Michael returned to the Corleone estate, where Sonny, Tom, Tessio, Clemenza, and others were waiting for him. As soon as Michael walked in, they gathered around him.
"Michael, how did the talk go?" Tom asked.
Michael picked up a cup from the table, poured himself a drink, took a sip, and said, "Sollozzo, that police chief, and the men they brought were all blown up."
The whole room was shocked.
"What? Blown up? What happened?" Sonny asked urgently.
Everyone else was equally astonished.
Michael glanced around at everyone, speaking gravely, "Sollozzo attempted to assassinate my father twice. They wouldn’t stop. For my father’s safety, I had to take him out."
"How did you do it?" Tom asked in surprise.
"After the meeting, I left the restaurant. I had arranged for my men to open fire on the restaurant with machine guns and then throw in a few bombs, blowing everyone inside to bits," Michael said.
Sonny looked at his brother in disbelief.
Tessio frowned deeply.
Clemenza’s eyes shifted, immediately thinking of Hardy.
"Michael, where did you find these people? Don’t tell me they were the security from your factory?" Sonny asked, perplexed.
"I hired them," Michael gave a simple answer.
"Now isn’t the time to discuss this. What we need to discuss now is how to deal with the aftermath," Michael said.
Tom looked at Michael, worried, "Michael, killing a police officer is a direct challenge to the entire justice system. The connections the Corleone family has built will collapse."
Michael shook his head, "No, it won’t be that serious. That police chief was involved with drug dealers; he wasn’t a good cop anymore. Tom, don’t we have contacts in the press? Call them and tell them about the police chief’s dealings with drug dealers. No one will care about his death after that."
Tom thought for a while then said "I’ll call the people in the newspaper. They should know how to write it."
"What about the murder? The police will look from Michael." Tessio said.
Michael shrugged nonchalantly, "I left the restaurant before the attack. No one can prove I was involved, and it was indeed not me. They might suspect the Corleone family, but there’s no evidence of my involvement."
Tom, being a lawyer, nodded in agreement after hearing Michael’s explanation.
"The police will certainly suspect Michael, but without evidence, they can’t do anything to him."
"What do you think the other families will do? Will they go to war with us?" Sonny asked.
Tessio remained silent.
Michael spoke again, "Sonny, I think you should call the heads of the other families and explain the Corleone family’s stance. You don’t need to agree to anything yet. Just say that many things can be discussed once our father recovers."
Everyone nodded in agreement. Tom looked at Michael with changed eyes, feeling that he didn’t recognize this younger brother anymore. Although Michael had always been somewhat rebellious, he had never shown such leadership and decisiveness. This time, Michael acted swiftly and thought things through thoroughly. Tom saw the image of the old Godfather in Michael.
Clemenza smiled and nodded at Michael, thinking that Michael handled things well this time. His actions, though seemingly reckless, perfectly resolved the immediate crisis for the Corleone family, steering events in a different direction.
Tessio also developed a newfound respect for Michael.
Everyone went their separate ways to get busy, while Michael went to the old Godfather’s study and sat in his father’s chair. He didn’t dwell on the past events, as they were over.
He thought about Hardy. From the time Hardy received his call for help in Los Angeles to the day Sollozzo was killed, it had been only three or four days. Yet, Hardy was able to piece together the most critical points from the complex events and make accurate judgments. Michael admired Hardy for this.
The solutions Michael had proposed to Sonny and Tom, such as contacting the press and calling the heads of other families, were actually ideas Hardy had suggested during their conversations. Michael merely relayed them to the others. Compared to Hardy, Michael felt he still had much to learn and improve.
The next day, various newspapers reported the machine gun attack and explosion that occurred at the restaurant the previous evening. At around 9 PM, there were still many pedestrians on the street, making it easy to gather information about what happened.
The New York Daily News reported: "Two cars stopped in front of the restaurant, and gun barrels protruded from the windows, spraying bullets into the restaurant. Then explosives were thrown inside, killing everyone inside instantly. The scene was gruesome."
"The restaurant owner told the newspaper that a few minutes before the attack, someone came to the kitchen, gave them money, and forced them to leave through the back alley. Shortly after, the explosion occurred."
"The brutal attack appears to be a gang vendetta, likely related to the recent attack on the Corleone family head. The victims have been confirmed as a Turkish drug dealer and Police Chief McCluskey, who had been associating with the drug dealer recently. According to reports, McCluskey had a history of accepting bribes."
Michael calmly admitted that he indeed had dinner with Sollozzo and Chief McCluskey the previous night, at their invitation.
"What did you talk about?" the police asked.
"Business. Sollozzo wanted to buy a batch of televisions to sell in Turkey. That’s what we discussed."
Everyone knew Michael was the shareholder and the CEO of "N.Y.T" Television Company, so talking about television sales made perfect sense. The source of thɪs content is N0veI.Fiɾe.net
"Were there any conflicts that night?" the police asked again.
Michael smiled, "Officer, they wanted to buy televisions, and I’m a television seller. What conflict could we have?"
"You didn’t discuss anything else, like family business?" the police asked.
Before Michael could respond, the lawyer immediately stood up and said sternly, "Officer, please watch your words. Your questions are leading my client. I will file a complaint against you."
"My client is a legitimate businessman with no criminal record. He fought in the anti fascist war and received a combat hero medal. No one can convict him just because of his last name."
"Alright, I didn’t ask that question," the officer said.