Chapter IX
Prohibition was a stupid idea. Not that I condone drinking; I’ve seen what it does to men who can’t hold their liquor, and the stupidity that results from it is unacceptable. But even I know that you never tell a human being they cannot do something. Humans have a glaring character flaw that compels them to go against that particular directive.
It was prohibition that caused me to be turned into a... well, I’m not exactly what sort of function I existed under.
When Sam and Nora were ready to retire to the country, he sold the business to his apprentice Carmine Lucciano. He was not aware that Carmine was part of the local mob since Carmine never allowed that part of his life to touch Sam. Sam had taken him on faith and given him a chance and Carmine always respected and appreciated that fact.
I still had the safe from the days when I had been a bank though Sam had never used it as such. He’d used it for storage. Carmine had other plans for it, and within weeks of establishing himself as the resident pharmacist, had the safe area staked out to produce bathtub gin.
The upstairs areas were still used for housing, and surprisingly kept quite neat and tidy. I did not find out until years later that the boss insisted on that, and his boys were exceptionally good at taking orders.
Everything ran smoothly for a few years. Carmine ran an honest apothecary during the day and the boss and his boys operated their gin business at night. Then suddenly his two worlds met, and everything came to a head.
************
Mickey O’Leary was a young tough who took great pride in his manners and appearance. They had made him a successful ladies’ man on many occasions and he liked the reputation that garnered him in certain circles. The brim of his hat tilted at just the right angle, and his suit was immaculate and neatly pressed. The two side arms he wore were inconspicuous beneath his suit coat, and he exuded an air of power and confidence.
The O’Leary family controlled the underworld activities that took place on the east side of town and Mickey was the enforcer that made sure things got taken care of. Men trembled when Mickey walked in their establishments though he was always polite and respectful.
The feud between the O’Leary family and the Lucciano family had begun in the old country and had followed them to the new. The youngsters never really knew what the basis for the hatred was, though rumor had it that it involved two best friends and the love of a woman.
Mickey shook his head. He really didn’t care what had started the feud. What concerned him now was the fact that the Lucciano family was encroaching on O’Leary territory. Franklyn & Rhodes had been part of neutral territory for a number of years... part of a buffer zone that had been set up to keep the peace between the families and stop an all-out war. With Carmine’s assuming control of the building at Franklyn & Rhodes, new lines were being drawn and when the fallout came, people were going to get hurt.
Mickey’s uncle, the boss of the O’Leary clan had called a meeting of his best men. They were going to see if the Lucciano family was willing to talk. Dominic had promised Lorelei all those years ago that he would try talking first and he had no intention to go back on his word now though he secretly hoped Sal would eschew talking so this could be resolved once and for all. There really wasn’t room for two families in this business, and Dom was certain his family would prevail if it came to fighting for territory.
So Mickey nodded politely at Nick as he stepped into the restaurant, doffing his hat and hanging it on the rack before moving back to the table near the back of the room where the rest of the gathering waited patiently for him to join them.
The waitress waited until he was seated before approaching him with his iced tea and plate. Dom had ordered for everyone and Mickey was the last to be served. With a satisfied nod she left the table, and all eyes turned to Dom. He, in turn, was looking at Mickey.
“What’s the word, my boy?”
“Not good, Uncle Dom. They don’t wanna talk. They feel possession is nine-tenths of the law so to speak, and they assume we don’t have the ability to remove them.”
“I see,” was all Dom said as his attention turned to the food on his plate.
Mickey picked up his fork and began methodically decimating the fish on his plate while Dominic digested the words he had just spoken. Everyone at the table was silent, save for the occasional, “Pass the salt, please.”
When the meal was finished, the waitress quickly removed the plates. She poured coffee and set apple pie in front of each man before leaving them alone again. It was at this juncture that Dominic ventured to speak.
“Michael, tell me precisely what happened.”
Mickey looked up from his pie. Uncle Dom only spoke to him in that tone calling him by his rightful name when it was time to get down to serious business. He set his fork down and looked Dom squarely in the eyes.
“Well, sir....”
Mickey strolled slowly down the street, enjoying the day in spite of the heat. Full summer was upon them and it sometimes made him wish he wasn’t quite the fashion slave he was. But he looked good and he knew it as did the many eyes upon him as he passed by.
Memories assailed him as he walked towards the apothecary. Sander’s store had been a meeting place that he remembered fondly. Nearly everyday he and his friends had stopped by for ice cream or penny candy. He scowled then, realizing that everything had changed from his carefree boyhood days. He hated that. Hated that growing up had cost him friends and innocence and youth.
He crossed the road at the corner of Franklyn & Rhodes to the three-story building on the opposite side. He wiped the scowl off his face as he moved past the memories in his mind and put on his best game face. So with a completely non-committal look he crossed the threshold, jingling the doorbell that had hung over the portal since long before the building had housed an apothecary.
He stepped into the building, familiar scents and sounds assailing him from all sides. He strolled over to the penny candy, smiling at the customary placements of recognized favorites. It was nice to know that some part of his childhood had stayed exactly the way that he remembered.
Mickey picked up a stick of peppermint and another of horehound candy and made his way to the register. He placed his pennies on the counter and smiled at the young lady, grinning when she flushed.
He waited til she took his money and put it away before asking, “Will you please tell Carmine that Mickey’s here to see him?”
Her brown eyes widened and she swallowed hard. Despite his manners and good looks, she got the distinct impression that this young man was not here for pleasantries with her boss. She nodded and slipped from behind the counter, heading to the back where Mickey knew the old man was waiting.
In another moment she was back and beckoning him to follow her. He did so, passing a number of children who again served to remind him of his own youth spent in this very building with his best friends. He shook his head to clear it once more and moved up the stairs behind the young woman. Any other time he’d have been chatting her up looking for a date later, but his mind was far removed from that sort of thing now.
Carmine had left the upstairs alone for the most part, and now he welcomed Mickey into a formal living area that held a large desk as well as a divan and several high-backed chairs. He motioned Mickey to a seat, a little surprised when the young man moved the chairs around to suit him, then chose one that put them almost on the same level with one another. Carmine smiled slightly. He should have remembered that Mickey had been shrewd as a child. He forced himself away from past memories and turned his attention back to Mickey.
“Hello, Mickey.”
“Carmine.”
The smile fell from the older man’s face. “No, ‘hello’, Mickey? No polite address? I thought your mama instilled better manners in you, Boy.”
“She did, sir, and well you know it. However, this isn’t a social call, and I expect it to be an unpleasant interlude in an otherwise lovely day.”
“It doesn’t have to be, but your lack of respect will certainly make it so.” His voice softened. “You were always a good kid, Mickey.”
“Our past doesn’t change the present, Carmine, and unless you are prepared to make this neutral territory once again, this isn’t gonna to be an amiable meeting, manners or not.”
“You always were pretty direct and upfront, weren’t you, Mickey? It was one of the reasons I was glad CJ had you for a friend.” A shadow of pain crossed Mickey’s face at the mention of his boyhood best friend. Carmine noticed and settled himself back in his chair. “I hated when the family business tore you boys apart,” Carmine continued softly, probing the wound relentlessly.
“But not enough not to keep from starting a war.”
Now Carmine chuckled mirthlessly. “Why should there be a war? Possession is nine-tenths of the law, Mickey, and I own this place. Times change and so do boundaries.”
“No Carmine. You can’t change the rules to suit yourself. Just remember when war comes that you could have stopped it, and you didn’t because of your greed.”
The old man rose to his feet, his face flushing red in anger. “You overstep your bounds, Mickey! You will not speak to me so impudently!”
Mickey stood then and walked to the door. “I will not speak to you any longer, sir.” Without another word he turned and left closing the door firmly behind him.
Mickey stopped speaking and was caught off guard by the applause that met his silence. Dom rose and walked to the far end of the table where Mickey sat. He put a hand on Mickey’s shoulder and squeezed it affectionately.
“Well done, my boy. Very well done.” He looked around at his men seated around the table. “We need to get busy. He knows we’re coming and the longer we give him to prepare, the worse it will be for us.” He turned back to Mickey. “Good work. Now go see what the word on the street is and get back to me as quickly as you can. We’ll be upstairs.”
Mickey nodded and left, grabbing his hat on his way out the door. He sauntered down the road with no particular destination in mind, his thoughts in a turmoil over what had happened when he’d closed the door on Carmine.
************
I need to interject here a moment. I have liked some of my tenants better than others, and I wasn’t real happy with Carmine and what he did here. But given what happened in the hours that followed his meeting with Mickey, I honestly felt sorry for the man. I believe that if he had known the carnage that was coming, he would have taken a different stance in handling Mickey’s concerns that day. Especially if he had seen the chance meeting between his son and his former best friend that took place on the landing at the bottom of the third floor stairway.
************
Mickey closed the door with much less force than the frustration he felt warranted. Just as he turned to leave, Carmine Junior came down the stairs. The two former friends stood awkwardly facing one another before CJ stepped forward with his hand extended.
“Hello Mickey,” he offered softly.
Mickey clasped the hand and shook it firmly. “Hey, CJ. It’s been a long time.”
The other young man nodded his head solemnly. “Yes, it has. And so much has happened....” He broke off, knowing that they really couldn’t be friends anymore, not with the feud that existed between their families. CJ wondered not for the first time what had escalated the argument that had driven him and Mickey apart as teenagers. CJ shook his head, clearing thoughts of the past from his mind. “Do you have a minute?” he asked Mickey.
Mickey looked slightly uncomfortable. He really needed to get back to Dominic and let him know that there was going to be a war. Yet he found himself agreeing, and he followed CJ downstairs and out the back, walking til they reached the river’s edge.
They stood in silence for a while, simply enjoying the peace of the moment and the breeze that blew from the water. Without looking away from the scenery before him, CJ spoke again. “You know, you’re the only person who calls me CJ. You’re the only one who ever did.”
Mickey started, surprised at the sound of Carmine’s voice. “Really? I never realized....”
“Yeah. I never said anything because I thought it was keen... like a best friend’s secret kind of thing, ya know?”
“Yeah,” Mickey replied softly. “I do know.”
Silence fell again and both men watched the traffic on the river for a bit. Finally CJ turned to Mickey. “I’ve always been sorry our family obligations pulled us apart, and when I went away to school that just made it worse.” He paused, collecting his thoughts and Mickey remained quiet. “Even though Pops has tried to keep me out of the business, I know what’s going on, and I can see what’s coming.”
He sighed and held up a hand before Mickey could speak. “I’ve tried talking, but Pops is dead set and nothing I say.... Well, when this is all over, I’d like for us to sit down and work something out between us... between our families. I don’t see a reason for letting the feud of our elders continue to come between us.” He swallowed. “I’d like for us to be friends again.”
Mickey nodded. “I’d like that, CJ. Seems like we could come up with a solution between us.” He extended his hand and CJ took it and used it to pull Mickey into a brief hug. It didn’t last long, but was enough to remind them of the camaraderie they had shared and hoped to find again. They pulled away by mutual consent and Mickey stepped back. “I need to get going.”
CJ nodded. “You go get business taken care of, and when the dust settles we’ll get together and work out things our way.”
“I’ll see ya around, CJ.”
“Bye ya, Mick.”
************
Mickey came back to the present and realized his steps had brought him back to the corner of Franklyn & Rhodes. He stood looking at the apothecary for a long time before he moved down the road.
He talked to a few shop owners, but mostly Mickey just walked and watched and listened. It was amazing the things you could learn just by paying attention. His walk took him through a good portion of the east side and neutral territory. Everywhere shopkeepers were preparing for a bloody battle. Lines had been drawn. It was time to go to war.
************
What happened at the restaurant became common knowledge after the events of that evening took place. Many of the buildings were talking about it for weeks, comparing notes to bring the big picture together. Nick’s Place and I had front row seats of course, but all the buildings managed to put the truth together rather quickly after the fact. It helped a lot of the story make sense knowing what happened on both sides of the conflict.
************
Mickey made his way back to the restaurant just as darkness was falling. He stepped in and nodded to Nick who stood in almost the identical spot he had been when Mickey had left the first time. Nick continued to wipe glasses, shaking his head. He knew his establishment was pretty deep in O’Leary territory and still he feared for the bloodshed he heard was coming.
Mickey made his way to the back of the restaurant and up the stairs that took him to Dominic’s office. He knocked and was bidden entrance almost before his hand touched the wood.
“What’s the word on the streets, Mickey?”
“They’re gearing up for war, Uncle Dom. Those in the know are preparing for bloodshed.”
“And the rest?”
“They remain oblivious to the world around them and deny what they don’t wanna see.”
“Do we know where everyone stands?”
Mickey shrugged. “For the most part, yeah. It’s gonna come down to a turf fight at Franklyn & Rhodes. Most there will remain neutral. They like the impartiality being part of the buffer zone provides them with.”
“So they won’t side with us then?”
“No, but they won’t side against us either. And we’ll be able to make use of the safe houses in the area if we need them.”
Dominic rubbed his face with his hands and sighed. “Well, that is to the good, I guess. Our focus is the apothecary though we will be targeting another half dozen buildings. You’re with the first group.”
Mickey nodded, acknowledging what he’d expected to hear.
“It’s scheduled to start at midnight so go get a few hours rest. I need you at peak performance tonight. I want this thing nipped in the bud. We let it go on, and everyone’s gonna think we’re getting soft.”
“I understand, Uncle Dom. We’ll finish this tonight.”
“Good job, Mickey. I’ll see you here at eleven-thirty.”
Mickey rose, recognizing the dismissal for what it was and closed the door behind him as he left the office, and headed upstairs for his own small set of rooms. He smiled at the timid knock that came to his door shortly after he’d settled into bed. She’d known that he’d want to be with her before he left, and he welcomed her softness with open arms and a ready, willing body.
************
When eleven-thirty arrived, Mickey arrived downstairs dressed in a simple black suit that he felt was appropriate for what was coming. People were going to die this night. It was just a matter of who and how and when.
Dominic chuckled when his eyes caught his nephew in his vision. It was very apparent to him what Mickey had spent his time doing and he himself remembered doing much the same thing in his youth... before Lorelei. Even after Lorelei, truth be told, but then she was his one and only.
His smile fell as he realized some of these boys would be going out for the last time tonight, and his expression hardened. Everything had been status quo. Everything had remained constant for the longest time, but Carmine couldn’t leave well enough alone, and now they were going to war.
If the consequences hadn’t been so serious, he would have considered letting this go, but he couldn’t. If he let it go, the O’Leary clan would be seen as weak, and that would cause more problems than stopping it now would. He regretted that family would die tonight though. Nothing made that more palatable.
“Gentlemen, the time has come to restake our claim in this city. The Luccianos have seen fit to take what was neutral territory and claim it for their own. It is time to show them that the O’Leary clan won’t stand for such encroachment!”
There was a loud cheer as a chorus of male voices rallied to the challenge Dominic was issuing.
“They are going to be expecting something though I doubt they believe we’ll strike this quickly or with this much force. They think we don’t have the men or the will to remove them from the barrier. So make the most of this opportunity, men. It will be the best one you get.”
Another shout of approval rang out, the excitement and nervous energy palpable in the small room. Dominic smiled at the enthusiasm he could feel pouring off every man in the room in waves. It was going to be a good night for his family.
“Set your watches, boys. It is eleven forty-two.” He watched as everyone glanced at their individual timepieces and several made minute adjustments to the time. “I want this to be a concerted effort on our part to cause as much confusion as possible on theirs. At twelve twenty-seven precisely, I want everyone to move in.” His eyes turned cold, and a distinct chill was felt in the room. “This ends tonight. Decimate them.”
The room was silent as each man filed out and headed to his assigned destination. Mickey was the last, and he stopped to look at Dom for a long moment. They shared a knowing smile, and Dom reached out a hand to his nephew. A brief hug but no words were exchanged... none were necessary. Then Mickey stepped out with a jaunty step, headed downstairs to Franklyn & Rhodes.
The smile fell from Dom’s face and he sat down heavily behind the desk, thinking of Lorelei. And the night turned darker in the silence.
Chapter X
Mickey stole down the street, grimly noting the locked down appearance of buildings and shops as he neared the intersection of Franklyn & Rhodes. The very air had a feeling of siege about it and it sent a shiver along his spine.
Mickey checked his watch and nodded his head to the men around him. They pulled various pieces from their holsters and silently made their way to the entrances they planned to use. Then they settled in to wait for GO time.
************
“Pops, don’t do this. There’s no need for there to be a war. Everything has been the same for years. Why are you trying to change it?”
“The time has come to change the status quo, Carmine. We have been in this community, in this building, for years now. We’re going to make a stand to keep what is rightfully ours!”
CJ ran his hands through his dark hair. “Why, Pops?? What is so important about this building that you’re willing to go to war over it??”
Carmine Senior put a placating hand on his son’s arm, a little disconcerted by the anger he saw reflected back out of his dark eyes. He was more than a little stung when CJ pulled out of his grasp and went to stand at the window instead. He let his irritation at the gesture spill over into his voice.
“You’re not part of the business, son. You really don’t understand.”
“You’re right... I don’t understand. I don’t understand what is so goddamned important about this building. I don’t understand why there have to be lines drawn in the sand marking territory. And I sure as hell never EVER understood why some stupid family feud that had nothing to do with me has dictated my entire life!!”
Carmine took a step back from his son, not expecting the vehemence that was thrust in his direction. CJ noticed the unexpected fear in his father’s eyes and turned back towards the window.
“I’m sorry, son. I never knew you felt so strongly.”
CJ shrugged. “You never really took the time to find out, did you?” he said sadly. “You were so busy trying to keep us out of the family business that your family kinda got shunted to one side for our protection.”
“I....”
CJ continued as though he hadn’t been interrupted. “It wasn’t so bad when we were kids. Our friends didn’t matter, and everyone was welcome here. Mr. Sam treated everyone alike. Then he retired, and things started changing. Suddenly, Mickey and I weren’t allowed to be friends.” He swung away from the window, eyes filled with tears. He gritted his teeth and swallowed hard, unwilling to let his father see him cry.
“And the one girl I ever cared about, the one woman I ever loved became forbidden fruit. And when her father found out about us, he shipped her off! I heard from Margaret once right after she left, begging me not to try to find her. Dominic sent her back to the old country to stay with relatives there, threatening her with the convent if I made any move to find her.”
Carmine slowly sank to the chair behind him, unable to bear the weight of accusation so clear in his son’s brown eyes. CJ continued speaking, his voice low and the anguish in it piercing.
“I did try to find her, Father!” Carmine cringed. The address as CJ had used it held nothing but contempt. “In fact I found her. And she refused to see me. She refused to acknowledge what we shared. Do you know how that made me feel?? DO YOU??”
Carmine’s shoulders slumped and he declined the opportunity to look his son in the eye or answer his accusations. There was nothing he could say that wouldn’t trivialize the agony that radiated from Carmine Junior’s form.
CJ turned back to the window, leaning his head against the cool glass. A stealthy movement caught his attention, and he watched as a dark figure crossed the road in the shadows. And so it starts, he thought morosely, tracking the being’s progress in silence. CJ turned back to the room. “It doesn’t matter anymore. You do what you have to do, and so will I.”
CJ exited the office area and went upstairs to his room on the third floor. He knew what was coming, and he wanted no part of it. But there was no way to escape his destiny.
The third floor had been converted to three bedrooms with a shared kitchen and bath. CJ walked back to his room and sat down on the bed, looking around. He was in what had been Faith’s room, and he remembered hearing stories about her as a child. About how she had defied her parents’ wishes for her life and gone west with her lover. About how they had come to accept her decision. And how Sam and Nora had eventually gone west to visit Faith and Christian and had come home satisfied in the knowledge they had of Faith’s happiness in her life. It wasn’t common knowledge of course, but it was something he’d heard Nora discussing with his Mama on more than one occasion and he’d been happy just to sit and listen.
Now he looked around the room, wondering if he had the same courage to stand up for his convictions.
Finally he rose from the bed and went to the small wall safe he’d installed after taking over this room. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust his housemates... he didn’t, but they wouldn’t mess with him because he was Carmine’s son. It was more the best way to protect what little privacy he had.
Now he twirled the dial and pulled the door away from the wall. CJ took a deep breath and moved his papers aside, lingering for a long moment on the drawing Margaret had given in him in what now seemed like another life.
He set them out of the way carefully, shifting the legal documents the safe contained to one side as well. When he finally uncovered the box at the bottom, he hesitated, hating the sight of it. Then he sighed deeply and resolutely pulled the box from its hiding place.
He opened it slowly, feeling the same chill run up his spine as he had the first time he’d opened it. The gun was something his father had insisted on when he’d left for college, and he had spent the majority of one day learning how to use and maintain it. He shuddered as his fingers touched cold metal, then he withdrew the piece from the box and checked the cylinder before snapping it shut and putting the empty box back in the safe. He carefully rearranged his papers neatly on the top and swung the safe door shut. Then he made his way silently out the door of his room.
************
What follows is as accurate accounting of the events that took place that night between twelve twenty-seven and five-thirty in the morning as I can recall. It was horrible and gory, and still makes me shudder when I remember the blood and carnage that took place here. It was something that when Mickey walked in the door that morning I never would have imagined would have been the ending to things sixteen hours later.
************
Mickey skulked across the road, his stomach twisting in knots for the first time in years. He had become used to the adrenaline rush and the tingling of his skin whenever it came time for him to become the clan’s enforcer. Tonight was different though.
He was struggling with memories from his childhood and his conversation with CJ earlier. He hoped that it would be possible for the two of them to sit down and come to a peaceful resolution. He never talked about it... never admitted it to anyone, but he missed his best friend, and he hated the fact that a family squabble had torn them apart. Hated worse the fact that his cousin had been dying of a broken heart the last time he’d seen her.
He looked at his watch again and cast his mind back to that day just a few months earlier.
The boat ride had been interminable in Mickey’s mind, and he was very happy to step foot onto dry land again. It was cold in London in the spring compared to what he was used to at any rate, and he shivered slightly inside his overcoat.
\
He looked around with disinterested eyes. Any other time and under any other circumstances Mickey would have been excited about being in such an historic city. His sole focus was getting to his cousin Margaret however, and it stripped him of all but perfunctory interest.
He caught a bus that dropped him at the train station and he climbed into the private Pullman car that had been reserved for his journey into Ireland. He promptly fell into the already made bed and fell asleep.
When he was awakened by the porter several hours later, he stepped off the train and went to a hotel to clean up. Then he went looking for the address he’d been given. The sight that met his gaze there broke his heart.
Mickey came back to the present with a start. He hadn’t had the heart to tell CJ that Margaret was dying without him. He still remembered their growing up days, and the crush that Junior had always had on a young, fresh-faced Margaret. They had been so good together until....
Here his thoughts turned dark and his attention was brought forcefully back to the present.
A tap on his shoulder almost made him scream, but he recognized O’Malley’s cologne and peered into the darkness to see the man’s face well hidden in the shadows of the night. O’Malley tapped his wrist and nodded his head towards the building. Mickey noticed the furtive movements of the rest of the clan towards their assigned destinations. He rose from his spot and locked his Tommy gun into position. Then he and O’Malley made their way into the darkened building.
************
CJ crept down the stairs, wondering for a long moment where his housemates were. He couldn’t honestly believe that they had all disappeared into thin air. And he really didn’t believe his father had dismissed the threats of the O’Leary clan so easily. Not knowing what had spawned the feud to begin with.
The stairs were lit by a single bulb and it made discretion a necessary precaution. When he reached the second floor landing, CJ stopped and listened, trying to determine his best course of action. He listened for a murmuring of voices at Carmine’s office door, surprised at the silence that greeted him.
He started down the last set of stairs when without warning the building was plunged into darkness. He hesitated, not wanting to trip and fall to the first floor. He was certain that would not be a good thing. He knew Mickey wouldn’t shoot him, but he had no way of knowing if anyone else would. CJ wasn’t entirely sure that Mickey was one of the shadows he’d seen sneaking towards the building, but his gut told him he was.
Before he could really process his thoughts or realize what was happening, he heard stumbling then muffled cursing just before all hell broke loose.
************
Let me break in here one more time. One of the reasons I remember Mickey and CJ so clearly is because of the damage that was done to me that night. I still bear scars and wounds of the battle that took place on the first floor.
If you look closely at the walls, especially around the safe area, you can still see where bullet holes remain from that very night. I tend to think it was an excellent thing I was built as fortified as I was. Lesser buildings would have been destroyed. Then again, one of the reasons I was being fought over was because of my strength. I have been around long enough to understand and respect the truth of that. It is one of the explanations for my having survived for so long.
Still this was a very dark time for me. That one night led to a time of emptiness and abandonment for me, and it wasn’t pretty... for anyone involved.
************
The screaming was horrible. When the first shots sounded through the room, the screaming started and could easily be discerned over the remaining cacophony that resonated throughout the entire first floor.
CJ listened, trying to distinguish who the screamers were over the sound of breaking glass and falling merchandise. Slowly he moved into the room, trying earnestly to stay out of anyone’s gun range, knowing that it was impossible to tell friend from foe.
He tripped over the first body near the bottom of the stairs, staring in fascinated horror at the bare expression he could make out in the waning moonlight that weakly streamed through the window. He pushed himself off the still warm body in unveiled disgust, wiping his hands to rid himself of the sticky warmth he found them coated in. He wanted to go be sick, but thrust the thought out of his mind as he continued to make his way toward the small light he could see coming from the direction of the safe.
He hadn’t gone more than two steps before he felt his feet slipping out from under him. CJ waved his arms wildly in an effort to maintain his balance but found the slickness of the pool of blood he had stepped made it impossible for him to control his actions. He fell hard into the body that had created it and immediately retched when he saw the man’s face was half missing.
Then it occurred to him to wonder how long he had left to live.
************
The silence was deafening after the Tommy gun stopped firing rounds, and Mickey took a minute to regroup his senses and adjust to the sudden darkness and quiet.
He looked towards O’Malley whose silhouette he could barely see though the man stood less than an arm’s length from him. Mickey felt him nod as much as anything, and they slowly and carefully made their way the short distance to the distillery. Strangely there was no one around and they crunched over broken glass and merchandise til they stood in front of the safe.
They eased around the door, Tommy guns cocked and ready to refire if any unexpected surprises awaited them. It was very dark, and they were having a difficult time seeing much of anything. Mickey reached into his pocket for his ever-present lighter. He popped the top ready to light it when a sound coming from the store area caught his attention.
He felt O’Malley stiffen next to him, and with a touch and a barely whispered word, Mickey left O’Malley to stand guard at the still while he went to check out the noise that sounded suspiciously like someone being violently ill.
************
CJ could hear the carefully placed footsteps headed directly towards him. There was nowhere for him to go and remain undetected. The floor was littered with glass and debris to say nothing of the bodies that lay in wasted pieces around him. Slowly he rose to his feet on shaking legs and wiped his mouth on his sleeve, hoping beyond hope that the person approaching him was friend and not foe though he knew from the damage around him that the likelihood of that being a possibility was pretty nil. He heard the click of a gun and he swung around slowly, raising his own gun in defense. The familiar chuckle caused relief to flow through his veins.
“Mickey?” CJ whispered hesitantly. He hoped to hell he’d recognized that laugh. He really didn’t want to die tonight. Much as he hated his life right at this particular moment he wanted to live. He had plans and dreams that had nothing to do with blood and carnage and hatred.
Mickey flicked his lighter open, letting the small flame illuminate a small circle around himself and CJ. “CJ, when did you start carrying a gun?” Mickey asked curiously. CJ seemed a little awkward with it though he held it with competent knowledge.
“Pops insisted I learn before I left for college. Never really had a need for it before tonight.”
“How did you know...?” Mickey didn’t finish but gestured to the destruction that lay all around them. It was an even more sickening sight in the eerie flickering light.
CJ resolutely kept his eyes on Mickey’s face. He’d seen enough to make him sick once. He had no desire to further humiliate himself further in front of someone that he still considered a friend, and the scents in the room were overwhelmingly sickening. CJ shrugged.
“I saw the action on the street and figured Dominic decided sooner was better than later.”
“And you didn’t warn your family?”
“There was no point. I asked Pops not to go to war. We argued about it. This way,” here he looked around a little and shuddered, “this way the damage was minimal. And maybe you and Dom will be willing to listen to me.”
“I told you today we’d be willing to talk. I’m a man of my word, CJ.”
“I know you are, Mickey. You were always honest with me even when it hurt.”
There was the distinct sound of a gun being cocked, and Mickey and CJ froze in place. The light above the cash register clicked on, and Mickey turned slightly to see Carmine Senior negligently holding a shotgun trained on him.
“Well, Mickey, I guess I should have paid better attention to your words today, hmm?” He motioned around the room. “Might have saved the lives of my boys. Might have spared the business.” He came around the counter, his feet crunching on glass every single step. “It’s gonna take us a while to recover from this.”
“Pops....”
Carmine silenced CJ with a hand gesture. “You did try to warn me, Junior. I have never been prouder of you than I was when you stood up to me about this earlier.” Carmine shook his head. “I should have listened. Next time I’ll know better.”
The three men were so engrossed in their conversation that they never even noticed when O’Malley appeared in the doorway of the safe, watching the proceedings unfold with interest.
Carmine looked at Mickey intently. “You know, Mickey, I really shouldn’t let you leave here. It’s gonna look bad for me if I let you walk out considering the damage my family took from your clan tonight.”
“Pops,” CJ started, stepping closer to Mickey until he was just behind him. Carmine waved him off.
“No, Junior. Mickey knew the danger when he crossed the threshold of this building tonight. Somebody has to pay for the damage the O’Leary clan has wrought, and unfortunately Mickey is the only one here who can do that.”
Carmine turned his attention to Mickey. “You understand, don’t you Mickey? You know the rules of the business. And this isn’t personal; it’s just business.”
“Pops, don’t do this. It doesn’t have to be this way. Let me and Mickey work this out between us. We can figure out a new way to do business that will satisfy everyone.”
“No, Carmine.” CJ knew his father was serious when he heard his name. “This is our justice. It will show the O’Leary’s we’re still strong and here to stay.” He motioned with the shotgun. “Move away from Mickey, Son. I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Then why are you trying to kill my best friend???” CJ screamed, stepping so close to Mickey that their shoulders were touching. “Pops... Mickey and I can work this out. Just put the gun down and let us talk.”
Mickey turned and looked at CJ, an affectionate smile crossing his face. It had been a long time since he’d been able to consider CJ to be his best friend, and he was glad beyond reason that here at the end of his life he got a glimpse of that special gift one more time.
“It’s all right CJ. Carmine is right. This is our brand of justice, and he caught me here red-handed, fair and square. If he doesn’t exact some sort of payment, the Luccianos will be seen as weak, and it won’t be long before your family is overrun with upstarts trying to remove you from the business. It’s better this way.”
Confusion then alarm crossed CJ’s face as he processed Mickey’s words. “You can’t tell me you want to die... especially not for this!”
Anger flared in Mickey’s eyes before he spoke, though he was quick to rein his temper in. “No, I don’t want to die. But I knew it was a possibility when this started.” He swallowed and rubbed his hand over his eyes. “I left a note for Dominic just in case something happened to me. Go to him when this is over. He’ll listen to you.”
“Mickey....”
“CJ, please. Don’t make this any harder.”
CJ looked earnestly into Mickey’s eyes and seeing the truth there nodded and stepped back a pace. Carmine watched the interlude with respect, and O’Malley hesitated, having gotten Mickey’s signal to wait.
Mickey turned back to Carmine who saluted his courage with a nod of his head. He raised the shotgun, and three things happened simultaneously. Carmine pulled the trigger and watched as Mickey’s body flinched. He felt the searing pain in his legs almost immediately, and he turned surprised eyes to the safe.
O’Malley watched as the old man crumpled to the ground before he rushed over to where Mickey was laying in a pool of his own blood. Gently he cradled Mickey’s upper body in his arms, watching as the blood gushed out with each heartbeat. Mickey tried to lift his arm, but found it was too much effort, and it dropped listlessly across the hole in his belly.
“O’Malley,” Mickey whispered, unable to manage anything louder. “Make sure CJ gets a chance to talk to Dominic. It’s time for this feud to end.”
O’Malley nodded and watched as Mickey’s breath slowed and shuddered to a halt. Then he tenderly placed Mickey’s body on the floor and rose.
Carmine Senior was whimpering and keening in agony, having had his kneecaps shot away. O’Malley ignored him, having seen the shotgun go flying when his shots hit their marks. He turned to find CJ, expecting to see him curled up on the floor. What he wasn’t prepared for was the puddle of blood that was rapidly spreading out beneath him.
O’Malley eased CJ over onto his back, surprised to see his face and chest littered with buckshot. The look on CJ’s face was one of shock. O’Malley noted that one piece of shrapnel had penetrated CJ’s eye, and gone straight to the brain, which accounted for his much more instantaneous death.
O’Malley rose once more and made his way to Carmine, and kicked him in his destroyed knees, causing him to emit an unearthly howl. “Your boy is dead, and your family has been destroyed, Lucciano. You’ll be an old man rotting in prison for a piece of property that in the end is no longer yours.” Then O’Malley lifted Mickey into his arms and made his way out the door even as the sound of sirens drew closer. He disappeared into the night.
************
It took months of police investigations before I was completely cleaned up. The smell in here was horrific, and I thought we would never be rid of the blood and glass. When the last bit of trash and destruction was removed, I was closed. There was no one left in the Lucciano Family to claim me, and the O’Leary’s were prudently staying away. I became the property of the federal government.
Now by this time I was old enough to be considered historic so they didn’t tear me down. But they really didn’t know what to do with me either so they kept me closed instead. And I stayed closed up, invaded only by hobos for the next decade or so.
It wasn’t until the Second World War erupted that I was brought out of mothballs and turned into a USO for the soldiers and sailors who passed through our local bases on their way to the different theatres of war. It was during this time that Dick and Jane came to my attention and out of many military members who crossed my threshold, I think their story is probably the one most worth telling.
Part 6
Prohibition was a stupid idea. Not that I condone drinking; I’ve seen what it does to men who can’t hold their liquor, and the stupidity that results from it is unacceptable. But even I know that you never tell a human being they cannot do something. Humans have a glaring character flaw that compels them to go against that particular directive.
It was prohibition that caused me to be turned into a... well, I’m not exactly what sort of function I existed under.
When Sam and Nora were ready to retire to the country, he sold the business to his apprentice Carmine Lucciano. He was not aware that Carmine was part of the local mob since Carmine never allowed that part of his life to touch Sam. Sam had taken him on faith and given him a chance and Carmine always respected and appreciated that fact.
I still had the safe from the days when I had been a bank though Sam had never used it as such. He’d used it for storage. Carmine had other plans for it, and within weeks of establishing himself as the resident pharmacist, had the safe area staked out to produce bathtub gin.
The upstairs areas were still used for housing, and surprisingly kept quite neat and tidy. I did not find out until years later that the boss insisted on that, and his boys were exceptionally good at taking orders.
Everything ran smoothly for a few years. Carmine ran an honest apothecary during the day and the boss and his boys operated their gin business at night. Then suddenly his two worlds met, and everything came to a head.
************
Mickey O’Leary was a young tough who took great pride in his manners and appearance. They had made him a successful ladies’ man on many occasions and he liked the reputation that garnered him in certain circles. The brim of his hat tilted at just the right angle, and his suit was immaculate and neatly pressed. The two side arms he wore were inconspicuous beneath his suit coat, and he exuded an air of power and confidence.
The O’Leary family controlled the underworld activities that took place on the east side of town and Mickey was the enforcer that made sure things got taken care of. Men trembled when Mickey walked in their establishments though he was always polite and respectful.
The feud between the O’Leary family and the Lucciano family had begun in the old country and had followed them to the new. The youngsters never really knew what the basis for the hatred was, though rumor had it that it involved two best friends and the love of a woman.
Mickey shook his head. He really didn’t care what had started the feud. What concerned him now was the fact that the Lucciano family was encroaching on O’Leary territory. Franklyn & Rhodes had been part of neutral territory for a number of years... part of a buffer zone that had been set up to keep the peace between the families and stop an all-out war. With Carmine’s assuming control of the building at Franklyn & Rhodes, new lines were being drawn and when the fallout came, people were going to get hurt.
Mickey’s uncle, the boss of the O’Leary clan had called a meeting of his best men. They were going to see if the Lucciano family was willing to talk. Dominic had promised Lorelei all those years ago that he would try talking first and he had no intention to go back on his word now though he secretly hoped Sal would eschew talking so this could be resolved once and for all. There really wasn’t room for two families in this business, and Dom was certain his family would prevail if it came to fighting for territory.
So Mickey nodded politely at Nick as he stepped into the restaurant, doffing his hat and hanging it on the rack before moving back to the table near the back of the room where the rest of the gathering waited patiently for him to join them.
The waitress waited until he was seated before approaching him with his iced tea and plate. Dom had ordered for everyone and Mickey was the last to be served. With a satisfied nod she left the table, and all eyes turned to Dom. He, in turn, was looking at Mickey.
“What’s the word, my boy?”
“Not good, Uncle Dom. They don’t wanna talk. They feel possession is nine-tenths of the law so to speak, and they assume we don’t have the ability to remove them.”
“I see,” was all Dom said as his attention turned to the food on his plate.
Mickey picked up his fork and began methodically decimating the fish on his plate while Dominic digested the words he had just spoken. Everyone at the table was silent, save for the occasional, “Pass the salt, please.”
When the meal was finished, the waitress quickly removed the plates. She poured coffee and set apple pie in front of each man before leaving them alone again. It was at this juncture that Dominic ventured to speak.
“Michael, tell me precisely what happened.”
Mickey looked up from his pie. Uncle Dom only spoke to him in that tone calling him by his rightful name when it was time to get down to serious business. He set his fork down and looked Dom squarely in the eyes.
“Well, sir....”
Mickey strolled slowly down the street, enjoying the day in spite of the heat. Full summer was upon them and it sometimes made him wish he wasn’t quite the fashion slave he was. But he looked good and he knew it as did the many eyes upon him as he passed by.
Memories assailed him as he walked towards the apothecary. Sander’s store had been a meeting place that he remembered fondly. Nearly everyday he and his friends had stopped by for ice cream or penny candy. He scowled then, realizing that everything had changed from his carefree boyhood days. He hated that. Hated that growing up had cost him friends and innocence and youth.
He crossed the road at the corner of Franklyn & Rhodes to the three-story building on the opposite side. He wiped the scowl off his face as he moved past the memories in his mind and put on his best game face. So with a completely non-committal look he crossed the threshold, jingling the doorbell that had hung over the portal since long before the building had housed an apothecary.
He stepped into the building, familiar scents and sounds assailing him from all sides. He strolled over to the penny candy, smiling at the customary placements of recognized favorites. It was nice to know that some part of his childhood had stayed exactly the way that he remembered.
Mickey picked up a stick of peppermint and another of horehound candy and made his way to the register. He placed his pennies on the counter and smiled at the young lady, grinning when she flushed.
He waited til she took his money and put it away before asking, “Will you please tell Carmine that Mickey’s here to see him?”
Her brown eyes widened and she swallowed hard. Despite his manners and good looks, she got the distinct impression that this young man was not here for pleasantries with her boss. She nodded and slipped from behind the counter, heading to the back where Mickey knew the old man was waiting.
In another moment she was back and beckoning him to follow her. He did so, passing a number of children who again served to remind him of his own youth spent in this very building with his best friends. He shook his head to clear it once more and moved up the stairs behind the young woman. Any other time he’d have been chatting her up looking for a date later, but his mind was far removed from that sort of thing now.
Carmine had left the upstairs alone for the most part, and now he welcomed Mickey into a formal living area that held a large desk as well as a divan and several high-backed chairs. He motioned Mickey to a seat, a little surprised when the young man moved the chairs around to suit him, then chose one that put them almost on the same level with one another. Carmine smiled slightly. He should have remembered that Mickey had been shrewd as a child. He forced himself away from past memories and turned his attention back to Mickey.
“Hello, Mickey.”
“Carmine.”
The smile fell from the older man’s face. “No, ‘hello’, Mickey? No polite address? I thought your mama instilled better manners in you, Boy.”
“She did, sir, and well you know it. However, this isn’t a social call, and I expect it to be an unpleasant interlude in an otherwise lovely day.”
“It doesn’t have to be, but your lack of respect will certainly make it so.” His voice softened. “You were always a good kid, Mickey.”
“Our past doesn’t change the present, Carmine, and unless you are prepared to make this neutral territory once again, this isn’t gonna to be an amiable meeting, manners or not.”
“You always were pretty direct and upfront, weren’t you, Mickey? It was one of the reasons I was glad CJ had you for a friend.” A shadow of pain crossed Mickey’s face at the mention of his boyhood best friend. Carmine noticed and settled himself back in his chair. “I hated when the family business tore you boys apart,” Carmine continued softly, probing the wound relentlessly.
“But not enough not to keep from starting a war.”
Now Carmine chuckled mirthlessly. “Why should there be a war? Possession is nine-tenths of the law, Mickey, and I own this place. Times change and so do boundaries.”
“No Carmine. You can’t change the rules to suit yourself. Just remember when war comes that you could have stopped it, and you didn’t because of your greed.”
The old man rose to his feet, his face flushing red in anger. “You overstep your bounds, Mickey! You will not speak to me so impudently!”
Mickey stood then and walked to the door. “I will not speak to you any longer, sir.” Without another word he turned and left closing the door firmly behind him.
Mickey stopped speaking and was caught off guard by the applause that met his silence. Dom rose and walked to the far end of the table where Mickey sat. He put a hand on Mickey’s shoulder and squeezed it affectionately.
“Well done, my boy. Very well done.” He looked around at his men seated around the table. “We need to get busy. He knows we’re coming and the longer we give him to prepare, the worse it will be for us.” He turned back to Mickey. “Good work. Now go see what the word on the street is and get back to me as quickly as you can. We’ll be upstairs.”
Mickey nodded and left, grabbing his hat on his way out the door. He sauntered down the road with no particular destination in mind, his thoughts in a turmoil over what had happened when he’d closed the door on Carmine.
************
I need to interject here a moment. I have liked some of my tenants better than others, and I wasn’t real happy with Carmine and what he did here. But given what happened in the hours that followed his meeting with Mickey, I honestly felt sorry for the man. I believe that if he had known the carnage that was coming, he would have taken a different stance in handling Mickey’s concerns that day. Especially if he had seen the chance meeting between his son and his former best friend that took place on the landing at the bottom of the third floor stairway.
************
Mickey closed the door with much less force than the frustration he felt warranted. Just as he turned to leave, Carmine Junior came down the stairs. The two former friends stood awkwardly facing one another before CJ stepped forward with his hand extended.
“Hello Mickey,” he offered softly.
Mickey clasped the hand and shook it firmly. “Hey, CJ. It’s been a long time.”
The other young man nodded his head solemnly. “Yes, it has. And so much has happened....” He broke off, knowing that they really couldn’t be friends anymore, not with the feud that existed between their families. CJ wondered not for the first time what had escalated the argument that had driven him and Mickey apart as teenagers. CJ shook his head, clearing thoughts of the past from his mind. “Do you have a minute?” he asked Mickey.
Mickey looked slightly uncomfortable. He really needed to get back to Dominic and let him know that there was going to be a war. Yet he found himself agreeing, and he followed CJ downstairs and out the back, walking til they reached the river’s edge.
They stood in silence for a while, simply enjoying the peace of the moment and the breeze that blew from the water. Without looking away from the scenery before him, CJ spoke again. “You know, you’re the only person who calls me CJ. You’re the only one who ever did.”
Mickey started, surprised at the sound of Carmine’s voice. “Really? I never realized....”
“Yeah. I never said anything because I thought it was keen... like a best friend’s secret kind of thing, ya know?”
“Yeah,” Mickey replied softly. “I do know.”
Silence fell again and both men watched the traffic on the river for a bit. Finally CJ turned to Mickey. “I’ve always been sorry our family obligations pulled us apart, and when I went away to school that just made it worse.” He paused, collecting his thoughts and Mickey remained quiet. “Even though Pops has tried to keep me out of the business, I know what’s going on, and I can see what’s coming.”
He sighed and held up a hand before Mickey could speak. “I’ve tried talking, but Pops is dead set and nothing I say.... Well, when this is all over, I’d like for us to sit down and work something out between us... between our families. I don’t see a reason for letting the feud of our elders continue to come between us.” He swallowed. “I’d like for us to be friends again.”
Mickey nodded. “I’d like that, CJ. Seems like we could come up with a solution between us.” He extended his hand and CJ took it and used it to pull Mickey into a brief hug. It didn’t last long, but was enough to remind them of the camaraderie they had shared and hoped to find again. They pulled away by mutual consent and Mickey stepped back. “I need to get going.”
CJ nodded. “You go get business taken care of, and when the dust settles we’ll get together and work out things our way.”
“I’ll see ya around, CJ.”
“Bye ya, Mick.”
************
Mickey came back to the present and realized his steps had brought him back to the corner of Franklyn & Rhodes. He stood looking at the apothecary for a long time before he moved down the road.
He talked to a few shop owners, but mostly Mickey just walked and watched and listened. It was amazing the things you could learn just by paying attention. His walk took him through a good portion of the east side and neutral territory. Everywhere shopkeepers were preparing for a bloody battle. Lines had been drawn. It was time to go to war.
************
What happened at the restaurant became common knowledge after the events of that evening took place. Many of the buildings were talking about it for weeks, comparing notes to bring the big picture together. Nick’s Place and I had front row seats of course, but all the buildings managed to put the truth together rather quickly after the fact. It helped a lot of the story make sense knowing what happened on both sides of the conflict.
************
Mickey made his way back to the restaurant just as darkness was falling. He stepped in and nodded to Nick who stood in almost the identical spot he had been when Mickey had left the first time. Nick continued to wipe glasses, shaking his head. He knew his establishment was pretty deep in O’Leary territory and still he feared for the bloodshed he heard was coming.
Mickey made his way to the back of the restaurant and up the stairs that took him to Dominic’s office. He knocked and was bidden entrance almost before his hand touched the wood.
“What’s the word on the streets, Mickey?”
“They’re gearing up for war, Uncle Dom. Those in the know are preparing for bloodshed.”
“And the rest?”
“They remain oblivious to the world around them and deny what they don’t wanna see.”
“Do we know where everyone stands?”
Mickey shrugged. “For the most part, yeah. It’s gonna come down to a turf fight at Franklyn & Rhodes. Most there will remain neutral. They like the impartiality being part of the buffer zone provides them with.”
“So they won’t side with us then?”
“No, but they won’t side against us either. And we’ll be able to make use of the safe houses in the area if we need them.”
Dominic rubbed his face with his hands and sighed. “Well, that is to the good, I guess. Our focus is the apothecary though we will be targeting another half dozen buildings. You’re with the first group.”
Mickey nodded, acknowledging what he’d expected to hear.
“It’s scheduled to start at midnight so go get a few hours rest. I need you at peak performance tonight. I want this thing nipped in the bud. We let it go on, and everyone’s gonna think we’re getting soft.”
“I understand, Uncle Dom. We’ll finish this tonight.”
“Good job, Mickey. I’ll see you here at eleven-thirty.”
Mickey rose, recognizing the dismissal for what it was and closed the door behind him as he left the office, and headed upstairs for his own small set of rooms. He smiled at the timid knock that came to his door shortly after he’d settled into bed. She’d known that he’d want to be with her before he left, and he welcomed her softness with open arms and a ready, willing body.
************
When eleven-thirty arrived, Mickey arrived downstairs dressed in a simple black suit that he felt was appropriate for what was coming. People were going to die this night. It was just a matter of who and how and when.
Dominic chuckled when his eyes caught his nephew in his vision. It was very apparent to him what Mickey had spent his time doing and he himself remembered doing much the same thing in his youth... before Lorelei. Even after Lorelei, truth be told, but then she was his one and only.
His smile fell as he realized some of these boys would be going out for the last time tonight, and his expression hardened. Everything had been status quo. Everything had remained constant for the longest time, but Carmine couldn’t leave well enough alone, and now they were going to war.
If the consequences hadn’t been so serious, he would have considered letting this go, but he couldn’t. If he let it go, the O’Leary clan would be seen as weak, and that would cause more problems than stopping it now would. He regretted that family would die tonight though. Nothing made that more palatable.
“Gentlemen, the time has come to restake our claim in this city. The Luccianos have seen fit to take what was neutral territory and claim it for their own. It is time to show them that the O’Leary clan won’t stand for such encroachment!”
There was a loud cheer as a chorus of male voices rallied to the challenge Dominic was issuing.
“They are going to be expecting something though I doubt they believe we’ll strike this quickly or with this much force. They think we don’t have the men or the will to remove them from the barrier. So make the most of this opportunity, men. It will be the best one you get.”
Another shout of approval rang out, the excitement and nervous energy palpable in the small room. Dominic smiled at the enthusiasm he could feel pouring off every man in the room in waves. It was going to be a good night for his family.
“Set your watches, boys. It is eleven forty-two.” He watched as everyone glanced at their individual timepieces and several made minute adjustments to the time. “I want this to be a concerted effort on our part to cause as much confusion as possible on theirs. At twelve twenty-seven precisely, I want everyone to move in.” His eyes turned cold, and a distinct chill was felt in the room. “This ends tonight. Decimate them.”
The room was silent as each man filed out and headed to his assigned destination. Mickey was the last, and he stopped to look at Dom for a long moment. They shared a knowing smile, and Dom reached out a hand to his nephew. A brief hug but no words were exchanged... none were necessary. Then Mickey stepped out with a jaunty step, headed downstairs to Franklyn & Rhodes.
The smile fell from Dom’s face and he sat down heavily behind the desk, thinking of Lorelei. And the night turned darker in the silence.
Chapter X
Mickey stole down the street, grimly noting the locked down appearance of buildings and shops as he neared the intersection of Franklyn & Rhodes. The very air had a feeling of siege about it and it sent a shiver along his spine.
Mickey checked his watch and nodded his head to the men around him. They pulled various pieces from their holsters and silently made their way to the entrances they planned to use. Then they settled in to wait for GO time.
************
“Pops, don’t do this. There’s no need for there to be a war. Everything has been the same for years. Why are you trying to change it?”
“The time has come to change the status quo, Carmine. We have been in this community, in this building, for years now. We’re going to make a stand to keep what is rightfully ours!”
CJ ran his hands through his dark hair. “Why, Pops?? What is so important about this building that you’re willing to go to war over it??”
Carmine Senior put a placating hand on his son’s arm, a little disconcerted by the anger he saw reflected back out of his dark eyes. He was more than a little stung when CJ pulled out of his grasp and went to stand at the window instead. He let his irritation at the gesture spill over into his voice.
“You’re not part of the business, son. You really don’t understand.”
“You’re right... I don’t understand. I don’t understand what is so goddamned important about this building. I don’t understand why there have to be lines drawn in the sand marking territory. And I sure as hell never EVER understood why some stupid family feud that had nothing to do with me has dictated my entire life!!”
Carmine took a step back from his son, not expecting the vehemence that was thrust in his direction. CJ noticed the unexpected fear in his father’s eyes and turned back towards the window.
“I’m sorry, son. I never knew you felt so strongly.”
CJ shrugged. “You never really took the time to find out, did you?” he said sadly. “You were so busy trying to keep us out of the family business that your family kinda got shunted to one side for our protection.”
“I....”
CJ continued as though he hadn’t been interrupted. “It wasn’t so bad when we were kids. Our friends didn’t matter, and everyone was welcome here. Mr. Sam treated everyone alike. Then he retired, and things started changing. Suddenly, Mickey and I weren’t allowed to be friends.” He swung away from the window, eyes filled with tears. He gritted his teeth and swallowed hard, unwilling to let his father see him cry.
“And the one girl I ever cared about, the one woman I ever loved became forbidden fruit. And when her father found out about us, he shipped her off! I heard from Margaret once right after she left, begging me not to try to find her. Dominic sent her back to the old country to stay with relatives there, threatening her with the convent if I made any move to find her.”
Carmine slowly sank to the chair behind him, unable to bear the weight of accusation so clear in his son’s brown eyes. CJ continued speaking, his voice low and the anguish in it piercing.
“I did try to find her, Father!” Carmine cringed. The address as CJ had used it held nothing but contempt. “In fact I found her. And she refused to see me. She refused to acknowledge what we shared. Do you know how that made me feel?? DO YOU??”
Carmine’s shoulders slumped and he declined the opportunity to look his son in the eye or answer his accusations. There was nothing he could say that wouldn’t trivialize the agony that radiated from Carmine Junior’s form.
CJ turned back to the window, leaning his head against the cool glass. A stealthy movement caught his attention, and he watched as a dark figure crossed the road in the shadows. And so it starts, he thought morosely, tracking the being’s progress in silence. CJ turned back to the room. “It doesn’t matter anymore. You do what you have to do, and so will I.”
CJ exited the office area and went upstairs to his room on the third floor. He knew what was coming, and he wanted no part of it. But there was no way to escape his destiny.
The third floor had been converted to three bedrooms with a shared kitchen and bath. CJ walked back to his room and sat down on the bed, looking around. He was in what had been Faith’s room, and he remembered hearing stories about her as a child. About how she had defied her parents’ wishes for her life and gone west with her lover. About how they had come to accept her decision. And how Sam and Nora had eventually gone west to visit Faith and Christian and had come home satisfied in the knowledge they had of Faith’s happiness in her life. It wasn’t common knowledge of course, but it was something he’d heard Nora discussing with his Mama on more than one occasion and he’d been happy just to sit and listen.
Now he looked around the room, wondering if he had the same courage to stand up for his convictions.
Finally he rose from the bed and went to the small wall safe he’d installed after taking over this room. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust his housemates... he didn’t, but they wouldn’t mess with him because he was Carmine’s son. It was more the best way to protect what little privacy he had.
Now he twirled the dial and pulled the door away from the wall. CJ took a deep breath and moved his papers aside, lingering for a long moment on the drawing Margaret had given in him in what now seemed like another life.
He set them out of the way carefully, shifting the legal documents the safe contained to one side as well. When he finally uncovered the box at the bottom, he hesitated, hating the sight of it. Then he sighed deeply and resolutely pulled the box from its hiding place.
He opened it slowly, feeling the same chill run up his spine as he had the first time he’d opened it. The gun was something his father had insisted on when he’d left for college, and he had spent the majority of one day learning how to use and maintain it. He shuddered as his fingers touched cold metal, then he withdrew the piece from the box and checked the cylinder before snapping it shut and putting the empty box back in the safe. He carefully rearranged his papers neatly on the top and swung the safe door shut. Then he made his way silently out the door of his room.
************
What follows is as accurate accounting of the events that took place that night between twelve twenty-seven and five-thirty in the morning as I can recall. It was horrible and gory, and still makes me shudder when I remember the blood and carnage that took place here. It was something that when Mickey walked in the door that morning I never would have imagined would have been the ending to things sixteen hours later.
************
Mickey skulked across the road, his stomach twisting in knots for the first time in years. He had become used to the adrenaline rush and the tingling of his skin whenever it came time for him to become the clan’s enforcer. Tonight was different though.
He was struggling with memories from his childhood and his conversation with CJ earlier. He hoped that it would be possible for the two of them to sit down and come to a peaceful resolution. He never talked about it... never admitted it to anyone, but he missed his best friend, and he hated the fact that a family squabble had torn them apart. Hated worse the fact that his cousin had been dying of a broken heart the last time he’d seen her.
He looked at his watch again and cast his mind back to that day just a few months earlier.
The boat ride had been interminable in Mickey’s mind, and he was very happy to step foot onto dry land again. It was cold in London in the spring compared to what he was used to at any rate, and he shivered slightly inside his overcoat.
\
He looked around with disinterested eyes. Any other time and under any other circumstances Mickey would have been excited about being in such an historic city. His sole focus was getting to his cousin Margaret however, and it stripped him of all but perfunctory interest.
He caught a bus that dropped him at the train station and he climbed into the private Pullman car that had been reserved for his journey into Ireland. He promptly fell into the already made bed and fell asleep.
When he was awakened by the porter several hours later, he stepped off the train and went to a hotel to clean up. Then he went looking for the address he’d been given. The sight that met his gaze there broke his heart.
Mickey came back to the present with a start. He hadn’t had the heart to tell CJ that Margaret was dying without him. He still remembered their growing up days, and the crush that Junior had always had on a young, fresh-faced Margaret. They had been so good together until....
Here his thoughts turned dark and his attention was brought forcefully back to the present.
A tap on his shoulder almost made him scream, but he recognized O’Malley’s cologne and peered into the darkness to see the man’s face well hidden in the shadows of the night. O’Malley tapped his wrist and nodded his head towards the building. Mickey noticed the furtive movements of the rest of the clan towards their assigned destinations. He rose from his spot and locked his Tommy gun into position. Then he and O’Malley made their way into the darkened building.
************
CJ crept down the stairs, wondering for a long moment where his housemates were. He couldn’t honestly believe that they had all disappeared into thin air. And he really didn’t believe his father had dismissed the threats of the O’Leary clan so easily. Not knowing what had spawned the feud to begin with.
The stairs were lit by a single bulb and it made discretion a necessary precaution. When he reached the second floor landing, CJ stopped and listened, trying to determine his best course of action. He listened for a murmuring of voices at Carmine’s office door, surprised at the silence that greeted him.
He started down the last set of stairs when without warning the building was plunged into darkness. He hesitated, not wanting to trip and fall to the first floor. He was certain that would not be a good thing. He knew Mickey wouldn’t shoot him, but he had no way of knowing if anyone else would. CJ wasn’t entirely sure that Mickey was one of the shadows he’d seen sneaking towards the building, but his gut told him he was.
Before he could really process his thoughts or realize what was happening, he heard stumbling then muffled cursing just before all hell broke loose.
************
Let me break in here one more time. One of the reasons I remember Mickey and CJ so clearly is because of the damage that was done to me that night. I still bear scars and wounds of the battle that took place on the first floor.
If you look closely at the walls, especially around the safe area, you can still see where bullet holes remain from that very night. I tend to think it was an excellent thing I was built as fortified as I was. Lesser buildings would have been destroyed. Then again, one of the reasons I was being fought over was because of my strength. I have been around long enough to understand and respect the truth of that. It is one of the explanations for my having survived for so long.
Still this was a very dark time for me. That one night led to a time of emptiness and abandonment for me, and it wasn’t pretty... for anyone involved.
************
The screaming was horrible. When the first shots sounded through the room, the screaming started and could easily be discerned over the remaining cacophony that resonated throughout the entire first floor.
CJ listened, trying to distinguish who the screamers were over the sound of breaking glass and falling merchandise. Slowly he moved into the room, trying earnestly to stay out of anyone’s gun range, knowing that it was impossible to tell friend from foe.
He tripped over the first body near the bottom of the stairs, staring in fascinated horror at the bare expression he could make out in the waning moonlight that weakly streamed through the window. He pushed himself off the still warm body in unveiled disgust, wiping his hands to rid himself of the sticky warmth he found them coated in. He wanted to go be sick, but thrust the thought out of his mind as he continued to make his way toward the small light he could see coming from the direction of the safe.
He hadn’t gone more than two steps before he felt his feet slipping out from under him. CJ waved his arms wildly in an effort to maintain his balance but found the slickness of the pool of blood he had stepped made it impossible for him to control his actions. He fell hard into the body that had created it and immediately retched when he saw the man’s face was half missing.
Then it occurred to him to wonder how long he had left to live.
************
The silence was deafening after the Tommy gun stopped firing rounds, and Mickey took a minute to regroup his senses and adjust to the sudden darkness and quiet.
He looked towards O’Malley whose silhouette he could barely see though the man stood less than an arm’s length from him. Mickey felt him nod as much as anything, and they slowly and carefully made their way the short distance to the distillery. Strangely there was no one around and they crunched over broken glass and merchandise til they stood in front of the safe.
They eased around the door, Tommy guns cocked and ready to refire if any unexpected surprises awaited them. It was very dark, and they were having a difficult time seeing much of anything. Mickey reached into his pocket for his ever-present lighter. He popped the top ready to light it when a sound coming from the store area caught his attention.
He felt O’Malley stiffen next to him, and with a touch and a barely whispered word, Mickey left O’Malley to stand guard at the still while he went to check out the noise that sounded suspiciously like someone being violently ill.
************
CJ could hear the carefully placed footsteps headed directly towards him. There was nowhere for him to go and remain undetected. The floor was littered with glass and debris to say nothing of the bodies that lay in wasted pieces around him. Slowly he rose to his feet on shaking legs and wiped his mouth on his sleeve, hoping beyond hope that the person approaching him was friend and not foe though he knew from the damage around him that the likelihood of that being a possibility was pretty nil. He heard the click of a gun and he swung around slowly, raising his own gun in defense. The familiar chuckle caused relief to flow through his veins.
“Mickey?” CJ whispered hesitantly. He hoped to hell he’d recognized that laugh. He really didn’t want to die tonight. Much as he hated his life right at this particular moment he wanted to live. He had plans and dreams that had nothing to do with blood and carnage and hatred.
Mickey flicked his lighter open, letting the small flame illuminate a small circle around himself and CJ. “CJ, when did you start carrying a gun?” Mickey asked curiously. CJ seemed a little awkward with it though he held it with competent knowledge.
“Pops insisted I learn before I left for college. Never really had a need for it before tonight.”
“How did you know...?” Mickey didn’t finish but gestured to the destruction that lay all around them. It was an even more sickening sight in the eerie flickering light.
CJ resolutely kept his eyes on Mickey’s face. He’d seen enough to make him sick once. He had no desire to further humiliate himself further in front of someone that he still considered a friend, and the scents in the room were overwhelmingly sickening. CJ shrugged.
“I saw the action on the street and figured Dominic decided sooner was better than later.”
“And you didn’t warn your family?”
“There was no point. I asked Pops not to go to war. We argued about it. This way,” here he looked around a little and shuddered, “this way the damage was minimal. And maybe you and Dom will be willing to listen to me.”
“I told you today we’d be willing to talk. I’m a man of my word, CJ.”
“I know you are, Mickey. You were always honest with me even when it hurt.”
There was the distinct sound of a gun being cocked, and Mickey and CJ froze in place. The light above the cash register clicked on, and Mickey turned slightly to see Carmine Senior negligently holding a shotgun trained on him.
“Well, Mickey, I guess I should have paid better attention to your words today, hmm?” He motioned around the room. “Might have saved the lives of my boys. Might have spared the business.” He came around the counter, his feet crunching on glass every single step. “It’s gonna take us a while to recover from this.”
“Pops....”
Carmine silenced CJ with a hand gesture. “You did try to warn me, Junior. I have never been prouder of you than I was when you stood up to me about this earlier.” Carmine shook his head. “I should have listened. Next time I’ll know better.”
The three men were so engrossed in their conversation that they never even noticed when O’Malley appeared in the doorway of the safe, watching the proceedings unfold with interest.
Carmine looked at Mickey intently. “You know, Mickey, I really shouldn’t let you leave here. It’s gonna look bad for me if I let you walk out considering the damage my family took from your clan tonight.”
“Pops,” CJ started, stepping closer to Mickey until he was just behind him. Carmine waved him off.
“No, Junior. Mickey knew the danger when he crossed the threshold of this building tonight. Somebody has to pay for the damage the O’Leary clan has wrought, and unfortunately Mickey is the only one here who can do that.”
Carmine turned his attention to Mickey. “You understand, don’t you Mickey? You know the rules of the business. And this isn’t personal; it’s just business.”
“Pops, don’t do this. It doesn’t have to be this way. Let me and Mickey work this out between us. We can figure out a new way to do business that will satisfy everyone.”
“No, Carmine.” CJ knew his father was serious when he heard his name. “This is our justice. It will show the O’Leary’s we’re still strong and here to stay.” He motioned with the shotgun. “Move away from Mickey, Son. I don’t want you to get hurt.”
“Then why are you trying to kill my best friend???” CJ screamed, stepping so close to Mickey that their shoulders were touching. “Pops... Mickey and I can work this out. Just put the gun down and let us talk.”
Mickey turned and looked at CJ, an affectionate smile crossing his face. It had been a long time since he’d been able to consider CJ to be his best friend, and he was glad beyond reason that here at the end of his life he got a glimpse of that special gift one more time.
“It’s all right CJ. Carmine is right. This is our brand of justice, and he caught me here red-handed, fair and square. If he doesn’t exact some sort of payment, the Luccianos will be seen as weak, and it won’t be long before your family is overrun with upstarts trying to remove you from the business. It’s better this way.”
Confusion then alarm crossed CJ’s face as he processed Mickey’s words. “You can’t tell me you want to die... especially not for this!”
Anger flared in Mickey’s eyes before he spoke, though he was quick to rein his temper in. “No, I don’t want to die. But I knew it was a possibility when this started.” He swallowed and rubbed his hand over his eyes. “I left a note for Dominic just in case something happened to me. Go to him when this is over. He’ll listen to you.”
“Mickey....”
“CJ, please. Don’t make this any harder.”
CJ looked earnestly into Mickey’s eyes and seeing the truth there nodded and stepped back a pace. Carmine watched the interlude with respect, and O’Malley hesitated, having gotten Mickey’s signal to wait.
Mickey turned back to Carmine who saluted his courage with a nod of his head. He raised the shotgun, and three things happened simultaneously. Carmine pulled the trigger and watched as Mickey’s body flinched. He felt the searing pain in his legs almost immediately, and he turned surprised eyes to the safe.
O’Malley watched as the old man crumpled to the ground before he rushed over to where Mickey was laying in a pool of his own blood. Gently he cradled Mickey’s upper body in his arms, watching as the blood gushed out with each heartbeat. Mickey tried to lift his arm, but found it was too much effort, and it dropped listlessly across the hole in his belly.
“O’Malley,” Mickey whispered, unable to manage anything louder. “Make sure CJ gets a chance to talk to Dominic. It’s time for this feud to end.”
O’Malley nodded and watched as Mickey’s breath slowed and shuddered to a halt. Then he tenderly placed Mickey’s body on the floor and rose.
Carmine Senior was whimpering and keening in agony, having had his kneecaps shot away. O’Malley ignored him, having seen the shotgun go flying when his shots hit their marks. He turned to find CJ, expecting to see him curled up on the floor. What he wasn’t prepared for was the puddle of blood that was rapidly spreading out beneath him.
O’Malley eased CJ over onto his back, surprised to see his face and chest littered with buckshot. The look on CJ’s face was one of shock. O’Malley noted that one piece of shrapnel had penetrated CJ’s eye, and gone straight to the brain, which accounted for his much more instantaneous death.
O’Malley rose once more and made his way to Carmine, and kicked him in his destroyed knees, causing him to emit an unearthly howl. “Your boy is dead, and your family has been destroyed, Lucciano. You’ll be an old man rotting in prison for a piece of property that in the end is no longer yours.” Then O’Malley lifted Mickey into his arms and made his way out the door even as the sound of sirens drew closer. He disappeared into the night.
************
It took months of police investigations before I was completely cleaned up. The smell in here was horrific, and I thought we would never be rid of the blood and glass. When the last bit of trash and destruction was removed, I was closed. There was no one left in the Lucciano Family to claim me, and the O’Leary’s were prudently staying away. I became the property of the federal government.
Now by this time I was old enough to be considered historic so they didn’t tear me down. But they really didn’t know what to do with me either so they kept me closed instead. And I stayed closed up, invaded only by hobos for the next decade or so.
It wasn’t until the Second World War erupted that I was brought out of mothballs and turned into a USO for the soldiers and sailors who passed through our local bases on their way to the different theatres of war. It was during this time that Dick and Jane came to my attention and out of many military members who crossed my threshold, I think their story is probably the one most worth telling.
Part 6
