Chapter 180: Good News
"Alright, now that you’re considered partially in, do you have the names of the Tammany inner circle?" Ricky asked.
De George unbuckled the brass latches of his heavy leather file bag, reached inside, and pulled out a thick sheaf of folded papers and handwritten ledgers. He smoothed them out against the surface of the wooden crate and handed them directly to Ricky.
"It’s all in there," De George said, taking a short, steadying breath. "The chief boss of Tammany Hall, as you already know, is Charles Murphy—Silent Charles. When he isn’t at the Tammany clubhouse on East 14th Street near Stuyvesant Square, he operates out of his private corner table at Delmonico’s." He paused, looking at Ricky with a flicker of nervous hesitation. "Are you... are you planning on killing him?"
Ricky flipped through the first few pages of the ledger, his expression calm and unreadable. "What would happen if I killed him right now?"
De George swallowed hard, resting his hands flat on his knees. "Well, for starters, it would create an instant power vacuum. The entirety of New York’s political machinery would plunge into total chaos as ward leaders fight for control. The street gangs would be left entirely unchecked, and vice crime would explode overnight across all five boroughs. Big Tim Sullivan is the second most powerful man behind Charles, and the moment Murphy falls, Tim would mobilize every gang and waterfront mob in Lower Manhattan against the rival factions inside Tammany."
De George leaned forward slightly, his tone becoming more analytical. "And as corrupt as Tammany Hall is, a lot of their committee leaders hold the line on labor laws and work alongside the Progressive reformers to keep the city functioning. You remove the head of the machine without a replacement, and the whole city burns."
Ricky tapped his fingers thoughtfully against the edge of the crate. "Hmm... I guess it’s too early, then."
"It’s not that taking down Tammany is a bad idea," De George added, checking Ricky’s reaction carefully. "The problem with assassinating the inner circle is simple: who replaces an organization that is so deeply rooted in the city government? Every department head, precinct captain, and judge is dependent on Tammany’s decisions."
A faint, knowing smile touched Ricky’s lips. John and Davis exchange quiet, amused grins behind De George’s chair.
De George blinked, looking between them. "Wait... don’t tell me—"
"I don’t plan on killing the king without sitting on the throne myself," Ricky said smoothly, laying the ledger flat on the crate. "It would be wasteful, and I’m not an anarchist, Mr. De George."
De George stared at him, taken aback. "Look, no offense, but how do you plan to run New York City? Running a municipality isn’t like managing a crew or running a ward racket. Do you even have a plan?"
"Let’s just say I’ve prepared enough drafts and contingencies for future events," Ricky replied casually. "Events that will eventually cripple the American economy and bring massive inflation along with them."
John Caldwell frowned slightly, exchanging a confused glance with Davis. De George looked equally baffled by the unexpected reference to distant economic crises.
"Future events?" De George asked, his brow furrowing. "What are you talking about? What economic events?"
"It’s a predictive economic measure," Ricky said smoothly, waving a hand to brush the topic aside. "The details are classified for the time being. For now, since Charles Murphy is safe from our sights, which member of the Tammany inner circle would you recommend we target first if we want to dismantle their power piece by piece?"
De George shifted in his chair, gathering his thoughts. "Well, if your goal is to systematically undermine Tammany Hall, you start with Big Tim Sullivan. Rumors have been circulating for months that his health is failing. I confirmed it through one of my informants—a maid who works in his doctor’s brownstone. Sullivan is suffering from advanced tertiary syphilis."
Ricky opened one of the medical folders included in De George’s papers, skimming the handwritten doctor’s notes. "It’s the third stage of an untreated Treponema pallidum infection," Ricky read aloud, his voice steady and dry. "A bacterial disease transmitted through sexual contact that eventually causes severe damage to the brain, heart, and central nervous system." He set the paper down and shook his head softly. "I kind of don’t even want to kill him anymore."
Davis let out a quiet whistle, crossing his arms. "Hearing that makes me kind of afraid to touch a woman ever again."
Ricky looked up with a faint smirk. "You can, Davis. Just avoid the ones who are frequently shared by half the ward politicians in Midtown."
Davis grinned, chuckling under his breath. "So I’m perfectly fine if she’s still a virgin, right?"
𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮
Two of the agents resting on the cots let out low laughs, while John Caldwell shook his head with a dry exhale.
"In any case," De George continued, bringing the conversation back on track, "killing Big Tim right now would honestly be an act of mercy considering his condition. If you want to strip Tammany of its muscle, you target the men around him—his brother, Florrie Sullivan, and his stepbrother, Little Tim. They manage his street operations, the gambling dens, and the waterfront muscle. Eliminating them breaks Tammany’s grip on the underworld."
Ricky leaned back, resting his chin on his thumb. "Say... you wouldn’t happen to know someone by the name of Frank Knox, would you?"
De George paused, thinking for a moment. "Knox? No... the name doesn’t ring an immediate bell. But my informants have reported on a man constantly seen around Charles Murphy. Tall, lean build, with dark hair kept slightly long in the back."
John Caldwell stepped forward, nodding once. "That’s him, alright."
"Right," De George said. "According to my notes, he acts as Murphy’s personal envoy and messenger when Silent Charles doesn’t want to show his face. He’s frequently spotted alongside Assemblyman Robert Wagner and Al Smith. But strategically speaking, I don’t see any major structural benefit to taking him out."
"Taking Knox out is a bit personal," Ricky admitted, his voice dropping an octave. "You could say he’s the main reason we started going after Tammany Hall in the first place. But as I looked deeper, I realized Tammany itself was the primary obstacle in my way. So taking him down is a two-in-one strike."
De George let out a small scoff, a faint smile appearing on his face. "Well, I can tell you this much: you can kill Frank Knox anytime, anywhere, and Charles Murphy won’t shed a single tear over it. Murphy’s entirely focused on his political campaigns and holding off the Fusion Reformers right now. Knox’s death might bother him personally for a day or two, but Charles would just split his attention between finding the shooter and fighting off the reformers. Knox isn’t his primary concern."
A few of the agents chuckled quietly at the assessment.
Ricky smiled faintly, looking up at De George. "Is that right?"
"It is," De George confirmed. "If you have a personal score to settle with Knox, killing him will throw Charles off balance and distract him from our movements. And if I may offer one final piece of advice... you should establish an indirect line of communication with the Fusion Reformers political party. Let them use the scandals you uncover so your efforts don’t go to waste, while you quietly build your own influence behind the scenes."
Ricky remained silent for a moment, looking down at the spread of Tammany documents on the table, carefully weighing the politician’s suggestion.