From Here to Eternity_ The Restored Edit - Jones, James [81]
Julius Sussman stood up, counting the little money he had left. “Well, it was fine while it lasted. Sure busted up a nice friendly little game, all right. I aint even got enough left for a tank of gas. You dont want to play some more, I guess?” he said to Maggio.
“Not me,” Maggio said. “I’m goin to the sheds.”
“Thats what I figured,” Sussman said. He walked over to a window and stood looking out, his hands jammed in his pockets. “Son of a bitch,” he said. “This creepjoint gets me. If this rain would let up a little, I could go for a ride and maybe find some ass, if I had a tank of gas.” He stood back and sighed. “I guess I’ll see can I scour up some dough for me for a tank of gas.”
“Want me to go with you, Angelo?” Sal Clark said, getting up from the game of solitaire he had started on the bench. “I’ll sweat them out for you,” he offered.
“Naw,” Maggio said, defensively. “Sweat them out myself. Get my money’s worth.”
“I sweat them out for you, you’ll win,” Sal offered. “I cant never win myself, but I can sweat winners out for everybody else.”
Maggio turned to look at him and grinned. “You stay here and sweat them out, Friday. I win I’ll bring you all back a five buck loan. Hey, Prew,” he called. “Tell your man Friday to stay here and sweat them for me. He wont listen to me.”
Prew stopped rubbing his hand on the slipperiness and looked up but he did not grin, and he did not speak.
“If you let me go with you and sweat them,” Sal said, “I’ll go for nothin. Save you money.”
“For Christ’s sake, shut up,” Andy said sullenly. “Cant you see he dont want you to go? You aint got no goddam pride a tall.”
“There wont be hardly nobody over there,” Maggio said. “Thats why. This late in the month there’ll only be the big winner’s poker table goin, and maybe one blackjack game for small fry.”
“We’re goin to the second show anyway,” Andy said. He walked back to Prew. “Loan me twenty cents, Prew, will you? So we can go to the show? I got twenty left, but Sal needs twenty.”
“Here,” Prew said bitterly, handing him the sixty cents he had. “Take it all. It wont do me no good.”
“Aw, I hate to do that,” Andy said, but he did not draw back his hand.
“Yeah, you hate it,” Prew said. “I know you hate it.”
“I do,” Andy said. “All I ask you for was twenty cents.” He looked at Prew, his eyes going out of focus because he knew he was lying, and he did not want to lie, but still wanted the money.
“Well you got it all, so shut up,” Prew said. “And for god sake when you talk to a man look him in the goddam eyes, will you? You give me the goddam willies.”
“Okay, Prew,” Andy said. “You want me to take it all?”
“You got it, aint you? Go spend it and shut up.”
“Okay,” Andy said. “Come on, Sal,” he said, walking over to the bench. “Lets play couple hands of casino, till its show time.”
Prew looked at him disgustedly and went back to the sink, feeling the need of a woman writhing in his belly.
“Hey, Prew,” Maggio called cautiously, jerking his head back at the door. “Come on out on the porch a minute.”
“What for?” Prew said, knowing he was being bastardly, but unable to stop it. “You got the money, go blow it.”
“Come on out here a minute, goddam it,” Maggio said.
“Okay,” he said, and left the sink. Andy did not look up as he passed, but Sal Clark looked up and grinned with his bashful fawn’s eyes at him.
“Take it easy, Friday,” Prew said gently.
Chapter 11
MAGGIO WAS STANDING on the porch, waiting for him, his bony shoulders in the undershirt hunched up against the chill, staring at the streams of water falling just outside the screen. The sound of water spattering on the walk below filled the whole porch, drowning the sounds of sleep from in the squadroom.
“You want to go to town with me? if I win?” he asked, turning as Prew came out.
Prew grunted irritably. “What’re you doin? invitin me because you feel sorry for me?”
“Ha,” Maggio said. “Dont flatter yourself. I just dont like to go to town by myself. I dont know anybody in town.”
“Well neither do I,” Prew said.
“A guy’s more lonesome