As they were leaving the brownstone, Tanner said goodbye to Sara while Pullo climbed into his new vehicle, a 2019 Range Rover. The SUV was blue, fully-loaded, and had a car seat in the back for the baby.
Two of Pullo’s men had driven the vehicle to his door from the parking garage where it was kept. Before Pullo got inside it, the vehicle was checked for listening and tracking devices. Those same men would follow Pullo as a precaution and keep an eye on his vehicle while he was away from it. The law might bust Pullo for committing an illegal act or an enemy might succeed in killing him someday, but Joe Pullo wasn’t going to make it easy for them.
Sara placed her arms around Tanner. “Be careful at this meeting. I’ve never met the Barlows, but they sound devious.”
“Being devious is how they make their living.”
“And what about Ordnance Inc.? Do you believe they’ve decided to leave you alone?”
“That’s one reason for the meeting. I want to know if Michael or Kate has heard any rumblings from inside the organization.”
“What will you do if they say Ordnance Inc. is planning to attack?”
“I’ll grab up Trevor Healy and find out the truth, but I’m hoping to avoid a war.”
“All right, and what about fallout from killing Moss Murphy? Has Joe learned anything about the men sent to murder you?”
“That’s something we’ll be discussing on the ride to the meeting.”
Sara released a sigh. “So, it’s possible you’ll soon have not one, but two very dangerous groups gunning for you.”
“Yes.”
“Don’t you ever make friends?”
Tanner looked over at Pullo. “Not often.”
Tanner had been kissing Sara goodbye when his phone emitted a tone telling him that he had a text message. He checked it and Sara could see sadness cloud his features.
“What’s wrong?”
“It’s a message from Caleb… his adoptive father died. He said he’ll call me later to talk.”
“Oh, poor Caleb, I know he loved his father very much.”
“He began stealing from thieves to pay the man’s medical bills and support the farm.”
“As Stark, which means he may no longer have a reason to risk himself that way.”
“Maybe.”
“Why would he continue if he doesn’t need the money?”
“Caleb loves stealing from thieves, the poetic justice of it. He may not want to settle for living the simple life of a farmer.”
“As a Parker, he’s also a rancher.”
“Yes, and so am I.”
“Not yet, not until you can reclaim your identity.”
“I’m working on it. I still need to think of a way to separate Cody Parker from my life as Tanner.”
“How can you do that?”
“It’s easy, Tanner has to cease to exist. If there’s no man named Tanner to come after, Cody Parker won’t be at risk of being exposed as him.”
Sara looked startled. “You’re thinking of quitting, of not being Tanner anymore?”
“No, and that’s what makes it tricky… but I’ll think of something.”
Sara laughed. “You always do.”
Tanner looked down at the text message on his phone.
“I want us to visit Caleb. I want to be there for my brother.”
“We can do that. I do suggest you make certain that we don’t bring trouble his way, like from Ordnance Inc., or the mob.”
“You’re right, I need to learn where I stand on both those fronts, and regardless, I need to prepare. I’ll pay Duke a visit soon, once I know what’s what.”
Sara shook her head in dismay. “People have been trying to kill you since I’ve known you and you always come out on top. You’d think someone would pay attention and just leave you alone.”
Tanner kissed her. “You were once one of those people.”
Sara grinned. “My new plan is to kill you with kindness.”
“It’s working,” Tanner said, as he turned to walk toward the Range Rover.
“Tanner?”
“Yeah?”
“I love you.”
“I love you too, Sara.”
Tanner climbed into the passenger seat and found Pullo smiling.
“Why the grin?”
“Look at us. I’m married with a baby and you’ll soon be hitched too. What happened to the two young studs we used to be?”
“They grew up.”
“I guess, but it still feels weird to have a son.”
“But good though, yes?”
“Oh, hell yeah, Tanner. The day Johnny was born, that’s the happiest day of my life.”
“I may be right behind you in becoming a father. Sara wants to get pregnant once we’re married, and the wedding is coming up.”
“Name the kid Joe if it’s a boy.”
Tanner laughed. “I just might do that.”
They drove through the city traffic for several blocks before Pullo spoke again.
“I’ve got news. Jerry Magdalena called me before I could call him and ask about those men that attacked you. Jerry wants me to come to Chicago for a meeting with the commission. He said it concerns you and Moss Murphy.”
“And what did he say about the men I killed in the park?”
“He was surprised and said he’d look into it.”
“Surprised? Did you tell him that they were sent by Shane Silva?”
“Yeah, and he didn’t seem happy to hear that. Jerry Mags is no bullshitter, so maybe something else is going on. Shane Silva is young, Tanner. It’s possible the kid decided to try and handle you himself.”
“If Magdalena is telling the truth, his calling you still means that they’re ready to do something about me. I was wondering when that shoe would drop.”
“Me too. You killed a made man, and not just that, but Moss Murphy was a Don. I’m surprised they’ve taken this long to react.”
“Maybe they’ve been planning to go to war with me and Silva got overeager and sent that crew here to kill me.”
“That’s a possibility.”
“If so, you’ll have a decision to make.”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re part of the mob, Joe. If they want me dead, they may order you to do it.”
“I’ve thought of that.”
“And?”
“I obeyed that order in the past, remember?”
“When the Conglomerate was running things.”
“Yeah, and I was just a soldier, but now I’m in charge of the Giacconi Family.”
“Are you saying you wouldn’t obey an order from the commission?”
“We both know you could have killed me back then if you wanted to. I don’t forget that you let me live, so yeah, I’d disobey that order. Besides, going to war with you would only get my people killed.”
“If you refuse, that might make you a target too.”
“It might, but I know something the commission doesn’t.”
“What’s that?”
“If they go to war with you, you’ll win. You’re the deadliest son of a bitch that’s ever lived. That means I’ll be on the winning side.”
“I appreciate the vote of confidence.”
“It might not be what we think. Jerry Magdalena has been around, and he knows it was Liam Murphy who started the trouble. Moss didn’t keep his kid in line and things escalated. If Magdalena wants to talk to me, they might want me to deliver a message to you.”
“Like what?”
Pullo shrugged. “Maybe there’s someone they need hit, and if you do it, they’ll call things even.”
“I don’t work for free… unless I’m forced to, to defend myself.”
“You’ve had a lot of that these past few years.”
“Too much. I just want to be left alone.”
“I hear you, and that’s what you told Ordnance Inc. too. Do you think they listened?”
Tanner pointed out the window. In the distance was the site
of their meeting with the Barlows, the Brooklyn docks.
“I guess we’ll soon find out.”
3
Personal
Michael and Kate Barlow sat with their backs facing the murky water of Sheepshead Bay. They were seated at a table in a restaurant on the waterfront in Brooklyn, ignoring the view of the nearby marina. Their attention was on the patio entrance on their left, as they hoped to spot the arrival of Tanner and Joe Pullo.
Michael Barlow was an average-looking man, which accounted for much of the success he’d had in his chosen field. Although handsome, the dark-haired man was not memorably so, while his brown eyes looked out at you from a smooth-shaven face.
Kate Barlow matched her husband well, but they looked nothing alike. Kate had brown hair, gray eyes, and although she was lovely, she wasn’t the type of woman who would stay on your mind after only one meeting.
They began their careers as corporate spies and eventually morphed into people willing to do anything short of murder. A few years earlier they became involved with Ordnance Inc.
Although independent, they worked often for Ordnance Inc. and were successful. Then, they accepted a job that brought them into conflict with Tanner. While working to bring him down, a foolish act, they were also reckless enough to cross Joe Pullo.
In the aftermath of what became a disaster for Ordnance Inc., the Barlows changed their names and fled to Brazil while fearing for their lives.
Pullo had them tracked down and an offer was made. That was when the Barlows became spies against Ordnance Inc. for Tanner.
That had begun some time ago; since then, they have had little information to pass along. Normally, the Barlows would have communicated their reports to Pullo’s man, Finn Kelly. That’s changed. Both Pullo and Tanner felt as if the Barlows were withholding information. In Tanner’s case, it’s more than an impression, as he has yet another spy buried inside Ordnance Inc.
The man was named Billy Price. Tanner once let him live with the understanding that Price would kill several people. The agreement had been Price’s idea and he had kept his end of the bargain.
According to Price, Ordnance Inc. had added massively to their ranks over the past year, including an increase in the number of Hammer teams they had. Hammer teams were comprised of an elite group of mercenaries and numbered eight members per team.
Price claimed that Grayson Talbot, the head of Ordnance Inc. wasn’t the type of man to live and let live.
“They haven’t forgotten that they owe you, Tanner; someday they’ll try to pay you back.”
Meanwhile, the Barlows have been reporting that all is well, and that Talbot and his right-hand man Trevor Healy never mention Tanner. Either Price was attempting to deceive Tanner for some reason or the Barlows were lying. There was also a third option. The Barlows were slacking off in their efforts to gain intelligence. Tanner called for the meeting to discover which possibility was true.
Michael Barlow wiped his sweaty palms on his pants as they waited for Tanner to arrive. They had shown up ten minutes early and now the meeting time had passed. Michael spoke while looking up at the nearby rooftops.
“What if he’s up there somewhere with a sniper rifle?”
Kate rolled her eyes. “Really, Michael? Do you think that’s helpful? I’m already nervous enough.”
“We’ve done nothing wrong? Why does Tanner want to meet us in person?”
“Not just Tanner, Pullo is coming too. I’m not sure which of them makes me more nervous.”
A discordant noise came from behind the couple, startling them, while also drawing their attention and making them turn around in their seats. The disturbance was caused by an apparently clumsy waiter. The man had dropped a stainless-steel water pitcher and it clanged loudly against the patio’s brick tile floor.
When the Barlows turned their heads back around, Tanner and Pullo were seated across from them at the table. Tanner had slipped the waiter twenty bucks to cause the distraction; it had been worth every cent.
Kate reacted by gasping as she took in Tanner. She had seen photos of him and knew of his intense eyes. Sitting within arm’s reach of that gaze was another proposition altogether.
Michael was less expressive, but beneath the table, the fingers of his right hand had begun tapping a nervous rhythm on his thigh. It was Pullo who had unsettled him. Michael and Kate had violated the man’s privacy by breaking into his home. It was a miracle that the mob boss had allowed them to live this long. Unlike Tanner, Pullo was wearing shades. His eyes were hidden, but his face was set in stone. It sent a chill through Barlow.
“Are you going to kill us?” Michael asked.
“I think so,” Tanner said.
“You think so?” Kate said in a whisper.
“It will come to that if you keep lying.”
Michael leaned forward. “We haven’t lied. We’ve told that man Finn Kelly everything we know, but you need to understand, we’re just a couple of spare parts occasionally placed into use by the machine that is Ordnance Inc.”
“It’s a machine that’s grown in size. That’s something you’ve never told Kelly,” Pullo said.
“We have no way of knowing how big Ordnance Inc. is,” Kate said. “We only deal with Trevor Healy. We do know that Healy has been promoted and given the title of Executive Coordinator; we passed that information along.”
“I want more than that,” Tanner told them. “I want you to find out if they have plans to come after me again, and if so, when.”
Michael shook his head. “If we start asking questions like that, they might grow suspicious.”
“Being helpful to us is the only reason you’re still alive, Barlow,” Tanner said. “You violated the graves of my family. Maybe you can imagine how much pleasure it would give me to kill you, slowly.”
Michael put his palms together atop the table, as if he were about to pray.
“Mr. Tanner, please believe me when I tell you that nothing my wife or I did was—”
Tanner interrupted Barlow by reaching across the table and gripping the man’s fingers. Michael’s face contorted and he hissed in pain as the bones inside the digits were ground together under building pressure.
“Tell me it wasn’t personal, and they’ll be the last words you ever speak. Healy tried to tell me the same thing. Let me explain something to you people. You don’t get to decide what I consider to be a personal attack, I do.”
Tanner released the joined hands and watched as Michael sighed in relief. The violent act had been brief, and fluidly performed. No one seated at the other tables had noticed a thing.
“I’m sorry,” Kate said. “We both regret what we did at your family cemetery.”
“Save it, lady. You’re only regretful that I came out on top over Moss Murphy. And that’s another thing, your failure to locate Liam Murphy.”
“We’ve done our best, Michael and I have used every resource we know of and have gone through the phone records of his friends and family. Wherever Liam Murphy is hiding, he’s picked a great spot.”
“Do you know about the Citadel?” Tanner asked.
Michael nodded. “We considered that too, that Liam sought sanctuary there, but there’s no evidence of that.”
“Did you research the place?”
“Yes,” Kate said. “It’s only been breached once, and that was a long time ago.”
“I’m aware of that,” Tanner said. When he was a young assassin starting out with Romeo as his partner, they decided they needed to do something to make a name for themselves. The answer was the fortress known as the Citadel, which offered sanctuary to criminals on the run. No one had ever breached the Citadel’s defenses or managed to kill one of its notorious clients. That ended when Tanner, using the identity of Xavier Zane, killed a cult leader named Kabel, with Romeo at his side.
“Who is running the Citadel these days?”
“His name is Jack Begley,” Michael said, while flexing his fingers, which still ached.
/> “Are you sure it’s Begley. The last time I saw him he was near death.”
“Yes, we’re certain,” Kate said. “Begley’s name was mentioned by two different sources.”
“And you’re positive Liam didn’t use the Citadel to buy a new life?”
“As much as we can be,” Kate said.
“You get one more chance,” Pullo told the couple. “Find out what Ordnance Inc. has planned. They’re not gearing up for no damn reason; find out what’s behind it.”
“We’ll do it,” Kate said.
“Another thing,” Tanner said. “From here on out I want to hear from you at least once a week. I want to know what you’re up to. Finn Kelly will give you a way to reach me, understood?”
Kate and Michael said “yes” as they failed to meet Tanner’s eyes.
Tanner stood, as did Pullo. They left the table without saying another word.
Michael leaned back in his seat. “God, how I wish we’d never heard of Ordnance Inc.”
“What are we going to do?”
“We could try running again.”
“No, we need to find a way through this.”
“Not necessarily, if Trevor Healy does attack Tanner, this time the hit man might die.”
“We would still have to deal with Joe Pullo.”
“Damn it, you’re right.”
“Tanner and Pullo were right too; we have been playing it safe. If we’re going to live through this, we have to be more useful to them.”
“That could get us killed even if Ordnance Inc. isn’t gunning for Tanner. If Trevor ever found out we were spying for the man… it would be brutal.”
Kate turned and laid a hand on her husband’s cheek.
“We’re between a rock and a hard place, but ask yourself, who are you more afraid of, Tanner or Trevor Healy?”
“Tanner, hands down, and yet, Trevor could kill us just as surely.”
“We need to get off the fence and start working, and by that, I mean we treat this like any other assignment.”
Michael nodded. “Yeah, it’ll make it easier if I think of it that way.”
“We help Tanner, or we die.”
A Man Of Respect Page 2
