Prisoners of the Williwaw

by Ed Griffin

  "What about this election?" Graham asked.

  "What about it?" Frank sat back down.

  "Are you going to win?"

  "What's important is the democratic process. I put Gilmore on the council to give him a voice in a legitimate forum. This election is…"

  "Spare me the lecture, Inmate Villa. Remember you're still a criminal with a life sentence. You killed - or rather your partner killed - a policeman. Remember that. That's all, Inmate Villa."

  Frank stood up. He held up his medallion of Williwaw so Graham could see it. "This is an Aleut representation of the wind here. It's called a williwaw. Just last week I watched this fierce wind take a child's life. Sending three hundred maximum security convicts here is like letting loose a williwaw on this island."

  Graham looked at his watch and stood. "Yeah, well the wind is the wind. Good luck to you, now."

  * * *

  Graham opened his briefcase, took the last pencil from Frank's cup and tapped it on the edge of the desk for several minutes. One hundred Thanksgiving baskets waited in a warehouse in Seattle. They were the Bureau's to distribute, but that wouldn't look good. The inmates on Adak would then be back on the dole. But how to get the message across?

  He checked his notes. The plumber. Nelson. Inappropriate fellow who told him the Bureau was like a toilet that wouldn't flush. Reported that earthquakes had damaged all the sewer and water lines leading to homes. No indoor plumbing. That was the answer.

  Graham took a 62-L form from his brief case. Executive order memo.

  Mr. James T. Gilmore has advised the Bureau of the serious health hazard posed by the lack of indoor plumbing. Not only is waste material left in outhouses, but children are getting ill running in and out in the rainy weather. The Bureau was not aware that earthquakes had so severely damaged water and sewer. Consequently, as a direct result of Mr. Gilmore's diligence, the Bureau will immediately hire a plumbing contractor to repair the lines.

  Graham put the memo in his briefcase. He'd have to move fast. The election was next week. A quick check with his boss in Washington, a phone call to Gilmore on his satellite phone, an official fax to Villa. Maybe there was even time to do a flier for Gilmore and send it by air with a fresh fruit shipment.

  As Graham put his parka on, he glanced at the sketch of Williwaw. He took Frank's last pencil and tapped the sketch. "Gilmore's the Man, ain't that right, Williwaw?"

  He broke the pencil in half and dropped it on the desk.

  Chapter 32

  Gilmore took a pen from his shirt pocket and opened his briefcase for a piece of paper. He needed something to keep track of his votes as Blanche called them out. Within an hour he could be the leader of Adak - and all without taking anybody out.

  The campaign flyers Graham had sent him littered the top of his case. He picked one up and laughed to himself again. In any other place but Adak this kind of advertising would be a disaster. Only people who walked outside five, six times a day in slashing rainstorms to use the outhouse would appreciate the flyer. Only people who plunked their cold asses on wet, stinky holes in wooden shacks that often blew over in the middle of the action, only those people could appreciate Gilmore's ad.

  The flyer was a large picture of a modern bathroom with the words VOTE GILMORE at the bottom. The color picture showed a warm, modern bathroom with clean porcelain fixtures, orange-yellow towels, sunflower wall paper, a spider plant hanging in the corner, and best of all, a large heat lamp, glowing red.

  As he felt the paper, he smiled again. Graham had provided a rich, glossy paper that said, "You deserve the very best. Vote Gilmore."

  On the other side he drew two columns, Gilmore and Villa. This was the final election, Thursday, the first of November. Graham had come through for him, at least in the sense of producing this flyer, which he himself could never have done.

  Blanche Carvinere opened the first envelope, counted the ballots and called out the results:

  Gilmore - 15

  Villa - 7

  Rambo - 1

  A good beginning.

  Big Jim, Fitznagel and Nelson the Plumber walked into the cafeteria. Nelson went over to Villa's table, while Big Jim and Fitznagel headed for his.

  Too bad about Nelson, Gilmore thought. He had expected that the news about the Bureau hiring a plumbing contractor would win him over, but the man could not see beyond his fittings and pipes. "Yeah, see Gilmore, the Bureau finally recognized what I've been saying. We need new water and sewer lines."

  "It was me that convinced the Bureau."

  "It was Graham coming here and having to place his sorry ass on a cold, wet board that convinced him."

  Big Jim and Fitznagel approached him. "Sit down, men," he said.

  Big Jim looked at the vote tally. "All right. I told my people to vote for you, boss."

  Another envelope:

  Gilmore - 10

  Villa - 9

  Still ahead.

  He'd gotten a call late last night on his satellite phone. Congressman Murphy was now Senator Murphy. Murphy said the voters liked his prison plan. It pleased the budget conservatives, the family lobby groups, the get-tough-on-criminals organizations and even the liberal elements with their talk of freedom and democracy. Murphy talked expansively of more businesses, until Gilmore slipped in a reminder about his sentence reduction. That ended the call.

  Doc and Hanna, Joe and Maggie walked into the cafeteria. Doc had his arm around Hanna and she was laughing at something. Joe held Maggie's hand. And then, behind them, Latisha.

  Gilmore stared at her. Once he had walked with his arm around her, just like Doc with his Hanna. The two couples went to Villa's table and she did too. He watched her lean over Villa's shoulder and look at his numbers. She sat down next to him and put her hand on his arm.

  No question. Villa had to die for stealing her. Gilmore had had the crap beaten out of a brother who said she was PHAT, pretty hot and tasty. Villa's crime was much worse.

  Villa - 16

  Gilmore - 6

  Doc stuck his fist in the air. "Yes," he shouted. "The good guys are ahead."

  "Shut the fuck up," Big Jim shouted over at Doc.

  Another envelope:

  Villa - 19

  Gilmore - 12

  Uncle Sam - 1

  "Whoeee," Doc shouted. "You're losing your fuckin' ass, Gilmore."

  The next time he talked to Murphy or to Graham he'd see if there wasn't another doctor in some prison or other, one with a smaller mouth than Doc's.

  Villa - 11

  Gilmore - 1

  "Ho, ho. The great Gilmore, king of the bathroom, is gonna find himself in the outhouse."

  Gilmore jumped up and strode over to Villa's table. "Villa, would you call your dog off?"

  Villa started to stand, but Latisha put her hand on his arm. Gilmore saw the look of concern in her eyes, concern not for him, her husband, but for this stupid honkie or spic or whatever he was.

  Rage filled him, blind, hot, red.

  Doc jumped up. "Larson, that's your dog, Gilmore," Doc said. Then Doc turned to Villa. "You know, Frank, I hear that after Boss Gilmore loses this election, he's planning a takeover with the new cons. Did you know that, Frank?"

  Gilmore stuck two fingers on Doc's chest and pushed him slightly. Doc did the same to him. Gilmore saw that Big Jim and Fitznagel were coming toward them.

  Villa stood and tried to move Doc out of the way. Gilmore grabbed Villa by the shoulder and spun him around. Big Jim and Fitznagel were right there. Gilmore stared hard into Villa's eyes. "You're a fuckin' wife stealer, Villa."

  Gilmore knew men. This was the moment Villa would react and take a swing at him. Good. Then Big Jim would step in and pulverize Villa. But it didn't happen. Villa stood there, emanating some kind of power to calm everyone down. It was something in his eyes.

  Why the hell didn't Villa ever play by the rules? Gilmore formed a fist, pulled back and let it sail into Villa's stomach as hard as he could.

  "All right,
children," Blanche yelled. "If you're not too busy fighting, here's the next result. Everybody listening?"

  Gilmore went back to his table. He saw Latisha bending over Villa, who had his hands on his stomach. He himself had acted exactly the way he wanted to provoke Villa to act.

  "That Villa's an asshole," Fitznagel said.

  "Shut up, Fitz," Gilmore said.

  "Okay, here's the next result:

  Gilmore - 37

  Villa - 21

  Karl Marx - 1

  Gilmore added his column of numbers. Villa was only two ahead of him.

  Another envelope:

  Gilmore - 15

  Villa - 7

  He was 6 ahead. Maybe a coup with the new cons wouldn't be necessary. He'd already made contact with a leader from Florence, one Duke Jenkins. At least the organization said he was a leader. Jenkins had sent word back that he'd be happy to work with Gilmore.

  Villa got up slowly, walked to the door and left the room. More results came in:

  Gilmore - 27

  Villa - 20

  123 for him, 110 for Villa. He was 13 ahead.

  Villa came back into the cafeteria holding a couple of sheets of paper. He looked upset.

  "Excuse me a minute," he said, standing by Blanche's table. "I've got two faxes here I want to tell you about." He looked at the first one. "This is a fax from the National Weather Service saying that a severe low pressure system is going to hit the Aleutians this weekend." He ran his finger down the page and then read out loud. "Conditions are favorable for the development of williwaws."

  He looked at everyone in the cafeteria. Gilmore smirked to himself. This was part of Villa's technique, to scare everyone with the bogeyman of this williwaw business. Yes, the wind was fierce here, but it was just the wind.

  "The other fax, I'm going to read," Villa said. He pushed his glasses on tight and began:

  From the Bureau of Prisons

  To Mr. Frank Villa:

  Three hundred new inmates and their families will be landing on Adak sometime on Friday, November 2. For security reasons we cannot be more specific as to time. This operation must be accomplished before an approaching dangerous front hits the Aleutians.

  The Alaska Air National Guard will secure the air field and the surrounding area before disembarkation. Additional military support will be at hand, so all are warned to stay clear.

  At this time those non-prisoners, wishing to return to the mainland, may do so. All returnees should be ready as of Friday morning, November 2.

  Thank you for your cooperation."

  Villa looked up from the document. "Just a reminder, we're going to have an orientation session for these men tomorrow. And there is a curfew tomorrow night." He glanced over at Gilmore. "I've deputized thirty men to keep order."

  Gilmore laughed to himself. No way was he going to allow a curfew to get in the way of a big party at the Sea Otter. Three hundred new cons just out of the joint with two hundred dollars in their jeans - what an opportunity.

  Villa returned to his table. Gilmore watched Latisha and wondered what she thought about the news. She would be leaving tomorrow, leaving him forever and now she sat at another man's table. He watched her talking to Villa, asking him questions, her hand on his arm. Damn. Villa had to die.

  Blanche's loud voice filled the cafeteria. "Now that the interruption's over, we can get back to the election. I've got the results of three envelopes here:

  Villa - 75

  Gilmore - 67

  Doc Raymond - 1

  He was still 5 ahead. On Villa's table, Hanna punched Doc on the arm. "He did it again. Voted for himself."

  Sam Wong and his daughter, Jeannie, came out from the kitchen. A month ago Sam would have come over to him, rooted for him. Now he went to Villa. What was it about Villa that attracted men?

  The little girl, Jeannie, a needy sort, put her arm around Latisha.

  Villa - 16

  Gilmore - 5

  He had lost his lead.

  A crash came from the kitchen and Sam ran back in. When he came out a few seconds later, Gilmore did a double take. He was chasing Carl Larson. Larson had a box of groceries under one arm and a gun in his other hand. Sam brandished a kitchen knife. Larson was heading for the exit.

  Larson shot at Sam, but missed. The shot reverberated in the low-ceiling cafeteria and assaulted Gilmore's ear drums. Out of the corner of his eye Gilmore saw a sudden motion from Villa's table - Joe Britt was bulling his way toward Larson, knocking over chairs in his path. Then from the other side of him, Gilmore caught another motion, Big Jim going for Britt. Larson pointed his gun at Britt and shot, but Britt was in motion, leaping forward to tackle Larson. Big Jim hit Britt from the side. They ended up in a heap on the floor and Larson ran out the exit with Sam Wong chasing him.

  Big Jim got up and lumbered back to Gilmore's table. Britt stood, apparently unhurt. "Hey Boss, I stopped the pig Britt," Big Jim announced. "Larson got away."

  "Yeah, yeah." How could he explain to this oaf that he didn't want Larson running loose? Larson had raped and killed a member of his organization and fear of Larson was keeping people home and not visiting his club. Law and order were necessary for crime to prosper.

  "I want some order here," Blanche said. "Britt, do your job. Now let's get back to the election:

  Gilmore - 14

  Villa - 10

  William Shakespeare - 1"

  Villa was only 2 ahead. Would it be possible to run his rackets with Villa in charge? After all his club was a business and business needed stability and sureness of rule.

  Sam Wong came back into the cafeteria, shaking his head, out of breath.

  Blanche continued:

  "Villa - 17

  Gilmore - 5

  George Washington - 1"

  Villa was 14 ahead. It did not look good. The numbers approached the maximum he had expected to vote.

  "And now," Blanche announced, "the final envelope:

  Villa - 26

  Gilmore - 11

  The grand total is:

  Villa - 254

  Gilmore - 225.

  Frank Villa is declared the leader of Adak."

  Doc jumped up. "In your face, Gilmore."

  Hanna pulled him back into his seat. "Easy there, Doctor Trenchmouth."

  The worst thing happened then and Gilmore saw it happen. Latisha was sitting right next to Villa. She stood up, leaned over and kissed him and then hugged him. The son-of-a-bitch would pay for that kiss.

  Villa started toward his table, no doubt to shake his hand, but Gilmore wanted no part of it. He got up and walked out, Fitznagel and Big Jim in tow. He had a lot of planning to do before tomorrow. It was time for a takeover.

  Chapter 33

  Early the next morning - before dawn - troops landed in a military plane and occupied the runway and the air terminal. Three planes followed with the convicts on board. The troops marched the convicts, chained hand and foot, off the planes and ordered them to sit on the floor of the air terminal until their families arrived. More planes arrived and the men were released as their families got there. People returning to the mainland were told they would be taken back on the first plane that brought families.

  Frank was busy in the terminal assigning housing and answering questions. He looked up to see that all the people leaving were waiting in line at one end of the terminal. Judy and Latisha were both there, Judy at the front of the line, Latisha at the end.

  Frank asked Doc to do his job for a few minutes. He went over to see Judy, who was at the head of the line. "Look, Judy, I'm sorry this hasn't worked."

  She seemed more relaxed than at any time since she had come to Adak. She smiled. "Thanks, Frank."

  "This place isn't for everyone."

  "I'm going to get a divorce, Frank."

  "What about Reverend Ellsworth?"

  She shrugged as if it didn't matter much what the Reverend thought.

  "Please don't forget me to Frank Jr."

 
"I won't. He can be proud of you. Goodbye, Frank."

  "Goodbye, Judy."

  Frank walked back down the line. Saying goodbye to her was all too business-like. He should have kissed her, hugged her, told her she was a great mom, thanked her for coming to Adak. Instead - formality.

  Frank shook his head at himself. Would he ever learn?

  He walked to where Latisha stood, took her hand and squeezed it. "Please stay, please," he said. "This is going to sound corny, but on Adak it isn't corny. You are the sun here, the sun. I don't want you to leave."

  She smiled a sad smile at him. "I have to go." He put his arms around her and hugged her strong, stronger than he had ever hugged anyone. Then he pulled away, tears in his eyes. He saw that she was crying too.

  He turned toward his desk and saw Gilmore approaching Latisha.

  * * *

  Latisha saw Gilmore glaring at Frank as Frank passed. Well, no matter now. In a few minutes she would be gone and a big source of conflict between the two would end. The Reeve Aleutian Airways pilot took a megaphone from the military commander and addressed the people waiting to board the return flight to the mainland.. "The plane is ready, folks. Sorry for the delay. The military will begin the boarding procedure immediately."

  Latisha picked up her carry-on bag. Gilmore put his hand on hers. "Please, Latisha."

  Suddenly a breathless Jeannie raced up to Latisha. "I heard you were leaving. Don't go. We need you here. I want you to be … my big sister. I want you to be…" she started to cry "… my mother. Please, please stay, Latisha. My daddy, Sam, he's a good man, but…"