Chapter 14 #2
“You’re telling me—” Beckett held up a hand to stave off any interruptions. “You’re saying you became friends with Matthew the mob boss? The self-proclaimed drug lord?” Beckett screeched, looking as if he wanted to reach across the table and throttle his brother.
Game over as far as Hayes was concerned. His gut feeling had been spot on about the progression of their relationship. Good to know his instincts were still foolproof.
Franklin just looked at Beckett in silence. But he might as well have had “That’s not all!” written across his forehead.
“You were fucking. You’re in a relationship with him.” Hayes decided it was time to just say it out loud and be done with it.
Hayes half expected Beckett to flip the table when Franklin nodded in agreement, but the shock of learning about Franklin’s relationship with Matthew must have been too great, because his hot-tempered partner sat very still.
“You—” Beckett began but stopped and had to start again, “I’m sorry—you’re in a relationship with a Mafia boss? A male Mafia boss?”
Franklin nodded.
Beckett sat back in his seat and took a deep, calming breath.
Hayes suspected he was struggling to control some kind of urge—probably an extremely violent one. He was incredibly proud of Beckett for winning that particular battle.
“It’s catching—” Beckett remarked abruptly. “The gay is fucking catching,” he clarified, looking astounded by the discovery of Franklin’s being gay.
“Oh, would you not be an asshole for a minute—I’ve always been bi. I had a boyfriend in college. You’re not special, Beck,” he snapped, like Beckett was being ridiculous.
Hayes had to admire Franklin’s courage in facing off with Beckett, if nothing else.
“You did? What the hell?”
“Sure—we broke up right before I finished medical school. Maggie knew. She met him once.” He waved a hand dismissively like it wasn’t a big deal.
Hayes supposed it really wasn’t. It was the 21st century. People could bang whomever they liked.
“How serious is it?” Hayes decided to get them back on track. “Was it casual? Or were you two—”
“In love,” Franklin declared without any indication of feeling ashamed or remorseful.
Beckett dropped his forehead to the table with a thud and groaned. Loudly. “You’re supposed to be the smart one!” he exclaimed accusingly.
“I know! But it wasn’t—I never planned on any of it.”
Hayes could, very easily, understand that. He hadn’t exactly planned on falling for the professional idiot sitting next to him either. Just goes to show how the Fates can fuck with your life whenever and however they want to.
“Okay—so you fell for a mob boss, but I still don’t think that justifies faking your own death,” Hayes observed with a frown. Franklin had not yet provided enough information as far as Hayes was concerned.
“Matthew wants out. He’s a legit businessman, and he doesn’t want to be part of this whole thing, not anymore, but he refuses to make a move until he knows the rest of his family will be safe.”
“Safe?” Beckett asked, incredulous. “He’s a mob boss! They’re a mob family! Early grave comes with the family name!” he growled, outraged at his brother’s apparent ignorance of how this shit worked in the real world.
“Yes, but right now, things are worse than usual. His uncle took over the family business after the death of Matthew’s father, and he’s been leading it in directions that Matthew doesn’t approve of.
It’s no longer just about drugs. His uncle wants to the family to get involved in human trafficking, and Matthew wants to take him out of the game before he walks away. ”
“Right, and this involves you because as a psychiatrist, you’re fully qualified to take down the fucking head of a mob family,” Beckett said with a sneer.
“I’m not—which is why I called you!” Franklin snapped angrily. “I called you,” he repeated, but in a much quieter voice.
The guilt that Beckett had tried to bury suddenly reared its ugly head. Apparently, that feeling was more than he could handle at the moment because he chose to wait for his brother to explain himself.
“I knew you had contacts. Figured you’d know what to do, but when you didn’t answer my calls, I decided I couldn’t wait any longer for advice, so I called your boss.”
“Our boss?” Hayes asked, completely caught off guard. “Gill? You called Gill Forbes?”
Franklin nodded.
“How’d you know to call him?” Beckett asked, totally mystified. “Hell—scratch that, how do you even know who my fucking boss is?”
Franklin held up both hands in a calming gesture.
“I found his number in your phone after you came home from Europe. I didn’t like the whole set up.
One minute you were going off to find yourself, and the next you’d been hired by this guy out of the fucking blue, suddenly becoming a federal agent for the United States government.
I thought you’d either lost it, or were being scammed, so I found his contact information and called him.
” Franklin didn’t appear to feel guilty at all for invading Beckett’s privacy.
“I’m sorry, you did what? What the fuck else did you do?” Beckett was livid.
“I met with your boss to make sure he was legit,” Franklin said, with a shrug.
“You had no fucking right!” Beckett exploded.
Hayes grabbed his shoulder to keep him in his seat. “You promised Kolinsky that you’d behave,” he reminded his boyfriend, which did nothing to lessen the tension in the room.
“You don’t remember how you were back then,” Franklin stated arrogantly, filled with self-righteousness.
“You were completely out of it when you came back. You barely knew what month it was, or how to tie your fucking shoes. You weren’t exactly employable.
When you told us you had a job, I thought it was a figment of your imagination.
But when I found out Gill Forbes was a real person, I had to make sure he wasn’t some two-faced government prick who was using you as a scapegoat. ”
“That’s the same as an escape sheep,” Hayes mumbled absently, unable to help himself. Franklin didn’t get it, but Beckett snorted at the inside joke, which helped to settle his nerves at least.
“I was looking out for you!” Franklin claimed, feeling this was all the defense he needed to get Beckett to back off.
Beckett looked unconvinced. He crossed his arms over his chest and sat back in his chair, mulling things over.
“What happened after you called Gill?” Hayes asked.
“He called a buddy of his. An FBI agent by the name of Carter, and from there, well—” he gestured towards the agents in the living room, implying the rest is history.
“So, what—Matthew’s turning state’s evidence? How will that keep his family safe?” Hayes couldn’t figure out how that was supposed to work.
“The FBI isn’t all that concerned with the Rosarios.
The DEA would certainly like to get the lowdown on their import business, but they have bigger fish to fry.
Human trafficking is the main problem, which is what the FBI would like to get Matthew’s uncle for.
They’ve struck a deal with Matthew. If he helps them get his uncle indicted on those charges, they’ll take care of him—get him and his henchmen off the street, so the Rosarios can go back to their more regular business. ”
“Really?” Beckett looked surprised and confused.
“Most federal agencies prefer to deal with mobs rather than individuals. When you dismantle the structures in place, chaos usually follows. The FBI knows the Rosarios. They’ve been dealing with them for decades.
If they take them out, someone will replace them, and that usually means a lot more violence.
” Hayes wasn’t an expert on this subject, but he’d read quite a few criminology books about tactics used by federal agencies.
“Alright—but why the suicide?” Beckett said, shaking his head.
“Because if his uncle gets suspicious, he’ll want something to hold over Matthew and the easiest would be—”
“Someone he loves,” Beckett finished for him, with a deep sigh. “His family knows about you?” he asked, and Hayes could tell he was trying not to sound judgmental, but it was costing him.
“No—but it wouldn’t be hard to figure out if his uncle decided to check up on Matthew’s recent activities.
One look at his finances or his phone records would tell him that Matthew was seeing someone,” Franklin said, with the resolve a man who had considered all the options many times over.
“The FBI thought the suicide scenario was the best way to go and, since they want me to testify if they manage to indict the uncle, they need to keep me safe.”
At that, Beckett burst into maniacal laughter and almost fell out of his chair.
“Testify?” Beckett asked, completely gobsmacked. “I’m sorry, but I gotta ask: has wearing cement shoes always been a dream of yours? ‘Cause there’s easier ways to make that happen!”
“If they manage to indict his uncle, I’d only be testifying to solidify Matthew’s innocence. I wouldn’t technically go up against the Rosario family. Agent Carter thinks I should be fine—”
“Yeah, and Agent Carter doesn’t actually give a flying fuck what happens to you as long as he gets a big hurray for arresting a crime family!”
“I think we’re getting away from the discussion,” Hayes remarked calmly in an effort to settle the rising tension.
“Are we?” Beckett asked, still outraged.
He glared at Hayes, daring him to argue.
“Franklin’s a fucking moron who got involved with an actual mob boss and is now actively helping to bring down the final boss—who, lest we forget, has so little empathy and sense of morality, that he’s too extreme in the eyes of his mob-trained nephew!
But, you know—it’ll all be fine! Perfectly fine even!
I’ll just have to give another fucking speech at his real funeral in a couple of months.
” Beckett smiled grimly and crossed his arms over his chest.
Hayes took a moment to compose a response, but Franklin beat him to it.