Wyatt - 01 - Kick Back (6 page)

Ta.

But dont forget he wants you to
move those carpets.

No worries.

The customer said, You sure it
works all right?

Like new, Leanne said. Our
technician tests everything before its put in the shop.

Fucking technician. Ivan with a rag
and a screwdriver. Sugarfoot went into Leannes tiny glassed office, found her
keys, and walked through to the storeroom at the rear of the shop.

Ivan kept SOLD and SALE
stickers, price tags, receipts, invoice books and files locked in a grey steel
cabinet. Anything else he needed to know he carried in his head. Sugarfoot was
hoping that addresses and phone numbers were not in this category.

Among the files and records he found
a small box of filing cards labelled contractors. The cards listed names,
contact information and brief comments. The card with Wyatts name on it simply
said messages via Rossiter and works with Hobba. Hobbas card carried an
address in Flemington and the words works with Pedersen. Pedersens card carried
an address in Brunswick and the words works with Hobba.

There was also a card for Rossiter.
Sugarfoot wrote down addresses for Rossiter, Hobba and Pedersen, locked the
cabinet and returned the keys to Leannes desk. She was counting out change to
the customer, who stood frowning in doubt at the vacuum cleaner coiled in a
carton at his feet.

She looked up at Sugarfoot as if
surprised to see him there. Dont forget you have to do the carpets.

Itll have to wait, Sugarfoot
said. I have to go out.

But Ivanll go mental.

Too bad, Sugarfoot said. Jesus
Christ she pissed him off sometimes.

He turned his back on her and picked
his way through the scungy tables and armchairs, liking the way his cuban heels
snapped on the old floorboards. Behind him, the customer was saying, Thirty
days warranty isnt much.

And in front of him Ivan was just
coming in. You done those carpets?

My ribs hurt, Sugarfoot said. Could
be cracked.

Ivan was going to walk past him,
busy man with his finger on the pulse, but then he stopped, showing concern. The
carpets can wait. Did you do like I said, take it easy over the weekend?

Sugarfoot shrugged.

Ivan said, back to business again, Stick
around. You might be doing a job with Bauer later

Bauer. Now that was big time.

* * * *

Nine

Andreis
Bauer spent the morning reporting to the Sydney outfit and by three oclock he
was in the arrivals hall at Melbourne Airport again. He could see his luggage
revolving on the Ansett carousel but he walked by it, stopped at the public
telephone next to the Mens, and called Ivan Younger. He faced away from the
wall.
Guard your back,
the first rule in this game. He listened to the
ringing tone and looked bleakly out at the hall. He was slight and wiry. He had
bloodless lips and pale skin that seemed to be stretched over a frame of sharp
bones. He scowled at a blow-waved Greek loading luggage onto a trolley.

Ivan Younger came onto the line,
saying, Bargain City, in that high voice of his.

Bauer said, That shift supervisor
at Calamity Janeswhat is her name?

The one skimming the profits?
Ellie.

What time does she come on duty?

She does four to midnight, Younger
said. Listen, what did Sydney say? Are they pissed off?

They are not happy, Bauer said. They
say you dont run a tight ship, your profits are down.

Come on, Younger said, aggrieved. What
about those slags Ken Sala runs for me, Cher and Simone? You cant say thats
not profitable.

You dont understand, Bauer said. If
you are careless enough to let one of your staff skim off our profits, you are
careless enough to let everyone do it.

Says them, Ivan said. Come on,
Bauer, it wont happen again. Ill waste the bitch.

Dont be stupid, Bauer said. I
will talk to her this afternoon.

There was a pause while Younger
absorbed this. Bauer watched the swinging door to the Mens. There had been
times when hed used toilet cubicles for his hits. The mark was most vulnerable
then, his trousers around his ankles. The cleanest way was a silenced .22 fired
just above the hairline, but a guy had once reared up at him and hed been
forced to punch the guy, knocking his nasal bone back into his brain.

Ivan Younger was talking again. Youre
the boss. But like I said before, if you could take Sugar along with you, hed
learn something, so we wouldnt have to hassle you in future.

Bauer shrugged at a passing
clergyman. So long as he keeps out of the way. Tell him my place, four oclock.

He hung up and collected his
overnight bag and got into a Silver Top. The driver was Asian. That didnt
surprise him, you found them everywhere. St Kilda, he said.

On the Tullamarine Freeway he
watched the scenery, the satellite industries that cluster around airports
everywhere, the miles of tiled roofs stretching to the city skyline, the gloomy
clouds caught at the tops of the high city buildings. He asked, as if he were
visiting the place, Wheres the action in Melbourne? He called it research.
He minded several Melbourne operations now, and whenever he was in a taxi he
liked to ask background questions, taxi drivers being well-known for having a
finger on the pulse.

Depends, the driver said, but youre
starting at the right place. Most people try St Kilda first.

Not much accent. Probably been
sponging here for years. Depends on what? Bauer said.

You want a girl? Little boys? A
game? A club? Things to put in your body?

Smart-arse. What about all of the
above? Bauer said. I hear you people are good at things like that.

My people, the taxi driver said. Who
would they be?

Dont get smart, Bauer said.

Look, I dont have to take you
anywhere, the taxi driver said. He slowed the taxi and edged into the
emergency stopping lane on the approach to the Bell Street exit. This all
right? No charge.

The driver was small, skinny, the
kind with a mop of black hair flopping over black-rimmed glasses. Nothing to
him, Bauer thought, but maybe he fancies himself in unarmed combat. He rested
his arm along the back of the seat and let his hand drop to the drivers neck.
He felt for the pressure points with his fingers and began to squeeze. With his
other hand he steered the taxi as it began to slow. The drivers eyes rolled
back. His body began to droop.

By now they were almost stationary.
The drivers foot was no longer on the accelerator. Bauer released his hold
and, still steering, slapped the drivers cheek and whistled piercingly in his
ear. When the taxi was motionless he moved the gear lever into Park.

He opened the window. The air was
very cold. The driver recovered, shaking his head. You bastard, he said.

You feel a little dizzy, Bauer
said, but the sensations are coming back to your fingers, correct? You can see
and hear and breathe again. He reached forward and turned off the taxi radio. You
will not call your base about this. Now, let us begin again. Where is the
action in Melbourne. I want the names of places. Think carefully, now.

I dont know, the driver said. I
am part-time only

Bauer shook his head in disgust. Youre
a student? I suppose the government is supporting you? I suppose you will stay
on when your visa expires? You make me sick. He sat back and pointed ahead. Go.
St Kilda.

He appeared to go to sleep. The
driver eased back into traffic and drove across the city. Where Fitzroy Street
meets the Esplanade in St Kilda, Bauer said, I will walk now.

He paid the fare and an extra twenty
dollars, saying, You wont be following this up. Youll take the money and
keep quiet. He reached into the back seat for his bag, got out, and stood
waiting on the footpath.

The driver sat, the engine idling.
Then he opened his door, stood half in and half out of the taxi, and called
shrilly to Bauer, at roof level, Your sister sleeps with black men.

He jerked back into the drivers
seat and sped away in the direction of Luna Park.

Bauer shrugged. Havent got a
sister.

He drew the strap of his bag over
one shoulder and walked back along Fitzroy Street. Palm trees, lawns and
buildings on the other side of the street, Italian bistros, ice-cream parlours,
adult bookshops and local residents on this side. Junkies and drunks blinking
in the wintry sun.

He turned into a side street and
began the climb to his walled-in house. He didnt like living in St Kilda, but
he had no choice. The Sydney outfit wanted him close to their Melbourne
interests, their clubs and other front operations, their pushers and pinball
parlours. Not that he had to do much, just make sure people like Ivan Younger
didnt have their fingers in the till, put the frights on if someone played up,
fly to Sydney with the weekly take.

The worst part was working with
trash. He found Sugarfoot Younger waiting outside the front gate, his fleshy
face perplexed by Placidas squawk on the intercom.

* * * *

Ten

Sugarfoot
nodded hello, keeping it cool, letting Bauer know he wasnt fazed. He took in
the dark cord trousers and the ribbed blue pullover under a short leather
jacket, the pale hair cut close to the scalp, the shadows like gashes in Bauers
hollow cheeks.

But Bauer ignored him and punched
numbered keys next to the intercom. The electric lock disengaged. Bauer said, Please
go in, my friend.

Sugarfoot felt like sneering. Bauer
looked tough, until you heard that stupid accent. Ta, he said, entering the
front garden.

He let Bauer go ahead of him down a
brick path to the front door. It was plain and solid, with no knocker or
buzzer, only another set of numbered keys. Sensing movement, he glanced up. A
security camera was trained on him. He looked at the windows on either side of
the door. They were barred, but Sugarfoot wouldnt mind betting there were also
electric eyes everywhere. Bauer was probably like Ivan in that respecthad a
consuming sense of security and survival. Nice place, he said.

Bauer ignored him and entered
another code. The front door clicked open and he stood back and said again, Please
go in, my friend.

Sugarfoot stepped into the house.
The hallway was cold and smelt of furniture polish. Hed barely taken two steps
when he heard the click of paws on the wooden floor and a dog emerged from the
shadows. It crouched, utterly still, observing him. Sugarfoot held his breath.
Among the many things Ivan had warned him about was Bauers killer dog, a Rhodesian
Ridgeback. His hand slipped instinctively inside his coat.

Keep still, Bauer said softly.
Then more sharply, Down!

Sugarfoot began to drop.

Not you, Bauer said, and Sugarfoot
saw the dog lie flat and baleful on the floor.

Not a bad dog, Sugarfoot said.

Bauer regarded him expressionlessly
for a moment and Sugarfoot wondered if hed offended the man. Dont upset him,
Ivan had said. Just watch and learn and do as he says. Sugarfoot tried to
meet Bauers eyes.

Suddenly Bauer smiled, a slight relaxation
of his facial muscles, and said, So. You are here to help me with your brothers
problems.

Sugarfoot cleared his throat. Ivan
said this bird at Calamity Janes been skimming off the top.

Bauer nodded. Come in. Sit for a
minute. Would you like something to drink?

Surprised, Sugarfoot said, Got any
Corona?

Corona, said Bauer oppressively.

Yeah, you know, its this beer.

Sorry, no.

Oh well, give us a Fosters,
whatever, Sugarfoot said.

Bauer barked, Placida!

Sugarfoot heard footsteps. He looked
along the corridor toward the back of the house. A young, dark-haired woman had
appeared. She was meek and subservient and excessively still.

A bottle of beer for our guest. I
will have mineral water.

The woman disappeared and Sugarfoot
followed Bauer into a sitting room. The carpet was sombre, the curtains thick.
A massive sideboard faced a suite of black leather armchairs. There were no
books or pictures, only a hunting magazine on a low glass coffee table.

Sugarfoot thought about the woman.
According to Ivan, Bauer had ordered her through a mail-order bride catalogue.
She was more servant than wife. Bauer kept her shut away here, dependent on him
for a few dollars to send home to her family. Ivan reckoned Bauer was
recreating the life hed had in South Africa, without the risk of prosecution
under some immorality act. Sugarfoot lost Ivan at that point: it all sounded complicated,
like something on Sixty Minutes.

He looked at Bauer. How do you
reckon on doing it?

Doing what? Bauer said.

Throwing a scare into this woman,
Sugarfoot said.

Bauer held up his hand. Wait. He
looked past Sugarfoot to the door. Put the drinks on the coffee table. You may
listen to the radio in the kitchen.