Bronx Requiem(112)
Levitt stared at Palmer and Ippolito with an expression neither of them could interpret. After a moment, he said, “Nothing. It’s just another meeting I have to go to.”
Palmer said, “You want me to come with you?”
“No. No, this is on something else. You two are done here.”
Levitt headed out of the conference room. Ippolito watched Levitt leave. His gut told him Levitt had lied to them. He grabbed Palmer’s shoulder and said, “Hey, don’t forget my send-off. Wednesday night. We’re starting at the Pine. Plan on an all-nighter, kid. I ain’t going out with a whimper.”
“Yeah, yeah, sure, Ray. Wednesday.”
Ten seconds later, John Palmer stood alone in the conference room, wondering what the hell had just happened.
66
Beck left Queen-Esther Goodwin watching New York Bay with decisions and courses of action spinning in his head.
Alex had disappeared to grab some sleep.
As Beck passed Demarco and Amelia, Demarco called out, “James.”
“What?”
“I want to get the girl some clothes.”
Beck stopped, checked his watch. His Saturday morning was disappearing.
“Two hours max. And please take Queenie, I mean Esther, with you. She needs clothes, too. A few days’ worth.”
“We’re calling her Esther now?”
“Yes.”
Amelia said, “I once heard her square name was Karen.”
Beck said, “Queen-Esther Karen Goodwin.”
“I’m not sure it’s a good idea we go together.”
Beck’s patience for the Amelia/Queenie feud had run out. “You have to change that. At least for the next twenty-four hours. She’s sitting outside by the barge. Go ask her to come with you. Please.”
Beck headed downstairs. He found Manny sitting at the old wooden table in the downstairs bar kitchen, sipping coffee. He took the seat across from him.
“It’s coming down.”
Manny asked, “How soon you figure?”
“Next twenty-four hours.”
“Who’s first? The cops, or Jackson’s crew?”
“I have to stop the cops first. They have to be coming at us with everything this time. But Jackson will be right behind them. Have to deal with that, too.”
“You got a plan, right?”
“If you call a suicide mission a plan, yeah.”
Manny said, “What else is new?”
“Problem is, it won’t just be us.”
“Meaning what?”
Beck avoided answering. “What shape is Edward Remsen in after Ciro took him down?”
“Ciro got that drunk cabron right after he parked his car. Popped him in the liver, right under the ribs.”
“From behind?”
“Yeah.”
“With his fist?”
“No. With one of those fish clubs.”
“Shit.”
“He just gave him a tap.”
Beck said, “I hope he doesn’t bleed to death internally. I need him alive.”
“Too bad. He deserves to die. There’s something foul about that guy, James. Dirty. You know what I mean?”
“This whole thing is foul. We’re going to have to take down a lot of them, Manny.”
“How?”
Beck leaned forward and told the grizzled old gangster his plan. Making it clear what he needed Manny to do. Listening if Manny had any suggestions.
By the time Beck finished, he had three minutes before Walter Ferguson and Phineas Dunleavy were scheduled to arrive.
67
Palmer told himself to forget about Levitt and his damn phone call. It didn’t matter. Nothing was going to stop the machinery that had been unleashed to go after James Beck and his men. Too many heavyweights had signed off. Too many divisions had come on board and a ton of personnel. It would take the commissioner himself to shut it down.
And then, when Palmer was about to leave the One PP conference room, his own phone rang.
The caller ID told him it was his father. All his suppressed worry and anxiety flared up again.
“Dad.”
“John, there’s something I need to tell you. Get to a pay phone. Call me on the private number.”
“What’s going on?”
“It may be nothing. Just call me. I’m waiting.”
By the time Palmer made it out of police headquarters and found a working pay phone on Broadway and Duane Street, he was grinding his teeth.
When his father answered, he spoke without even saying hello first.
“All right, John, here’s the situation. I don’t think this should have anything to do with you, but I want you to be aware about an incident upstate. Four men were found dead outside Ellenville. There is a connection between me and one of those men. Nothing I can’t explain, but nobody wants to be connected to four men who met violent deaths. Fortunately, the initial reports seem to indicate the deaths are the result of a falling out among family members. The state police are investigating.”
“Who are they?”
There was a pause on the other end of the line.
“No need to go into details. It’s been on the local news, and will go national by this evening. The state police are going to release their initial findings sometime later today. If anybody asks you anything, your answer will be you heard something about it on the news, but don’t know anything else about it.”