Читать книгу Yet Untitled - Welby Thomas Cox Jr. - Страница 9

The Capitol Rotunda was alive with noontime activity. At least two schools had troops of middle schoolers chirping in the excitement of a field trip. Not so much over the history of the state but just being out of school with all your friends. Just as well, Hamilton thought, better they learn the real business of government at a later date or hopefully they will select a line of work which doesn’t expose them to the rot, corruption and business as usual.

Hamilton thought he could use a couple of friends. Thank goodness for John Wayne who was looking like one of the Greek columns, heavily disguised? Thad took a seat on a bench as far from the children and the noise as possible. He had brought a sandwich and a Sprite to mesh with the noontime crowd. In addition, the luncheon look gave him cover in case the wire he was wearing made some noise. He glanced around to spot the guy Wayne had brought along to video the event.

A man sat down beside Thad, took out a cigar and offered one to Thad.

“No thanks,” Thad said when he could get his throat wet.

“Guess I’d better take advantage, I hear there are those trying to outlaw smoking in all public buildings. It will soon be a thing of the past!”

This wasn’t the same voice as the one making the call last evening. Thank goodness for that.

“As will be the tactics of your friends!” Thad said to the courier.

“This isn’t a pleasant occasion for me either, Mr. Hamilton!”

“I’m just a businessman trying to make a living. What do you want from me?” Hamilton asked.

“You know northern Indiana, because of the heavy industry, steel and chemical plants… the sins of the fathers, so to speak. Well, it is and may always be the armpit of the State of Indiana. It’s not a pleasant place to live or to be, Mr. Hamilton. We are sort of the ‘red-head step-child’, and, because of the economic difficulty… there is also a lot of in-fighting, you know turf wars among our politicians and community leadership. Whenever we come to the state capitol, we are always prepared to do battle, to get our share of the taxes… which our citizens pay out in large numbers. All the little counties out in the state, which control the legislative body, despise us, and fear us at the same time! Whichever… doesn’t matter, because we always wind up paying the most taxes and getting the least return, percentage wise? Because of this history, sir, we become far less socially well intentioned. In the big picture we are like an abused pit bull… on a short shank. Can you imagine that kind of existence, Mr. Hamilton? Always on guard, someone ready to tear off the arm that feeds you? Your arm, Mr. Hamilton?”

The man went on, “I just wish that we could be given some room, give that pit bull a few decent meals, served in a dish with a cool bowl of water and give the poor fellow all he wants. I’d guess after a couple of weeks, a man could walk right up to that pit bull, remove the shank and sit down beside him while he dines! It doesn’t help that we are also right next door to Gary, a part of Lake County that no one wants to acknowledge… another group of people who have been tethered to a short-shank. I wouldn’t be surprised that it might take a full year of feeding before I’d sit down with that bulldog. They are an angry bunch of people over there, and got quite a reputation for violence. White man over there, well, let’s just say I’d take the long way around to Chicago. Mr. Hamilton, I believe you have offered our community a wonderful plan and we deserve this new plant. It could be a miracle for us, but the political bosses up there, they have a way of doing business. You’ve left them nothing to knaw on! Now some folks frown on political machines, but as the old saying goes, “when you are up to your ass in alligators you might forget that your original purpose for being in the swamp was to drain it!” We want to do this project; we want you to do it. And don’t forget, Mr. Hamilton, you came to us. Can you expect to teach us a new dance without a few lessons? They can be costly, Mr. Hamilton, or show us a few more steps…let us know that we can participate…that you are not going to demand to lead all the time…maybe we all could enjoy the dance?” he said.

There was a silence. Thad could almost hear the spool on the tape. He shook the bag with the sandwich and he popped the top on the Sprite.

“You asked me here, sir,” Thad said.

“We don’t want anything that’s not legal… that may shock you. Unfortunately, our reputation is like that of Billy the Kid… poor fellow, killed more people at the same time, in different places than you can imagine.” He laughed alone “Historically, the whole of Lake County’s political machine has taken 2% from the vendors and patronage workers. Your plan strips us of a million dollars, Mr. Hamilton.”

“We are willing to pay the 2% legally,” Thad said, looking directly into the eyes of the courier.

The portly man, sitting next to Thad, fidgeted but he didn’t flinch, not a good sign, Thad thought. The old guy cleaned his thumbnail…took a long draw off the cigar and exhaled slowly.

“How would you do that since most of our vendors’ pay the 2% by buying raffle tickets?” he inquired.

“We’d buy raffle tickets!” Hamilton said.

“Well I’m a trusting fellow, Mr. Hamilton, but you see… my friends up there in Lake County, they’d just laugh and say, yeah, sure you will, after you’ve gotten the job.”

“I’m a serious man, sir, and it could easily be structured into an Irrevocable Trust at the time of the bond sale to be disbursed $50,000 per year for the life of the project.”

The courier shuffled again.

“Well I know I would have to talk to my people,” he paused, “and you would have to talk to your people.”

“Sir, I think you have the muscle to say yes or no… here on the spot,” Thad said.

“I can make the commitment now… with this caveat… the county will have to provide the land for the plant” Hamilton said.

“We got more land than a koons got ticks. “Time is short sir” the courier said, “I’ll call you tomorrow at noon without fail”.

“Yes, and who are you?”

“My name is Courcelous, Louie Courcelous”.

The two men shook hands nervously, at the end of which Hamilton continued to grasp the chubby hand of Courcelous, which was duly recorded.

“One last thing Mr. Courcelous, you can trust in my sense of fair play, and my word is good…but don’t ever make the mistake of believing that we will ever buy into anything that doesn’t past the smell test!” Hamilton said. “Our agreement to pay the 2% should not be seen by Lake County as our capitulation to the system but is, an upfront acknowledgement to the community that there is a cost to doing business in Lake County.”

“We know your history…I’ll deliver the message!” Courcelous said.

They parted. Thad decided to have a late lunch at the courthouse bar across from the Capitol. Hamilton tossed his sandwich into the trash bin, which was recorded, and retrieved for more clandestine purposes.

Thad took John Wayne and his cameraman with him; the other crew went elsewhere!

Inside the courthouse bar, Thad removed the wire. John Wayne checked and rewound the tape recorder he began to replay the conversation, the sound was clear and audible.

At 3:30 pm, Thad and the partners met with Pearlman to go over the events of the day. Thad related going to the Capitol Rotunda. He told them a man named Louie Courcelous had come representing Lake County, that the meeting had been videoed, and that he had been wired by a private investigator. Prolano and Belini were shocked that Thad had put himself so far out on the limb and in the face of such danger.

“Nice guy, Louie Courcelous, indicted on charges of racketeering and grand theft and even served time on one of the charges. The other was dismissed when the key witness failed to show… ever! Paid his dues in Lake County as a Ward healer and strong arm type, now a made-man in the terms of the underworld. Now a respected maturing politico under boss… not so much a heavyweight but I’m told he can be persuasive,” Pearlman interjected.

“Yeah, kind of a nice old guy… really,” Thad said. “He made the case for Lake County, let’s listen to the tape.”

Thad played the taped conversation.

After the tape had been completed, Pearlman said, “I heard nothing on the tape that’s illegal.”

“Thad, how could you make such an offer? We certainly don’t have ten million dollars?” Prolano implored with Belini nodding in agreement.

“You’re right Prolano, we don’t. But the land which the county has set aside for this plant in the Industrial Park… some one hundred fifty acres… will be valued at $100 thousand an acre or more. You notice that I told Courcelous that our offer was contingent upon the county transferring the land to our corporation.” Thad said.

“So we have the property appraised, roll the value into the bond issue. I create an Irrevocable Trust to be administered by a bank of our choice in Lake County which makes the payments as directed for the purchase of the tickets?” Pearlman added.

Hamilton continued, “With the initial proceeds of the bond sale, I suggest we purchase an annuity policy from which we can take the annual interest income, which will be more than sufficient to make the distributions, either annually or monthly. At the end of 20 years, when we deed the property over to Lake County…the property they gave us… and the property the county taxpayers have paid for again over twenty years through the monthly payments for the use of the sewage treatment facility. We, the four of us, split the profit. I have included Pearlman in the bonus because we could not have put this together without his help, and we have to find a way to reimburse him for the brown spots on his suits, if that’s okay by the partners?”

Prolano and Dr. Belini laughed at the remark while nodding in the affirmative over the agreement to split the profit with Pearlman.

“My dear mother always told my sisters two things: Keep a clean pair of panties in your purse in case you have to go to the hospital and find a good Irishman to marry… or at least one who owns a pub!” Pearlman said.