The Starlight Club 3: The Vendetta,: Goodfellas, Mob Guys & Hitmen (Starlight Club Mystery Mob)

by Joe Corso

  Chapter Twenty–Five

  Captain James Lonegan’s meeting was interrupted by his superior, Commander Marcus Arlington, standing at the open door.

  “I have to talk to you, James. Could you excuse yourself for a moment?”

  “Sure, Commander.”

  “Good. I’ll meet you back at my office.”

  The commander turned and walked away.

  “Smitty, take over for me while,” Lonegan said.

  The captain stepped out of the room and walked down the long hallway to a large office with the panoramic view of the nation’s capital. Maybe someday I’ll be sitting in that seat, Lonegan thought, as he knocked once, opened the door, and walked in.

  “Have a seat, James. This won’t take long.”

  Lonegan sat down heavily in the comfortable leather chair facing his superior’s desk.

  Arlington held up a folder.

  “I’m holding in my hand a report from the Santa Monica Police Department. It states that some thugs were killed last night.”

  Lonegan smiled, thinking it was Red and one of Red’s boys.

  “The young man working the bar said that three men with guns tried to rob him and his two customers. A minute or two before they got there, his customer, a big man, asked him if he had any weapons, and if he did, to hand them over quickly. This is all in the report, but I’ll fill you in and you can read all of it in your office when we’re finished. The bottom line is – the boy’s customer disarmed the three men and killed two of the thugs before they had a chance to kill him.”

  Lonegan stood emotionless. Inside he was seething, but it was crucial he maintain his composure. The more he thought about the commander’s words, the more incensed he became at those three morons. How hard was it to pull a trigger? They couldn’t even do that right.

  “So why are you telling me all this? What does any of this have to do with me?”

  “Sonny, the boy at the cabana, heard one of the men say he was sent by a federal agent name Lonny somebody with the promise that their drug related arrests would go away if they did this for him.”

  The commander stared directly into Lonegan’s eyes.

  “You promised three criminals their drug charges would be dropped if they killed three innocent civilians for you? Do I have this right so far? You were assigned to the Attorney General’s office and put in charge of finding and arresting a certain Red Fortunato. Am I correct in saying this?”

  “Yes, I was assigned to the case and given the assignment to bring in Fortunato by Robert Kennedy. Unfortunately, Red Fortunato was killed in an explosion at The Starlight Club – a gas leak, I believe, was the cause of it.”

  “But you weren’t ordered to arrest anyone else, were you?”

  “No, not explicitly, but it was understood.”

  “Understood by whom?” the commander asked raising his voice. “You?”

  “Yes, I took my orders to mean the inclusion of not only Fortunato, but his Lieutenant Trenchie Savanola as well, and I went after him with determination.”

  “Is it true that two civilians were killed in the explosion that killed Mr. Fortunato?”

  “Yes. Collateral damage. It couldn’t be helped. It was unfortunate, but while trying to get Mr. Fortunato, we inadvertently killed two civilians.”

  “You were behaving like a cowboy, Captain Lonegan. Now, as for last night’s fiasco – the Santa Monica Police were about to release the story to the newspapers but decided to call the number on a slip of paper they found on one of the dead men. Luckily, the number was ours. When I got on the line, they wanted to know if I knew anything about last night’s incident. When they said that one of the men mentioned a name sounding very much like yours, I told them to keep this robbery and the deaths quiet. I told them this was an undercover investigation and that the man who killed the robbers was an agent of ours working on a case concerning national security. They agreed to it. I don’t like lying James. It’s something I normally don’t do, because I don’t do it well. I did it this one time to protect one of ours, namely you. Before we go any further, I’m ordering you off of this case. Do you understand me? No more of this personal vendetta of yours. It’s over. Do I make myself clear? Now since I was not included in the day-to-day operation, I want you to tell me everything. We have all day so start at the beginning.”

  Lonegan was trapped. By the time he finished, Arlington was livid.

  “How dare you take the law into your own hands,” Arlington chided as he reached toward the phone.

  The commander summoned agents Haggarty and Dugan to his office immediately. He turned to Lonegan.

  “Please step into the outer room while I speak privately to my two agents.”

  After Lonegan had cleared the room, Arlington ordered the agents to tell him, in their words, their version of this mission’s events. The two men explained how Lonegan thought Red Fortunato was in the building. Hoping to kill Red, he ordered the bombing of The Starlight Club. They told how one of their agents assassinated Fortunato by shooting him five times in the chest as he was trying to leave and how he had died in the famous club he owned.”

  Arlington bolted up from his chair.

  “You’re telling me that it wasn’t a gas leak? Lonegan bombed The Starlight Club?” he said in raised voice.

  “Yes, sir. It was no gas leak. He ordered us to bomb The Starlight Club.”

  Arlington just sat there, shaking his head until eventually, he sat back down.

  “Please continue, Agent Haggarty.”

  “Trenchie let us go if we promised not to come back. His men wanted to kill us for killing their leader, but he talked them out of it. Lonegan wanted no part of our promise. He swore in front of us that he’d kill Trenchie just like he killed Fortunato.”

  Arlington picked up the folder on his desk.

  “Do either one of you have any knowledge of the three hoodlums who attempted to rob and kill three people last night at the beach?”

  “What happened last night?” Haggarty asked.

  “You mean you know nothing about it?” the commander asked, carefully studying their eyes for any signs of deceit. The two men looked at each other.

  “I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about, sir,” Haggarty said.

  “Why don’t you fill us in, Commander?” Dugan asked.

  Commander Arlington was relieved to hear that his men had nothing to do with the previous night’s debacle. These men were two of his finest young agents, promising careers ahead of them, careers that would have terminated in a flash had they been part of Lonegan’s obsessive scheme. Lonegan had stepped over the line.

  As soon as the two agents left, Commander Arlington asked Lonegan to step back into his office.

  “Lonegan, I’m relieving you of all of your duties. I’m placing you on one month’s paid leave of absence. I want you to go on vacation somewhere to get your mind off of this case – Hawaii might do the trick. I’ve known you for a long time, James, and you’ve always done a good job for me and the agency, but this time you’ve overstepped boundaries. You lied about The Starlight Club. It wasn’t a gas leak as you stated in your report. It was a bomb, ordered by you, that killed Red Fortunato and two innocent civilians and destroyed that club. The Attorney General relieved you of duty and yet still you continued to pursue this. You broke laws and trampled on people’s rights.”

  Lonegan interrupted him.

  “But, Commander, these men are criminals and I was only trying to tie up the loose ends on this case so I could close it.”

  “By tying up loose ends, you mean bombing The Starlight Club, coercing criminals to commit murder? Are those the loose ends you’re speaking of?”

  “No. No!” Lonegan protested. “Of course not. You’re twisting my meaning, sir.”

  “I’m twisting nothing, Captain Lonegan. The facts speak for themselves. I’m trying to save your worthless hide and your career and by doing that, I’m putting my career on the line and I don’t know if yo
u’re worth it. As of now, you’re on a month’s leave without pay. Don’t force me to make it a permanent leave. Now get out of my office and don’t come back until your thirty day vacation is over. I don’t want to see you until then and maybe then, I’ll be in a better mood. Maybe by the time you get back, I’ll have straightened out the mess you’ve left me. You’ve forced me to lie to a local law enforcement agency. I’m calling security as soon as you leave and giving them orders that if you enter this building within the thirty days, you are to be arrested and placed in a holding cell. That’s all. Get outta my sight. You’re dismissed.”

  Lonegan walked out the front door of the building, seething with anger and sporting a bruised ego. He still had powerful friends, friends like Bobby Kennedy, who respected him. He couldn’t wait for Bobby to make his announcement that he was running for President. His announcement was coming, of that he was sure. Bobby had told him so in a moment of quiet confidence, while they were having a drink in a bar in Florida. He had told Lonegan that his father had picked his oldest son Joe to be President, but Joe had died in the Second World War. Jack was next oldest, so he was chosen to replace his brother Joe. His father had told the Kennedy clan over their Christmas dinner in 1957 that the Kennedys would become a dynasty and his sons would all be President one day. Now, with JFK dead, it was Bobby’s time. After that, it would be Teddy and when his turn was up, the Kennedys would have their sons and grandsons waiting in line, each one continuing the Kennedy legacy, leaving his/her mark in the history books as Presidents of the United States of America. Lonegan couldn’t wait for Bobby to become President as he would then be the one sitting in the Commander’s seat behind that big desk, in the large corner office with the great view. The first thing he would do is tell Commander Arlington to put in his papers effective immediately and not to let the door hit him in the ass on the way out.

  Chapter Twenty–Six

  Trenchie boarded the American Airlines flight out of LAX headed to Dulles International Airport. Red and Joey Bones were waiting by the luggage carousel to greet him. Shooter drove around the airport a few times until he spotted the men waiving to him. He pulled over to the curb, popped the trunk of the rented Lincoln Town Car, and placed Trenchie’s luggage inside. Red was waiting inside.

  The Dulles Airport access road made for an easy airport exit and allowed them ready access to I-495, the road that would take them the twenty–six miles to Washington, D.C. It was time for the men to hear Trenchie’s report, brainstorm a bit, and decide on a plan of action.

  Red was not at all happy with what Trenchie had to say. Lonegan was surely getting in the way. He was incensed that Lonegan had not heeded Trenchie’s warnings, especially after his life had been spared. Trenchie suggested that they get a bite to eat and then drive over to the federal building where Lonegan worked. They could wait for him there. Red nixed that idea.

  “No. Let’s do it tomorrow,” Red answered. “We don’t know if he’s in the building because we never saw him enter. He may have left for the day or he may have never even have come in.”

  Always logical, Trenchie thought. Why hadn’t he thought of that before making this recommendation?

  “We’ll get there tomorrow, seven a.m.,” Red continued, “and wait in the car. We’ll take two hour stakeout shifts. Two of us can watch and the other two can relax, then we’ll switch. Shooter, go rent us a car that won’t draw any attention.”

  Early the next morning, an inconspicuous black Skylark pulled into the parking lot across the street from the Federal Building. From where they sat, they had a clear view of both the front entrance and the employee door. The four men spent the first hour watching everyone who walked into the building. At eight o’clock, they spotted Lonegan.

  “Good,” Red said. “He just went into the building. Now we know for sure he’s there. When he comes out, we’ll follow him home and grab him when he leaves his house.”

  Shooter, Joey Bones, Trenchie, and Red sat patiently, ever mindful that Lonegan could always leave early for one reason or another – a doctor’s appointment, a new case he was working on, anything. The morning passed and Shooter left to pick up some sandwiches and coffee. The afternoon passed slowly, but their eyes never left the entrance. Right around two twenty in the afternoon, the front door swung open and Lonegan walked out. His face said it all – he was angry about something, so angry that he took little notice of his surroundings. Shooter started the car. The street was too narrow for a uwey so he performed a k–turn and slowly inched the car forward. Lonegan walked past the security booth by the gate and waved to the guard. Somehow, he took a short cut leading into the parking lot and they lost sight of him. A short time later the gate swung open and the guard gave a courteous wave as a car exited the garage and drove past the booth. It was Lonegan. Shooter and gang were now three cars back. Lonegan made a right turn, drove the short distance to I-495, and took it to the Capital Beltway northbound, also known as the Inner Loop, heading toward the American Legion Bridge. At the US–50 Arlington Boulevard Interchange in Fairfax County, Virginia, he exited and followed the road through an upscale housing development right into a cul–de–sac of three homes. He parked in the center driveway.

  Realizing that their car might seem out of place, Shooter drove slowly and chose to park alongside the street, several homes down, hoping that Lonegan’s curiosity would not be stirred. After all, he was a trained agent, always on guard, or at least he should be.

  Red studied the place. No one greeted Lonegan at the door. There were no kids or bikes or toys on the grounds, in front, or on the side of the house. If that was the case, this would be almost guilt free kidnapping – no wife, no kids, no heartbroken loved ones left behind – nice and clean, Red thought. Joey Bones looked at the door as it closed behind him.

  “He’s in his house. You want me to go in and grab him?”

  “No,” Red said. “What if he has a wife and kids in there with him? No, we’ll wait for him to leave and then grab him. Wait a minute. Trenchie, do you still have the card Moose gave you?”

  “Sure do.”

  He reached into his shirt pocket, found it and handed it to Red. Red examined it.

  “Perfect. It has both of his phone numbers on it. Shooter, drive us back to that Seven Eleven store we passed on the way here. I need to use the phone.”

  The store was right around the corner at an intersection, just south of the development. It took just a couple of minutes to get there. Red jumped out of the car now parked alongside the phone booth. He went inside to the cashier, asked for some change and returned to the phone. From inside his pocket, he pulled out a handkerchief, placed it over the mouthpiece, and proceeded to dial the home number listed on Lonegan’s card.

  “Is this Captain Lonegan?” Big Red’s voice asked.

  “Yes, who’s this?”

  “This is Chief Andrews of the Santa Anita Police Department. I have information that may be of interest to you and that’s the reason I’m calling. Do you have a pen handy?”

  “Yes, what’s this in reference to?”

  “Take this address down. It’s an address of a warehouse near Washington. We picked up a man who traded a bit of information for a lighter sentence. Trenchie is an unusual name and one I thought I heard before, so when our man mentioned it, I did some checking and discovered you were handling a case that had a man with that same name. I don’t know if he’s your man, but he told us that this may be the Trenchie you’re looking for and that this Trenchie guy will be visiting that warehouse today. The man we’re holding was supposed to meet him there at five today, but since he’s in custody, he’ll miss that little rendezvous. Thought you might like to know all of this. I would send men to help you, but it’s out of my jurisdiction. What I can do is notify the police near that location and have them send a squad to assist you. Would you want me to do that?”

  “No, no, that won’t be necessary, although I appreciate your help Chief. I really appreciate it. No, I can handle this.
You’re right. This man is someone of great interest. Thank you.”

  “No need to thank me. I hope this information helps you, Captain Lonegan.”

  “Yes, yes it does, Chief Andrews – a lot. I owe you one.”

  Red hung up the phone and got back into the car.

  “Now we wait,” he said. “I gave him the address of a warehouse right smack in the middle of Southeast D.C. – not at all a good area. Just getting out of the car can mean taking your life into your hands. He’ll run that address if he doesn’t know it already. We’ll watch from here and check his next moves. Let’s see if he leaves, if he goes back to his office. If he does, it might be time to round up the cavalry. Let’s hope not. If he comes alone, this will be one of the easiest things we’ve ever done,” Red said.

  “My best guess,” Trenchie added, “knowing the way Lonegan thinks, since the meeting is supposed to take place at five, he’s looking at his watch right now thinking he could make it to the warehouse well before that time. It’s three now and I’ll bet he’ll be there by four so he can get his hands on me before the supposed five o’clock meeting of mine.”

  “We better get there before he does just in case he decides to come now,” Red said.

  Lonegan called the Santa Anita Police Department before he left and inquired as to whether there was a Chief Andrews working there. To his satisfaction, the Chief was in and the person who answered was more than happy to connect them. Lonegan declined, stating that he had to run, but would call back later when he had more time. He thanked the woman and hung up.

  Red had one concern. The desk sergeant might think it a bit odd that she had received two abrupt phone calls inquiring about their chief and there was a chance that she might mention it in passing to Lonegan. There was only one way to know for sure. If Lonegan showed up, Red knew they were safe.

  At three fifty p.m., a black Ford Galaxie drove into the desolate warehouse area in Southeast Washington and stopped a few doors from the address he was given. There was hardly any traffic in this area. The only cars were those most likely owned by the men who were working there.