Omerta - Mario Puzo [90]
Bruno could hear and he shouted, “You got me into this, you prick! Now get me out.”
Astorre said calmly, “Timmona, make this swap and we can talk about the deal you want. I know you think I’ve been bull-headed, but when we meet I’ll tell you the reason and you’ll know I’ve been doing you a favor.”
Portella’s voice was quiet now. “OK,” he said. “How do we set up this meeting?”
“I’ll meet you at the Paladin restaurant at noon,” Astorre said. “I have a private room there. I’ll bring Bruno with me, and you bring Marc. You can bring bodyguards if you’re leery, but we don’t want a bloodbath in a public place. We talk things over and make the exchange.”
There was a long pause, and then Portella said, “I’ll be there, but don’t try anything funny.”
“Don’t worry,” Astorre said cheerfully. “After this meeting we’ll be buddies.”
Astorre and Monza put Bruno between them, Astorre linking arms with Bruno in a friendly way. They took him down the stairs to the street. There were an additional two cars with Astorre’s men waiting. “Take Bruno with you in one of the cars,” Astorre told Monza. “Have him at the Paladin at noon. I’ll meet you there.”
“What the hell do I do with him until then?” Monza asked. “That’s hours from now.”
“Take him for breakfast,” Astorre said. “He likes to eat. That should take up a couple of hours. Then take him for a walk in Central Park. Go to the zoo. I’ll take one of the cars and a driver. If he tries to run away, don’t kill him. Just catch him.”
“You’ll be on your own,” Monza said. “Is that smart?”
“I’ll be OK.” In the car Astorre used his cell phone to call Nicole’s private number. It was now nearly six in the morning, and light transfixed the city into long thin lines of stone.
Nicole’s voice was sleepy when she answered. Astorre remembered it had been like that when she was a young girl and his lover. “Nicole, wake up,” he said. “You know who this is?”
The question obviously irritated her. “Of course I know who it is. Who else would call at this hour?”
“Listen carefully,” Astorre said. “No questions. That document you’re holding for me, the one I signed for Cilke, remember you told me not to sign?”
“Yes,” Nicole said curtly, “of course I remember.”
“Do you have it at home or in your office safe?” Astorre asked.
“In my office, of course,” Nicole said.
“OK,” Astorre said. “I’ll be at your house in thirty minutes. I’ll ring your bell. Be ready and come down. Bring all your keys. We’re going to your office.”
When Astorre rang Nicole’s bell, she came down immediately dressed in a blue leather coat and carrying a large purse. She kissed him on the cheek but didn’t dare say a word until they were in the car and she had to give instructions to the driver. Then she continued her silence until they were in her office suite.
“Now, tell me why you want that document,” she said.
“You don’t have to know,” Astorre said.
He saw she was angry with the answer, but she went to the office safe that was part of the desk and produced a file folder.
“Don’t close the safe,” Astorre said. “I want the tape you made of our meeting with Cilke.”
Nicole handed him the folder. “You have a right to these documents,” she said. “But you have no right to any tape, even if it existed.”
“Long ago you told me you taped every meeting in your office, Nicole,” Astorre said. “And I watched you at the meeting. You were a little too satisfied with yourself.”
Nicole laughed with scornful affection. “You’ve changed,” she said. “You were never one of those assholes who thought they could read other people’s minds.”
Astorre gave her a rueful grin and said apologetically, “I thought you still liked me. That’s why I never asked what you deleted in your father’s file before you showed it to me.”
“I deleted nothing,” Nicole said coolly. “And I don’t give the tape until you tell me what this is all about.”
Astorre was silent, then he said, “OK, you’re a big girl now.” He laughed when he saw how angry she was, her eyes flashing, her lips curled with contempt. It reminded him of how she looked when she confronted him