The Lagotti Family Series

by Leopold Borstinski

  “Tell me, what are you wearing right now...”

  10

  ONE INDUSTRIAL PARK is much like the next. Vast buildings made of concrete with no attempt by the architect to inject any beauty in the affair. Once constructed the block is surrounded by a car lot big enough to house the vehicles of all the poor saps working inside the gray walls.

  The only planning that takes place is to ensure all the roads are straight - to maximize real-estate usage within each plot. No spare land is wasted on making space for a tree or even a small shrub. Nothing to make a human feel alive.

  Another touch to alienate the worker ants is to encase the entire experience in barbed-wire fencing. Keeps uninvited guests out and prevents workers from escaping.

  Such an enterprise was the Bakersfield Industrial Park, situated as its name hinted at the intersection of the two highways where a community had grown called... Bakersfield. The park lay at the dirtier end of the tracks where no-one wanted to live but when you lived in a nowhere town, you took any job under any circumstances that was going. This provided the best explanation why anyone worked at the concrete block with the name Bakersfield Printing on the awning nailed to the right of the main entrance.

  Monroe Linwood spent twelve years at the plant before he met anybody associated with the Lagotti family. He was yet another guy propped up at the bar or playing the odd game of poker with the boys on a Thursday night. The first thing that made him unusual was the clever way he‘d got all the local loan sharks to hold markers on him. Cards were not his passion but baseball kept him alive despite the anchors weighing him down like his dutiful wife and four adoring children.

  A hop, skip and a jump later and Mary Lou held those markers and was able to make Monroe an offer, much as her step uncle had done decades before. Only on this occasion she wasn‘t intending to rob a bank.

  “Thank you for taking the time to see me.”

  Monroe, Mary Lou and Alice sat around a motel room bed while Bobby and Naldo stood near the door. The place was packed and Monroe was nervous.

  “SO‘S WE‘RE CLEAR: you owe me a lot of money. All the debt you have amassed with local operators has been bought up by me. This means I‘ve paid off all you owe.”

  “Thank you ma‘am.”

  “You are most welcome. That was your good news for the day. Now you need to come to terms knowing that every red cent you owe to me.”

  Monroe gulped because what Mary Lou said made him scared and everyone staring at him had made him feel nervous from the moment he entered the motel.

  “Do you know how much you have gambled away?”

  He shook his head. If Monroe knew the amount, he wasn‘t going to utter it here. This woman knew the number. It represented a five or six figure value. A big number.

  “Over one hundred and twenty thousand dollars plus chump change. Out of interest, do you have that sort of money to repay me?”

  Another shake of the head.

  “I thought not because if you did, I‘d have expected you to pay some of it back to open a line of credit... Do you have a life insurance policy by any chance?”

  “No ma‘am.”

  “So you‘re not even worth anything dead to me.”

  Monroe‘s eyes lifted from the floor and opened wide in Mary Lou‘s direction. She let the idea of his death hang in the air for five seconds until the notion ran out of energy and landed on the carpet, soaking into the stained geometric pattern.

  Mary Lou turned to Alice and Monroe shifted his attention accordingly. Alice‘s soft voice forced Monroe to strain to hear her words.

  “Do you have fifty bucks spare each month?”

  “Huh? No, ma‘am.”

  “You see, if you paid fifty dollars a month, it would take you two hundred years to pay us back. And you can‘t even offer us fifty bucks.”

  A tear departed Monroe‘s left eye and traveled down his cheek to drop onto the carpet and join the idea of his death.

  “I sure am in a fine predicament and no mistake.”

  Alice offered him a cigarette from her pack. With a shaking hand, he removed one and put it between his lips. By instinct, he fumbled for a box of matches in his pants pocket, but found diddly squat. She picked up her lighter from the bed, flicked it on with her thumb and held the flame near the end of his smoke. Monroe inhaled and the tobacco caught fire.

  “You have a way of sorting out this mess you‘ve got yourself into. You must listen to what I have to say and decide what you will do.”

  She outlined the plan for Monroe to use his access to the printing shop to borrow a template for the State lottery cards just for one night. He had to walk out to his car with it and drive home on a particular day. Then not lock the car overnight, drive back to work the next day and return the template.

  “Do you understand what we expect you to do?”

  “Yes I do.”

  “Will you help us and clear off your debts for the sake of less than an hour‘s effort?”

  “Well ma‘am. You‘ve told me you will not kill me and what you‘re asking is mighty dangerous. One hour or no. So why don‘t we agree that I never place a bet again and leave it at that?”

  Mary Lou responded without hesitation.

  “You are worth nothing to us dead and maybe your family will shed a tear. But I promise you this: if you choose not to help then one by one your children and your wife will find out the many miserable ways to die. And I guarantee you will shed a tear because their deaths will be on your hands. Each and every one.”

  The guy swallowed hard, took a long drag on his cigarette and stubbed it out in the ashtray lying on the bed. Then he wiped his nose on his sleeve, cleared his throat and spoke with all that his dignity would muster - which wasn‘t much.

  “Let me know when you want us to rip off the California State lottery.”

  11

  ALICE AND BOBBY were working together just like the first week at the Lady Fortune, only this time Alice wasn‘t so green around the gills. She was pleased Mama was entrusting her with the project and happy to be collaborating instead of running everything herself. It was good to have a trusted soul with whom to bounce ideas.

  The lottery wouldn‘t launch until much later in the year which meant they had enough time to get everything ready. The biggest hurdles were to prepare the printing presses and to pull together a team of hustlers.

  Alice scouted suitable locations to print vast quantities of fake lottery tickets and Bobby used his connections to find guys who could persuade without breaking bones. Any fool can threaten a storekeeper with a gun. It took brains to achieve the same wearing only a smile - and a three-piece suit.

  While she traveled around the state, Alice also checked out various towns to live in. Sam might enjoy the sizzle of living in the Palace, but Alice thought she'd find more comfortable surroundings: Sunset Boulevard had seen better days. When she looked at Malibu for light industrial parks, she headed into the center of town to see if there were any condos of interest.

  After two weeks on the road, she and Bobby met up in the summerhouse. Mary Lou sat in on the conversation so she could keep abreast of how things were progressing.

  “The crew is forming slowly. Too many guys only know how to crack heads.”

  “I blame the violence on TV and video games.”

  “Hilarious. Is there anywhere to print the tickets?”

  “Agoura Hills. It‘s on a main road route for our trucks - you do have trucks, right? - and I could oversee the operation easily from Malibu, the other side of the Santa Monica Mountains.”

  “Say what?”

  “I‘m thinking of moving there.”

  “Let‘s come to that later. My memory of the place was that it‘s a sleepy hick town.”

  “Hick town? Yes. Sleepy? Not so much. Perhaps when you were a boy but I don‘t remember the moon landings, so who am I to say?”

  Alice winked at Bobby, who smiled back.

  “There‘s an industrial park away from the r
esidential area. It‘s not exactly built up near there for sure, but its main street has a certain buzz about it. I mean a bunch of fellas wouldn‘t stand out in the local diner. They are enough out-of-towners waltzing around for them to pay no nevermind.”

  “Security?”

  “Usual deal. We‘d have to make our own inside any building so we didn‘t stand out on the street. If you want no-one within a thousand feet then we can buy farmland and station rancheros at the gate.”

  “Good work darling. Why don‘t you show me and Bobby the sights of Agoura Hills tomorrow and we can run with it or rule it out?”

  “Okay, Mama.”

  “That‘s settled. Now tell me about Malibu.”

  “It‘s a cool place to hang out and it‘d be somewhere I can call my own.”

  “Don‘t you like living rent free?”

  “Of course it‘s been lovely and I am truly grateful. Only...”

  “... you don‘t want to hang onto your mother‘s apron strings forever.”

  “Right. And as fabulous as being on top of a cathouse can be...”

  “... you‘ve had enough consorting with prostitutes on your doorstep. I understand. You realize we can‘t protect you as well outside our premises.”

  “True, but I‘m sure Naldo will put together a crack protection detail.”

  “Sure, but at your expense as you are choosing to create the problem.”

  “Understood. And it‘s not a problem. It‘s an opportunity for me to have my own bricks and mortar.”

  AFTER THE FAMILY trip to Agoura Hills, Mary Lou signed off the venue. Then they popped by Malibu so Alice could show them the real-estate she was seeking. Nothing much in the scheme of things: beach-side residence with a pool, an untold number of bedrooms and sufficient space for live-in help.

  Like she was reconstructing her childhood but relocating it for a sea view. With her success at the Lady Fortune behind her, Alice could afford to pay for this indulgence. Mary Lou and Bobby agreed to help her fulfill her dream. She might have run a casino but she‘d never had the pleasure of dealing with realtors before.

  That night, Alice returned to the Palace and found Frank in the main lobby. Up in the penthouse, she offered him a glass of champagne.

  “Mighty kind, sis‘.”

  “You‘re lucky to catch me in. I‘ve been on the road these past few weeks.”

  “So I hear.”

  “Oh? Keeping tabs on me?”

  “Nah. I spoke with Mama a day or two ago. That‘s all.”

  Although the pair were far from friends nowadays, Alice was pleased to see her brother. He reminded her of times gone by. Of messing around in the Oakdrive pool and playing in the park. The time before High School and the death rattle of puberty when the twins found they‘d lost whatever special connection had been hard-wired into them at birth.

  Deep down, Alice knew this pit of nostalgia was a displacement emotion for Sam. But warmish feelings about Frank were the best she had in the absence of her girlfriend in her bed.

  “Anything in particular bring you to LA? I thought you had a casino to run now I‘m not in Vegas to look after it.”

  She couldn‘t resist turning the knife in his side - it came so naturally to her as a reaction.

  “Don‘t be like that, sis‘. The Lady Fortune isn‘t much fun without you hanging around. So I was wondering if there was anything you were up to that I could help.”

  “Nope. I‘m good thanks.”

  “Word on the street is that you‘re setting up a nice lottery scam. Certain I can‘t dip my beak?”

  “Absolutely sure. And you mean Mama told you what we are planning, right?”

  “Yeah, just messing with you. I‘d love to be in on any new deal going down. For once I want to build something that the family can be proud of. Contribute. You know?”

  “Yep, Frank but this isn‘t your party. You‘ll have to find something else. Possibly elsewhere.”

  “Understood. Haven‘t been to the east coast for ages. Maybe I‘ll try there.”

  “And I‘ll tell Bobby not to expect you back in my old office any time soon.”

  Alice let him stay in one of the guest rooms overnight. When she came home the following evening, he had vanished and left a note on the dining room table: “Gone fishing. F xxx”

  MONROE TRAVELED TO work every weekday without fail. Even when his back played up, he appeared at the gates ready, willing and able. In the past, he might have sloped off to watch a baseball game or to try his hand at poker, but now he was a model, but nervous, citizen. His wife Laura noticed the difference within days and the kids enjoyed having their dad around to play with. This halcyon calm and joy persisted until June when the smile was wiped off his face one crisp morning.

  He‘d backed out the drive and was about to slam on the gas when he saw a dude a little ways down the street waving at him. The guy half stood under a tree and Monroe was lucky to spot him. He coasted toward the fella and wound down his window.

  “Can I help you, bud?”

  “Sure can. You remember your agreement?”

  “Huh?”

  “The motel...”

  A blank expression held for three seconds and then wide-eyed recognition of the name and his compact with the devil in a designer pants suit wearing red lipstick.

  “Today you keep your word. Do what you must do at work and leave the item under the driver‘s seat.”

  “Don‘t lock up tonight, right?”

  “You said it, friend. Do that and we won‘t see each other again.”

  “What if I can‘t get to the templates or they‘ve put on extra security?”

  “Then figure it out or we‘ll meet again.”

  Beat.

  “Look stay calm and think on your feet. Besides, any real problems and you can leave a note in the car instead. We‘d rather wait one more day and get the item than you fuck things up for everyone. Capiche?”

  IN HINDSIGHT, MONROE realized it was the easiest way to earn one hundred and twenty thousand dollars. How he sneaked out with the plates defied belief. His security pass gave him all points access and because they‘d been printing cards since Easter, everyone had grown complacent. There were no checks, no metal detectors. Nothing his imagination had conjured up on his route into work.

  When he got home, he parked frontwards in the drive as usual. The only difference was that he didn‘t turn the key in the lock before coming inside. The following morning the plate was where he‘d left it but with an envelope containing a stack of bills.

  He stuffed the greenbacks into his pocket and replaced the template early in his shift. They hadn‘t mentioned any payment on top of clearing the debt. Mighty stand up that Lagotti girl. The doofus used the cash as a massive beer and betting fund. The local bar had never known such trade and relations with his wife took a predictable drunken downhill slide.

  Pumped with arrogance fueled by the ten grand donated by the Lagottis, Monroe shared his views on women, gambling and work to any barfly in his vicinity. This made him unpleasant but of no consequence to anyone. When his friends tired of his endless tirades, he needed more interesting stories to spice up their interest.

  “Don‘t buy a Scratcher in November. I betcha there‘ll be fakes flooding the market before you can sneeze.”

  That Tuesday evening sealed his fate because two days later, he was visited at work by the local law enforcement. Monroe joined them for an interview at the sheriff‘s office and discovered the pleasure of an overnight rest in one of their cells.

  Despite the genuine fear for his family‘s safety, Monroe spilled his guts to the detective because the secret burned him up inside. Anyway, they‘d promised him that if he did the right thing, they wouldn‘t touch Laura and the kids. They‘d kept their word so far. Been stand up guys. And he had done what they asked - to the letter.

  ALICE PICKED UP the phone, listened to the news from the other end of the line. Her face remained impassive and all Sam could do was know it was work an
d something serious had come up. She knew better than to stick around and popped back inside Alice‘s Malibu beach-side retreat and fixed herself another drink.

  “He's been arrested for sure? Not just a person of interest?”

  “Correct. From what I understand, he‘s given them a full and frank statement. During Prohibition, they‘d say he sang like a canary.”

  “Have you seen the cop‘s report?”

  “Not yet. Hope to do so tomorrow.”

  “Are they going to indict and how much has he provided about the people in the motel meeting?”

  “Yes and don‘t know at this point. My contact said the confession was full and frank but he gave no details.”

  Alice sighed: she didn‘t need these kinds of problems screwing with them. Mama would not be pleased. She should deal fast because nothing gets better unless you make it so. To pretend Monroe hadn‘t squawked was plain stupid. What‘s done was done and she needed to make it right as quick as possible.

  Sam wandered onto the balcony to see if Alice was finished with work and they could get back to staring at the stars and fooling around.

  “Okay. Keep me informed as and when. Bye.”

  She stood next to Alice and placed a palm on Alice‘s cheek.

  “Are you done?”

  “Not quite. One more call and I‘ll be all yours. Won‘t take long.”

  Alice squeezed Sam‘s butt before patting it to encourage it to turn away and go inside. To reinforce the idea, she passed Sam her empty glass.

  “Be a dear and mix me another cosmo.”

  Alice blew her a kiss and she padded to the cocktail shaker, ice bucket and assorted bottles in the living room. Meantime, Alice dialed a number she knew by heart.

  “I‘ve got an urgent job for you and nobody else. Monroe Linwood is breathing and helping the police with their investigation. Let me know when the cops find he‘s accidentally died in their facilities.”