Chapter 6 02-2

However, Christmas seemed to lift her mood.All she wanted to do this time was to ask Hagen what kind of presents her father liked for Christmas.And Sonny, Freddie, Mike, whatever they liked.She is clear.Hagen made some suggestions for him, but she rejected them all, thinking that Hagen was tacky.In the end, she simply didn't ask for his opinion. When the phone rang again, Hagen tossed the file back into the databasket.Really annoying.He was leaving get off work, but he never refused to answer the phone.When his secretary told him it was Michael Corleone, he happily grabbed the receiver.He has always liked Mike. "Tom," said Michael Corleone, "I'm going into town with Kay tomorrow, and I have something important to tell my father before Christmas. Will he be home tomorrow night?"

"Sure," said Hagen. "He won't be out of town until after Christmas. How can I help you?" Michael, like his father, was tight-lipped. "Nothing," he said. "I think I'll see you for Christmas. Everybody's going out to Long Beach, isn't it?" "Yes," said Hagen. Michael hung up the phone without talking about anything trivial, which he found rather amusing. Hagen told his secretary to call his wife and say that he might not be home a little later than usual, but he still had to get dinner ready.He walked out of the building and walked briskly towards the Macy's in the central business district.Suddenly someone blocked his way.When he saw it, he was taken aback. It turned out to be Sollozzo.

Sollozzo grabbed his arm and said unhurriedly, "Don't worry, I just want to talk to you." The door of a car parked on the sidewalk suddenly opened.Sollozzo urged, "Get in the car, I want to talk to you." Hagen jerked his arm free.He wasn't panicked yet, just a little irritable. "I don't have time," he said. Then two people came up and stood behind him.Hagen felt suddenly weak in his legs.Sollozzo said softly: "Get in the car, if I wanted to kill you, you would have died long ago, trust me." Hagen didn't even trust Sollozzo, so he reluctantly got into the car.

Michael Corleone lied to Hagen.He was already in New York, and he was calling from the Hotel Pennsylvania, less than ten blocks away.When he hung up, Kay Adams stubbed out his cigarette and said, "Michael, you're such a liar." Michael sat next to her on the edge of the bed. "Not for you, dear. If I say we're in the city, we'll have to start home right away. We can't go out to dinner together, we can't go to the theater, and we can't tonight." Sleeping together. It's not okay for us to sleep together in my house. It's not okay to sleep together before we're officially married."

He put his arms around her and kissed her gently on the lips.Her mouth was sweet, and he gently pushed her down on the bed.She narrowed her eyes, waiting for him to express his love to her.Michael was very happy.He spent several years in the smoke of the Pacific Ocean.On the bloody island, he had dreamed of a good girl like Kay Adams, dreamed of a beauty like her, with a slender and soft body and milky white skin, and when he was excited, it was like being electrified. Sensitive as if, she opened her eyes first, then pushed his head down again, and kissed him.They slept with their arms around each other, and didn't get up until it was time to eat supper and go to the theatre.

After dinner, they walked past several brightly lit department stores, all packed with holiday shoppers.Michael asked her: "What do you want me to buy you for Christmas?" She leaned against him. "I want you to buy me you," she said. "Do you think your father would approve of me?" Michael said tenderly, "That's not a question at all. The real question is, will your parents approve of me?" Kai shrugged. "Whether they approve or not, I don't care," she said. Michael said, "I've tried to change my last name, legally, but it won't work if something goes wrong. Would you really like to change your name to Corleone?"

He was only half joking when he said that. "I really want to." She was very serious and didn't smile. They were very close to each other.They had long ago decided to marry on Christmas week, a secular wedding in the City Hall, in a quiet, civil ceremony, with only two friends as suitors.But Michael insisted on telling his father first.He explained that his father would have no objection as long as it wasn't a private affair.Kai was not sure about his parents.She said she would wait until after she got married before telling her parents. "Of course, at that point they would think I was pregnant," she said.Michael grinned. "My mom and dad will think so when the time comes," he said.

One thing they didn't mention was Michael's determination to break with his family.They both understood that Michael had somehow cut ties with his family, and they felt guilty about it.They plan to finish college, during which time they will take turns visiting each other and living together during the summers.This also seems to be a happy life. Tonight they were watching a musical comedy called "The Riding," the passionate story of a bragging thief.They had a great time watching, he smiled at her and she smiled at him.When they came out of the theatre, it was cold outside, and Kay leaned against him and said:

"After getting married, will you beat me up first, and then steal a star as a gift?" Michael laughed. "I'm going to be a professor of mathematics." Then he asked, "Would you like to eat something before going back to the hotel?" Kai shook his head, looking at him affectionately.As always, he was now struck by her urgency for love.He smiled at her and they kissed on the cold and windy street. Michael was getting hungry and decided to get some sandwiches delivered to the room. On the porch of the hotel, Michael pushed Kay towards the newspaper stand and said, "I'll get the key, you go get the newspaper."

He still has to line up.Although the war is over, the hotel is still short of manpower.Michael gets the keys and looks around anxiously, looking for Kay.She was standing at the newspaper stand with a newspaper in her hand, reading it intently.She looked up at him with teary eyes. "Oh, Mike," she said, "Oh, Mike." He took the newspaper and the first picture he saw was of his father lying in the street with his head in a pool of blood.A man stood on the sidewalk curb, weeping like a child.That was his second brother, Freddie.Michael Corleone felt a chill turn into a popsicle.He has no sorrow, no fear, only cruelty and anger.He said to Kai:

"Go upstairs quickly." She went limp.He had no choice but to hold her arm and help her into the elevator.Once in the room, Michael was sitting on the edge of the bed with a newspaper spread out under the headline: "Vito Corleone Shot; Accused Fraud Ringleader Seriously Wounded; Surgery Under Police Guard; Bloodthirsty There's going to be a hell of a fight between thugs by nature." "Tanker felt weak in his legs. He said to Kay: "He's not dead yet. Those bastards tried to kill him, but failed." He reread the newspaper again.His father was shot at five o'clock in the afternoon.That is to say, when he was sleeping with Kay in his arms, at supper time, at the theatre, his father was on the verge of death.Michael felt sick with guilt. Kai said, "How about we go to the hospital right away?" Michael shook his head. "Let me call home first. People who do this kind of thing are crazy now. Now that the old man is alive, they will do whatever they want. Damn, who knows what's going to happen next." Both phones at home were busy, and it took almost twenty minutes for Michael to dial.He heard Sonny's voice. "Sonny, it's me," Michael said. He could hear Sonny's great relief. "My God! You're freaking us out, kid. Where are you now? I've sent someone to your little town to see if there's anything wrong with you." "How is my dad?" Michael asked. "Is he badly hurt?" "It's pretty bad," Sonny said. "They fired five shots. But he took a big hit." Sonny's voice was proud. "Several doctors say he'll come back to life. Look, kid, I'm too busy to talk about that. Where are you now?" "In New York City," Michael said, "didn't Tom tell you I was coming back?" Sonny said in a low voice, "They've got Tom, so I'm worried about you. His wife's with us. She doesn't know Tom's missing, and neither does the police. I won't let them know, those bastards must It's crazy, and I want you to come here at once; keep your mouth shut, okay?" "Well," said Michael, "do you know who the hell did it? " "Of course I do," said Sonny, "if Luke Brasi comes to accept the mission, that gang will be dead. We have a lot of go-getters. " "I'll be there in an hour," Mike said. He hung up the phone.The newspaper had been on the street for more than three hours, and there must be a radio broadcast. It was impossible for Luke not to know about the news.Michael mused over the question over and over again.Where the hell is Luke Brasi?That was what Hagen was thinking about at the moment.It was the same question that puzzled Sonny Corleone in Long Beach. At a quarter to five that afternoon, Don Corleone had just finished checking the papers and reports prepared for him by the office director of his olive oil company.He put on his jacket, tapped his son Freddie on the head, and told him to get out of the evening paper business. "Ask Gatto to bring me the car," he said. "I'll be home in a minute." Freddie snorted, "I'll drive for you. Gatto called this morning to say he's sick. Another cold." Don Corleone was thinking of something.He said: "It's the third time in a month. I think it might be better to have another strong man. Let Tom know." Freddie disagreed. "Gatto is a good boy. He says he's sick, and he's really sick. I'd love to get you a car." After all, he left the office.From the window Don Corleone saw his son cross Nine Avenue and head for the parking lot.He tried to call Hagen's office, but no one answered.He called home again, but no one answered.He was very irritable and looked out from time to time.He saw his car parked near the sidewalk in front of the office.Fleet stood leaning against the fender of the car, arms folded, watching the Christmas shopping crowd.Don Corleone wore a jacket; the Chief of Staff put his coat on and the Don thanked him with a grunt and went out the door and down two flights of stairs. On the street outside, the early winter sky had already darkened.Freddie, lounging against the fender of the heavy Buick, saw his father come out of the building, turned to the driver's seat, and got into the car.When Don Corleone was about to get into the car, he hesitated and turned back to the long row of open-air fruit stands around the corner.This is his recent habit: he likes the big fruit that is early or late in season, those big peaches and tangerines that are shiny and yellow-orange in green boxes.As soon as the little owner of the fruit stand saw him, he immediately got up to choose for him.Don Corleone didn't do anything himself, he just pointed.The fruit seller will pick out which one he refers to.There was only one time when the fruit seller said that he had pointed the wrong finger. He picked up the fruit he was pointing at and turned it over to show him that the bottom was broken.Don Corleone lifted the paper bag of fruit with his left hand and handed a check for five dollars.When he took my change and turned back to the car, two people came around the corner.Don Corleone realized at once that something was going to happen. The two men wore black overcoats and black hats pulled down very low.They hadn't expected Don Corleone's quick reflexes.He threw away the fruit bag and ran towards the parked car like an arrow.At the same time he cried out. "Fredo! Fredo!" At that moment, the two men drew their guns and opened fire on him. The first bullet hit Don Corleone in the back.He felt like he had been hit with a hammer, but he struggled to make his way to the car.Then two bullets hit him in the ass, knocking him over, and he was down in the middle of the street.The two gunmen followed closely, but they walked very carefully, fearing that they would step on the rolling fruit.They want to finish him off completely.At this moment, Frederick Corleone jumped out of the car and appeared on the scene.The gunman fired two more hastily at the old man, one in the arm and the other in the calf of his right leg.Although these injuries were not fatal, they bled profusely, and small pools of blood formed beside him.However, by this time the old man had already lost consciousness. Freddie first heard his father calling out his nickname, and then he heard two piercing gunshots.When he jumped out of the car, he hadn't reacted, and he hadn't even drawn his gun.Those two assassins could have knocked him down easily, but the assassins panicked too.Thinking he was carrying a gun, and thinking the delay was too long, they turned the corner and slipped away, leaving Freddie alone in the street guarding his bleeding father.The crowds on the main road escaped and hid in the porches or gardens on both sides, and some huddled together in small groups. Fleet still hadn't drawn his gun.He was dumbfounded, staring down at his father's body: lying face down on the asphalt road, at this moment, in his eyes, it was lying on a tide of blackened blood.Freddie developed from mental shock to physical shock.People poked their heads out again; one of them, seeing Freddie about to fall, helped him over and made him sit on the curbstone of the pavement.A group of people had gathered around Don Corleone, and the circle dispersed only when the first police car approached with its sirens sounding.Immediately behind the police car was the Daily News radio van; before it could stop the photographers jumped out and snapped snaps of Don Corleone, still bleeding.The photographers turned their attention to Fred Corleone.He actually started to cry under the eyes of everyone; his stubborn Cupid-shaped face, his tall nose, and his thick lips were covered with snot and tears everywhere. Comedy character.Detectives darted through the crowd; several more police cars followed.A detective knelt beside Freddie, asking this and that, but Freddie was too shocked to answer.The detective reached into Freddie's coat pocket and produced a wallet.He glanced at the ID card inside and whistled to his companion.Seconds later, Freddie was surrounded by a group of plainclothes officers, separating the onlookers.The first detective found the gun in the holster Fleet slung over his shoulder and put it away.They then lifted Freddie and threw him into an unmarked car.The car drove away, followed by the Daily News radio van.Photojournalists also take snapshots of everyone and everything on set. Sonny Corleone had five consecutive phone calls in the half an hour after his father was assassinated.The first call was from Detective John Phillips, who was on the Corleone Family Employment List and was in the first car to arrive on the scene.The first thing he said to Sonny on the phone was, "Can you hear my voice?" "can." Sonny replied. He just woke up when his wife called him to answer the phone. Phillips spoke simply, without any pleasantries: "Your father was assassinated, outside the gates of his office building, fifteen minutes ago. He is alive and badly wounded. They took him to a French hospital.Your second brother, Freddie, has been taken to Cher Temple police precinct, and when he's released, you'd better have him seen by a doctor.I'm going to the hospital right now. If your old man can still talk, I'm going to ask him something.If there is a situation, I will report to you at any time. " Sonny's wife, Sandra, watched her husband flush with excitement.His eyes were wide open in a daze.She lowered her voice and said: "What's up?" He waved his hand impatiently to tell her to shut up, and at the same time turned around, turned his back to her, and said to the phone: "Are you sure he's alive?" "Yes, I'm sure," said the detective, "there's been a lot of blood, but perhaps he's actually not as bad as he looks." "Thank you!" Sonny said. "Come home at eight tomorrow morning. You deserve a thousand dollars." Sonny put down the phone and forced himself to sit down.He knew that his biggest weakness was his temper, and if he didn't calm down this time, the consequences would be disastrous.First, Tom Hagen had to be found.When he was about to pick up the phone, the phone rang again. It was the person in charge of the casino, saying that the old man had been beaten to death.Sonny asked a few questions, knowing that the man had not been near the victim, and dismissed his information as inaccurate.Phillips's information is inside information, which is more accurate.Then the phone rang again.This time it was a call from a reporter from the Daily News.As soon as he identified himself, Sonny Corleone hung up the phone. Sonny dialed Hagen's home again and asked Hagen's wife, "Is Tom home yet?" She replied, "Not yet." Then she said it was twenty minutes before he was supposed to be home. .She was waiting for him to come home for dinner. "Tell him to call me as soon as he gets home," Sonny said. He tried to imagine the scene at that time.He concluded that this was Sollozzo's attack.But if there is no stronger figure behind him, Sollozzo would never dare to lose someone like the old man.The phone rang for the fourth time, interrupting his train of thought.The voice on the phone was very soft, very refined. "Are you Sandino Corleone?" "yes." "I've got Tom Hagen in custody," said the voice. "In about three hours, he will be released with our advice. Before you hear his report, don't act rashly. Otherwise, you will only cause a lot of trouble. The raw rice has been cooked, and now Everyone has to be clear-headed. You are famous for being violent, so don't lose your temper this time." His voice was slightly teasing.Sonny couldn't tell whose voice it was, but it sounded a little like Sollozzo.So, he pretended to be weak and helpless, and said, "Then I'll just wait!" He heard the other party hang up the phone with a "click".He conveniently wrote down the exact time of the call on the tablecloth. He sat down at the table with a sad face.The wife asked: "Sonny, what's going on?" "My old man was shot." When he saw the frightened expression on her face, he said in a rough voice: "Don't be sad, he is not dead, and there will be no other problems in the future." He did not tell him about Hagen's whereabouts.Then the phone rang again. It was Clemenza, the big fat man who was wheezing like a pig on the phone. "Have you heard about your father?" "I heard," Sonny said, "but he's not dead." The two sides paused for a long time before speaking again.Clemenza's voice was full of passion. "Thank God, thank God," he said, yet worried, "are you sure? I heard he died in the street." "He's still alive," Sonny said. He was listening, attentively noting the slight inflection in Clemenza's voice.The feelings are sincere, but this is his consistent trick for being an actor. "You've got to accept the challenge, Sonny," Clemenza said. "What do you want me to do? Command me." "Come over to my father's house," Sonny said, "and bring out Paulie Gatto." "Is that all?" Clemenza asked. "Shall I send some people to the hospital?" "No, I just want you and Paulie Gatto," said Sonny. The two sides remained silent for a long time, and Clemenza gradually understood the meaning of the words.Sonny, trying to look natural, asked, "Where the hell is Paulie? What the hell is he doing?" With the breath out of the phone, Clemenza became wary. "Pawley's sick. He's had a cold, so he's been at home. He's been sick all winter." Sonny, too, was instantly alert. "How many times has he been sick at home in the past two months?" "About three or four times," Clemenza said. "I asked Freddie if I'd get another lad, but he wouldn't agree, saying there was no reason to strike him, and it's been a smooth run for ten years, and you know that." "Yes," said Sonny, "you must take Paulie with you when you come. I don't care how ill he is. Do you understand?" And before he could answer, he dropped it with a snap. telephone receiver. The wife was crying softly.He glared at her, and said in a rough voice: "Our people don't care who calls, tell him to use my father's special phone to find me; outsiders' calls, they always answer and don't know anything. If Tom's wife calls, tell him that Tom can't go home for the time being, and he has a task. " He pondered for a while. "There are two people who want to stay here for a while." Seeing the terrified look on her face, he said impatiently, "Don't panic, I asked them to live here myself. Whatever they tell you to do, just do it." What are you doing, if you have something to say to me, you can call me on my father's special phone, but unless there is something really important, don't call me. Also, don't panic." After that, he turned around and said gone. Night had fallen, and the December wind whipped the avenue like a whip.Sonny walked into the darkness without fear.All eight houses belonged to Don Corleone.The two houses on both sides of the entrance of the boulevard are the residences of military generals and their families, and several celebrities and bachelors live on the ground floor.The remaining six buildings, together with the previous two, formed a semicircle, one of which was inhabited by Tom Hagen and his family, one by Don Corleone's family, and the smallest and most inconspicuous one by the Don Occupied by me.The third building is where the old man's retired friends live for free, but there is an unspoken gentleman's agreement: once the old man asks, they can move out at any time.This seemingly quiet and peaceful boulevard is actually an impenetrable fortress. All the houses are equipped with floodlights, which illuminate the surroundings brightly, and it is impossible for anyone to sneak in and hide here.Sonny walked across the street to his father's house.He opened the door with the key and went in, calling out: "Mom, where are you?" His mother came out of the kitchen in response, followed by the smell of fried peppers.Before she could speak, Sonny took her arm and helped her sit down. "I just got a call," he said. "Don't worry. Dad is injured and in the hospital. You change your clothes, get ready, go to the hospital and I'll find you a car right away. Okay?" Sonny nodded.His mother put her head down for a moment, then went back to the kitchen.Sonny followed her and watched her turn off the gas stove with the pot of peppers on it, and go upstairs to the bedroom.He took some peppers from the pot, some bread from the basket on the table, broke the bread, took some peppers, dripping hot olive oil from between his fingers. He walked into the large spacious room at the corner of the building, which was his father's private office.He picked up the ad hoc phone from its usually locked locket.The phone was specially installed and registered under a false name and a false address.He called Luke Brasi first, but no one answered.Then he called the commander of the Emergency Corps in Brooklyn, whose loyalty to the old man was unquestionable, and his name was Tessio.Sonny told him what had happened and what he planned to do.He wanted Tessio to gather fifty absolutely reliable military workers as soon as possible, and asked him to send someone to the hospital immediately to guard the hospital, and he had to send someone here to perform the task.Tessio Room: "Has Clemenza been taken too?" Sonny replied, "I don't want to use his people right now." Tessio understood at once, and after a moment's silence, said again: "Sorry, Sonny, what I'm going to say now, your dad would say the same. Don't be too hasty. Clemenza would betray us? I can't believe that." "Thank you for looking after me," Sonny said. "I don't think he'll betray, either, but I've got to play it safe. Understand?" "Understood." "And one more thing," said Sonny, "my youngest brother goes to college in Hanover, New Hampshire. Find him in Boston with some people we know, and escort him here, for a while, and Let’s talk about it after the storm has passed. I’ll call him to explain the situation, and he will wait. Let me remind you again, I’m sailing in a storm, and I’m taking every step carefully, so be careful.” "Okay," Tessio said, "I'll come over to your father's when I get my affairs in order, okay? You know all my people, don't you?" "Yes," said Sonny. He hung up the phone, went to the small safe built into the wall, opened it with the key, and took out a blue leather-bound indexed record book from the safe.He turned to the word "law" and found the entry he was looking for.The content of this entry is: "Ray Farrell, $5,000, Christmas Eve." Then came the party's number.Sonny dialed the number and asked: "Are you Farrell?" The person who answered the phone over there replied: "yes." Sonny said again, "I'm Sandino Corleone. I want you to do me a little thing, right away. I want to look up two phone numbers, put them in the past three months. Send me the full text of all the calls you make and all the calls you receive." And with that, he gave Farrell the phone numbers of Paulie Gatto and Clemenza.Then he said: "This is very important. Please give it to me before midnight, and you will get an extra very generous Christmas present." Before he could sit down and think about it, he called Luke Brasi again, but no one answered.It made him a little nervous, but he didn't take it to heart.When Luke heard the news, he would come running.In an hour the house would be full of soldiers and generals, and he would have to tell them what to do.Only now did he have time to think about the seriousness of the situation.This is the first challenge to the Corleone family and their power in ten years.Sollozzo was the man behind the challenge, there's no doubting that.However, unless he has the support of at least one of the five major families in New York, he will never dare to risk the world's disgrace.And that support must have come from the Tattaglia family.Obviously, there are two ways out, either all-out war, or an immediate agreement on Sollozzo's terms.Sonny grinned grimly.The scheming "Turk" has a brilliant plan, but he's not so lucky.The old man is still alive, so there must be a war.The Corleone family has a go-getter like Luke Blasey and strong financial resources, so there can only be one way out.But the vexing question is where is Luke Brasi.