Chapter 18: Berth Four

Berth Four was a quarter mile of wet concrete under floodlights, with a gantry crane at the far end.

Carlo stood alone at the gate with a canvas bag in one hand and a black dock ledger under his arm.

He had not shaved.

His gold watch was gone from his wrist.

"I've been here since midnight," he said. "Papa drove off and left me the books."

"Where did he go?"

"I don't know. He said I could burn for this or I could pay for it."

"What did you say?"

"I said I'd pay."

I didn't know what to do with my face.

Fabio put a hand on his shoulder, and Carlo let him.

By five, four hundred men had come in off the night shift and the early one.

They stood in groups along the concrete in their orange vests, smoking, and none of them looked at me.

Cassio's car sat on the road outside the gate, as far as the fence line.

I could see its parking lights.

He had not gotten out.

At ten to six the trucks came.

A line of long white box trucks arrived with the Mancuso name painted on the doors.

They rolled through the open gate in a line and stopped in front of us.

Men climbed down from the cabs with their jackets open, and I saw the grips of handguns in every one.

The captain came last.

He was a broad man in a camel coat, and he had a clipboard in his hand.

"Lanzetta," he said to Carlo, ignoring me. "We're here for the lease."

Carlo stepped forward.

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