“I got nothing like that.”

“Just promise me one thing. From here on in and to the longest day you live, you swear on yourself that you’ll always abide my rules.”

“I swear on anything, Left.”

“Now. Will you face the guy?”

“That’s right.”

“I don’t know if I can pull it off, because we’re fucking around with legitimate people now. If I can get Rocky down, you’ll go along with the program?”

“That’s right.” I was making a risky move. “Legitimate people” were made guys. I wanted to attend a sitdown, which is restricted to made guys. I didn’t want to face Rocky because I didn’t know how jammed up he might be and what he might say, how much that might endanger us both. But I gambled that Mirra wouldn’t produce Rocky at a sitdown. “Why should I be the fall guy?”

“Tell me now, because you’re in Florida. If you got any fucking faults, go where the fuck you gotta go.”

“I don’t have any, Left.”

“Who owns the company, Donnie? How come you backed away from the situation? Who put the fucking operation together? Donnie, you can’t stutter there. You put him there. I can’t lie to my people. If I gotta die over it, go down like a man. They gonna throw curves at you.”

“Any curves they throw, Left, I’ll be able to hit them. We get at the table and I’ll prove to you that Rocky lied.”

“Anthony Mirra says he knew him five years. I said, ‘No, you’re a fucking liar. We brought him from Miami.’ Now you’re on the table. Now I have to get off. They’re gonna ask you these questions. I’m not gonna be there to defend you. First thing they’re gonna ask: Who brought him into Miami? You did. Who brought him into this town up here? How did the operation start? Let me tell you something, Donnie. We got friends in that town. We can find everything out. That’s what it’ll come to, but I don’t wanna prolong it. Why did Rocky give you up?”

“He’s scared.”

“Donnie. I know you like a book. I know every fucking move you make. I could tell you words from Milwaukee, word for word. See, everybody underestimates me. I know how lazy you are or how original you are. But now you’re up in a different fucking category. You’re into something that’s beyond our reach. This fucking thing is exploding. And don’t forget we’re fooling around with zips. They’ll keep on pecking. Greaseballs are motherfuckers. When a zip kisses, forget about it. They hate the American people. They hate the American wiseguys. I blew my fucking top, they hold it against me. You, they’ll chew you up in a fucking minute. They got us in a barrel over Rocky and you. That’s why Sonny Black wants me to give up Rocky. He feels it’s shaky. He wants peace and he wants a compromise. This is why Sonny don’t want you to come in, because you can’t answer.

“If you get caught on the table, we’re gonna lose. You ain’t got the right answers. You ain’t got the mentality. You got the brain, but you’re gonna get hit with things. Once you stutter, they don’t say nothing. They’ll let you talk. Donnie, you got a headache. You can’t answer these questions. You could tell it to Sonny, but when you get on the table and they throw curves at you, you’re not gonna answer them.”

“I’ll hit the curves.”

“You’re not gonna hit no curves. You see, we got this Rocky on the table, right? Now, when he knows he’s coming to see anybody, he’s gonna bring everything out. So before he brings out about me being on a fucking boat, I have to tell everybody everything. I get sent for and they say it’s a federal boat—what am I gonna say? I can’t answer these questions without jeopardizing you, that you’re a fucking sucker. They got me by the balls. They got you by the balls. You were on the fucking federal boat. But answer one fucking motherfucking question. How did you get this fucking jerk-off from the fucking boat to the fucking car shop?”

“Le-Le-Lefty, I told you—”

“Take your time. There’s something wrong here.”

“You ever think that Mirra’s a rat? I’d say he’s a stool pigeon, he made a deal with somebody.”

“No, no, you can’t say that, because if you call a guy like that a pigeon, you gotta back your words up or you’re dead. He is nothing but a fucking rat. But could you call a wiseguy a rat? You can’t answer that the way I want to. But I could, when I get through. So now I’m getting all the proof. I’m reaching out. Sonny don’t even know what I’m doing. The guy I got, half the FBI can’t hide nothing from him. I’ll get all the bill of particulars. Because somebody’s sticking Rocky up. They’re taking his wallet. That’s going to my friends. You I know about, your numbers on your American Express and everything. Tony in Milwaukee, I got his through Mike Sabella. I hope to God everything comes aboveboard. I’m gonna use my head while he’s partying up all night tonight. They lied on the table today. The man that lies on the table has to die. But that’s beside the point. I’m talking about something serious. I met the guy on the boat. Where’d the boat come from? I have to show them the fucking picture. What are they gonna do? That’s what it’s gonna come to.”

“I still don’t see how you say that’s the federal boat.”

“Donnie, I got pictures of it. What are you, crazy or what? I took pictures all over the boat. I go further. I’ll get everybody’s picture on that fucking boat. You want me to go further than that there? I can get it in a fucking week. I’ll give you the fucking name of the stool pigeon.”

“Well, let’s go after him. Go to the table and call them liars.”

“You can’t call them liars. Donnie, you’re involved with fourteen heavyweights now, going on for two weeks.”

“I go with that guy, I walk, Left. I tell you that now.”

“Ain’t the question you walk. Over here I ain’t got the right answers. I ain’t got the right satisfaction with you.”

“Why don’t we just kill Mirra, that’s all. Get it outa the way.”

“No, no, we don’t do that to friends.”

“That’s what he’s trying to do to us.”

“That’s all right. He’s doing that legally. Now I’ll leave it up to Sonny what he wants to do. I’ll get back to you.”

“All right.”

“It won’t be now. Maybe a week from now.”

When I hung up, I felt isolated. I didn’t know what Mirra was going to do. I didn’t know what Rocky was going to do. I couldn’t go to New York. I had to wait it out.

Lefty called an hour later. His voice was very subdued, resigned.

“I just want you to understand that I feel I’m doing the right thing, so I thought I’d give you a call back. Only wish you could give me the right answers.”

“Left, the only answers I give you are the truth.”

“Like I say, they’ll eat us up on the table. You made some fucking boo-boo, pal. You got me sick over it. The trouble we’re having amongst ourselves. I tell you, Donnie, you don’t make too many mistakes, but when you do, you start a fucking World War III. I gotta let it come to a head for one reason: I want this motherfucker. I want him bad. I want both of them bad. Somebody gotta pay the consequences. I didn’t call you to worry you. I only called you for one fucking reason: to think and help me win this fucking war. Get your fucking bearings together and think. Put your head to the grindstone. I’m writing everything down and racking my brains out. I want to understand what’s going on.”

“I wish I knew.”

“Donnie, once we get that thing straightened out, we open a legitimate business. Jesus Christ ain’t gonna touch you. The motherfucking cocksucker.”

“That’s right. That no-good bastard. Left, what I’d like to do is really make a score and jam it up his ass.”

“I tell you one thing, Donnie, the most hated guy on Prince Street is Mirra. So we’ll just see till Rusty comes home. But whether we can survive these fucking sixteen fucking months, which them bosses say no wars allowed, I don’t know. First guy fucks with a pistol, they’ll break up the whole crew.”