“Yep, I know. I couldn’t leave the bugger wandering around on the street though.”
“Well let’s get walkin’. Momma gonna need her sex slave tonight.”
“Eeeeeeuuuuuhhhhh…” Jean was up dancing around making gagging noises while the others laughed. “I swear, Mom. Damn it! You say stuff like that just to see if you can make my head explode.”
“Yeah… so what’s your point?”
*
Sonny Salvatore stared out the window on the McCarty deck. He spent many times visiting on the deck doing homework with Jean while her Dad wrote on his laptop, and her Mom played with Quinn. He knew Nick was a killer on a level unmeasurable by normal or combat standards. Early on, Sonny recognized this was no normal household with parents, kids, and dog. He visited the McCartys every chance he got. Sonny knew parents weren’t perfect. His folks were the poster people for that phrase, but on top of the lies Sonny knew down deep he was simply a prop for whatever new scheme his parents cooked up. When he was with Jean and her family, they treated him like one of the family. He wasn’t the only one either. Many people without blood connection were members of the McCarty family. Over the years, Sonny became Quinn’s older brother, but never a brother to Jean. He loved Jean with an intensity that still made him ache. They fought, broke up, and made up so many times he had lost track. They were like oil and water. That she thought he would care about her facial scars still pissed him off. He glanced back at her as she sat next to Nick and Quinn, noticing for the first time the other members of their motley crew were watching him with smiling faces.
“We can’t pick our parents, Sonny,” Gus said.
“I was raised by wolves,” Sonny declared, drawing laughter from everyone at his line from a McCarty favorite movie: the old Val Kilmer movie titled ‘Spartan’.
“Did you think of anything useful?” Jean dug right in.
“I did. These political action committees have video companies they rely on all the time. My folks have one they trust as does every politician. When they need an event filmed for their own propaganda, they must trust the company not to leak embarrassing footage, stills, or scenes that put them in a bad light with the public. If their video people can be bought, they’re screwed. If Cameron is behind this, the film crew he uses is the only one he would ever trust with something containing a young kid. Cameron would never figure my Mom would call you bunch of pirates. Big error. My Mom would call the Devil himself if she had his number.”
“She did, and she does,” John joked.
“Ha… ha… thanks, Kabong.” Nick smiled at the humorous appreciation John’s remark garnered. It wasn’t the first time he’d been called the Devil. “Good input, Sonny. We’ll go at it your way because I’m having no luck with recognition software, or even overseas databases, for getting a line on the boy. I’m hoping he’s still alive.”
“One problem is these people make their money keeping secrets. They won’t give up Cameron or help in any way,” Sonny added.
“Sure they will,” Nick replied.
*
Sonny and Jean walked Sam down to the beach together. “I’m glad you called me.”
“Dad made me. He wouldn’t agree to help without what you could find out when you visit your folks. I know you don’t live with them, but you can visit and feel them out so we don’t get blindsided. You’ve been able to tell when they’re lyin’ since we were kids.”
Sonny kept silent, and Jean knew she’d hurt him. He was nearly as tall as Quinn’s six foot, four inch height, but leaner. When his jaw tightened, she could see it even with only moonlight. She changed Sam’s leash over to her other hand, and grasped Sonny’s.
“Sorry, Tyson. I didn’t mean it to come out like that. I wanted to call you.”
Sonny nodded. “We’re always like that now, poking each other the wrong way every time we speak.”
Jean stopped. She grabbed his jacket front, looking up into his face. “Maybe we shouldn’t speak then.”
The next few moments were a torrid reuniting of a man and woman who ached to be with each other, but let conflicting personalities blind them. Sam let out a squeak bark to let them know he was there. Jean broke away with a gasp.
“Damn… I’ve missed you. My Mom called me a scarred up little turd, and I should be thankful you give me a second look. She’s right in a way. I screwed up, and went against my Dad’s orders. I paid the price and got cut. Since then I’ve been a bitch just like Mom said.”
Sonny hugged her tightly. “I love you more than anything in the world you scarred up little turd.”
It took Sam wrapping the two in his leash and growling to break up the two humans a second time. They resumed the walk.