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Power Play Revisited
Or
“Don’t Keep Wild Things
In a Cage!”
By Klaus D. Haisch
The story continues. . . . .
There is a loud bang, as a gunshot roars through the still air like thunder. Emma, who had sneaked up quietly behind Jater, had just shot him in the back with Steve’s handgun. (“Lord help me,” Emma thinks to herself, “I just killed a man.”) For a time she stands there, eyes wide as saucers, mouth open. She has shocked herself – what she will do to keep her man. She realizes she will do anything! Recovering, Emma says, “Too bad. . . he tried to hold me up.” She realizes, her being a woman, and everyone in town knows her, and an armed stranger breaks into her store, nobody would think of pressing charges against her. The shock of having killed a man quickly disappeared as she realizes, she will get away with it scot free! Indeed, the shooting would become a local sensation.
The next day, as a crowd of truckers and locals milled around, Emma gave her “story” to her friend, policeman Pete. All he asked her is, “Are YOU all right?”
Back in Chicago, Ness’ men had been going over Barney Lubin’s Bail Bonds office. They found a wire tap. This might prove the connection between Commissioner Thornton and the late Barney, and help Ness nail Thornton. Ness says, “We might not even need Country Parrish.” The Feds never had any real interest in arresting Steve, they only wanted the top men.
Meanwhile, in the store room at Five Points, Steve is sweating. He had never seen a woman shoot a man before. Who IS this hellion? Uncharacteristically, Steve is pacing the floor nervously, and has the locked door barricaded, too.
Emma knocks; he lets her in. Emma in a dress! A pretty dress. Stockings with seams up the back; dress shoes. Her hands are folded across her chest, and her fingers play with a necklace, the effect being to draw attention to her bosom. (How easily this body language comes to her; woman’s intuition.) She is wearing perfectly applied eye shadow, and a trace of lipstick. Her hair is neatly combed, and on the right side of her head there is a big, pink bow. Her dress is beautiful; bright chartreuse with black outline patterns, making it ook like the dress is made up of thousands of flowers. Any man would take one look at her and tell her how beautiful she looks, especially since it was such a transformation: from plain Jane to dressed to the nines.
Steve is so concerned about his own plight, he is blind to it, and just snipes at Emma, “You sure took your time.”
(Any other woman would tell him, “Drop dead! After I spent all day getting all fixed up for you!”) But Emma will let nothing stop her now. She won’t even be fazed, not by his rudeness, not by anything.
As Steve starts to put his suit on, Emma is surprised, and says, “You ain’t figurin’ to move out NOW.”
First she gives him a reason he would understand: somebody would spot him for sure. But she has another reason, of course: she’s going to keep him.
Emma doesn’t take her eyes off him for a second; his gaze avoids hers completely. Emma has her left hand on her bosom, the fingers close around her heart. She gently puts her right hand on his shoulder.
Steve ignores all the eye contact and body language she is giving, and he straightens his tie, just as cold as he was when Ness was giving him the 3rd degree a few days ago.
Emma says gently, almost whispering in his ear, “We country folks don’t go to sleep with the settin’ sun no more.” Her hand feels his strong shoulder. She almost moans, “too many fun things to do. . . ” She almost feels silly to be throwing herself at him, when he is indifferent to her, so she adds, “I mean, what with the radio and all.” (“Damn it!” she thinks to herself, “what does it take to GET to this iceberg of a man?”) She loves him with all her heart. His indifference is like a knife in her heart. Her hand is still on his shoulder.
He roughly slaps her hand away.
Her emotional pain is obvious, as Emma says to herself, “Kind of foolish, I guess. . . gettin’ all gussied up.”
Steve explodes. He yells at her for stealing his wallet, and his gun which can be traced back to him. The confrontation becomes physical, he throws her around like a rag doll. He yells, “I’m not a lousy, 2-bit country yokel,“ and adds, “You don’t lock a man up like some lousy raccoon!”
Emma yells back, they have nobody but each other. She yells, “When I say ‘stay’, you stay! You live with that, mister.“
With his mighty left arm, Steve gives her a backhand slap across her face that sends her reeling. She doesn’t fall, but leans back against the wall. Blood is dripping down from the corner of her lip, and another trickle of blood from her nose. Emma is breathing heavily, her chest rising and falling quickly. “Ain’t the first time,” she says almost defiantly, “that I been hit in the face.” But she finally got a reaction out of him. (“Dear Lord,” she thinks to herself, “the physical pain is much easier to take, than the emotional pain of being ignored.”)
Steve has a look of remorse on his face.
Emma slowly walks outside, to the pay phone. She has 2 calls to make – and the 2nd one will be to Eliot Ness.
Country Boy is really nervous now. “What to do, what to do?” he thinks to himself, over and over, as he nervously paces the floor. If he makes a run for it, the Feds will catch him. But if he stays here, he won’t be safe either. He had spurned Emma, and he knew that “hell hath no fury as a woman scorned.”
He hardly dared look out the window. But when he did, half an hour later, he saw Emma talking to policeman Pete. She had been the first person she called, right after Eliot promised her the $5,000 reward money for turning in Steve Parrish.
“And they’re friends!” Steve thinks nervously. Now he is close to despair. She was going to turn him over to the cops. And he didn’t even have his gun, not that he could shoot it out with the cops and the Feds anyway – he’d be outnumbered, they’d shoot him dead for sure. Steve knew he’d be caught and go to jail. Facing a double murder rap, for the killings of Joey Loomis and Barney Lubin. And he wouldn’t even have a lawyer – he’d shot the mob’s lawyer, Lubin. He anxiously tried to make the best of a bad situation. Steve thinks to himself: “Joey’s killing was premeditated murder, Murder One, which carries 25 years to life. . . but since there were no witnesses, maybe I could say I didn’t mean to kill him in the knife fight, and get it reduced to manslaughter,” (even though Joey had no knife to defend himself, so it wasn’t a fair fight). As for Barney Lubin, Steve thinks “they’d say that was murder but not premeditated, Murder Two, which carries a sentence of 15 years to life. Maybe I could try to convince the jury that Barney pulled a gun on me first, so it was self-defense, maybe get away with manslaughter, or even just ’reckless endangerment’.” Even with time off for good behavior, and parole – he knew he would be looking at at least 40 years in prison!
He looks out the window again. Emmy was STILL talking to policeman Pete. What were they jawing about for so long? Why didn’t they just come in and arrest him, and get it over with? This waiting was pure agony for Steve; he was a wild thing in a cage.
What Steve didn’t know is that they were waiting for some others to arrive, Eliot Ness and Thornton, and the drive from Chicago took longer than Pete’s jaunt over here. Another state policeman, Danny, pulls up in a policecar. (Five Points was such a small town, they didn’t have any local cops; but the state police was always only a phone call away, and some of them, like Pete, were quite familiar with the locals.) Thornton heads down to Five Points.
Eliot Ness meets with Lee Hobson, who gives him the news that the wiretap in Lubin’s office was a direct line – to Thornton’s home! News travels fast. Within a few minutes, the alert that Thornton is a crook is relayed to the policemen via a phone call placed to the phone booth outside Emma’s diner (policecars didn’t have police radios in those days). Emma and Pete huddle again to discuss strategy.
Finally, Thornton drives up to Emma’s diner. He has 2 thugs with him; he tells Pete these plainclothesmen are “special deputies.” Pete plays it real cool, introduces himself as Pete Garrett, and says another policeman, Danny Capra, is standing watch back of the diner.
Thornton walks over to Emma. She says Steve is in back, and she can get Steve to open up. She knows that Thornton is a crook, but doesn’t let on. When she says, “I’ll show you,” Thornton thinks she means she’ll show him where Steve is; she really meant, “I’ll show you, you crook!” Emma takes Thornton and his 2 thugs to the back. Emma is betraying somebody, but who?
Emma says, “But first, there’s the matter of the $5,000 reward money.”
Thornton tries to brush her off by saying, “You’ll get your check.”
Emma shoots back, “Mama didn’t raise no fool. I want cash. Cash now – or you don’t get Steve.”
Thornton reluctantly reaches into his suit pocket and pulls out an envelope with $5,000 in bills. Emma counts it first as Thornton stands there impatiently. Satisfied the money is all there, Emma knocks on the door and tells Steve to come out for his supper.
Country Boy opens the door – and sees Thornton with 2 thugs.
Steve yells at her, “You pig! You know who he is?!” and tries to beat her again, but this time one of the thugs hits him over the head from behind with a billy club.
Emma thinks, “How do YOU like being hit in the head?” However, for a moment there is a real look of concern on her face; she prays everything will go as she and Pete planned, in the next few minutes.
As Thornton and his 2 thugs drag the semi-conscious Steve out front, they are met with Pete and Danny, who have their guns drawn. Thornton says he will take it from here. Pete and Danny, knowing Thornton is a big crook (but not letting on they know), insist, “No, sir, this is a matter for the state police.” Their guns are pointing at Thornton, and not by accident. Thornton says again he will handle it. Pete is even more insistent he WON’T; Steve is going into the state policecar, and that’s that! Thornton, hearing a car coming up and knowing it’s Ness, doesn’t press the point. Thornton knows that Ness’ men, nosing around in the late Barney Lupin’s office, might find the wiretap and trace it back to his house. He wants to avoid Ness, and get back to Chicago to remove the wiretap before they find it, while Ness and his men are down here. Thornton has to flee before he is discovered.
Pete and Danny get a hold of Steve and put him in the back seat of Pete’s policecar.
Thornton and his thugs get in their car, and try to make a getaway. Ness’ car cuts them off. Ness and Thornton get out of their cars, and Ness yells at him the news that puts Thornton in despair – he’s discovered the wiretap, and is going to arrest him!
Since this is Five Points, Thornton and the thugs try to escape down another street, but there is a roadblock put up by 2 cars – one with Enrico Rossi, the other with Lee Hobson in it.
Thornton and his thugs try to make a run for it, and then do something incredibly stupid – they try to shoot it out with Ness and the Feds.
Eliot even has William Youngfellow and Jack Rossman with him. Thornton and his 2 thugs go down in a hail of bullets, all 3 are dead. Neither Ness nor any of his men have so much as a scratch on them.
A stray bullet had hit one of Emma’s gas pumps, which exploded in a ball of fire, and set off the other gas tank, too. Lee Hobson puts out the fires with a fire extinguisher; Enrico Rossi uses a shovel to heap dirt on the burning gasoline on the ground, putting out the fire.
Lee notices the dead raccoon, a victim of smoke inhalation, and gives his condolences to Emma, “I’m sorry about the raccoon, ma’am. Afraid he’s dead.”
“It don’t matter,” Emma says with tears in her eyes, “he never was much of a pet.” She sobs a moment for her old friend. But then she has consolation – she’s got herself a MAN, now.
Eliot and his men drive back to Chicago.
Steve Parrish, in handcuffs, is in the back seat of Pete’s policecar. Pete shakes hands with Danny, and thanks him for his help. Pete tells Danny, “You’ll get a promotion for this.” Danny drives off in his car. Officer Pete gets into the policecar, and Emma walks over and gets in, on the passenger side.
Steve starts talking up a storm, pleading innocent, etc. Pete and Emma don’t say a word. Pete starts driving up to Chicago. Once they get to the main road, Pete starts driving 50 mph.
It is Thursday, July 6, and there is a beautiful full moon that night, like last night.
Steve talks and talks until his throat is dry. Pete and Emma don’t say a word. Finally, when they are 30 miles from Five Points, they start laughing – like 2 little kids that got away with something. “Ha!” Emma says to Pete, “this is gonna work.” They both laugh some more.
Steve gets sore. “Hey, what are you 2 jackals laughing about? It’s bad enough you turned me in, you Delilah, but ya don’t have to laugh about it like a laughing hyena!”
Emma was looking at Pete the whole time; Pete takes his eyes off the road just long enough to look into Emma’s face, and they both laugh again.
Steve is livid. “You know what’s gonna happen to me in Chicago?!”
Emma says, “You’re gonna get 30 days in the electric chair.”
Steve: “I don’t find that funny at all!”
Emma starts to let Steve in on her plan. “This is working out better than I thought. I got $5,000 cash money here in my purse. That’s more than I made at the diner in 2 years. And now, with Thornton dead, I’m gonna collect that bond money that the Feds confiscated.” She turns her head to look at Steve in the back seat, “Remember, you jumped bail. But the bail money will be returned when I deliver you: DEAD or alive!”
Steve’s face turns ghostly white. “You – you’re – you-all ain’t gonna KILL me, are ya?”
Emma and Pete don’t make a sound.
Steve protests, “For cryin’ out loud, you’re a cop – you’re the LAW!”
Pete and Emma laugh loud and long.
Emma continues, “Just think, in one night, I get $5,000 cash PLUS $100,000 bail money.”
Steve protests, “But I’ll be rottin’ in jail for the rest of my life!”
Pete asks Emma, “Do you think he’s suffered enough for slapping you in the face?”
Emma looks at Steve, with the look of a lost puppy on his face, pleading for mercy. Emma says slowly, though not too convincingly, “Yeah, I guess the old goat’s suffered enough. Tell him.”
Pete keeps one eye on the road, and looks at Steve in the rear view mirror. “You’re NOT wanted anymore. There is no evidence connecting you to Joey Loomis’ killing, they never found the knife. In fact, there NEVER was any direct evidence connecting you to Barney Lubin’s killing, either. Your fingerprints on the steering wheel only show you drove the car at some time, nothing more. You’re a free man.”
“You see,” says Emma, “you’re not wanted by the law. The only person knows you killed those two is me, because you confessed to me.”
Pete says quickly, “I didn’t hear that. I don’t know anything.”
Emma goes on, “I figure, Pete can drive us up to Chicago, and we take you to the police station to collect the $100,000 bail money. Nobody else is gonna claim it. Barney Lubin’s dead, and so is Thornton.”
Steve starts, “But how can you – ”
Emma: “Don’t interrupt. Just sit there quiet, and look pretty. Now, when I first found you laid out sleepin’ in the store room, I took your gun, your wallet. . . and this envelope I found.” She takes out the paper, “seems you must have lifted it from Barney. It’s the bail paper, saying $100,000 is payable on demand, when you are presented dead or alive. Well, I’m presenting you and demandin’ the money. On demand it TIS!”
Steve: “And then what?”
Emma: “And then, you’re a free man.”
Steve: “Really?”
Emma: “Well, free as far as the LAW is concerned. But you’re not free of me.”
Steve: “What do you propose?”
Emma: “That’s exactly what I’m doin’ – proposing. I’m the only one that could testify against you, in a court of law, that you confessed to me you killed Joey Loomis and Barney Lubin. But, the law says,” and here Emma pauses, and looks him long in the eyes, then adds softly, “a wife can’t be forced to testify ag’in her husband!”
Steve: “Oh, gee. . . so. . . so. . . ”
Emma: “So it’s jail – or me!”
They couldn’t have done the next part without Pete. They drove up to the police station in Chicago. Patrolman Pete, in uniform and with his badge, escorted Steve Parrish (still in handcuffs) to the night officer on duty, Emma was with them. The night officer looked at the bond paper, and the very bedraggled Steve Parrish, and handed over the envelope with $100,000 cash in it.
The 3 walk outside before Emma and Pete laugh again. They’d pulled it off. Emma wasn’t really entitled to the money, but neither Lubin nor Thornton were going to protest!
On the sidewalk, Emma turns to Pete and says, “I always loved you, Pete. I was gonna ask you to marry me, but now I got Steve.”
Pete gives her a hug, “You’ve been great, Emmy. But I guess now I’ll ask Louise to get hitched.”
Emma asks, “Where you gonna live?”
Pete says, “I’d like to get us a house. Hard to do on a patrolman’s salary. I only make 30 bucks a week.”
Emma says softly, “That’s about $1,500 a year.” She reaches into her purse, with the 2 envelopes of money. “Here’s $3,000 – that’s 2 years’ salary. Buy a nice house. My honeymoon present to you and Louise.“ Pete hugs her again, and tells her to be sure to come to the wedding.
Then Pete drives off in his police car.
Emma says to Steve, “We have over $100,000 left. I never made more than 2 grand a year with my diner and gas pumps.” Then she looks him in the eyes again, and asks, “So, you never did answer my question. Do we get hitched?”
Steve doesn’t have to think about it. He knows that he will get married sooner or later, there’s no getting around that. And Emma is more woman than he’s ever met before. “Yeah,” Steve says, “yeah – we’re gettin’ hitched.”
The next morning, Friday, Steve and Emma got married by a Justice of the Peace in Chicago. The first words Emma said, after saying “I do,” were, “I’m MRS. Parrish.”
They went on a shopping spree. Emma had only been to Chicago, “the big city,” a half dozen times in her whole life. They bought her a nice wardrobe of big city clothes, and vowed she’d throw away every tomboy piece of clothing she owned. Steve needed some new suits, too.
As they drove to Steve’s farm, in the new 1933 car they bought, Emma asked, “Do you really want to be a farmer?”
Steve, basking in his newfound wealth, says, “I own the farm, but I can hire workers to run it. I always wanted to be a GENTLEMAN farmer.“ And with that, Steve kept one hand on the steering wheel, and with his other took out a big cigar. He bit off the end, and spat it out the window.
And Mrs. Parrish leaned over and lit the cigar for him, giving him a big kiss on the cheek. Steve smiled as he took big puffs on his cigar.
They got married on Friday, July 7, 1933. Let’s look in on them, 30 years later. It is now Thursday, April 11, 1963. There is a full moon tonight. Steve and Emma have been married almost 30 years. They have 5 kids, and 8 grandkids. Today they all had a big family reunion; it was a most wonderful day. Around sunset, all the adult sons and daughters gathered up their young ’uns, and said “so long” to Steve and Emmy. The proud grandparents waved as their big, happy family drove off in 5 cars. They’d all be back again in 3 days for Easter Sunday, April 14, for another family reunion.
Steve plops down on the couch. “That was the PERFECT day,” he says contentedly, with a big smile on his face from ear to ear.
“Well,” says Emmy, as she slides next to him on the couch, on his left side, “there is one way to make this the perfect ending to the perfect day.”
“What’s that?” asks Steve naively. He was still the same simple, loveable country boy.
Emmy puts her right arm around his shoulders, puts her left hand on his knee, and whispers sweetly in his ear, “We country folks don’t go to sleep with the setting sun anymore, too many fun things to do. . . and I DON’T mean watch television.”
“Mama mia!” Steve lets out, as Emmy smothers his mouth with a long, wet kiss, pulls her knees up on the couch, then bends him backwards and sideways until he is horizontal on the couch. Then she unbuttons his shirt quickly.
Steve only mumbles, “You sure are passionate tonight. . . ”
“Oh my!” was the last thing Steve said as Emmy kissed him again, and was all over him like a blanket.
In the background, the TV was showing some program. . . The Twilight Zone on CBS. On TV, Mr. Feathersmith was saying, “I’ve got everything there is to get – and I’m still hungry.”
Emma says, “I’ve got everything there is to get – and I’m completely satisfied.” (sigh)
THE END
Would you like to write a comedy scene or a script for Albert? Feel free to contribute your ideas. Contact Sandra Grabman at srgrabman@cableone.net.
Spotlights & Shadows: The
Albert Salmi Story, by Sandra Grabman, is available through
these on-line booksellers:
BearManor Media
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Amazon US
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