"Tiki Moon" drabbles by Christopher

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 51

Tiki Moon #51

Eddie put the cap back on the bottle and set it down on the desk.

"This Saint guy. He was a big player in the Chicago area. Did a lot of contract hits for the mob, that's how serious he is. The mob doesn't use amateurs. Anyway, he was doing hits on the side as well, which the mob told him to stop doing. And one of his side hits wound up bringing some heat on the mob that they didn't want or need. So, needless to say he wasn't exactly Chicago's favorite son anymore, if you get my meaning."

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 50

Tiki Moon #50

Eddie looked like a canary that woke up surrounded by cats.

"Well... what is it you wanted to know, Randolph?"

"I hear there's a new gun for hire in town. Going by the name of Mr. Saint. What can you tell me about him?"

Eddie sat down at his desk and opened a drawer. He pulled out a bottle of bourbon, opened it and drank directly from the end and then motioned to me with it. I declined.

I wouldn't drink after that weasel if I'd just come back from a weekend trapped in the Sahara desert without a canteen...

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 49

Tiki Moon #49

"I ain't the Chamber of Commerce, Randolph. Try downtown."

I walked over to Eddie's desk and sat down on the edge of it.

"Eddie, remember a couple of years ago when you had that run-in with Big Bill Bigelow? And he wound up going to the slammer? Well, he never knew it was you that tipped off the police to his whereabouts."

Eddie gulped, "He didn't?"

I shook my head," Nope. He's getting out in a few weeks. It would be a shame if someone told him who ratted him out. He has a very bad temper, you know?"

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 48

Tiki Moon #48

True to his name, he was whistling something, but I couldn't place the tune. Perhaps it wasn't a tune. He finished loading his ill-gotten gains into that iron bedroom and closed the door.

"You won't draw any interest on it that way, Eddie," I said as I stepped into his office.

Eddie grabbed his heart, "Jesus, Randolph! You scared the hell out of me!"

"It helps keep your blood flowing."

"If you want to make a bet, Randolph, go see one of my employees."

"I've already made a bet, Eddie. I'm betting you have the information that I need."

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 47

Tiki Moon #47

I nodded to Ari and then approached the doorway. It was a dimly lit hallway with doors on either side leading to another door at the opposite end of the hall. The side doors all led to rooms with banks of telephones on tabletops and a bunch of stubble-faced, cigar-chomping operators feverishly taking bets.

I made my way down the hall to the other end. The door was ajar and I could hear movement inside. I peeked in and saw Whistling Eddie carefully placing stacks of money in a wall safe as if it were fragile glass pieces...

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 46

Tiki Moon #46

I laughed, "Well, you can't win 'em all. So, is Whistling Eddie in?"

Ari looked back at the magazine. "Never took you for a betting man, Randolph."

I nodded my head, "Every day is a gamble in my business, Ari. I just need some info and I think Eddie might be able to give it to me."

"Eddie don't give nothin' for nothin', ya know what I mean?"

"You let me worry about the transaction, Ari. Can you just let me back there, please?"

He reached under the counter and pressed a button. The door to the back swung open...

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 45

Tiki Moon #45

Ari was behind the counter, sitting in a chair with his little feet propped up on the cash register. He was puffing on a cigarette and reading a girlie magazine called Fluff. He looked up and saw me.

"Randolph!" he said in that raspy voice that sounded like he'd spent the previous weekend gargling with old rusty razor blades.

I smiled as I approached the counter. "Hello, Aristotle. I see you're sticking with classic literature," I said as I pointed to the magazine.

He grinned, "Yeah, well, they were fresh out of copies of Little Women at the local library."

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 44

Tiki Moon #44

Aristotle ran the flower shop. He was a midget, only standing about 3'10'', but I once saw him bring a man over six feet tall to his knees, crying as he fell. Ari was a little spitfire and not one to be trifled with. But I liked him and I think he liked me, so I hoped he would let me back to see Whistling Eddie without me having to promise my future firstborn as collateral.

The bell rang as I opened the door to the shop. The smell of all those flowers was quite intoxicating, and bordering on overpowering....

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 43

Tiki Moon #43

Whistling Eddie was a bookie, but dabbled in the peddling of both flesh and drugs. He was strictly small-time, but he had his little greasy ear to the ground and his sticky fingers on the pulse of every underworld activity in the Los Angeles area. How he stayed so knowledgeable was beyond me. But he was useful. And I used him.

He had a shop on Pico Boulevard that sold flowers in the front, but did its real business behind the scenes. You had to go in and ask for two dozen chrysanthemums to gain access to the back...

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 42

Tiki Moon #42

Coincidence? I don't believe in 'em.

Now, the Tiki Moon is a popular nightclub. There were probably hundreds of people in this city that had one of their matchbooks. But not many of them just got run over in the streets. I was beginning to wonder if Mr. Saint played a role in any of this, considering Harrigan's and Kip's reactions to the mentioning of his name.

I knew it was time I paid a visit to one of my informants. A guy that would sell his own sister for a sawbuck.

A slimy, conniving little weasel named Whistling Eddie...

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 41

Tiki Moon #41

I clammed up and started looking around as well. I found a paycheck made out to Phil Garfield from the Commonwealth Construction Company. I guessed someone ran him down before he'd had a chance to get it cashed.

Harrigan and Kip were both still ransacking the place. I considered just calling a cab and going back to the precinct to retrieve my car, but figured that might offend Harrigan.

So I kept looking: dirty underwear and dirtier socks; several empty Heinz Baked Beans cans in the trash; a carton of Old Gold cigarettes and a matchbook.

From the Tiki Moon...

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 40

Tiki Moon #40

"What's the deal with this Phil Garfield, anyway?" I asked as we stepped into the room.

"Hit-and-run," Kip said as he began his search.

"Victim or perpetrator?" I asked.

"Victim," Harrigan said. "Now shut up and stay out of our way, Randolph. We'll drop you back by the precinct to get your car when we're done here."

"Well, what's the deal with Garfield?" I asked. "Any idea yet if the hit-and-run was random?"

Harrigan had to sidestep me, "Randolph, what part of 'now shut up and stay out of our way' was foreign to you? Huh?"

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 39

Tiki Moon #39

The little man pulled a key from the pocket of his tattered, button-up sweater and handed it to Harrigan.

"Up...up...the stairs, down the hall, third door...on...on the right," he said, sheepishly picking up his watering can.

We started up the stairs. Kip was grinning as Harrigan turned back to me, saying softly, "Nice one, Randolph."

"I have my uses," I said as we reached the top of the stairs. We turned down the hall and found Garfield's room. Harrigan opened the door. I looked inside. It was total crap.

"His interior decorator should be drawn and quartered," I said.

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 38

Tiki Moon #38

Harrigan butted in, "We need to take a look at Garfield's room."

The little man carried on watering his plants. "Do...you...have a search warrant?"

I knew Harrigan didn't. He was on the phone writing down the address to this joint right before we left the precinct.

"Hey!" I yelled. Waverly dropped the watering can, turning to look at me.

I glared right at him, "I'm the city building inspector. And judging by all the exposed wiring I'm seeing in this death trap I'd be more worried about what I'm going to do to this place than what these gentlemen are."

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 37

Tiki Moon #37

"What is your name, sir?" Harrigan asked, clearly getting irritated with this little man. He had little patience to begin with, and this man had already exhausted even that limited supply.

"Uh...Morris... Uh...Morris Waverly," he said. This guy was so indecisive he made fence-sitters look positively sure of themselves. "Been running this boarding house for twenty-five years. My...uh...wife, Agnes, passed away five years ago, so...I...I...I've been running the place by myself ever since."

Harrigan tried to get a word in, but the little man continued.

"The...the...the...neighborhood has changed now, though. My wife, rest her, wouldn't even recognize it."

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 36

Tiki Moon #36

Harrigan approached the little man and asked, “Are you the manager here?”

The little man appeared to have jumped five inches off the ground.

"Uh...yes...yes...yes...I am," he said. "Can I help you?"

"I'm Detective Harrigan, this is Detective Wilson, with the L.A.P.D.," he said as he flashed his badge. "Do you have a tenant here named Phil Garfield?"

"Uh....yes...yes...yes...I do. But...but...but...he hasn't been here for three days. And his rent is due, too. The irresponsibility of some people is absolutely mind boggling. Mind boggling."

With that the little man turned his attention back to the plant watering and baseball game...

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 35

Tiki Moon #35

The Pacific Breeze Boarding House it was called, but judging by the smell inside it should've been called the Pacific Stockyard Boarding House. And judging by the disheveled condition of the joint it could've been called the Pacific Cyclone Boarding House.

There was a little man in the foyer watering some hanging plants. He couldn't have been more than 5 feet tall or weighed more than 80 pounds soaking wet. The lenses in his black frame glasses looked like the ends of two bottles of Coca-Cola.

He was listening intently to the Indians-White Sox game on the radio...

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 34

Tiki Moon #34

If I told Harrigan he and Kip would have to look into it and that would tip Mort Alexander off. I had to wait until I could meet Ms. Newstead on the cruise ship and see how she wanted to proceed. After all, it was her life that was being threatened.

We pulled up to a boarding house on Route 66 in Upland. Harrigan said, "Stay in the car, Randolph."

"Sure," I said as I was opening the door and exiting the car. Harrigan just shook his head.

Kip got out and the three of us walked up the steps...

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 33

Tiki Moon #33

Kip continued, "We've been investigating a few murders that look to be contract hits. Word has it this Mr. Saint came in from the East, New York or Chicago, to escape some heat out there. He apparently wasted no time setting up shop on the West Coast."

This guy sounded like a real professional, perhaps even with mob ties. I was torn at this point as to whether I should let Harrigan know or not about Mort Alexander trying to hire Mr. Saint to kill his wife.

But I needed to speak with Ms. Newstead first. I decided to wait...

Jake Randolph in "Tiki Moon" Pt. 32

Tiki Moon #32

"Jake," Harrigan said in almost a whisper before raising his voice slightly, "don't think our friendship will stop me from throwing you in the jug if I find out you've been withholding evidence of a crime."

It wasn't a crime, not yet.

"Harrigan, there's been no crime. I heard this guy's name and I want to know who he is. That's all."

He finally took his eyes from the mirror and put them back on the road where they should've been all along.

"We've heard some rumbles about a new gun in town, along with the name Saint," Harrigan said.