The durham mob, p.10
The Durham Mob, page 10
“I plan to return to law school where I should have stayed. I still want to be a lawyer and I still want to serve.” The assistant D.A. jumped in to say, “You will never be able to practice law in the United States!” Charles’ face showed how wounded he was. For a moment, he thought he would be able to pick up his life and go on as though nothing happened. They were allowing him to walk away, but they were putting his confession and his statements about the others in the records. It was a dagger through his heart. If he couldn’t be a lawyer, something he had wanted for a long time, what would he do? He returned to his apartment but he didn’t tell anyone what he had done. How could he? He would have been ostracized by everyone and physically hurt by a few. With no future in New York, he decided to return to North Carolina. He began putting his assets together. He had given cash to several women whom he believed he could trust to keep for him, so he began to call it in. One young lady, Cynthia, whom Charles had entrusted with thousands of dollars, had a boyfriend whom she had told that she had all of this money. She and the boyfriend had been occasionally taking a few hundred per week. Cynthia knew that Charles would not know how much was missing, until he asked for it all back. Plus, he gave her two hundred per week to keep it and to keep her mouth closed. The boyfriend had no idea where the money was coming from but he knew it was hot money. When Charles told her to, “bring over the package,” she showed up with the boyfriend who took $10,000 and gave Charles the rest. By this time, of course, she and everybody else knew about the money. He looked Charles straight in the eyes and said, “If you don’t like this, call the police.” He was a rather large fellow and looked a little intimidating. Charles was not a fighter, and the boyfriend knew there would be no legal trouble, so Charles lamely looked disappointingly at Cynthia. She gave him the rest which came close to one hundred thousand. The only girl who gave him all of his money was Jenny, his home-girl, who never knew nor cared where the money came from. She was just trustworthy and honest. However, Charles did give her money.
Diane, his fiancée moved on and didn’t look back. He didn’t call her and she didn’t call him. She took her big diamond ring and stored cash and went on with her life. She knew that day was coming and was prepared for it. She was not in love, she just went along for the ride and it was a good, profitable one. Charles got into his Oldsmobile with a suit case full of money and drove to North Carolina and re-enrolled into law school, even though he was told he would never be able to practice law. He had nothing else to do, so he did what he loved.
With all of the heat on the other two main players, Gene Griffith quietly went on with his drug business. He had made about $300,000 from the caper without paying any price. He expanded his drug business and used his money to get him into the recording industry as a producer and promoter. Over the next fifteen years, he went to prison on three occasions, but he stayed rich. Eventually, he moved to Atlanta, Georgia, bought a big house, a Rolls Royce and lived the life of luxury. Later, he developed Alzheimer’s which took his life. He was one of a few drug dealers who died rich and the fourth of “The Durham Mob.”
The embezzlement was over and all of the guys had gotten used to having free money. Bob and Swazy had been minor characters, but they had gotten used to the $2500 that Charles gave them per week, so they decided to go into the heroin business. They both knew about another homeboy, Frank Matthews, who was the biggest heroin dealer in New York City. They contacted him and he helped them set up their business. Frank wasn’t a member of the Durham Mob, but he was from Durham. In fact, Swazy and Bob knew some members of his family in Durham. Soon, each of them was earning about $15,00 per week. Their world for them would never be the same.
CHAPTER 19
Now, that Coy and Sid had no income, and they were still spending heavily on coke, rent and wine, the needle was visibly going down. Although Coy was a brilliant accountant, he did not manage his money well. Of course, he could have cut his spending drastically, but he didn’t. He used to tell William, “If more money is going out than coming in, you have a problem. Either cut down on your expenses or raise your income.” Good advice but he didn’t follow it himself. He couldn’t cut down his expenses because he was hooked on his life-style and had to keep up his front.
When the criminals think that you have money, it’s easier to make deals. If they think you are faking, they wouldn’t deal with you. He wanted to appear that he was set for life and that he was going to beat his case. Of course, he knew he was going to prison even though he had Larry Fietel as his and Sid’s lawyer. He had already been told by the D.A. that if he could help them with some of his associates, other than The Durham Mob, some “big fish,” he could possibly reduce his time, but he was going to do some time. During all of his high living, he associated with all sorts of criminals who came to parties at his fabulous apartment. It was a dangerous game. Most of those people were heroin and coke dealers from whom he bought his coke. He had time because his trial date had been set for six months later.
In another attempt to save himself, Coy told the DA that Swazy was a drug dealer and that he kept drugs at his apartment. That was not the DA’s area at that time, so he passed the information on to the Narcotics Division. They staked out Swazy’s car and apartment. When he came out of his apartment the next morning and got into his Cadillac, they surrounded his car and searched it and then searched his apartment. There were no drugs. He had about five thousand dollars in his pocket, but no drugs. What Coy did not know was that although Swazy was new to the business, he never touched drugs except for his personal coke stash that he used to screw the girls, and he never used it himself. So, that information didn’t help Coy at all. Swazy never knew who dropped the dime on him. He accepted it as part of the price of doing business, just as big companies pay fines for their criminal acts. Coy was desperate and didn’t want to go to jail. That required desperate measures.
William was ready to leave Copenhagen but he was not ready to return to New York. Since he had an open airline ticket, he could afford to stall. He was tired of Copenhagen in the winter. The two times he was there before were in the summer. It’s a very different city in the summer, plus he couldn’t find Ellen, who was the closest relationship he had in Copenhagen. He was very disappointed about that. Copenhagen is the largest city in Denmark but it is actually a small city compared to Stockholm, and he was sure that he would be able to find her. He never did, so he was looking for some place interesting to go. He remembered a German girl, Jutta, whom he had met four years earlier on the train from Copenhagen to Paris. She was on her way from Norway, where she had been skiing. They sat together and talked for hours. When the train reached her stop in Düsseldorf, he got off briefly to meet her father. He had a nickname for her, “The little train girl”. They had stayed in touch and he had her phone number with him, so he called her from Copenhagen hoping to go to visit her if her circumstances allowed. She was very happy to hear from him and suggested that he pay her a visit. He didn’t even have to ask. The next day he left to fly to Düsseldorf where she said she would pick him up. She hadn’t changed much since he last saw her. It had only been four years. She was very happy to see him. She was driving a new Volkswagen and was now a school teacher. She told him that her father, whom William met when he last saw her, had passed away. Her mother had already passed away earlier. She talked in a matter-of-fact way as though they were longtime friends, not long-time acquaintances. Everything was pleasant. They arrived at her apartment in Münster, Germany. She had a roommate, but the roommate was away on holiday. It was a very cozy apartment, very neat and clean. She made him feel so welcomed and comfortable. This was supposed to be a way of killing time so he wouldn’t have to return to New York right away, but this was going to be very enjoyable. They talked for hours about the four years that had passed since they had last seen each other. She had to teach the next day so she started preparing for bed. William thought about how attractive she was. She was about 5 feet 1 inch tall, and weighed about 105 pounds. Her blond hair was very short. He took a shower and got ready for bed also. He went into the bedroom and saw bunk beds. She got into the top one and although it was for one person, he climbed up. She was a little hesitant and seemed a bit nervous. Since the bed was so small, it was very easy to embrace with their bodies touching from head to toe. He got on top and made warm, passionate love with her. It was different from the girls in Denmark and the girls in Sweden. This was like making love to your girlfriend. She was a kind and sweet person, and never seemed to notice that William was black. There was never any acknowledgement. Here he was in Germany with a blond, blue eyed young lady who didn’t notice that he was a Black man. It was such a wonderful feeling, and good sex on top of that. When they had finished, they lay quietly and she said softly, “That’s the first time I have had sex this year. I have no boyfriend and I haven’t been dating. I have been just working and riding my horse. Oh, yes, I have a horse. I’ll show him to you tomorrow after work.”
“That would be nice,” he said. She went on to say that, “I knew it was going to be exciting with you. It was good but I don’t want to have a sexual relationship right now. I get too involved and it interferes with my work and my concentration. Can you respect that?”
“It is a pleasure being here with you and I will do whatever you want.” She made a sigh of relief, smiled, and kissed him on the cheek. She became very comfortable. They fell asleep. The next morning, he got up with her. She prepared him breakfast, gave him a key just in case he wanted to go for a walk. She gave him a big hug and a quick kiss on the lips and said,” Auf Wiedersehen.”
During the day, William went for a long walk, paying attention to the streets so he wouldn’t get lost. He wrote down the address and put it in his pocket to be safe. Münster was an old German city that had the same architecture for a hundred years or more. It had archways over the sidewalks. It was a picturesque city. Still, his thoughts wandered to NYC and what was going on there. He pushed these thought away and tried to enjoy the beautiful old city.
When Jutta arrived home, she asked William to come with her to see her horse. They went to the stables where she kept her horse. There were many horses kept there. She took her horse out of the stable to a large open area and walked him around. She said on Saturdays, she would come to ride him. After, she showed William other parts of this old city. They walk around for more than an hour. She enjoyed being a tour guide. She liked her city and was proud to show it off. It was enjoyable for him. Being with her was a pleasure. She was so innocent, but not in a sexual way. She was very honest in words and actions. She was refreshing to be around. It reminded him of the girls he had met in college who were from small towns and were so genuine. There was no pretense, no games, it was total honesty. As she talked and showed him around, he thought, “What a wonderful person she is.”
He was so relaxed and comfortable that for a moment he visualized staying there with her. It was just a feeling, because in reality, he had to return. But like a good dream, it was pleasure for the moment. It was a strange feeling and he wished he could carry those feelings back to New York. Strangely, he felt so free in this blond blue-eyed country. It was like when he was a child, when he had no problems, no stress, and no pressures.
They had passed a wonderful day together and had a hearty dinner at an old German restaurant. The restaurant was in an old house with a fireplace and a German Shepard dog lying nearby. He had only seen these kinds of restaurants in the New England area of the United States. It was warm and romantic. The service was good and the food was excellent. Jutta leaned across the table and said, “I’m glad you came. Since my father died, I have not had the desire to do these kinds of things and you are as nice as I thought you would be, like on the train.”
“Weren’t you a little nervous when I called and wanted to come to visit. You invited me right away. How could you trust me after only knowing me for a short time?”
“I could feel your warmth and honesty. I was not afraid at all and I was right.”
After dinner, they went home and talked until bed time. This time, she asked him to sleep on the lower bunk bed. He didn’t hesitate. He respected her wish. He didn’t feel rejected. It was still a pleasure being there with her.
The next day, after work, she took him into the German Black Forest. She took him to a cabin in the woods that her family owned. Inside, there was a deep hole in the floor that she explained was where they kept the wine and beer because it was cold in the ground. There was an outdoor shower next to the house. In the middle of the woods, it was quiet and peaceful. Next, she took him to a beer hall not too far away. Inside, there were big bellied, red faced Germans, drinking beer. He felt that these were the real Germans who didn’t speak English. They greeted him, speaking German that she translated. It was warm and friendly. He drank a big mug of beer with them and they seemed to enjoy his company as much as he enjoyed theirs. It was another wonderful day meeting seemingly genuine and friendly people, enjoying themselves. Later that night, they had dinner at another restaurant. This time Jutta insisted on paying. She had offered to pay the first night. At bed time, again, they slept separately. He went there mainly to kill time to keep from returning to New York but it turned out to be an experience that he would never forget. He wished he could freeze time. There were no problems and no stress. It was a way he wished he could live his entire life but that was not his reality. He had to return to New York and face whatever was to come. He was still a little nervous that maybe the police would try to make him a part of the scandal because he was living with his brother at the beginning of the scam. The time was coming for him to return to New York. He called C. Red again to check that the coast was clear. Red assured him that nothing had changed. He could return whenever he wanted. He called Lufthansa Airlines and made reservations to return. Then, he called Red and told him what time he would be arriving at Kennedy Airport and began preparing to leave. He had enjoyed his stay more than he had expected. In fact, he didn’t know what to expect. He knew he wanted to have some great sex with Jutta but accepted that his time was still well spent. The next day, she drove him to the airport. They kissed passionately at the entrance. William said to her, “Why didn’t you kiss me like this last night?” She just laughed and asked him to write to her and that she hoped they would see each other again one day.
CHAPTER 20
Charlie Red picked William up from the airport and drove him straight to his apartment. As much fun as he had had, it was great being back in New York City. He always felt energetic when he returned to New York. He loved New York with a passion. These recent events, however, made coming home a little less inviting. Red told him that everything had calmed down. Everybody was going about their business as usual. In fact, Coy was having parties often. “You haven’t been up there, have you?’
“No, I haven’t been invited.”
“Come on William, that’s your brother. You can go there whenever you want.”
“It’s not exactly like that. Why do you think I haven’t been there before?”
“Come on, you guys are brothers.”
“Well, I won’t go into what has happened the last four months when all of you guys were getting big money and I was getting crumbs.”
“I was getting crumbs too, but I didn’t care. I wasn’t one of the main players. You guys should work all that out,” said Red. I remember when you guys always partied together.”
“Yes, but money changed everything. I’ll go there if he calls me and asks me, not before.” The next day, William got a call from Coy who asked him to come up to talk. William agreed. ‘C. Red probably told him what I said,’ he thought. Coy had to give him instructions on parking in the huge garage. William negotiated the garage, but it was more difficult following the labyrinth to the apartment. When Coy opened the door of the apartment, William was stunned. He entered and stepped up into the dining room and saw the large dining room table and chairs and the grandfather clock in the corner. He descended two steps into the living room. William had never seen an apartment like that. Now, he understood why he had heard so much talk about the parties and how even wealthy people were impressed. Dope dealers had lots of money but very poor taste. Their apartments were usually filled with gaudy furniture and shiny materials and those velvet paintings on the walls. This was different. William even wondered where Coy had acquired such good taste, but he soon remembered that the same interior decorator who installed the drapes in his apartment was the same one who decorated Coy’s new place. William also remembered that he had dated the decorator’s daughter, Sheryl. Coy greeted him warmly with a big embrace. He acted as though the past bad treatment had not happened. Being a good and devoted brother, William accepted the greeting and hoped that it meant that they were going to be real brothers again. Coy had a gift for making people believe he was sincere. He was very agreeable and seldom showed anger. There was Sid seated on the sectional leather sofa, drinking a bottle of cold, Ripple wine. “What’s, what’s up William Smith?” He always called him by his full name. “It’s your world, I’m just passing through,” William responded with a smile.
