(Dallas, 11/25/63)

Jack's wake blared-epidemic boo-hoo-it cut through the bridal suite walls.

Barb said, "I'm getting the picture. The fix is in."

Pete packed his suitcase. "Some people got Christmas early. They know how things work, and they know what's best for the country."

Barb folded her gowns. "There's a catch. For us, I mean."

Pete tuned her out. He'd just talked to Guy. Guy just talked to Carlos. Carlos loved the Ruby Show. Carlos wanted to clip Maynard Moore.

Guy told Pete that. Pete ad-libbed. Pete said Moore vanished-kapoof!

Guy spritzed on Moore's Vegas gig. Guy ragged Wayne Junior. Junior knew shit-small fucking world-Wayne Senior greased the hit fund.

Barb said, "The _catch_. Don't tell me there isn't one. And don't tell me those tickets to Vegas aren't part of it."

Pete stashed his piece. "Are you saying that two tickets was being optimistic?"

"No. You know I'll never leave you."

Pete smiled. "There's some fuck-ups I wouldn't have made, if I'd known you better."

Barb smiled. "The catch? _Vegas?_ And don't make eyes at me when we have to run for a plane."

Pete shut his suitcase. "The Outfit has plans for Mr. Hughes. Ward's putting some things together."

"It's about staying useful, then."

"Yeah. Stay useful, stay healthy. If I can get them to bend a certain rule, I'd call it a lock."

Barb said, "What rule?"

"Come on, you know what I do."

Barb shook her head. "You're versatile. You run shakedowns and you sell guns and dope. You killed the President of the United States once, but I'd have to call that a one-time opportunity."

Pete laughed. Pete made his sides hurt. Pete leaked some wiiiiild tears. Barb tossed a towel up. Pete wiped his eyes and de-teared.

"You can't move heroin there. It's a set policy, but it's probably the best way I can make the Boys some real money. They might go for it, if I only sell to the spooks in West Vegas. Mr. Hughes hates jigs. He thinks they should all be doped up, like he is. The Boys might decide to humor him."

Barb got This Look. Pete knew the gestalt. _I_ fucked JFK. _You_ killed him. _My_ craaazy life.

She said, "Useful."

"Yeah, that's it."

Barb grabbed her Twist gowns. Barb dropped them out the window. Pete looked out. A kid looked up. The blue gown hit a ledge.

Barb waved. The kid waved back.

"The Twist is dead, but I'll bet you could get me some lounge gigs."

"We'll be useful."

"I'm still scared."

Pete said, "That's the catch."

Part II

December 1963-October 1964

_DOCUMENT INSERT_: 12/1/63. Internally circulated FBI intelligence report. Marked: "Classified Confidential 2-A: Restricted Agent Access" / "Pertinent Facts Observations on Major Las Vegas Hotel-Casino Ownerships Related Topics." Note: Officially logged at Southern Nevada Office, 2/8/63.

The major Las Vegas hotel-casinos are situated in two locales: The downtown (Fremont Street/"Glitter Gulch") area and "The Strip" (Las Vegas Blvd, the city's main north-south artery). The downtown establishments are older, less gaudy cater to local residents less affluent tourists who come to gamble, enjoy lowquality entertainment engage the services of prostitutes. Junket groups (Elks, Kiwanis, Rotary, Shriners, VFW, CYO) are frequent downtown hotel-casino visitors. The downtown establishments are largely owned by "Pioneer" consortiums (e.g., native Nevadans general non-organized crime groups). Some of the owners have been forced to sell small (5%-8%) interests to organized-crime groups in exchange for continued "Preferential Treatment" (e.g., on-site "protection," a "service" to insure the absence of labor trouble untoward on-site incidents). Organized-crime associates frequently serve as casino "Pit Bosses" thus as enforcers and on-site informants for their organized-crime patrons.

The downtown area is jurisdictionally covered by the Las Vegas Police Department (LVPD). The LVPD's jurisdiction adjoins that of the Clark County Sheriff's Department (CCSD). Both agencies work within the other's jurisdiction by mutual consent. The Sheriff's Dept patrols the "Strip" area south of the Sahara Hotel. Like the LVPD, it provides investigatory services for its specific jurisdiction, with an operational mandate inside LVPD, or "City" jurisdiction. The LVPD is similarly allowed to conduct investigations inside Sheriff's Dept, or "County" jurisdiction. It should be noted that both agencies are widely influenced and corrupted by factions of organized crime. This corruption is of the type most identified with "Company Towns" (e.g., casino revenue forms the financial base of Las Vegas thus influences the political base law-enforcement policy). Numerous officers within both agencies benefit from organizedcrime bestowed "Gratuities" (free hotel stays, free casino gambling chips, the services of prostitutes, "police discounts" at various businesses owned by organized-crime associates) outright bribery. The LVPD and Sheriff's Dept enforce organized-crime policies with the implicit consent of the Clark County political hierarchy by extension the consent of the Nevada State Legislature. (E.g., Negroes are strongly discouraged from entering certain "Strip" hotel-casinos and on-site casino personnel are allowed to see to their expulsion. E.g., crimes against organized-crime-connected casino employees are frequently avenged by LVPD officers, acting on orders from the Casino Operators Council, an organized-crime front group. E.g.' LVPD officers and Sheriff's deputies are often used to track down casino card cheats, "discourage" them run them out of town.)

The best-known hotel-casinos are situated on the "Strip." Many of them have been infiltrated by organized crime, with percentage "Points" divvied up among the overlords of organized-crime cartels. (E.g., the Chicago Crime Cartel controls the Stardust HotelCasino boss _Sam "Mo," "Momo," "Mooney" Giancana_ has an 8% personal interest. Chicago hoodlum John Rosselli (the Chicago Cartel's Las Vegas overseer) has a 3% interest Chicago Mob enforcer _Dominic Michael Montalvo_ aka "Butch Montrose" has a 1% interest.) (See Addendum File #B-2 for complete list of crimecartel ownerships percentage-point estimates.)

Smaller percentage points are traded between organized crime factions as part of an ongoing effort to insure that all factions have a stake in the expanding Las Vegas casino economy. The profit base is thus shared faction-to-faction rivalry is averted. Thus, organized crime presents a unified face in Las Vegas. The man responsible for developing maintaining this policy is _Morris Barney "Moe" Dalitz_ (b. 1899), a former Cleveland mobster organized crime's "Goodwill Ambassador" Las Vegas "Fix-It Man." _Dalitz_ owns points in the Desert Inn Hotel Casino and is rumored to have points in several others. _Dalitz_ is known as "Mr. Las Vegas," because of his numerous philanthropic endeavors his convincing non-gangster image. _Dalitz_ founded the Casino Operators Council, dictates their enforcement policies is largely responsible for the "Clean Town" policy that organized-crime factions believe will help promote tourism thus increase hotelcasino revenue.

This "Policy" is informally enforced has the implicit approval of the Las Vegas political machine the LVPD Sheriff's Dept. One goal is to enforce ad hoc segregation in the "Strip" hotelcasinos (e.g., admit Negro celebrities or perceived "High Class" Negroes refuse admittance to all others) to isolate Negro housing in the slum area of West Las Vegas. (Restrictive real-estate covenants are widely observed by Las Vegas-based realtors.) A key "Policy" dictate is the "No Narcotics" rule. This rule applies specifically to heroin. The selling of heroin is forbidden is punishable by death. The rule is enforced to limit the number of narcotics addicts, specifically those who might support their addiction by means of robbery, burglary, "flim-flam" or other criminal activities that would sully the reputation of Las Vegas thus discourage tourism. Numerous heroin pushers have been the victims of unsolved homicides numerous others have disappeared are presumed to have been killed per the aforementioned policy (see Addendum File #B-3 for partial list). The last homicide occurred on 4/12/60 there appears to be no heroin traffic in Las Vegas as of this date. It is fair to conclude that the aforementioned deaths have served as a deterrent.