Chapter Eleven
So anyway, we ditch the car and I go into a candy store to use the phone, you know, call Vito, like we were talking about and instead I go to the counter and buy a pack of cigarettes. After the guy hands them to me I basically rip them open and sit on a stool smoking. I smoked two whole cigarettes before I called Vito and when I stood up to walk to the phone booth I almost toppled over sideways. Then, I’m sitting there thinking who do I ask for, Vito or Angela? It was like I was kind of high. Anyway, I dropped the money in and dialed the number I had with me and like before the phone even rang once Vito picked it up. “Yeah.” He said, nothing else.
“It’s me.” I said. “Something went wrong.”
“Not on the phone, kid. I’ll come find you tomorrow.” Vito said.
“You don’t understand.” I said but the line was already dead.
Junior was outside waiting. “What did he say?”
“Nothing. You know how it is, nothing on the phone.”
“That makes sense but what do we do now?” Junior noticed the cigarettes in my hand. “What, now you’re a smoker? Give me one, will you.”
“I think my nerves are shot.” I said, handing him a smoke.
“Better your nerves than anything else. You know what I’m saying? Listen, I’m standing out here thinking while you’re in there, and no disrespect or anything, I mean, I love Rainie and all that, but she was going out with Melo, right? You think she tipped him off, or something?”
“What are you saying?”
“I don’t know, I’m just trying to look at all the angles here. I’m not accusing her or anything. I mean, I don’t think she’s trying to get us killed. I know the girl likes me too much for that.”
Likes you? I’m her brother. You think this is about her liking you?”
“I’m just saying. That’s the point. She’s not going to do anything to get us hurt, right? But what if, like everyone else around here, she doesn’t know the other half of the story. You know, the part that matters.”
That’s fucked up. I’m not even going to touch that, I’m serious.”
“You’re not listening to me. I’m saying, maybe, just maybe, that she’s still got feelings for Melo, right? Not like she’s going to marry him or anything nothing like that. But just that she doesn’t want anything to happen to him. I’m saying, she doesn’t even know what she’s doing. Maybe, just making a phone call, you know, calling over to The Pump and telling him to scram, something like that. She doesn’t even want to know that he’s a fucking mental case and instead of running off to hide, he’s waiting there with a couple of his friends like a firing squad.”
“I don’t think she’d do that to me.”
“You’re not listening to me. She’s not doing it to you. She’s doing it for him. See what I’m saying, there’s a difference.”
But even that, now Melo is just shooting down made guys. Come on, that’s crazy”
“Yeah, but what do you do? Just let them kill you. I mean just stand there. Fuck who they are at that point. You got to do something, right?”
“Right, but what you do is get on a bus and go someplace like, like, I don’t know where and fucking stay there.”
“Where’s a guy like Melo going to go, huh. Anywhere else but here and he sticks out like a sore thumb. What’s he going to do, get a job on a farm, or something, and spend the rest of his life walking around in overalls covered in cow shit? Think about this, would you.”
“I’m not buying it.” I said, but by the same token I didn’t have any answers either. “I’ll call home and see what’s what. Maybe, they heard something.”
I went back inside and called Rainie but my mother answered the phone. Basically, it was like having a dog knock the phone off the hook and then standing there looking at it. Not much in the way of conversation, if you know what I’m saying. Anyway, my mother told me that Rainie went over to Baba’s to watch television and that was about it. I could here her wheezing lungs struggling to work and the phone suddenly felt like that thing that doctors use to listen to your heart. It seemed too personal an interaction so I just told my mother that I loved her and hung up.
“She’s not home.”
“Who?”
“Rainie. I just told you I was going to call her.”
“Oh yeah.” Junior said. “I think we need to get out of here tonight. More shit might be coming down.”
“Like what else?” I said. “What else could possibly happen?”
“I’m thinking mostly about the cops. Three guys get dropped like that they at least have to act like there are doing something. Maybe, we should go to Marty’s house, sleep up on the roof.”
“Oh, that sounds like fun and real comfortable too.”
“Nah, it’s fucking beautiful up there. They have couches and chairs and lots of plants growing and shit. Plus, you look out and the city is all lit up.”
‘How are we going to get there? I asked. Then it occurred to me. “What if I call Angela and see if she wants to come.”
“That, or we can take the train.” Junior said, not seeming thrilled by the idea.”
“What, you don’t like her, or something?”
No, do whatever you want. I don’t care.”
“What am I supposed to do, like just sit there with you and Marty just twiddling my thumbs?”
“Can’t you see I’m thinking here, do what ever you want.” Junior said. It was like a mood came over him, or something.”
“All right, I’ll call her than. If she wants to come, fine. If not, maybe she’s busy or something, than we take the train.”
Junior nodded and waved me away me away. “Go ahead, call her.”
I went back into the candy store to use the phone. The guy in there eyed me warily, like maybe we were thinking about robbing him. I tried to smile at him, you know, make him think everything was on the up and up but it didn’t feel like a smile and he looked at me funny. “Need to make another call.” I said. “And oh, would you get me two cones, big ones, both vanilla with sprinkles.” He just stood there. Then I realized he wasn’t going to do shit until he had the money, so I went over to the counter and gave him a five. “Satisfied.” I said. “And keep the change.”
I called Angela, or Vito, or whoever, and this time a woman answered. I was as polite as I could possibly be and asked if Angela was home. The woman was as polite as she could be right back and asked me to wait a minute. Then Angela was on the phone and instead of saying hello, she just said hi.
“You saying hi to me or is that how you talk to everyone?” I asked kind of jokily.
“I knew it was you.” She said.
“Yeah, that mind-reading stuff, right?”
“Yup, something like that. What’s up?”
“I’m calling to see if you want to come out tonight. We’re going over to Marty’s house. That’s Junior’s girlfriend. She lives over in South Brooklyn, want to come?”
“Oh, I know her from school, she’s a nice girl.”
“You going to give her a character reference or you going to come with us?” I asked.
“Sure. I’ll get in the car now, where are you?”
“Uh, I’m at this candy store. Just met us by the Ave U train station, we’ll be there in a minute.”
“The F train, you mean?”
“No the D.”
“I’ll be there soon.”
I started to say something but realized that the line had gone dead. This hanging up shit must run in the family, I thought.
I came out of the phone booth and was heading for the door when the guy in there yelled, holding up two ice cream cones. “Hey, you want these?” He was holding them up like a priest holds up the chalice during mass. So I turned around and grabbed the cones and went outside and handed one to Junior.
“You still out here being quiet with your thinking cap on?” I asked.
He took the cone without saying anything and started slurping at it. I’m not counting or anythi
ng but we must have had a thousand of these things together and that’s not including the cones from the Misty Softy truck, which also sold weed, hash, and pills, and the Good Humor truck, the one driven by the guy in a uniform that looked like a pilot’s.
“What are you thinking?’
Nothing, just eating my ice cream. Is she coming, or not?” Junior asked.
“Yeah, we’ll meet her by the train on Ave. U. She’s on her way, so we should go.”
Between the cigarettes and the ice cream, I had relaxed a bit but I’m telling you it’s funny how all the sudden everything just changes. I have been walking up and down these streets ever since I was a kid, and I mean, you always had to be carefully but this was getting crazy. I wasn’t even sure what was coming at us next. Even having Melo on our ass was better than this. And the other thing was, and maybe this was the part that was driving me craziest, maybe it was nothing. Maybe, it was just Melo, which was bad enough, but at least that, by some standard, was a reasonable problem. It was math not algebra, if you know what I mean. All this other shit with the wise guys was making my head swim. It was like that planet with the rings, whatever it’s called, like things were together and at the same time, apart.
By habit now, we stayed off the avenues and walked up the side streets until we got to the train station. We waited a couple of minutes and Angela rolled up. I opened the door and pushed the seat up. “Get in the back, Jack.” I said to Junior.
I kissed her and noticed her hair was wet. She noticed me noticing and said that she was sorry if she was late but she decided to take a shower.
“No, we just got here.” I said.
“Hi Angela, how you doing?” Junior perked up, like he always did around girls. “We met your father tonight, Vito.”
“Yeah, he told me.” She said. “Where are we going? I know Marty’s but where exactly?”
“You want me to drive, this is a sweet ride. I’ll get us there in no time flat.” Junior said.
“No, I’ll drive, but thanks for asking.” She said.
“Your father’s a nice guy, tried to help us out with something tonight.”
“Hey, forget that, will you already.” I said. “Let’s just relax, can we.”
“Touchy, touchy, tonight. Are we?” Junior was leaning up and his head was right behind my ear. “We’ll relax tonight, baby.” He said, blowing into my ear. “Anything you want.” He was making Angela laugh with his usual act.
“Nothing like having a little entertainment in the back seat, now is there.” I said. Angela looked at me and smiled, accelerating the car through traffic.
“Hey, slow down, will you. We don’t want to be talking to the boys in blue tonight.”
“Yeah.” I said, “We’ve got a couple of guns with us.”
“And I got so weed, too.” Said Junior. “But they’re not taking me alive, not tonight, not ever.”
“Where would you be without a gun? What’s this, a manhood thing?” Angela said.
“Nah, this is nice gun I got back here, fuck the manhood thing, this is like the rules of the jungle, only the strongest survive. Me Tarzan, you Jane, shit like that.”
I turned to Junior. “Quiet back there.” Then, I turned to Angela, “Sorry, but something came up tonight and we just ended up with them. It’s not like we’re always walking around like this.”
“Yeah, usually we have machine guns.” Junior was cackling like a lunatic and shooting the imaginary machine gun in the air splattering us with spittle.
“Oh, shut up.” I said. My nerves were a little frayed and I lit a cigarette. “Want one?” I offered the pack to Angela. “Sure.” She said. “Light it for me, I’m driving.”
“Light one for me too.” Junior said. I handed him a cigarette and tossed him a book of matches. “Light it yourself, you know what they say about three on a match.”
What, what do they say?” Junior asked.
“It’s unlucky Junior. Where have you been?” Angela said, exhaling smoke through her nose like a dragon.
“I didn’t know you smoked.” I said.
“I do and I don’t.” She replied. “Depends the mood I’m in. Did my father help you guys out?”
Junior and I looked at each other before I said. “Yeah, you know how that stuff is, we can’t talk about it.”
“Big surprise there.” She said. “What am I going to go to the cops, or something? I mean, I know who my father is. I go to the bakery, wanting a cupcake and the guy there gives me a box of cookies. I go out dancing with my friends and can’t buy a drink -- everything is always on the house. I know the score, trust me.”
“That doesn’t sound bad to me.” Junior said. “Not at all.”
“Me, I’d rather nobody knew who I was. That’s why I’m moving to the city after high school is over. Over there, nobody knows anything about you. You’re just another face on the train. You can just live your life without somebody sticking their nose in your business.”
“I see what your saying.” I said, but I was really too distracted to be listening to her.
“Get on the expressway here.” I said. Giving directions was easier than talking, even though it was talking.
She drove her little ride like a race car-driver and her natural inclination was to go fast. I thought about telling her to slow down again but it all seemed pointless.
“Next exit.” Junior said. “Right by those warehouses down there.
“She lives down here?” Angela asked.
“Yup.” Junior said. “Takes her like an hour to get to school.”
“Why doesn’t she just to school around here?” She asked.
“Schools down here suck. She’s in a magnet program. You know, to attract smart kids, like myself.” Junior said. “Not that I’m boasting or anything.”
“Yeah, you got that genius-look about you, Junior.” Angela said. “I knew from the first time I saw you.” She said.
“Oh yeah, when was that?”
“I think it was right around when high school started.” She said. You could almost hear Junior preening in the back seat, waiting for a compliment. “Betty was holding some kid up in the air and you hung him on a fence by his underwear. Don’t you call that a wedgie, or something?
“No way, you get someone up on a fence like that, that’s a super-wedgie.”
“See, right from that moment, I could see that you were special.” She said it with a straight face too.
“And you had special talents in the wedgie department.” I added, but I wasn’t as good at it as Angela and I started to laugh.
“You two fucking with me, up there?”
“No, I serious. I could see you as an entertainer, or something. I remember all the girls were laughing.” She said
“I forget that kid’s name.” I looked back and he was scratching his head like he was really trying to remember the kid’s name. “Hey, stop here at this bodega, I’ll get some beer. We can’t just show up empty-handed.” He said. “We got manners, right?”
I handed some money back to him and told him to get another pack of cigarettes too.”
“What kind?”
Brooklyn 1975 Page 17