Page 9 of My Rock Star Neighbor
“She used the phrase ‘kick back’?That you had to pay one thousand dollars in order to get the job?”
“No, she said I needed to show my appreciation.”
“What exactly did she say?”
“She leaned in and said, ‘I’ll expect you to show your appreciation for getting this work.’At first, I thought she meant—” he raises his eyebrows “—you know, and I think I jerked back.My woman would have my—well, you know.Anyway, she laughed and laughed and said she’s gotten smarter in her old age, and money talks, even if I was a plumber and probably knew my way around plumbing.Pardon my French.And then she said, ‘One thousand sounds like the right amount.’”
Wow.She really did ask for a bribe.“And then what did you say?”
“I said, ‘No thanks.’I wasn’t getting involved in this.I’m doing okay on my own.And I’ve got kids.I’m not getting involved in some dodgy sh—uh, crap.”He takes a sip of his coffee.“And then she got real silent until she said, ‘I hope Tasha and Dulce like their apartments.’”
“And what did you think she meant by that?”
“She was telling me to keep my mouth shut.”
“Sounds like it,” I say.
He finishes his bagel and takes another sip from the paper cup.He hums when he drinks the coffee.They do make very good coffee here.
“But as you know, Tasha is not going to take that lying down, and she thinks it’s better to make it public—rather than her kowtowing to that dragon.”
“You didn’t get the job fixing the bathroom in 10F?”
“No.”
I nod and wait for him to speak.He seems to be thinking about what to say.
“I didn’t want to say anything, but Tasha… Tasha doesn’t take no for an answer.And she’s been a good friend to my sister.”He shrugs his shoulders.“So here I am.But make sure it’s under an alias.”
“I will,” I say.“Did you discuss this with anybody else?”
“I told some guys I was working with at this other job—that new building development around here at Clinton Street.And they said, yeah, everybody knows that she wants a little note of appreciation.A one-K note.Everyone knows she’s a fan of Grover Cleveland.”
These quotes were so good.
“Do you think they’d be willing to talk to me?”I ask.
“No.”
“Do you know anyone else I could talk to?”
He runs his hand through his hair and shakes his head.
“Okay, well, thank you for this.This is incredibly helpful.I’ll find some more people,” I say.But how?I can’t run a story based on one contractor’s word.It seems to be common knowledge, but I’m not sure I can find anyone else who would be willing to talk.
Once he leaves, I gather up the empty coffee cups and the bagel wrappers and deposit them in the nearby garbage.I can walk on my foot as long as I don’t put too much weight on it.Going downstairs is the killer.
Only now I have to go up to 125th Street to meet a disgruntled tenant Tasha lined up for me…and the 125th Street subway station is above ground with, unfortunately, a long metal staircase down.It has an escalator, but that isn’t always working.
As I step out the door, there’s Nick, putting away his little black book in his messenger bag.
He drops into step alongside me, slowing down to match my stilted pace.“Did you get what you wanted?”
“Yes.”
“He said he was offered a bribe?”
“Shh.Yes.”
