Chapter 15
Jacob
Jacob had only just strapped himself into the passenger seat and Tane was already pulling out of the parking spot and revving the engine to the max.
“Don’t worry, I know what I’m doing,” Tane said, a look of total concentration on his face as he shifted gears and pulled out onto the busy road.
“Y-Y-Y-Yeah. Got it,” Jacob said, trying his best not to sound too scared.
As Tane began to weave in and out of the downtown traffic, Jacob realized something. While high speed driving through heavy traffic was obviously not a regular situation to be in, it wasn’t this that was making Jacob feel afraid.
In fact, being in the car with Tane was actually kind of exhilarating.
What was truly bothering Jacob was the situation with the two warring Mafia families. The thought that he was now somehow involved in the drama between the Cardini and Cardini families was actually pretty terrifying.
Jacob had grown up in a small suburb and the nearest he’d ever been to organized crime was watching old gangster films with his Uncle Mitch on weekends.
However, this was very much not a movie.
This was real life.
Jacob knew that while Tane would do everything he could to keep him safe, the reality was that Tane was a hockey player and not a mobster. Jacob could see that Tane was stressed and fearful over what was going on, and Jacob didn’t think any less of him for that.
The very fact that Tane was doing so much to protect Jacob was admirable.
Jacob could see that as far as Tane was concerned, his safety was secondary if it meant protecting him.
I’m a lucky sonofabitch to have a man like Tane.
When this is all over, I’m going to make sure to tell him that too.
I just hope everything works out okay…
As Tane continued to swerve and dodge the traffic, Jacob gripped the sides of his seat and tried his best to remain as calm as he could.
Tane was in fact a very skillful driver, and Jacob couldn’t help but wonder if Tane might want to give race car driving a chance after he retired.
This was probably not a question to ask in the moment though.
Jacob could see that Tane needed to put his full attention onto driving and the road ahead.
“We shouldn’t have any issues once I get us out of downtown,” Tane said, his eyes fixed ahead of him. “It’s busy here, but there will be a lull in traffic once I get us to Thirty Fifth and Lobos.”
“Uh-huh,” Jacob replied, wanting to keep his reply as brief as possible.
As the traffic began to ease up, Tane was able to put his foot down even harder. As the Porsche’s engine roared and crackled into life, Jacob gasped and found himself almost cheering in delight.
I should be too scared to make a noise.
But I’m kinda enjoying this.
I guess I’ve always liked speed…
Jacob couldn’t help but think back to his early years as a hockey player, back in grade school. Jacob had never really had much of an interest in sports, but when his Uncle Mitch took him to the local ice rink, that all changed.
It wasn’t like Jacob picked up a hockey stick and was a genius talent from day one.
However, the one thing that Jacob could do pretty much from the get-go was skate – and skate fast.
Maybe it was a combination of naivety, a desire to impress his Uncle, or just a love of moving as fast as he could, but right from the beginning Jacob was able to skate way quicker than anyone else his age.
Jacob would sprint, stop, twist, turn, and then sprint again – and he’d do all this without losing his balance or falling over onto the hard ice beneath him.
Immediately, Jacob’s junior league coaches picked up on this and it wasn’t long before Jacob was able to fly across the ice with the puck totally under his control too. It was instinctive and always felt so natural to Jacob that he was able to travel at such a high speed.
In fact, Jacob was way quicker on the ice than he was on the athletics track.
For Jacob, his happy place had always been on the ice. So while some of his classmates were developing interests in soccer, football, and track events, Jacob was only ever interested in hockey.
And through a combination of positive coaches, his Uncle Mitch, and his own desire, Jacob rapidly rose through the ranks up to the point of being the hottest rookie prospect in the league.
All of this had brought Jacob to Toronto.
And of course, it had brought him to Tane too.
Speaking of Tane…
“Okay, hold on,” Tane said, dropping the Porsche down a gear and slamming the breaks. “Holy shit….”
Jacob held on for dear life as Tane pulled off an outrageous corner and swung the sportscar across two lanes and down a side alley.
“Wow. Tane, that was amazing,” Jacob said, the adrenalin pumping all over his body. “You need to teach me how to do that.”
“I don’t think so boy,” Tane laughed. “Coach Tremaine would go fucking ballistic if he knew I was teaching you these kinds of moves on the road. The last thing the team needs is you losing your driver’s license.”
“Ha,” Jacob giggled. “Maybe you could teach me some of your driving moves though?”
“Fine,” Tane replied. “Okay. We’re nearly at the safehouse now. Just a couple of blocks to go. Urgh. That looks like roadworks ahead though. Fuck.”
“Is there another way around them?” Jacob replied, casting his eyes over the small buildup of stationary cars ahead.
“No,” Tane said, a note of concern in his voice as he slowed the car down the closer they got to the traffic. “Don’t worry though. Once the lights change, We’ll be back on track.”
But Jacob could see that Tane wasn’t comfortable.
There was something bugging Tane and Jacob was beginning to sense something was wrong too…
“Daddy, this doesn’t feel right,” Jacob said.
“What are you feeling?” Tane replied. “Talk to me…”
“There doesn’t look like there’s anyone in these cars ahead of us,” Jacob said, his voice filling up with fear. “And those roadworker just don’t look like they belong…”
“Hold on, I’m getting us the hell out of Dodge,” Tane said, bringing the Porsche to a halt and readying it to turn around.
But just as Tane was turning the car around, a volley of bullets ripped through the air.
“Tane!” Jacob cried, ducking down in the passenger seat. “What’s happening?”
“It’s a fucking ambush,” Tane roared. “The Cardini men must have known we’d come this way. Hold the fuck on. I’m getting us out of here if it’s the last thing I do.”
With the sound of bullets whizzing past the car, Tane slammed it into first gear, then second, and pulled away with his foot to the floor and luckily without taking any direct hits.
But with the Cardini safehouse no longer an option, Jacob knew that if him and Tane were going to get out of this alive, they’d need to come up with a new plan and come up with it quickly…
* * *
“Are you sure we’re safe here?” Jacob said, wiping his forehead and unbuckling his safety belt.
“We’re as safe as we’re going to be right now,” Tane replied, turning the engine off and taking a moment to look in his rearview mirror.
Tane had managed to evade the Cardini ambush and power along for a couple of blocks before realizing that the car had in fact been hit. With a blown rear tire, it wasn’t an option to keep driving, but fortunately Tane had found a secluded side alley to park down.
“We’ll be safe for now,” Tane said. “But I need to speak to Antonio and explain our predicament. It’s also going to help if I know precisely where we are and what kind of potential hideouts we have around here. Do you know this area?”
“Not really,” Jacob said, his heart still racing.
“Okay, I’m going to need you to be the bravest boy for me,” Tane said.
“I’m going to get out of the car and have a look to see if I recognize any businesses on this block that are owned by the Cardini family.
Even one Cardini owned business will mean that we’ve got a safe place to hide until Antonio sends a car for us. ”
“You’re going to leave me alone in the car?” Jacob said, his bottom lip trembling.
“I know you’re frightened. But this is the best play, you have to believe me,” Tane said. “I’m your man, and I’m your team captain too. This is my play to call and I’m going to make it work. Got it?”
“G-G-G-G-g-got it,” Jacob replied, the conviction in Tane’s voice giving Jacob the belief he needed to steel himself and follow Tane’s plan. “Come back soon.”
“I will,” Tane replied. “I love you boy, and I’ll be back before you know it.”
Jacob felt his heart flutter as Tane uttered those words to him. It might have been the heat of the moment that prompted Tane to say that he loved Jacob, but for Jacob it meant the world to hear his man speak in those terms.
But as wonderful as it was to hear Tane say that he loved him, Jacob was now alone in the car and waiting for Tane to return.
“I’m not scared,” Jacob said, totally unconvincingly. “I’m tough. I’m not scared. I’m not, I’m not, I’m not.”
Jacob knew that there was nothing he could do but wait.
And rather than wait alone and in silence, Jacob decided to message Ricki and let him know what was going on…
JACOB: Ricki, everything’s gone wrong. We were going to a Cardini safehouse and a bunch of mean men pretending to be roadworkers tried to kill us. Tane says it was the Cardini family. I don’t know what to do or what to think. I’m scared XoXo.
RICKI: Jacob! OMG! I can’t believe it. I’m with Antonio right now and he’s talking to Tane on the phone. I know they’re going to work everything out, so just stay strong and think about bubblegum, videogames, and Tane’s cock! XoxoXo
Jacob smiled and was super-glad of having a friend like Ricki to talk to in a moment like this.
They had a shared sense of humor, that was for sure.
And Ricki mentioning Tane’s cock was exactly what Jacob would expect, and he welcomed it.
Anything to try and take his mind off things.
But one thing in Ricki’s message made Jacob do a double take… Ricki was with Antonio?
There was no way that Jacob was going to let that slide, even in a situation as dangerous and scary as the one he was in at that moment.
JACOB: You’re with Antonio?!?!?! Why? What are you two doing? TELL ME! XoXoXo
RICKI: I’ll tell you when you’re all safe and this is over ;) Gotta go. See you soon XoXoXo
Jacob shook his head in frustration. Could it be possible that there was something going on between Ricki and Antonio?
After Ricki mentioned Antonio earlier, it did seem like Ricki had something of a complicated crush on Antonio, but Jacob had no idea that something might actually be going on between them.
But as exciting as the prospect of Ricki and Antonio being an item was, Jacob knew that his own predicament required his attention.
Jacob decided that he was going to keep a more active watching brief and adjusted the rearview mirror so that he could see if any suspicious men were walking around the neighborhood.
“I feel like a real spy!” Jacob said, seeing the funny side as he imagined himself wearing a pair of fake glasses and a trilby hat.
However before Jacob could settle down too comfortably into his spy roleplay, the driver’s side door swung open. It was Tane, and he looked like he had something to say.
“Is everything okay?” Jacob said, his voice suddenly full of hope.
“Not yet, my beautiful boy,” Tane replied. “But it’s going to be. Come with me, I’ve got a plan to get us out of this mess once and for all.”