A short fictional work based on the tv series 'Without a Trace'
Disclaimer: Without a Trace is owned by Jerry Bruckheimer Television, CBS Productions and Warner Bros. This fictional tale is for entertainment purposes only, not for commercial gain, which is prohibited.
The snow had begun falling and coupled with the howling winds, it made the eighteen degree temperature feel closer to zero. It was a fairly quiet morning, most of his prize team hadn't come in yet. Sam wouldn't be in until ten or so, she had a doctor's appointment. Vivian Johnson was on the phone with Reggie her teenage son who wanted to get some body part pierced and was waging a losing battle. Danny and Martin were both due in, but the weather had most likely slowed them down. Jack Malone reviewed the information he'd gotten just as a cup of coffee appeared next to his wrist.
"Thanks."
"Sorry, Jack," Vivian sighed and sat down, shaking her head. "Be grateful your girls aren't teenagers."
"It's coming," Jack commiserated, "all too soon."
"So what do we have?" she asked, taking a folder that was slid towards her.
Jack's head popped back up when a song hit his ears from the outer office. Before he could reply a familiar voice sailed into their ears. He shook his dark head as he watched the lean body appear. Valentine's Day was approaching and if anyone was born to celebrate spreading his love around, it was Daniel Taylor.
"Cupid, draw back your bow, and let your arrow go...ooo... straight to my lover's heart for me... for me..."
"Nice of you to join us, Taylor," Jack groused, watching the chilled body dispose of his coat. His dark eyes were shining and that trademark 'Danny smile' was slapped on his red face.
"Cuuupid, pleeease hear my cry...ay...." the crooning agent continued, waltzing near his desk and doing a half spin with his invisible partner. He paused to tap his chest and wink at his boss.
"Trust me, Sam Cooke isn't spinning in his grave with you around, park your ass," Malone ordered.
"My ass," Danny answered, pausing long enough to take a large caramelcino and a hefty cinnamon bun from the bakery bag, "is numb."
"Really?" Vivian arched a brow and observed the grinning fool. "Late night?"
"From the weather!" Danny retorted, wagging his finger at her and slipping into a chair. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Vivvie."
Danny sipped his sweet brew and eyed the photo that Jack slid across the table. It was of a very attractive man possibly of Italian or Spanish decent. The clothes, jewelry and grooming indicated a man with some wealth. He appeared to be somewhere between twenty five and thirty, tall and well built.
"So who'd we catch?" Taylor inquired of the missing person.
"Peter Riccardi, twenty eight, son of Giancarlo Riccardi, of Vittorini Incorporated."
"Damn," Danny whistled of the internationally known race car manufacturing family. "I'll bet his suits cost more than my car."
"He was late for a meeting with his father last night. They were supposed to have a late supper at D'Angelos at ten. He never showed. The state troopers found his car on the side of the road just off the Turnpike exit no signs of a struggle. His wallet and briefcase were inside, untouched."
"Car break down?" Vivian asked, flipping through the paperwork for a police report.
"No, not so far as they can tell, it started right up, no signs of a struggle and his cellphone was in the glove compartment. "Jack paused, "He flew into Atlantic City Airport at five. He has a suite at the Taj. He was visiting from California, supervising an addition to an investment north of San Francisco in a gated community, Laurels."
"I saw those houses profiled on one of those lifestyles of the famous shows, the cottages start at 1.5 mil," Danny noted, his brows drawing together as he read. "That's near Sausalito, that's a bit of a commute for us isn't it?" he mumbled, shoving part of the cinnamon treat into his mouth.
"The developer has similar estates in three other areas, one in La Jolla, one in Palm Beach and one that's just opened in the Hamptons. Over the last few months, two other residents have gone missing," Malone noted, indicating the photos of the other men with his pencil.
"Three?" Vivian frowned, pulling out her copy of the photos of the other two missing men. "That's too much of a coincidence. Did they find them?"
"Are there any common owners, did somebody move from one of the others? Maybe we got a serial stalker," Danny theorized.
"That's part of the reason we need to have an undercover couple move in. If the pattern follows through, the next one to be hit might be the one in the Hamptons. The Riccardi's are heavy investors in the Laurels. Peter's father said his son called late yesterday and it was urgent. He wouldn't say much on the phone, but he was worried for his safety," Malone updated.
"Did he say why?" Vivian asked.
"Not in so many words," Jack said, tapping his pencil. "Apparently, he was upset about the other two men who went missing; both of them disappeared within a week of their arrival and were never found."
"Were they richer than God too?" Danny asked.
"Not according to what I've read," Jack noted, pausing to sip his coffee. "So that may buy Riccardi some time. If he has been abducted, they might decide to try for ransom." He wrinkled his nose as Taylor shoved a large clump of cinnamon roll oozing with icing into his mouth. Aware he was being observed, the dark eyes shifted in annoyance at him.
"What?" Danny managed, swallowing his pastry and licking the icing from his lips. "It's got flour and eggs in it somewhere. I keep this machine running smooth!" He tapped his lean abdomen and belched.
"Nice," Vivian supplied, "Do you want to check your lights too?"
'Ha! Ha!" Danny mocked then turned back to the costly brochure from the Laurels. "Wow!"
"So that's how the other half lives," Vivian sighed eyeing the gorgeous homes, outfitted with the very best and with all the modern toys the rich and famous require.
"Money is no object; the average income for the residents is well into six or seven figures. Movie stars, athletes, politicians..."
"Look no further, Jack, I'm your man!" Danny piped up, eyeing the photo of the huge master bedroom in the model complete with a six foot television screen built into the wall behind a hidden panel. He eyed the rich golden satin sheets and thought of his current flame, Antonia, and how her dark hair would look fanned across a plump pillow. "If anybody is great under the covers, it's moi!"
"Undercover," Jack corrected, trying not to grin.
"That too!" Danny winked, ignoring Vivian's groan. "Besides if you send Martin and Sam in there, that'll never work."
"You being the expert here?" Malone returned watching the wheels behind the dark eyes spinning.
"Aw, come on Jack, Mr and Mrs. Mattel?" Danny made a sour face. "Yuck! What kind of yawn fest is that? Now me," he charmed, preening himself as he sat back, "I come with extra salsa. So how about it?"
"Well," Jack answered, trying hard to keep a straight face. It was almost painful but he managed. "You got it half right. You are half of the couple, but it's not Sam."
"Vivvie!" Danny winked at the dark-haired agent and lowered his voice suggestively and wagged his brows "I'll be gentle."
"Please, honey, you couldn't keep up with me," she tossed back, her dark eyes full of mirth.
"And it's not Vivian," Jack added, his face splitting into a grin. He couldn't hold it in anymore. "In this case, it's gonna be Mr and Mr Salsa-Mattel, with a hyphen."
"Huh?" Danny frowned, his face puzzling up. Then he made sense of the comment and he grinned, jumping up. "You're shittin' me! Does he know yet?"
"No, I haven't had time to—"
"Can I tell him, Jack," Danny begged, grinning like a fool, "pleeeze?"
"No!" Jack ordered, coughing to hide his chuckle. "Sit down!"
"Aw, come on Jack, I can do this very creatively," Taylor began and then paused when his soon to be groom approached. He put on his best and most seductive face, "This is gonna be great. I always did have a weakness for limp pools of blue."
"Here comes my breakfast back up," Vivian groaned as Jack just chuckled. "Oh brother," she moaned, casting a doubtful glance to Jack. "You sure the Hamptons are ready for this?"
"I'll never live there, what do I care?" Jack replied, "Besides there is a specific reason why it has to be Martin and Danny."
Shivering badly, Martin made his way into the office. He took his coat off, coughed twice and sneezed, before picking up his pen and heading for the bullpen. He paused a few feet away, his wary eyes regarding two grinning faces, Malone's and Johnson's. Their twin amused expressions gave him pause. He did a quick check to make sure his fly was zipped which caused Jack to laugh aloud.
"What?" he asked, reaching for a chair. Before he could grab it, the swift-footed Cuban moved in front of him.
"You look half-frozen," Danny oozed, noting the reddened features which made his blue eyes stand out even more.
"It's damn near freezing out there and I had to walk from the train. My hands are numb, I can't feel my fingers." He moved to get some much needed hot coffee.
"I can take care of that." Danny lowered his voice and moved closer to where Martin was fumbling with the coffee pot. "I can warm those slim fingers." He moved behind the very puzzled Fitzgerald who was looking at him as if he had sprung a second head. He pressed his body close, snaking his right arm over Martin's to ease it off the pot. He moved Martin's hand over a warm mug, wrapping his fingers around it. "Why don't you get comfortable and I'll fix you right up."
Martin yelped, yanked his arm away and moved. "Get away from me! What's wrong with you?"
"Cupid's wayward arrow hath pierced my tender heart..." Danny whispered, running his gaze over Martin's lean torso.
Martin moved to the end of the table, leaving three empty chairs between him and the very oddly behaving Taylor. He took the files that Vivian slid towards him and began to read the case profile and eye the photos. He was just about to review the police report, when a hand moved from behind his right shoulder, as he was putting the coffee mug down. He stiffened up as the other hand latched onto his left shoulder, then slid over to massage his neck. Danny's face pressed close to his own, their cheeks nearly touching.
"Hot and sweet, just how you like it, right?" Danny rasped and caused his partner to hiss and stand up. He then caught the startled blue eyes and winked suggestively, eyeing up the prized Fitzgerald ass. "That's great cologne, very musky," he whispered for Martin only. "Brings a real twitch my lips, I'll bet it stirs the loins."
"Don't be talking about my loins and your lips in the same sentence," Martin barked as Danny's hand patted his ass and the dark eye winked at him. "Okay, that's it!" The irate Fitzgerald huffed, his red face having nothing to do with the cold weather anymore. He shoved the roaming hand away and left the enamored Taylor to regard Jack Malone. "What the hell is going on here?"
"Enough," Jack interrupted, trying to regain his composure. "Sit down both of you. We have a lot to cover and we're short on time." Taylor was enjoying this role a little too much and Martin was getting angry. "Taylor!"
"We'll catch up later," Danny noted with a final wink and returned to his seat. He felt Jack's piercing gaze lingering on him and rolled his eyes. "What? I was just having some fun."
Jack held Taylor's gaze until it was clear his message had been relayed. Then he turned his attention to the confused and semi-flustered Martin Fitzgerald. The young agent was moving his perplexed eyes from Danny to him. He nodded to the file in front of Fitzgerald.
"Did you read it?"
"Some of it," Martin answered. "Do we have any leads?"
"Not yet, he's been missing about ten hours. He called his father from his cellphone at about nine o'clock. He didn't say where he was but he expected to be on time," Vivian relayed.
"An hour away?" Danny eyed the map on the board behind Jack. "If he left from the Taj, that means he was already on the road when he called."
"Vivian, you get hold of Sam and update her. She can get some background from the FBI on the two men. See if there is a tie somewhere. We'll head over to Giancarlo's place and speak with him directly. We also need to check with the A.C. cops, see if they turned up anything. They should check into the airport, the hotel, and all the places Peter was on his way here."
"I can do that," Martin offered.
"No, you and Danny won't be working the case from this side." Jack glanced at Fitzgerald and couldn't help but think of Danny's use of the word 'Mattel'.
"This side?" Martin eyed Taylor's devilish grin and felt his face flush again. "What exactly..." his voice trailed off and he flipped through the pages again. He found something that caught his eye when he first sat down. Something about Peter Riccardi's background and a scandal involving a male European tennis star and a tabloid photo revealing that the two were more than friends. He re-read it and then his head shot up. "You mean..."
"That's right, lover." Danny leaned over and cast a sympathetic smile "I'll take it slow, it being your first time and all."
"Great." Martin grumbled then eyed Malone. "What's our cover?"
"The other two men who went missing were also gay. Adam Sayles went missing in Palm Beach first, about two months ago. Brad Everett went missing from La Jolla four weeks ago. No trace of either man was ever found."
"Did either of them have live-ins?" Danny asked.
"No, Sayles had asked his lover to move in with him, but disappeared before he got the chance. The FBI in Palm Springs checked the guy out, he's clean. Everett played the field, no steady." Malone reported.
"Do we have backgrounds on the other men?" Martin inquired, flipping through the packet.
"Sayles was a restaurant owner, three successful bistros in Florida. Everett was a playboy, living off Mommy's money," Vivian relayed from the notes she was reading.
"What was Riccardi doing here?" Martin asked. "Does his father know?"
"Young Riccardi was about to head up his father's corporate offices in New York, he'd planned on moving into the new section of Laurels," Jack answered "The old man thinks there's a possibility it was tied to the other two men disappearing. We'll be meeting him at his apartment. I'll get more information then. He's got a condo at Times Warner."
"Shit!" Martin's eyes widened. The luxurious Times Warner Center was located in Manhattan at the southwest corner of Central Park, a mixture of real estate, including a luxury hotel, upscale stores and several offices, including a new CNN Studio as well as luxury apartments.
"So maybe someone else found out what Peter knew," Danny theorized.
"And followed him to shut him up," Martin finished. "How's that link to me and Danny?"
"Well both of the other missing men were gay and the only gay residents in their respective establishments. So either Peter got taken for that same reason or because of what he knew. It could be that whoever is behind this caught wind of him moving in and threatened him. If you two move into the Hamptons and that pattern follows suit, something should happen."
"Get over to Max and get your bio's done. Driver's licenses, credit cards, bank accounts, the whole nine yards," Jack ordered. He slid two folders at them, watching as they began to read. "Martin Sheppard, thirty, computer whiz kid who earned his first million before he was twenty five, very athletic and conservative. tennis, golf, all the rich sports. Dante Figueroa emigrated from Havana to the U.S via Miami when he was a teenager. Lived off the streets, in with some gangs and became a top player in the mob down there."
"How'd we hook up?" Martin asked.
"One kiss baby and the rest is history," Danny teased and got the groan he expected. This was going to be too easy, his partner was that uptight.
"Sheppard's extremely competitive and a gambler. You met a couple years ago at a speedboat competition in Miami," Jack answered.
"I beat his ass, right? His ego couldn't take it, he demanded a rematch, but on the handball court." Danny paused, his dark eyes animated and his hands moving in descriptive waves.
"Several furious matches later, two sweaty bodies in the shower room... lots of steam... that hot ass of his..."
"Yo! Keep it rated G okay?" Malone interjected. "It's fictional. That works for you, fine. I don't gotta hear about it."
"And we're in New York because?" Martin glared at Danny, squirmed in his seat and tried to concentrate.
"Sheppard's gonna become an investor in Laurels," Jack answered, eyeing his watch. "You two do your homework on this, we can't afford sloppy work. No mistakes!" he warned. "Get your act together, families, ex lovers, backgrounds, food likes, movies, the whole thing. You're moving in this afternoon, the head of the complex is expecting you at two at the house. Her name is Lily Amherst. She's got a lot of clout. Peter was supposed to meet with her also. He went missing and you got his interview. Don't blow it."
"With this face?" Danny cupped Martin's square jaw. "He'll blush and Ma'am us right past Ms. Amherst and into the good life. We'll be fondlin' and fondue'in by five."
"Your humor is as bad as your diction." Martin shoved the hand away.
'Oh, I love it when you talk dirty!" Danny teased and Martin just groaned.
"How do we contact you?" Fitzgerald asked, rising and taking his files.
"I'm your Uncle Jack, you speed dial me from the cell that Max will give you," Malone replied. "You check in at least twice a day and I want updates. I'll be listed in your email address book too."
Vivian and Jack went over their itinerary as they prepared to leave right behind Martin and Danny.
They couldn't help but overhear the conversation, albeit it a one-way affair. They both knew the two young men were top notch agents and would be ready by two. Despite Martin's stance, Jack knew that he trusted Danny without question and Taylor for his part was just the right fit.
"Let's get one thing straight, I get the right side of the bed," Danny chirped, enjoying Martin's tension.
"You can have the right, middle and left of any bed you choose," Fitgerald answered, punching the elevator button. "It won't be mine."
"Pissed huh?" Danny continued, following his partner into the elevator. "Oh I love make up sex... turns me on." He paused when the irritated agent scowled, then leaned closer, "I got a Marty party workin' in my pants now."
"Get away from me!" Martin hissed, moving again.
"Have fun you two lovebirds," Jack saluted as the doors closed. Then his face split into a huge grin. Vivian just sighed and shook her head. "Who knows, it's that time of year and love is in the air."
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