Robert Randisi - It Was a Very Bad Year

‘No. Pat told Frank she’d pass his condolences on to the family.’

‘That must not have sat very well with him.’

‘They closed down the set for the day. I don’t know where Frank is now. Maybe with Dean. He seems to be the only one who can talk to Frank.’

‘Frank’s gonna want to go to the funeral.’

‘Then he’ll be disappointed,’ Jack said. ‘There’s no way they’ll let him go.’

‘I guess we’ll all just have to wait and see.’

‘How are you doin’ with that problem for Abby Dalton?’ he asked.

‘Should wrap it up tomorrow.’

‘Well, at least that’s good news. Let me know when it’s all over.’

‘I will. I should be in the building the rest of the night. I’m taking Abby to dinner, and then I’ll go down to the floor for a while.’

‘OK,’ Jack said. ‘See ya there.’

As I hung up, the door slammed open and Billy came stumbling into the room, followed by Jerry, who was about as livid as I’d ever seen him.

‘Take it easy, Uncle Jerry!’

‘What’s going on?’ I asked.

‘This idiot,’ Jerry said, pointing, ‘is in to the casino for seventy grand!’

‘Seventy?’ I asked. ‘Who okayed him for seventy grand?’

We both looked at Billy.

‘I dunno,’ he said, with a shrug. ‘I asked for ten grand credit, then ten more-’

‘And kept askin’,’ Jerry said. ‘And he woulda still been askin’ if I hadn’t stopped him.’

‘I’m close, Uncle Jerry,’ Billy said. ‘My system is gonna work.’ He looked at me. ‘I just need ten thousand more.’

‘Shut up!’ Jerry shouted, his face almost cherry red. ‘You’re done gambling.’

‘But that’s what we came here to do,’ Billy complained.

‘Yeah, with the money you brought with you. Nobody said you could run up a tab.’

‘The guy downstairs said it was OK.’

‘Who?’ I asked.

‘I don’t know his name.’

Jerry gave me a look.

‘I’ll find out,’ I said. ‘Just keep him here.’

‘Don’t worry,’ Jerry said. ‘He ain’t goin’ nowhere.’

I left the suite and went down to see what idiot had given a twenty-one year old seventy grand worth of credit.

His name was Mike Dotelli, and he’d been in the pits exactly three months. Jack had promoted him, against my better judgment.

‘Why would you ever OK that much credit to a kid?’ I demanded.

‘Why do you think I’ve got to account to you, Eddie?’ Dotelli asked.

‘It doesn’t make any sense, Mike.’

‘The kid shot ten grand on his own, Eddie,’ Dotelli said. ‘Said he was here celebrating his twenty-first birthday. Who are we to ruin the celebration?’

‘How about you’re ruining his life?’ I asked.

Dotelli raised his eyebrows at me. He was young, maybe thirty-three. I didn’t think he was ready for the pit, and this proved it to me. I had to wonder if this would prove it to Jack Entratter, as well?

‘Eddie,’ he said, ‘if we started to worry about ruining people’s lives we wouldn’t let anybody play, at all.’

‘Jesus, Mike,’ I said, ‘how high would you have let him go?’

‘If his cousin hadn’t yanked him outta here? Probably another thirty grand.’

‘A hundred grand?’ I asked. ‘Happy fuckin’ birthday.’

‘Hey, the kid has a system,’ Mike said. ‘He’ll be back.’

‘Not if his cousin has anything to say about it.’

‘You know these two?’

‘Yeah,’ I said, ‘I know ’em.’

‘Well, mark my words,’ Mike said, ‘he’ll be back at the tables, if not here, then somewhere else.’

I shook my head and walked away from the asshole. My next stop was Jack Entratter.

‘Eddie,’ Entratter said, after a few minutes, ‘you ain’t askin’ me to let this kid off the hook, are ya?’

‘He never should have been on the hook at all, Jack,’ I said. ‘He came here with ten grand birthday money. When that was gone he should have been finished.’

‘You wouldn’t have given him any credit?’

‘None.’

‘Because he’s Jerry’s cousin?’

‘Because he’s a kid,’ I said. ‘Where’s he going to get the money to pay up?’

‘When has that ever been our problem?’

‘It’s our problem to show good judgment,’ I said. ‘I OK credit to people I know are going to be able to pay up. Otherwise, I’m gambling with the casino’s money. And that’s not my job. And it ain’t Mike Dotelli’s job, either.’

‘All right,’ Entratter said, sitting back in his chair. ‘I’ll have a talk with Mike but there’s no way I can let the kid off the hook.’

‘Just give him time to pay, Jack.’

‘He’ll have all the time he needs, Eddie. I’m not lookin’ to break the legs attached to any of Jerry’s relatives.’

‘No,’ I said, ‘I guess not.’

‘Can Jerry keep him under control from here on in?’ Jack asked. ‘Or maybe take him home?’

‘I’ll talk to him.’

‘We can keep him away from our tables, but if he goes somewhere else. .’

‘I get it, Jack,’ I said. ‘I’ll talk to Jerry, see what he wants to do.’

Jack nodded, stood up.

‘Come on, I’ll go down with you. I wanna walk the floor.’

‘I’m gonna take Abby to dinner,’ I said. ‘Then I’ll hit the floor.’

‘Good, good.’

On the way to the elevators he said, ‘I know you don’t think Dotelli was ready, Eddie, but mark my words, he’ll make a good pit boss.’

‘I don’t doubt it, Jack,’ I said, ‘in a few years, maybe.’

He took the elevator down to the floor, while I took it up to Jerry’s suite.

‘Where’s Billy?’ I asked, when he let me in.

‘In his room,’ Jerry said. ‘He’s pissed I won’t let him leave.’

‘I’m taking Abby to dinner,’ I said. ‘She’s going stir crazy in her room. You wanna come?’

‘I’d really like to meet her,’ he said, ‘but Billy’ll just go back downstairs. If I don’t sit on ’im.’

‘If he does he won’t be able to play.’ I told him about my talk with the pit boss, and with Entratter.

‘Thanks, Mr G. I wouldn’t expect Mr Entratter to let him off the hook,’ Jerry said. ‘And I’ll sure as hell see that he makes good on the debt.’

‘I know you will.’

‘Hold on,’ he said. ‘I’ll talk to the kid and then I’ll come to dinner with you and Miss Dalton.’

‘Good. I want her to know that you helped get her photos back.’

‘Just let me scare the shit out of Billy, first,’ he said.

We picked Abby up at her room. Jerry acted like a shy kid when we met her, and she was very nice to him. She had put on a silk blouse, tight black skirt and heels.

‘I figured we weren’t going anywhere really fancy.’

‘Just downstairs,’ I said, ‘unless you want to go somewhere else.’

‘No, that’s fine,’ she said. ‘I just wanted to get out of my room.’

‘We could take in the show at the Copa Room, if you like,’ I said. ‘Tony Bennett.’

‘No, really, that’s all right,’ she said. ‘I don’t think I’d be able to enjoy it. Let’s just go and eat.’

‘OK.’

We took her down to the Garden Room and over dinner she asked Jerry a lot of questions about himself. He answered them as best he could, without really telling her what he did.

Over dessert I thought of a way to tell her how we got Irwin to part with the photos.

‘We should be able to get them for you tomorrow.’

‘Do you need more money?’

‘No’ I said, ‘he should take the five grand.’

‘I don’t know how to thank you.’ She looked at Jerry. ‘Both of you.’