Parting Gifts, Conclusion
Title: Parting Gifts
Pairing: JA/JP
Rating: R for violence
Disclaimer: Of course I don't own these people. Slavery is outlawed. To the dismay of some, I suspect.
WARNINGS: My first RPF. If this is anywhere near the truth, I'm from the Gamma Quadrant.
Summary: Jared Padalecki lost his husband, Jensen Ackles, through neglect. Then the real nightmare begins when a group kidnaps Jensen and ransoms him for fifteen million dollars. The problem isn't paying the money: it's getting Jensen back alive and in one piece.
Title Page
Day Four
The pain that greeted Jensen when he opened his eyes made him realize that waking up was a very bad idea, and his thirst could wait in face of so much pain. Mercifully, he heard the sweet call of darkness and quickly returned to its comforting embrace.
Jackson watched the man slowly slip back into unconsciousness and let out a quiet sigh of relief. The last thing he needed was Ackles awake. He was more than a little fearful Harlan would break focus and turn his attention on their prisoner. Ever since Vladovic’s execution, Harlan was acting off-kilter. Masterson wouldn't notice so slight a change, but Jackson’s been with Harlan for nearly five years and the old soldier knew his boss was slowly unraveling.
Jackson heard Harlan’s footsteps and composed himself: he couldn’t appear distracted.
“The car’s ready,” Harlan said. "Ian, load up Ackles."
Jackson began bundling up the unconscious man in a blanket.
Harlan turned to Masterson. “Did you get everything?”
Masterson nodded and patted his computer bag. “We are good to go. Man, I can’t wait to get out of this shit hole.”
Harlan's response was shooting Masterson twice in the head. Then he turned to Jackson and calmly said, “I’ll grab the gear, you wait in the car with Ackles.”
Jackson nodded. Masterson was good at what he did but his talents didn’t make him invaluable, and the last thing they needed was extra weight. He slung Ackles over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry and navigated the tricky stairs. The dawning sun made him refocus his vision before going out into the open.
Jackson carefully arranged Ackles in the back of the SUV, making sure the man was tightly bound with duct tape. After finally satisfied that Ackles wasn’t going to be in any state to bolt, Jackson took a long look at the freighter that doubled as their temporary home for the last five weeks.
Marietta was a transpacific freighter hauling goods between Australia and the Americas. Three months ago, her entire crew was swept in a sting operation focused on human trafficking. Their absence made it easy for Harlan and his men to set up base in the ship since port authority only performed cursory checks on the freighter. Yesterday Harlan told him the crew would be released in two weeks and Jackson guessed they would haul ass back to Australia. They would, no doubt, find the slight alterations Harlan and his men made to some of the holds, not to mention the corpses of Masterson and Vladovic, but the crew would never think to double back and report their findings to the authorities. In fact, Jackson was pretty damn sure they would dump the bodies into the Pacific and ignore the rest.
Jackson smiled a little as Harlan jogged down the gangway. “I see I’m not the only one happy to get out of there.”
Harlan grinned. “Let’s get this over with.”
“Amen to that,” Jackson replied.
Jared held Anna tightly in his arms. She was visibly trembling while being escorted to the private jet, and once they were seated Anna began slowly crying without making a sound. Jared remembered what his daughter was like when she first came to the U.S. so he spotted the withdrawal signs immediately.
“It’ll be just few hours more. Then we’ll all go far, far away.” Jared whispered as he rocked Anna slowly. “After that I’ll get us a big, beautiful boat and we’ll go wherever we want - the Bahamas, maybe France or even Italy. Hell, we can even go to Alaska and chase bears if you guys feel up to it. But it’ll be up to you to convince Daddy that since we’re all on vacation we can eat as we please. You know how choosy he is about food.”
Anna’s death grip on her stuffed toy relaxed marginally. “What can we eat in Alaska?”
“I don’t know, maybe moose burgers?”
“Yuck!”
“Okay, eagle ice cream?”
“Papa!”
Jared smiled and gave a firm kiss on Anna’s forehead. “Okay, okay, I guess we’ll just have to stick to chocolate cakes and strawberry ice cream.”
“And sushi,” Anna chimed in. “Daddy likes sushi.”
“I guess we can squeeze in sushi between caramel popcorn and hot chocolate.”
“We’re going to get fat!”
“Damn right we are,” Jared said. Steve’s cell rang and Jared immediately tensed as he watched the man softly speak.
“They’re ready,” Steve said.
“Any sign of the kidnappers?”
“No, but they went early.” Steve didn’t bother to explain why but Jared guessed it had something to do with Chris and a large duffel bag the man was carrying when they left the mansion.
“Papa?”
Anna’s frightened voice snapped Jared out of his thoughts. He said, “It’s almost over now, baby. Then you, me, daddy, and Mr. Pooh are going to go far, far away.”
“To the moon?”
“If necessary, then yes,” Jared replied as he watched Steve pull out another phone and began speaking. He closed his eyes and added, “And I’ll build a castle so high and so strong, nobody will ever bother us again.”
Jeff saw the SUV before it made the turn off the street and into the empty parking lot. The abandoned factory was perfect for the drop-off as Chris was able to grab an excellent position to cover the area. Unfortunately, Jeff had a bad feeling that was exactly why the kidnappers had chosen the place for the exchange.
The car stopped twenty feet away and a man got out. The cheap Halloween mask he was sporting made his head seem startlingly small when compared to his well-built frame. Not that the stranger caused much concern for Jeff. For all he knew this guy was a thug hired just for the transaction. Then Jeff had to reassess his speculation as the man began walking. His pronounced limp signaled to Jeff that he was dealing with Mr. John Deere, Size Ten.
The kidnapper motioned for Jeff to approach the car, so he did with caution. He watched as the man open the rear hatch and step aside. Jeff saw Ackles and barely managed not to wince. The man’s face was swollen, his nose obviously broken. Jeff also suspected Ackles to be suffering from internal injuries as the man’s breathing was labored and thin. However, he said nothing of his concerns and instead checked for a pulse. It was too slow for his liking but Jeff just stepped back and nodded.
Mr. Deere deposited Ackles to the ground and waited as Jeff called to make the transfer. There was a tense moment as both waited in silence before the kidnapper’s cell rang. He said nothing and listened. Jeff waited quietly. He knew Chris was watching them through a telescope and would drop Mr. John Deere if he made one bad move. Jeff also suspected the kidnapper had backup ready to do the same thing should he pull a similar stunt.
John Deere finished the call and stepped back. Jeff didn’t stop him and just watched as he drove away. Then he pressed a button on a small device he had palmed in his left hand and watched as a helicopter appeared on the horizon. Jeff deposited Ackles into the bird as soon as it touched the ground. Taking advantage of the view he looked down at the parking lot as the copter took off and spotted a flash of light from the roof and Chris’ figure as the man left his vantage point.
Jeff called Steve. “We have Ackles. He’s in bad shape.”
“I’ll contact the hospital. Can we stabilize him or does he need a doctor now?”
“He’ll keep but we should get an I.V. into him, just in case.”
“That won’t be a problem,” Steve said. “Just get here.”
“Don’t plan on doing anything else,” Jeff said snappishly.
“Sir, we’re approaching the airport now,” the pilot said.
Jeff ended the call and waited impatiently as the helicopter landed near the jet. He didn’t even wait for the copter to fully touch down before jumping out. Steve rushed to help him deposit Ackles onto the ground. The two quickly undressed the unconscious man until Ackles was naked. Steve threw a flannel blanket over the nude figure before combing through the man's hair, looking for bugs and other electronic devices.
Jeff handed the clothes to the pilot and said, “Make sure everything reaches the lab together."
The pilot nodded and walked back to his bird as Steve and Jeff carried Ackles into the waiting jet. Steve spotted Chris trotting towards them and gave a mental sigh of relief. Chris' idea of driving would leave professional stunt drivers updating their insurance coverage.
Jared was anxiously standing by the entrance and moaned when he saw the state his husband was in. “Why did you take his clothes off?” Jared asked.
“It’s just a precaution,” Jeff explained as he and Steve gently placed Ackles on the fully reclined seat. He turned Ackles’ face towards the window so Anna wouldn't be forced to stare at him during the flight. “Couldn’t take the chance that the kidnappers slipped in a little surprise for us.”
Jared blanched but said nothing else. Instead, he sat next to Jensen and held onto to the man’s right hand as the jet took off.
Anna was nearly overwhelmed with the need to see her father but managed to hold herself back while she watched her Papa's unwavering stare at Daddy. She had never witnessed her Papa being so tender with him and felt something in her unwind and relax.
We’ll be okay, she thought with a secretive smile. So, instead of joining her fathers, Anna watched contently as Papa nursed her Daddy with loving words and kind touches.
“Your daddies really do love each other,” Chris whispered into her ear.
She nodded sagely and replied, “Of course they do. They’re smart!”
For reasons Anna couldn’t comprehend Chris suddenly burst into laughter, attracting odd looks from his friends. But since it didn’t look like he minded, Anna didn’t much care either. She was too busy planning ways to get Daddy to let them eat ice cream for breakfast and blueberry waffles for dinner.
It was eight in the evening when the jet landed in a small commercial airport outside Boston.
“Why didn’t we land in Logan?” Jared asked as Chris and Steve loaded Jensen onto the waiting Medevac helicopter.
“Sam has an arrangement that allows certain flights of hers to be off-listed. That way this particular trip won’t show up on FAA data.”
Jared was startled by the explanation. That kind of discretion took a lot of power and he wondered exactly who Ferris knew that allowed her such freedom. The ride to the Boston hospital took less than thirty minutes, and Jared was relieved to see a full medical crew waiting on the helipad. The team rushed to the copter and quickly loaded Jensen onto a gurney before taking off.
A man in a very expensive suit greeted the group and led them to what he called 'the private wing’ of the hospital. They were shown to a suite of rooms where they could refresh themselves and order food if they wanted to eat. For the first time since the entire nightmare started Jared actually felt hungry. He ordered a hamburger for himself and a tuna melt for Anna. When the meals came the entire group ate as if they haven’t been fed for days. Jared noticed even Anna finished her plate, a first for her.
A doctor entered the room with multiple folders flapping in his thin hands. Jared thought he looked like the type to iron his undershirts, and when the doctor began speaking in a clipped, hard tone, Jared's assumption seemed correct.
“My name is Doctor Weinstein. I need to speak with Mr. ... Padalecki?”
Jared stood up when he realized the doctor hadn’t a clue who he was. The man ushered Jared into a small room across the hall.
“I regret to tell you reattaching the finger is out of the question, but I don’t think that’s news to you,” the doctor said succinctly. “Your partner’s nose is fractured but the rest of his facial structure is undamaged, and after examining the injury we believe no surgery will be necessary.
“His electrolytes are abnormal but that’s being corrected as we speak. He does have a mild arrhythmia so we’re carefully monitoring him. We also gave him a light sedative but he’s alert enough…”
“Wait a minute, he’s awake?” Jared asked.
“Yes, he regained consciousness twenty minutes ago,” Dr. Weinstein curtly answered. “Do you want to see him?”
Jared nodded frantically and finished his water bottle as his mouth suddenly dried up. Now that he knew Jensen was out of danger he was suddenly flooded with memories of how their last conversation went. His angry words mocked him and Jared wondered what Jensen would do when he saw him. Would he blame Jared for his pitiful state? After all, it was because of Jared’s money that Jensen was kidnapped and mutilated.
The doctor opened a door to a spacious room and stepped aside to let Jared in. He then discreetly closed the door behind the anxious husband as Jared slowly made his way to the bed hidden from view.
“Jensen?” Jared hoarsely said when he saw his husband.
Jensen opened his eyes and saw Jared standing next to him. He blinked slowly then said, “Are you okay?”
Jared’s legs collapsed underneath him, nearly sending him sprawling on the floor. Jensen reached out to grab him but winced as the sudden movement caused him to feel a large spike of pain in spite of the heavy medication. Jared saw Jensen's pallor worsen and scrambled onto the bed, burying his face in Jensen’s chest while wrapping his arms tightly around him. Jared wanted to apologize, to make promises but no words came out, only broken, keening noises as he wept.
Jared felt Jensen curl around him; his embrace was surprisingly strong and Jared sunk deeper into the protective cocoon Jensen made with his body.
“Shhh,” Jensen whispered, “it’s okay. It’s okay. I’m not mad. No way. I’m alive and we’re going to be fine. That’s all that matters to me.”
Jared couldn’t look at Jensen’s face when he asked, “How can you say that?”
“Easily,” Jensen answered. “It could’ve been so much worse. This … this is just a bump on the road, a bad one but still, only a bump.”
Jared was shocked enough to forget his reluctance to face his husband. He looked at Jensen and realized the man was speaking honestly. “How can you think that after everything you’ve been through?”
Jensen looked thoughtful as he said, “It’s a choice, Jared. I’m not saying it’s going to be easy but the choice to live my life as I see fit is still mine, no matter what the bastards did to me. You can’t sell something like that or have someone steal it from you. The only way you lose that power is if you give it up.”
Jared stole a glance at Jensen’s disfigured left hand and shivered uncontrollably. Realizing what he had just done he looked up at Jensen with frightened eyes. “I’m sorry…”
“It’s okay,” Jensen said and weakly nuzzled Jared's damp hair. “I tossed a few cookies when I saw it earlier.”
“Did … did they give you something when they cut it off?” Jared asked weakly.
“No, I was out when they did it. I tried to escape and nearly made it too. Got caught on the stairs. The doctor said they used a taser. He also said they gave me a narcotic to keep me sedated.”
“Why did you do that?”
“I couldn’t trust them hold up their end of the bargain,” Jensen answered. “They could’ve left me in that room to die, Jared.”
Jared buried his face into the crook of Jensen’s neck and shoulder. He took deep breaths, trying to calm himself. Of course Jensen would do something so fantastically dangerous; his husband was one of the few people Jared knew who could calmly calculate death into a scenario and then let it play out anyway.
“Didn’t you speak with Chris?” Jensen asked.
Jared blinked dumbly, “What?”
“Chris Kane. The guy said he was with Ferris’ firm. He came by earlier and we talked for a bit.”
“Not yet. He’s probably running around, trying to secure the area or do some other military maneuver to make sure this hospital’s impregnable.”
“He was a bit tense when we talked,” Jensen said with a tired smile. “I’m guessing this took out a lot from everyone.”
“Jensen, don’t worry about the rest of us, and that includes Anna. She’s probably doing the best out of all of us, actually.”
“Daddy’s little girl,” Jensen said with fierce pride.
“That she is,” Jared added and kissed him lightly. “Rest, and I’ll come by later with her, okay?”
Jensen nodded and pulled up the blanket until it reached his chin. Then he snuggled into his bed, curled on his right side. The position made him look about nine and Jared felt his eyes sting. He sneaked a glance at the heart monitor and took some comfort in its steady rhythm.
Jared knew Jensen was all too correct when he said it won’t be easy, but at least they had a chance now. So, easy or hard, Jared was going to fight to keep his family together. It took too much sacrifice, mostly on Jensen’s part, for him to understand and accept that a family such as his meant everything.
Jeff was waiting for him in the hallway. “He’s a strong man.”
Jared nodded and rubbed his face. “I don’t understand where it comes from. I would’ve been a basket case if I were in his shoes.”
Jeff looked at him with open surprise. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No,” Jared replied, successfully repressing a twitch of annoyance. “What?”
“He’s that strong because he loves you, Mr. Padalecki,” Jeff said. “That’s his source of strength. He was damn good at that job of his because he loved what he was doing. That kind of simplicity is virtually unheard of these days, but your husband seems to be the exception to practically every rule I know of."
Jared couldn’t answer. Of course he knew what Jeff was saying. He’s seen Jensen’s devotion to his job but Jared never paused to consider he was deserving enough to fit in the same category. After all, there was a huge difference between a spoiled playboy and a life-affirming job working for the dying and the forgotten.
Jeff puffed out a noise that sounded like a cross between a snort and a laugh. “For a man who’s made Fortune 500 for five years straight you’re pretty fucking clueless.”
“I’m beginning to get that.”
“Why don’t you rest," Jeff said. "My men and I aren't going anywhere for a while."
“How secure are we in this hospital?” Jared asked.
“Beth Israel has a private contract with Ferris’ firm. None of her clients are in the books, and since this wing is not only private but self-sufficient, 99.99% of the general hospital staff doesn’t have a damn clue what’s going on here.
“Also, Dr. Weinstein was a client of hers. Can’t tell you what we did for him but he’s grateful enough to keep the information on this particular group of patients off the main database. Mostly, he tells people he’s either got an Aerosmith band member or somebody from the Red Sox up here.”
“Were there any Red Sox players up here?”
Jeff nodded, “Oh yeah, and two members from Aerosmith. Weinstein has their photos on his wall to prove it too.”
Jared was appeased enough with Jeff's explanation to return to his room. He found Anna fast asleep in his bed with both dogs. Jared pushed aside Harley to squeeze in besides his daughter before caving into his exhaustion.
Chris caught a glimpse of them from the balcony before making the last call to Jim. The conversation was brief and lasted for all of five seconds. Afterwards, he threw the cell phone over the side of the balcony and watched it shatter on the roof of the building adjacent to the hospital.
Bogotá, Colombia
Samuel Trent loved his job. He spent his informative years listening attentively to his father on the topic of banks and the heartless bastards who ran them. Not surprisingly his vitriol was mainly fueled by alcohol which ended up killing him before Samuel turned fifteen. After witnessing his mother weep over the fact she could barely pay for the funeral, Samuel made up his mind to make enough money to ensure at least he would be able to comfortably afford his.
Trent joined The Bennet Finance Group right after graduating from University of Edinburgh. Through the years he quickly worked his way up the corporate chain, and just when he thought his success was a guarantee, it all fell apart. It still shocked Trent that an investment firm would fire him because he made too much money. He would be the first to admit he took some shortcuts but he made sure he stayed in the grey. And yet this was more than enough for Mr. Bennet, the CEO, to put an end to Trent's meteoric career. It didn’t take long after his dismissal for Trent to realize his former boss had poisoned his reputation to the point that he couldn’t get a job in the secretarial pool.
Trent came to Bogotá with what money he had saved and found plenty of people willing to look the other way when it came to his unique set of skills. But no matter how tempted he was, Trent remained in the grey, ensuring that Bacatá Banco Internacional would survive certain level of scrutiny from abroad and at home. The bribes came in handy of course, and his clients had a special way of dealing with stubborn people, so it wasn’t long before both his and his bank's reputation grew to international proportions.
September 11 definitely put a damper in his business dealings, but greed had a way of outlasting even grief, and Trent was positive things would return to normal before long.
The purr of the outlandishly outfitted Humvee drew his attention to the window. Like clockwork, Señor Hecker pulled up in front of the bank. The Dane’s history with the Southern Valley Cartel was still a mystery to Trent, not that the man was so bold as to actually ask how Hecker got involved. Trent knew what to do with his curiosity - hide it when it came to the Cartels.
He was getting the briefcase ready for Hecker when the explosion blew out all his office windows. The car alarms rang through the night, as did the screams of tourists who were dining in the expensive restaurants across the street. Trent knew better than to look out the window. Instead he scrambled to his hidden vault and hid the briefcase along with his personal laptop. Then he went to the bathroom to make sure he looked presentable when the police arrived.
After all, he did have a reputation to maintain.
February, 2008
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Welk rubbed his aching neck and watched with open hatred as Ferris took the seat across from his. The last thing he expected was to be forcibly dragged into a public arena such as the lobby of the Four Seasons. How Ferris’ men didn’t catch any unwanted attention attested to their professional ability to operate under stressful and certainly dangerous conditions.
“Hello, Tom,” Ferris said with a beautiful smile as she crossed her legs. The woman had a good a taste in clothes as she did in firearms.
“All I need to do is scream,” Welk hissed.
“I know that,” Ferris said. “I just thought you’d like to return with us under your own volition instead of in a casket.”
“I have plenty of security.”
“They were good, I’ll give them that. But they weren’t good enough, Tom, or haven’t you noticed?”
“So what?”
“This is what: either you come back with me now or I’ll send an e-mail to my field operatives about what you’ve done. And then I’ll just release all the relevant data and watch them hunt you down.
"Do you really think that my people would forgive and forget? You fucked with their pensions, Tom - their futures and their children's. They’re not going to walk away from that. In fact, the six men I brought with me are more than willing to put a hole in your head just on principle alone.”
Welk paled considerably but dared not look around. He knew what Ferris’ soldiers were capable of. In fact, it was easier to write down what they wouldn’t do than what they would.
“So, come back to the States with me, or I walk out of here and wait maybe twelve hours before fetching your corpse? What do you say, Tom?”
“You’re a fucking bitch, you know that?”
“Maybe, but I’m also pretty damn sure I’m the scariest bitch you’ll ever come across.”
Ferris stood up and smoothed her skirt. Then she held out her arm and Welk linked it with his like a gentleman. The two left together, looking like old lovers out for a leisurely stroll before dinner.
February, 2008
Concord, New Hampshire
Jim took a sip of the hot chocolate and sat back to watch the natives bustle about their business, even if they were almost waist-deep in snow. He couldn’t believe he was finally back in the States. Though he would’ve preferred somewhere warmer, Jim could understand why Chris had chosen this snowy capital as his new home. It was populated enough for Jim to run a successful bookstore, and close enough to the Canadian border that should the need arise he could take off.
Jim was careful not to keep anything of his life as Max Zweig. As far as the Colombian authorities knew, Zweig’s boat disintegrated half-mile from Cartagena's coast. He made sure the explosives were the type to leave behind residues, so that should anyone be looking for dear old Max, they would assume he was at the bottom of the ocean thanks to someone with access to military hardware.
The day Jim crossed into Arizona from Mexico, he dyed his hair grey. When most people assumed disguises they tried to make themselves look younger, not older. Then he gained twenty pounds with the help of roadside diners. He also bought tacky golf shirts in Denver and Jefferson City, and thus successfully completing his transformation to a middle management retiree by the time he reached New Hampshire.
Jim felt a familiar sense of pride in ownership when he spotted a woman reading the sign he taped up on the store's display window. It would take him another month before he could fully open for business, but Jim could already feel success drifting into his senses. He would have to thank Kane for choosing this particular location as it saw more than its fair share of foot traffic.
One year, Jim thought as he began putting up more shelves. Then Chris and Steve could swing by and maybe we could all go hunting, just like old times. Wouldn’t that be something?
February, 2008
Kennebec Island
Maine, United States
Jared stepped out on the porch and took a deep breath of the cold Maine air. At first he didn’t think much of his father’s idea of a family get-together on the Padalecki’s summer retreat but now Jared had to admit it was a great plan. The compound was built on a private island off the Southern Maine Coast, and it contained enough rooms to comfortably house everyone, bodyguards included.
He took the small hand-held vacuum hidden under a rocker and quickly took care of frozen cricket carcasses strewn about the door. Anna had thrown a mind-blowing tantrum when he first introduced the idea of spending three weeks in Maine. It was only after their daughter had fallen asleep that Jensen was able to explain about Anna's fear of the cold due to her experience in the orphanage. They were finally able to convince Anna to change her mind when Jared told her about the crickets and the lovely song they make whenever he visited Maine.
Of course that was during summertime. Once they arrived on Kennebec Island it was obvious that the local cricket population wasn’t going to make themselves heard any time soon. Jared became desperate enough to make a trip to the mainland in order to buy crickets. He then released them around the main house in the hopes that Anna wouldn't believe him to be a conniving liar. Unfortunately for the anxious father the insects did what insects always do in Maine winter: die.
The next morning, when Jared went outside for what was suppose to be a stroll with Anna, he found himself ankle-deep in cricket carnage. He frantically buried the frozen corpses into a snow bank before Anna joined him. Since then, they always found dead crickets littered about the grounds. So, it became a part of morning household chore - make coffee; clean up dead crickets before Anna could find them; cook breakfast; wake others.
If this mad business ended with some surreptitious sweeping and vacuuming, it would’ve been fine. Unfortunately few crickets found their way into the basement and made themselves comfortable. For the first few days it was lovely. After that it became quite clear they had outstayed their welcome. Four fathers went cricket hunting but were unable to destroy the noisy invaders. But Jared was pretty sure the problem wouldn’t remain one for long. He heard the cook talking to Justin: as soon as the families left, the staff was going to fumigate the entire house.
Jared heard his father’s firm footfall and turned around.
“I see you did the cricket duties,” Gerald said with a wide grin.
“You’re never going to let me live it down, are you?”
Gerald laughed and shook his head, “No, never, and you mother’s not about to either.”
Jared took a sip of his coffee then turned to his father, his face composed and serious. “Dad, I wanted to tell you - I’m going to resign from the company.”
“I wondered if you were. Don’t think I’m not disappointed because I am. But I understand, I really do.”
“I’m just glad you’re not mad,” Jared said with a huge sigh of relief.
“Son, I built the company because that was my dream. I didn’t raise you and put you through school just so you could give up your dreams. I’ve seen fathers do that to their children and I can honestly say it’s the closest thing to cannibalism I’ve witnessed.”
Gerald bumped his shoulder against Jared’s. “Now, you have to tell me something: why did you take my job in the first place?”
Jared smiled a little and shook his head. “Jensen got a job offer to help set up a hospice in India. It was going to take him six months so I couldn’t go with him. I just got scared, Dad. I thought that once he went back to doing what he loved best, he would realize I had no place in his life.
“So, I decided to settle down for both of us. Become a responsible CEO, buy a house, and start talking about marriage. That way I was guaranteed to have Jensen with me, no matter where his job took him.”
“Why did you think he was going to leave you?”
“God vs. me, I just couldn’t imagine coming out as the winner in that scenario.”
“Jensen isn’t the type to pit you against anyone, especially God. He’s not that cruel.”
“I know that now, but back then … he was so different from the people I usually hang out with, I didn’t know what to do! I just couldn’t risk losing him. Not then and not now.”
“So, the tower is going to be your last project?”
“Yeah, after that, we’ll see where we land.”
“Jensen will land like a cat, you - like a rhino that just downed an entire bottle of Scotch whisky.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
“That’s what I’m here for, son.” Gerald glanced at his watch. “We better go in and see what your mother’s up to. For the record I’m glad your mother’s into ethnic meals, but I really don’t want another curry dish for breakfast. The damn thing gives me gas.”
“Did you see Jessie’s face when mom asked her to cook dim sum for Sunday brunch? I thought she was going to break down and cry.”
Gerald’s face broke into a large grin. “Remind me to give Jessie a nice bonus before we leave. Holy Jesus did she earn it.”
To the relief of both men it was Jensen who had commandeered the kitchen with Anna’s help. Bacon was sizzling in the pan and multiple stacks of waffles towered on their plates.
“I wanted give Jessie a break,” Jensen said as he mixed in blueberries with the batter. “She looked under the weather last night.”
Jared gave a sly glance towards his father but said nothing. As Jensen poured the batter into the waffle maker Jared set up the table.
“Jared, I talked to Justin earlier. He’s going to look for another position when we leave here,” Jensen said softly.
“Why?” Jared asked, honestly surprised.
“Justin wanted to quit for a while but decided to wait until things settled down,” Jensen said. “He said it’s about time he started another career, and I think he’s right.”
“We’re going to have to look long and hard to find a replacement,” Jared grumbled. “Does he have any plans?”
“He’s thinking about finishing his studies in education.”
“He’d make a good teacher,” Jared said.
Gerald nodded, “I have to agree. The man’s got the patience of a saint and nothing gets past him. Two qualities you definitely need to be a good teacher.”
“What about a good teacher?” Sharon asked as she entered the kitchen.
“Talking about the qualities one needs to be a teacher,” Jensen said.
“Mind reading,” Sharon quipped, “and the ability to smell BS from a mile away, or at least down the hall.”
“Grandmamma, what’s BS?” Anna asked innocently.
“Bologna stories, my dear. Also known as really bad fairytales,” Sharon said.
Jensen hid his smile by sipping his coffee. As the families trickled down to the kitchen the conversations got louder and more boisterous, but he had little problem holding private talks with Jared when he wanted to.
March, 2008
San Diego, United States
“What you want to see me about?” Jeff asked.
“You’ll want to sit down first,” Sam said as she pulled out a folder and handed it to him.
Jeff’s eyes grew wide as he read the few pieces of paper filed in it. “Holy shit, they’re dead?”
“Both Harlan and Jackson. Eric personally confirmed their identities.”
“So, they died two days days after they got the ransom?”
“Looks like,” Sam said.
“Doesn’t make sense,” Jeff said, frowning. “What did they do? Screw over the cartel they were hoping to do business with?”
“Maybe, but that would’ve been catastrophically stupid on their part. And they didn’t strike me as stupid,” Sam said.
“So, what happened?”
“I did a little digging. The night of the ransom payment, a bomb went off killing one Mr. Hecker, a well-known associate of the Southern Valley Cartel. What interests me is that he was killed while parking his car in front of Bacatá Banco Internacional.”
“Any suspects?”
Sam shook her head, “The police found enough trace evidence to deduce that the bomb was made out of explosives commonly used by our soldiers. Not so surprising since we have a habit of leaving so much shit behind, but it is interesting, isn’t it?”
“Definitely,” Jeff agreed, lost in thought. “So Southern Valley thought Harlan and his men double-crossed them and killed them? Is that about right?”
“Looks like,” Sam said lightly, “but why would they in the first place?”
“Maybe they made a better deal with the Rojo family,” Jeff said.
“Maybe, but last I checked, the money’s still sitting in the bank,” Sam said as she put the folder into a locked drawer.
“Really? That is interesting.” Jeff took another glance at the folder containing the autopsy reports. "But I'm not surprised. If Harlan changed his mind and decided to go into bed with the Rojo family, he would've kept mum about the deal with Southern Valley. After Hecker's murdered, the Rojos found out what Harlan did. They wisely decided not to touch the money because the last thing the Rojos want is a full-scale civil war with the only other cartel powerful enough to destroy them."
“That sounds very plausible. But I’m thinking, maybe there’s someone out there who wanted Southern Valley to think they were screwed over.”
“Because?”
“To get Harlan and Jackson out of the way,” Sam answered.
“Chris and Steve were with me the entire time. There’s no way they could’ve arranged something like this. They don’t have the necessary resources.”
“Too bad we can’t ask them,” Sam said.
“What? Why not?” Jeff asked.
“They both resigned as of Monday. Steve said they wanted jobs that weren’t so stressful.”
Jeff shook his head, “What do you think?”
“Me? I think Harlan got greedy and his former partner made him pay for it in blood. At least that’s what the evidence tells me.”
"Do you know where Chris and Steve are heading?"
"They said something about setting up shop in Alaska," Sam answered.
Jeff stood up. “I’m going to miss the Midwich Cuckoos.”
“Me too,” Sam said.
“What about Welk?”
“We’re definitely making progress in that department.”
“Good,” Jeff said. “I’m going to take the rest of the afternoon off. It’s my son’s birthday and we’ve got a big day ahead.”
Sam smiled and waved her hand towards the door, “Speak no more. Have fun!”
“We will.”
Jeff found himself whistling Johnny Cash's tunes he made his way to the car.
Part V * Epilogue
Pairing: JA/JP
Rating: R for violence
Disclaimer: Of course I don't own these people. Slavery is outlawed. To the dismay of some, I suspect.
WARNINGS: My first RPF. If this is anywhere near the truth, I'm from the Gamma Quadrant.
Summary: Jared Padalecki lost his husband, Jensen Ackles, through neglect. Then the real nightmare begins when a group kidnaps Jensen and ransoms him for fifteen million dollars. The problem isn't paying the money: it's getting Jensen back alive and in one piece.
Title Page
Day Four
The pain that greeted Jensen when he opened his eyes made him realize that waking up was a very bad idea, and his thirst could wait in face of so much pain. Mercifully, he heard the sweet call of darkness and quickly returned to its comforting embrace.
Jackson watched the man slowly slip back into unconsciousness and let out a quiet sigh of relief. The last thing he needed was Ackles awake. He was more than a little fearful Harlan would break focus and turn his attention on their prisoner. Ever since Vladovic’s execution, Harlan was acting off-kilter. Masterson wouldn't notice so slight a change, but Jackson’s been with Harlan for nearly five years and the old soldier knew his boss was slowly unraveling.
Jackson heard Harlan’s footsteps and composed himself: he couldn’t appear distracted.
“The car’s ready,” Harlan said. "Ian, load up Ackles."
Jackson began bundling up the unconscious man in a blanket.
Harlan turned to Masterson. “Did you get everything?”
Masterson nodded and patted his computer bag. “We are good to go. Man, I can’t wait to get out of this shit hole.”
Harlan's response was shooting Masterson twice in the head. Then he turned to Jackson and calmly said, “I’ll grab the gear, you wait in the car with Ackles.”
Jackson nodded. Masterson was good at what he did but his talents didn’t make him invaluable, and the last thing they needed was extra weight. He slung Ackles over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry and navigated the tricky stairs. The dawning sun made him refocus his vision before going out into the open.
Jackson carefully arranged Ackles in the back of the SUV, making sure the man was tightly bound with duct tape. After finally satisfied that Ackles wasn’t going to be in any state to bolt, Jackson took a long look at the freighter that doubled as their temporary home for the last five weeks.
Marietta was a transpacific freighter hauling goods between Australia and the Americas. Three months ago, her entire crew was swept in a sting operation focused on human trafficking. Their absence made it easy for Harlan and his men to set up base in the ship since port authority only performed cursory checks on the freighter. Yesterday Harlan told him the crew would be released in two weeks and Jackson guessed they would haul ass back to Australia. They would, no doubt, find the slight alterations Harlan and his men made to some of the holds, not to mention the corpses of Masterson and Vladovic, but the crew would never think to double back and report their findings to the authorities. In fact, Jackson was pretty damn sure they would dump the bodies into the Pacific and ignore the rest.
Jackson smiled a little as Harlan jogged down the gangway. “I see I’m not the only one happy to get out of there.”
Harlan grinned. “Let’s get this over with.”
“Amen to that,” Jackson replied.
Jared held Anna tightly in his arms. She was visibly trembling while being escorted to the private jet, and once they were seated Anna began slowly crying without making a sound. Jared remembered what his daughter was like when she first came to the U.S. so he spotted the withdrawal signs immediately.
“It’ll be just few hours more. Then we’ll all go far, far away.” Jared whispered as he rocked Anna slowly. “After that I’ll get us a big, beautiful boat and we’ll go wherever we want - the Bahamas, maybe France or even Italy. Hell, we can even go to Alaska and chase bears if you guys feel up to it. But it’ll be up to you to convince Daddy that since we’re all on vacation we can eat as we please. You know how choosy he is about food.”
Anna’s death grip on her stuffed toy relaxed marginally. “What can we eat in Alaska?”
“I don’t know, maybe moose burgers?”
“Yuck!”
“Okay, eagle ice cream?”
“Papa!”
Jared smiled and gave a firm kiss on Anna’s forehead. “Okay, okay, I guess we’ll just have to stick to chocolate cakes and strawberry ice cream.”
“And sushi,” Anna chimed in. “Daddy likes sushi.”
“I guess we can squeeze in sushi between caramel popcorn and hot chocolate.”
“We’re going to get fat!”
“Damn right we are,” Jared said. Steve’s cell rang and Jared immediately tensed as he watched the man softly speak.
“They’re ready,” Steve said.
“Any sign of the kidnappers?”
“No, but they went early.” Steve didn’t bother to explain why but Jared guessed it had something to do with Chris and a large duffel bag the man was carrying when they left the mansion.
“Papa?”
Anna’s frightened voice snapped Jared out of his thoughts. He said, “It’s almost over now, baby. Then you, me, daddy, and Mr. Pooh are going to go far, far away.”
“To the moon?”
“If necessary, then yes,” Jared replied as he watched Steve pull out another phone and began speaking. He closed his eyes and added, “And I’ll build a castle so high and so strong, nobody will ever bother us again.”
Jeff saw the SUV before it made the turn off the street and into the empty parking lot. The abandoned factory was perfect for the drop-off as Chris was able to grab an excellent position to cover the area. Unfortunately, Jeff had a bad feeling that was exactly why the kidnappers had chosen the place for the exchange.
The car stopped twenty feet away and a man got out. The cheap Halloween mask he was sporting made his head seem startlingly small when compared to his well-built frame. Not that the stranger caused much concern for Jeff. For all he knew this guy was a thug hired just for the transaction. Then Jeff had to reassess his speculation as the man began walking. His pronounced limp signaled to Jeff that he was dealing with Mr. John Deere, Size Ten.
The kidnapper motioned for Jeff to approach the car, so he did with caution. He watched as the man open the rear hatch and step aside. Jeff saw Ackles and barely managed not to wince. The man’s face was swollen, his nose obviously broken. Jeff also suspected Ackles to be suffering from internal injuries as the man’s breathing was labored and thin. However, he said nothing of his concerns and instead checked for a pulse. It was too slow for his liking but Jeff just stepped back and nodded.
Mr. Deere deposited Ackles to the ground and waited as Jeff called to make the transfer. There was a tense moment as both waited in silence before the kidnapper’s cell rang. He said nothing and listened. Jeff waited quietly. He knew Chris was watching them through a telescope and would drop Mr. John Deere if he made one bad move. Jeff also suspected the kidnapper had backup ready to do the same thing should he pull a similar stunt.
John Deere finished the call and stepped back. Jeff didn’t stop him and just watched as he drove away. Then he pressed a button on a small device he had palmed in his left hand and watched as a helicopter appeared on the horizon. Jeff deposited Ackles into the bird as soon as it touched the ground. Taking advantage of the view he looked down at the parking lot as the copter took off and spotted a flash of light from the roof and Chris’ figure as the man left his vantage point.
Jeff called Steve. “We have Ackles. He’s in bad shape.”
“I’ll contact the hospital. Can we stabilize him or does he need a doctor now?”
“He’ll keep but we should get an I.V. into him, just in case.”
“That won’t be a problem,” Steve said. “Just get here.”
“Don’t plan on doing anything else,” Jeff said snappishly.
“Sir, we’re approaching the airport now,” the pilot said.
Jeff ended the call and waited impatiently as the helicopter landed near the jet. He didn’t even wait for the copter to fully touch down before jumping out. Steve rushed to help him deposit Ackles onto the ground. The two quickly undressed the unconscious man until Ackles was naked. Steve threw a flannel blanket over the nude figure before combing through the man's hair, looking for bugs and other electronic devices.
Jeff handed the clothes to the pilot and said, “Make sure everything reaches the lab together."
The pilot nodded and walked back to his bird as Steve and Jeff carried Ackles into the waiting jet. Steve spotted Chris trotting towards them and gave a mental sigh of relief. Chris' idea of driving would leave professional stunt drivers updating their insurance coverage.
Jared was anxiously standing by the entrance and moaned when he saw the state his husband was in. “Why did you take his clothes off?” Jared asked.
“It’s just a precaution,” Jeff explained as he and Steve gently placed Ackles on the fully reclined seat. He turned Ackles’ face towards the window so Anna wouldn't be forced to stare at him during the flight. “Couldn’t take the chance that the kidnappers slipped in a little surprise for us.”
Jared blanched but said nothing else. Instead, he sat next to Jensen and held onto to the man’s right hand as the jet took off.
Anna was nearly overwhelmed with the need to see her father but managed to hold herself back while she watched her Papa's unwavering stare at Daddy. She had never witnessed her Papa being so tender with him and felt something in her unwind and relax.
We’ll be okay, she thought with a secretive smile. So, instead of joining her fathers, Anna watched contently as Papa nursed her Daddy with loving words and kind touches.
“Your daddies really do love each other,” Chris whispered into her ear.
She nodded sagely and replied, “Of course they do. They’re smart!”
For reasons Anna couldn’t comprehend Chris suddenly burst into laughter, attracting odd looks from his friends. But since it didn’t look like he minded, Anna didn’t much care either. She was too busy planning ways to get Daddy to let them eat ice cream for breakfast and blueberry waffles for dinner.
It was eight in the evening when the jet landed in a small commercial airport outside Boston.
“Why didn’t we land in Logan?” Jared asked as Chris and Steve loaded Jensen onto the waiting Medevac helicopter.
“Sam has an arrangement that allows certain flights of hers to be off-listed. That way this particular trip won’t show up on FAA data.”
Jared was startled by the explanation. That kind of discretion took a lot of power and he wondered exactly who Ferris knew that allowed her such freedom. The ride to the Boston hospital took less than thirty minutes, and Jared was relieved to see a full medical crew waiting on the helipad. The team rushed to the copter and quickly loaded Jensen onto a gurney before taking off.
A man in a very expensive suit greeted the group and led them to what he called 'the private wing’ of the hospital. They were shown to a suite of rooms where they could refresh themselves and order food if they wanted to eat. For the first time since the entire nightmare started Jared actually felt hungry. He ordered a hamburger for himself and a tuna melt for Anna. When the meals came the entire group ate as if they haven’t been fed for days. Jared noticed even Anna finished her plate, a first for her.
A doctor entered the room with multiple folders flapping in his thin hands. Jared thought he looked like the type to iron his undershirts, and when the doctor began speaking in a clipped, hard tone, Jared's assumption seemed correct.
“My name is Doctor Weinstein. I need to speak with Mr. ... Padalecki?”
Jared stood up when he realized the doctor hadn’t a clue who he was. The man ushered Jared into a small room across the hall.
“I regret to tell you reattaching the finger is out of the question, but I don’t think that’s news to you,” the doctor said succinctly. “Your partner’s nose is fractured but the rest of his facial structure is undamaged, and after examining the injury we believe no surgery will be necessary.
“His electrolytes are abnormal but that’s being corrected as we speak. He does have a mild arrhythmia so we’re carefully monitoring him. We also gave him a light sedative but he’s alert enough…”
“Wait a minute, he’s awake?” Jared asked.
“Yes, he regained consciousness twenty minutes ago,” Dr. Weinstein curtly answered. “Do you want to see him?”
Jared nodded frantically and finished his water bottle as his mouth suddenly dried up. Now that he knew Jensen was out of danger he was suddenly flooded with memories of how their last conversation went. His angry words mocked him and Jared wondered what Jensen would do when he saw him. Would he blame Jared for his pitiful state? After all, it was because of Jared’s money that Jensen was kidnapped and mutilated.
The doctor opened a door to a spacious room and stepped aside to let Jared in. He then discreetly closed the door behind the anxious husband as Jared slowly made his way to the bed hidden from view.
“Jensen?” Jared hoarsely said when he saw his husband.
Jensen opened his eyes and saw Jared standing next to him. He blinked slowly then said, “Are you okay?”
Jared’s legs collapsed underneath him, nearly sending him sprawling on the floor. Jensen reached out to grab him but winced as the sudden movement caused him to feel a large spike of pain in spite of the heavy medication. Jared saw Jensen's pallor worsen and scrambled onto the bed, burying his face in Jensen’s chest while wrapping his arms tightly around him. Jared wanted to apologize, to make promises but no words came out, only broken, keening noises as he wept.
Jared felt Jensen curl around him; his embrace was surprisingly strong and Jared sunk deeper into the protective cocoon Jensen made with his body.
“Shhh,” Jensen whispered, “it’s okay. It’s okay. I’m not mad. No way. I’m alive and we’re going to be fine. That’s all that matters to me.”
Jared couldn’t look at Jensen’s face when he asked, “How can you say that?”
“Easily,” Jensen answered. “It could’ve been so much worse. This … this is just a bump on the road, a bad one but still, only a bump.”
Jared was shocked enough to forget his reluctance to face his husband. He looked at Jensen and realized the man was speaking honestly. “How can you think that after everything you’ve been through?”
Jensen looked thoughtful as he said, “It’s a choice, Jared. I’m not saying it’s going to be easy but the choice to live my life as I see fit is still mine, no matter what the bastards did to me. You can’t sell something like that or have someone steal it from you. The only way you lose that power is if you give it up.”
Jared stole a glance at Jensen’s disfigured left hand and shivered uncontrollably. Realizing what he had just done he looked up at Jensen with frightened eyes. “I’m sorry…”
“It’s okay,” Jensen said and weakly nuzzled Jared's damp hair. “I tossed a few cookies when I saw it earlier.”
“Did … did they give you something when they cut it off?” Jared asked weakly.
“No, I was out when they did it. I tried to escape and nearly made it too. Got caught on the stairs. The doctor said they used a taser. He also said they gave me a narcotic to keep me sedated.”
“Why did you do that?”
“I couldn’t trust them hold up their end of the bargain,” Jensen answered. “They could’ve left me in that room to die, Jared.”
Jared buried his face into the crook of Jensen’s neck and shoulder. He took deep breaths, trying to calm himself. Of course Jensen would do something so fantastically dangerous; his husband was one of the few people Jared knew who could calmly calculate death into a scenario and then let it play out anyway.
“Didn’t you speak with Chris?” Jensen asked.
Jared blinked dumbly, “What?”
“Chris Kane. The guy said he was with Ferris’ firm. He came by earlier and we talked for a bit.”
“Not yet. He’s probably running around, trying to secure the area or do some other military maneuver to make sure this hospital’s impregnable.”
“He was a bit tense when we talked,” Jensen said with a tired smile. “I’m guessing this took out a lot from everyone.”
“Jensen, don’t worry about the rest of us, and that includes Anna. She’s probably doing the best out of all of us, actually.”
“Daddy’s little girl,” Jensen said with fierce pride.
“That she is,” Jared added and kissed him lightly. “Rest, and I’ll come by later with her, okay?”
Jensen nodded and pulled up the blanket until it reached his chin. Then he snuggled into his bed, curled on his right side. The position made him look about nine and Jared felt his eyes sting. He sneaked a glance at the heart monitor and took some comfort in its steady rhythm.
Jared knew Jensen was all too correct when he said it won’t be easy, but at least they had a chance now. So, easy or hard, Jared was going to fight to keep his family together. It took too much sacrifice, mostly on Jensen’s part, for him to understand and accept that a family such as his meant everything.
Jeff was waiting for him in the hallway. “He’s a strong man.”
Jared nodded and rubbed his face. “I don’t understand where it comes from. I would’ve been a basket case if I were in his shoes.”
Jeff looked at him with open surprise. “You’re kidding, right?”
“No,” Jared replied, successfully repressing a twitch of annoyance. “What?”
“He’s that strong because he loves you, Mr. Padalecki,” Jeff said. “That’s his source of strength. He was damn good at that job of his because he loved what he was doing. That kind of simplicity is virtually unheard of these days, but your husband seems to be the exception to practically every rule I know of."
Jared couldn’t answer. Of course he knew what Jeff was saying. He’s seen Jensen’s devotion to his job but Jared never paused to consider he was deserving enough to fit in the same category. After all, there was a huge difference between a spoiled playboy and a life-affirming job working for the dying and the forgotten.
Jeff puffed out a noise that sounded like a cross between a snort and a laugh. “For a man who’s made Fortune 500 for five years straight you’re pretty fucking clueless.”
“I’m beginning to get that.”
“Why don’t you rest," Jeff said. "My men and I aren't going anywhere for a while."
“How secure are we in this hospital?” Jared asked.
“Beth Israel has a private contract with Ferris’ firm. None of her clients are in the books, and since this wing is not only private but self-sufficient, 99.99% of the general hospital staff doesn’t have a damn clue what’s going on here.
“Also, Dr. Weinstein was a client of hers. Can’t tell you what we did for him but he’s grateful enough to keep the information on this particular group of patients off the main database. Mostly, he tells people he’s either got an Aerosmith band member or somebody from the Red Sox up here.”
“Were there any Red Sox players up here?”
Jeff nodded, “Oh yeah, and two members from Aerosmith. Weinstein has their photos on his wall to prove it too.”
Jared was appeased enough with Jeff's explanation to return to his room. He found Anna fast asleep in his bed with both dogs. Jared pushed aside Harley to squeeze in besides his daughter before caving into his exhaustion.
Chris caught a glimpse of them from the balcony before making the last call to Jim. The conversation was brief and lasted for all of five seconds. Afterwards, he threw the cell phone over the side of the balcony and watched it shatter on the roof of the building adjacent to the hospital.
Bogotá, Colombia
Samuel Trent loved his job. He spent his informative years listening attentively to his father on the topic of banks and the heartless bastards who ran them. Not surprisingly his vitriol was mainly fueled by alcohol which ended up killing him before Samuel turned fifteen. After witnessing his mother weep over the fact she could barely pay for the funeral, Samuel made up his mind to make enough money to ensure at least he would be able to comfortably afford his.
Trent joined The Bennet Finance Group right after graduating from University of Edinburgh. Through the years he quickly worked his way up the corporate chain, and just when he thought his success was a guarantee, it all fell apart. It still shocked Trent that an investment firm would fire him because he made too much money. He would be the first to admit he took some shortcuts but he made sure he stayed in the grey. And yet this was more than enough for Mr. Bennet, the CEO, to put an end to Trent's meteoric career. It didn’t take long after his dismissal for Trent to realize his former boss had poisoned his reputation to the point that he couldn’t get a job in the secretarial pool.
Trent came to Bogotá with what money he had saved and found plenty of people willing to look the other way when it came to his unique set of skills. But no matter how tempted he was, Trent remained in the grey, ensuring that Bacatá Banco Internacional would survive certain level of scrutiny from abroad and at home. The bribes came in handy of course, and his clients had a special way of dealing with stubborn people, so it wasn’t long before both his and his bank's reputation grew to international proportions.
September 11 definitely put a damper in his business dealings, but greed had a way of outlasting even grief, and Trent was positive things would return to normal before long.
The purr of the outlandishly outfitted Humvee drew his attention to the window. Like clockwork, Señor Hecker pulled up in front of the bank. The Dane’s history with the Southern Valley Cartel was still a mystery to Trent, not that the man was so bold as to actually ask how Hecker got involved. Trent knew what to do with his curiosity - hide it when it came to the Cartels.
He was getting the briefcase ready for Hecker when the explosion blew out all his office windows. The car alarms rang through the night, as did the screams of tourists who were dining in the expensive restaurants across the street. Trent knew better than to look out the window. Instead he scrambled to his hidden vault and hid the briefcase along with his personal laptop. Then he went to the bathroom to make sure he looked presentable when the police arrived.
After all, he did have a reputation to maintain.
February, 2008
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Welk rubbed his aching neck and watched with open hatred as Ferris took the seat across from his. The last thing he expected was to be forcibly dragged into a public arena such as the lobby of the Four Seasons. How Ferris’ men didn’t catch any unwanted attention attested to their professional ability to operate under stressful and certainly dangerous conditions.
“Hello, Tom,” Ferris said with a beautiful smile as she crossed her legs. The woman had a good a taste in clothes as she did in firearms.
“All I need to do is scream,” Welk hissed.
“I know that,” Ferris said. “I just thought you’d like to return with us under your own volition instead of in a casket.”
“I have plenty of security.”
“They were good, I’ll give them that. But they weren’t good enough, Tom, or haven’t you noticed?”
“So what?”
“This is what: either you come back with me now or I’ll send an e-mail to my field operatives about what you’ve done. And then I’ll just release all the relevant data and watch them hunt you down.
"Do you really think that my people would forgive and forget? You fucked with their pensions, Tom - their futures and their children's. They’re not going to walk away from that. In fact, the six men I brought with me are more than willing to put a hole in your head just on principle alone.”
Welk paled considerably but dared not look around. He knew what Ferris’ soldiers were capable of. In fact, it was easier to write down what they wouldn’t do than what they would.
“So, come back to the States with me, or I walk out of here and wait maybe twelve hours before fetching your corpse? What do you say, Tom?”
“You’re a fucking bitch, you know that?”
“Maybe, but I’m also pretty damn sure I’m the scariest bitch you’ll ever come across.”
Ferris stood up and smoothed her skirt. Then she held out her arm and Welk linked it with his like a gentleman. The two left together, looking like old lovers out for a leisurely stroll before dinner.
February, 2008
Concord, New Hampshire
Jim took a sip of the hot chocolate and sat back to watch the natives bustle about their business, even if they were almost waist-deep in snow. He couldn’t believe he was finally back in the States. Though he would’ve preferred somewhere warmer, Jim could understand why Chris had chosen this snowy capital as his new home. It was populated enough for Jim to run a successful bookstore, and close enough to the Canadian border that should the need arise he could take off.
Jim was careful not to keep anything of his life as Max Zweig. As far as the Colombian authorities knew, Zweig’s boat disintegrated half-mile from Cartagena's coast. He made sure the explosives were the type to leave behind residues, so that should anyone be looking for dear old Max, they would assume he was at the bottom of the ocean thanks to someone with access to military hardware.
The day Jim crossed into Arizona from Mexico, he dyed his hair grey. When most people assumed disguises they tried to make themselves look younger, not older. Then he gained twenty pounds with the help of roadside diners. He also bought tacky golf shirts in Denver and Jefferson City, and thus successfully completing his transformation to a middle management retiree by the time he reached New Hampshire.
Jim felt a familiar sense of pride in ownership when he spotted a woman reading the sign he taped up on the store's display window. It would take him another month before he could fully open for business, but Jim could already feel success drifting into his senses. He would have to thank Kane for choosing this particular location as it saw more than its fair share of foot traffic.
One year, Jim thought as he began putting up more shelves. Then Chris and Steve could swing by and maybe we could all go hunting, just like old times. Wouldn’t that be something?
February, 2008
Kennebec Island
Maine, United States
Jared stepped out on the porch and took a deep breath of the cold Maine air. At first he didn’t think much of his father’s idea of a family get-together on the Padalecki’s summer retreat but now Jared had to admit it was a great plan. The compound was built on a private island off the Southern Maine Coast, and it contained enough rooms to comfortably house everyone, bodyguards included.
He took the small hand-held vacuum hidden under a rocker and quickly took care of frozen cricket carcasses strewn about the door. Anna had thrown a mind-blowing tantrum when he first introduced the idea of spending three weeks in Maine. It was only after their daughter had fallen asleep that Jensen was able to explain about Anna's fear of the cold due to her experience in the orphanage. They were finally able to convince Anna to change her mind when Jared told her about the crickets and the lovely song they make whenever he visited Maine.
Of course that was during summertime. Once they arrived on Kennebec Island it was obvious that the local cricket population wasn’t going to make themselves heard any time soon. Jared became desperate enough to make a trip to the mainland in order to buy crickets. He then released them around the main house in the hopes that Anna wouldn't believe him to be a conniving liar. Unfortunately for the anxious father the insects did what insects always do in Maine winter: die.
The next morning, when Jared went outside for what was suppose to be a stroll with Anna, he found himself ankle-deep in cricket carnage. He frantically buried the frozen corpses into a snow bank before Anna joined him. Since then, they always found dead crickets littered about the grounds. So, it became a part of morning household chore - make coffee; clean up dead crickets before Anna could find them; cook breakfast; wake others.
If this mad business ended with some surreptitious sweeping and vacuuming, it would’ve been fine. Unfortunately few crickets found their way into the basement and made themselves comfortable. For the first few days it was lovely. After that it became quite clear they had outstayed their welcome. Four fathers went cricket hunting but were unable to destroy the noisy invaders. But Jared was pretty sure the problem wouldn’t remain one for long. He heard the cook talking to Justin: as soon as the families left, the staff was going to fumigate the entire house.
Jared heard his father’s firm footfall and turned around.
“I see you did the cricket duties,” Gerald said with a wide grin.
“You’re never going to let me live it down, are you?”
Gerald laughed and shook his head, “No, never, and you mother’s not about to either.”
Jared took a sip of his coffee then turned to his father, his face composed and serious. “Dad, I wanted to tell you - I’m going to resign from the company.”
“I wondered if you were. Don’t think I’m not disappointed because I am. But I understand, I really do.”
“I’m just glad you’re not mad,” Jared said with a huge sigh of relief.
“Son, I built the company because that was my dream. I didn’t raise you and put you through school just so you could give up your dreams. I’ve seen fathers do that to their children and I can honestly say it’s the closest thing to cannibalism I’ve witnessed.”
Gerald bumped his shoulder against Jared’s. “Now, you have to tell me something: why did you take my job in the first place?”
Jared smiled a little and shook his head. “Jensen got a job offer to help set up a hospice in India. It was going to take him six months so I couldn’t go with him. I just got scared, Dad. I thought that once he went back to doing what he loved best, he would realize I had no place in his life.
“So, I decided to settle down for both of us. Become a responsible CEO, buy a house, and start talking about marriage. That way I was guaranteed to have Jensen with me, no matter where his job took him.”
“Why did you think he was going to leave you?”
“God vs. me, I just couldn’t imagine coming out as the winner in that scenario.”
“Jensen isn’t the type to pit you against anyone, especially God. He’s not that cruel.”
“I know that now, but back then … he was so different from the people I usually hang out with, I didn’t know what to do! I just couldn’t risk losing him. Not then and not now.”
“So, the tower is going to be your last project?”
“Yeah, after that, we’ll see where we land.”
“Jensen will land like a cat, you - like a rhino that just downed an entire bottle of Scotch whisky.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence.”
“That’s what I’m here for, son.” Gerald glanced at his watch. “We better go in and see what your mother’s up to. For the record I’m glad your mother’s into ethnic meals, but I really don’t want another curry dish for breakfast. The damn thing gives me gas.”
“Did you see Jessie’s face when mom asked her to cook dim sum for Sunday brunch? I thought she was going to break down and cry.”
Gerald’s face broke into a large grin. “Remind me to give Jessie a nice bonus before we leave. Holy Jesus did she earn it.”
To the relief of both men it was Jensen who had commandeered the kitchen with Anna’s help. Bacon was sizzling in the pan and multiple stacks of waffles towered on their plates.
“I wanted give Jessie a break,” Jensen said as he mixed in blueberries with the batter. “She looked under the weather last night.”
Jared gave a sly glance towards his father but said nothing. As Jensen poured the batter into the waffle maker Jared set up the table.
“Jared, I talked to Justin earlier. He’s going to look for another position when we leave here,” Jensen said softly.
“Why?” Jared asked, honestly surprised.
“Justin wanted to quit for a while but decided to wait until things settled down,” Jensen said. “He said it’s about time he started another career, and I think he’s right.”
“We’re going to have to look long and hard to find a replacement,” Jared grumbled. “Does he have any plans?”
“He’s thinking about finishing his studies in education.”
“He’d make a good teacher,” Jared said.
Gerald nodded, “I have to agree. The man’s got the patience of a saint and nothing gets past him. Two qualities you definitely need to be a good teacher.”
“What about a good teacher?” Sharon asked as she entered the kitchen.
“Talking about the qualities one needs to be a teacher,” Jensen said.
“Mind reading,” Sharon quipped, “and the ability to smell BS from a mile away, or at least down the hall.”
“Grandmamma, what’s BS?” Anna asked innocently.
“Bologna stories, my dear. Also known as really bad fairytales,” Sharon said.
Jensen hid his smile by sipping his coffee. As the families trickled down to the kitchen the conversations got louder and more boisterous, but he had little problem holding private talks with Jared when he wanted to.
March, 2008
San Diego, United States
“What you want to see me about?” Jeff asked.
“You’ll want to sit down first,” Sam said as she pulled out a folder and handed it to him.
Jeff’s eyes grew wide as he read the few pieces of paper filed in it. “Holy shit, they’re dead?”
“Both Harlan and Jackson. Eric personally confirmed their identities.”
“So, they died two days days after they got the ransom?”
“Looks like,” Sam said.
“Doesn’t make sense,” Jeff said, frowning. “What did they do? Screw over the cartel they were hoping to do business with?”
“Maybe, but that would’ve been catastrophically stupid on their part. And they didn’t strike me as stupid,” Sam said.
“So, what happened?”
“I did a little digging. The night of the ransom payment, a bomb went off killing one Mr. Hecker, a well-known associate of the Southern Valley Cartel. What interests me is that he was killed while parking his car in front of Bacatá Banco Internacional.”
“Any suspects?”
Sam shook her head, “The police found enough trace evidence to deduce that the bomb was made out of explosives commonly used by our soldiers. Not so surprising since we have a habit of leaving so much shit behind, but it is interesting, isn’t it?”
“Definitely,” Jeff agreed, lost in thought. “So Southern Valley thought Harlan and his men double-crossed them and killed them? Is that about right?”
“Looks like,” Sam said lightly, “but why would they in the first place?”
“Maybe they made a better deal with the Rojo family,” Jeff said.
“Maybe, but last I checked, the money’s still sitting in the bank,” Sam said as she put the folder into a locked drawer.
“Really? That is interesting.” Jeff took another glance at the folder containing the autopsy reports. "But I'm not surprised. If Harlan changed his mind and decided to go into bed with the Rojo family, he would've kept mum about the deal with Southern Valley. After Hecker's murdered, the Rojos found out what Harlan did. They wisely decided not to touch the money because the last thing the Rojos want is a full-scale civil war with the only other cartel powerful enough to destroy them."
“That sounds very plausible. But I’m thinking, maybe there’s someone out there who wanted Southern Valley to think they were screwed over.”
“Because?”
“To get Harlan and Jackson out of the way,” Sam answered.
“Chris and Steve were with me the entire time. There’s no way they could’ve arranged something like this. They don’t have the necessary resources.”
“Too bad we can’t ask them,” Sam said.
“What? Why not?” Jeff asked.
“They both resigned as of Monday. Steve said they wanted jobs that weren’t so stressful.”
Jeff shook his head, “What do you think?”
“Me? I think Harlan got greedy and his former partner made him pay for it in blood. At least that’s what the evidence tells me.”
"Do you know where Chris and Steve are heading?"
"They said something about setting up shop in Alaska," Sam answered.
Jeff stood up. “I’m going to miss the Midwich Cuckoos.”
“Me too,” Sam said.
“What about Welk?”
“We’re definitely making progress in that department.”
“Good,” Jeff said. “I’m going to take the rest of the afternoon off. It’s my son’s birthday and we’ve got a big day ahead.”
Sam smiled and waved her hand towards the door, “Speak no more. Have fun!”
“We will.”
Jeff found himself whistling Johnny Cash's tunes he made his way to the car.
Part V * Epilogue