Murder, Inc.

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What- Hey, wait.! | Wait.!

- May I help you? | - Why not?

Who did you wanna see?

I wanna see Lepke. | Tell him Reles is here. Abe Reles.

- Is he expecting you? | - It won't come as no shock.

- There's a Mr. Reles out here. | - This is a high-class place.

What'd you expect, | a candy store?

This is, uh-You know, this is | another league here.

You know the garment industry? | That's a-That's a good front.

Yeah.

- What is it? Men's suits? | - Yeah, men's, men's, men's.

Just to be left alone. | is that asking too much, Lep?

To get rid of you. | To never see you again.

To forget you took my business. | To put it out of my mind that you ruined me.

Is that asking | too much, Lep?

'Cause your goons | smashed my business...

is this something that | I have to spend a life hiding from?

Joe, you talk too much.

Listen, Lep. | Listen.

Never- Never | will I open my mouth.

I swear. I swear | on my children's lives.

What's done, so it's done. | I want to wipe it out of my mind.

You know what, Joe?

You should thank your lucky stars | I'm so softhearted.

Things could change.

Isn't that a basic fact, Mendy?

Sure.

Now, suppose you takeJoe | out to the elevator...

and tell him exactly | how it could change.

Lep, please? Please? | I swear.

I swear on my children, | not a word. Not a word.

l- I swear, Lep. | Please, have a heart.

Lep, please!

- Mr. Reles? | - Yes.

- Sorry to keep you waiting. | - Oh, that's, uh- that's all right.

I was just, uh- | just readin' the jokes.

- Um, this is Bug Workman. | - Pleased to make your acquaintance.

You come in.

Hey, hold my place, huh?

So you're Reles, huh?

Yeah. | Yeah, I'm Reles.

Albert Anastasia tells me | you're a good man.

Yeah. Well, | he oughta know.

He says you made a good hit | the other morning when you got Venutti.

Now you got the whole | Brownsville territory locked up.

Doin' pretty good. I mean, | I got a couple of things goin' for me.

Ah. Like what?

Like slots, horse bets, | shylocking-

Oh, please. Please.

Look.

We don't operate anymore | like during Prohibition.

What does that mean?

What you have in Brownsville...

I have a hundred times over | in the garment district...

Albert Anastasia has | on the docks in Brooklyn...

and the Capone boys | have in Chicago.

We're working now | like a combination.

We can call on each other | for help like banks...

like any sensible business.

Now, we don't like | to hurt anybody.

But sometimes, | things work out differently.

That's where you and your | Brownsville operation come in.

Because you guys | are so good at it...

the Syndicate will use you.

We'll give you the contract, | and you do the job.

- Now, there's one thing- | - Excuse me for interrupting. l-l-

I wanna ask you a question.

I like what you say, and I like the idea | of working for you, the whole thing.

But, uh, | what's it gonna come to?

You get an annual retainer | equal to your Brownsville operation...

plus a fee | for each contract.

Oh.

Well, that sounds interesting. | It's, uh-

I'm pleased. | Now, no private jobs.

You hit when we tell you to hit | and who we tell you to hit.

In between, uh, | we just sit?

If I tell you to sit, | you sit until you get boils.

I, uh, think | we could work it out.

Send Mendy in, please.

Just to make sure you don't get boils, | I'm handing you your first contract.

His name is Walter Sage.

A noisy comedian.

He owns a place | up in the Catskills.

He also handles the slots | for the Syndicate.

Suddenly, | he's a partner.

A nickel for him, a nickel for us.

Come in.

Mendy, this is Abe Reles.

- What do you say? | - Kid Twist?

Yeah.

I see you boys in Brooklyn | have been active.

Oh, we like to keep busy.

I'm giving Reles | the Sage contract.

Uh-huh.

From now on...

you never come up here.

You never call me here.

Mendy is your contact.

Everything through him.

- You understand? | - Yeah.

Mendy, get started.

Well, uh, I guess | we're in business then, right?

- What's all this about, Reles? | - I'll-I'll-

He didn't give you | any trouble, did he?

Joey? | He's a doll.

That's very good. That's very funny.

Funny boy. | Make me laugh, huh?

Listen, Bug, uh, | go get a car, will ya?

A good one. Good tires. You leave it | at the drop, and I'll pick you up there.

So, uh, | where you been, Joe?

- Around. | - Oh, yeah?

'Cause, uh, | you've been kind of scarce.

It's not because | you owe me money?

- You're gonna get it. | - Oh, yeah, sure. I mean, I know that.

I know I'll get it. | What'd you borrow, 300?

When was that? | That was in, uh-

Oh, I don't know, Joe.

You know, | it's been two months.

I paid back 180.

Yeah, but, uh, | that's only the interest.

You see, there's | five more weeks interest...

plus the principal is, | uh, $600.

You know, Joe, uh...

another month, uh, | you're gonna be in for over 1,000.

Well, what am I gonna do? | I lost that job singing with the band.

Then I got married.

You know the girl- Eadie. | She used to live on Sullivan Street.

You know, her folks | came from Europe.

Eadie- | Oh, the refugee?

Yeah, yeah, I remember. | Yeah.

Three days in the country, and they're | walkin' around like a princess there.

With the blond hair | to the neck.

Well, she got sick...

and then I had a pile of hospital bills, | and I had to pay 'em.

You see, Joe, | I don't know what to tell ya.

I mean, I can see | you got problems.

I don't know. I'll tell you what | I'll do with you, Joe.

Yeah. Maybe we'll work | something out, a deal.

We forget the money, all right? | We'll wipe out the whole debt.

Everything what you owe, | that's done. Clean. Finished.

Right? But in return, | you gotta do me a favor.

Uh, you used to work | in the, uh, Borscht Belt.

- Ajoint named Ribbon Lodge? | - Yeah.

I did a couple of weeks | there last summer.

Yeah, that's what they tell me. | They tell me you was very good there.

Did you know the owner, a fella named, uh, | Walter Sage? A comic?

Well, you and me, we go up there, | we pay him a visit.

Yeah?

That's all.

Well, what do I do | to clean up the debt?

- That's it. That's the deal. | - What do you want with Sage?

- Well, we got a little business thing. | - What kind?

My kind.

Yeah?

Hey, where you goin', Joe? | Where you goin', Joe?

Hey, Joey, where you goin'? | Hey, where are you runnin'?

- Joe, we ain't finished talking. | - Well, I'm finished talking. | Sage is a friend of mine.

All right, | he's a friend of yours.

He's good to his mother. | He raises poodles. | But that's something else.

That's different. Listen. | Hey, come here.

Hey. Sit down.

Now, look, Joe.

Listen.

All we're gonna do | is work him over. That's all.

I mean, what's a little | schlammin' between friends?

I guarantee you my word, | the worst he gets is a fat lip.

No dice. | I don't want any part of it.

Okay, Joe.

Let's talk about this here.

That $600 that | was due yesterday-

You're gonna get it.

I know I'll get it, | so give it to me.

- Look, Reles, as soon as I get it- | - No, you look!

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