Текст книги "The Villiers Touch"

Автор книги: Brian Garfield

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Текущая страница: 22 (всего у книги 22 страниц)

34. Mason Villiers

The sky was crowded with full-bellied clouds, there was the smell of rain in the hot air. But the night remained fetid and oppressive. Villiers stood under the awning in front of an apartment house on West Thirteenth Street and kept looking at his watch, filling up with impatient anger. He remembered what Diane had said about keeping others waiting; he promised himself this would be the last time, ever.

The big Lincoln drew up in the shadows fifty feet down the street. He walked toward it. The right-hand rear door opened, but the interior domelight didn’t go on-disconnected, probably. Villiers stooped to get in.

There was the driver, and a skinny bald man in the front passenger seat, and one man in the back seat beside him. That man reached across him to pull the door shut, and said to the driver in a voice that rumbled out like lump coal tumbling down a metal chute, “Let’s go, Charley.”

Villiers didn’t offer to shake hands with the man. He sat back and put his briefcase in his lap and said mildly, “This has got all the heavy-handed, cloaked melodrama of an old German silent movie. Is it really necessary?”

“We ride now,” the man said. “We talk when we get there.”

After that there was no more talk. Villiers gave the man a sidewise study. Civetta’s black hair was slicked back; his dark suit was carefully tailored, his shirt monogrammed on the pocket, his tiepin a glistening diamond. He wore Stacy Adams shoes and a pair of black-rimmed eyeglasses which failed to soften the lines of his big square face. He had burly arms inside the tailored cloth, and the hard-jowled features of a cross-country truck driver.

Civetta turned his head and gave him a frank appraisal; his iron eyes studied Villiers with cool mistrust. Then, with a trace of a smile, he said, “Maybe the heat’s gonna break soon, what do you think?”

“I think we may get some rain.”

“Should clear some of the gunk out of the air, huh?”

“Bound to,” Villiers said, hating small talk, volunteering nothing more.

Civetta started talking about a Broadway musical he had seen recently. Villiers feigned attentiveness and grunted now and then. The Continental glided noiselessly toward the river, stair-stepping north along avenues and streets until it bumped up the ramp onto the West Side Highway and accelerated into the traffic stream with a smooth surge of power. The driver was superb-he crowded the speed limit all the way but never had to hit his brakes hard. They prowled north past the steamship piers-Villiers had a glimpse of the Queen Elizabeth II looming against the sky at the Cunard dock, probably just returned with a capacity load of summer travelers from England. The Lincoln swept past Harlem’s tenement roofs at a precise fifty miles an hour and climbed the ramp to the George Washington Bridge. A freighter churned its way up the Hudson beneath them, its screw fighting the current. The driver paid the toll with a green ticket book, and they swung north onto the Palisades Parkway. At this hour it was all but deserted, but the driver kept carefully to the speed limit. Lush trees whipped past, black against the translucent gray of light-reflecting clouds. Within ten minutes, somewhere toward the northeastern corner of the state of New Jersey, the driver pulled off onto U.S. 9W and made a quick turnoff into a side road. Trees intertwined thickly, arched over the road, cutting out the sky. The driver slowed to a crawl, peering forward. Shortly they came to a dirt road which went into the woods through a locked gate with a metal “NO VEHICULAR TRAFFIC” sign. The driver pulled off and parked on the narrow strip of dirt between the main road and the gate. The headlights flicked off, and Civetta said, “End of the line. We walk from here.”

They got out of the car and chunked the doors shut. Civetta looked both ways and walked quickly through the small pedestrian opening beside the gate, into the woods. The little bald man smiled nervously at Villiers and went ahead of him, as if to reassure him. Villiers, frowning, began to follow; but the driver took a step forward and said, “Pardon me, sir. Your briefcase.”

Villiers scowled at him. “What about it?”

“Mind leaving it in the car, sir?”

“You’re damn right I mind. Look-”

Civetta, having looked back, spoke harshly. “What the hell’s the matter back there?”

The driver only pointed toward Villiers’ briefcase. Civetta snapped, “Leave the case, if you don’t mind. He won’t steal anything.”

Reluctantly, Villiers handed it over and followed the two men into the woods. As he stepped through the pedestrian gate, he saw a car’s headlights appear around the bend of the main road a quarter-mile away, but he paid it no attention; none of the others seemed to mind. The driver got back into the car, holding his briefcase, and sat smoking, the button tip of his cigarette alternately glowing and dimming. Villiers turned and joined up with the others. Civetta led them a hundred feet or so into the woods, and, to his surprise, Villiers discovered they were at the edge of a clearing. Three or four picnic tables were

scattered around; there was a perforated trash drum and a number of signs posted-“ NO FIRES,” “ NO COOKING,” “ NO ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES ON PARK PREMISES.”

“It’s the backside of a county park,” Civetta explained. “Nobody comes here at night-they lock the front gates, and I guess the teen-age lovers haven’t discovered the back way in. It makes a useful place to talk. This is my legal associate, Mr. Norman Fields.”

Fields offered a hand, and Villiers, not without distaste, shook it briefly. Civetta sat down on one of the picnic benches and said, “Sit down and make yourself comfortable and let’s talk.”

“I don’t like the setup,” Villiers said. “You’ve got a witness, I haven’t.”

“Do we need witnesses, Mr. Villiers? My, my. I only brought Mr. Fields along for legal advice.”

Villiers took out his wallet and extracted a bill. He stepped forward and held it up to Norman Fields. The little man frowned. “What’s that for?”

“One dollar. You take it, and you agree that in the matter we’re about to discuss, you’re acting as my legal counsel as well as Mr. Civetta’s. That makes it a privileged communication. If anybody subpoenas you, you don’t have to answer questions.”

The lawyer looked over his shoulder at Civetta, who nodded impatiently. “Sure-sure. It’s all right, Norm, take the damn dollar and let’s get down to it.”

Fields stuffed the dollar in his pocket and sat down. Villiers kept his feet. He didn’t like the clandestine setting, and he didn’t like the fact that they had forced him to leave his briefcase behind. It contained the jammer, and the jammer wouldn’t do a bit of good as long as it was enclosed in four thousand pounds of Detroit steel; the car would absorb its signals completely.

But it was no time to call the meeting off. He would take his chances; he had to.

He said, “All right. I want to make you a business proposition.”

“Senna said that much. You worked pretty damn fast, getting him out of the Montreal brig on bail so he could set up this meeting. You must be in a hurry, Mr. Villiers.” Civetta said it in a way that made it abundantly clear he was prepared to extract every possible advantage from Villiers’ need for haste.

“I won’t beat around the bush,” Villiers said. “I’m taking over Northeast Consolidated Industries.”

“You wouldn’t kid me,” Civetta said with a straight face. “Do you mean to tell me Heggins Aircraft is just a front for Mason Villiers?”

“You knew that already-everybody knows it.”

“What everybody knows and what somebody can prove are two different things. You’ve just admitted it out loud, which means you’re giving something away to me, and when a man puts that kind of advantage in my hands, Mr. Villiers, I kind of figure he wants something in exchange. Or am I gettin’ too cynical in my old age?”

“Let’s not play games, Civetta. I’ve got a proposition to make. Something I want in exchange for something you want.”

“I know that, Mr. Villiers. You want money to finance your proxy fight. A lot of money. That’s what you want. Now, what do I want that you could possibly give me in return?”

“Interest on a loan, to begin with.”

“Peanuts, Mr. Villiers,” Civetta murmured in his low gravel growl; but his face was attentive. “Let’s talk facts and figures. How much?”

“Four hundred million.”

“Sweet Jesus,” Norman Fields ejaculated. Civetta’s eyes shifted toward him, but Civetta’s big head did not move.

All Civetta said was, “That’s a lot of money.”

“I’ve done business with the Chicago organization before. They know I don’t welsh on my debts. And I know how it’s done. I go to your bank, and if I want a one-thousand-dollar loan, I sign a two-thousand-dollar note. The note is legitimate, its terms are the usual bank terms and rates-but the only profit your bank shows on its books is the legal interest. The extra one thousand goes into your pockets. I’m willing to do business on that basis. Only, of course, when we’re talking about four hundred million, I’m not willing to pay you back double. What I’m offering is standard legal interest plus a twenty-five-percent profit. You lend me four hundred million, and I pay you back five hundred million. Plus legal interest on the four hundred million.”

Civetta didn’t give him a direct answer. He looked at Fields, and Fields said nothing. He said after a moment, “You don’t like me, Mr. Villiers.”

“Should I?”

“A lot of people seem to think it’s good politics to like me.”

“Civetta, I don’t like you, and I don’t dislike you. This is business, not personalities. I’m not asking to join your social club.”

“Point is,” Civetta said, “I don’t owe you a thing, Mr. Villiers, and you don’t even pretend you’re my friend. So why should I do you a favor? Why should I cut my vigorish rate down to one-quarter of the usual? You can have your four hundred million-all you got to do is, you pay me back eight hundred million. You see, I figure you can succeed if you get backing from me, and if you succeed, I know damn well you can afford to pay me eight hundred million. I’m a businessman too, Mr. Villiers. I know when I’m in a seller’s market, see?”

“I see, yes. It’s a matter of indifference to you, and you feel insulted that I should ask you into the deal when I don’t particularly like you, but it gets less insulting if I raise the ante from twenty-five percent to a hundred percent.”

“You’re real astute, Mr. Villiers. Now, you can tell me something else. Suppose I give you the four hundred million. What do you do with it?”

“I buy NCI.”

“Four hundred million don’t buy control of NCI, Mr. Villiers. It ain’t enough. I know my figures, see?”

“My tender offer of Heggins debentures buys the rest.”

“And what if it doesn’t? You come back to me for more money, right? I’m not a bottomless pit, Mr. Villiers. My assets are just as limited as the next guy’s.”

“You take my word for it or you don’t, Civetta. Would I ask for four hundred million if I wanted six or eight? What good would it do me to ask for less than it takes to do the job? The whole thing falls apart if I don’t end up with fifty-one percent of NCI. I think I can do it with three hundred million. But this thing’s too big to shave too close.”

Head down, Norman Fields pressed his hands together until Villiers heard the knuckles crack. Fields looked up and broke in, “Listen, I don’t like the whole-”

“Shut up, Norm. You’re out of order.” Civetta kept his eyes on Villiers. “Mr. Villiers, I’m in business because I learned a long time ago to find out what people need, and give it to them. Maybe sometimes the law don’t approve, but I supply the people’s needs, and I make a profit. Now, you come to me with a proposition, it means you got to make an offer that supplies my needs too. You get me? So far, you ain’t offered me nothing.”

“I’m offering you a chance to buy into one of the biggest legitimate corporations in the world. I think that entitles me to a break in your interest rates. You people have been bleeding for years to get a foothold in the top corporations. I’m offering it to you. Throw in with me, and I’ll repay the loan in NCI stock certificates. You’ll get your own people on the NCI board of directors. You can sit on the board yourself-you’ll have that right.”

Fields, staring at him, uttered an exultant noise of discovery and realization. Civetta shut him up with a wave of his hand. His hard eyes penetrated Villiers.

Finally Civetta said, “What you’re doing ain’t legal. We both know that. You’re operating on all kinds of inside information that’s never been released to the public. The federal boys could hang your ass if they could prove this on you.”

“Granted. They could hang your ass too if they knew everything about your operations. What of it?”

“What of it is just this, Mr. Villiers. Suppose the federal boys walk into your office one morning and haul you down to the Tombs. Okay, they futz around a while, and maybe they end up letting you go because you got a good lawyer. But in the meantime, your NCI pipe dream goes down the tubes, and I’m left holding an empty bag where I used to have four hundred million bucks.”

“I’m taking the bigger risk. If I can take it, you can take it. I’m not asking you to bleed, Civetta. I’m only asking for a loan. You stand to lose your investment every time you lend money. You take the risk because you’re getting good interest rates and you’re getting other considerations. What’s four hundred million to you? I’ve got every dime I own on the line, and my life with it.”

“That’s your lookout, not mine, Mr. Villiers. But I’ll tell you what we’d be willing to do. We’d go it for sixty percent instead of a hundred.”

Villiers shook his head. “No. Twenty-five percent. I’m not going to haggle.”

“You got someplace else to go for the money, maybe?” Civetta smiled slowly. “You see, Mr. Villiers, you got no place else to go at all. Because I’m a bighearted man I’ll give it to you for fifty percent, all inclusive. No extra interest on top. You borrow four hundred mil, you pay me back six hundred mil, on a deadline of three months. If it goes more than three months, you pay me five million a month until you pay off the principal. Take it, Mr. Villiers, or leave it.”

“I’ll take it,” Villiers said.

“Which means it was the figure you had in mind all the time, am I right?”

“What does it matter? Put as much of it as you want on paper, and I’ll sign it in the morning.”

Norman Fields said, “I’ll have the papers in my office for you at nine.” He stirred, ready to rise, but Villiers’ eyes jammed him back down in his seat.

“I’m not finished. It’s my ball game, Civetta, and you’ll play it by my rules as long as we’re in my ball park. If you think you can steal a base, you go ahead and try. You can’t steal a base if you’re not in the game at all.”

“Absolutely, Mr. Villiers,” Civetta purred. “Absolutely.”

Suddenly Villiers grinned at him. “It’s going to be interesting, you and me.”

“You’re right, Mr. Villiers. Interesting as hell. Let’s go, Norm.”

They left the picnic clearing single file. In the darkness Villiers’ face rode high, a hard smile of triumph on his mouth. He had whipped the world again. He pictured himself in the big chair on the forty-eighth floor, behind the massive oak door with its discreet small golden letters, Chairman of the Board. It was time to plant his roots in the epic fashion for which he had held off throughout the years; as long as he had been building toward the summit, he had wasted little money on luxuries when he still needed it for capital growth. Now he allowed himself to think ahead. He would keep a yacht at anchorage off Palm Beach with a year-round crew of six living on board even if he didn’t set foot on its decks for five years at a time. He would have his own Lear Jet (twenty thousand dollars a month maintenance costs alone) and a duplex apartment on Sutton Place, a house in Bermuda, a house in Palm Beach, and a Putnam County estate complete with riding stables, tennis courts, swimming pool, golf course, slot machines, and garages to house his proud collection of antique and classic cars.

All I want is not to want. Ever.

And now, right now, he had achieved that desire.

He stepped through the pedestrian gate, close behind Civetta. Charley, the chauffeur, had got out to hold the doors; he had the briefcase in his hand and turned to give it to Villiers. Villiers reached out for it and that was when a man stepped out of the shadows along the side of the road and said, “Federal agents. Stand still, please. You’re under arrest.”

Villiers’ head turned slowly, keening the night. Shadows moved into sight on both sides of the road, five men armed. One of them came forward to the car and turned the chauffeur around, forced him to plant his palms on the roof of the car, and frisked him.

“He’s clean.”

Civetta said, “Nobody says a word. Understand?”

A tall man with a big jaw separated himself from the circle and walked within two paces of him. “You’re Villiers. We haven’t met. My name’s Hastings-I’ve been looking forward to this.”

Villiers didn’t say anything. Hastings reached forward to the side pocket of Villiers’ jacket and withdrew a small disk from it. “Microphone-transmitter. We’ve got a tape of your whole conversation in a car just down the road. And a warrant to bring it into court.” Hastings was watching him with fascination and with satisfaction, hard and unconcealed.

Hastings spoke over his shoulder, “Bill, better get on the two-way and clear your men to arrest George Hackman and Sidney Isher.”

Civetta pushed himself forward. “I want a phone. I’ll have forty-eleven lawyers down there before you can sneeze. You got nothing at all on me.”

Hastings said mildly, “At the moment it’s not you we want, Mr. Civetta.” He turned and touched Villiers’ elbow. “Come on-you’ll ride with me.”

“Keep your hands off me,” Villiers murmured, and walked up the road ahead of him. A third man, with the wise face of a twenty-year cop, trailed along and got into the car with them, sitting in the back seat with his hand under the lapel of his coat.

Villiers said, “I believe I’m entitled to know what charge you’ve arrested me on.”

“You’ll have it spelled out on paper when we arrive in New York,” Hastings said. He put the car in gear and followed the two other cars toward the main highway. “I may as well tell you we’ve got complete sworn statements from Steve Wyatt and from Carol McCloud. Do I need to add anything to that? I’m sure you know what they contain as well as I do.”

Carol. Villiers closed his eyes down to slits and stared straight ahead at the red taillights of the Lincoln. He settled back in the seat and folded his arms across his chest; his chin drooped slightly, as if he were very tired.

Hastings said, “It’s been a long time coming to you, hasn’t it? You’ve had a good run for the money.”

“Mr. Hastings,” Villiers breathed, “I am not finished yet. I’ve still got the brain in my head, which is worth more than every stock certificate on Wall Street and every indictment you can draw up against me.”

Hastings gave him a strange glance. “Maybe.”

Villiers turned his head and looked at the man. “Maybe,” he said. And then he uttered a harsh, metallic laugh.

35. Russell Hastings

The news had leaked, inevitably. Reporters had the Tombs under siege-photographers, radio-TV truck crews, newsmen with microphones and notebooks. Hastings and Burgess led a wedge through to the door. Mason Villiers stared through the crowd, expressionless, while Civetta and Fields threw up their hands in front of their faces. “No pictures please!” A reporter crowded in front of Villiers and shoved a microphone in his face and yelled something; and Villiers said loudly, in a friendly voice, “Fuck yourself, friend,” which ensured that the soundtrack wouldn’t be aired.

They had to lean against the door to close it on the crush of newsmen. Burgess remarked, “I hate the whole breed-there’s not one of them who’d leave a stricken grieving widow alone without flash-bulbing and interrogating her to tears, and then they go ahead and write lies anyway.”

Quint was inside, with the U.S. attorney. One of Burgess’ men read aloud, in a bored monotone, the prisoners’ rights, at the end of which Civetta said loudly, “No talking until we get our lawyers down here. Not a word.”

Hastings all the while watched Villiers, but the tall man never cracked; he acted as if he were in complete control of his fate and looked forward to beating the rap. Burgess growled in Hastings’ ear, “There’ll be an arraignment, and they’ll get bail set, and the Goddamned outcome is murky as hell, tape or no tape. About all I can see is we’ve squashed the raid on NCI.”

“Isn’t that what it’s all about?” Hastings said. He looked at Burgess, and his eyes sparkled and flashed. “There’ll be another raid, Bill. And another one after that. God knows why they call it the securities market.”

After endless red tape and inconsequential talk the two men walked out and stood on the corner of Centre Street, and Burgess said, “It’ll rain soon.”

“You still playing poker Wednesday night?”

“Sure. You gonna be there, Russ?”

“You bet your ass I’ll be there,” Hastings said. “Warn them all to watch out for me, Bill-I’m going to be the Rommel of that poker table from now on.”

“Yeah,” Burgess said absently. “I wonder what’s going on right now inside his head.”

“Villiers?”

“I wonder if he ever thinks about all the people he swindled along the way.”

“Would you?” Hastings asked, and walked away from him. When he turned the corner he was thinking of half a dozen girls’ names and deciding which one to call tomorrow.

He turned uptown, deciding to walk. It was the deserted nadir of a very hot night; he moved north briskly, bright-eyed in a wilted seersucker suit. He remembered Mason Villiers’ cold eyes, which for a moment back there had mesmerized him, leading him to understand how and why Villiers was able to do the things he did; he remembered coming out of that brief entrancement suddenly with the realization that Mason Villiers was, after all, flesh. Not unique; I brought him down, he thought with hard satisfaction.

When you were on a tightrope, you had to walk carefully-but you had to keep walking.

The tiny smile on Hastings’ face hardened suddenly, like a scar, like a trap abruptly sprung.