19Apr23.Jimmy's Meeting

Jimmy and Peter rode in silence during the cab ride out to the Lumber Mill on the west side of Night Hawk Lake.  As they pulled up to the small office behind the main building, Jimmy reminded Peter, “Our relationship is built on trust. You need to trust me right now or we could be in trouble.” When Jimmy stepped out of the cab, two large men (possibly armed) came out of the office to frisk him before letting him into the office. Meanwhile, Peter stepped out and lit a cigar as he leaned against the cab. The cab driver knew enough to keep his eyes forward and ignored everything.

Jimmy introduced himself to the henchmen as an associate of O’Bannion in Boston come for a meeting with their boss. “He’s been expecting ya. But who da other wit ya?” Jimmy made a joke about his stature and physique, “Thought I should bring some muscle as I’m lacking in that category.” The men kept an eye on Peter as they let Jimmy in to meet with their boss, Eddie McBride.

Eddie was another Irish mobster whom Jimmy quickly analyzed as: nervous energy, darting eyes, and thinking he’s smarter than he is. Jimmy stifled a grin as he got down to business to work out an agreement so that barrels will be shipped to Ottawa for whiskey, as well as various fruits for making liqueurs and that shipment to occur through the Terra Nova airship service.

Meanwhile, outside, Peter became antsy standing by the taxi. He knew Jimmy’s bootlegging background and wondered what business he had been tasked with in Canada by his mafia bosses. Jimmy was the one to offer the airship as transport to Canada. He tagged along uninvited as support and protection, knowing these kind of deals could go sideways in a hurry. There were two sides to trust and handshakes, and Peter felt it his need to protect their pact. Which explained his climbing the porch steps to chat with the henchmen outside. Close enough to hear any trouble inside and close enough for his sawed-off shotgun if needed. Relaxed conversation sharing cigars while getting a sense of this Canadian organizations’ trustworthiness. He owed Jimmy that much.

Inside the office, Eddie opened the negotiations with an offered 20% cut of the deal. Jimmy countered with a 5% offer, hoping for a 10% final negotiation. He used his knowledge of law to persuade the man, “You’ll have no legal liability. It's not illegal to make barrels, it's not illegal to transport barrels or fruit to Ottawa, It's not illegal for you to brew whiskey in Canada or transport it to the US. You are not exposed legally to anything. All of the liability falls on our side.” [Persuade-Hard] They shook hands on the final 7% deal.

At the conclusion of the negotiation, Eddie chuckled, “Funny you should mention that airship. I thought it strange how I kept hearing it flying up and down the lake last month and even into April after sunset. As if loitering rather than on a flight path. Strange way to run an air service.”

As Jimmy and Eddie stepped out of the office, they found Peter feet from the front door and being friendly with the henchmen sitting outside the door. Peter snuffed out his cigar, “Nice chatting with you guys. See you around.”

As Jimmy and Peter climbed back into the cab, McBride commented, “Send O’Bannion my regards. Meanwhile you and Peter enjoy your time in Timmins.” Jimmy puzzled at how Eddie learned Peter’s name and starred hard at his associate as they sat in the cab. On the ride back to town, Jimmy filled Peter in on some (but not all) of the details of his meeting. “My Arkham mob is currently looking for a new way of smuggling alcohol into the Boston area. I'm only an underling and not privy to all the details, but suffice to say we are bringing in Canadian whiskey.” Jimmy explained the legal ramifications.  

The ride back was mostly in silence. Jimmy wasn’t used to it, but he noticed Peter seemed perfectly happy being silent as they returned to the rest of the group at Bothnall’s Law firm. Peter’s silence was due to his notice of the change in Jimmy’s demeanor, a bit shaken. Jimmy’s silence was due to his uncertainty of Peter’s actions during the meeting. Why had he left the cab and interacted with those henchmen? What did he overhear? Was there anything said that could be used by Peter as blackmail?

Trust is a two-way street, and right now, they were traveling a one-way alley that apparently displayed a billboard "No Talking Allowed."