Nemesis: The Final Case of Eliot Ness Read Online Free PDF Page A

the position vacated by the unpopular Martin J. Lavelle. Apparently Ness had a brief meeting with the mayor yesterday morning, then less than an hour later was sworn in to office. Ness will receive an annual salary of seven thousand five hundred dollars and will have authority over the entire police, fire and traffic control departments..."
    - -
    Ness stepped outside the Central Police Station at 21st and Payne on Cleveland 's East side, a four-story sandstone edifice with an imposing facade. He was carrying a large stack of files.
    Six reporters were waiting for him on the front steps.
    With his free hand, he buttoned his tan camel-hair topcoat, bracing himself against the December chill.
    One of the reporters stepped forward. "I'm Jim Crawford of the Courier. Are you Eliot Ness?"
    Ness nodded. "Guess I'm not as famous as some of the people inside seem to think."
    "We heard you were here. It's just-well, you don't look much like a copper."
    "Why not?"
    " 'Cause you're..." He hemmed and hawed, searching for the word.
    "Good lookin'?" one of reporters suggested. "Not just another mug?"
    "Well, yeah. I mean, not that I care what men look like-"
    "Of course not," Ness said.
    "But you're dressed nice and you got a soft voice and you look..." He scratched his head. "Exactly how old are you?"
    "Older than I look."
    "And that is?"
    Ness grinned. "You members of the fourth estate are relentless. I'm a little past thirty."
    The reporter whistled. "Youngest safety director this city has ever had."
    "Sometimes youth can be a good thing."
    "Is it true you brought down Al Capone?"
    Ness shrugged. "My department did its part, sure. But the tax investigators were the ones who put Capone in prison. My work just got more press, that's all. A midnight raid is a good deal more sensational than an accounting ledger."
    "Are you going to start an Untouchables squad here in Cleveland?"
    Another big grin. "We'll see."
    "What was the first thing you did after the mayor appointed you safety director?"
    "I told my wife, naturally."
    "What was her reaction?"
    For the first time, Ness hesitated before answering. "Edna has always been very supportive of me and my career. She's a fine woman."
    Another reporter, with a press pass stuck in the band of his boater and a Brownie camera dangling from his neck, thrust himself forward. "Bill Dowling of the Cleveland News. Can you tell us what you were doing here at the police station?"
    "Getting to know the people I'm going to be working with. I met the chief of police, George Matowitz."
    "What did you think of him?"
    "I thought he was tall." The reporters laughed. True, Matowitz was six feet, but then, so was Ness.
    What Ness really thought was that Matowitz was lazy and uninspired. He might not be corrupt himself, but he was negligent enough to allow corruption to fester. He would never be of any real use, but Ness was careful not to make an enemy. He would need the support of the chief once he started demanding resignations.
    "Do you anticipate any problems working with Chief Matowitz?"
    "Of course not. Why would there be? We both want the same thing. A clean police department and a safe city."
    "The previous safety director never stepped out of his office. Some people see it as a political appointment that never does anyone any good."
    "Those days are over," Ness said firmly, his jaw set. "I'm not the supervisor type. I'll be right on the front lines. But first I need to become a little more familiar with the police force and the local crime scene. I need to know this city, inside out." He glanced at the materials he was carrying. "That's what all this is. Homework. City charter. Crime statistics. Maps. You name it."
    "That's a lot to bite off."
    "I've always been a good student. I'll know more tomorrow and a lot more than that the next day. Goodbye, gentlemen."
    Ness started down the stone steps toward his black Ford, but the reporter held out a hand to stop him.
    "Here's the thing I don't get, Mr. Ness. Why