THE RUNNER/SCREENPLAY, BRIAN R. LUNDIN [best classic books to read .txt] 📗

Gaza.

PAULI
Commander Hollis it is a pleasure to meet an honest cop.

HOLLIS
I hear there is trouble between you and Vito, don’t know and I don’t care to know, what the problems are with you and Vito, but anymore firebombing or shootouts that endanger the people in this community will be dealt with severely.

PAULI
I am not involved in any shootouts or firebombing and I hope you catch the lowlifes involved. I read about the young child and I wept, I have a child that age myself. Violence only brings trouble and heat, and believe me I don’t need either.

Pauli looked at the agents.
HOLLIS
Good, then we understand each other.


The commander and the sergeant left.

PAULI
Listen Jerome you’ve got to be careful with Vito, he is after your thing and will do anything to get it.

JEROME
We have been doing business for a long time, Pauli and it has been profitable for the both of us. Let Vito bring it on, but I hope what’s between Vito and me does not involve you.

PAULI
It doesn’t, I’ve got my own problems with Vito.

Gaza prepared to leave and the two men in the cheap dark suits and short haircuts followed.

Vito had a hard night. In his dreams, he was running and ducking behind trees in a dark jungle. Deep, guttural sounds came from somewhere and they kept getting closer. A beautiful, naked black woman walked out of the shadows with outstretched arms, and she smiled enticingly at him. As he approached, the woman transformed into a black panther and lunged at him, knocking him to the ground and begin ripping open his stomach and eating his intestines. Vito’s frantic screams awaken Jimmy who slipped out of Vito’s chair and fell hard on the floor.

JIMMY
Boss, boss, wake up!

Vito screamed again when the monster in his dream tore out another piece of flesh. Jimmy began shaking his boss, as Vito’s screams became louder and more terrifying. Jimmy ran to the liquor cabinet and poured an entire bottle of Dago Red Wine in Vito’s face. Vito awoke with a start and coughing. He was drenched in sweat and had soiled himself. After taking a cold shower and changing clothes, Vito still shaking sat on the opposite side of his desk while Jimmy placed two cups of instant coffee on the desk.

JIMMY
Feeling better, boss, feeling better?

VITO
Yeah, what a fuckin’ nightmare that was.

Vito told Jimmy of the dream and in its retelling he began to sweat again.

JIMMY
Let’s get out, boss, get some fresh air.

VITO
Good idea, matter of fact let’s take a ride to the Western Union; I’ve got to send off some messages.

Over the years, Vito had used members of the Chinese Triad as gunmen, assassins and drug couriers. Although he didn’t like them and he blamed them for the attack on Pearl Harbor. To Vito Japanese, Chinese and all the other “Slit eyes bastards,” as he called them were all alike. The triad was a group of Chinese gangsters that lived in Chinatown. The Triad was expensive, but they were very thorough, had guts and kept their mouths closed. Vito sent the Western Union telegram, written in code to a Post Office box in Chinatown, located on west 22nd Street. The messages requested a sit down with Yow Moon, leader of the triad. The Triad was the main drug dealers in Chinatown and smuggled illegal Chinese immigrants into the country, for a fee. Like Bronzeville, Chinatown was a unique ethnic community. They had their own mayor and their own gambling games called Won Ton and Dominoes. Yow, Moon was slightly built and short with long black hair worn in a ponytail. He had an extensive juvenile and adult arrest record ranging from burglary to murder, but no convictions. Yow and Chin Lee, his warlord sat opposite Vito in Vito’s office.

VITO
I have a job for you and your guy’s.

YOW
Good, we are ready for any job you have.

JIMMY
Well, this is a little different than the other business we’ve had.

YOW
No matter, business is business, what’s the job?

VITO
Really I’ve got two jobs for you but first things first. I’ve got a problem with a guy that I want you to take care of.

YOW
No problemo, whoses the guy and what you want done?

VITO
First I want you to take out a Nigra gambler, Jerome McLemore, then I want you to take out my Capo, Pauli Gaza, I want both of them, dead.

YOW
Wow, this is different, my friend.

VITO
I’ll pay 500 big ones, if you take care of it.

YOW
For a half million I’ll take care of Satan himself. Give me two weeks and it’s done.

Yow and Chin got up to leave. Vito slid a stuffed envelope across the table to Yow.

VITO
Here’s 10 grand to get you started.

CHIN
It’s always a pleasure doing business with you, Don Vito.

VITO
Shit, fuck, I remember when a hit was only 20 bucks, them some thieving sonsobitches.

JIMMY
Inflation, but Don Vito, I like that boss.

VITO
Me too, call Candy I wants some black pussy.


Jerome McLemore and his Big Ten syndicate paid off the black politicians, policemen, lawyers, businessmen and ministers in Bronzeville and Pops assigned Simbas as personal bodyguards to syndicate members and stationed other State Street Boy’s gang members to the policy stations and offices; Jerome of course had Ted, Madame Bourneis and Marque. Meanwhile Yow Moon and Chin Lee, his warlord set up surveillance at the Club.

CHIN
This is going to be a piece of cake. You would think a big shot nigger like that would have more protection, other than two other shines and a broad. We don’t need the other guys for this hit; we can do it ourselves and won’t have to give them shit.

Moon give Chin a hand slap.

When you think we should take him out?

YOW
Let’s look at him a couple more days, get his routine down, its Wednesday now, let’s do it on Saturday when all the niggers are out partyin’. We’ll save that beautiful black bitch; she should be a lotta fun.


Pauli Gaza weakness was over-confident. For years, he had ruled the Chicago Outfit without any opposition. Even thought he lived in a world of murders, rapist and robbers he believed he was invincible, that no one, especially Vito Pellegrino could get to him. He believed that this thing with Vito would be resolved with Vito coming around and kissing his ring or Vito would be dead. In Pauli’s mind, Vito was just a misbehaving child or a young man smelling himself. Vito was no problem. Pauli Gaza and Genco Grisani his new underboss was drinking lemonade in Pauli’s den at the mansion referred to as the Little White House.
GENCO
What we going to do about Vito?

PAULI
Nothin’ let’s see what he does. One of my guys heard that Vito has hired some chinks for muscle and he probably coming after me and Jerome. I didn’t think that Vito was stupid enough to try anything with us, knowing the feds are all over my ass.

GENCO
I agree his first move will be against McLemore.

PAULI
Well, he gonna have his hand full, fuckin’ with Jerome. Give him a call and tell him about the chinks. Also let that nigger police commander know also.

REGGIE
I got an anonymous call and was told that Vito is hiring the Chinese Triad to go after Jerome

HOLLIS,
Shit, what’s wrong with that asshole?

REGGIE
Crazy, that garlic eatin’ motherfucker is just plain crazy.

HOLLIS
Better let Jerome know.

JEROME
I just got a call from Sergeant Lundgrin and he confirmed what Pauli’s man said about the Triad.

TED
There’s been some oriental guys gambling hard at the crap table the last couple of nights, big spenders and losers. I’ll alert Baxter and the Pops, to get ready.

CHIN
I’ve been thinking boss, how’s about taking off the casino before we do that nigger, there’s a lot of money in there. Shit, I dropped two grand just fuckin’ around on the crap table.

YOW
We’ll need the rest of the guys for that. OK, get them ready we go tomorrow night.

Saturday night was called “Nigger Night,” by some whites. 47th Street came alive after the sun went down. The people who could not afford the high prices and extravagance of the Tivoli Club, still was having a good time as they packed the smaller taverns. Streetwalkers pranced, the street showing off their wares, young and old black women spent their day getting their hair done, either by a friend or at the local beauty parlors and getting ready for Saturday night were out in force, hoping to find a good man with a job. The mini-shirt was the fashion and the women with nice legs made sure they had the miniest of minis. The men had their Afro’s trimmed and their cars washed. In effect, Saturday night was “Nigger Night.” The people who had jobs were generally to tired from working all week on their back-breaking laboring jobs to go out on Friday, so Saturday night was their time, they had all day Sunday to get over their hangover and be ready for work on Monday.

In addition to being the “In Spot,” the casino generated business for the other businesses on 47th Street. There is continuous and colorful movement-shoppers streaming out of stores, insurance agents collecting their weekly funeral premiums, blind men with their beggar’s cups, street musicians playing jazz in front of South Center Department store, the largest black-owned department store in the country, or a one-legged veteran propped up against the side of a building with a cardboard sign around his neck that read, “HELP A WAR HERO.”

The fast and soul food restaurants benefited by the increased street traffic as did the smaller taverns and blues clubs. The black clerks in the grocery stores and the clothing stores where busy waiting on the influx of customers. Most stores extended their hours on Saturday night, hoping to get customers. 47th Street was the urban equivalent of a village square. A black resident of Bronzeville eventually would be on 47th Street. A long time resident of Bronzeville told a young man who had migrated from the south, looking for a friend,

RESIDENT
If you trying to find a certain Negro in Chicago stand on the corner of 47th and South Park long enough and you’re bound to see him.

Although other black neighborhoods had their centers of activities, drugs stores, pool halls, grocery stores, churches and taverns, 47th Street overshadowed all other business area in size and importance in Chicago.

A hundred people crowded the Casino Room. Some were at the dice tables and some were at the card tables. Yow Moon, Chin Lee and three Triad members were at the crap table, Jerome, Ted, Madame Bournies and Marque were in his private dining room. Pops and twenty State Street Boys were at the different tables watching Yow and Chin and Jerome had hired a dozen “Rent-A-Cops,” since receiving the warning. Cinque had taken a position behind an ornate marble statue of a nude woman on the balcony his bow ready. Suddenly, five black hooded men burst into the room.

HOODED MAN
Stickup, everybody be cool and nobody