To Kill the Duke (44 page)

As Alexei walked around Dean Martin’s neighborhood he was surprised to find no evidence of security alarms as at Kirk Douglas’ home in Beverly Hills.

Either it is hidden, no one is interested or bodyguards live in the residence of these beautiful homes
, Alexei thought as his eyes moved from place to place.

And this is what Alexei quickly made up as he gazed out upon where he was going to be tonight for the kill.

“Mr. Zavert, Commander Gila. I have very unfortunate news about my beloved comrade and your beloved solider Ivan Viznapu,” Alexei would begin as he addressed his superiors in person after he had completed his successful mission. “Ivan was killed.”

“That’s it?” Mr. Zavert would ask. “You know I demand more details. Just ask Commander Gila.”

“Yes, Alexei, we need more information on this most regrettable incident.”

And Alexei would take a deep sigh, grimace (because he had learned to do so from one of his actors, and this situation surely called for good acting) and tell his big lie.

That’s as far as he got in his thinking, because he spotted where he was going to stake out John Wayne.

A big tree with lots of big branches to sit on and leaves to provide cover. Alexei didn’t know what type of tree it was, but he was sure happy it sat where it did on Martin’s property.

The giant tree was located just inside the big fence that surrounded Dean’s home. Alexei noticed that he could climb the wall from the neighbor’s side and grab onto a solid-looking limb to boost him to the upper third of the big tree. He was happy to see that the area he would start from seemed to be a blind spot from both Martin’s and the neighbor’s houses, so once it got dark he could put his plan into action. He went back to his home, got all his clothes and weapons together and took a nap. He wanted to be on top of his game when Wayne and his cohorts showed up at Martin’s house.

Alexei was right. He found it very easy climbing up the wall, grabbing onto the tree limb and perching himself in a comfortable position to stalk his prey. He brought a high-powered rifle with scope and silencer that he thought would be the perfect weapon of choice to do the job.

Then he waited. He hoped his good fortune thus far was a good omen.

No security guards. No bodyguards of any sort. No menacing dogs
, he thought.
Why?

Then he answered his own question.
They have nothing to worry about! If one is worry free, one has nothing to fear. That’s what I have to do for Ivan when I report back to my superiors
, Alexei vowed as he took out his rifle and drew a bead around the many items that seemed to be scattered on the Martin family estate.

He zeroed in on a really nice Cadillac limousine’s windshield, adjusted his scope and squeezed the trigger of the empty gun. It would have been a perfect hit. Repeating the process, he would have killed a cat, a statue of the Virgin Mary, a hanging pot of flowers, a wind chime and
a hanging lantern. He grew tired of shooting at things without bullets in the gun and decided to load up. He did and then went back to the waiting game. He dozed off and cursed himself for doing so. He looked at his watch and saw that it showed 1:30 in the morning, roughly the same time when Wayne and his friends hit Kirk Douglas’ house. He perked up and was soon rewarded by a very loud and strange noise.

“Why would Wayne and company be making so much noise?” he asked himself as he pointed the rifle in the direction of where the noise came from.

Alexei soon found out that the noise wasn’t coming from Wayne, but one solitary figure who was screeching out the noise and shaking something in both of his hands.

Alexei steadied the gun and peered through the scope and just as quickly pulled back from who had seen through the scopes lens.

Since when did Jerry Lewis join up with John Wayne?
Alexei thought as he laid the gun down and strained to hear what Lewis was screeching at the top of his lungs as well as to see what he was shaking in his hands.

Alexei couldn’t make out what Lewis was yelling, but he noticed that he had maracas in his hands that he moved all over the place. Alexei also noticed that the lights started coming on in Martin’s house, but not any of the other homes that were in his view.

He heard a window open and saw a male figure engulfed in shadows poke his head out.

“Hey Jew-boy, what the fuck are you doing out there?” the voice yelled down to Lewis.

“I’m doing a rain dance Dago-boy!” Lewis yelled back up to the figure in the window, who Alexei now realized was Dean Martin. “Watch this!”

And both Alexei and Dean watched Jerry Lewis start dancing, whopping, screeching and shaking the maracas around Dean’s limousine.

“You New Jersey nincompoop,” Martin yelled. “Why are you farting around my house? I’m coming down, you prince of clowns!”

While Lewis stopped running around, Alexei’s blood started boiling.

“Damn it. Johnny Stomp got the wrong information,” he said quietly as he put the gun to his eye and thought for a brief second of killing Lewis. He didn’t, but he quickly ripped off four shots — each one finding its target — the four tires of Martin’s limousine.

When Martin came down and saw what had happened to his tires, he started chasing Lewis around his yard. All the while, Lewis was yelling that the tires just exploded. While that was going on, Alexei slithered down the tree and made his way back to his home — totally depressed that he had failed again — and pondered putting as much pressure as he could on his bosses to come home. But he would leave Ivan behind just as he had planned.

Alexei Alexandra couldn’t sleep and called Ivan Viznapu. It was 5:30 in the morning. Alexei said they had to meet right away at their offices. Although Ivan had not been seeing his good friend as much lately, due to his ferocious sex life, he knew by the tone in Alexei’s voice that this was a meeting he
must
attend.

Ivan knew something was wrong.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Where do I start….?” Alexei began.

“The beginning would be a good start,” encouraged Ivan.

Alexei started to laugh and immediately felt better. “You have always had that effect on me, Ivan. Thanks.”

“It’s been a long time and even longer journey since
that
night,” Ivan said.

“I’ll be blunt. Do you want to stay here or go back?”

“That’s not blunt. That’s scary,” Ivan said.

“It’s a toughski-shitski question alright,” Alexei said with a chuckle.

“I want to stay,” Ivan said defiantly.

“You answered that very quickly… too quickly. Why? Did I miss something in all the time we have been here that you have found?” Alexei asked Ivan.

“Yes,” Ivan said.

“What did I miss?” a bewildered Alexei asked.

“Freedom. Total freedom,” Ivan said.

And Alexei knew his friend, partner and comrade was pretty much right. “I am not staying here. I am going home. Lack of freedom or not, I am tired of this job that is impossible.”

“You don’t like being a movie producer, do you?” Ivan said.

“Ivan, I am a killer, a spy, a soldier. I am not a movie producer or an American in any way. Worse of all, I have failed at my… our mission. I am contacting Mr. Zavert and Boris to recall me; killing John Wayne isn’t going to happen by my hands. Then, I will hit them with the clincher,” Alexei said.

“Be careful, you’re an awful liar,” Ivan noted.

“Thanks for the compliment,” Alexei said. “I’m going to tell them that you were killed in our latest and last attempt to kill Wayne.”

“Wow!” exclaimed Ivan. “By the way, how bad did the second attempt go?”

And Alexei told him.

“You’re right. It’s not in the cards to kill that man… at least not by you,” Ivan said.

“I guess that is why
he
is John Wayne,” Alexei said.

“That’s why Stalin wanted him dead. He is bigger than life. I realize that more since we moved here,” Ivan said.

“So, how do you want to die?” Alexei asked Ivan.

And so Alexei and Ivan put together a death scene that their
Seven Zeros
screenwriters would not have believed.

“And, you get to keep the studio, the equipment, the staff, the mementos, the connections, the partners and of course, your girl,” Alexei added, after they had agreed on how Ivan Viznapu died.

“What about all the money?” asked Ivan.

“I’ll take half back with me to Russia and inform our superiors that it cost a fortune to make movies and set up an assassination of John Wayne. We owe the people of Russia at least half,” Alexei said.

“It’s a deal. Goodbye and good luck my only true friend in the world, Ivan said as he hugged his friend, partner and comrade. “Just one more thing, Alexei,” Ivan said as he looked back.

“What’s that?”

“Lie convincingly.”

“See you in the movies,” Alexei said with a big smile, for he knew he would not only lie convincingly, but get away with it as well.

Alexei was very happy with the decision he made in regards to aborting the mission, returning to Russia and of course, leaving Ivan in Hollywood.

He was on his way to meet with Stompanato and inform him that an illness to his mother was forcing him to leave the country and that Ivan and Barney would be running
Seven Zeros
.

“You mean Rumberg,” Johnny Stomp said. “Ivan’s too busy enjoying his broad.”

Alexei said nothing.

“Did you ever get to meet with Wayne thanks to the insider tips I gave you?” Johnny brought up.

Alexei shook his head.

“How about one more try before you leave?” Stompanato said. “By the way, I’ll inform Mickey, that’s part of my job with him.”

What have I got to lose?
Alexei thought.
I haven’t sent my message back to begin the process, so why not?

“What do you have?” Alexei asked.

“A real gem of information. In three days, Wayne is going to be seeing his good friend Dick Powell, who happens to run the studio for Howard Hughes. Be on the set near the offices and bingo — you’ll meet Wayne where you should meet him — in a studio lot,” Stompanato said.

“How do I get into Howard Hughes’ studio? It’s easier for him to get into
Seven Zeros
,” Alexei said.

“I have a pass,” Johnny Stomp announced.

And Alexei smiled. Alexei knew that the Southern California mobsters had been shaking down all the movie houses for years… of course they could get anyone they wanted to on a set as well as anyone they wanted off a set.

“Courtesy of Mickey Cohen,” Johnny said as he handed Alexei a pass that would allow him to get through the gate and into the studio.

“Think I will delay my trip,” Alexei said as he left to go home and plot out one last attempt to complete his mission. “Tell Mickey I said thanks, and I’ll see you in the movies, Johnny.”