The Bobby Gold stories - Anthony Bourdain [30]
"Do I know you?" said Bobby.
"No. I don't think so," said the man, taking a seat at the corner two-top.
"Have a seat," said Bobby. "I guess."
"Do I look like a cop?"
"Yes. You do," said Bobby. "It shows all over."
"Yeah," said the cop. "That's what my wife says."
"Is there a problem?" asked Bobby. "I done something wrong?"
"This is a social visit," said the cop. "For now, anyway." He snapped his fingers for a waiter — who was visibly displeased at being summoned in such a fashion — and ordered a coffee.
"Bad Bobby Gold," said the cop. "I'm Lieutenant James Connely of the Organized Crime Strike Force. Your name keeps popping up in an investigation we're taking part in and I thought we'd have a chat."
"Investigating what? I'm a doorman. I work security at NiteKlub. Anything we have to report we report to Midtown South."
The cop waved away what Bobby was saying, ignored it completely. "Please? Okay? We both know the drill, okay? You're nice and polite. You make it look like you're honestly attempting to answer my questions — but you're confused by them because of your immaculate state of innocence. I make some suggestive remarks. Then you simply tell me to fuck off — talk to your lawyer — and how dare you interrupt my bone marrow. Either way you tell me shit and play Dumbo. Okay? Either way you listen. 'Cause you're curious."
"I'm curious?"
You should be. Things are happening. Things that are gonna be affecting you and that nice job you have. Or should I say jobs?"
"You gonna tell me what you're talking about? Or we just gonna play I Know More Than I'm Tellin'? You win, by the way."
"I'm gonna tell you. I'm gonna tell you right now," said the cop, not acknowledging the arrival of his coffee. He didn't even look at it. "That little freak you work for? Mr. 'Eddie Fish'? We're picking up that this goof is gonna get himself greased any minute now. Did you know that? I hear you're close. Like brothers, you're so close. Did you know how bad things were?" Bobby just shook his head slowly and kept his mouth shut.
"Eddie is no longer in such good odor with his former associates. People are talking. They're saying Eddie has been unreliable lately. Making a pest of himself. They say that he's popping pills which make him stupid — or should I say more stupid — and some people, apparently have had quite enough. He hasn't been showing up at sit-downs. You know that? They don't like that out there, you know. They really take that the wrong way. They ask a person to come in for a nice talk and he doesn't, they start getting all sorts of ideas. Eddie hasn't been keeping his appointments."
"Maybe he's been sick. I don't know."
"He's not sick. Eddie's suckin' that glass dick. He's poppin' a fuckin' drugstore full a goofballs — he's sitting around his fuck-pad on Sutton Place in his undies and ordering take-out. You know that. The man is toast. Tommy V is running the show for him at the club. Did you know that? Of course not. You wouldn't notice something like a new boss, would you Bobby?"
Bobby just shrugged.
"Shrug all you like. Don't mean shit to me. Alls I'm tellin' you is that your old pal is finished. As soon as he steps out for a sandwich or a blow job, somebody's gonna do him. They got a patch a land-fill all picked out for him. And my question to you is: what do you, Bobby 'Gold,' ne Goldstein, gonna do then? You gonna work for Tommy? You think they gonna let you live?
"You, they're actually scared of. Eddie's just annoying. What do you think is gonna happen, they drive out Eddie to his final resting place? They gonna let his bestest friend, Big Bad Bobby, live on? Bad Bobby who, they say, did two big bastards up in prison there? The guy they call when somebody needs his bones busted? Eddie Fish's oldest and closest friend and fellow tribe member? You don't think they're worried you might want to do something stupid like take revenge when Eddie goes? You got no job security in what you been doing, Bobby. I can tell you that for free."
"I can't say I know what you're talking about," said Bobby.
"I know