there are two in a gray van on our right and a row over.”
“What are you going to do?”
“They’ll be going back to Chicago in body bags.”
Sara sighed. “Another war. When will they learn to leave you alone?”
Tanner smiled. He had just informed his fiancée that there were five men out to kill him and that more would likely be sent in the coming days. In reaction, Sara’s first thought was of how foolish they were. Sara never doubted that he would triumph over his enemies, no matter how many he faced. Every time Tanner thought he loved her as much as possible, his affection deepened.
As Tanner and Sara reached their vehicle, he pretended to search his pockets for a key, then appeared disgusted with himself for having lost or forgotten it. After checking his pockets again, he let out a curse.
“You want them to think we’re locked out of the car, why?”
Tanner took Sara by the arm and guided her away from the vehicle and back toward the terminal.
“It’s unlikely, but they may have tampered with it; we’ll take a taxi back to the city.”
The men observing them seemed to buy the act. They kept their distance while the van’s engine came to life.
The evening traffic into Manhattan was slow and yet steady as the sun dipped lower in the sky. By the time the cab pulled up in front of their apartment building, it was dark. The van followed them, as its five predators had shadowed the man they considered their prey. They were likely prepared to wait days for an opportune moment to strike. Tanner had no intention of stretching things out. He was the true predator, and he ached for a kill.
After leaving the taxi, Tanner walked Sara to the entrance of their high-rise, as the doorman came out to take their bags.
“I’m not coming in, Sara. I need to handle this tonight so I can figure out what’s going on.”
“Let me help you.”
“You’re not armed.”
“I can get my weapon from the penthouse in two minutes.”
“No, I’ll handle this. I’ll be taking them on a one-way tour of Central Park.”
Sara kissed him. “Be safe.”
“Deadly would be better.”
“Then be deadly,” Sara said.
Tanner watched her enter the building and walk onto the elevator with the doorman. The man in the green suit had gotten out of the van and was pretending to look into the window of a travel agency. He had lit up a cigarette and was attempting to appear casual.
Tanner crossed the street during a break in the traffic and headed for the park. Despite being spring, the city was chilled by unseasonably low temperatures.
Tanner was wearing an overcoat he had changed into inside the taxi. He had bought the garment off the cabbie for two-hundred dollars. The black & white tweed coat had a fake fur collar and smelled of cigar smoke, but it was distinctive, which was what Tanner needed it to be.
After entering the park, Tanner headed along a path that would take him away from the street and the areas where other people might be. Since this was New York City, that was a more difficult task than it would be in most parks. Fortunately, the cooler weather had aided in keeping people indoors this evening.
Along with the cabbie’s coat, Tanner had also asked for a cigar. As he paused to light the smoke, he used his peripheral vision to catch sight of the man following h
im. It was the same guy he’d first spotted at the airport, and his friends were probably on their way. Tanner got the cigar going well and took a puff off it. The thing tasted nasty, but like the coat, it would serve its purpose.
Inside the van, the driver, a man named Mike was on his cell phone. He was speaking to the thug in the cheap green suit who was named Jerry.
“Keep him in sight until the rest of the guys catch up to you; they’re crossing the street now.”
“All right, but I could probably take care of Tanner by myself. He doesn’t even know he’s being followed.”
“Maybe, maybe not, they say this guy is one tricky bastard.”
“I heard that too, but tricky or not he’s just one guy; we’ll ace him and be back in Chicago in—oh crap.”
“What’s wrong?”
“I’ve lost sight of him.”
“Find him, Jerry.”
“I will, I will, and I’ll call you back.”
“Wait! Don’t hang up… aw shit.”
After realizing the call had ended, Mike got the van moving. There was a sign at the park’s entrance warning that no unauthorized motor vehicles were allowed inside the park. Mike authorized himself by driving onto a walking path after cutting his headlights. He then called one of the other members of his crew.
“Al, Jerry lost Tanner.”
“We’re with Jerry now, Mike,” came a whispered reply. “We can’t see Tanner, but we can smell the cigar he lit up.”
“Good, that means he’s still close. How far along this path are you guys?”
“Not too far, hey, is that the van I hear?”
“Yeah, I drove into the park.”
“Stop where you are, or Tanner might hear it and figure out something’s up.”
Mike found himself whispering along with Al, although it wasn’t necessary on his end of the call.
“I’ll park back here along the trail, if Tanner spots you guys and tries to circle back, I’ll nail him.”
“It sounds like a plan, watch your ass.”
“You too,” Mike said, as he ended the call and cut off the van’s engine. To his right, and about a hundred yards away was a group of people walking along a parallel trail. One of the group’s members pointed at him while another took out a cell phone.
“Damn it,” Mike said, as he figured they were reporting seeing a vehicle in the restricted area. That meant the cops would be showing up soon. As Mike watched the group drift away, someone opened the door on the van. As he turned his head to see who was there, a sharp pain erupted at the base of his skull.
“It’s just the cigar,” Jerry said.
He and his fellow hoods had followed the scent of tobacco to the spot where Tanner had set down the cigar atop a stone bench. As they were about to spread out and begin a search, the sound of a single gunshot echoed through the park. It had come from farther back along the walking trail.
Al took out his cell phone. Before he could dial, his phone vibrated, as he received a call from Mike.
“What was that shot, Mike?”
There was no answer, and then the call ended. Not knowing if the phone service was to blame or if his crew boss was in trouble, Al told the others to follow him back to where the van was. As they rounded a curb while walking fast, they spotted the van’s headlights, Jerry laughed and pointed at the body that was twenty feet in front of the vehicle. The fur collar of the tweed coat made him certain he was looking at Tanner.
“All right! Mike got the bastard.”
The four men gathered around the body, which was lying face down. Blood and bits of brain matter had marred the fake fur on the coat. When the tires of the van squealed, they all looked up to find the vehicle racing toward them. Jerry, while tripping over his own feet, was the only one of the four to avoid getting struck. As for Al, he was dragged along with Mike’s corpse after the van ran him over.
The other two men were alive but suffering a combination of injuries from the van’s impact. Two quick shots from Tanner’s gun made certain they would never rise again.
“Shit!” Jerry said, as he tried to free his weapon while lying on the ground. The rear sight on his weapon had caught on the inner lining of his suit jacket.
When he saw that Tanner was pointing a gun at his face, Jerry gave up the struggle and showed Tanner his empty hands.
“Who sent you?”
“Sh… Shane, Shane Silva.”
Shane Silva was one of the mob’s commissioners. As Tanner suspected, they had decided to come after him.
“How many more of you are there?”
Jerry shook his head wildly. “No more, just us five… Shane said we would be enough.”
“He was wrong.”
“No shit,” Jerry said, before making another move to bring out his gun. The iron sights were still tangled in the fabric of the lining, and his effort was wasted.
The cheap tight suit was to be the death of him; it had help from the slugs Tanner pumped into his heart and head.
Thirty minutes later, Sara met Tanner at their private elevator as he returned to the penthouse. After greeting him with a kiss, she wrinkled her nose.
“You’ve been smoking.”
“A few puffs on a cigar, but I hear that it’s bad for your health.”
“Or the health of others?” Sara said.
“That too.”
“They’ll send more men, won’t they?”
“I’m not so sure. From what I learned from one of the guys who was at the airport, the mob commission didn’t order them here. They were sent by only one of its members.”
“Would Joe Pullo know what’s going on?”
“If not, he can find out.”
“We’ll be seeing him and Laurel tomorrow, maybe he’ll be able to help.”
“Yeah.”
“Are you hungry?”
“I am, but I want to shower first.”
“I’ll come with you; in case someone decides to attack you in the shower.”
“Would that someone be you?”
Sara’s eyes twinkled as she said, “That’s the plan.”
2
Oh, Baby
An uncharacteristic grin of delight split Tanner’s face as he stared down at the infant in his arms. He was holding John Samuel Pullo. The son of Joe and Laurel Pullo.
The baby stared up at Tanner with his mother’s blue eyes. He also had Laurel’s blond hair. If he had her good looks when he grew up, he would be a heartbreaker.
“How would you like to have one of those of your own someday?” Sara asked him.
Tanner looked her way, and the smile grew even wider.
“It’s something I look forward to.”
They were inside Joe and Laurel’s brownstone, standing in the living room. Tanner and Joe had a meeting to attend, but Laurel asked that Tanner stop by and see the baby first. To his surprise, Laurel suggested that he bring Sara along.
Sara agreed to go, while hoping to end the rift between herself and Laurel. While they might never be friends, their mates certainly were, and Sara felt no animosity toward Laurel. On the contrary, it was Laurel who’d had reason to dislike her. Sara had once shoved a loaded gun into Laurel’s mouth. It wasn’t surprising the woman had held a grudge.
Tanner handed baby Johnny back to his mother, then spoke to the child’s father.
“We should get going soon. I want to scout the meeting location ahead of time.”
Pullo nodded. “Good idea. I don’t think they’re stupid enough to try anything, but you never know.”
They were talking about Michael and Kate Barlow, the married couple who had aided Ordnance Inc. in their attempt to satisfy a client who had a grudge against Tanner. The client was Moss Murphy. Murphy sought to wreak vengeance on Tanner by paying him back for harming his son, Liam. Tanner had tossed Liam Murphy down a flight of concrete steps after the punk attempted to kill him, Pullo, and others.
Moss Murphy’s attempt at revenge had placed Sara’s life in danger
while also uncovering an unknown part of Tanner’s past. When things settled, Murphy was dead, Liam was in hiding, and Tanner discovered that he had a brother, Caleb Knox.
Sara told Laurel how beautiful the baby was.
“I also want to thank you for inviting me.”
Laurel sighed. “It looks like you’re going to be a part of Tanner’s life, so for his sake I’m making an attempt to be civil to you.”
Sara took a step closer to Laurel. “You may not believe this, but I like you, and I hope someday you’ll forgive me for what I did.”
“You stuck a loaded gun in my mouth and threatened to—” Laurel stopped talking and took in a deep breath. She looked like a woman attempting to control her temper. “I doubt we’ll ever be friends, Sara. Still, there’s no reason to be openly hostile either. What’s past is past. Thank you for coming, and I have to say, the gift you brought was lovely.”
Sara had given Laurel a high-end gift basket filled with goodies for new mom’s and their baby. Laurel had appeared happy about many of the items it contained.
“The gift was my pleasure, and baby Johnny is beautiful.”
“Thank you,” Laurel said, and her smile looked genuine.
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