at the idea. "Be something, wouldn't it? There's my car, theRiv. Bigboat'll carry everybody easy, you want to change your mind and let me run you on home."
We all stayed with our decision to walk. His car was a maroon BuickRiviera with a white leather interior. He let Carolyn in, then walked around the car and unlocked his door, making a face at her failure to lean across the seat and unlock the door for him.
After they drove off, Billie said, "They were at Armstrong's until one, one-thirty. I didn't expect to see 'emagain tonight. I hope he's not driving back toBrooklyn tonight."
"Is that where they live?"
"Where he lives," he told Skip. "She's here in the neighborhood. He's a married guy. Doesn't he wear a ring?"
"I never noticed."
"Caro-lynfrom theCaro -line," Billie said. "That's how he introduces her. She was sureshitfaced tonight, wasn't she? When he left earlier I thought for sure he wastakin ' her home- and come to think of it I guess he was. She waswearin ' a dress earlier tonight, wasn't she, Matt?"
"I don't remember."
"I could swear she was. Office clothes, anyway, not jeans and aBrooks shirt like she had on now. Took her home, gave her a bounce, then they got thirsty and by that time the stores were closed, so off we go to the neighborhood after-hours, T. P. Morrissey, Prop. What do you think, Matt? Have I got the makings of a detective?"
"You're doing fine."
"He put on the same clothes but she changed. Now the question is will he go home to the wife or sleep over at Carolyn's and show up at the office tomorrow in the same outfit. The only problemis, who gives a shit?"
"I was just going to ask that," Skip said.
"Yeah.One thing he asked, I'll ask it myself. Why didn't they stick up the customers tonight? There must have been a lot of guyscarryin ' a few hundred each and a couple with more than that."
"Not worth it."
"That's a few grand we're talking about."
"I know," Skip said. "It's also another twenty minutes if you'regonna do it right, and that's in a room full of drunks with God knows how many of them carrying guns. I bet there were fifteen guns in that room."
"Are you serious?"
"I'm not onlyserious, I bet I'm guessing low. For openers you got three or four cops. You got EddieGrillo, right at our table."
"Eddie carries a piece?"
"Eddie runs around with some pretty heavy guys, not even talking about whoowns the joint where he works. There was a guy named Chuck, I don't really know him, works at Polly's Cage-"
"I know who you mean. He walks around with a gun on him?"
"Either that or he walks around with a permanenthardon andhe's built funny. Believe me, there's a whole lot of guys walk around packing iron. You tell a whole roomful to reach for theirwallets, some ofthem'll reach for their guns instead. Meanwhile they're in and out in what, five minutes tops? I don't think it was five minutes from the door flying open and the bullets in the ceiling until they're out the door and Tim Pat's standing there with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face."
"That's a point."
"And whatever they'd of got frompeople's wallets, that's small change."
"You figure the box was that heavy? What do you figure it held?"
Skip shrugged."Twenty grand."
"Seriously?"
"Twenty grand, fifty grand, pick a number."
"IRA money, you were saying earlier."
"Well, what else do you figure they spend it on, Bill? I don't know what they take in but they do a nice business seven days a week and where's the overhead? They probably got the building for back taxes, and they live in half of it, so they got no rent to pay and no real payroll to come up with. I'm sure they don't report any income or pay any taxes, unless they pretend that playhouse on the ground floor shows a profit and pay a token tax on that. They have to be dragging ten or twenty grand a week out of that place and what do you think they spend it on?"
"They have to pay off to stay open," I put in.
"Payoffs and political contributions, of course, but not ten
We all stayed with our decision to walk. His car was a maroon BuickRiviera with a white leather interior. He let Carolyn in, then walked around the car and unlocked his door, making a face at her failure to lean across the seat and unlock the door for him.
After they drove off, Billie said, "They were at Armstrong's until one, one-thirty. I didn't expect to see 'emagain tonight. I hope he's not driving back toBrooklyn tonight."
"Is that where they live?"
"Where he lives," he told Skip. "She's here in the neighborhood. He's a married guy. Doesn't he wear a ring?"
"I never noticed."
"Caro-lynfrom theCaro -line," Billie said. "That's how he introduces her. She was sureshitfaced tonight, wasn't she? When he left earlier I thought for sure he wastakin ' her home- and come to think of it I guess he was. She waswearin ' a dress earlier tonight, wasn't she, Matt?"
"I don't remember."
"I could swear she was. Office clothes, anyway, not jeans and aBrooks shirt like she had on now. Took her home, gave her a bounce, then they got thirsty and by that time the stores were closed, so off we go to the neighborhood after-hours, T. P. Morrissey, Prop. What do you think, Matt? Have I got the makings of a detective?"
"You're doing fine."
"He put on the same clothes but she changed. Now the question is will he go home to the wife or sleep over at Carolyn's and show up at the office tomorrow in the same outfit. The only problemis, who gives a shit?"
"I was just going to ask that," Skip said.
"Yeah.One thing he asked, I'll ask it myself. Why didn't they stick up the customers tonight? There must have been a lot of guyscarryin ' a few hundred each and a couple with more than that."
"Not worth it."
"That's a few grand we're talking about."
"I know," Skip said. "It's also another twenty minutes if you'regonna do it right, and that's in a room full of drunks with God knows how many of them carrying guns. I bet there were fifteen guns in that room."
"Are you serious?"
"I'm not onlyserious, I bet I'm guessing low. For openers you got three or four cops. You got EddieGrillo, right at our table."
"Eddie carries a piece?"
"Eddie runs around with some pretty heavy guys, not even talking about whoowns the joint where he works. There was a guy named Chuck, I don't really know him, works at Polly's Cage-"
"I know who you mean. He walks around with a gun on him?"
"Either that or he walks around with a permanenthardon andhe's built funny. Believe me, there's a whole lot of guys walk around packing iron. You tell a whole roomful to reach for theirwallets, some ofthem'll reach for their guns instead. Meanwhile they're in and out in what, five minutes tops? I don't think it was five minutes from the door flying open and the bullets in the ceiling until they're out the door and Tim Pat's standing there with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face."
"That's a point."
"And whatever they'd of got frompeople's wallets, that's small change."
"You figure the box was that heavy? What do you figure it held?"
Skip shrugged."Twenty grand."
"Seriously?"
"Twenty grand, fifty grand, pick a number."
"IRA money, you were saying earlier."
"Well, what else do you figure they spend it on, Bill? I don't know what they take in but they do a nice business seven days a week and where's the overhead? They probably got the building for back taxes, and they live in half of it, so they got no rent to pay and no real payroll to come up with. I'm sure they don't report any income or pay any taxes, unless they pretend that playhouse on the ground floor shows a profit and pay a token tax on that. They have to be dragging ten or twenty grand a week out of that place and what do you think they spend it on?"
"They have to pay off to stay open," I put in.
"Payoffs and political contributions, of course, but not ten
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