A Ticket to the Boneyard

by Lawrence Block

Page 32

 

  Danny Boys table was at ringside. There was an ice bucket on the table, a bottle of Stolichnaya resting in it. Danny Boy wore a vest boldly patterned in vertical stripes of yellow and black; otherwise his attire matched the band and the headwaiter. He had a tumbler of vodka in front of him and a girl at his right. She was a blonde, her hair cut in an extreme punk style, long on one side, cropped close to the skull on the other. Her dress was black, and cut to show a lot of cleavage. She had one of those greedy little hill-country fox faces, the kind you get growing up in a house with three or four broken cars permanently installed on the front lawn.

  I looked at her, then at Danny Boy. He shook his head, glanced at his watch, nodded to a chair. I sat down, having been informed that the girl was not the person Id come to meet, that the person in question would be along in a little while.

  The set lasted another twenty minutes, during which time no one at our table said a word, nor was there any audible conversation at the surrounding tables. From where I sat the crowd looked to be about half black and half white. I saw one man I recognized. Hed been a pimp when I first knew him, and since then hed gone through what you could call a mid-life crisis, I suppose, and re-emerged as a dealer in African art and antiquities, with a shop on upper Madison Avenue. Id heard he was doing well, and I could believe it. Hed always done superbly as a pimp.

  When the trio left the stage, a waitress came over with a fresh drink for Danny Boys companion, something in a tall glass with fruit and a paper parasol in it. I asked if they had coffee. "Just instant," she said apologetically. I told her that would be fine and she went off to fetch it.

  Danny Boy said, "Matt, this is Crystal. Crystal, say hello to Matthew. "

  We said hello to each other, and Crystal assured me it was a pleasure to meet me. Danny Boy asked me what I thought of the group and I said they were fine.

  "Piano players special," he said. "Sounds a little bit like Randy Weston, a little like Cedar Walton. You can hear it especially when the other two sit out and he plays solo. He played one whole set solo the other night. Very special, very tasteful. "

  I waited.

  "Our friendll be along in about five minutes," he said. "I thought you might like to come early and catch a set. Nice place, wouldnt you say?"

  "Very nice. "

  "They treat me right. And you know me, Matthew. Creature of habit, when I like a place Im there all the time. Every night, or pretty near. "

  The coffee came. The waitress set it down and hurried off with drinks for somebody else. They didnt serve during the set, so they made up for it by working feverishly during the breaks. A lot of the customers ordered two or three drinks at a time. Some, like Danny Boy, had a bottle on the table. That used to be illegal, and very likely still is, but it was never a hanging offense.

  Danny Boy poured more vodka into his glass while I stirred my coffee. I asked what he knew about the person we were waiting for.

  "Meet him first," he said. "Look him over, hear him out. "

  At one oclock I saw the headwaiter coming our way with a man in tow. I knew he was the fellow we were waiting for because he was all wrong for the club. He was a thin white man wearing a houndstooth sport jacket over a navy-blue corduroy shirt, and he looked out of place in a room full of black men dressed like bank vice presidents. He appeared to feel out of place, too, and he stood awkwardly with one hand on the back of his chair. Danny Boy had to tell him to sit down a second time before he pulled the chair back and sat on it.

  As he sat down, Crystal got to her feet. It must have been her cue. She smiled all around and threaded her way among the tables. Our waitress came over right away. I said Id have more coffee, and the new arrival ordered a beer. They had six brands on hand and the waitress named them all. He looked irritated by the need to make a decision. "Red Stripe," he said. "Whats that?" She told him it was Jamaican. "Thats fine," he said. "Bring me one of those. "

  Danny Boy introduced us, first names only. His was Brian. He put his forearms on the table and looked down at his hands, as if to make sure that his nails were clean. He was about thirty-two, with a lumpy round face that looked to have taken its share of punches over the years. His hair, a dark blond, was going thin in front.

  You could see hed done time. I cant always tell, but some guys might as well be wearing a sign.

  His beer came, and my coffee. He picked up the longneck bottle and read the label, frowning as he did so. Then, ignoring the glass the waitress had provided, he took a drink from the bottle and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.

  "Jamaican," he said. Danny Boy asked him how it was. "Its all right," he said. "All beers the same. " He put the bottle down and looked at me. "Youre looking for Motley," he said.

  "You know where he is?"

  He nodded. "I seen him. "

  "Where do you know him from?"

  "Where else? The joint. We were both on E-block. Then he went in the hole for thirty days, and when he got out they switched him somewhere else. "

  "Why did they put him in solitary?"

  "A guy got killed. "

  Danny Boy said, "Thats the punishment for murder? Thirty days solitary confinement?"

  "They couldnt prove it, they didnt have no witnesses, but everybody knew who done it. " His eyes touched mine, then slid to the side. "I know who you are," he said. "He used to talk about you. "

  "I hope he said nice things. "

  "Said he was going to kill you. "

  "When did you get out, Brian?"

  "Two years ago. Two years and a month. "

  "What have you been doing since then?"

  "This and that. You know. "

  "Sure. "

  "What I gotta do. I started usin again when I got outta the joint, but now Im in a methadone program. I get day work out of the state employment, or Ill turn a buck. You know how it is. "

  "I know. When did you see Motley?"

  "Must of been a month ago. Maybe a little more. "

  "You talk to him?"

  "What for? No. I seen him on the street. He was comin down the steps of this house. Then I seen him a few days later and hes goin into the house. Same house. "

  "And that was over a month ago?"

  "Say a month. "

  "And you havent seen him since?"

  "Sure I did. A couple of times, on the street in the neighborhood. Then I got the word, somebodys lookin for the guy, so I hung around a little. Stood on the corner where I could keep an eye on the house. Had coffee next door to it so I could see whos goin in and out. Hes still there. " He showed me a bashful smile. "I asked some questions, you know? Theres a broad hes living with, its her apartment. I found out, you know, which apartment it is. "

  "Whats the address?"

  He shot a look at Danny Boy, who nodded. He took another pull from his bottle of Red Stripe. "He better not know where this came from. "

  I didnt say anything.

  "All right," he said. "Two eighty-eight East Twenty-fifth, thats near the corner of Second. Theres a coffee shop on that corner serves you a good meal reasonable. Good Polish food. "

  "Which apartment?"

  "Fourth floor in the back. Name on the bell is Lepcourt. I dont know if thats the broads name or what. "

  I wrote all this down, closed my notebook. I told Brian that I wouldnt want Motley to know about our conversation.

  He said, "No fuckin way, man. I aint talked to him since they switched him outta E-block. I aint gonna talk to him now. "

  "You havent said a word to him?"

  "What for? I seen him, you know, an I reckanized him right off. Hes got this funny-shaped head, kind of a long face. If you seen him once youd never miss him. Me, I got a face your eyesll slide right over. He looked at me the other day, Motley, looked at me on the street. His eyes never even slowed down. He didnt reckanize me. " Another shy smile. "A week from today you wont reckanize me. "

  He seemed proud of this. I looked at Danny Boy, who
flashed two fingers at me. I got out my wallet and took out four $50 bills. I folded them, palmed them, and reached across the table to slip them into Brians hand. He took the money and dropped his hand into his lap, holding the money out of sight while he had a look at it. When he looked up the smile was back. "Thats decent," he said. "Thats real decent. "

  "One question. "

  "Shoot. "

  "Why rat him out?"

  He looked at me. "Why not? We was never friends. A guys gotta turn a buck, you know that. "

  "Sure. "

  "Anyway," he said, "hes a real bad fucker. You know that, dont you? Shit, you gotta know it. "

  "I know it. "

  "That woman hes living with? I bet he kills her, man. Maybe he killed her already. "

  "Why?"

  "I guess he likes it or something. I heard him talkin about it one time. He said women didnt last, they got used up quick. After a while you had to kill em and get a new one. I never forgot that, not just what he said but how he said it. You hear all kinds of shit, but I never heard nothing like that. " He took another pull on his beer and put the bottle down. "I gotta go," he said. "I owe for the beer or are you taking care of that?"

  "Its taken care of," Danny Boy said.

  "I only drank half of it. Its okay, though. Anybody wants the rest of it, feel free. " He got to his feet. "I hope you get him," he said. "A guy like that dont belong on the street. "

  "No, he doesnt. "

  "The thing is," he said, "he dont belong in the joint, either. "

  I said, "What do you think?"

  "What do I think, Matthew? I think hes one of Natures noblemen. Generous, too. I dont suppose youd care to finish his bottle of beer. "

  "Not just now. "

  "I think Ill stay with Stoly myself. What do I think? I dont think he told you any lies. Your friend may not still be on Twenty-fifth Street, but it wont be because Brian tipped him off. "

  "I think hes scared of him. "

  "So do I. "

  "But somebody else gave a very convincing performance of fear the other night, and then she led me right into a trap. " I ran down what had happened on Attorney Street. He thought about it while he refilled his glass.

  "You walked right into it," he said.

  "I know. "

  "This doesnt have that kind of feel to it," he said. "Then again, our Brian didnt show up with character references. Still, youll want to exercise caution. "

  "For a change. "

  "Quite. If its not a setup, I dont think hell sell you out. I dont think hed want to get that close to Motley. " He drank. "Besides, you paid him well. "

  "A duece was more than he expected to get. "

  "I know. Theres an advantage, Ive found, in giving people more than they expect to get. "

  That wasnt a cue, but it reminded me. I opened my wallet in my lap and found a pair of hundreds. I passed them to him and he smiled.

  "As Brian would say, thats real decent. But theres no need to pay me now. Why not wait until you find out if his information is valid? Because you dont owe me anything if its not. "