With a slight electric shock, Michael realized they were talking about Paulie Gatto and that little Paulie was dead, murdered by that jolly wedding dancer, Clemenza.

29 Sonny asked Hagen, " You have any luck with Sollozzo? "

30 Hagen shook his head. " He seems to have cooled off on the negotiation idea. Anyway he doesn't seem to be too anxious. Or maybe he's just being very careful so that our button men won't nail him. Anyway I haven't been able to set up a top-notch go-between he'll trust. But he must know he has to negotiate now. He missed his chance when he let the old man get away from him."

31 Sonny said, " He's a smart guy, the smartest our Family ever came up against. Maybe he figured we're just stalling until the old man gets better or we can get a line on him."

32 Hagen shrugged. " Sure, he figures that. But he still has to negotiate. He has no choice. I'll get it set up tomorrow. That's certain."

33 One of Clemenza's men knocked on the office door and then came in. He said to Clemenza, " It just came over the radio, the cops found Paulie Gatto. Dead in his car."

34 Clemenza nodded and said to the man, " Don't worry about it." The button man gave his caporegime an astonished look, which was followed by a look of comprehension, before he went back to the kitchen.

35 The conference went on as if there had been no interruption. Sonny asked Hagen, " Any change in the Don's condition? "

36 Hagen shook his head. " He's OK but he won't be able to talk for another couple of days. He's all knocked out. Still recovering from the operation. Your mother spends most of the day with him, Connie too. There's cops all over the hospital and Tessio's men hang around too, just in case. In a couple of days he'll be all right and then we can see what he wants us to do. Meanwhile we have to keep Sollozzo from doing anything rash. That's why I want to start you talking deals with him."

37 Sonny grunted. " Until he does, I've got Clemenza and Tessio looking for him. Maybe we'll get lucky and solve the whole business."

38 " You won't get lucky, " Hagen said. " Sollozzo is too smart." Hagen paused. " He knows once he comes to the table he'll have to go our way mostly. That's why he's stalling. I'm guessing he's trying to line up support from the other New York Families so that we won't go after him when the old man gives us the word."

39 Sonny frowned. " Why the hell should they do that? " Hagen said patiently, " To avert a big war which hurts everybody and brings the papers and government into the act. Also, Sollozzo will give them a piece of the action. And you know how much dough there is in drugs. The Corleone Family doesn't need it, we have the gambling, which is the best business to have. But the other Families are hungry. Sollozzo is a proven man, they know he can make the operation go on a big scale. Alive he's money in their pockets, dead he's trouble."

40 Sonny's face was as Michael had never seen it. The heavy Cupid mouth and bronzed skin seemed gray. " I don't give a fuck what they want. They better not mess in this fight."

41 Clemenza and Tessio shifted uneasily in their chairs, infantry leaders who hear their general rave about storming an impregnable hill no matter what the cost. Hagen said a little impatiently, " Come on, Sonny, your father wouldn't like you thinking that way. You know what he always says, 'That's a waste.' Sure, we're not going to let anybody stop us if the old man says we go after Sollozzo. But this is not a personal thing, this is business. If we go after the Turk and the Families interfere, we'll negotiate the issue. If the Families see that we're determined to have Sollozzo, they'll let us. The Don will make concessions in other areas to square things. But don't go blood crazy on a thing like this. It's business. Even the shooting of your father was business, not personal. You should know that by now."

42 Sonny's eyes were still hard. " OK. I understand all that. Just so long as you understand that nobody stands in our way when we want Sollozzo."

43 Sonny turned to Tessio. " Any leads on Luca? "

44 Tessio shook his head. " None at all. Sollozzo must have snatched him."

45 Hagen said quietly, " Sollozzo wasn't worried about Luca, which struck m e as funny. He's too smart not to worry about a guy like Luca. I think he maybe got him out of the picture, one way or the other."

46 Sonny muttered, " Christ, I hope Luca isn't fighting against us. That's the one thing I'd be afraid of. Clemen z a, Tessio, how do you two guys figure it? "

47 Clemenza said slowly, " Anybody could go wrong, look at Paulie. But with Luca, he was a man who could only go one way. The Godfather was the only thing he believed in, the only man he feared. But not only that, Sonny, he respected your father as no one else respected him and the Godfather has earned respect from everyone. No, Luca would never betray us. And I find it hard to believe that a man like Sollozzo, no matter how cunning, could surprise Luca. He was a man who suspected everyone and everything. He was always ready for the worst. I think maybe he just went off someplace for a few days. We'll be hearing from him anytime now."

48 Sonny turned to Tessio. The Brooklyn caporegime shrugged. " Any man can turn traitor. Luca was very touchy. Maybe the Don offended him some way. That could be. I think though that Sollozzo gave him a little surprise. That fits in with what the Consig l iori says. We should expect the worst."

49 Sonny said to all of them, " Sollozzo should get the word soon about Paulie Gatto. How will that affect him? "

50 Clemenza said grimly, " It will make him think. He will know the Corleone Family are not fools. He will realize that he was very lucky yesterday."

51 Sonny said sharply, " That wasn't luck. Sollozzo was planning that for weeks. They must have tailed the old man to his office every day and watched his routine. Then they bought Paulie off and maybe Luca. They snatched Tom right on the button. They did everything they wanted to do. They were unlucky, not lucky. Those button men they hired weren't good enough and the old man moved too quick. If they had killed him, I would have had to make a deal and Sollozzo would have won. For now. I would have waited maybe and got him five, ten years from now. But don't call him lucky, Pete, that's underrating him. And we've done that too much lately."

One of the button men brought a bowl of spaghetti in from the kitchen and then some plates, forks and wine. They ate as they talked. Michael watched in amazement. He didn't eat and neither did Tom, but Sonny, Clemenza and Tessio dug in, mopping up sauce with crusts of bread. It was almost comical. They continued their discussion.

Tessio didn't think that the loss of Paulie Gatto would upset Sollozzo, in fact he thought that the Turk might have anticipated it, indeed might have welcomed it. A useless mouth off the payroll. And he would not be frightened by it; after all, would they be in such a situation?

54 Michael spoke up diffidently. " I know I'm an amateur in this, but from everything you guys have said about Sollozzo, plus the fact that all of a sudden he's out of touch with Tom, I'd guess he has an ace up his sleeve. He might be ready to pull off something real tricky that would put him back on top. If we could figure out what that would be, we'd be in the driver's seat."

55 Sonny said reluctantly, " Yeah, I thought of that and the only thing I can figure is Luca. The word is already out that he's to be brought here before he's allowed any of his old rights in the Family. The only other thing I can think of is that Sollozzo has made his deal with the Families in New York and we'll get the word tomorrow that they will be against us in a war. That we'll have to give the Turk his deal. Right, Tom? "

56 Hagen nodded. " That's what it looks like to me. And we can't move against that kind of opposition without your father. He's the only one who can stand against the Families. He has the political connections they always need and he can use them for trading. If he wants to badly enough."

57 Clemenza said, a little arrogantly for a man whose top button man had recently betrayed him, " Sollozzo will never get near this house, Boss, you don't have to worry about that."

58 Sonny looked at him thoughtfully for a moment. Then he said to Tessio, " How about the hospital, your men got it covered? "

59 For the first time during the conference Tessio seemed to be absolutely sure of his ground. " Outside and inside, " he said. " Right around the clock. The cops have it covered pretty good too. Detectives at the bedroom door waiting to question the old man. That's a laugh. The Don is still getting that stuff in the tubes, no food, so we don't have to worry about the kitchen, which would be something to worry about with those Turks, they believe in poison. They can't get at the Don, not in any way."

60 Sonny tilted back in his chair. " It wouldn't be me, they have to do business with me, they need the Family machine." He grinned at Michael. " I wonder if it's you? Maybe Sollozzo figures to snatch you and hold you for a hostage to make a deal."

61 Michael thought ruefully, there goes my date with Kay. Sonny wouldn't let him out of the house. But Hagen said impatiently, " No, he could have snatched Mike anytime if he wanted insurance. But everybody knows that Mike is not in the Family business. He's a civilian and if Sollozzo snatches him, then he loses all the other New York Families. Even the Tattaglias would have to help hunt him down. No, it's simple enough. Tomorrow we'll get a representative from all the Families who'll tell us we have to do business with the Turk. That's what he's waiting for. That's his ace in the hole."

62 Michael heaved a sigh of relief. " Good, " he said " I have to go into town tonight."

63 " Why? " Sonny asked sharply.

64 Michael grinned. " I figure I’ ll drop in to the hospital and visit the old man, see Mom and Connie. And I got some other things to do." Like the Don, Michael never told his real business and now he didn't want to tell Sonny he was seeing Kay Adams. There was no reason not to tell him, it was just habit.

There was a loud murmur of voices in the kitchen. Clemenza went out to see what was happening. When he c o me back he was holding Luca Brasi's bulletproof vest in h is hands. Wrapped In the vest was a huge dead fish.

66 Clemenza said drily, " The Turk has heard about his spy Paulie Gatto."

67 Tessio said just as dryly, " And now we know about Luca Brasi."

Sonny lit a cigar and took a shot of whiskey. Michael, bewildered, said, " What the hell does that fish mean? " It was Hagen the Irisher, the Consigliori, who answered him. " The fish means that Luca Brasi is sleeping on the bottom of the ocean, " he said. " It's an old Sicilian message."

 

Chapter 9

 

1 When Michael Corleone went into the city that night it was with a depressed spirit. He felt that he was being enmeshed in the Family business (запутан; mesh – петля, ячейка сети) against his will and he resented Sonny using him even to answer the phone (to resent [rı ’zent] – возмущаться, обижаться). He felt uncomfortable being on the inside of the Family councils (участвуя в совещаниях; council [kaunsl]) as if he could be absolutely trusted with such secrets as murder. And now, going to see Kay, he felt guilty about her also. He had never been completely honest (совершенно откровенен: «честен» ['onı st]) with her about his family. He had told her about them but always with little jokes and colorful anecdotes that made them seem more like adventurers in a Technicolor movie (technicolor – яркий, живой, сочный /о красках/; Technicolor – система цветного кино /а также фирменное название/) than what they really were. And now his father had been shot down in the street and his eldest brother was making plans for murder. That was putting it plainly and simply (это если говорить без прикрас, как есть; plain – плоский, ровный; простой, беспримесный; очевидный, ясный) but that was never how he would tell it to Kay. He had already said his father being shot was more like an " accident" and that all the trouble was over. Hell, it looked like it was just beginning. Sonny and Tom were off-center on this guy Sollozzo (совсем на нем помешались; off-center – периферийный; эксцентричный), they were still underrating him (недооценивали), even though Sonny was smart enough to see the danger. Michael tried to think what the Turk might have up his sleeve. He was obviously a bold man (отважный; энергичный, самоуверенный), a clever man, a man of extraordinary force. You had to figure him to come up with a real surprise. But then Sonny and Tom and Clemenza and Tessio were all agreed that everything was under control and they all had more experience than he did. He was the " civilian" in this war, Michael thought wryly. And they'd have to give him a hell of a lot better medals than he'd gotten in World War II to make him join this one.

2 Thinking this made him feel guilty about not feeling more sympathy for his father. His own father shot full of holes and yet in a curious way Michael, better than anyone else, understood when Tom had said it was just business, not personal. That his father had paid for the power he had wielded all his life (обладал), the respect he had extorted from all those around him (которое он требовал, заставлял себе выказывать; to extort [ı ks’to: t] – вымогать, выпытывать).

3 What Michael wanted was out, out of all this, to lead his own life. But he couldn't cut loose from the family until the crisis was over. He had to help in a civilian capacity (в качестве гражданского /не военного/ лица). With sudden clarity he realized that he was annoyed with the role assigned to him (что его раздражает предназначенная, отведенная ему роль), that of the privileged noncombatant, the excused conscientious objector («извиненного сознательного = по совести отказывающегося»; to object [∂ b’dGekt] – возражать). That was why the word " civilian" kept popping into his skull (выскакивало в его голове: «черепе») in such an irritating way (таким раздражающим образом; to irritate ['ı rı teı t] – возмущать, раздражать, сердить).

4 When he got to the hotel, Kay was waiting for him in the lobby. (A couple of Clemenza's people had driven him into town and dropped him off on a nearby corner after making sure (после того, как убедились) they were not followed.)

5 They had dinner together and some drinks. " What time are you going to visit your father? " Kay asked.

6 Michael looked at his watch. " Visiting hours end at eight-thirty. I think I'll go after everybody has left. They'll let me up. He has a private room and his own nurses so I can just sit with him for a while. I don't think he can talk yet or even know if I'm there. But I have to show respect."

7 Kay said quietly, " I feel so sorry for your father, he seemed like such a nice man at the wedding. I can't believe the things the papers are printing about him (печатают). I'm sure most of it's not true."

8 Michael said politely, " I don't think so either." He was surprised to find himself so secretive with Kay. He loved her, he trusted her, but he would never tell her anything about his father or the Family. She was an outsider.

9 " What about you? " Kay asked. " Are you going to get mixed up in this gang war the papers are talking about so gleefully (с таким ликованием; gleeful – радостный, ликующий; glee – веселье, ликование)? "

10 Michael grinned, unbuttoned his jacket and held it wide open. " Look, no guns, " he said. Kay laughed.

11 It was getting late and they went up to their room. She mixed a drink for both of them and sat on his lap as they drank. Beneath her dress she was all silk until his hand touched the glowing skin of her thigh. They fell back on the bed together and made love with all their clothes on, their mouths glued together (to glue – приклеивать, склеивать). When they were finished they lay very still, feeling the heat of their bodies burning through their garments. Kay murmured, " Is that what you soldiers call a quickie? "

12 " Yeah, " Michael said.

13 " It's not bad, " Kay said in a judicious voice (рассуждающим, оценивающим голосом [dGu: ’dı ∫ ∂ s]).

14 They dozed off (задремали) until Michael suddenly started up anxiously and looked at his watch. " Damn, " he said. " It's nearly ten. I have to get down to the hospital." He went to the bathroom to wash up and comb his hair. Kay came in after him and put her arms around his waist from behind. " When are we going to get married? " she asked.

15 " Whenever you say, " Michael said. " As soon as this family thing quiets down and my old man gets better. I think you'd better explain things to your parents though."

16   " What should I explain? " Kay said quietly.

17 Michael ran the comb through his hair. " Just say that you've met a brave, handsome guy of Italian descent (спуск, скат, склон; происхождение [dı 'sent]. Top marks at Dartmouth. Distinguished Service Cross during the war plus the Purple Heart (медаль, дающаяся за полученные в бою раны; to distinguish oneself in battle – отличиться в бою; to distinguish – отличать, различать). Honest. Hard-working. But his father is a Mafia chief who has to kill bad people, sometimes bribe high government officials (to bribe – подкупать, давать взятку) and in his line of work gets shot full of holes himself. But that has nothing to do with his honest hard-working son. Do you think you can remember all that? "

18 Kay let go his body and leaned against the door of the bathroom. " Is he really? " she said. " Does he really? " She paused. " Kill people? "

19 Michael finished combing his hair. " I don't really know, " he said. " Nobody really knows. But I wouldn't be surprised."

20 Before he went out the door she asked, " When will I see you again? "

21 Michael kissed her. " I want you to go home and think things over in that little hick town of yours, " he said. " I don't want you to get mixed up in this business in any way. After the Christmas holidays I'll be back at school and we'll get together up in Hanover. OK? "

22 " OK, " she said. She watched him go out the door, saw him wave before he stepped into the elevator (to wave – помахать /рукой/). She had never felt so close to him, never so much in love and if someone had told her she would not see Michael again until three years passed, she would not have been able to bear the anguish of it (вынести эту тоску, это мучение [‘æ ŋ wı ∫ ]).

 

1 When Michael Corleone went into the city that night it was with a depressed spirit. He felt that he was being enmeshed in the Family business against his will and he resented Sonny using him even to answer the phone. He felt uncomfortable being on the inside of the Family councils as if he could be absolutely trusted with such secrets as murder. And now, going to see Kay, he felt guilty about her also. He had never been completely honest with her about his family. He had told her about them but always with little jokes and colorful anecdotes that made them seem more like adventurers in a Technicolor movie than what they really were. And now his father had been shot down in the street and his eldest brother was making plans for murder. That was putting it plainly and simply but that was never how he would tell it to Kay. He had already said his father being shot was more like an " accident" and that all the trouble was over. Hell, it looked like it was just beginning. Sonny and Tom were off-center on this guy Sollozzo, they were still underrating him, even though Sonny was smart enough to see the danger. Michael tried to think what the Turk might have up his sleeve. He was obviously a bold man, a clever man, a man of extraordinary force. You had to figure him to come up with a real surprise. But then Sonny and Tom and Clemenza and Tessio were all agreed that everything was under control and they all had more experience than he did. He was the " civilian" in this war, Michael thought wryly. And they'd have to give him a hell of a lot better medals than he'd gotten in World War II to make him join this one.

Thinking this made him feel guilty about not feeling more sympathy for his father. His own father shot full of holes and yet in a curious way Michael, better than anyone else, understood when Tom had said it was just business, not personal. That his father had paid for the power he had wielded all his life, the respect he had extorted from all those around him.

3 What Michael wanted was out, out of all this, to lead his own life. But he couldn't cut loose from the family un til the crisis was over. He had to help in a civilian capacity. With sudden clarity he realized that he was annoyed with the role assigned to him, that of the privileged noncombatant, the excused conscientious objector. That was why the word " civilian" kept popping into his skull in such an irritating way.

When he got to the hotel, Kay was waiting for him in the lobby. (A couple of Clemenza's people had driven him into town and dropped him off on a nearby co rn er after making sure they were not followed.)

5 They had dinner together and some drinks. " What time are you going to visit your father? " Kay asked.

6 Michael looked at his watch. " Visiting hours end at eight-thirty. I think I'll go after everybody has left. They' ll let me up. He has a private room and his own nurses so I can just sit with him for a while. I don't think he can talk yet or even know if I'm there. But I have to show respect."

7 Kay said quietly, " I feel so sorry for your father, he seemed like such a nice man at the wedding. I can't believe the things the papers are printing about him. I'm sure most of it's not true."

8 Michael said politely, " I don't think so either." He was surprised to find himself so secretive with Kay. He loved her, he trusted her, but he would never tell her anything about his father or the Family. She was an outsider.

9 " What about you? " Kay asked. " Are you going to get mixed up in this gang war the papers are talking about so gleefully? "

10 Michael grinned, unbuttoned his jacket and held it wide open. " Look, no guns, " he said. Kay laughed.

11 It was getting late and they went up to their room. She mixed a drink for both of them and sat on his lap as they drank. Beneath her dress she was all silk until his hand touched the glowing skin of her thigh. They fell back on the bed together and made love with all their clothes on, their mouths glued together. When they were finished they lay very still, feeling the heat of their bodies burning through their garments. Kay murmured, " Is that what you soldiers call a quickie? "

12 " Yeah, " Michael said.

13 " It's not bad, " Kay said in a judicious voice.

14 They dozed off until Michael suddenly started up anxiously and looked at his watch. " Damn, " he said. " It's nearly ten. I have to get down to the hospital." He went to the bathroom to wash up and comb his hair. Kay came in after him and put her arms around his waist from behind. " When are we going to get married? " she asked.

15 " Whenever you say, " Michael said. " As soon as this family thing quiets down and my o l d man gets better. I think you'd better explain things to your parents though."

16 " What should I explain? " Kay said quietly.

17 Michael ran the comb through his hair. " Just say that you've met a brave, handsome guy of Italian descent. Top marks at Dartmouth. Distinguished Service Cross during the war plus the Purple Heart. Honest. Hard-working. But his father is a Mafia chief who has to kill bad people, sometimes bribe high government officials and in his line of work gets shot full of holes himself. But that has nothing to do with his honest hard-working son. Do you think you can remember all that? "

18 Kay let go his body and leaned against the door of the bathroom. " Is he really? " she said. " Does he really? " She paused. " Kill people? "

19 Michael finished combing his hair. " I don't really know, " he said. " Nobody really knows. But I wouldn't be surprised."

20 Before he went out the door she asked, " When will I see you again? "

21 Michael kissed her. " I want you to go home and think things over in that little hick town of yours, " he said. " I don't want you to get mixed up in this business in any way. After the Christmas holidays I'll be back at school and we'll get together up in Hanover. OK? "

22 " OK, " she said. She watched him go out the door, saw him wave before he stepped into the elevator. She had never felt so close to him, never so much in love and if someone had told her she would not see Michael again until three years passed, she would not have been able to bear the anguish of it.

 

1 When Michael got out of the cab in front of the French Hospital he was surprised to see that the street was completely deserted (совершенно пуста). When he entered the hospital he was even more surprised to find the lobby empty. Damn it, what the hell were Clemenza and Tessio doing? Sure, they never went to West Point but they knew enough about tactics to have outposts (аванпосты, сторожевое охранение, заставы). A couple of their men should have been in the lobby at least.

2 Even the latest visitors had departed, it was almost ten-thirty at night. Michael was tense and alert now (напряжен и возбужден). He didn't bother to stop at the information desk (и не подумал: «не побеспокоился»), he already knew his father's room number up on the fourth floor. He took the self-service elevator. Oddly enough nobody stopped him until he reached the nurses' station on the fourth floor. But he strode right past her query (не обращая внимание на ее вопрос; query ['kwı ∂ rı ] – вопрос) and on to his father's room. There was no one outside the door. Where the hell were the two detectives who were supposed (которые, как предполагалось) to be waiting around to guard and question the old man? Where the hell were Tessio and Clemenza's people? Could there be someone inside the room? But the door was open. Michael went in. There was a figure in the bed and by the December moonlight straining through the window (просачивающийся; to strain – напрягать, растягивать; процеживать) Michael could see his father's face. Even now it was impassive, the chest heaved shallowly (едва вздымалась; shallow – мелкий, неглубокий) with his uneven breath (неровным дыханием [breθ ]). Tubes hung from steel gallows (со стальных дуг, подставок) beside the bed and ran into his nose. On the floor was a glass jar (банка, кувшин) receiving the poisons emptied from his stomach (из его желудка ['stLm∂ k]) by other tubes. Michael stayed there for a few moments to make sure his father was all right, then backed out of the room.

3 He told the nurse, " My name is Michael Corleone, I just want to sit with my father. What happened to the detectives who were supposed to be guarding him? "

4 The nurse was a pretty young thing with a great deal of confidence in the power of her office (с большой долей уверенности в могуществе ее должности). " Oh, your father just had too many visitors, it interfered with the hospital service (это мешал: «вмешивалось, перебивало»), " she said. " The police came and made them all leave about ten minutes ago. And then just five minutes ago I had to call the detectives to the phone for an emergency alarm from their headquarters (срочная тревога из их управления; emergency [ı ’m∂: dG∂ nsı ] – непредвиденный случай, крайняя необходимость), and then they left too. But don't worry, I look in on your father often and I can hear any sound from his room. That's why we leave the doors open."

5 " Thank you, " Michael said. " I'll sit with him for a little while. OK? "

6 She smiled at him. " Just for a little bit and then I'm afraid you'll have to leave. It's the rules (правила), you know."

7 Michael went back into his father's room. He took the phone from its cradle and got the hospital operator to give him the house in Long Beach, the phone in the comer office room. Sonny answered. Michael whispered, " Sonny, I'm down at the hospital, I came down late. Sonny, there's nobody here. None of Tessio's people. No detectives at the door. The old man was completely unprotected." His voice was trembling.

8 There was a long silence and then Sonny's voice came, low and impressed, " This is Sollozzo's move (ход: «движение») you were talking about."

9 Michael said, " That's what I figured too. But how did he get the cops to clear everybody out and where did they go? What happened to Tessio's men? Jesus Christ, has that bastard Sollozzo got the New York Police Department in his pocket too? "

10 " Take it easy, kid." Sonny's voice was soothing. " We got lucky again with you going to visit the hospital so late. Stay in the old man's room. Lock the door from the inside. I'll have some men there inside of fifteen minutes, soon as I make some calls. Just sit tight and don't panic. OK, kid? "

11 " I won't panic, " Michael said. For the first time since it had all started he felt a furious anger rising in him (яростный гнев), a cold hatred for his father's enemies (ненависть к врагам; hatred [‘heı trı d]).

12 He hung up the phone and rang the buzzer for the nurse (звонок, кнопку вызова; to buzz – жужжать). He decided to use his own judgment (решил действовать по своему разумению) and disregard Sonny's orders (не принимать во внимание приказов, указаний Сонни). When the nurse came in he said, " I don't want you to get frightened, but we have to move my father right away. To another room or another floor. Can you disconnect all these tubes (отключить) so we can wheel the bed out? "

13 The nurse said, " That's ridiculous (смешно [rı ’dı kjul∂ s]). We have to get permission from the doctor (разрешение)."

14 Michael spoke very quickly. " You've read about my father in the papers. You've seen that there's no one here tonight to guard him. Now I've just gotten word some men will come into the hospital to kill him. Please believe me and help me." He could be extraordinarily persuasive (убедительным, убеждающим [p∂ s'weı sı v]; to persuade [p∂ s'weı d] – убедить) when he wanted to be.

15 The nurse said, " We don't have to disconnect the tubes. We can wheel the stand with the bed."

16 " Do you have an empty room? " Michael whispered.

17 " At the end of the hall, " the nurse said.

18 It was done in a matter of moments, very quickly and very efficiently. Then Michael said to the nurse, " Stay here with him until help comes. If you're outside at your station you might get hurt."

19 At that moment he heard his father's voice from the bed, hoarse (охрипший, сиплый [ho: s]) but full of strength, " Michael, is it you? What happened, what is it? "

20 Michael leaned over the bed. He took his father's hand in his. " It's Mike, " he said. " Don't be afraid. Now listen, don't make any noise at all, especially if somebody calls out your name. Some people want to kill you, understand? But I'm here so don't be afraid."

21 Don Corleone, still not fully conscious (сознательный, сознающий [‘kon∫ ∂ s]) of what had happened to him the day before, in terrible pain, yet smiled benevolently (все же улыбнулся благодушно, снисходительно: «благожелательно») on his youngest son, wanting to tell him, but it was too much effort (усилие [‘ef∂ t]), " Why should I be afraid now? Strange men have come to kill me ever since I was twelve years old."

 

When Michael got out of the cab in front of the French Hospital he was surprised to see that the street was completely deserted. When he entered the hospital he was even more surprised to find the lobby empty. Damn it, what the hell were Clemenza and Tessio doing? Sure, they never went to West Point but they knew enough about tactics to have outposts. A couple of their men should have been in the lobby at least.

Even the latest visitors had departed, it was almost ten-thirty at night. Michael was tense and alert now. He didn't bother to stop at the information desk, he already knew his father's room number up on the fourth floor. He took the self-service elevator. Oddly enough nobody stopped him until he reached the nurses' station on the fourth floor. But he strode right past her query and on to his father's room. There was no one outside the door. Where the hell were the two detectives who were supposed to be waiting around to guard and question the old man? Where the hell were Tessio and Clemenza's people? Could there be someone inside the room? But the door was open. Michael went in. There was a figure in the bed and by the December moonlight straining through the window Michael could see his father's face. Even now it was impassive, the chest heaved shallowly with his uneven breath. Tubes hung from steel gallows beside the bed and ran into his nose. On the floor was a glass jar receivin g the poisons emptied from his stomach by other tubes. Michael stayed there for a few moments to make sure his father was all right, then backed out of the room.

3 He told the nurse, " My name is Michael Corleone, I just want to sit with my father. What happened to the detectives who were supposed to be guarding him? "

4 The nurse was a pretty young thing with a great deal of confidence in the power of her office. " Oh, your father just had too many visitors, it interfered with the hospital service, " she said. " The police came and made them all leave about ten minutes ago. And then just five minutes ago I had to call the detectives to the phone for an emergency alarm from their headquarters, and then they left too. But don't worry, I look in on your father often and I can hear any sound from his room. That's why we leave the doors open."

5 " Thank you, " Michael said. " I'll sit with him for a little while. OK? "

6 She smiled at him. " Just for a little bit and then I'm afraid you'll have to leave. It's the rules, you know."

7 Michael went back into his father's room. He took the phone from its cradle and got the hospital operator to give him the house in Long Beach, the phone in the comer office room. Sonny answered. Michael whispered, " Sonny, I'm down at the hospital, I came down late. Sonny, there's nobody here. None of Tessio's people. No detectives at the door. The old man was completely unprotected." His voice was trembling.

8 There was a long silence and then Sonny's voice came, low and impressed, " This is Sollozzo's move you were talking about."

9 Michael said, " That's what I figured too. But how did he get the cops to clear everybody out and where did they go? What happened to Tessio's men? Jesus Christ, has that bastard Sollozzo got the New York Police Department in his pocket too? "

10 " Take it easy, kid." Sonny's voice was soothing. " We got lucky again with you going to visit the hospital so late. Stay in the old man's room. Lock the door from the inside. I'll have some men there inside of fifteen minutes, soon as I make some calls. Just sit tight and don't panic. OK, kid? "

1 1 " I won't panic, " Michael said. For the first time since it had all started he felt a furious anger rising in him, a cold hatred for his father's enemies.

1 2 He hung up the phone and rang the buzzer for the nurse. He decided to use his own judgment and disregard Sonny's orders. When the nurse came in he said, " I don't want you to get frightened, but we have to move my father right away. To another room or another floor. Can you disconnect all these tubes so we can wheel the bed out? "

1 3 The nurse said, " That's ridiculous. We have to get permission from the doctor."

1 4 Michael spoke very quickly. " You've read about my father in the papers. You've seen that there's no one here tonight to guard him. Now I've just gotten word some men will come into the hospital to kill him. Please believe me and help me." He could be extraordinarily persuasive when he wanted to be.

1 5 The nurse said, " We don't have to disconnect the tubes. We can wheel the stand with the bed."

1 6 " Do you have an empty room? " Michael whispered.

1 7 " At the end of the hall, " the nurse said.

1 8 It was done in a matter of moments, very quickly and very efficiently. Then Michael said to the nurse, " Stay here with him until help comes. If you're outside at your station you might get hurt."

1 9 At that moment he heard his father's voice from the bed, hoarse but full of strength, " Michael, is it you? What happened, what is it? "

20 Michael leaned over the bed. He took his father's hand in his. " It's Mike, " he said. " Don't be afraid. Now listen, don't make any noise at all, especially if somebody calls out your name. Some people want to kill you, understand? But I'm here so don't be afraid."

2 1 Don Corleone, still not fully conscious of what had happened to him the day before, in terrible pain, yet smiled benevolently on his youngest son, wanting to tell him, but it was too much effort, " Why should I be afraid now? Strange men have come to kill me ever since I was twelve years old."

 

(Примечание для редакции: с этого момента весь комментарий идет в сносках внизу страницы.)

 

Chapter 10

 

The hospital was small and private with just one entrance. Michael looked through the window down into the street. There was a curved courtyard that had steps leading down into the street and the street was empty of cars. But whoever came into the hospital would have to come through that entrance. He knew he didn't have much time so he ran out of the room and down the four flights and through the wide doors of the ground floor entrance. Off to the side he saw the ambulance yard and there was no car there, no ambulances either.

Michael stood on the sidewalk outside the hospital and lit a cigarette. He unbuttoned his coat and stood in the light of a lamppost so that his features could be seen. A young man was walking swiftly down from Ninth Avenue, a package under his arm. The young man wore a combat jacket and had a heavy shock (копна, скирда) of black hair. His face was familiar when he came under the lamplight but Michael could not place it. But the young man stopped in front of him and put out his hand, saying in a heavy Italian accent, " Don Michael, do you remember me? Enzo, the baker's helper to Nazorine the Paniterra; his son-in-law. Your father saved my life by getting the government to let me stay in America."

Michael shook his hand. He remembered him now. Enzo went on, " I've come to pay my respects to your father. Will they let me into the hospital so late? "

Michael smiled and shook his head. " No, but thanks anyway. I'll tell the Don you came." A car came roaring down the street and Michael was instantly alert. He said to Enzo, " Leave here quickly. There may be trouble. You don't want to get involved with the police."

He saw the look of fear on the young Italian's face. Trouble with the police might mean being deported or refusal of citizenship. But the young man stood fast. He whispered in Italian. " If there's trouble I'll stay to help. I owe it to the Godfather."

Michael was touched. He was about to tell the young man to go away again, but then he thought, why not let him stay? Two men in front of the hospital might scare off any of Sollozzo's crew sent to do a job. One man almost certainly would not. He gave Enzo a cigarette and lit it for him. They both stood under the lamppost in the cold December night. The yellow panes (pane – оконное стекло; панель) of the hospital, bisected (разделенные, разрезанные надвое) by the greens of Christmas decorations, twinkled down on them. They had almost finished their cigarettes when a long low black car turned into 30th Street from Ninth A venue and cruised (to cruise [kru: z] – совершать круиз, курсировать; промчаться) toward them, very close to the curb. It almost stopped. Michael peered to see their faces inside, his body flinching involuntarily. The car seemed about to stop, then speeded forward. Somebody had recognized him. Michael gave Enzo another cigarette and noticed that the baker's hands were shaking. To his surprise his own hands were steady.

They stayed in the street smoking for what was no more than ten minutes when suddenly the night air was split by a police siren. A patrol car made a screaming turn from Ninth Avenue and pulled up in front of the hospital. Two more squad (группа, команда) cars followed right behind it. Suddenly the hospital entranceway was flooded with uniformed police and detectives. Michael heaved a sigh of relief. Good old Sonny must have gotten through right away. He moved forward to meet them.

Two huge, burly policemen grabbed his arms. Another frisked him. A massive police captain, gold braid on his cap, came up the steps, his men parting respectfully to leave a path. He was a vigorous man for his girth (подпруга; обхват /талии/) and despite the white hair that peeked out of his cap. His face was beefy red. He came up to Michael and said harshly, " I thought I got all you guinea hoods locked up. Who the hell are you and what are you doing here? "

One of the cops standing beside Michael said, " He's clean, Captain."

Michael didn't answer. He was studying this police captain, coldly searching his face, the metallic blue eyes. A detective in plain clothes said, " That's Michael Corleone, the Don's son."

Michael said quietly, " What happened to the detectives who were supposed to be guarding my father? Who pulled them off that detail (наряд, расчет, команда)? "

The police captain was choleric with rage. " You fucking hood, who the hell are you to tell me my business? I pulled them off. I don't give a shit how many dago (даго – произвище итальянца, испанца, португальца) gangsters kill each other. If it was up to me (если бы это зависело от меня), I wouldn't lift a finger to keep your old man from getting knocked off. Now get the hell out of here. Get out of this street, you punk, and stay out of this hospital when it's not visiting hours."

Michael was still studying him intently. He was not angry at what this police captain was saying. His mind was racing furiously. Was it possible that Sollozzo had been in that first car and had seen him standing in front of the hospital? Was it possible that Sollozzo had then called this captain and said, " How come the Corleones' men are still around the hospital when I paid you to lock them up? " Was it possible that all had been carefully planned as Sonny had said? Everything fitted in. Still cool, he said to the captain, " I'm not leaving this hospital until you put guards around my father's room."

The captain didn't bother answering. He said to the detective standing beside him, " Phil, lock this punk up."

The detective said hesitantly, " The kid is clean, Captain. He's a war hero and he's never been mixed up in the rackets. The papers could make a stink."

 The captain started to turn on the detective, his face red with fury. He roared out, " Goddamn it, I said lock him up."

Michael, still thinking clearly, not angry, said with deliberate malice (злоба ['mæ lı s]), " How much is the Turk paying you to set my father up, Captain? "

The police captain turned to him. He said to the two burly patrolmen, " Hold him." Michael felt his arms pinned to his sides. He saw the captain's massive fist arching (arch – дуга; to arch – изгибаться дугой) toward his face. He tried to weave away (отклониться; to weave – ткать, плести; качаться, отклоняться) but the fist caught him high on the cheekbone. A grenade exploded in his skull. His mouth filled with blood and small hard bones that he realized were his teeth. He could feel the side of his head puff up as if it were filling with air. His legs were weightless and he would have fallen if the two policemen had not held him up. But he was still conscious. The plainclothes detective had stepped in front of him to keep the captain from hitting him again and was saying, " Jesus Christ, Captain, you really hurt him."

The captain said loudly, " I didn't touch him. He attacked me and he fell. Do you understand that? He resisted arrest."

Through a red haze (легкий туман, дымка) Michael could see more cars pulling up to the curb. Men were getting out. One of them he recognized as Clemenza's lawyer, who was now speaking to the police captain, suavely (suave [swα: v] – учтивый, обходительный) and surely. " The Corleone Family has hired a firm of private detectives to guard Mr. Corleone. These men with me are licensed to carry firearms, Captain. If you arrest them, you'll have to appear before a judge in the morning and tell him why."

The lawyer glanced at Michael. " Do you want to prefer (выдвинуть /требование, обвинение/) charges (обвинения) against whoever did this to you? " he asked.

Michael had trouble talking. His jaws wouldn't come together but he managed to mumble. " I slipped, " he said. " I slipped and fell." He saw the captain give him a triumphant glance and he tried to answer that glance with a smile. At all costs he wanted to hide the delicious icy chilliness that controlled his brain, the surge of wintry cold hatred that pervaded his body. He wanted to give no warning to anyone in this world as to how he felt at this moment. As the Don would not. Then he felt himself carried into the hospital and he lost consciousness.

 

When he woke up in the morning he found that his jaw had been wired together and that four of his teeth along the left side of his mouth were missing. Hagen was sitting beside his bed.

" Did they drug me up? " Michael asked.

" Yeah, " Hagen said. " They had to dig some bone fragments out of your gums (десны) and they figured it would be too painful. Besides you were practically out anyway."

" Is there anything else wrong with me? " Michael asked.

" No, " Hagen said. " Sonny wants you out at the Long Beach house. Think you can make it? "

" Sure, " Michael said. " Is the Don all right? "

Hagen flushed. " I think we've solved the problem now. We have a firm of private detectives and we have the whole area loaded. I'll tell you more when we get in the car."

Clemenza was driving, Michael and Hagen sat in the back. Michael's head throbbed (to throb – сильно биться, пульсировать). " So what the hell really happened last night, did you guys ever find out? "

Hagen spoke quietly. " Sonny has an inside man, that Detective Phillips who tried to protect you. He gave us the scoop (лопатка, совок, черпак; сенсационная новость; здесь – информация). The police captain, McCluskey, is a guy who's been on the take (to be on the take – брать взятки) very heavy ever since he's been a patrolman. Our Family has paid him quite a bit. And he's greedy and untrustworthy (ненадежный, не заслуживающий доверия) to do business with. But Sollozzo must have paid him a big price. McCluskey had all Tessio's men around and in the hospital arrested right after visiting hours. It didn't help that some of them were carrying guns. Then McCluskey pulled the official guard detectives off the Don's door. Claimed he needed them and that some other cops were supposed to go over and take their place but they got their assignments bollixed (to bollix – испортить, изгадить /напр. работу/). Baloney (вздор, чепуха /сленг/ [b∂ 'l∂ unı ]). He was paid off to set the Don up. And Phillips said he's the kind of guy who'll try it again. Sollozzo must have given him a fortune for openers and promised him the moon to come."

" Was my getting hurt in the papers? "

" No, " Hagen said. " We kept that quiet. Nobody wants that known. Not the cops. Not us."

" Good, " Michael said. " Did that boy Enzo get away? "

" Yeah, " Hagen said. " He was smarter than you. When the cops came he disappeared. He claims he stuck with you while Sollozzo's car went by. Is that true? "

" Yeah, " Michael said. " He's a good kid."

" He'll be taken care of, " Hagen said. " You feeling OK? " His face was concerned. " You look lousy (паршиво, отвратительно: «вшиво»)."

" I'm OK, " Michael said. " What was that police captain's' name? "

" McCluskey, " Hagen said. " By the way, it might make you feel better to know that the Corleone Family finally got up on the scoreboard (на табло; score – зарубка; счет очков). Bruno Tattaglia, four o'clock this morning."

Michael sat up. " How come (как так)? I thought we were supposed to sit tight."

Hagen shrugged. " After what happened at the hospital Sonny got hard. The button men are out all over New York and New Jersey. We made the list last night. I'm trying to hold Sonny in, Mike. Maybe you can talk to him. This whole business can still be settled without a major war."

" I'll talk to him, " Michael said. " Is there a conference this morning? "

" Yeah, " Hagen said. " Sollozzo finally got in touch and wants to sit down with us. A negotiator is arranging the details. That means we win. Sollozzo knows he's lost and he wants to get out with his life." Hagen paused. " Maybe he thought we were soft, ready to be taken, because we didn't strike back. Now with one of the Tattaglia sons dead he knows we mean business. He really took an awful gamble bucking (to buck – становиться на дыбы, взбрыкивать /пытаясь сбросить седока/) the Don. By the way, we got the confirmation on Luca. They killed him the night before they shot your father. In Bruno's nightclub. Imagine that? "

Michael said, " No wonder they caught him off guard."

 

At the houses in Long Beach the entrance to the mall was blocked by a long black car parked across its mouth. Two men leaned against the hood (капюшон; капот /автомобиля/) of the car. The two houses on each side, Michael noticed, had opened windows on their upper floors. Christ, Sonny must really mean business.

Clemenza parked the car outside the mall and they walked inside it. The two guards were Clemenza's men and he gave them a frown of greeting that served as a salute. The men nodded their heads in acknowledgment. There were no smiles, no greetings. Clemenza led Hagen and Michael Corleone into the house.

The door was opened by another guard before they rang. He had obviously been watching from a window.

They went to the corner office and found Sonny and Tessio waiting for them. Sonny came to Michael, took his younger brother's head in his hands and said kiddingly, " Beautiful. Beautiful." Michael knocked his hands away, and went to the desk and poured himself some scotch, hoping it would dull the ache (притупит боль; ache [eı k]) in his wired jaw.

The five of them sat around the room but the atmosphere was different than their earlier meetings. Sonny was gayer, more cheerful, and Michael realized what that gaiety meant. There were no longer any doubts in his older brother's mind. He was committed (принял решение, ввязался) and nothing would sway (поколебать) him. The attempt by Sollozzo the night before was the final straw (последней соломинкой = последней каплей). There could no longer be any question of a truce (перемирие).

" We got a call from the negotiator while you were gone, " Sonny said to Hagen. " The Turk wants a meeting now." Sonny laughed. " The balls on that son of a bitch, " he said admiringly. " After he craps out (to crap out – проигрывать; crap – дерьмо; to crap – изгадить, испортить) last night he wants a meeting today or the next day. Meanwhile we're supposed just to lay back and take everything he dishes out (предложит; to dish – подавать еду, раскладывать по тарелкам). What fucking nerve."

Tom asked cautiously. " What did you answer? "

Sonny grinned. " I said sure, why not? Anytime he says, I'm in no hurry. I've got a hundred button men out on the street twenty-four hours a day. If Sollozzo shows one hair on his asshole he's dead. Let them take all the time they want."

Hagen said, " Was there a definite proposal? "

" Yeah, " Sonny said. " He wants us to send Mike to meet him to hear his proposition. The negotiator guarantees Mike's safety. Sollozzo doesn't ask us to guarantee his safety, he knows he can't ask that. No point. So the meeting will be arranged on his side. His people will pick Mike up and take Mike to the meeting place. Mike will listen to Sollozzo and then they'll turn him loose. But the meeting place is secret. The promise is the deal will be so good we can't turn it down."

Hagen asked, " What about the Tattaglias'! What will they do about Bruno? "

" That's part of the deal. The negotiator says the Tattaglia Family has agreed to go along with Sollozzo. They'll forget about Bruno Tattaglia. He pays for what they did to my father. One cancels out (to cancel – вычеркивать, аннулировать) the other." Sonny laughed again. " The nervy (смелый, волевой) bastards."

Hagen said cautiously, " We should hear what they have to say."

Sonny shook his head from side to side. " No, no, Consigliori, not this time." His voice held a faint trace of Italian accent. He was consciously mocking his father just to kid around (высмеивать, подшучивать). " No more meetings. No more discussions. No more Sollozzo tricks. When the negotiator gets in touch with us again for our answer I want you to give him one message. I want Sollozzo. If not, it's all-out war. We'll go to the mattresses and we'll put all the button men out on the street. Business will just have to suffer."

" The other Families won't stand for an all-out war, " Hagen said. " It puts too much heat on everybody."

Sonny shrugged. " They have a simple solution (решение /проблемы/). Give me Sollozzo. Or fight the Corleone Family." Sonny paused, then said roughly, " No more advice on how to patch it up (patch – клочок, лоскут; to patch up – латать, ставить заплаты), Tom. The decision is made. Your job is to help me win. Understand? "

Hagen bowed his head. He was deep in thought for a moment. Then he said, " I spoke to your contact in the police station. He says that Captain McCluskey is definitely on Sollozzo's payroll and for big money. Not only that, but McCluskey is going to get a piece of the drug operation. McCluskey has agreed to be Sollozzo's bodyguard. The Turk doesn't poke his nose out of his hole without McCluskey. When he meets Mike for the conference, McCluskey will be sitting beside him. In civilian clothes but carrying his gun. Now what you have to understand, Sonny, is that while Sollozzo is guarded like this, he's invulnerable. Nobody has ever gunned down a New York police captain and gotten away with it. The heat in this town would be unbearable what with the newspapers, the whole police department, the churches, everything. That would be disastrous. The Families would be after you. The Corleone Family would become outcasts. Even the old man's political protection would run for cover. So take that into consideration (прими в расчет, в размышление)."

Sonny shrugged. " McCluskey can't stay with the Turk forever. We'll wait."

Tessio and Clemenza were puffing on their cigars uneasily, not daring to speak, but sweating. It would be their skins that would go on the line if the wrong decision was made.

Michael spoke for the first time. He asked Hagen, " Can the old man be moved out of the hospital onto the mall here? "

Hagen shook his head. " That's the first thing I asked. Impossible. He's in very bad shape. He'll pull through but he needs all kinds of attention, maybe some more surgery (операции, хирургическое вмешательство). Impossible."

" Then you have to get Sollozzo right away, " Michael said. " We can't wait. The guy is too dangerous. He'll come up with some new idea. Remember, the key is still that he gets rid of the old man. He knows that. OK, he knows that now it's very tough so he's willing to take defeat for his life. But if he's going to get killed anyway, he'll have another crack (нанесет удар) at the Don. And with that police captain helping him who knows what the hell might happen. We can't take that chance. We have to get Sollozzo right away."

Sonny was scratching his chin thoughtfully. " You're right, kid, " he said. " You got right to the old nuts (совершенно /сленг/). We can't let Sollozzo get another crack at the old man."

Hagen said quietly, " What about Captain McCluskey? "

Sonny turned to Michael with an odd little smile. " Yeah, kid, what about that tough police captain? "

Michael said slowly, " OK, it's an extreme. But there are times when the most extreme measures are justified (средства оправданы). Let's think now that we have to kill McCluskey. The way to do it would be to have him heavily implicated so that it's not an honest police captain doing his duty but a crooked (изогнутый, кривой; искаженный; добытый нечестным путем) police official mixed up in the rackets who got what was coming to him, like any crook (крючок, крюк; жулик, ренегат). We have newspaper people on our payroll we can give that story to with enough proof so that they can back it up. That should take some of the heat off. How does that sound? " Michael looked around deferentially (почтительно, с уважением) to the others. Tessio and Clemenza had gloomy (мрачный) faces and refused to speak. Sonny said with the same odd smile, " Go on, kid, you're doing great. Out of the mouths of infants (устами младенца …), as the Don always used to say. Go ahead, Mike, tell us more."

Hagen was smiling too a little and averting his head. Michael flushed. " Well, they want me to go to a conference with Sollozzo. It will be me, Sollozzo and McCluskey all on our own. Set up the meeting for two days from now, then get our informers to find out where the meeting will be held. Insist that it has to be a public place, that I'm not going to let them take me into any apartments or houses. Let it be a restaurant or a bar at the height of the dinner hour, something like that, so that I'll feel safe. They'll feel safe too. Even Sollozzo won't figure that we'll dare to gun the captain. They'll frisk me when I meet them so I'll have to be clean then, but figure out a way you can get a weapon to me while I'm meeting them. Then I'll take both of them."

All four heads turned and stared at him. Clemenza and Tessio were gravely astonished. Hagen looked a little sad but not surprised. He started to speak and thought better of it. But Sonny, his heavy Cupid's face twitching with mirth (веселье, чувство веселости), suddenly broke out in loud roars (рев; хохот) of laughter. It was deep belly laughter, not faking (без притворства; to fake – подделовать, фальсифицировать). He was really breaking up. He pointed a finger at Michael, trying to speak through gasps of mirth. " You, the high-class college kid, you never wanted to get mixed up in the Family business. Now you wanta kill a police captain and the Turk just because you got your face smashed by McCluskey. You're taking it personal, it's just business and you're taking it personal. You wanta kill these two guys just because you got slapped in the face. It was all a lot of crap. All these years it was just a lot of crap."

Clemenza and Tessio, completely misunderstanding, thinking that Sonny was laughing at his young brother's bravado for making such an offer, were also smiling broadly and a little patronizingly at Michael. Only Hagen warily (осторожно) kept his face impassive. Michael looked around at all of them, then stared at Sonny, who still couldn't stop laughing. " You'll take both of them? " Sonny said. " Hey, kid, they won't give you medals, they put you in the electric chair. You know that? This is no hero business, kid, you don't shoot people from a mile away. You shoot when you see the whites of their eyes like we got taught in school, remember? You gotta stand right next to them and blow their heads off and their brains get all over your nice Ivy League («Лига Плюща» – a group of colleges and universities in the northeastern U.S., consisting of Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Columbia, Dartmouth, Cornell, the University of Pennsylvania, and Brown, having a reputation for high scholastic achievement and social prestige) suit. How about that, kid, you wanta do that just because some dumb cop slapped you around? " He was still laughing.

Michael stood up. " You'd better stop laughing, " he said. The change in him was so extraordinary that the smiles vanished (исчезли) from the faces of Clemenza and Tessio.

Michael was not tall or heavily built but his presence seemed to radiate danger. In that moment he was a reincarnation of Don Corleone himself. His eyes had gone a pale tan and his face was bleached (to bleach – белить, отбеливать; обесцвечивать) of color. He seemed at any moment about to fling himself on his older and stronger brother. There was no doubt that if he had had a weapon in his hands Sonny would have been in danger. Sonny stopped laughing, and Michael said to him in a cold deadly voice, " Don't you think I can do it, you son of a bitch? "

Sonny had got over his laughing fit (приступ). " I know you can do it, " he said. " I wasn't laughing at what you said. I was just laughing at how funny things turn out. I always said you were the toughest one in the Family, tougher than the Don himself. You were the only one who could stand off (держаться на расстоянии; противостоять) the old man. I remember you when you were a kid. What a temper you had then. Hell, you even used to fight me and I was a lot older than you. And Freddie had to beat the shit out of you at least once a week. And now Sollozzo has you figured for the soft touch in the Family because you let McCluskey hit you without fighting back and you wouldn't get mixed up in the Family fights. He figures he got nothing to worry about if he meets you head to head. And McCluskey too, he's got you figured for a yellow guinea." Sonny paused and then said softly, " But you're a Corleone after all, you son of a bitch. And I was the only one who knew it. I've been sitting here waiting for the last three days, ever since the old man got shot, waiting for you to crack out of that Ivy League, war hero bullshit character you've been wearing. I've been waiting for you to become my right arm so we can kill those fucks that are trying to destroy our father and our Family. And all it took was a sock (удар) on the jaw. How do you like that? " Sonny made a comical gesture, a punch, and repeated, " How do you like that? "

The tension had relaxed in the room. Mike shook his head. " Sonny, I'm doing it because it's the only thing to do. I can't give Sollozzo another crack at the old man. I seem to be the only one who can get close enough to him. And I figured it out. I don't think you can get anybody else to knock off a police captain. Maybe you would do it, Sonny, but you have a wife and kids and you have to run the Family business until the old man is in shape. So that leaves me and Freddie. Freddie is in shock and out of action. Finally that leaves just me. It's all logic. The sock on the jaw had nothing to do with it."

Sonny came over and embraced him. " I don't give a damn what your reasons are, just so long as you're with us now. And I'll tell you another thing, you're right all the way. Tom, what's your say? "

Hagen shrugged. " The reasoning is solid. What makes it so is that I don't think the Turk is sincere (искренний [sı n'sı ∂ ]) about a deal. I think he'll still try to get at the Don. Anyway on his past performance (исполнение; действие, поступок) that's how we have to figure him. So we try to get Sollozzo. We get him even if we have to get the police captain. But whoever does the job is going to get an awful lot of heat. Does it have to be Mike? "

Sonny said softly, " I could do it."

Hagen shook his head impatiently. " Sollozzo wouldn't let you get within a mile of him if he had ten police captains. And besides you're the acting head of the Family. You can't be risked." Hagen paused and said to Clemenza and Tessio, " Do either one of you have a top button man, someone really special, who would take on this job? He wouldn't have to worry about money for the rest of his life."

Clemenza spoke first. " Nobody that Sollozzo wouldn't know, he'd catch on right away. He'd catch on if me or Tessio went too."

Hagen said, " What about somebody really tough who hasn't made his rep yet, a good rookie (новичок, новобранец)? "

Both caporegimes shook their heads. Tessio smiled to take the sting (жало) out of his words and said, " That's like bringing a guy up from the minors to pitch (бросать, посылать мяч) the World Series (/baseball/ an annual series of games between the winning teams of the two major leagues: the first team to win four games being champions of the U.S.)"

Sonny broke in curtly, " It has to be Mike. For a million different reasons. Most important they got him down as faggy (гомосексуалист; /здесь/ трус). And he can do the job, I guarantee that, and that's important because this is the only shot we'll get at that sneaky bastard Turk. So now we have to figure out the best way to back him up. Tom, Clemenza, Tessio, find out where Sollozzo will take him for the conference, I don't care how much it costs. When we find that out we can figure out how we can get a weapon into his hands. Clemenza, I want you to get him a really 'safe' gun out of your collection, the 'coldest' one you got. Impossible to trace. Try to make it short barrel (бочонок; ствол, дуло /ружья, пистолета/) with a lot of blasting (to blast – взрывать/ся/) power. It doesn't have to be accurate. He'll be right on top of them when he uses it. Mike, as soon as you've used the gun, drop it on the floor. Don't be caught with it on you. Clemenza, tape (обматывать лентой; tape – лента) the barrel and the trigger (курок) with that special stuff you got so he won't leave prints (отпечатки). Remember, Mike, we can square everything, witnesses, and so forth, but if they catch you with the gun on you we can't square that. We'll have transportation and protection and then we'll make you disappear for a nice long vacation until the heat wears off. You'll be gone a long time, Mike, but I don't want you saying good-bye to your girl friend or even calling her. After it's all over and you're out of the country I'll send her word that you're OK. Those are orders." Sonny smiled at his brother. " Now stick with Clemenza and get used to handling the gun he picks out for you. Maybe even practice a little. We'll take care of everything else. Everything. OK, kid? "

Again Michael Corleone felt that delicious refreshing chilliness all over his body. He said to his brother, " You didn't have to give me that crap about not talking to my girl friend about something like this. What the hell did you think I was going to do, call her up to say good-bye? "

Sonny said hastily, " OK, but you're still a rookie so I spell things out. Forget it."

Michael said with a grin, " What the hell do you mean, a rookie? I listened to the old man just as hard as you did. How do you think I got so smart? " They both laughed.

Hagen poured drinks for everyone. He looked a little glum (мрачно, хмуро). The statesman forced (государственный деятель, вынужденный) to go to war, the lawyer forced to go to law. " Well, anyway now we know what we're going to do, " he said.

 

Chapter 11

 

Captain Mark McCluskey sat in his office fingering three envelopes bulging with betting slips (игральные карточки; slip – длинная узкая полоска; бланк). He was frowning and wishing he could decode the notations on the slips. It was very important that he do so. The envelopes were the betting slips that his raiding parties had picked up when they had hit one of the Corleone Family bookmakers the night before. Now the bookmaker would have to buy back the slips so that players couldn't claim winners and wipe him out.

It was very important for Captain McCluskey to decode the slips because he didn't want to get cheated when he sold the slips back to the bookmaker. If there was fifty grand worth of action, then maybe he could sell it back for five grand. But if there were a lot of heavy bets and the slips represented a hundred grand or maybe even two hundred grand, then the price should be considerably higher. McCluskey fiddled (вертел в руках; fiddle – вертеть; to fiddle – играть на скрипке) with the envelopes and then decided to let the bookie sweat a little bit and make the first offer. That might tip off (может подсказать) what the real price should be.

McCluskey looked at the station house clock on the wall of his office. It was time for him to pick up that greasy (сальный, грязный) Turk, Sollozzo, and take him to wherever he was going to meet the Corleone Family. McCluskey went over to his wall locker (запирающийся шкафчик) and started to change into his civilian clothes. When he was finished he called his wife and told her he would not be home for supper that night, that he would be out on the job. He never confided (to confide – доверять/ся/; вверять /тайну/) in his wife on anything. She thought they lived the way they did on his policeman's salary (зарплата). McCluskey grunted with amusement. His mother had thought the same thing but he had learned early. His father had shown him the ropes (методы работы; rope – веревка, канат; петля).

His father had been a police sergeant, and every week father and son had walked through the precinct and McCluskey Senior had introduced his six-year-old son to the storekeepers (владельцы магазинов), saying, " And this is my little boy."

 The storekeepers would shake his hand and compliment him extravagantly and ring open their cash registers to give the little boy a gift of five or ten dollars. At the end of the day, little Mark McCluskey would have all the pockets of his suit stuffed with paper money, would feel so proud that his father's friends liked him well enough to give him a present every month they saw him. Of course his father put the money in the bank for him, for his college education, and little Mark got at most a fifty-cent piece for himself.

Then when Mark got home and his policemen uncles asked him what he wanted to be when he grew up and he would lisp childishly, " A policeman, " they would all laugh uproariously. And of course later on, though his father wanted him to go to college first, he went right from high school to studying for the police force.

 

He had been a good cop, a brave cop. The tough young punks terrorizing street corners fled when he approached and finally vanished from his beat altogether. He was a very tough cop and a very fair one. He never took his son around to the storekeepers to collect his money presents for ignoring garbage violations (нарушения по выбросу мусора ['gα: bı dG]) and parking violations; he took the money directly into his own hand, direct because he felt he earned it. He never ducked into a movie house or goofed (to goof – лодырничать, слоняться без дела) off into restaurants when he was on foot patrol as some of the other cops did, especially on winter nights. He always made his rounds. He gave his stores a lot of protection, a lot of service. When winos (алкаши) and drunks filtered up from the Bowery to panhandle on his beat (попрошайничать на патрулируемом им участке; panhandle – ручка кастрюли) he got rid of them so roughly that they never came back. The tradespeople in his precinct appreciated (to appreciate [∂ ‘prı: ∫ ı eı t] – ценить) it. And they showed their appreciation.

He also obeyed the system. The bookies in his precinct knew he would never make trouble to get an extra payoff for himself, that he was content for his share of the station house bag (своей долей из общего котла; station house – полицейский участок; bag – сумка; кошелек). His name was on the list with the others and he never tried to make extras. He was a fair cop who took only clean graft (работа, профессия; взятка) and his rise in the police department was steady if not spectacular (эффектный).

During this time he was raising a large family of four sons, none of whom became policemen. They all went to Fordham University and since by that time Mark McCluskey was rising from sergeant to lieutenant and finally to captain, they lacked for nothing. It was at this time that McCluskey got the reputation for being a hard bargainer (to bargain [‘bα: gı n] – торговаться, заключать сделку). The bookmakers in his district paid more protection money than the bookmakers in any other part of the city, but maybe that was because of the expense of putting four boys through college.

McCluskey himself felt there was nothing wrong with clean graft. Why the hell should his kids go to CCNY or a cheap Southern college just because the Police Department didn't pay its people enough money to live on and take care of their families properly with? He protected all these people with his life and his record showed his citations (вызовы в суд; упоминания в списках об отличившихся) for gun duels with stickup (грабеж) men on his beat, strong-arm protection guys, would-be (претендующий, с претензией на то, чтобы быть кем-то) pimps (сутенеры). He had hammered them into the ground. He had kept his little corner of the city safe for ordinary people and he sure as hell was entitled (имеющий право, уполномоченный) to more than his lousy one C note (стодолларовая купюра) a week. But he wasn't indignant (возмущен) about his low pay, he understood that everybody had to take care of themselves.

Bruno Tattaglia was an old friend of his. Bruno had gone to Fordham with one of his sons and then Bruno had opened his nightclub and whenever the McCluskey family spent an infrequent (нечастый) night on the town, they could enjoy the cabaret with liquor and dinner – on the house. On New Year's Eve they received engraved invitations to be guests of the management and always received one of the best tables. Bruno always made sure they were introduced to the celebrities (знаменитости) who performed in his club, some of them famous singers and Hollywood stars. Of course sometimes he asked a little favor, like getting an employee with a record cleared for a cabaret work license, usually a pretty girl with a police dossier as a hustler or roller (вор-карманник). McCluskey would be glad to oblige (сделать одолжение, угодить [∂ b'laı dG]).

McCluskey made it a policy never to show that he understood what other people were up to. When Sollozzo had approached him with the proposition to leave old man Corleone uncovered in the hospital, McCluskey didn't ask why. He asked price. When Sollozzo said ten grand, McCluskey knew why. He did not hesitate. Corleone was one of the biggest Mafia men in the country with more political connections than Capone had ever had. Whoever knocked him off would be doing the country a big favor. McCluskey took the money in advance (заранее, задатком; advance [∂ d'vα: ns] – движение вперед; аванс) and did the job. When he received a call from Sollozzo that there were still two of Corleone's men in front of the hospital he had flown into a rage. He had locked up all of Tessio's men, he had pulled the detective guards off the door of Corleone's hospital room. And now, being a man of principle, he would have to give back the ten grand, money he had already earmarked (earmark – клеймо /на ухе/, тавро; to earmark – клеймить; откладывать деньги /на что-либо/) to insure the education of his grandchildren. It was in that rage that he had gone to the hospital and struck Michael Corleone.

But it had all worked out for the best. He had met with Sollozzo in the Tattaglia nightclub and they had made an even better deal. Again McCluskey didn't ask questions, since he knew all the answers. He just made sure of his price. It never occurred to him that he himself could be in any danger. That anyone would consider even for a moment killing a New York City police captain was too fantastic. The toughest hood in the Mafia had to stand still (по стойке смирно) if the lowliest patrolman decided to slap him around. There was absolutely no percentage in killing cops. Because then all of a sudden a lot of hoods were killed resisting arrest or escaping the scene of a crime, and who the hell was going to do anything about that?

McCluskey sighed and got ready to leave the station house. Problems, always problems. His wife's sister in Ireland had just died after many years of fighting cancer and that cancer had cost him a pretty penny. Now the funeral would cost him more. His own uncles and aunts in the old country needed a little help now and then to keep their potato farms and he sent the money to do the trick. He didn't begrudge (жадничать, жалеть, скупиться) it. And when he and his wife visited the old country they were treated like a king and queen. Maybe they would go again this summer now that the war was over and with all this extra money coming in. McCluskey told his patrolman clerk where he would be if he was needed. He did not feel it necessary to take any precautions. He could always claim Sollozzo was an informer he was meeting. Outside the station house he walked a few blocks and then caught a cab to the house where he would meet with Sollozzo.

 

It was Tom Hagen who had to make all the arrangements for Michael's leaving the country, his false passport, his seaman's card, his berth (койка) on an Italian freighter (грузовой корабль ['freı t∂ ]) that would dock in a Sicilian port. Emissaries were sent that very day by plane to Sicily to prepare a hiding place with the Mafia chief in the hill country.

Sonny arranged for a car and an absolutely trustworthy driver to be waiting for Michael when he stepped out of the restaurant where the meeting would be held with Sollozzo. The driver would be Tessio himself, who had volunteered for the job. It would be a beat-up-looking (побитый, обшарпанный) car but with a fine motor. It would have phony license plates and the car itself would be untraceable. It had been saved for a special job requiring the best.

Michael spent the day with Clemenza, practicing with the small gun that would be gotten to him. It was a.22 filled with soft-nosed bullets that made pinpricks (булавочные уколы) going in and left insulting gaping holes when they exited from the human body. He found that it was accurate up to five of his steps away from a target (цель). After that the bullets might go anywhere. The trigger was tight (тугой) but Clemenza worked on this with some tools (инструменты) so that it pulled easier. They decided to leave it noisy. They didn't want an innocent bystander misunderstanding the situation and interfering out of ignorant courage. The report of the gun would keep them away from Michael.

Clemenza kept instructing him during the training session. " Drop the gun as soon as you've finished using it. Just let your hand drop to your side and the gun slip out. Nobody will notice. Everybody will think you're still armed. They'll be staring at your face. Walk out of the place very quickly but don't run. Don't look anybody directly in the eye but don't look away from them either. Remember, they'll be scared of you, believe me, they'll be scared of you. Nobody will interfere. As soon as you're outside Tessio will be in the car waiting for you. Get in and leave the rest to him. Don't be worried about accidents. You'd be surprised how well these affairs go. Now put this hat on and let's see how you look." He clapped a gray fedora (мягкая фетровая шляпа [fı 'd∂ ur∂ ]) on Michael's head. Michael, who never wore a hat, grimaced. Clemenza reassured him. " It helps against identification, just in case. Mostly it gives witnesses an excuse to change their identification when we make them see the light. Remember, Mike, don't worry about prints. The butt (рукоятка) and trigger are fixed with special tape. Don't touch any other part of the gun, remember that."

Michael said, " Has Sonny found out where Sollozzo is taking me? "

Clemenza shrugged. " Not yet. Sollozzo is being very careful. But don't worry about him harming you. The negotiator stays in our hands until you come back safe. If anything happens to you, the negotiator pays."

" Why the hell should he stick his neck out? " Michael asked.

" He gets a big fee (вознаграждение, гонорар), " Clemenza said. " A small fortune. Also he is an important man in the Families. He knows Sollozzo can't let anything happen to him. Your life is not worth the negotiator's life to Sollozzo. Very simple. You'll be safe all right. We're the ones who catch hell afterwards."

" How bad will it be? " Michael asked.

" Very bad, " Clemenza said. " It means an all-out war with the Tattaglia Family against the Corleone Family. Most of the others will line up with the Tattaglias. The Sanitation Department will be sweeping up a lot of dead bodies this winter." He shrugged. " These things have to happen once every ten years or so. It gets rid of the bad blood. And then if we let them push us around on the little things they wanta take over everything. You gotta stop them at the beginning. Like they shoulda stopped Hitler at Munich, they should never let him get away with that, they were just asking for big trouble when they let him get away with that."

Michael had heard his father say this same thing before, only in 1939 before the war actually started. If the Families had been running the State Department there would never have been World War II, he thought with a grin.

They drove back to the mall and to the Don's house, where Sonny still made his headquarters. Michael wondered how long Sonny could stay cooped up (coop – курятник; to coop – сажать в курятник, в клетку) in the safe territory of the mall. Eventually he would have to venture (отважиться) out. They found Sonny taking a nap on the couch. On the coffee table was the remains of his late lunch, scraps of steak and bread crumbs and a half-empty bottle of whiskey.

His father's usually neat office was taking on the look of a badly kept furnished room. Michael shook his brother awake and said, " Why don't you stop living like a bum (лодырь; /здесь/ бродяга) and get this place cleaned up? "

Sonny yawned. " What the hell are you, inspecting the barracks? Mike, we haven't got the word yet where they plan to take you, those bastards Sollozzo and McCluskey. If we don't find that out, how the hell are we going to get the gun to you? "

" Can't I carry it on me? " Michael asked. " Maybe they won't frisk me and even if they do maybe they'll miss it if we're smart enough. And even if they find it – so what. They'll just take it off me and no harm done."

Sonny shook his head. " Nah, " he said. " We have to make this a sure hit on that bastard Sollozzo. Remember, get him first if you possibly can. McCluskey is slower and dumber. You should have plenty of time to take him. Did Clemenza tell you to be sure to drop the gun? "

" A million times, " Michael said.

Sonny got up from the sofa and stretched. " How does your jaw feel, kid? "

" Lousy, " Michael said. The left side of his face ached except those parts that felt numb because of the drugged wire holding it together. He took the bottle of whiskey from the table and swigged (swig – большой глоток /спиртного/; to swig – пить большими глотками) directly from it. The pain eased.

Sonny said, " Easy, Mike, now is no time to get slowed up by booze (спиртное, бухло)."

Michael said, " Oh, Christ, Sonny, stop playing the big brother. I've been in combat against tougher guys than Sollozzo and under worse conditions. Where the hell are his mortars (минометы)? Has he got air cover? Heavy artillery? Land mines? He's just a wise son of a bitch with a big-wheel (важный, влиятельный /человек/) cop sidekick (закадычный друг /сленг/). Once anybody makes up their mind to kill them there's no other problem. That's the hard part, making up your mind. They'll never know what hit them."

Tom Hagen came into the room. He greeted them with a nod and went directly to the falsely listed telephone. He called a few times and then shook his head at Sonny. " Not a whisper, " he said. " Sollozzo is keeping it to himself as long as he can."

The phone rang. Sonny answered it and he held up a hand as if to signal for quiet though no one had spoken. He jotted some notes down on a pad, then said, " OK, he'll be there, " and hung up the phone.

Sonny was laughing. " That son of a bitch Sollozzo, he really is something. Here's the deal. At eight tonight he and Captain McCluskey pick up Mike in front of Jack Dempsey's bar on Broadway. They go someplace to talk, and get this. Mike and Sollozzo talk in Italian so that the Irish cop don't know what the hell they are talking about. He even tells me, don't worry, he knows McCluskey doesn't know one word in Italian unless it's 'soldi' (деньги) and he's checked you out, Mike, and knows you can understand Sicilian dialect."

Michael said dryly, " I'm pretty rusty (ржавый; запущенный) but we won't talk long."

Tom Hagen said, " We don't let Mike go until we have the negotiator. Is that arranged? "

Clemenza nodded. " The negotiator is at my house playing pinochle (вид карточной игры) with three of my men. They wait for a call from me before they let him go."

Sonny sank back in the leather armchair. " Now how the hell do we find out the meeting place? Tom, we've got informers with the Tattaglia Family, how come they haven't given us the word? "

Hagen shrugged. " Sollozzo is really damn smart. He's playing this close to the vest, so close that he's not using any men as a cover. He figures the captain will be enough and that security is more important than guns. He's right too. We'll have to put a tail on Mike and hope for the best."

Sonny shook his head. " Nah, anybody can lose a tail when they really want to. That's the first thing they'll check out."

By this time it was five in the afternoon. Sonny, with a worried look on his face, said, " Maybe we should just let Mike blast whoever is in the car when it tries to pick him up."

Hagen shook his head. " What if Sollozzo is not in the car? We've tipped our hand for nothing. Damn it, we have to find out where Sollozzo is taking him."

Clemenza put in, " Maybe we should start trying to figure why he's making it such a big secret."

Michael said impatiently, " Because it's the percentage. Why should he let us know anything if he can prevent it? Besides, he smells danger. He must be leery (подозрительый, осторожный, осмотрительный) as hell even with that police captain for his shadow."

Hagen snapped his fingers. " That detective, that guy Phillips. Why don't you give him a ring, Sonny? Maybe he can find out where the hell the captain can be reached. It's worth a try. McCluskey won't give a damn who knows where he's going."

Sonny picked up the phone and dialed a number. He spoke softly into the phone, then hung up. " He'll call us back, " Sonny said.

They waited for nearly another thirty minutes and then the phone rang. It was Phillips. Sonny jotted something down on his pad and then hung up. His face was taut (туго натянутый, подтянутый [to: t]). " I think we've got it, " he said. " Captain McCluskey always has to leave word on where he can be reached. From eight to ten tonight he'll be at the Luna Azure up in the Bronx. Anybody know it? "

Tessio spoke confidently. " I do. It's perfect for us. A small family place with big booths (booth [bu: ð ] – киоск, будка, кабина) where people can talk in private. Good food. Everybody minds their own business. Perfect." He leaned over Sonny's desk and arranged stubbed-out (stub – пень; обломок; окурок; to stub out – погасить /окурок/) cigarettes into map figures. " This is the entrance. Mike, when you finish just walk out and turn left, then turn the corner. I'll spot you and put on my headlights and catch you on the fly. If you have any trouble, yell and I'll try to come in and get you out. Clemenza, you gotta work fast. Send somebody up there to plant (сажать /растение/; размещать) the gun. They got an old-fashioned toilet with a space between the water container and the wall. Have your man tape the gun behind there. Mike, after they frisk you in the car and find you're clean, they won't be too worried about you. In the restaurant, wait a bit before you excuse yourself. No, better still, ask permission to go. Act a little in trouble first, very natural. They can't figure anything. But when you come out again, don't waste any time. Don't sit down again at the table, start blasting. And don't take chances. In the head, two shots apiece, and out as fast as your legs can travel."

Sonny had been listening judiciously. " I want somebody very good, very safe, to plant that gun, " he told Clemenza. " I don't want my brother coming out of that toilet with just his dick (половой член /сленг/) in his hand."

Clemenza said emphatically (с пафосом, с эмфазой, решительно, категорически [ı m'fæ tı k∂ lı ]), " The gun will be there."

" OK, " Sonny said. " Everybody get rolling."

Tessio and Clemenza left. Tom Hagen said, " Sonny, should I drive Mike down to New York? "

" No, " Sonny said. " I want you here. When Mike finishes, then our work begins and I'll need you. Have you got those newspaper guys lined up? "

Hagen nodded. " I'll be feeding them info as soon as things break."

Sonny got up and came to stand in front of Michael. He shook his hand. " OK, kid, " he said, " you're on. I'll square it with Mom your not seeing her before you left. And I'll get a message to your girl friend when I think the time is right. OK? "

" OK, " Mike said. " How long do you think before I can come back? "

" At least a year, " Sonny said.

Tom Hagen put in, " The Don might be able to work faster than that, Mike, but don't count on it. The time element hinges (hinge – петля /дверная/; to hinge – крепиться; зависеть от чего-либо) on a lot of factors. How well we can plant stories with the newsmen. How much the Police Department wants to cover up. How violently the other Families react. There's going to be a hell of a lot of heat and trouble. That's the only thing we can be sure of."

Michael shook Hagen's hand. " Do your best, " he said. " I don't want to do another three-year stretch away from home."

Hagen said gently, " It's not too late to back out, Mike, we can get somebody else, we can go back over our alternatives. Maybe it's not necessary to get rid of Sollozzo."

Michael laughed. " We can talk ourselves into any view-point, " he said. " But we figured it right the first time. I've been riding the gravy train (gravy train – легкая нажива, выгодное предприятие; gravy – подливка; легкая нажива, незаконные доходы /сленг/) all my life, it's about time I paid my dues (пора платить по счету, за проезд)."

" You shouldn't let that broken jaw influence you, " Hagen said. " McCluskey is a stupid man and it was business, not personal."

For the second time he saw Michael Corleone's face freeze into a mask that resembled uncannily (жутко, зловеще) the Don's. " Tom, don't let anybody kid you. It's all personal, every bit of business. Every piece of shit every man has to eat every day of his life is personal. They call it business. OK. But it's personal as hell. You know where I learned that from? The Don. My old man. The Godfather. If a bolt (молния) of lightning hit a friend of his the old man would take it personal. He took my going into the Marines personal. That's what makes him great. The Great Don. He takes everything personal. Like God. He knows every feather that falls from the tail of a sparrow (воробей) or however the hell it goes. Right? And you know something? Accidents don't happen to people who take accidents as a personal insult. So I came late, OK, but I'm coming all the way. Damn right, I take that broken jaw personal; damn right, I take Sollozzo trying to kill my father personal." He laughed. " Tell the old man I learned it all from him and that I'm glad I had this chance to pay him back for all he did for me. He was a good father." He paused and then he said thoughtfully to Hagen, " You know, I can never remember him hitting me. Or Sonny. Or Freddie. And of course Connie, he wouldn't even yell at her. And tell me the truth, Tom, how many men do you figure the Don killed or had killed."

Tom Hagen turned away. " I'll tell you one thing you didn't learn from him: talking the way you're talking now. There are things that have to be done and you do them and you never talk about them. You don't try to justify them. They can't be justified. You just do them. Then you forget it."

Michael Corleone frowned. He said quietly, " As the Consigliori, you agree that it's dangerous to the Don and our Family to let Sollozzo live? "

" Yes, " Hagen said.

" OK, " Michael said. " Then I have to kill him."

 

Michael Corleone stood in front of Jack Dempsey's restaurant on Broadway and waited for his pickup. He looked at his watch. It said five minutes to eight. Sollozzo was going to be punctual. Michael had made sure he was there in plenty of time. He had been waiting fifteen minutes.

All during the ride from Long Beach into the city he had been trying to forget what he had said to Hagen. For if he believed what he said, then his life was set on an irrevocable (неотменяемый, бесповоротный [ı ’rev∂ k∂ bl]) course. And yet, could it be otherwise after tonight? He might be dead after tonight if he didn't stop all this crap, Michael thought grimly. He had to keep his mind on the business at hand. Sollozzo was no dummy (дурик) and McCluskey was a very tough egg. He felt the ache in his wired jaw and welcomed the pain, it would keep him alert.

Broadway wasn't that crowded on this cold winter night, even though it was near theater time. Michael flinched as a long black car pulled up to the curb and the driver, leaning over, opened the front door and said, " Get in, Mike." He didn't know the driver, a young punk with slick black hair and an open shirt, but he got in. In the back seat were Captain McCluskey and Sollozzo.

Sollozzo reached a hand over the back of the seat and Michael shook it. The hand was firm, warm and dry. Sollozzo said, " I'm glad you came, Mike. I hope we can straighten everything out. AIl this is terrible, it's not the way I wanted things to happen at all. It should never have happened."

Michael Corleone said quietly, " I hope we can settle things tonight, I don't want my father bothered any more."

" He won't be, " Sollozzo said sincerely. " I swear to you by my children he won't be. Just keep an open mind when we talk. I hope you're not a hothead like your brother Sonny. It's impossible to talk business with him."

Captain McCluskey grunted. " He's a good kid, he's all right." He leaned over to give Michael an affectionate pat (похлопывание) on the shoulder. " I'm sorry about the other night, Mike. I'm getting too old for my job, too grouchy (ворчливый, здесь: легко срываюсь). I guess I'll have to retire pretty soon. Can't stand the aggravation (ухудшение состояния; здесь: досада, раздражение), all day I get aggravation. You know how it is." Then with a doleful (скорбный, страдальческий) sigh, he gave Michael a thorough frisk for a weapon.

Michael saw a slight smile on the driver's lips. The car was going west with no apparent attempt to elude any trailers (избежать фургонов, прицепов [ı 'lu: d]). It went up on to the West Side Highway, speeding in and out of traffic. Anyone following would have had to do the same. Then to Michael's dismay (испуг, смятение [dı s’mei]) it took the exit for the George Washington Bridge, they were going over to New Jersey. Whoever had given Sonny the info on where the meeting was to be held had given him the wrong dope.

The car threaded (машина пробралась, проскользнула; thread [θ red] – нить) through the bridge approaches (подступы, подходы) and then was on it, leaving the blazing (to blaze – сверкать, сиять, блистать) city behind. Michael kept his face impassive. Were they going to dump (выгрузить, вывалить; избавиться, бросить) him into the swamps or was it just a last-minute change in meeting place by the wily Sollozzo? But when they were nearly all the way across, the driver gave the wheel a violent twist. The heavy automobile jumped into the air when it hit the divider and bounced over into the lanes going back to New York City. Both McCluskey and Sollozzo were looking back to see if anyone had tried doing the same thing. The driver was really hitting it back to New York and then they were off the bridge and going toward the East Bronx. They went through the side streets with no cars behind them. By this time it was nearly nine o'clock. They had made sure there was no one on their tail. Sollozzo lit up a cigarette after offering his pack to McCluskey and Michael, both of whom refused. Sollozzo said to the driver, " Nice work. I'll remember it."

Ten minutes later the car pulled up in front of a restaurant in a small Italian neighborhood. There was no one on the streets and because of the lateness of the hour only a few people were still at dinner. Michael had been worried that the driver would come in with them, but he stayed outside with his car. The negotiator had not mentioned a driver, nobody had. Technically Sollozzo had broken the agreement by bringing him along. But Michael decided not to mention it, knowing they would think he would be afraid to mention it, afraid of ruining the chances for the success of the parley (разговор, переговоры [pα: lı ].

The three of them sat at the only round table, Sollozzo refusing a booth. There were only two other people in the restaurant. Michael wondered whether they were Sollozzo plants (‘подсадные утки’; to plant – сажать /растение/). But it didn't matter. Before they could interfere it would be all over.

McCluskey asked with real interest, " Is the Italian food good here? "

Sollozzo reassured him. " Try the veal (телятина), it's the finest in New York." The solitary waiter had brought a bottle of wine to the table and uncorked it (вынул пробку: cork). He poured three glasses full. Surprisingly McCluskey did not drink. " I must be the only Irishman who don't take the booze (алкоголь, выпивка /сленг/), " he said. " I seen too many good people get in trouble because of the booze."

Sollozzo said placatingly (to placate – умиротворять, унимать, успокаивать) to the captain, " I am going to talk Italian to Mike, not because I don't trust you but because I can't explain myself properly in English and I want to convince Mike that I mean well, that it's to everybody's advantage for us to come to an agreement (соглашение) tonight. Don't be insulted by this, it's not that I don't trust you."

Captain McCluskey gave them both an ironic grin.

" Sure, you two go right ahead, " he said. " I'll concentrate on my veal and spaghetti."

Sollozzo began speaking to Michael in rapid (быстрый, беглый) Sicilian. He said, " You must understand that what happened between me and your father was strictly a business matter. I have a great respect for Don Corleone and would beg for the opportunity to enter his service. But you must understand that your father is an old-fashioned man. He stands in the way of progress. The business I am in is the coming thing, the wave of the future, there are untold millions of dollars for everyone to make. But your father stands in the way because of certain unrealistic scruples (сомнения, угрызения совести). By doing this he imposes his will on men like myself. Yes, yes, I know, he says to me, 'Go ahead, it's your business, ' but we both know that is unrealistic. We must tread on each other's corns (будем наступать друг другу на мозоль; corn – зерно; мозоль). What he is really telling me is that I cannot operate my business. I am a man who respects himself and cannot let another man impose his will on me so what had to happen did happen. Let me say that I had the support, the silent support of all the New York Families. And the Tattaglia Family became my partners. If this quarrel (ссора, раздор [‘kwor∂ l]) continues, then the Corleone Family will stand alone against everyone. Perhaps if your father were well, it could be done. But the eldest son is not the man the Godfather is, no disrespect intended (без обиды будет сказано: «никакое неуважение не входит в намерение»). And the Irish Consigliori, Hagen, is not the man Genco Abbandando was, God rest his soul (упокой уго душу). So I propose a peace, a truce (перемирие). Let us cease all hostilities (прекратить враждебные действия) until your father is well again and can take part in these bargainings. The Tattaglia Family agrees, upon my persuasions and my indemnities (indemnity – гарантия от убытков; возмещение), to forgo (отказаться, воздержаться) justice for their son Bruno. We will have peace. Meanwhile, I have to make a living and will do a little trading in my business. I do not ask your cooperation but I ask you, the Corleone Family, not to interfere. These are my proposals. I assume (предполагаю) you have the authority to agree, to make a deal."

Michael said in Sicilian, " Tell me more about how you propose to start your business, exactly what part my Family has to play in it and what profit we can take from this business."

" You want the whole proposition in detail then? " Sollozzo asked.

Michael said gravely, " Most important of all I must have sure guarantees that no more attempts will be made on my father's life."

Sollozzo raised his hand expressively. " What guarantees can I give you? I'm the hunted one. I've missed my chance. You think too highly of me, my friend. I am not that clever."

Michael was sure now that the conference was only to gain a few days' time. That Sollozzo would make another attempt to kill the Don. What was beautiful was that the Turk was underrating him as a punk kid. Michael felt that strange delicious chill filling his body. He made his face look distressed. Sollozzo asked sharply, " What is it? "

Michael said with an embarrassed air, " The wine went right to my bladder (мочевой пузырь). I've been holding it in. Is it all right it I go to the bathroom? "

Sollozzo was searching his face intently with his dark eyes. He reached over and roughly thrust his hand in Michael's crotch, under it and around, searching for a weapon. Michael looked offended. McCluskey said curtly, " I frisked him. I've frisked thousands of young punks. He's clean."

Sollozzo didn't like it. For no reason at all he didn't like it. He glanced at the man sitting at a table opposite them and raised his eyebrows toward the door of the bathroom. The man gave a slight nod that he had checked it, that there was nobody inside. Sollozzo said reluctantly (неохотно), " Don't take too long." He had marvelous antenna, he was nervous.

Michael got up and went into the bathroom. The urinal had a pink bar of soap in it secured by a wire net. He went into the booth. He really had to go, his bowels (кишечник) were loose (свободный, непривязанный; несдерживаемый). He did it very quickly, then reached behind the enamel (эмалированный [ı ’næ m∂ l]) water cabinet until his hand touched the small, blunt-nosed (blunt – тупой) gun fastened with tape. He ripped the gun loose, remembering that Clemenza had said not to worry about leaving prints on the tape. He shoved the gun into his waistband (пояс) and buttoned his jacket over it. He washed his hands and wet his hair. He wiped his prints off the faucet (вентиль, втулка; водопроводный кран [fo: sı t]) with his handkerchief. Then he left the toilet.

Sollozzo was sitting directly facing the door of the toilet, his dark eyes blazing with alertness. Michael gave a smile. " Now I can talk, " he said with a sigh of relief.

Captain McCluskey was eating the plate of veal and spaghetti that had arrived. The man on the far wall had been stiff with attention, now he too relaxed visibly.

Michael sat down again. He remembered Clemenza had told him not to do this, to come out of the toilet and blaze away. But either out of some warning instinct or sheer funk (или просто от испуга, со страха; funk – сильный запах, зловоние) he had not done so. He had felt that if he had made one swift move he would have been cut down. Now he felt safe and he must have been scared because he was glad he was no longer standing on his legs. They had gone weak with trembling.

Sollozzo was leaning toward him. Michael, his belly covered y the table, unbuttoned his jacket and listened intently. He could not understand a word the man was saying. It was literally gibberish (невнятная речь, тарабарщина [‘gı b∂ rı ∫ ]) to him. His mind was so filled with pounding (to pound – бить/ся/, колотит/ся/) blood that no word registered. Underneath the table his right hand moved to the gun tucked into his waistband and he drew it free. At that moment the waiter came to take their order and Sollozzo turned his head to speak to the waiter. Michael thrust the table away from him with his left hand and his right hand shoved the gun almost against Sollozzo's head. The man's coordination was so acute ([∂ ‘kju: t] остроконечный, острый; сильный, резкий) that he had already begun to fling himself away at Michael's motion. But Michael, younger, his reflexes sharper, pulled the trigger. The bullet caught Sollozzo squarely between his eye and his ear and when it exited on the other side blasted out a huge gout (брызги, поток) of blood and skull fragments onto the petrified (остолбеневший; to petrify [‘petrı faı ] – превращать/ся/ в камень, окаменевать) waiter's jacket. Instinctively Michael knew that one bullet was enough. Sollozzo had turned his head in that last moment and he had seen the light of life die in the man's eyes as clearly as a candle goes out.

Only one second had gone by as Michael pivoted to bring the gun to bear on McCluskey. The police captain was staring at Sollozzo with phlegmatic surprise, as if this had nothing to do with him. He did not seem to be aware of his own danger. His veal-covered fork was suspended («подвешенная» = застывшая в воздухе) in his hand and his eyes were just turning on Michael. And the expression on his face, in his eyes, held such confident outrage (такое самоуверенное возмущение), as if now he expected Michael to surrender or to run away, that Michael smiled at him as he pulled the trigger. This shot was bad, not mortal (смертельный). It caught McCluskey in his thick bull-like throat and he started to choke loudly as if he had swallowed too large a bite of the veal. Then the air seemed to fill with a fine mist of sprayed blood as he coughed it out of his shattered lungs (легкие). Very coolly, very deliberately, Michael fired the next shot through the top of his white-haired skull.

The air seemed to be full of pink mist (розовая дымка). Michael swung toward the man sitting against the wall. This man had not made a move. He seemed paralyzed. Now he carefully showed his hands on top of the table and looked away. The waiter was staggering back toward the kitchen, an expression of horror on his face, staring at Michael in disbelief. Sollozzo was still in his chair, the side of his body propped up (to prop – подпирать) by the table. McCluskey, his heavy body pulling downward, had fallen off his chair onto the floor. Michael let the gun slip out of his hand so that it bounced off (отскочил от; bounce – бумс! бух! ) his body and made no noise. He saw that neither the man against the wall nor the waiter had noticed him dropping the gun. He strode the few steps toward the door and opened it. Sollozzo's car was parked at the curb still, but there was no sign of the driver. Michael turned left and around the comer. Headlights flashed on and a battered sedan pulled up to him, the door swinging open. He jumped in and the car roared away. He saw that it was Tessio at the wheel, his trim features hard as marble.

" Did you do the job on Sollozzo? " Tessio asked.

For that moment Michael was struck by the idiom Tessio had used. It was always used in a sexual sense, to do the job on a woman meant seducing (to seduce [sı ’dju: s] – соблазнять) her. It was curious that Tessio used it now. " Both of them, " Michael said.

" Sure? " Tessio asked.

" I saw their brains, " Michael said.

There was a change of clothes for Michael in the car. Twenty minutes later he was on an Italian freighter slated (to slate – намечать, планировать) for Sicily. Two hours later the freighter put out to sea and from his cabin Michael could see the lights of New York City burning like the fires of hell. He felt an enormous sense of relief. He was out of it now. The feeling was familiar and he remembered being taken off the beach of an island his Marine division had invaded (to invade – захватывать, вторгаться, оккупировать). The battle had been still going on but he had received a slight wound and was being ferried back (ferry – паром) to a hospital ship. He had felt the same overpowering relief then that he felt now. All hell would break loose (разразится) but he wouldn't be there.

 

On the day after the murder of Sollozzo and Captain McCluskey, the police captains and lieutenants in every station house in New York City sent out the word: there would be no more gambling, no more prostitution, no more deals of any kind until the murderer of Captain McCluskey was caught. Massive raids began all over the city. All unlawful business activities came to a standstill (полностью остановились; standstill – остановка, пауза).

Later that day an emissary from the Families asked the Corleone Family if they were prepared to give up the murderer. They were told that the affair did not concern them. That night a bomb exploded in the Corleone Family mall in Long Beach, thrown from a car that pulled up to the chain, then roared away. That night also two button men of the Corleone Family were killed as they peaceably ate their dinner in a small Italian restaurant in Greenwich Village. The Five Families War of 1946 had begun.

 

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