Dirty Laundry - Part I

Justin tossed tomorrow's Saturday morning edition of the Pittsburgh Tribune newspaper onto the coffee table, and sat back on the sofa. "Brian, sit down, you're making me nervous," he said. "There's obviously been some mistake."

"Mistake?" Brian stopped pacing, and looked over at Justin. "You can see the picture yourself. That's Tony with his shirt wide open, hugging Gus in the middle of The Plaza!"

"So?" Justin shrugged.

"So?" Brian's eyes widened. "What the hell is he doing with my son in a hotel without my knowledge? Gus has never been to The Plaza."

"Sure he has. He was there for Mel and Lindsey's reception." Justin smiled.

"He was a baby then," Brian hissed. "Now is not the time to be cute, Justin."

"I'm sorry, Brian." Justin chuckled. "Don't you think you're blowing this way out of proportion? You should at least wait, and talk to Tony before you jump to conclusions."

"Oh what the hell do you care?" Brian growled. "You don't give a shit. Gus isn't your kid. The only thing you care about is the next time you can get your hands around Tony's ten inch cock."

"10.5," Justin corrected him.

"You think this a joke, Justin? What if Michael is right? What if Tony only came after me to get to my kid? That's what pedophiles do, you know."

"Pedophile? Wait a minute Brian…" Justin sat upright.

"Don't pretend it's never crossed your mind, Justin. As quiet as its been kept, you know as well as I do that Tony was sexually abused in all of those foster homes he was in, and we both know that it's not uncommon for victims of abuse to grow up to become abusers themselves," Brian said.

"Tony's not a pedophile. He would never hurt Gus. You know that," Justin insisted.

"Right now, Justin, the only thing I really know for sure is that I need to talk to my son." Brian picked up the newspaper from the coffee table, and headed for the loft's sliding door. "Are you coming?"

Brian and Justin drove the short trip to Lindsey and Mel's in dead silence, with neither man daring to verbalize what was going on inside his head. While the tabloid-like photograph and psychological background indicators did point to Tony's guilt, Justin was certain of his innocence. There hadn't been any overt signs that Tony had any particular interest in Gus, or any other children for that matter. Indeed Justin recalled that just the opposite was true. It was Gus who appeared to be in awe with Tony, following the older man around during their visit to Tony's mansion in Chicago. It was Gus who encouraged Tony to eat, and to get out of the house following Tony's heart surgery. It was Gus who initiated the hugs and kisses that Tony at times awkwardly accepted. Yes, it was obvious that the two had formed some kind of special bond, but nothing appeared to be inappropriate. Damn that meddlesome Michael, and Brian for being so receptive to whatever the whiny little prick had to say. Michael had been jealous of Justin from the first night Brian took him home. Now with Tony also in the picture there was even less of Brian's time to spend with the needy little shit. This buzz Michael just placed under Brian's cap was nothing less than a mean spirited, vindictive, low-blow ploy to create tension, and break up the royal trio. Justin made a mental note to go, and see Mr. Novotny just as soon as this shit with Tony was over.

Brian's eyes remained fixed on the road, but his thoughts were far from the driving task at hand. Flashbacks of his uncle Frank kept coming to mind. Jack Kinney's brother, Frank Kinney, married father of three children, two of them sons, had a "special" bond with his nephew. It began innocently enough with family outings to the zoo, the circus, amusement parks, and camping trips. Frank would take his sons, and always invite his only nephew along. Brian was in awe of the older man who gave him the attention his own father never did. Even when Uncle Frank's attention became physical, and secretive, to Brian it was a small price to pay for the affection he so desperately needed. It wasn't until young Brian learned about good-touch/bad touch in 4th grade gym class that he decided to tell his parents. What a disaster that was. Not only did Jack Kinney beat him mercilessly for lying about his only brother, Brian ended up losing the only man in his life that he loved at the time. Now with this recent revelation, Brian couldn't help but wonder if Gus's infatuation with Tony was due to his own lack of parenting. Could it be that Tony was taking advantage of Gus right under Brian's nose, the same way Frank took advantage of Brian without Jack Kinney's knowledge? Dear god, Brian prayed that Michael was wrong this time.

It was almost eight-thirty when Justin and Brian pulled into Melanie and Lindsey's driveway. Gus was already in his pajamas, and had settled down between his two mommies for a Friday evening of movies and popcorn. He was ecstatic to see that Justin, and his father were going to join them. "Hey, Pop!" The boy leaped into is father's arms, then reached over to include Justin in his hug. "Did you bring any ice cream?"

"No, I don't have any ice cream," Brian said.

Melanie and Lindsey immediately noticed the sullenness of Brian's demeanor. "Brian, is something wrong?" Lindsey asked.

"I need to talk with Gus." Brian sat down on the couch.

"What did you want to talk about?" Gus smiled.

Brian reached for the newspaper that Justin was holding in his hands. He opened it to the front page, and showed it to his son. "Gus, when did you take this picture with Tony?" Brian cut straight to the chase.

"Picture, what picture?" Mel peeked around Lindsey's shoulder.

Gus' face went pale when he looked at the photograph. The frightened child immediately made a beeline out of the living room. Brian watched as his son bolted up the stairs with lightning speed. It was true, something had happen between Tony and his son, something that was so horrible that Gus was afraid to talk about it.

"Brian, what is this? What's going on?" Both mommies were confused.

Brian couldn't fix his mouth to say the unspeakable. Instead he handed the newspaper to Lindsey, then started up the stairs to see about Gus.

"Will somebody explain to me what the hell is going on?" Melanie turned to Justin.

"Brian thinks that something may have happened between Tony and Gus," Justin attempted to explain.

In the meantime Brian had already reached the top of the stairs, and was pleading with his son from the hallway. "Gus, open the door son."

"No, go away!" Gus called out from behind his bedroom door.

"Gus please, I need to talk to you," Brian tried again.

"No, I can't tell you!" Gus called back.

Downstairs Lindsey, and Melanie's eyes were becoming wider, and wider as Justin continued to explain the situation. "I'm calling the police." Melanie headed to the telephone.

"No, you can't do that!" Justin wrestled the phone from her hand. "We should at least talk to Tony first."

"Where the hell is he?" Melanie barked.

"He's in Chicago. He'll be back on Sunday night," Justin said.

"GET THAT BASTARD ON THE PHONE RIGHT NOW!" Melanie demanded.

A horrified Lindsey charged up the stairs and joined Brian. "Gus, please open the door, honey. No one is going to hurt you. We're not mad at you. You didn't do anything wrong. Please let us in," she pleaded.

Gus began to pace his room. He was in so much trouble. His mommies had warned him never to wander off alone. They were going to punish him for sure for going to The Plaza to find Tony that day when Mel and JR were asleep. The bewildered lad couldn't believe that this was happening. Tony had promised that he wouldn't tell. He even crossed his heart when Gus told him how much trouble he would be in for bringing Tony that invitation to his Pop's party. Gus was confused. His Pop always said that a man's word was his bond, and that meant that a man can NEVER break his promise. Gus concluded that this must be some kind of trick. Tony was a man, and would never break his promise. Gus decided that he was a man too, and he wasn't going to break his promise to Tony either. The brave five year old took a deep breath, and opened his bedroom door.

Brian sat down on Gus' bed, and placed his son at arm's length in front of him. "Gus, this is really important. I need for you to tell me when you took this picture with Tony." He said it as calmly as he could.

Gus looked over his shoulder at Lindsey, then back at his father. "I can't tell you. I promised Tony that I wouldn't." His little voice trembled.

"Oh my god!" Lindsey slumped down onto the bed.

"I gave him my word that I wouldn't tell." Gus tried to make them understand.

Brian stood up from the bed, and placed his hand over his mouth. He suddenly felt sick, and he could barely catch his breath. Memories of Frank Kinney and Brian's own dirty little secrets came crashing back. Michael was right. How dare Tony betray his trust? What kind of animal would take a child's innocence, and saddle him with dirty laundry that would fuck him up forever?

Lindsey hugged Gus close to her breast. "We have to call the police," she sobbed.

"No, don't call the police. This is beyond a police matter," Brian said.

Justin watched from the first floor landing as the distraught father descended the stairs in a zombie-like trance. Brian didn't say a word when he walked past Justin and headed for the front door.

"Brian, Brian, where are you going?" Justin grabbed his arm.

Brian paused, and looked a Justin with an emptiness in his eyes that sent chills down the young man's spine. "Stay here, baby," he whispered.

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The area surrounding the now closed "Steamworks Bath & Sauna" was not only known for its shameless debauchery, it was also know for its unsavory criminal element. Brian headed back to the dark alley, this time to an underground club where he was less known. A similar tattooed bouncer like the one who guarded The Steamworks met him at the door. "I need to see Omar," Brian said.

"Ain't no Omar here!" the bouncer growled.

"I'm a friend of the captain." Brian gave the password.

The bouncer opened the door to a long dark hall. At the end of the hall the sound of music could be heard, but that wasn't Brian's destination. A sharp left turn near the main bar lead him to a small staircase. Brian climbed the steps amidst curious eyes to the closed door above the crowded dance floor. Tap-tap-tap, his knuckles bade him entrance.

"WHO THE FUCK IS IT?" A pair of intimidating eyes looked through the peek hold.

"I'm a friend of the captain." Brian gave the password again. The steel door slowly opened, and Brian walked inside. He looked to both sides of him at the two huge figures standing ready to pounce at a moment's notice, then at the dark skinned man shielded by designer shades, sitting in the leather chair behind his desk.

"Brian, what a pleasant surprise." Omar leaned back in his chair, and crossed his legs. "What brings you to these lower depths? The last I heard you were on the wagon. What's your pleasure my friend, 'E', boy, girl, poppers……?"

"No, none of that. I don't need any candy tonight," Brian stopped him. "I need fire power."

"Fire power?" Omar uncrossed his legs, and leaned forward in his chair.

"Something small, not too loud, but can still can get the job done," Brian said.

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Tony stepped off of the plane, and stretched before making his way through the long terminal of Pittsburgh International Airport. Christ, he hated commercial flights, and their cramped seats, and the kids who always kicked the back of them. Unfortunately Tony's pilot already had another private booking. Hence a commercial flight was the only way he could make it back to Pittsburgh that Friday night. Tony draped his leather carryon across his shoulder, and proceeded outside to the area designated for limousines only. He had phoned ahead for The Plaza to send its courtesy car, and as usual Bill, his driver was right on time.

"Welcome back, Mr. Massey," Bill greeted his boss. "We didn't expect you back until Sunday night."

"I got homesick." Tony climbed into the back seat.

"Homesick?" Bill shut the passenger door, and walked around to the driver side. "I thought you made your home in Chicago."

"So did I," Tony said.

The exhausted man made himself comfortable for the long ride back to the city. It had been a debilitating day. Mary was going to kill him. Tony's original plan to stop in Chicago, and rest over the weekend had been belayed when the lovestruck millionaire's heart began to ache for his boys. How could he rest without his arms wrapped around Brian, or Justin curled up against his back?

"Make a right turn onto the turnpike, Bill. I'm not going to The Plaza tonight," Tony said. "Drop me off at 6 Fuller, on the corner of Tremont Street."

NEXT WEEK: Dirty Laundry, pt 2

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