head.
“He’s Irish, Papa.”
“Hmm.” Sergio thought for a moment. The port was strategically important, and they couldn’t face the risk of losing more valuable shipments. Above all, they needed the port for drug imports from Colombia and the Far East. They could hardly afford any trouble.
“Do we have a reliable man on the docks?”
“Yes.” Massimo nodded. “Angelo Lanza, Giuseppe Lanza’s nephew. He’s a good man.”
“Good. Burns must disappear, and it should happen today. I don’t want any trouble at the port,” Sergio said. “Nelson, Luca should have Manzo handle this.”
Nelson van Mieren nodded.
“But we have one more problem, Sergio,” the lawyer said, clearing his throat, “and it’s pretty serious.”
“What is it?”
“David Zuckerman.”
“I thought that was taken care of a long time ago.” Sergio threw an indignant look at Nelson.
“I thought so too,” van Mieren said, raising his shoulders. “They must have grilled him pretty bad, because last night he agreed to testify in front of the investigation committee. They offered him immunity in return. Our contact at city hall just called me thirty minutes ago.”
Sergio jumped up. His face reddened in murderous rage.
“Damn it! We have Kostidis to thank for this,” he exclaimed angrily. “That rotten bastard doesn’t know when to quit! The state attorney wanted to close the case a long time ago, but Kostidis insisted on digging deeper. I could kill him myself!”
“They must have pressed him really hard.” Massimo made himself heard. “David would never talk.”
Sergio pretended not to hear this comment. He had a completely different opinion about Zuckerman than Massimo. The boy still had a lot to learn about human nature.
“How dangerous is Zuckerman, Nelson?” he asked.
“Extremely dangerous,” the lawyer responded. “He was there when we bribed some of the media. He knows that McIntyre is our man. He knows about all the arrangements and the amounts of money that we paid. He’s known it for years. He could blow everything up.”
“Can we get to him?”
“He’s in a hotel in Midtown.” Van Mieren shook his head. “He has more protection from the FBI than Fort Knox. It’s near impossible.”
“There’s no such thing as impossible,” Sergio said harshly. “When is the next committee meeting?”
“Next Monday. Kostidis did everything in his power to bring the members back from their vacations early.”
“I want him to disappear today. Nelson, give the contract to the Neapolitan. I don’t care how he does it. I want his report by tonight.”
“But Papa,” Massimo objected, “David is—”
“He’s become a major threat to us,” Sergio interrupted, giving him a cold stare. “He’ll talk. We can’t afford any leniency. You know that as well as I do.”
Massimo sighed and nodded. He knew that any decision his father made was irrevocable. With a tinge of genuine regret, Massimo thought about David Zuckerman, whom he liked very much. David’s wife and hisown wife were good friends, and their children often played together. This would not be easy for him. But the die was cast.
“I’ll see you later tonight at your party,” Nelson wheezed as he got up.
Sergio waited for the two men to leave his office, and then he turned and gazed out the window. The foundation of his power was a fine network of connections, but thin as a spiderweb. To build and maintain it had cost him many years and much money. Very few men knew enough about him to pose a threat. And most of these men would rather go to prison than open their mouths. Nevertheless, there was a weak link every now and then, and Zuckerman had become one. It was a shame, because he was a good man, an ace when it came to generating business in the construction industry. Sergio owed many lucrative contracts to him. But Zuckerman had recently caught the attention of the authorities, which made his services useless. Sergio knew that this
“He’s Irish, Papa.”
“Hmm.” Sergio thought for a moment. The port was strategically important, and they couldn’t face the risk of losing more valuable shipments. Above all, they needed the port for drug imports from Colombia and the Far East. They could hardly afford any trouble.
“Do we have a reliable man on the docks?”
“Yes.” Massimo nodded. “Angelo Lanza, Giuseppe Lanza’s nephew. He’s a good man.”
“Good. Burns must disappear, and it should happen today. I don’t want any trouble at the port,” Sergio said. “Nelson, Luca should have Manzo handle this.”
Nelson van Mieren nodded.
“But we have one more problem, Sergio,” the lawyer said, clearing his throat, “and it’s pretty serious.”
“What is it?”
“David Zuckerman.”
“I thought that was taken care of a long time ago.” Sergio threw an indignant look at Nelson.
“I thought so too,” van Mieren said, raising his shoulders. “They must have grilled him pretty bad, because last night he agreed to testify in front of the investigation committee. They offered him immunity in return. Our contact at city hall just called me thirty minutes ago.”
Sergio jumped up. His face reddened in murderous rage.
“Damn it! We have Kostidis to thank for this,” he exclaimed angrily. “That rotten bastard doesn’t know when to quit! The state attorney wanted to close the case a long time ago, but Kostidis insisted on digging deeper. I could kill him myself!”
“They must have pressed him really hard.” Massimo made himself heard. “David would never talk.”
Sergio pretended not to hear this comment. He had a completely different opinion about Zuckerman than Massimo. The boy still had a lot to learn about human nature.
“How dangerous is Zuckerman, Nelson?” he asked.
“Extremely dangerous,” the lawyer responded. “He was there when we bribed some of the media. He knows that McIntyre is our man. He knows about all the arrangements and the amounts of money that we paid. He’s known it for years. He could blow everything up.”
“Can we get to him?”
“He’s in a hotel in Midtown.” Van Mieren shook his head. “He has more protection from the FBI than Fort Knox. It’s near impossible.”
“There’s no such thing as impossible,” Sergio said harshly. “When is the next committee meeting?”
“Next Monday. Kostidis did everything in his power to bring the members back from their vacations early.”
“I want him to disappear today. Nelson, give the contract to the Neapolitan. I don’t care how he does it. I want his report by tonight.”
“But Papa,” Massimo objected, “David is—”
“He’s become a major threat to us,” Sergio interrupted, giving him a cold stare. “He’ll talk. We can’t afford any leniency. You know that as well as I do.”
Massimo sighed and nodded. He knew that any decision his father made was irrevocable. With a tinge of genuine regret, Massimo thought about David Zuckerman, whom he liked very much. David’s wife and hisown wife were good friends, and their children often played together. This would not be easy for him. But the die was cast.
“I’ll see you later tonight at your party,” Nelson wheezed as he got up.
Sergio waited for the two men to leave his office, and then he turned and gazed out the window. The foundation of his power was a fine network of connections, but thin as a spiderweb. To build and maintain it had cost him many years and much money. Very few men knew enough about him to pose a threat. And most of these men would rather go to prison than open their mouths. Nevertheless, there was a weak link every now and then, and Zuckerman had become one. It was a shame, because he was a good man, an ace when it came to generating business in the construction industry. Sergio owed many lucrative contracts to him. But Zuckerman had recently caught the attention of the authorities, which made his services useless. Sergio knew that this
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