In a Hail of Bullets

Chapter 10

"I love when they fight" Bob said gravely.

"No!" The man yelled. "I've been taking money, I have a girlfriend I've been trying to support". The room went eerily quiet at the mans declaration.

"You" Frank growled. "You have a beautiful wife and lovely daughter and all you care about is getting your dick licked by some slut?" The man hung his head in shame. "I had an ounce of regret having to explain to your little Lilly what happened to her father but not anymore. I'm sure your whore will enlighten everyone at your funeral."

Gerard stood in shock as he watched Frank yank the knife from Bobs grasp, slicing it across the mans chest. He yelled in agony. The cuts were deep, but not deep enough to kill.

"You will die slowly" Frank spoke quietly, causing a gash to the mans arm. "You will remember who you double crossed. Frank Iero doesn't take to thieves well, especially in my own inner circle". He continued his assault as the man wailed and cried.

He was cut up and bleeding badly, but he wasn't dead. Gerard felt like he was going to vomit but he couldn't stop watching. Just when he thought Frank was done, he watched him pull a gun out of a holster on his hip and press the barrel gently against the man's forehead.

"Give my regards to my father" he said before he pulled the trigger. The man was most definitely dead now. The gun shot echoed through the hall and jolted Gerard into action. Frank was a monster, a fucking monster and Gerard needed to get away. Before Gerard could move, Frank had yanked the door open. The entire room was exposed to Gerard. The floor was covered in blood and the mans lifeless body was hunched over. Some of Frank's men were beginning the clean up. Frank and Gerard shared the same look on their face when their eyes met, both shock.

"Gerard!" Frank yelled in surprise. Gerard turned to run, sprinting up the steps as fast as possible. "Gerard wait!" Frank called out from only a few feet behind. Once in the kitchen, Frank caught up to Gerard, spinning him around and pushing him against the wall. "What the fuck are you doing?!" He yelled.

Gerard couldn't speak, he couldn't see anything but the mans blood, knowing he now had a wife and little girl who were probably tucked tightly into bed happy and content. When they wake, their worlds would be crushed, at Frank's hands. Before he knew what he was doing, Gerard kneed Frank in the crotch causing him to crumple in pain. Gerard took his moment and ran out the back doors into the garden. His socks were damp from the wet grass and he had a stitch in his side from running but he didn't stop.

Once he was a ways into the yard, he fell to his knees, finally throwing up everything in his system. He vomited so violently that his body shook. It could have also been the cold night hair but he wrote that off to being sick. He heard nothing around him but crickets.

That was a horrible idea Gerard thought. Frank is going to tie me to a chair and do me in. Gerard propped his back up against a tree while he rested. He would have to sit here for the rest of the night because it was too dark to see. Frank grew up here but Gerard only puttered through the garden during the day. Gerard's last conscious thought before slipping off to sleep was how many neighbors did Frank have. He just needed to make it to one. He just needed his Frankie to tell him everything was alright. That guy who pulled the trigger wasn't his Frankie. Resting his head back against the trunk of the tree, Gerard closed his eyes.

Gerard was jolted awake when three sets of hands grabbed him at once, causing him to yelp in pain. Bob, Brendon and Ray were dragging him back towards the house. The sun was just peaking up over the horizon and he had no clue how long he was outside.

"No" Gerard yelled. "I don't want to go back there". He fought against the men holding him but to no avail. They were stronger. Once inside, his arms were tied around his back and he was literally dragged into the den. Gerard was tossed to the plush carpeting before the three men disappeared.

Gerard didn't want to look up, he was even more scared then when he was kidnapped.

"Gerard" Frank said with a stern tone, but Gerard didn't move. He stuffed his face into the carpet as the tears fell. After several moments, he finally spoke.

"Just kill me" he said in a shaky muffled tone. "I don't want to be cut like that guy, all I ever did was love you. So if you're going to kill me, just be merciful about it". Gerard continued to sob but no one touched him or said anything more to him. Once he had calmed down, he turned his head to look where he first heard Frank's voice. He expected to see him pissed, with a knife or a gun in his hand. But he wasn't.

Frank was perched on his knees about a foot away from Gerard, looking at him with sad, remorseful eyes.

"Do you think I would ever want to hurt you, love?" He whispered.

"That man" Gerard croaked. "He was a friend of yours and you just ... you ..." Gerard began to cry again. Frank waited for him to calm back down before speaking again.

"That man is a thief. A liar, a crook. He was fired from numerous accounting jobs for money laundering. I gave him a chance but I told him his fuck ups would cost him his life. The greedy bastard chose money over life."

"So call the police, go about punishing people the right way not with a gun" Gerard found himself saying.

"Do you think those crooked mother fuckers would take anything an Iero says seriously? In our world, we solve our own problems and not wait for the feeble geriatric hand of the law for help". Frank leaned forward and cut the tape around Gerard's wrists, freeing his arms. He didn't give him a moment to think twice before Frank had gathered up Gerard in his arms and held him close.

"I'm sorry you had to see that" Frank said as he nuzzles into Gerard's hair. Gerard was stiff, still completely terrified of Frank, no matter how the butterflies erupted in his stomach whenever Frank held him close like this.

Sending Gerard was trying to close himself off, Frank spoke again. "I promise you, no matter how hard you would ever hurt me, I would never be able to hurt you back. I don't give two shits about most of the people that work for me, it's what makes my job easier. But someone I love? I could never live with myself if I ever did that to you" Frank grabbed Gerard's chin gently, raising his face until they were looking each other in the eyes. "I love you Gerard Arthur Way. More than anything else in this world" and he kissed Gerard's lips softly.

Gerard wanted to leave. He didn't want to be swooned by the Frankie he fell in love with when he remembered watching Mafia Frank be so cruel. When they send me back to my father, I'll get out. No doubt daddy will send me away to be safe. I'll never be afraid of Frank again. It wasn't a great plan, but it's what Gerard would hold onto for the next three days.