“You’ll never retire, Uncle Sal. Who’d keep the peace?”
“You. That’s the whole point.”
“I thought I was a hothead.”
“You can learn to control that temper. I know you must have in the service or you wouldn’t have gotten as far as you did.”
We chatted for a few minutes about the weather, the Patriots and how much sugar to add to tomato sauce, which he like most local Italians over fifty referred to as “gravy.” I promised him to come down for dinner during the week and maybe catch a Bruins game. We didn’t discuss tickets; he’d get them at center ice, ten rows up just like when I was a kid.
It seemed too good to be true. If everything went right with Duffy, I might tie things up with him in a nice neat little bow and be home in time for the late news.
I shaved, got dressed and waited for Tony. I called Diane’s cell phone and got her voice mail. I left a message to call me and said something about making up for the other night.
Tony pulled into the driveway in a shiny black Cadillac Coupe Deville that looked like it had recently been washed and waxed; nothing worse than a dirty mob-mobile.
“Don’t you think this car is a bit clichéd?” I asked.
“Maybe, but it’s got plenty of room for pussy in the backseat.”
“Yeah, that it does.”
“Where’s the Suburban?”
“I needed a change of pace. Cops looking for me?”
“Nah, I forgot your last name.”
“Again? They don’t believe you.”
“Of course not, though you did speak to Garcia.”
“Not a bad kid…for a fucking cop,” Tony replied.
“What was the deal with the shooter on the roof?”
“Fucking sniper. I spotted him climbing up there right before you showed so I went up and introduced myself.”
“You know him?”
“No, never seen him before.”
“Name was Erickson, one of Duffy’s guys.”
“Erickson? Wasn’t he a fucking Viking or something?”
“Yeah, he’s the guy some historians think might have discovered America.”
“Bullshit, Columbus discovered America,” Tony snapped.
“Yeah, whatever.”
“No, not whatever, Ronan. Why you putting down an Italian hero?”
“Okay Tony, Christopher Columbus discovered America. You happy? Now where are we meeting Duffy?”
“Some Mick place. The Dub Flyer or something like that. You know it?”
“The Dubliner?”
“Yeah, that’s it.”
“It’s down on Market Street, probably been there forever.”
“Never heard of it,” he mumbled.
Whether Tony knew it or not, the Dubliner was a Lowell institution. My grandfather on my Irish side drank there when he was a younger man and I’d gone there occasionally in college. Ironically, it was right around the corner from Diane’s place, though I doubted she was home this time of day.
The bar was supposed to look like an authentic Irish pub with all of the dark wood trim and brass. If that was the intent, they’d come close but something just wasn’t right. Maybe it was huge Budweiser and Patriots banner that hung above the bar. I don’t recall seeing those in the Dublin pubs on a trip I took there a number of years back.
When we got there, Duffy’s albino bodyguard was waiting at the door and motioned us in.
“You wearing a wire?” he asked.
I opened my coat and shirt to show him I wasn’t. His eyes went to my .45 but he didn’t say anything about it. He reached in and patted my chest quickly just to make sure. Satisfied, he nodded and we followed him to the back. He didn’t bother checking Tony, he knew better.
In a back booth, we found Duffy eating of all things a big plate of corn beef and cabbage with a pint of dark beer. First Tony with the black Caddy and now Duffy with his choice of lunches–and these guys didn’t want to be stereotyped.
The albino gestured for us to sit and I slid into the booth giving Tony the outside.
“Keep your hands on the table,” the albino directed.
Shooting Duffy was not in my plans. There’d been enough gunplay. I simply nodded my understanding.
“Thanks for seeing me, Duffy,” I said.
“You have been a huge fucking thorn in my side,” he said between mouthfuls of cabbage. “How you doing, Tony?”
“Fine, thank you. I want you to know that I am in no way here as a representative of the Marino family. I am simply here to support my cousin,” Tony said as if he was reading from a script.
“I understand. Let’s get down to business. I think you know now that I didn’t have your girlfriend killed. She was one of my best girls.”
“Then why were your people involved?”
“I wanted to find out who killed her too so I sent my guys to investigate. Who better than cops to do that kind of work, right?”
“Is that what they were doing when they beat the hell out of me in the woods?” I asked.
“I don’t dictate their means and methods. You know I’m still not real clear exactly who killed the girl.”
“Lowell cop named Morley.”
“The one that worked for Diane Dunn,” he replied.
“Yes, how’d you know that?”
“I have my sources. LaValle has been using my services for a number of years. Ms. Dunn of course was none too pleased about it.”
“We all have our flaws.”
He nodded. “She has been trying to control him since she came into his employ but he can’t keep the snake in the cave, if you know what I mean. She even had the fucking gall to offer me money for whatever pictures and videos I may or may not have of him.”
“Still doesn’t explain why she had Ronan’s girl killed,” Tony said.
“No, it really doesn’t. Your girlfriend tried to terminate her employment with me,” Duffy explained. “But I didn’t accept. These girls don’t understand my business and what an important asset they are.”
“But I think I do. You don’t even care all that much about the money, at least for AAA Diamond. It’s all about getting dirt on powerful men and using that to get them to do your bidding. Men like LaValle and Fontini,” I said.
“Very true. I was told your girl was different than most of the others though. I asked my manager Richard about her. You know, the guy whose nose you broke.”
“I remember him.”
“He told me she didn’t seem to care about the gifts and fringe benefits that the other girls got. She stayed off the drugs too; definitely smarter than the rest.”
“But not smart enough to stay out of the business to begin with,” I said somberly.
He shrugged. “Nothing your uncle doesn’t do.”
“I stay out of that side of his life.”
“So you claim.”
“Before your guys clipped him, Morley told me Karen was a security liability to LaValle,” I said. “He threatened her to keep quiet but Karen told him I would protect her.”
“But you knew nothing about it?” Duffy asked.
“Right.”
“Then it sounds like she was blackmailing LaValle to get him to pull a favor with me.”
“That’s what I figured. There is an election coming up and if it got out, he’d surely lose,” I said.
“Let me throw something out there, Ronan,” Tony said. “What if this Diane broad checked into who the boyfriend was and found out about you and your background? She might have figured if your girlfriend was found dead, you would get involved, find out that she was working for the escort agency and assume Duffy had her whacked.”
“Interesting theory,” Duffy said.
“Then I’d kill you in retaliation,” I added.
“And if I was out of the way, LaValle’s secret just might be safe,” Duffy explained.
“Diane once told me that she felt pity for whoever killed Karen when I caught him. She does know a lot about my pas
t, even things that aren’t exactly public record.”
“You been porking her too, huh?” Duffy asked.
“Yeah.”
He shook his head in disbelief. “Don’t feel too bad. That bitch is a black fucking widow with a trail of broken men and bodies all around her. She tried to lure me into her little web but I knew better.”
“I don’t know about any of that,” I said. “But if Tony is right, we’ve been set up. It’s the only explanation that makes sense.”
“I’d have to agree. What are we going to do about it?” Duffy asked.
“Cops want me to go in with a wire.”
“She’s way too smart for that,” Duffy offered.
“I told them.”
“You going to do it?”
“What choice do I have?”
“Men like us always have a choice. Right, Tony?” Duffy stated.
Tony nodded in agreement.
“What I don’t get is if you didn’t have Karen offed, how come your guys kept coming after me?”
“You think I can let someone walk into one of my businesses and bust up the manager? I was protecting myself and my investments.”
“That’s why you sent Oisen, the vice cops, and Erickson.”
“Four of my fucking all-stars I lost in this mess,” he lamented.
“Pity,” I said.
“Don’t worry, I still got a pretty full squad left to call into action. You know it was Dunn who tipped us off to the meeting two nights ago. It seems she wanted to escalate things.”
“I know. She probably hoped that you’d nail Morley too,” I said.
“With him out of the way, there was no one to link her to the first murder.”
“And if I got whacked, she’s home free,” I added.
“Or if you didn’t, she might have hoped you’d be really pissed and come right at me,” Duffy said.
We both nodded.
“It would have been ugly,” I said.
“No doubt. Meanwhile, there is another issue. I suspect you have something of mine.”
“Cassie Hogan.”
“I want her back,” Duffy said bluntly.
“You don’t own her.”
“Don’t I?” he exclaimed.
“She wants out.”
Duffy laughed. “You fucking her too? For a guy as smart as you are, you sure make some bad choices in women.”
“Rub my blister. But no, I’m not doing her.”
“Yeah, not yet anyway,” Duffy said chuckling to himself. “So why do you care what happens to her?”
“She asked me to help her and she was Karen’s friend.”
“Yeah, they were friends all right.” He made a “V” with his fingers and put his tongue through it.
“I saw the film. It only pissed me off more. I figured you sent it.”
“After Oisen, I tried to play things a little different. I was hoping it would make you decide your girlfriend wasn’t worth it and stop.”
“Nothing short of death would have made me quit.”
“I know that now.”
He wiped his mouth with a little paper napkin and took a sip of his beer.
“I’ll tell you what, you back off Diane Dunn and I’ll let the girl go.”
“Don’t you want to see her go down?” I asked.
“If she does, it might take LaValle with her and I can’t afford for that to happen. I’ve got too much invested in him. I’ll deal with her in my own way.”
“There’s been enough killing,” I said.
“There are worst things than death.”
“No, bullshit. She has to pay for what she did,” I said slamming my hand on the table.
He pushed his plate away and leaned back, crossing his arms.
“My offer is this, Ronan. I’ll let the whore go and you forget everything you know about Ms. Dunn’s recent activities.”
“Fuck that. She had Karen killed and conspired to kill both of us. Doesn’t that piss you off?”
“Certainly, but I have my priorities and so should you.”
I motioned to Tony to get up and I stood. “No way,” I said.
Tony grabbed my arm and swung me around to face him.
“It’s a good deal, compadre,” he said. “I’d take it and be thankful.”
“We could go to war,” Duffy explained. “You might eventually get me but is that how you want to live your life? Always looking over your shoulder? Like I said, I got plenty of more guys like Oisen waiting in the wings.”
“Think about Cassie,” Tony added.
They were right. War with Duffy would only end up with more carnage and could eventually spill over to my family. I didn’t want that so I sat back at the table.
“Okay, I leave Diane alone but I want all materials, photos, videos, films, releases, whatever you have related to Cassie and Karen.”
“Deal,” Duffy said without giving it a thought. He extended his hand and we shook.
“I’m a man of my word. If you don’t believe me, you can ask your uncle. I’ll have everything sent over to your house later today and you can do what you want with it,” Duffy said.
“Okay. Can I ask what you’re going to do with Diane?”
He smirked. “Harvard Law is an expensive school. You ever look into how she paid for it?”
“I checked into her background some but never thought to look at that.”
“Everyone has their own dirty little secrets,” Duffy said with a wicked smile.
I left the meeting feeling like I’d at least scored a partial victory. Duffy was a tough son-of-a-bitch and starting a long drawn-out fight was not in anyone’s best interests. Even after what she did, part of me was concerned over what he’d do to Diane. In a twisted way, I wished things had turned out different with her. Maybe one day my luck with women would change.
I sent Tony up to Maine to get Cassie. Before he left, he asked if it was okay now to “date” her. I didn’t really want him messing up her head but she was free to make her own choices. Maybe they’d actually turn out to be good for each other.
I walked the two blocks over to police headquarters to meet with Shea. He wasn’t going to like what I had to tell him.
“You cut a deal with Duffy Fitzpatrick?” he yelled. “What the fuck is wrong with you?”
I explained the situation with Cassie.
“We’ve got barely a case without you.”
“I gave my word,” I explained.
“Our friends at the state police will be pissed.”
“They’ll get over it. They’ve got the Medford vice cops for Fontini’s murder. That solves their case and they’ll get a little gold star for their foreheads.”
“But they’re dead.”
“Even better; dead men tell no tales. I just have to keep Diane out of it. Believe me, I’d much prefer to see her go down for Karen’s murder but unfortunately I just don’t see any other way.”
“Well, in the long run I guess that works for me,” he said. “Halloran will be happy because without a case against her, we can make it look like Morley died on the job.”
“Yeah, my fucking hero.”
“So, now that this is about over, you ready to come to work?”
“Yeah, I’m sure Halloran would love to have me,” I said.
“Who cares what he wants? Right about now, I have his ass over a barrel. It’s the perfect time.”
“Very true, but I am going to have to decline, Gary.”
He looked disappointed. “Why?”
It was time I filled him in about my lucky lotto ticket.
“That explains how you can afford to keep plying me with donuts,” he said sarcastically.
I left the station and went downtown to get a coffee from one of the newer little shops that had sprung up. I walked down by the river and sat on a bench to drink it and collect my thoughts. People jogged by, mostly students, bundled up to keep their bodies warm on this cold autumn day. Two nights ago it was warm, today it was cold. O
ne day, Mother Nature would decide which season it was supposed to be. A woman ran by in a purple jogging suit with a mane of black curly hair. From behind, she looked like Dr. Sadolovaki.
Karen’s murderer had been revealed and then been killed, Cassie was free, I’d made peace with Duffy and everything could go back to normal. Unlike a comic book though, things hadn’t been wrapped up to a neat conclusion on page twenty-two. I had cut a deal with the devil, upsetting my moral compass and letting Diane get away scot free. Unfortunately, I saw no other alternative. Exposing her in anyway would jeopardize Duffy’s hold on LaValle and that seemed very important to him.
Off in the distance, a hawk swooped down and plucked an unsuspecting fish out of the river. That’s just how life works, one day you’re in the game the next you’re dinner for some predator. As long as I managed to not end up like that fish, I figured that this was a win.
I finished my coffee and threw it in a nearby garbage can when I heard a sweet voice call out my name.
“Ronan?”
I turned to see Dr. Sadolovaki, her face glistening with sweat. It had been her in the purple jogging suit.
“I hope you’re not getting in any trouble out here,” she said.
“I thought that might have been you running by me earlier.”
“You looked deep in thought. I didn’t want to bother you, plus I had another half-mile to go.”
“That’s okay. I was just trying to work some things out.”
“How are you feeling?”
“Much better, thanks.”
“Good, I’m glad to hear that. Well, I need to get to work.”
I nodded and she looked at me hopefully. What the hell, a doctor couldn’t be too screwed up. Could she?
“You ever get time off from the ER?”
“Occasionally they let me out to attend hockey games.”
“Do you want to have dinner sometime?”
“Sure.”
I gave her a pen and paper from my jacket and she scribbled down her numbers. She handed them back to me and I stared at them.
“This number is an eight, right?” I asked pointing to the paper.
She looked at and smiled. “Yes, that’s an eight. Are you teasing me because I’m a doctor?”
“It’s what I do best.”
“I thought training elephants was what you did best,” she replied.
“That’s all behind me now.”
Lloyd Corricelli - Ronan Marino 01 - Two Redheads & a Dead Blonde Page 26
