FicWad

Gerard paled and his breathing hitched as a thousand and one thoughts raced through his mind without any of them waiting long enough to be spoken out loud. Confused and scared, he merely continued to stare; occasionally turning is eyes between the photo of Mikey and the man who had taken him. Slowly, anger replaced shock and his breathing became loud and shallow as his jaw clenched along with his fists.

“If you’re thinking what I think you are,” Iero warned, “remember I have a gun on you.”
Gerard’s eyes closed as he took in the words and he released his anger in a frustrated sigh.
“How…? Why…?” Gerard stammered. “He’s… how did you…?”
“Pull it together, Way!” Frank snapped harshly. “We need you to behave normally from now on. Business as usual. Got that?”
Gerard forcefully calmed himself. There were so many questions he needed to ask and the only way he would get answers would be by Iero’s rules.
“Why Mikey?”
Frank rolled his eyes and shook his head.
“How else could we force you?”
“But… this meeting… you wouldn’t normally be speaking to me. It would be…”
“The manager?” Frank smiled slyly, feeling the corners of his mouth turn up once more as he again sensed the power he exerted over the dumbstruck assistant manager. “He had… an accident. Not entirely coincidental.”
“You nearly killed him!” Gerard gasped.
Frank’s expression hardened.
“He got off lightly,” he narrowed his eyes as he leaned forward menacingly. “Do as you’re told and you and your brother will live.”
Gerard inhaled deeply as he took in the words. Glancing at the photograph, he nodded bleakly, unable now to even look Iero in the eyes.
“I’ll be in touch,” Frank snatched the photo from Gerard’s hands and shoved it back into his briefcase with the gun as he rose from his seat. “Remember, Way, we have your brother, and of course, we know where you live. Do as you’re told and you’ll both live.”
“Wait!” Gerard cried as Frank rose from his seat. “What do I do?”
“Nothing until you’re told to,” Frank growled, “understand? You wait to hear from me again and you give nothing away to anyone. If you do, you know what’ll happen to your brother.”
“Don’t hurt him,” Gerard pleaded.
“That’s up to you, isn’t it?” Frank replied with a smirk.

This had gone better than he had hoped for. His information had told him that Gerard and his brother, Mikey, were close, but Gerard’s reaction had more than confirmed this. He seemed genuinely terrified. It was exactly what he wanted. The only possible drawback was that he wouldn’t be able to pretend that everything was normal. Questions couldn’t be asked. Frank decided he would have to keep a very close watch on him.

“Business as usual, Way,” Frank warned as he reached the door. “I’m having you watched, so don’t try anything heroic or Mikey’ll pay for it. Got it?”

Gerard stared at the mountain of paperwork in the cabinet behind his desk, at the screen full of e-mails building up as each minute passed. None of it was important any more. Not one single damn thing in that room was important! He wanted to scream, to push his desk over, to pick up his computer and throw it out the window. This job, this damn job that he had always hated was now instrumental in his brother’s life being threatened. But he could do nothing, say nothing, he could only act as if everything were perfectly normal. It was going to kill him.

*

The room was lit just well enough to see. With no natural light and little ventilation, the basement room was musty and warm. From the years of dust gathered in the corners and the boxes piles up against the walls, it seemed as though it had never been used for anything other than storage. Today was no different, but the room now held something it had probably never had before – a hostage.
Mikey opened his eyes slowly, but only his left eye cooperated. The slightest of movements in his eyes or cheek caused an explosion of pain and he quickly closed them again. He felt the cloth pulled tight behind his neck and the heavily knotted section sunk deep into his mouth, drying his tongue and making him feel nauseous. It wasn’t long before he realised that both his hands and bare feet were handcuffed and whatever he was lying on offered little comfort. The flashback from only a few hours earlier flooded his mind.

“See you tonight, Mikey!” Gerard called as he closed the door behind him.
“Uhnn,” Mikey replied incoherently as he pulled the covers over his head.

The pair had been drinking the night before and even though it had only been six beers, Mikey felt terrible. Perhaps it had been the lack of sleep prior to arriving at Gerard’s place, or perhaps it was the half bottle of vodka he had downed after he had headed for bed? He wanted to blame the lack of sleep but he knew he couldn’t seriously do that. The break up had hit him harder than he had cared to admit, even to himself. His girlfriend of three years had been unfaithful to him for the previous eight months. Why hadn’t she left him? He was her meal ticket. The other guy was an artist-type; high on drama, low on cash. He had told Gerard it was an amicable break up and he wanted space while she moved out. That wasn’t it at all. She had laughed in his face when he finally found out. Amused that he couldn’t see what was under his very nose, that his sight correction had left him as blind as ever he was before. He had been played for a fool and he felt it bitterly.

Suffering a hangover, his head did not appreciate the hammering at the door only five minutes after Gerard had left. Had he forgotten his keys or something?
Pulling on a pair of pants and a t-shirt, Mikey headed for the door and opened it expecting to see his brother. What actually happened was the last thing he could have expected.
He caught a fleeting glance of a tall, broad blond man as the door was pushed back hard into him. Staggering backwards, almost falling off balance, Mikey looked up sharply, suddenly very awake.

“Who the fuck are you?” he shouted, but his only reply was a powerful blow that connected with his abdomen, winding him instantly. Doubled over and gasping for breath, Mikey felt hand crash sharply down at the base of his neck. The pain was overwhelming and his knees buckled instantly. As he fell, his head caught the side of a small table and he slipped to the floor lying on his side, barely conscious and groaning softly. The assailant grabbed a handful of hair and pulled him upright, landing a vicious sweeping back-handed blow to his cheek and temple. After that, Mikey was silent.

Now he had woken here, wherever that was. Handcuffed and still in a lot of pain, Mikey didn’t mind admitting to himself that he was scared. He had no way of knowing why he had been taken or by whom. Neither was he entirely sure he wanted to meet the man who had done this to ask.

*

In another room with the drapes closed, Ray Toro took a long draw on his cigarette as he cast a discerning eye over the blueprints spread out on the table. Concentrating hard on the detail, he pulled a pen from behind his ear, half hidden by the mop of tight curls and, pulling a notebook closer, jotted a few more notes to the already full page.
Sitting back in his seat, he took another long draw on the cigarette and blew out the smoke with an air of satisfaction. Glancing up as the door opened, he nodded to the man silhouetted in the doorway.

“How can you sit in here?” The new arrival grumbled with a cough as he entered the room.
“What?” Ray smirked as the other man waved aside the thick choking blanket hanging in the air. “You smoke.”

At the flick of a switch the hum of an extractor fan kicked into action and the sound almost dominated the small space.

“And that’s why, Frank,” Ray tilted his head to one side and frowned. “How can I concentrate with that racket?”
Frank lowered his eyes towards the now closed notebook.
“You’re finished?” he asked.
“Of course!” Ray replied with a smug grin. “I told you two hours.”
“Okay, so what’s the verdict?”
“Oh, guilty,” he grinned, “definitely guilty.”
“Ray!” Frank scowled at his flippancy.
“Frank,” Ray began, folding his arms, “have I ever let you down?”

Frank grinned. He, Ray and Bob had pulled off some quite sensational robberies: banks, mansions, galleries, it didn’t matter, whatever they had attempted, they had been successful. The police were always baffled. Their thefts were always so meticulously planned and carried out that there were never any clues leading back to the trio.

“No, Ray,” Frank conceded. “You’ve never let me down. But this is bigger. I know you can handle the security, but I haven’t been able to get any plans, keys or codes because they change on a daily basis. This time we have to bring in an outsider.”
“I’m not at all comfortable with that, Frank. I don’t know why you’re so obsessed with this bank. Money’s money, they’ve all got it, why this one?”
“Because this one is currently housing the jewel collection of King Louis the Fourteenth of France before it goes on display. The richest king of France, the Sun King himself.”
“You’re kidding!” Ray gasped, his eyes wide with a mixture of surprise and excitement.
“Oh no!” Frank grinned. “I never joke about money. I even have a buyer already. We are going to be multi-millionaires, Ray.”
Ray couldn’t stop the grin spreading across his face but he tried to look serious.
“But this guy? Can he be trusted?”
“Oh, I think so,” Frank nodded. “Have you not been downstairs? We have a visitor.”
“Bob’s been busy?” Ray asked with a grin.
Frank nodded. “We have the assistant manager’s brother. He’s in our pocket. We’re as good as counting the money!”