The news took me by surprise, but later I realized it would be pretty obvious for Leon Sparizza to promote, Tony, his own son.
Leon was a smart man, always in a suit although he never looked like a mob boss. A little over six foot tall, he was slim and had a shock of well-groomed silver hair. So after slapping Tony’s back, I sat with him and listened while the boss told me about the job.
“Package runs for me, but in the main I want you to work with Tony.”
“Thanks, Mr. Sparizza. What packages are being delivered?”
“Dead drops.” He smiled. “No need for you to know more until later. Tony will fill you in as and when.”
“Yes, Sir.”
And that was that. I was in with the boys. It took no time at all before Tony was showing me what the special ‘dead drops’ job was.
“Skimmers, snitchers, double-crossers, and disloyal members are always around, and the mobs are always having a clearout. The trouble is they have a problem getting rid of the dirt. Our boss provides a unique service. We take delivery, package the goods, and find a nice graveyard we can bury them in. There’s a lot of dollars in this.”
“You’re joking,” I said.
Tony became serious. “No. I know you well, and I told my dad we could pull this off. I’ve got a couple of other fella’s who are in, and all we have to do is find drop off points for delivery and dumping grounds for burial.”
Back home as I lay looking up at my bedroom ceiling, the enormity of what Tony and his dad were involved in got at me. I never worried about anything Tony wanted me to do before. He always looked after me. Of course, now he was a ‘made’ man I knew he was into more serious stuff than selling knocked off phone cards, whiskey, and cigarettes. Dead drops was another thing entirely. Tony said there was no way we could get caught even if the cops found a body. Like…the body couldn’t be linked to us, especially if we wore gloves and kept our car clean. That was going to be my job - cleaning the car. The bodies, Tony said, came from all over. Even so, I lay awake all night and made up my mind to tell Tony I couldn’t help him. I felt terrible at letting him down but shifting and burying bodies wasn’t for me.
“Tony’s outside for you,” announced my mother as I walked into the kitchen. She pointed out of the kitchen window as a horn impatiently blared.
My stomach tightened. I took a deep breath. I hoped Tony would understand and we would remain friends. As I walked toward Tony’s car, I could see someone in the back. I froze. It was Digger.
“Hurry up, Joe,” shouted Tony. “It’s our first dead drop. Jump in.”
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