Show of Evil

Naomi knows everything, Dermott. You're one helluva young lawyer. The thing with your father? You put that behind you. It wasn't your fault, anyway. Thing is, we're pretty tight here. What the press calls the Wild Bunch. They're very supportive of each other. They'll expect the same of you. What I'm saying is, it's too heavy a load. Maybe if you share it, maybe if you put it behind you forever, maybe you can forget it. You want a job?'

Stenner had been sceptical about the new kid, who seemed sullen and involuted and dressed in black like a funeral director and who was basically, as Stenner put it, 'a street punk'. The Shoulders case had changed all that and it put Vail in jeopardy for the first time in his life.

Jake Shoulders, whose felony record prevented him from owning liquor stores, gun shops, restaurants, and bars, kept a low profile, but he was known in the DA's office. His game was blackmail and extortion and city hall was his target. Staff members, department heads, councilmen, anybody who had anything to hide, eventually appeared on Shoulders's list. Then he spread out into the restaurant business, obtained liquor licences under phony names, even got a piece of the airport action. Obviously he was paying off somebody in the city, somebody high up, somebody who raked it off the top and let the health and police inspectors earn their cuts by making sure the licences were nicely covered up and easily approved.

Vail and his team knew what Shoulders was up to, but they could not make the city connection. Without it, it was just another bust. By tying it to the city hall gang, they could do real damage to a corrupt bunch that had run the city for too long. Vail needed a linchpin, a witness or evidence that would tie Shoulders directly to city hall. The break came when a three-time loser named Bobby Bellinger was arrested for assault with a deadly weapon. Facing life without parole, Bollinger, who was only thirty-three, decided to toot his whistle in exchange for immunity and a ticket out of town. He called Stenner, who had arrested him his third time down. Stenner got him off the street and holed him up in a run-down hotel on Erie Street. Then Bollinger became troublesome.

'Bollinger is waffling,' Stenner told Vail one morning.

'What's his problem?'

'Perks.'

'We gave him perks.'

'He's suffering from the 'more' syndrome.'

'What else?'

'Witness protection out of state. A job making one hundred thou a year. Name change and we clear his record. A new car. He says they'll be able to trace his Corvette.'

Vail chuckled. 'No yacht?'

'He says that's less than he's making now on the docks.'

 'Does he also say he's guilty of a felony? Has three priors? He goes in for good this time.'

 'I think he's forgot about that.'

 'Remind him.'

'How far are you willing to go?'

 'I'll go with the witness programme and the name change goes with it. We can probably arrange something out of state. His record goes into limbo with his old name, so he gets that. But no hundred grand. We'll support him for three months while he's in a retraining programme. After that he's on his own. And he can ride a bicycle.'

 'What if he still says no?'

 'We'll max him out with the judge; he's a three-time loser.'

'He came to us, Marty.'

'He came to us because if he stays around here, he's a dead man. He's looking for a ticket out and a free ride.'

'He says he can give us the link we've been looking for.'

'That's what he says. Look, I'm not going to buy a conviction for one hundred grand a year. Tell me I'm wrong on this, Abel.'

'I don't know. His way, we bring down the city hall bums, get rid of Bollinger while we're at it. Let some other state put up with him.'

Vail stopped and lit a cigarette. He walked around in a tight little circle for a minute or so.

'He'll also stand up in court,' said Stenner. 'Part of the deal.'

'Christ, I never know how you're gonna jump on these things, Abel.' Vail leaned against the wall and blew smoke towards the floor. 'I don't like Bollinger. I don't like doing business with him. No matter where he ends up, he's always going to be up to something. He wouldn't know how to straighten out. And I'm still sceptical about whether he can link our case up. But… okay, give him my proposal first. Scare him with the options. If you have to, twenty-five thou for six months. And no car, that's out. Tell him to dump the Vette and use the take for a down payment.'

'Maybe I can sell that.'