86. Hostage
It was dark when he reached the house, and Charlotte was already asleep. He wanted to come home sooner but when his father called, Seamus was quick to get back to the office to find out what his father had uncovered.
His father was not kidding, what he found was something that he could benefit from. Something very significant that he will surely use against the judge, together with what Keegan had found, Seamus was convinced that Cormac will be released sooner than he expected.
Seamus was too tired when he arrived at the house. He had been working too hard for the past couple of weeks, while also impatiently trying to wait out on getting Charlotte’s dad legally freed. So, instead of talking to Charlotte that same night, he decided that he’d tell her the next day.
But when morning came his phone was buzzing, demanding his attention. It was a text from Keegan, telling him that he was out front. Seamus who was already dressed thinking that he’d spend a quiet breakfast with Charlotte had to groan and realized that she will have to wait. For Keegan to be at his residence that early in the morning, Seamus knew that it must’ve been something important.
Grabbing his phone and wallet, Seamus was already planning his next steps. He might have to re-think about going to the office but still, he knots his tie and put on his suit jacket before heading out of his bedroom door.
“Morning, beautiful. I’m sorry, but I really need to go. I’ll see you in the evening, okay?” He kissed her forehead, but then decided for more when he kissed her lips drawing out a soft moan from her. Feeling satisfied with the kiss he left Charlotte by the dining table while Marjorie’s eyes widen in surprise.
The happy feeling quickly dissolved when he found Keegan behind the wheel of his black SUV and invited Seamus into his car.
“What happened?” He knew something was seriously wrong when Keegan decided to show up at the house.
“McKinney insisted that he wants to talk to you, telling me that he only wants to discuss terms with you. He knew I worked for you, know your name. He also knew your parents, boss.”
Seamus’s jaw tightened. It was supposed to be a very good morning, but now he was annoyed and irritated. He growled when he told Keegan to drive and take him there.
He pulled out his phone and call his assistant to rearrange his already packed schedule. “Just put everything for next week. I think I will have this week full of personal stuff to tend to,” Seamus continue to give instructions before he ended the call and have his attention back on Keegan.
“Where did you keep him?”
“One of our empty warehouses on the south quarter,” Keegan replied as he speed up his car. He told his boss everything that went down last night, and how everything was going as planned until the slimy bastard told Keegan that he had info on Seamus and his family. McKinney told Keegan that if he died, the information about his boss was going to be leaked to the press.
“The fuck does he thinks he’s messing with? No one threatened my family and gets away with it.” Seamus was furious to the point that he couldn’t wait to face the guy.Nôvel(D)rama.Org's content.
“Yeah, I thought you might want to confront the guy and have your fun.” Keegan smiled darkly and turned left before heading south and merging into the morning traffic.
When they reached the empty lot of the warehouse, Seamus already took off his suit jacket and tie. He untucked his sleeves making himself ready to meet the judge.
Seamus looked pleased when he saw the state of their hostage was in. The judge was on his knees on the dirty cement floor, wearing nothing but his boxers. His face was smeared with dirt and traces of tears were visible on his wide cheeks. Judge McKenney’s eyes met with Seamus’s, his tense body was decorated with fresh wounds from the leather whip Keegan had gotten his hand on.
“Hmm… did you make him submit to your wishes, Keegan?” He smirked and Keegan scowled at him while the battered Judge McKenney slowly raised his head as if he was trying not to look as defenseless, though failing miserably.
“It’s me Seamus Braddock, judge McKinky, I was told that you asked for me.” Seamus spat the words with dark humor in his voice. Then the man groaned when he instinctively move his hands. It was a lost cause when his wrists were cuffed and strapped to the dirty wall of the warehouse.
“Unchain me right now, you’re a fool for coming after me. You don’t know how much power I have above you and your dad. I know all about your…”
He didn’t get to finish his words when Seamus whipped the guy’s chest and draw blood. “Ssh… we won’t tell anyone, we’ll drop you off at your club and deposit your dead body and convince the coroner to sign a false report stating that you got a heart attack while trying to get off when playing scenes with your boys.”
“You… you can’t,” the horror was shown on McKinney’s face. His captor had tortured him with just a leather whip and he just realized how it’ll all connected. The whip had looked similar to the ones they used at the club he frequently visited. Earlier, McKinney was glad that the guy did not punch him in the face, but now he knows why.
“Yes… yes, I surely can, my dearest judge.”
McKinney cried when another slap of the whip hits his chest.
“I have your wife’s therapy session with her psychiatrist telling him about how you came home with whip marks all over your body.” Seamus paused just to see the reaction on Judge McKinney’s face. This was what he got from his father, and Keegan looked at his boss with a smile as he shook his head, as if he knew Seamus always has more tricks up his sleeves.
“D-don’t, please don’t…” McKinney pleaded desperately.
“Now you’re begging?” Seamus’s laughter filled the empty warehouse and the judge’s shoulder slumped, looking like he was defeated already.
“There you go, now tell me, do you still want to live?”
“Y-yes… please, I’ll do anything.”
“Tell me, who was involved in the whole mess for Cormac Sullivan’s case?”
“Anything but that, I’ll free him today, but anything but that.”
“See there, judge McKinky, I don’t think we have a deal. Just yet,” Seamus went to his side and told Keegan to pull the chains higher making the man yell out in pain.
The guy pleaded for his life, crying like a baby, but Seamus was dead set on torturing the guy since he just ruined his perfect work schedule for the week.
“I bet, your wife didn’t even notice you were gone. She probably thinks you’re staying with your boy toy, isn’t she? I bet she didn’t even look twice at your battered body. Yeah… I know I’ve heard her tapes with her psychiatrist.”
The man sobbed uncontrollably, probably from the shock. So Seamus decided to leave him be for a while and went outside to talk to Keegan while waiting for the judge to relent and give him the name. Seamus got time on his hand and the man will patiently wait.
The negotiation went on for another hour until McKinney finally gave up and gave him a name, it was the chief of police, Jeff Gannon.
“He laundered money, their pension fund to be exact and Cormac Sullivan found out. He was going to cause trouble…” his voice sounded exhausted and in pain but Seamus kept on listening while Keegan stood behind Seamus letting his boss question their hostage.
Twenty minutes later, McKinney was done and Seamus got his confession secretly recorded on his phone. Then, Keegan took over and help the guy get dressed. When Seamus talked outside with Keegan earlier, he had told his right-hand man to drop McKinney off near his house. Seamus wanted the man alive for leverage. Just in case.
Now. They will wait for McKinney’s office to call his lawyer and grant Cormac Sullivan’s exoneration. The judge had promised that the call will be made by tomorrow afternoon at the latest.
With his clothes slightly dirty from his workday, Seamus went home after he had his driver pick him up near the warehouse. He was feeling better. Much, much better.