Back in the other room, I got the laptop fired up, and spent a little time getting the software I used loaded on it. That done, there was a little fine-tuning the settings, and I logged into my internet provider to check my email. I was pleasantly surprised to find that nearly all of my customers had replied to the messages I'd sent them, saying they appreciated the warning, and wishing me well. When I saw that, I silently laughed to myself, thinking 'If they only KNEW how well it turned out!'.
The couple of people that had problems or questions were easily dealt with, so it wasn't long before I was done. Email out of the way, I started working on the project that I'd set aside to come help Lucy; I'd copied the necessary files to a few diskettes, so was able to pretty much pick up where I'd left off. When I checked the time again, I still had an hour and a half before my meeting; I saved my work, and went in to see what the others were up to.
I opened the door to 'my' room, and saw that it was empty. Continuing on, I found them all on the bed in Lucy's room, snuggling as they watched cartoons on TV, of all things. All four of them clambered off the bed to come over to hug and kiss me when they saw me. Amy and Lucy were particularly enthusiastic in their greetings, making sure that I*knew* I'd been kissed. Almost had my socks rolling up and down…
Sandra told me that she'd woken up and went looking for me; when she got to my room, she saw the three of them in bed, and decided to join them for a little bit while she and Amy talked quietly so as not to wake Lucy or Robyn. Lucy was the next to wake up, and finally Robyn.
With all of them awake, they decided that they smelled like a used brothel, and went in to take a group shower that turned into a grope session. Dried off, Amy told them that I was working in the other room, and they'd decided to leave me alone, figuring that I'd been busy enough with all of them the last few days. Instead, they'd gone to Lucy's room to watch TV, so they'd be sure and not disturb me. The idea of cartoons had actually been Amy's – it sounded like fun, and they'd all agreed.
I told them that I'd be going out early that afternoon, but that I'd be back in a couple of hours, tops. They all looked apprehensive, but I told them that it was just a meeting, and that there wasn't anything to worry about. Lucy and Amy looked dubious, but didn't say anything; Robyn and Sandra accepted it without any noticeable problem.
They invited me to join them, and when I agreed, Lucy and Amy got into a friendly argument about who sat on my lap – Amy wanted Lucy to do it, and Lucy wanted Amy Amy finally gave in when Robyn and Sandra chimed in, telling her that she was the guest so she'd better do it, or they'd positively*ravish* her. In mock fear, Amy made her way over to me, and let me hold her as Lucy snuggled into my side, with Robyn, then Sandra on the other.
When I figured it was time, I hugged Amy and told them that I had to go – Amy got off my lap, and she and Lucy stood up to let me get off the bed. Both kissed me again – Lucy looking on in amusement when Amy saw her watching and hesitated a moment – and told me to hurry back.
I assured them I would, and headed out the door.
In the lobby, Agent Hendricks was waiting for me, along with the two suits I'd seen earlier. He asked me if I was sure I wanted to do it this way, and I told him I was. With a sigh, he gestured to the other two agents, and the four of us headed for the parking lot. There, we got into an issue FBI car, and left, another car of agents right behind us.
After a while, we pulled up to the gates of a small estate – probably the size of a half-dozen 'normal' house lots, with a guy standing there. I handed my holstered pistol to Agent Hendricks, and told him 'Try not to lose this, okay? I kinda like it.'
He laughed, and said 'It'll be here when you get out.'
I got out of the car, and it and the one full of agents pulled out of the driveway to park across the street from the gate. The guy standing there watched all this carefully. When I walked up to him, I told him 'My name is Dan Andrews. I believe I'm expected.'
He looked me over, and nodded before opening a small personnel gate to the side of the big heavy one across the driveway. I went in, and was immediately met by a couple of largish guys in suits who told me 'Sorry, sir, but we gotta check to make sure you're not wired, or carrying.'
'That's fine. I left the hardware with the FBI boys out front; I don't think I want a wire any more than you do – but go ahead.'
Both of them nodded, and politely – but thoroughly – frisked me, and checked to make sure I wasn't wearing a listening device. Both gave me a look when they realized I was wearing a vest, but didn't say anything.
One of them escorted me to the front door of the house – easily a dozen rooms – which opened as we got close. Another man in a suit came out, and the one with me told him 'He's clean. Got a vest, though.' The one who came out nodded, and led me into the house, and on into a large room. Inside, there was a sizeable conference table.
At one end sat an elderly man, with a couple of younger men seated to each side of him. Behind him stood a couple of heavy-set fellows, with a couple more standing off to each side of the room.
When I went in, the elderly man stood up, and introduced himself 'I take it you're Dan Andrews. My name is Benito Falcone. My nephew, Jules, tells me that it might be worthwhile for us to have a little talk.'
'Glad to meet you, Mr. Falcone. I'm hoping that we can sit down and talk out this problem that we seem to have, before anybody gets hurt.'
About that time, the guy that met me at the door walked over to him and whispered something into his ear, then left.
Francone looked at me a moment, then said 'I understand you were brought here by some FBI people. That was not a friendly thing to do, I think.'
'The FBI people were assigned to me by their office. It seemed better to have them with me, out in the open, than have them scurrying around where nobody could see them. You know they're there. They know I'm in here. It helps prevent any problems or misunderstandings.'
He gave a small laugh, and said 'And makes it easier for you to leave here. Okay, I'm not playing with a dummy. But we've still got a problem. I understand that you found some information that you gave to the FBI about some associates of mine. This information is going to cause them some problems. When it causes them problems, it causes ME problems, and I don't LIKE problems. I think the easiest thing would be for me to get rid of the cause of all these problems.'
'That wouldn't do you any good, Mister Falcone. All the information I have is already in the hands of the FBI. Even if something was to happen to me, it wouldn't hurt their case even a little bit.'
'Perhaps. But if something was to happen to you, it might let other people know that it isn't a good idea to make me unhappy.'
'I think that there are people who would tell you that it isn't a good idea to make ME unhappy, either, Mister Falcone.'
'You're talking about Vinnie? Yeah, I suppose he would – but then again, he's not going to be happy with you when he can move around again.'
'As long as he's unhappy someplace else, I'm not going to concern myself about it. I just want to see an end to OUR problem.'
He looked at me for a long moment, then said 'You want an end to our problem, but you're not giving me anything to work with, here. What's to keep me from having some people pay you a little visit, and maybe deal with you that way?'
'Because if you did, those people might not find it so easy to visit anyone else after that – THEY might be the ones that get dealt with.'
He got an outraged look on his face, and exclaimed 'What? You're talking to me like that? What do you think, you're some kind of tough guy?!'
I just stood there, and shrugged my shoulders.
Behind me, I heard Jules tell him 'Uncle Benny, he doesn't think he's a tough guy. He's what tough guys WANT to be.'
Falcone calmed himself a bit at that, and watched as Jules and I shook hands before he pulled me into a hug, and said 'It's good to see you again, Boomer. Even like this.'
'Nice to see you learned how to stay out of trouble in helicopters, Guido.'
He hugged me again, and turned to Falcone to say 'Uncle Benny, this man, he doesn't scare. Not because he's stupid, but because he's a lot tougher and a lot smarter than most people give him credit for.
