Odd Jobs (30 page)

“Fuck me, why did you have to make stuff up? Weren’t you doing enough?” Loot asks.

“Nope,” I answer, “it’s one thing for Petro to get angry at Balducci; it’s another thing to have Petro turn on Balducci. So I explained to Petro that Balducci was planning to kill him.”

“What?” Rocky shouts. “Is that true?”

“Fuck no. Balducci couldn’t care less about Petro. But when I show Petro all this stuff and tell him he’s a target, it’s ballistic time.”

“You got to be kidding me,” Carey chirps.

“It worked. Think about all the emotions I put this guy through. He wants Balducci to accept him and bring him back into the fold. Then I show him that he’s nothing but a joke to Balducci, which should turn on a switch. But then I got him believing Balducci is going to kill him. So now he’s scared shitless. He’s a fucking caged animal and I got him teed up.”

“Teed up for what? Holy shit, did you ever think you were in over your head?” Loot demands.

“Look, even if
I
came up with the perfect plan to get Balducci, it would still have risks. The fuckin’ guy ruined my life. I’m not saying it has to stay ruined, but as long as that cock and his ‘buy for free’ organization is breathing, I can’t think about having a life. Did I think I was in over my head? No, it’s not my head right now. Don’t you realize that Balducci put the hit on my father? He ruined my life, and he’s still doing it to other people. It’s not my head right now; it’s my father’s head. I don’t know if you can understand what I mean, but it’s not my life until I get him. I had to jump in sometime. If not now, then when?”

Rocky asks, “Okay, so what next?”

“I sold Petro on the fact that I am just short of being the messiah. I have a business going here that is already allegedly netting me over a million dollars. I have connections back in New York where Petro’s family was bounced. I have inside information out the wazoo and I have a great idea to expand my business and take back all of New York, including what’s Balducci’s. I know where Balducci’s weaknesses are and I can exploit them. I told Petro I was approaching him because I needed manpower and experience. It was a big job and I needed a partner. No one’s ever been able to get Balducci because no one has ever been able to penetrate like I have.”

“Wow,” Rocky says, “if he doesn’t push back at Balducci, he thinks he’s a sitting duck. Why wouldn’t he want to hook up with you?”

“That’s what I was thinking. Petro hears the clock ticking and he’s looking over his shoulder. If he thought he was a target, then he needed to defend himself, but I also had him amped up for this business idea. After all, I handed him $125,000 like it was lunch money.”

Loot says, “So he saves his own ass, takes the egg off his face that Balducci put there and when the dust clears, Petro gets a bigger business. I see where you are going. But even if he didn’t believe in your business, the thought that Balducci was going to waste him would have Petro scrambling for ideas anyway. It’s pretty crazy, but I see it.”

“Yeah,” I add, “But when the Gorillas win tonight, he’ll be able to see through it. I am going to owe him $100,000, and I won’t be able to pay him.”

Rocky asks, “But you already gave him $125,000. Can’t he call it even?”

“No chance,” I answer with a laugh. “That money is yesterday’s news. Not only are you as good as your last 10 minutes with these guys, but there is so much more at stake than the dough. I know how Petro responds to anyone who owes him money. After the bill of goods I just sold him, if I sweat paying this money, as dumb as Petro can be, he will smell a rat. Trust me, the charade will be over when I owe him money. Even if I keep Petro at bay with some story, he’ll find out about the other chunk of money we won’t be able to pay.”

“The Senator,” Carey blurts out, “Kevin’s right. It’s a small world when it comes down to it. All the bookies know who’s a deadbeat. Word gets around. Petro will know we didn’t pay Senator Whale.”

“Right now, I have Petro so pumped to go after Balducci, I swear I can hear his brain cells sizzle. In his mind, he is climbing on the throne. Do you have any idea how he will react when we can’t cover the Gorilla bet? At first Petro thought he was in Balducci’s crosshairs for a good old-fashioned whacking. Then I offer him a solution to not only save his ass, but also grab everything back that was taken. It’s an emotional whipsaw, and it will be ugly.”

CHAPTER 23

As scared as I am, it’s crunch time, and everyone is rallying. After combing the universe, Carey finds out why this particular game is dirty. It’s a weak fix and under normal circumstances, we would have spotted this crap from 10,000 miles away. Everyone got wind of this fix, and that’s why it’s off the board now. Carey is furiously trying to mitigate our exposure by attempting to lay off even small amounts, but so far it’s only pennies to two-bit bookies who aren’t in any loop. We can’t even dent our overall exposure.

Cleveland University has only two guys who matter: Jake Mitchell and Snake Frye. It’s usually the Jake and Snake show, except tonight, they plan on laying down. Cleveland University is a perennial doormat, but Jake and Snake have made Cleveland a force this year. They’re local products from Marshall High School and continue to frustrate all the big programs that dissed them during the recruiting process. They can play college ball, but they know the NBA is not an option. Some enterprising student at New York State put two and two together and arranged the fix. This student knows these players come from poor families with plenty of brothers and sisters to support. Jake and Snake are decent enough guys, but this student offered them a payday they are not likely to see again in their lives.

The problem is, the fucking student couldn’t keep his mouth shut and now the universe knows, including the wise guys. This is a circus. The fucked up thing is that I’m the asshole on the other side of this bet and it feels lonely. But it’s time to fight back.

Carey and Loot have been friends with, and drug dealers to, a lot of the Gorilla players; so we knew we had a decent chance to get into the locker rooms. Hell, they even lit up the equipment manager and half the guys who worked for the team on several occasions. I’m sure Loot and Carey never imagined that their free flow of drugs could actually save their lives.

Loot and Carey head for the sub terminal of the Gorilla locker room while I begin working on Jake and Snake. I’ve done a lot of fucked-up things in this quest to get Balducci, but I’m really rolling around in the gutter now. If I weren’t so desperate or if I had more time, I’d figure out a better way, but I can’t. I obviously can’t get to Cleveland by game time at 7:30, but through some of my drug-dealing connections I am fortunate enough to have a hard-up client who is dying for a lifelong discount on our intake. Larry “The Sultan” Joshi agreed to beat up Jake’s little brother. I don’t mean to drag in innocent participants, but this situation is desperate. I rationalize that one person getting bloody is worth keeping Rocky, Carey, Loot and me from being dead.

The Sultan hustles over to the Cleveland area. He finds and beats up Jake’s kid brother. The kid is only 16 and no match for the Sultan. While pounding the kid brother, the Sultan is able to procure Jake’s cell phone number. He gives it to me. It’s getting close to game time. I make sure caller ID is turned off on my phone and punch in his number.

“Hey, Jake,” I say into the phone.

“Who’s this?” the player asks.

“Trust me, that’s not important,” I say. “I don’t want to take up too much of your time because I know you have a big game tonight and frankly, I’m a big fan of yours. You’re playing a ranked team tonight. If you beat the Gorillas, that’s part of your legacy. Don’t throw it away. Don’t lay down tonight.”

There is a long pause but then Jake says, “Who is this?”

“Jake,” I say calmly, “stop worrying about who I am and worry more about your legacy and how you can ruin it by shaving points tonight.”

After another silence Jake says, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Sure. Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the way you’re talking to me. Honestly, sometimes ballplayers can be a pretty rude group. I hear you’re a pretty good guy and that you are shaving points to help your family but frankly, it will turn out to be the exact opposite.” There is more silence, so I continue. “Look, Jake, a funny thing happened here and a bunch of wise-guys all over the country got wind a little too late about tonight’s antics. You see, this rather short-tempered group of gentlemen had already given the points and bet on you and your team. They believe in your legacy.”

“I got to hang up now,” Jake states.

“Jake,” I say, “I need you to call your little brother Tucker and check in on him. It’s important. I know you want to help out your family, and getting a few extra bucks from shaving points can go a long way, but sometimes things aren’t what they appear to be. If Cleveland University doesn’t cover the point spread and you have a bad game, well, there may be some side effects you didn’t count on. When you talk to Tucker, please understand, this is a warning. Ramifications can be far and deep. Your decisions are not just yours. I know you care deeply about your whole family and I think that’s wonderful, but you have a big family. I’m going to let you go now, because I know you have some difficult thinking ahead, but I’m sure you’ll come to the conclusion that a New York State Gorilla student who paid you to shave points doesn’t pack a ton of muscle. You do the right thing here and I’ll get you some dough, but the important thing is not getting the big guys pissed. You will be less torn after you talk with Tucker. Please pass this information on to Snake and tell him what big fans we are and how excited I am to meet Snake’s family.” I turn off the phone and think to myself, that went pretty well. At least I did everything I could.

The game is about to start and I have never been more
nervous in my life. I have over $200,000 and my precious ass on the line. Not to mention the precious asses of my friends. This is going to be a long night. I hope Loot and Carey did some damage.

I grab a few beers and sit down in our living room in front of the TV. I hand Rocky a beer and begin to pour us both a shot of rum. Rocky gives me a strange look and I say, “These are supposed to be lucky.”

Before I light the shot, Loot and Carey come through the door. Carey drops down on the couch, still in his winter coat and says, “Better pour me one of them.”

I look at Carey and say, “You’re asking for one of these?”

“Dude, I’ve had a hard night. Pour that fucker and light it on fire.”

I crack open two beers and slide them across the coffee table. I try to pour Loot and Carey both a shot of 151 and they notice my hand shaking. In these situations you want to look like Clint Eastwood, but it ain’t happening.

Carey grabs my wrist, which actually helps me pour the rum. I manage to fill two shot glasses, but my shaky hand leaves at least a shot of overflow on the coffee table. I got myself into this mess because I didn’t care if I got killed doing it. But now that I am at a crossroads, frankly, I’m scared. I don’t want to die. Loot continues to try to calm me. “Kevin, there’s some hope here. We might’ve done some damage.”

I turn my attention to the TV and the game that is just starting. Gorilla Arena is buzzing as usual. Gorillas win the jump ball and score on a quick alley-oop to Homer Wingate and the place erupts. Jake brings the ball up court for Cleveland and fires a pass to Snake, but the ball goes right through Snake’s hands.

Loot’s voice cracks as he asks, “Do we need to do another flaming shot?”

“Maybe we should do shots of cyanide pills,” I suggest.

Gorilla sharpshooter Darren Veal sinks one from long distance. The ref extends both hands in the air, signifying a three-pointer.

“Fuck me,” Carey groans.

The score is five to nothing and nobody’s even broken a sweat. Before I can complain, fucking Jake dribbles the ball off his legs and gives possession back to the Gorillas. Bam Graham slashes down the middle and converts for a seven-nothing lead. Jake gets a look at a 15-foot shot from the side. He lets it go, but it bounces off the inside rim and is grabbed by Veal. Veal passes it to Wingate, who dunks it one-handed. That’s all Cleveland University coach Bill Madden can stand. The coach calls timeout in an attempt to stop the runaway train. We’re just a few minutes into the game, but the score is already nine-zero. There’s a break for a commercial.