“You hear that, Ted?” Mick said tohis son. “He wants to know what’swrong. My main facility in this town wasraided by the ATF, and he wants to know what’s wrong?”
“But I handled that,” Pauley Jaypleaded. “I got the lawyers onsite justlike Lewdy ordered. I shut down everyother facility in this town just like Teddy ordered. I handled it!”
Mick couldn’t believe he saidthat. “You handled it?”
“I handled it!” Pauley Jay saidagain, talking with his hands, trying with all he had to appear large and incharge.
It wasn’t working. Not for Mick. “Those fuckers took every cargo, every scrap of paper at Main, andarrested every one of my people onsite, you stupid fuck! What did you do about that? Hun, Pauley? Did you handle that?!”
Pauley didn’t know what to say. He knew there was a screwup, but he expectedMick to understand. That was the wholeplan. That Mick wouldn’t trace that shitto him! “I wasn’t even told you werecoming, Boss. Or I would have--”
“Or you would have what?” Teddyasked. “You would have had your ass atMain trying to pick up the pieces and determine how that raid went down? Or would you have been hitting the streetstrying to find out who’s the fucking snitch? Or would you have just come home to this rathole, getting womanly pleasureat a time like this, because you know the man who snitched? And that man is you.”
“Me? Get the fuck out of here! I didgo to Main. I did hit the streets. I did all that shit, Teddy, how could youclaim I didn’t? How could you claim Isnitched on the boss?”
“How? I’ll show you how!” Teddy grabbed Pauley by the catch of his shirt andbegan raining haymakers down on him, one blow after another blow after anotherblow. Pauley tried to fight back, but hewas no match for Teddy. Mick’s muscularson took care of him in short order and then pushed him away from him. Pauley stumbled, but he didn’t fall.
“You hit the streets?” Mick askedhim.
“I hit the streets,” Pauley pleaded,as blood oozed from the wounds Teddy had inflicted on his face. “I wenteverywhere. I knocked down every door.”
“And what did you find out?” Mickasked.
“I couldn’t find nothing. Boss, I tried. But nobody knew nothing about it.”
“Nothing?” Mick asked.
“Nothing,” Pauley said. “Nobody knew nothing!”
Mick nodded his head, which Pauleythought meant he was understanding. ButTeddy knew better. His father noddinghis head never meant he understood. Itmeant Pauley was about to be in a world of hurt.
And just as quickly as Teddy thoughtso, it happened. Mick grabbed Pauley andthrew him against the side wall. Teddy,understanding what that meant, hurried to the window beside that wall andopened it. Mick hurried over, too, andgrabbed Pauley again and leaned him, head first, all the way out of thatwindow. The only thing keeping Pauleyfrom falling six flights down was Mick’s grip on Pauley’s two legs. “Who’s the snitch?” Mick asked.
“I told you I don’t know,” Pauleysaid.
“Who’s the snitch?” Mick asked again.
“Boss, you got the wrong guy. I tried to stop’em. I told’em it wouldn’t work. I told’em you’d track’em down. But they wouldn’t listen to me!”
“Who’s the snitch?” Mick asked again.
Pauley hesitated. But in that hesitation, Mick released one ofPauley’s legs, causing Pauley to dangle sideways and cry out for mercy.
“Pop!” Teddy said anxiously, touchingMick’s massive bicep. He knew his fatherwas strong, but they were six stories high. He was playing with a man’s life!
“Who’s the snitch?” Mick asked Pauleyagain.
And just as Mick knew, Pauley quicklygave up a name. “It’s Randazzo,” he said as he continued to wiggle, to try tolift his body up, to reach for the window sill.
But Mick just stood there, staringdown at him. “Randazzo?”
“That’s the snitch,” saidPauley. “It’s Denny Randazzo. I didn’t wanna tell you because I know he’syour friend. But the Randazzo crimefamily is behind it. They snitched. It’s Randazzo, Boss!”
And Mick didn’t hesitate. He let Pauley’s other leg go.
Teddy, stunned, leaned all the wayout of the window, as if he considered reaching for him. And all he could hear were the cries ofPauley as he fell six feet to his death.
Teddy then leaned in, looking at hisfather. Sometimes he wondered if he knewhim at all. “Why did you let go, Pop?”he asked. “He gave us a name!”
“He was lying,” Mick said as he beganheading for the exit.
“But how do you know that?” Teddyasked, following his father.
“I know it.”
“Because Randazzo’s your friend?”
Mick turned and grabbed Teddy by hisshirt collar. They were within an inchof each other. “I don’t have friends,”he said as if the very idea offended him. Then he released Teddy. “It’s notRandazzo,” he said, although he didn’t say why he was so certain. But Teddy was accustomed to that too. He was second in command in the Sinatra crimefamily, but that didn’t mean he was in his father’s inner circle. Nobody was.
Mick opened the front door for them toget the heck out of dodge before the heat came, but as soon as he opened thedoor, he and Teddy were met with two men standing at that door, with rifles intheir hands.
Mick pushed Teddy one way, he divedthe other way as the gunmen fired their weapons. Teddy got up and ran down the hall. Mick got up and ran through the kitchen, bothof them dodging bullets that were flying through that apartment as they ran.
The first gunman to enter theapartment followed Mick into the kitchen, while the second gunman followedTeddy. And the first gunman didn’t takeany chances with a man like Mick the Tick. As soon as he entered that kitchen, he began firing away. He was hitting every corner of that smallspace. He filled cabinets withbullets. Shelves and cannisterstoo. But there was no sign of Mick.
Until the gunman realized that he hadforgotten to look behind the door that led into the kitchen. He began firing bullet after bullet throughthat entrance door, certain Mick had to be behind it. But when he stopped firing and looked behindthat door, he didn’t see anybody.
Until he felt something rub againsthis face and looked up. And that waswhen he saw Mick, like
