The Godfather

 “The Godfather” By Mario Puzo
 
99
Clemenza said dryly, “The Turk has heard about his spy Paulie Gatto.” 
Tessio said just as dryly, “And now we know about Luca Brasi.” 
Sonny lit a cigar and took a shot of whiskey. Michael, bewildered, said. “What the hell 
does that fish mean?” It was Hagen the Irisher, the Consigliere, who answered him. 
“The fish means that Luca Brasi is sleeping on the bottom of the ocean,” he said. “It’s an 
old Sicilian message.” 
Chapter 9
When Michael Corleone went into the city that night it was with a depressed spirit. He 
felt that he was being enmeshed in the Family business against his will and he resented 
Sonny using him even to answer the phone. He felt uncomfortable being on the inside of 
the Family councils as if he could be absolutely trusted with such secrets as murder. 
And now, going to see Kay, he felt guilty about her also. He had never been completely 
honest with her about his family. He had told her about them but always with little jokes 
and colorful anecdotes that made them seem more like adventurers in a Technicolor 
movie than what they really were. And now his father had been shot down in the street 
and his eldest brother was making plans for murder. That was putting it plainly and 
simply but that was never how he would tell it to Kay. He had already said his father 
being shot was more like an “accident” and that all the trouble was over. Hell, it looked 
like it was just beginning. Sonny and Tom were off-center on this guy Sollozzo, they 
were still underrating him, even though Sonny was smart enough to see the danger. 
Michael tried to think what the Turk might have up his sleeve. He was obviously a bold 
man, a clever man, a man of extraordinary force. You had to figure him to come up with 
a real surprise. But then Sonny and Tom and Clemenza and Tessio were all agreed that 
everything was under control and they all had more experience than he did. He was the 
“civilian” in this war, Michael thought wryly. And they’d have to give him a hell of a lot 
better medals than he’d gotten in World War II to make him join this one. 
Thinking this made him feel guilty about not feeling more sympathy for his father. His 
own father shot fall of holes and yet in a curious way Michael, better than anyone else, 
understood when Tom had said it was just business, not personal. That his father had 
paid for the power he had wielded all his life, the respect he had extorted from all those 
around him. 
What Michael wanted was out, out of all this, to lead his own life. But he couldn’t cut 
loose from the family until the crisis was over. He had to help in a civilian capacity. With 

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