Page 17 of Family Matters

Semyon nodded. “Where is my grandson now? Where are you keeping him?” His voice had a tinge of harshness that wasn’t there before. “I want to see him.”

“He is at my home with my son Gabriele.” Brian’s answer came right away. “We can go there now, I just need a minute to call my boss and let him know the library will be closed temporarily and message a good friend.”

“There's no need to close the library, I'll be around.” Liam offered with a smile. “I'm sure some of the guys will be happy to help, too.”

“Thank you, son.” With an audible sigh of relief, Brian hugged his firstborn. “Thank the others from me, too. Hopefully I won't be too long” He cast a look in the Russian’s direction. “Shall we go?”

A heavy silence took over Brian's car during the ride to his home, each of the two men lost in his own thoughts. To the librarian’s surprise, Baldassare was the one who greeted them in the doorway. Gabriele got a phone call from one of the members of his study group and had to go, he explained, adding that Ferris was sound asleep in his room.

Brian showed Semyon the way, and the older man rushed to his grandson’s bedside, caressing his forehead and whispering words of endearment in Russian. Not being able to hold his emotions back anymore, the man fell down to his knees, buried his face in both hands and started to cry quietly.

Meanwhile, Reardon, who Brian messaged before leaving the library, also arrived, and the two of them waited for Semyon to come downstairs, which the man did a few minutes later, his face expressionless. Giving the librarian a piercing look, he said he just buried his only daughter, and Ferris is all he has left, then asked how much would he have to pay for the kid’s freedom.

“Ferris is not a prisoner.” Brian patiently explained. “He showed up at The Base one day and I noticed he wasn't eatingor drinking anything and I decided to help him.” He gestured to one of the armchairs. “Come sit please. What I’m going to tell you is going to sound insane. Mister Narkin, I see the dead. A woman named Sonya came to be telling me to tell his father to protect him. He inhaled sharply. “Do you want to meet with your grandson’s father?

Semyon gasped in shock at the librarian’s words. “Fedya's father is dead. Sonechka mourned him, she only wore black ever since. His name was Reardon and was shot through the heart.”

“He spent six months in the hospital back then, but he is alive.” Brian gave the Russian mobster a piercing look “I know all four of us, Sonya included, want the same thing. Ferris' safety.”

“I'll wait here until my grandson wakes up.” Semyon’s voice was filled with determination and had a tinge of harshness. “I want to talk to him, I want to hear from him he's not a prisoner. And if so, where is his guard?Where is Callum?” The man frowned when saying the last part.

“I don't know about the guard.” Brian shook his head. “From my understanding, Ferris showed up here alone, and, for a couple of days, he didn’t talk to anyone. Still doesn’t, not in the true sense of the word, anyway. All I know about what happened to him and your daughter is from what Sonya told me.” He stopped talking and hugged himself. “Speaking of, she wants to get in touch with us.”

Right then, Reardon appeared from the kitchen, where he went just before Semyon came downstairs, carrying a tray stacked high with sandwiches for after the spirit would leaveBrian’s body. He saw the Russian and, in a warm, sad voice, expressed his regret at the great loss the man recently suffered.

Sonya appeared in the room, pointing ahead, and Brian saw the silhouette of a man, sitting, facing a wall, his naked back covered in bleeding wounds. Save the innocent, was the telepathic message she transmitted to the librarian, then, using the pen Reardon put on the coffee table, guided the man’s hand over the piece of paper the Irishman also brought, and wrote an address in Cyrillic characters. On the other side of the paper, she left a message for Ferris, pouring all the love of a mother’s heart in the words she wrote down.

Semyon, who at first was very skeptical about the whole talking to the ghosts thing, was staring in shock at his daughter’s handwriting. It must be the address where poor Callum is kept, he thought, his heart filled with concern about Ferris’ bodyguard’s fate. Although, in his heart and mind, he was now sure Brian didn’t have anything to do with Ferris’ kidnapping, he was waiting for his grandson to wake up, so he can confirm the librarian didn’t keep him there against his will.

I should have plucked a feather in the kitchen, when I was alone, and given it to Brian now,Reardon scolded himself, seeing that his brother-in-law’s level of energy was almost to its limit. Hang in there, my friend, we still need you to put together a rescue strategy, he thought, taking the librarian’s hands between his own.

He is running out of time, Brian said to himself as Reardon’s supernatural energy seeped into his body,invigorating it a bit. The image of Ferris’ bodyguard, tortured and taunted about what happened to Sonya and her son was engraved in his mind, burning his retina. His tormentors lied to him that the kid died, too, and, although they gave him food and water, he lost his will to live and rejected them.

Ferris came downstairs and, seeing Semyon, ran into his arms and wrapped his arms around the man’s neck.Loud sobs tore through his narrow chest as he was begging for his grandfather’s forgiveness, blaming himself for his mother’s death and the bodyguard’s predicament and calling himself names.

Semyon disentangled from the embrace, took the piece of paper from the coffee table, and, in a shaky voice, read the message Sonya left for her beloved son. That was the last thing Brian saw before falling into a deep sleep.

CHAPTER 13

“Do you think Hennessy can spare any men to watch my family, the heirs, and Ferris?” Brian asked about an hour later, struggling to stay away and keep his mind clear.

“Shit, man, you almost gave me a heart attack!” Reardon exclaimed, staring at his best friend. “Shouldn’t you be in bed, recovering after the contact with Sonya?” He shook his head. “To answer your question, yes, Hennessy is loyal to you just as much as he is to me, he'll pick the finest men for this job. I'll stick around, too. Ferris is my son, and your kids are my nieces and nephews. Don't worry, we'll be alright.”

His brother-in-law’s words and the reassuring tone he used made Brian relax, and he started yawning.” All of you are welcome to stay as long as you like.” He gestured around the living-room. “I'm going to bed, I'm really tired.”

“I'll help you go upstairs, papa, you'll sleep better in your own bed.” Liam offered. “Don't worry, the guys and I will be around. Dad has to arrive soon, too. The kiddies are at Uncle Edwin's and Uncle Reardon's.” The young man spoke in the same soothing voice his father’s best friend used earlier.

“Thank you, son.” Brian gave the youth one of his warm, affectionate smiles. “I'll be out for a while. Please, don't let your dad worry too much about me, he does it all the time when I use the gift too long. I’m sure your siblings are having fun, my brother loves them a lot and spoils them rotten.” He started toclimb the stairs, then stopped. “Please, tell Baldassare to talk to your Uncle Reardon, help him put together the rescue team.”

Liam nodded, then helped his father upstairs and, once in the master bedroom, he tucked him in. Brian smiled to his son who quietly left the room, and, when the sleep wrapped its smooth tentacles around him, he didn’t oppose. Everybody will be fine, the librarian thought, as the worries weighing him down started to dissipate, his heart and body becoming light as a feather.

Brian didn’t know how much time passed since he fell asleep, but, when he woke up, Bart was next to him, naked, a big grin on his face. Luca was on the librarian's other side, and Martino was spooning Bart from behind. None of the two were wearing clothes, and, as Brian soon discovered, neither did he.

His mind still foggy with sleep, the man wanted to ask what happened and when the others joined him, but didn’t even get to open his mouth. Hello, Daddy were the two words Bart said in a seductive voice, like a purr, getting his husband steel-hard. Brian’s answer was a growl and a warning to his soulmate that, if he would continue, he would have to be ready to deal with the consequences.

Ignoring the words of the librarian, Bart impaled himself on the man’s fully erect cock and started to undulate his hips, taking it all inside. Luca stretched under the blankets, murmured a good morning, Sir, and, eyes half-closed, an innocent smile on his lips, sensually kissed Brian on the neck.

As Bart continued his sensual dance on his husband’s hard cock, Luca and Martino started to tease his nipples, sides, and torso with their hands and mouths, caressing, pinching, licking, and nipping at his heated skin. Now that’s what I call teamwork, Brian said to himself, thrusting inside his lover’s body.

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