Randy had to think. He said, 'Or,' and paused. 'What? I mean isn't there a way to get around it?' He said, 'After all-'
And the answer came from the Mutt, over against the wall. He said,
'Hell, whack him out, the guy that's getting the check. Then you won't have to.'
There was a silence. Not a long one. Vincent picked it up saying,
'Sure, that's the first thing you think of, but you got to look at it good, think it through.'
The idea, coming the way it did, got Randy sitting up straight. It was in his mind to wonder why Vincent would go for it, but he said,
'What's to think about? Christ, just do it.'
Vincent said, 'I'm talking about how, you luck.'
'Get a guy who knows how.'
'Not anybody from the crew, no way.'
Randy's mind was racing now. 'Run him down. Hit him crossing the street with a truck, hell, anything, a Buick Riviera.'
Vincent turned to look over his shoulder at the Mutt. 'He's done it, the farm boy. Tell him to go take a guy out. The Mutt says okay, goes and does the guy. Hey, Mutt?'
The Mutt said, 'You bet,' and looked at Randy looking at him, the two making eye contact for the first time since Vincent walked in.
What surprised Randy was the calm expression on the Mutt's face.
The Mutt got it-accepting a contract from a guy he had a contract to take out. If that wasn't cool… And if Vincent had confidence in him, Vincent a made guy, into this kind of thing, then maybe the Mutt wasn't as dumb as he looked. Man, this was weird. It allowed Randy to settle back.
He said to Vincent, 'He can handle it?'
'I told you, he's done it.'
Turning to the Mutt again, 'What do you say?'
'Yeah, I'll doer. But now which person was it again?'
'The priest.'
The Mutt said, 'Oh,' hesitated and said, 'I guess it's okay, I'm Baptist.'
'Then it's a deal,' Randy said. 'Doer.'
'Yes sir, but who's gonna pay me?'
Randy said right away, 'Vincent will take care of you,' knowing he'd get an argument.
Of course, Vincent saying, 'You're the one out the cash.'
'But you have more to lose than I do,' Randy said, 'if Tony finds out.' He could stare back at Vincent now fuck him. He could say, 'I wondered, Why don't you want Tony to give them the two-fifty? And then I realized, shit, you think of it as yours. It's where the eight yards a week comes from. I wouldn't be surprised if you're skimming off the top. Tony goes away you can keep the whole thing, even raise it, uh? Take whatever you want. The restaurant business, hell, it's just a front. What I am really is a fucking bank.'
Vincent listened, sat there watching him. Didn't get excited or do any more than stare with his sleepy eyes. No, he seemed quite calm-and that did begin to work on Randy's central nervous system and tighten him up. He was pretty sure he was right; but, shit, he might've gone too far.
Randy felt the need to add then, with a slight smile, 'But who's complaining?'
Vincent got up from the chair to stand over the desk. 'Sign the papers and cut a check.'
Randy said, 'Why? You don't need it now, do you?'
'I go back to Tony I got the check in my hand he sent me to get.
Understand? Write the fuckin check.'
Randy signed the copies of the promissory note. He brought a checkbook out of the desk drawer, made a check out to Tony Amilia in the amount of two hundred and fifty thousand dollars and laid the check on the papers. He watched Vincent pick it up and fold the papers with the check inside. No thank-you or anything.
What he did say, 'You and I're gonna have a talk, smart guy.'
Turned and said to the Mutt on his way out, 'Do the priest right away.'
He was through the door before the Mutt came out of his chair and started after him.
Randy called out, 'Where you going?' But the Mutt was already gone.
He caught up with Vincent in the restaurant and followed him out to the street. Vincent turned to him now.
'What?'
'How much you paying me?'
It took him a minute to say, 'Twenty-five.'
'Twenty-five what?'
'Hunnert the fuck you think?'
Now the Mutt had to think a minute. 'Okay. And I need a pistol, a clean one.'
I'll see what I can do.'
He started to turn away and the Mutt said, 'You better pay me when you gimme the pistol as I'll be taking off soon as I'm done.'
'I said I'll see what I can do.'
'You have to do better'n that,' the Mutt said. 'You want the priest done or not?'
Now Vincent gave him a look that reminded the Mutt of his mom, the times he'd forget and say 'shit' in front of her and she'd call him 'young man' and threaten to wash his mouth out with soap, but never did. These people were like her, they liked to try and scare you.
Vincent gave him the look but then said, 'Stay around here. I'll call you.' See? They got by on dirty looks.
22
TUESDAY MORNING TERRY WAS UP, Debbie still in bed:
Terry coming through the dining room with coffee for Debbie, heading for the foyer. He glanced at the window as the limo was turning into the drive 11:15..M. Fran back from Florida with the family a good five hours before they were supposed to arrive. Terry placed the mug of coffee on the dining room table, flew across the foyer and up the stairs two and three at a time. He was going to wake Debbie up with the coffee and tell her she slept like a teenager. What he did in stead was get close to her face and say, 'They're back.' It opened her eyes. 'Fran, the whole family, they're here.' He heard her say 'They can't be,' but that's all. Debbie was cool, rolled out of bed in her T-shirt and they tugged and smoothed and tucked the covers together; Terry ran out to the hall and was on the stairs as the front door opened, the two little girls running in, stopping as they looked up and saw him.
Jane the older one and Katy still a baby the last time he was here; the girls would be eight and six now. Coming down the stairs he said,
'Hey, girls, you remember me? Your uncle Terry.'
Mary Pat was behind them now, looking a little surprised but okay, so far. Fran came in with the luggage, placed the bags on the floor looking at Terry but didn't say anything until Terry said, 'You're early,' and Fran said, 'Yeah, we decided to get going. You take the one o'clock flight, the one I told you we'd be on, it only gives you a couple hours in the morning, get any sun… Hey, I called Padilla.
He said you had a good talk and he's, you know, satisfied.'
'Yeah, he seemed like a nice guy.'
Mary Pat hadn't moved, staring at him, Mary Pat in a long black coat with some kind of black fur collar, her blond hair in the same suburban bob he always pictured when he thought of her. She said, 'How are you, Terry?' sounding like she wanted to know. But then as he was saying 'Fine, good to see you, Mary Pat,' she said, 'Girls, your uncle Terry is now Fr. Terry, Fr. Terry Dunn. He's become a priest.' She gave each of the girls a push and they came over to hug him, putting their arms around his hips and his legs until he got down with them and they each
