White Jazz Part 37

"What 'arrangement'?"

"Come, _Lieutenant_. You know you despise them as much as we do."

Lead him, cut him slack. "I think it was Chief Davis, the chief before Horrall. Why?"

"And this was circa 1936, '37?"

"Around then, I think. I joined the Department in '38."

"Yes, and I hope that the fact that your pension is secure hasn't given you a false sense of invulnerability. Ueutenant, Captain Daniel Wilhite is the liaison between the Kafesjian family and Narcotics Division, is he not?"

"Refuse to answer."

"I understand, brother-officer loyalty. Has Wilhite operated the Kafesjians since the beginning of your arrangement?"

"The way I understand it, Chief Davis brought the Kafesjians in and operated them until Horrall took over as chief late in '39. Dan Wilhite didn't join the Department until mid-'39, so he couldn't have been their original operator, if he has f.u.c.king indeed ever been their operator."

Fey aristocrat: "Oh, come, Lieutenant. You know Wilhite and the Kafesjians are near-ancient allies."

"Refuse to comment. But keep asking me about the Kafesjians."

"Yes, we've heard they've piqued your interest."

JOHNNY BEGGING.

s.h.i.+pstad: "You're looking queasy. Do you want a drink of--"

Noonan: "Did you tell Mickey Cohen to remove his slot and vending machines? He was lax, you know. We've got pictures of his men servicing them."

"Refuse to answer."

"We've recently turned a major witness, you know."

Don't bite.

"A _major_ witness."

"Your clock's ticking."

"Yes, it is. Will, do you think Mr. Klein torched Bido Lito's?"

"No, sir, I don't."

"He can't or won't account for his whereabouts."

"Sir, I'm not so sure he knows himself."

I stood up--my legs almost went. "I'll take a cab back to my car."

"Nonsense, Special Agent s.h.i.+pstad will drive you. Will, I'm curious as to where the lieutenant has spent the past day or so."

"Sir, my guess is either a h.e.l.l of a woman or a run-in with a grizzly bear."

"Aptly put, and the blood on his s.h.i.+rt suggests the latter. Do you know how I suggest we find out?"

"No, sir."

"We monitor Southside homicide calls and see which ones Edmund Exley tries to obfuscate."

"I like it, sir."

"I thought you would. It's empirically valid, since we both know that Dave here murdered Sanderline Johnson. I think it's a family enterprise. Dave does the scut work, sister Meg invests the money. How's this for an adage? 'The family that slays together stays--'"

I jumped him--my legs caved--s.h.i.+pstad pried me off. Thumbs on my carotid, hauled across the hallway blacking out-- Locked in, snapping back fast--wide awake quick. A four-by-six s.p.a.ce--quilt walls--no chairs, no table. A wall speaker outlet and mirrored spyhole--adjoining-room access.

A padded cell/watching post--scope it out: Scarred gla.s.s--some distortion. Audio squelch--I slapped the speaker--better. Check the mirror: Milner and Abe Voldrich next door.

Milner:"... what I'm saying is that either J.C. and Tommy will be indicted, or the publicity they get when we make the grand jury minutes available to the press will ruin them. Narco is going to be cut off at the knees, and I think Ed Exley knows it himself, because he has taken no measures to protect them or to sequester evidence. Abe, without Narco the Kafesjians are just a bunch of stupes running a marginally profitable dry-cleaning business."

Voidrich: "I . . . am. . . not. . . an informant."

Milner: "No, you're a fifty-one-year-old Lithuanian refugee with a green card we can revoke at anytime. Abe, do you want to live behind the Iron Curtain? Do you know what the Commies would do to you?"

"I am not a snitch."

"No, but you'd like to be. You're letting hints drop. You told me you dried marijuana bales in one of the E-Z Kleen dryers."

"Yes, and I told you J.C., Tommy and Madge didn't know about it."

Cigarette smoke--blurred faces.

Milner: "You know that J.C. and Tommy are sc.u.m. You always go to lengths to differentiate Madge from them. She's a nice woman, and you're an essentially decent man who fell in with bad people."

Voldrich: "Madge is a very fine woman who for many reasons. . . well, she just needs Tommy and J.C."

Milner: "Did Tommy clip a drunk driver who killed a Narco cop's daughter?"

"I stand on that Fifth Amendment thing."

"You and the whole G.o.dd.a.m.n world--they never should have broadcast the Kefauver hearings. Abe--"

"Agent Milner, please charge me or release me."

"You got your phone call, and you elected to call your sister. If you'd called J.C., he would have found a smart lawyer to get you released on a writ. I think you want to do the right thing. Mr. Noonan explained the immunity agreement to you, and he's promised you a Federal service reward. I think you want it. Mr. Noonan wants to take three major witnesses to the grand jury, one of them you. And the nice thing is that if all three of you testify, everyone who could conceivably hurt you will be indicted and convicted."

"I am not an informant."

"Abe, did Tommy and J.C. kill Sergeant George Stemmons, Jr.?"

"No"--hoa.r.s.e.

"He died from a heroin overdose. Tommy and J.C. could have faked something like that."

"No--I mean I don't know."

"Which one?"

"I mean no, I don't think so."

"Abe, you're not exactly a poker face. Now, along those lines, we know that Tommy plays his horn at Bido Lito's. Is he tight there?"

"Fifth Amendment."

"That's TV for you. Kids break a window, they plead the Fifth. Abe, how well did the Kafesjians know Junior Stemmons?"

"Fifth Amendment."

"Stemmons and a Lieutenant David Klein were bothering them about a burglary that occurred at their house two weeks ago. What do you know about that?"

"Fifth Amendment."

"Did they try to shake down the Kafesjians for money?"

"No--I mean Fifth Amendment."

"Abe, you're an open book. Come on, Stemmons was a junkie, and Klein's as dirty as cops get."

Voldrich coughed--the speaker caught static. "_No. Fifth Amendment_."

Milner: "Let's change the subject."

"How about politics?"

"How about Mickey Cohen? Do you know him?"

"I have never met the man."

"Maybe not, but you're an old Southside hand. What do you know about Mickey's coin racket down there?"

"I know buppkis. I know that slot machines play to a nickel-and-clime mentality, which explains their allure to stupid shvartzes."

Milner: "Let's change the subject."

"How about the Dodgers? If I was a Mexican, I'd be happy to leave Chavez Ravine."

"How about Dan Wilhite?"

"Fifth Amendment."

"We've looked at his tax records, Abe. J.C. gave him twenty percent of the E-Z Kleen shop on Alvarado."

"Fifth Amendment."

"Abe, every man working Narco owns unaffordable items that we think J.C. gave them. We've audited their tax returns, and when we call them in to explain those items and say 'Tell us where you got them and you'll skate,' J.C. will be sunk on twenty-four counts of bribery and suborning federal tax fraud."

"Fifth Amendment."

"Abe, I'll give you some advice: _always plead the Fifth across the board_. Conversational answers interspersed with the Fifth simply serve to single out the responses that indicate guilty knowledge."

Silence.

"Abe, you're looking a little green at the gills."

No answer.

"Abe, we heard Tommy's been looking for a guy named Richie. We've got no last name, but we've heard that he and Tommy used to play jazz together and pull B&E's."

I pressed up to the gla.s.s--smoke, distortion--"Fifth Amendment."

"Abe, you never won a dime at poker."

Pressing up--squinting, ears c.o.c.ked.

"You really do want to help us out, Abe. Once you admit it you'll feel a lot better."

Door clangs--I eased off the wall.

Two Feds flanking Welles Noonan. I hit first: "You want to turn me as a witness."

Noonan patted his hair. "Yes, and my wife's pulling for you. She saw your picture in the papers, and she's quite smitten."

"Quid pro quo?"

"You're not desperate enough, but try me."

"Richie Something. Tell me what you've got on him."

"No, and I'll have to upbraid Agent Milner for leaving that speaker on."

"Noonan, we can deal on this."

"No, you're not ready to beg yet. Gentlemen, escort Mr. Klein to a taxi."