“I started getting these wild ideas.
“The Eyeball Man said I should follow the Kafesjian guys and Dudley Smith around just for kicks.
“I was dogging Smith one day. He had lunch with Mickey Cohen, and I grabbed a booth next to them. Cohen said he was fronting this horror movie shooting in Griffith Park, and this Sid Frizell guy who was directing it shot stag films on the side. Smith said he loved naughty movies, and that Cohen should tell Frizell he had a nice sound stage he could use. Cohen said Frizell was skanky enough to take him up on it.”
He hit the _Vampire_ set–“Man, was this fuck from hunger.” He offered his camera services cut-rate; Cohen hired him; he gamed dumbfuck Sid Frizell–strapped for ideas. “I fed him these incestuous-type bits and all this blinding stuff, ’cause I figured one day I’d show Richie the finished-up movie.
I told Frizell I had smut experience, and he pestered this Cohen guy Chick Vecchio into talking to Smith. Smith gave the okay, so Frizell got to shoot his stuff at this dive down in Lynwood.
“So I got cozy close to things, but I still didn’t have the fucking plan worked out. Then the Eyeball Man came through.”
He said tweak the Kafesjians with a voodoo B&E. Put the onus on Richie-keep him scared–keep him hiding.
“So I did it. I guess it’s like symbolism, ’cause the Eyeball Man told me exactly how to do things. I tried to blind the dogs with this dry-cleaning chemical, but that didn’t work, so I pulled their eyes out. I broke liquor bottles to goose them on their bootleg gig, and I broke Tommy’s records up
’cause the Eyeball Man said that would symbolize how Richie hated Tommy. Richie always hated Lucille whoring, so I cut her pedal pushers up and shot a load on them.”
Wicked fun.
“The Eyeball Man said make Richie squirm, so I scoped him out at these motels, getting all weepy over Lucille, and I cut up his bed with this silverware I stole to spook him. There was lots of heat around the Kafesjians because of the B&E and the Fed thing, so the Eyeball Man told me to kill Phil Herrick early.
The daughters came home unexpected, and the Eyeball Man said snuff them too. I figured Richie was a fucking escapee, so the cops would think he did it and snuff him on the spot.”
Then?
“The Eyeball Man said kill Tommy and J.C. slow. He said rip Dudley Smith’s eyes out and eat them.”
Now?
“Pancakes and sausage, daddy-o. A nice safe cell for me and the Eyeball Man.”
* * *
Licking his chops.
Flapjack batter on a shelf.
EVERYTHING.
Side 233
Ellroy – White Jazz
Chest pings/headache/dry mouth–Dudley Smith meets the Eyeball Man.
Exley pointing at the door.
I followed him outside. Spooky sunlight–trailer-park geeks watching us.
“What’s your assessment?”
Juke him/fuck him–LIE:
“I want to take Bullock in to Welles Noonan. I’m dodging custody, and he can help me smooth things out. He’s a key witness on Dudley and the Kafesjians, and if we cooperate with the Feds we can cut their probe off at the knees, especially with you giving them Narco.”
“He’s insane. He’s not a valid witness.”
“Yeah, but all he is to _us_ is a psycho. He’s not even fit to stand trial.”
“Gallaudet will get indictments. He’ll prosecute him himself.”
“Bob’s dead. He was in with Dudley on some district gambling scheme. Dudley killed him.”
Weak knees–I steadied him–Edmund Jennings Exley popping cold sweat.
“I’ve got Chick Vecchio stashed. He begged me for Federal custody, and Madge Kafesjian filled in some of Bullock’s story and told me how Dudley hooked J.C.
up with the Department. Exley, it’s all _contained_. Vecchio, Bullock, Madge–_they_ rat Dudley and only Narco gets hurt. It’s _your_ basic plan, and all you have to do is cut me some slack before I take Bullock in.”
“Specifically?”
“Call Noonan. Tell him you’re handing your Narco dossiers over. Tell him to retract his warrant on me until I bring our witnesses in.”
Do it–grab the bait–I’ll run with _your_ money–
“Exley . . .”