FORGOTTEN MEMORIES!—10

Martin paced back and forth in the office. In the hour that passed since he made the ill fated call to Al Pulverante his mind and body grew numb. His eyes would glance toward the bedroom and back to the phone on the desk. His hands would clench into fists and he slammed one into the other. He continued to fight his conscience as he thought of Joe Mannix. He knew what Pulverante planned to do to him. She would kill him eventually, but not before she taught him a lesson, and once again forced her way into top position in the mob.

He walked up the stairs and checked the sleeping man. "I can't do this," he mumbled and headed back down. He picked up the phone and dialled the first number. A sound at the front door caught his attention and he dropped the receiver to the table. He drew his gun and hurried to the door, praying it was Malcolm returning early. His heart skipped a beat as he heard a soft knock. He held his gun in front of his body and unlocked the door. He instantly recognized Jake Mallory and tried to shove the door closed once more.

Mallory slammed into the partially open door, sending Martin crashing heavily to the floor. He scrambled forward and shoved his gun under the man's chin as he started to rise.

MANNIX-MANNIX-MANNIX

Joe opened his eyes, his hair standing on end, his body tense and ready for action. Something was wrong. Some little sound woke him from the nightmares he resided in, nightmares that wouldn't end until he faced Al Pulverante again. He listened, but the pounding in his skull was all he could hear. He slid his legs over the edge of the bed and struggled to sit up. He knew Malcolm had given him two of the pills Lewis left him and fought the effect they were having on him. He struggled to his feet, grasping the edge of the night table for support. The room spun in concentric circles as he staggered to the door. He made it to the top of the small set of stairs and swayed there. His eyes caught and held the grappling figures below and he moved down the steps one at a time.

Carter Blake spotted the weaving figure descending the staircase and smiled. "Come on down, Mannix or Mallory's going to kill your buddy."

"No! Joe, go back!" Martin shouted and fell to the floor as the gun in Mallory's hand struck him beside his right ear.

"D...Danny!" Mannix stumbled, but stayed on his feet as he made it down the last couple of steps.

"Danny's going to be just fine, Mannix." Carter laughed. "As long as you cooperate that is."

"What do you want?"

"We have a mutual friend who wants to meet with you. Now come over here and we'll get you ready to go."

"Who?"

"You'll find out soon enough. Now hurry up before Jake loses his temper and kills your cop buddy."

Joe looked from the man on the floor to the man across the room and knew there was no choice. Danny Martin was there to help him and he couldn't repay that by letting these men kill him. He walked toward the second man and stood before him. Despite the pain in his head and the weakness in his leg he stood solid and strong. His steady gaze never wavered from the man before him. He wouldn't show how much the walk down the stairs cost him, or how hard he fought to stay upright.

"Turn around, Mannix!" Carter ordered.

Joe glared in angry defiance, but cried out as Carter slammed his gun into his right knee. The pain was instant and he dropped to the floor, clutching the injured limb as agony ripped through his leg. His hands were pulled away from his knee and he was turned onto his stomach. He felt a set of cuffs encircle his wrists as a knee pressed into the center of his back.

Carter grasped a handful of dark hair and lifted the face from the floor. "Say goodbye to Danny, Mannix. He did as he was told and now his job is finished!"

Joe met Martin's eyes and saw the guilt and pain in them. "Y...you!" he gasped.

"I'm sorry, Joe."

Mannix watched as Mallory stood up and shot the policeman. Blood spurted from a wound in the center of Martin's chest and Joe closed his eyes to the betrayal.

"Say goodnight, Mannix!"

Joe didn't have time to think as a cloth was placed over his mouth and nose. The distinct odor of chloroform made him struggle, but the knee in the center of his back pinned him to the floor. His eyes watered and he held his breath. A fist drove into his right kidney and he gasped. His struggles grew weaker as the anaesthetic effects of the chloroform lulled him to sleep.

MANNIX-MANNIX-MANNIX

Art Malcolm dialled the number again with the same result. He replaced the car phone in its cradle and drove quickly toward his friend's office. There was something wrong, of that he was certain, but he continued to hope it was only the phone. He pulled his car to a stop and hurried to the door. His hand fell on the handle and he turned it, surprised to find it opened easily. His well honed instincts kicked in and he pulled his gun. He entered the house and reached for the light switch. He flicked it upwards, blinking as the bright light illuminated the interior.

"Danny!" he snapped and hurried toward the downed figure. He placed his fingers against the man's neck and found a weak pulse. He hurried to the phone and called for an ambulance and a patrol car.

"L...ieute...nant!"

Malcolm rushed back to the injured man's side as blood seeped from his mouth. "Don't try to talk, Danny!" he ordered as he put pressure on the wound.

"G...got too...got Joe...m...my f...fault."

"No, it's not, Danny."

"I...is my f...fault. I h...helped h...her get him. Oh, God," he gasped, wrapping his arms tightly around his chest. "S...she h...had things on m...me. T...threatened to go t...to the DA. S...sorry!" his eyes opened wide and his hand reached up and caught Malcolm's jacket. "H...have to h...help him."

"We will, you just be quiet, Danny," Malcolm ordered. He was angry with this man and wanted to shake more information out of him, but he knew any such action would kill him.

"Get J...Joe away from h...her be...fore...kills him! P...please, Lieutenant, I'm s...sorry."

Art knew the man was dying as the blood continued to pool around his lips. "Who is she?"

"A...Al..." his voice trailed off in a bubble of crimson and his body went slack.

"Danny?" Malcolm called as sirens sounded in the distance. Art stood up and headed for the stairs. His eyes were drawn to a cloth on the floor and he picked it up by the tip. He recognized what it was and looked at the phone, dreading the call he knew he'd have to make.

MANNIX-MANNIX-MANNIX

His head was pounding again and he struggled to force his eyes open. His mouth was dry and his tongue slipped out in search of moisture. He briefly wondered why he couldn't move, but his fog enshrouded mind wouldn't allow him to grasp what was happening. His head rocked back as something slapped him. He hissed at the stinging sensation on his right cheek. He finally won the battle with his heavy lids and opened his eyes. He blinked rapidly until the two figures standing before him merged into one. He forced his warring emotions aside and plastered a smile on his face as he looked at the woman.

"Hello, Al, can't say it's nice to see you again," Mannix spat.

"Ah, Joseph, I see your memory problems are over," she said as she ran her hand over the imprint on his cheek. "Such a waste. I could've..."

"Made something of me!" Mannix finished. "I don't think I could've lived with what you would have made of me, Al. I don't think we belong in the same circles. For that matter I don't believe we belong in the same species." His head rocked back once more as a vicious slap struck his left cheek. He felt blood trickle from his lip and pool inside his mouth. He spit it out and smiled as it landed on her feet. "What's wrong, Al? Am I hitting too close to home? I was thinking you reminded me of a snake, but not any more. Maybe a spider…a black widow spider is a more apt description. Why'd you do it, Al?"

"Do what?" she asked, her eyes deadly cold as she met with his.

"Kill your husband! You did, didn't you? I mean he was going to take control of everything. He was a better man..."

"Shut up!" she struck him again.

"Than you!" he snarled. "The other leaders were losing their confidence..." his head snapped back once more. "They were ready t...to oppose your leadership abilities."

"I said shut up, Joseph!" she warned and reached for the role of silver tape. She cut off a strip and placed it over his mouth. "That's so much better, Joseph. You and I have so much more to discuss." She saw the anger in his eyes and knew he still had more fight than her husband ever had. She checked the clamps on his wrists and ankles and smiled as she sat on his knee. "Have you ever had someone choke you, Joseph? I've got so many things to show you and now that I have you back it's time for your first lesson." She took another section of tape and placed it over his nose.

Joe tried not to let the fear show, yet he knew he wouldn't last long without air. He felt his lungs begin to burn and his mind began losing touch with reality. He had no idea how long he sat there, his eyes glaring at her, his head pounding as lack of oxygen started affecting him.

Al sat on his knee and watched the eyes fill with panic as she continued to deprive him of oxygen. With a final smile, that had little to do with mirth, she reached for the tape covering his mouth and nose and ripped it away. She watched his body gasp for the life-giving air and laughed.

"Oh so many things to show you, Joseph!" she said. She looked at the glazed eyes and moved to the door. "This room can only be opened by me. There is no escape for you, Joseph. I'm afraid these four walls will eventually become your tomb. Rest well. I'll be back later."

Joe watched her leave as he drew in great racking gulps of air. He knew he'd pushed her too far, but he couldn't help it. The woman was crazy and all the memories and torment he'd endured during their last encounter played through his mind as he once more lost consciousness.

MANNIX-MANNIX-MANNIX

The phone was picked up on the second ring and Art heard the sleepy voice on the other end say 'hello'.

"Peggy?"

"Art, what's going on? What time is it?"

Malcolm could almost hear the thoughts running through her head as he watched his officers going through Joe's house. "Peggy?"

"Art...What's wrong? Where's Joe?"

Again he heard the mounting fear. "Joe's disappeared, Peggy."

"Oh, God! No! Not again Art! Please God not again!" The fear, the memories, the anger of the last few months came back and Peggy let it all go as she sat on the edge of her bed and cried for the man she'd come to care so much about.

Art could hear the fear and tears from the opposite end of the line. "Peggy, can you get someone to stay with Toby?"

"Yes, I can bring him over to my neighbors. I'll be there as soon as I can."

"I don't want you driving, Peggy. I'll send Willis to pick you up and bring you here. And Peggy..." He added as he picked up the picture Willis had brought with him. It showed Al Pulverante and underneath was her rap sheet and the details of her escape from prison.

"What is it, Art?"

"Danny was in on it..."

"Danny? Danny Martin. Where is he, Art?"

Malcolm heard the anger in her voice and knew if she could get her hands on Danny Martin she could probably make the man talk. Peggy Fair didn't look all that strong, but Art Malcolm knew she could be a formidable woman, especially when it came to Joe Mannix or her son.

"Art?"

"Sorry, Peggy. Martin's dead, but he was able to give us a lead."

"He did?" Art heard a hint of hope in her voice. "What was it?"

"We're pretty certain we know who has Joe..."

"Who?" the hope had grown as her voice rose in pitch.

"Al Pulverante..."

"Oh, God, Art...she vowed to get even with him after the trial. If she's got him..."

"I know, Peggy."

"How did she get out of jail?"

"She had a friend, one who bares a remarkable resemblance toward her, take her place. The woman was killed by several other inmates to keep her quiet, but an autopsy easily found the difference in the two women. That was the first clue anyone knew she was missing."

"How long was she out before they figured this out?"

"At least a month. 'Al' kept a low profile and didn't make waves. 'She' was the perfect prisoner the whole time 'she' was there. Peggy, Willis is on the way."

"Okay, Art, I'll get dressed." She dropped the receiver back in the cradle and sat on the edge of the bed. Tears flowed from her dark eyes as she thought of the day Al Pulverante was sentenced. The woman had turned stormy eyes on Joe Mannix and in a voice laced with icy rage she'd screamed at him.

'Mark my words, Joseph, this is far from over. I could've made something of you, but instead I will take everything from you and you will die grovelling at my feet! You have not seen the last of me Joseph and I will yet get the upper hand!'

Peggy remembered the fear those words had instilled in her. Somehow this woman, who'd seemed so quiet all through the trial, filled her with horror. She remembered Joe reassuring her that it was just anger talking and that the woman's threats were worthless, that Al Pulverante would be spending most of her life in prison and therefore could not hurt him. She closed her eyes and remembered the woman's glaring eyes turned on Mannix as she was escorted from the court room. Somehow she'd known the mob leader would not give up so easily and now those thoughts seemed to have been proven right.

"Oh, Joe," she cried as she moved around the room. She called her neighbor and smiled as the woman, dressed in a nightgown and bathrobe, hair curlers still in, but losing some strands, came to her door a few minutes later. Peggy finished dressing, looked in on her son, promised her neighbor she'd call as soon as she knew anything, and walked outside to wait for Willis to pick her up.

Peggy stood on the street, her eyes misting once more as she thought of the missing man. She remembered the first time they'd seen Joe after he escaped the clutches of the mob leader. She prayed they would find him before things progressed to that level of pain once more, yet she knew in her heart Joe Mannix would not come out of this unharmed. Not caring who saw her she let the tears fall, just as fat droplets of rain fell from the sky, mirroring the way she felt in her heart. 'Stay alive, Joe,' she thought as a police car pulled up beside her.

MANNIX-MANNIX-MANNIX

Joe wasn't sure how long he'd been unconscious, but he knew it had been long enough for Al to come back and get things ready for whatever plans she had for him. He looked around the dimly lit room and winced as he saw a tray sitting on a tiny table. The tray held something he recognized and he knew he was about to be sent back into the hell she'd put him in before. He looked at the door as the hated woman entered and knelt in front of him.

"Ah, Joseph, so good that you are awake again," She reached for the basin on the table and took a wet cloth from it. She tenderly washed the blood from the corner of his mouth and smiled as she looked into his eyes. "You're looking pale, Joseph. Can it be that you remember some of our last experience with this?" she asked as she dropped the cloth and picked up the syringe he'd seen on the table. She reached for the vial of amber colored liquid and saw him tense in the chair. "So you do recognize this!" Her eyes twinkled as she held the vial before his eyes.

Joe swallowed the bile rising in his throat as he watched the woman's eyes twinkle in merriment. He knew she'd slipped over the threshold and was no longer bordering on insanity. The woman before him had lost all sense of sanity and was intent only on revenge. He knew pleading would do him no good, and it wasn't something Joe Mannix could or would do. He watched as she drew the liquid into the syringe and placed it on the table.

Al opened the white cuff of his shirt and ripped the sleeve upwards, until she revealed the strong forearm. She wrapped a piece of tubing around his arm and slapped it until the veins became prominent. "Oh, Joseph, it will bring me such pleasure to see you helpless again. Do you remember begging me to stop?"

"Never beg!" Mannix spat as he felt her ready his arm for the injection.

Al smiled maliciously as she placed her mouth next to his ear. "Oh, but you did, Joseph. You begged me to stop and you will do so again. Would you like me to prove it to you?"

"How?" Mannix asked as new memories assaulted his senses. He remembered a man with a camera and a flash of the old torment came back to him in a vivid display.

Al placed the syringe on the table and walked to the door. She opened it and called for Mallory who wheeled a small portable television into the room. "Watch and see, Joseph. You will beg like this again."

Joe had little choice, but to watch as the screen went from dark images to focus on his own battered and beaten form. There was no sound at first, but all too soon he heard his own voice begging this woman to stop. He knew in his heart it was the drug she'd given him, but for Joe Mannix it was a devastating blow to his pride, biting deep into his soul. He'd never pleaded for his own life before, but this woman had managed to get him to do just that. He knew she was talking to him, but his eyes were glued to the screen. He had to get away from her before he was forced to relive it all again. This time he wasn't so sure he'd escape with his life or his sanity intact.

"So you see, Joseph, I can make you plead for your life and I can..."

"Drugs, Al, that's not the same. Drugs are the only way you can do it."

"Are they, Joseph? How can you be so sure? You said nothing could make you beg. Well, I've proven you wrong about that. Maybe I should show you how things can be without the use of the drug. Mallory, hand me your knife!" She smiled as her order was quickly acted on and a long thin bladed stiletto was placed in her hand. "See this, Joseph. It is an invaluable weapon in the art of torture. Mallory here has been showing me some of the finer points." She laughed as she touched the tip of the blade to his right shoulder. "Points! Now that's funny, don't you think?"

Joe remained expressionless as the woman slowly cut through the material of his shirt, revealing the heavily muscled upper arm and shoulder. He felt the tip of the blade being run across his bicep, but kept his body rigid as she slapped his face. He turned hate filled, angry eyes on the woman as she continued to toy with his emotions.

"Pay attention, Joseph. I have many things to teach you," Al promised him

"Go to hell!" He swore and bit his lip against the agony as she slowly pressed the knife to his shoulder. He gritted his teeth as he felt blood well up around the tiny blade and trickle down his shoulder. 'Face her, Joe, face her or she's won!' He opened his eyes and glared angrily at the woman.

"Ah, so, Joseph, you are not ready to admit defeat yet..."

"Ne...ver...Ahhhh!" he cried out in pain filled rage as the blade went deeper.

"You see, Joseph, I know what to do to make you hurt. The pain I can inflict on you will be mine..."

"My pain is my own, no matter what you do to me! Just because you cause it doesn't mean you own it or me! Nobody owns me!"

"Oh, but I do, Joseph," she said as she pulled the knife from his body.

Joe hissed as the blade was ripped from his shoulder. The pain was like someone driving a red hot poker into him and he bit his lip to keep from vomiting. He sucked in air until his mind and vision cleared and saw the woman kneeling beside him once more, the syringe held firmly in her hands. He knew what was about to happen and he vowed not to let her beat him.

"Time for you to go on a little trip, Joseph, and when you wake up maybe your girlfriend..."

"What girlfriend?" he couldn't stop the question from leaving his mouth as she readied the syringe to inject him once more.

"That pretty little thing who works..."

"Don't you touch her! You hear me, Al, you go near her and I'll..."

"What, Joseph?" she asked as she pressed her finger into the bloody shoulder wound.

"I'll...K...kill you! Swear to God! I'll k...kill you if you go..."

"Would you rather I take her son?"

"D...don't touch t...them! You're nothing but a sadistic bit..." his head rocked back from a swift blow and he saw stars, but still he wouldn't give in to her. "I'll kill you..." Again he was struck but before he could regain his senses he felt her hand grip his chin and pull his face toward her.

"You won't kill me Joseph! You won't be able too. Enjoy your little trip," she said as their eyes met and she relinquished her grip on his chin. A slight tremble ran through her body when she saw the defiance and anger in his eyes. She knew if he escaped he would not let her live to make it back to prison. Joe Mannix would be a man bent on revenge for something that wouldn't happen. She would not bring Peggy Fair or her son into this as it would make handling and owning the un-own-able, impossible. She would own Joe Mannix or at least his mind and body until she took his life. The fear she'd seen in his eyes was not for his own life, but for the ones he loved. She looked into his eyes as she slid the needle into his vein.

Joe cringed as he felt the sharp prick of the needle, but no other emotion crossed his face. He felt the fiery liquid being shot into his vein and almost instantly he became aware of the effect on his mind. He remembered the helplessness and hopelessness the drug brought with it and fought with everything he had. The laughing woman before him quickly disappeared in the wake of more terrifying images. He watched as enemies from the past, melded with monsters from the horror movies he'd seen as a child and still things grew worse. He watched as a man he called friend died under the steady rain of bullets emptied from his own gun. Peggy appeared before him, kneeling on the ground, cradling the dead body of her son as tears shone in her dark eyes. He watched as her lips moved and she cursed him for all eternity.

'You did this, Joe! You let her get to Toby and me and now he's dead! You killed him as sure as if you'd shot him yourself, Joe, and I hate you! Do you hear me? This is all your fault! You killed my son!'

"No, Peg...gy...not...me...didn't...k...kill him."

Al smiled as she watched the look of horror and suffering come over her captive's face. Joe Mannix was under the control of the drug she'd ordered made especially for him, and now she knew what he was seeing was far greater than she ever imagined. The look on his face as he called Peggy's name went far beyond her wildest dreams. She knelt before him and watched the shadows of fear cross his glazed eyes. "Oh, Joseph, this is only the first of many trips you will make in payment of your betrayal of my trust. I will leave you to your suffering now, but I will return. That is a promise to you." She kissed his sweat soaked forehead and left the room, smiling as she heard the terror filled screams from the man held tightly in the realms of the nightmare world he now resided in.

Joe's dreams were running into each other as faces from the past mixed with faces from the present until it became a never ending merry-go-round of horrific visions. He gasped in breath after breath until the drug sent him into an even darker nightmare where no light shone, but vivid images dominated his mind. He screamed, but there was no one there to hear him as he struggled violently against his bound arms and legs. The room suddenly grew quiet except for the ragged breathing of the lone occupant.

TBC