THE RUNNER SCREENPLAY, BRIAN R. LUNDIN [phonics reader .TXT] 📗

Jimmy will call there and set everything up.

Vito peeling off two one thousand dollar bills and placed, it on the envelope still sitting on his desk.

CLIFF
Yeah, maybe you’re right, I got some vacation time. When I get back we’ll start to work on them niggers again.

The sergeant picked up the money and envelope, kissed Vito on both cheeks and left. There was an uneasy quietness in the room.

JIMMY
What you thinking boss, what you thinking?

Jimmy repeated words brought Vito out of his melancholy.

VITO
(annoyed)
Motherfucker if you don’t stop that repeating shit, I am going to kick your ass.

Sergeant Cliff Calfino arrived at the Cancun Airport at eight in the morning. After getting his luggage, he hailed a cab. It was an incredibly beautiful morning. The sun had risen out of the east in a cloudless sky and a slight breeze coming off the Gulf of Mexico stifled the humidity. The temperature was already at seventy-five degrees as Calfino settled back in the air-conditioned cab and looked out at the three large cruise ships laying at anchor way off in the Gulf. The streets were crowded with tourist from the ships darting in and out of the numerous souvenir shops. It was a short ride from the airport to the villa. When Calfino arrived at the villa, Filipe, the overseer of the villa and five servants who acted as cooks, maintenance people and gardener lined up for his inspection. After briefly glancing and dismissing them, the overseer led Calfino to the master quarters.

OVERSEER
(Mexican accent)
Mr. Paligreno instructed me to be sure you enjoyed yourself and relaxed. I have arranged for three of the most beautiful and experienced ladies of the night to be available whenever you wish, sir.

CLIFF
I’ll let you know.

INT. VILLA-AFTERNOON

The three-story villa was built into a mountain and exquisitely furnished. On the second level was a library that contained a wide selection of books on Italian history and many fictional novels. On the third level were the master quarters that consisted of a sitting room, a large bedroom and a bathroom with solid gold fixtures and a balcony. The main floor housed the ten bedrooms, ten baths, and a large living room with a wide-screen television. Embedded night-lights illuminated the colorful patio, driveway, guesthouses and the Olympic size swimming pool. Its large bay windows provided a panoramic view of the gulf and its blue-green water. The former owner of the villa was a French businessman who had over-extended his import/export wine business and was having financial problems. A friend introduced him to Vito for a short-term loan of $500,000 dollars with a monthly interest rate of thirty percent of the unpaid balance. The Frenchmen, who was a bad businessman, fell behind in his payments and to avoid having his legs broken or worse he signed over the villa to Vito. Vito very seldom visited the villa, because he sunburned easily, but he let his mob and political friends rent it for a reasonable rate.

One of the servants brought into Calfino room a fruit basket, a pitcher of lemonade and another servant brought in his luggage. Calfino put on a white multi-colored short sleeve shirt opened to his navel and tied a pair of white-shorts; a pair of brown open toe sandals, sunglasses and a wide brim hat and stepped out on the balcony. He looked out at the bluish green waters of the Gulf and at the other luxury villas. A big, overweight man, soft with sunburned skin wearing absurd little bikini shorts was standing beside a large screened pool with a reddish and brown golden retriever. The man would throw a floating orange artificial dog bone into the pool and the dog would dive in, retrieve the bone and look imploringly at his master, orange bone in his jaws. On command the dog would climb up the pool stairs, drop the bone at his master’s feet and shake himself so vigorously in the sunshine Calfino could see the little rainbows of spray. After a couple of throws and retrievals the dog’s master ignored the bone, the dog sighed and collapsed under a large table. As Calfino leisurely strolled along the edges of the warm water three young Mexicans who were selling gunga cigars approached him. The cigars were made of tobacco that grew wild on the island and was more potent than marijuana. One of the boys was extremely attractive, his copper-colored skin contrasted perfectly with his straight black hair and eyes. His cut-off jeans revealed powerful looking legs and a muscled behind. Calfino felt aroused as he gave the boy a twenty- dollar bill for two cigars. He was tempted to proposition the boy but before he could his friends called and they ran off down the beach, maybe next time, Calfino thought. As he continued strolling along the beach, men and women with golden bodies either sitting in deck chairs or on blankets waved and smiled at him as he walked past. Calfino noticed the trim, well built young men wearing bikini’s splashing in the warm water or playing beach volley ball, the sergeant was total uninterested at the tanned beautiful women who flirted as he walked past. Calfino heard music coming from a cabaña at the Fiesta Americana Hotel. A crowd had gathered around a three piece Mexican band that consisted of a steel drum, and two guitar players. The rhythm was exciting and a beautiful dark skinned, voluptuous Mexican woman clad in a skimpy thong bikini and a Maya headdress joined them. She was an exquisitely built young woman, tall with shapely muscled legs and a small waist; her long black hair flowed down her bronze colored skin to the top of her bikini tong. The woman began to sway sensuously to the rhythms of the band. The laces holding the top of her bikini seemed as though they would burst under the weight of her large busts. Slowly she began to remove the bikini top and bottom. The rhythms of the band intensified as the woman gyrating on the sand, nude. Calfino watched with amusement as the older, less endowed women started covering themselves with their wraps. He continued down the champagne colored beach, smoking one of the gunga cigars. Calfino started to relax and blotted away the memory of the black panthers. A short distance from the band was the nude beach, the song “Yellowbird” played loudly as nude bronze skinned young women and men served drinks. Golden brown body’s laid nude on blankets, only their faces covered, which shielded them from the hot mid day sun. Braver couples strolled nude, unembarrassed hand-in hand towards the blue-green water. Calfino looked around and noticed a young man lying naked on his stomach. The sun had bleached the young man dark brown hair and he had a deep tan. Calfino stood looking at the young man slender well developed body and got an erection. The young man had strong looking legs and round firm buttocks that contained dimples and tattoos. Calfino got a blanket from the attendant and spread it a few feet from the young man. The young man turned his head and smiled as he looked at Calfino.

REMONE IMOYE
Hi my name is Remone Imoye.

The young man voice was friendly and enticing and his English was very good, but spoken with a slight African accent. He had very keen features, dark brown eyes and extremely dark skin. He smiled at the sergeant and showed dazzling white teeth. This is a nude beach, my friend, are you bashful?

CLIFF
Hi, I’m Cliff Calfino not at all.

Calfino smiled and teasingly removed his shirt and shorts. The young man looked at Calfino, from top to bottom, but mainly concentrated his eyes on Calfino’s crouch which showed his erection.

REMONE
You shouldn’t be.

They both laughed and shared a gunga cigar and after a couple of rum swizzles; Remone accompanied the sergeant to the villa. Remone was very impressed with the villa that Calfino claimed he owned and they spent the rest of Cliff’s time in Cancun together. Yeah, Calfino thought, Vito was right, some sun and some black ass would make me feel better.

INT. AREA ONE DEPUTY CHIEF WILLIAM O’HALLORAN-MORNING

Commander Hollis along with IST District Commander, Richard Corliss and the 21st District Commander, Ronald Nash was in the conference room of for their monthly staff meeting. As Area One Deputy Chief, Chief O’Halloran was their direct supervisor and chaired the meeting. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss any problems the District Commanders had, crime statistics and to relay orders from the Superintendent or his command staff. Commander Corliss district consisted mainly of downtown Chicago; his district had very little residents or crime. Commander Nash district consisted of the University Chicago and Hyde Park an upscale neighborhood of mainly white, upper-classed mainly white professionals. Chief O’Halloran came from a police family, his two brothers were Field Lieutenants on the North side, his grandfather had retired as a Captain, and his father had retired as a District Commander. While a patrolman, O’Halloran worked with Captain Turnbo on the prestigious Mayor’s Body Guard Detail and he and Hollis had worked together as Field Lieutenants in the 2nd District, but on different shift. O’Halloran was a thirty year police veteran and was “Heavy,” police slang for someone with a lot of connections or “Clout.” It was common knowledge that O’Halloran was on the mob’s payroll, but that was merely one of the perks of the job. He was appointed Deputy Chief two years before Hollis was appointed District Commander.

The Chicago Police Department’s command structure is like a pyramid, with the thousands of police officer forming the base and the Superintendent at the apex. The Superintendent is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the mayor, with the approval of the city council. The First Deputy Superintendent really oversees the day-by-day running of the department and is also appointed by the mayor. The Superintendent is suppose to be able to appoint his own command staff of “Exempt Officers,” but in reality he’s got to get the mayor’s approval. Exempt Officers composed the command staff of the department; politics and clout, often determined promotions to exempt. The Superintendent of Police, with the mayor’s approval, could appoint any police officer, regardless of rank, or a civilian to an exempt rank and most of the Police and Fire Department “Exempts,” were Irish. The rank of District Commander is the first exempt position in the Patrol Division, the largest division in the department. Below the exempt rank are captains, lieutenants, sergeants, detectives and patrolman. Chicago is a political city, controlled by Irishmen. Its Mayor, Richard J. Daley is Irish and is known as a “King Maker,” whose political influence extended to Washington, D.C. and it was rumored that the only reason John F.Kennedy was elected president was because of the mayor’s influence and the assistance of the Chicago Mob. After reviewing the crime statistics and the Crime Analysis Reports, the Deputy Chief opened the meeting for questions and suggestions; Commander Corliss wanted more men to cover the upcoming summer festivals in Grant Park and Commander Nash wanted more men to cover the lakefront and particularly the Jackson Park boat harbors where expensive boats and yachts had been broken into last summer. The Chief told the Commander’s that he would forward their request through channels.

Deputy Chief Commander Hollis you don’t have any concerns?

HOLLIS
On the contrary, chief I’ve got too many concerns. One concern is this ongoing war between Vito Paligreno and Jerome McLemore that have already resulted in a firebombing and the death of a child. I do believe that Vito had his boys kidnap Mr. McLemore