by Joe Corso
Petey D raised his hand and said, “That was tough, Red. Fate intervened and shoved the world’s sexiest woman right into your arms. Man, that’s tough. The things you do for this family.” There were more smiles and chuckles.
Red suppressed a smile himself when Petey D said that. “Okay, okay, settle down. But you have a point there, Petey. Zazu Pitts could have been the one that was shoved into my arms, but I was lucky because it happened to be Marilyn Monroe who fell into my arms.” There were further guffaws, but Red stopped them. He needed to regain control of the meeting so he got serious. “Listen up. I need to bring you guys up to date on what happened next, so stop joking around and pay attention. Don’t get me aggravated because I’m gettin' a little hot under the collar.” The boys settled down and became serious. They had their little laugh and they knew something wasn’t right, so they sat back and listened to what the boss was saying. Red took his time before continuing. He wanted to have their undivided attention before speaking, and when he saw they were all paying attention, Red filled his men in on all that happened.
Fat Charlie raised his hand. “Why were they trying to kidnap Nixon?”
“Simple, Marilyn threatened the president with what she knew because he jilted her. She told him she was going to tell Nixon everything and our guess is they think she talked to Nixon and told him what she knew. It’s a good thing Moose and Swifty were in California because I told them to cover Nixon’s office building and his home, hoping to protect them before Reynolds men got to them.”
Petey D raised his hand. “What are we protecting Nixon for? Don’t we have better things to do?”
“Remember, these are very highly placed operatives within the United States government. They may even think they’re doing the right thing. They may think that by killing Nixon they’re protecting the American people. No matter how delusional they are, they’re just a bunch of killers. We’re considered criminals, but we all love our country. How many of you fought in World War II or Korea? Raise your hands.” Everyone but Red and Trenchie raised their hands. “You guys didn’t ask why you were there, did you? You did your job because you love this country.” Red looked across the room and was proud of these men. It was true they were criminals, but they were also patriots who’d die before they betrayed their country. “Shooter, give us the lowdown of what you found out about Reynolds’ schedule.”
Shooter stood up and looked around at the men sitting there. He could see that they were wondering what he would say to them. Then he turned to face Red. “We followed Reynolds for three weeks steady. We even parked near his home over the weekends. We followed him seven days a week. A car picks him up when he leaves his house in the morning to go to work. Once every few days a second man is in the car with the driver. If we decide to grab him when he leaves for work, it would make sense to take him when it’s just him and his driver in the car.”
Red nodded in agreement. “That’s exactly what I was thinking.” He pointed. “Frankie and Vinnie, you two in the back.” The two men stood. “Vinnie, do you still have the extra police uniforms?”
“Yeah! Why?”
“I think the DC cops’ uniforms are the same color as the NYPD’s. I want you to check it out for me. If they’re the same color then I’d like you to go to DC and buy uniform patches and phony shirt badges. It might even pay to buy two complete uniforms. It might be easier that way. I’ll leave that to you, Frankie. Do whatever is easier, but when you get back here I want to have two complete uniforms because we’re gonna pull the same ruse that we pulled on Slats.” Ziggy raised his hand to speak. “What is it, Ziggy?”
“You’ll need a police car to pull that off. What are we gonna use for a police car?”
“I’m working on it. I’ve got a few ideas.”
Frankie interrupted him. “Excuse me, Red, but instead of uniforms, why don’t we do it as plainclothes cops? I can buy a used police car exactly like the ones the DC detectives use and I’ll get interior flashing red and blue lights and a dome light for the car. I think we can pull it off without a problem. But it’s your call.”
Red thought about Frankie’s suggestion and he liked it. It’s simpler and there’s no reason why it wouldn’t work. “Excellent idea, Frankie. I’d like to get the show on the road as soon as soon as possible. So work on getting the car, the lights, and the proper police identification and get back to me when it’s done. When you tell me you’re all set to go, we’ll get right on this because my guess is Reynolds will try to kill Nixon at the Garden when he gives his fund-raising speech. I want to get to him before that happens.”
CHAPTER 29
Two days passed with still no word from Frankie the cop. Then the door to the Starlight Club opened and a smiling Frankie walked in with Vinnie following close behind him. He spotted Piss Clam at the bar and then he saw Shooter and Joey Bones sitting at the table next to Red’s. He walked past them straight to Reds table. “It’s all set, Red. I picked up a used police cruiser. I dropped it off across the street; the mechanic’s installing the interior lights as we speak. The dome light works fine . . . it connects to the cigarette lighter adapter and I know it works because I checked it when I bought it to make sure it wasn’t defective. I don’t want any problems when I stop Reynolds. He has to think that an official police car is stopping them.”
Red was pleased. “Did you get the phony badges and ID for the two of you?”
“Of course I did. What do ya think? I’m an amateur? Even if I am on the job when I do a job, I do it right.” He reached into his inside jacket pocket and handed an envelope to Red.
Red opened the envelope and suppressed a smile. “Hey, relax, Frankie, this ID is perfect. You’d never know it wasn’t authentic. I didn’t mean to insult you; I was just askin', that’s all.”
“Yeah, well I got everything we need and we’re all set to go.”
Now that they had the police car, the badges, and IDs, Red rapped the table twice with his knuckles to get everyone’s attention. Tarzan and Trenchie stopped what they were doing. They got the message and walked over to his table. Then Red motioned for all of them to follow him and Frankie to his office. Once inside, he laid out his plan. “Piss Clam, I want you to contact Lefty, Ziggy, Fat Charlie, and Petey D. Tell them to pack a suitcase. They’ll be going on a trip, tell them they’ll be gone for a week or two, maybe longer. When they finish packing, tell them I don’t want them to stop for a drink anywhere. I want them to meet me here at the Starlight Club as soon as possible. Got it?”
Piss Clam nodded and said, “I’m on it, boss.”
When Piss Clam left, Red laid out his plan for the others. He looked into the faces of the men in the room as if deciding to whom he would speak first. He looked at Tarzan. “Tarzan, I’d like you with us on this caper. Get Charlie Apples to take your place while you’re gone.”
Tarzan knew Apples was the right man. “Charlie Apples should be available; he’s tending bar part time at the Zebra Club for Jake. I’ll give him a call as soon as the meeting ends.”
Red nodded and said, “Good. Get on that. The guy is honest and he can take care of himself. I don’t like leaving the Starlight Club for just anyone to run and I don’t like leaving loose ends that might affect our businesses while we’re away. Tarzan?”
“Yes, boss?”
“I want all of you to leave tomorrow morning and drive to D.C. When you leave, take Lefty and the boys with you. Find a warehouse about a mile away from the one we used last time, but under no circumstance use the same warehouse complex we used with Lonegan. Shooter, you, Vinnie, Frankie, and Joey Bones take another car, drive down to D.C. and find a hotel in Washington somewhere. Pay cash and sign in under phony names. Frankie, you and Vinnie take the police car and drive to D.C. with Shooter and Joey Bones. If you’re stopped by the police, show them your New York I.D. Tell them a story about how you’re following up on a lead. Once you book a room at a hotel, the boys will show you where Reynolds lives. They’ll drive you around the are
a so you can get the lay of the land. Familiarize yourself with the streets and roads and make sure you know how to get to his house. Learn the route Reynolds takes and remember it like the palm of your hand. Then stay at your hotel and wait for Shooter to tell you that it’s time for you to do your part in the show. Shooter, I want you and Joey to shadow Reynolds every day until the driver shows up with the second guy in the car. We’ll get him the next day when we know it will only be him and the driver in the car. I’m taking Jeff with me,” Red said. “I don’t know how far we’ll have to go to get him to talk, but once we get him talking, I want Jeff to film everything Reynolds says to us.”
Joey Bones raised his hand. “What are we gonna do with him once he talks and we get what we want from him?”
Red pondered the question. “I don’t know, Joey. I haven’t made up my mind yet. If we can get him to confess on film about how he planned to kill the president, then maybe we won’t have to kill him.”
“Boss!” Joey said. “Do you want to worry about this guy coming after you with the power of the government behind him, gunning for you the rest of your life? Once he talks, let’s just kill the bastard and be done with it.”
“I didn’t say I wouldn’t kill him, Joey. I said I wanted to wait and see. Now if we can get him to admit on film that he planned to kill the president, then we might just be able to hand him and the evidence over to the president and let the justice department decide what to do with him. I’ll just have to play it by ear and see how it works out. But make no mistake about it. Even if I have to kill the son of a bitch, I’m going to resolve this matter.”
CHAPTER 30
Red decided at the last minute to stay in Queens with Sammie, Trenchie, Piss Clam, and another of his men, Rudy the Bagel Man. Rudy made bagels on the side and sold them to his brother-in-law. He was a silent partner in his brother-in-law’s coffee shop. Sammy told Red that the Nazis would be paying a visit to the rabbi’s temple tomorrow, which was the reason Red stayed the extra day He wanted to leave knowing the Nazi situation was taken care of. The following morning, they were in the rabbi’s private office behind the stage area, discussing the problem the rabbi was having with the Nazis.
“Are you sure they’ll show up this morning?” Red asked.
“Yes. They’ll be here sometime this morning. It’s Wednesday and they’ve come here the last three Wednesdays in a row. I’m sorry to have you come here and have you just sit here waiting for them. It’s just that I don’t know what time they’ll be here.”
“Don’t trouble yourself, Rabbi. I know that you have no way of knowing when they’ll come and I don’t mind waiting. Just do us a favor and keep the coffee hot.”
Rabbi Liebowitz’s housekeeper, Esther, who took care of the temple during the week, put on a fresh pot of coffee for the men.
“I usually have Trenchie or one of my other men settle this kind of business for me, but this Nazi business really ticks me off. This is a house of worship and you’re a man of God. You shouldn’t be subjected to this kind of treatment.” He looked into the rabbi’s eyes and told him, “Rabbi I want you to join my protection program, because if you did and you ever needed my help in the future, I don’t want you to hesitate. I want you to come to me immediately and I’ll make your problem go away. Will you do that for me?” “Sammy talked to me about it and after seeing first hand the service you offer you have my assurance that I’ll become a member.” Red patted the Rabbi on his arm. “You now can count on Big Red Fortunato as your friend.” The rabbi was about to speak, but the words weren’t spoken because just then, the front door slammed. The building shook so hard that they felt it in the back room. “Go and see who just came in and slammed your door like that, Rabbi. If it’s those Nazi bastards, don’t say anything to them – just bring them here.”
The rabbi left the room to see who came in. A few moments later, the office door opened and four men followed the Rabbi in. They were surprised to see four hard-looking men staring at them with dead eyes.
Red spoke first. “Who’s in charge here?”
“I am,” one man said, stepping forward.
Red not only believed in diplomacy, he knew what Al Capone meant when he said, “Now I know why tigers eat their young.” He felt like eating these kids, but he held his temper in check and decided to try diplomacy.
“What’s your name, son?” Red asked.
“Bud. Bud Wilson. What’s yours?”
“I’m Red Fortunato, and this is my town.”
Bud stiffened for a moment and Red picked up on it. “You’re Big Red?”
“Yep. One and the same. Now, Bud. You seem like a reasonable young man. Why are you bothering my good friend Rabbi Liebowitz? Does he owe you any money?”
Bud shook his head. “No.”
“I see. Has he hurt you in any way?” Bud shook his head again. “No.”
“Hmm. Did he do you wrong somehow?”
Bud looked down at his feet. “No. But he’s a dirty Jew and we want him out of our neighborhood.”
Red smiled. “I see. I didn’t understand what your gripe was at first, but now I do. I understand it now because you explained very clearly to me why you hate him. He’s a Jew, you want him to leave this town, and I guess you’d like to see the worshippers of this temple leave also. Am I correct?”
“Yes, that’s exactly right.”
“If you don’t mind me asking, how many men are in your little Nazi organization?”
Bud, not seeing any hostility in Red’s demeanor, was getting bolder and he puffed up his chest a bit and proudly said, “We have seventy-eight men in our branch of the Nazi party.”
Red just kept smiling as he said to Bud, “I’d like you to do me a favor, Bud.”
Bud wondered what Red wanted. “If I can,” he finally said.
“I want you to disband your little anti-American, anti-Jew, Nazi-loving group.” As he said that, Red smiled innocently at him. “Will you do that for me, Bud?” Red said these words so sincerely that if you didn’t know the man—and Bud and his men obviously didn’t—you would never have recognized the inflection in his voice holding back the ominous threat behind his request.
Bud was feeling pretty confident now. “Sure, Mr. Big Red Fortunato. I’ll disband our party after this Jew and all his Jew friends have left town.” He looked toward his buddies and he was met with approving smiles.
“I see,” Red said. “Well, that’s too bad, then.”
Bud noticed the shift in Red’s attitude. “What? What’s too bad?”
Red looked into Bud’s eyes and Bud saw Death looking back at him. “It’s just that you’re so young to die.” He turned to the rabbi, who had witnessed everything going on with interest. But when Red said Bud was too young to die, the rabbi became frightened. He wanted no part of any killing. Red looked at him and saw that he was nervous. Red told the rabbi not to worry, and he asked him to step out of the room for a few minutes. The rabbi looked at Red, and then at the Nazis. He understood what Red was asking him to do. When the door closed behind him, Red and his men pulled out their guns and pointed them at the four Nazis.
Red looked sadly at Bud. “I’m sorry, Bud. I didn’t hear what you just said. Would you please repeat it for me because if I heard what I think I heard, I’m just going to have to kill you right here and now. Rudy, take the plastic tarp out of your bag and spread it on the floor in front of the rabbi’s desk.” Rudy did as he was told, spreading the tarp out. “Okay, Rudy. Now get their wallets and take out their licenses. The rabbi has a pad on his desk. Write their names and addresses and their license numbers down. If we kill them now, we won’t need them, but do it anyway.”
“Okay, Red.” Rudy spread the tarp over the floor. Then, he retrieved all the licenses from the four men, and he copied everything as Red told him to, then he handed their wallets back to them. Bud saw where this was leading and became really frightened. He was a tough guy with his men behind him, but he was faced with certain death now and he looke
d like a coward.
Red looked at him again, and in that quiet dangerous way he had of speaking, he said, “Tell me again. What was it that you said before the rabbi left the room? I didn’t quite get it all.”
“It was nothing. We was just foolin' with him. We wanted to scare him, that’s all.”
“I see,” Red said. “Did you ever hear of the Holocaust? Do you realize how much the Jews have suffered? Now I’m asking you, Bud. Didn’t these people suffer enough in Europe and now you want them to suffer here, in America?” Red said softly to Bud, “Well, this is my town, Bud, and no one fuckin suffers unless it’s me who’s making them suffer. Do you understand me?”
The four men looked sheepishly at each other then at him. “Yes, we understand.”
“Here’s what you guys are going to do. You’re going to disband that un-American, neo-Nazi group, which goes against everything I believe in. And you’re gonna do it today. If I find that you guys are holding meetings or bothering people like my friend Rabbi Liebowitz, there will be no more talking. I’m just going to kill the lot of you. Do you understand me?” The smell of fear pervaded the four young Nazis. “I didn’t hear you. I said, ‘Do you understand me?’”
“Yes, we understand you.”
Red nodded at Bud, and then he looked at the other three Nazis. “I heard Bud here, but I didn’t hear you three.” He raised his voice threateningly at the three of them. “I still didn’t hear you. Don’t get me aggravated ‘cause you won’t like it when I get mad. Do you understand what I just said?”