Amerikan Eagle

Sam paused in his typing. No point in saying what Lou Purdue was doing, for he was sure that in addition to retrieving lumps of coal, Lou was also checking out how strongly some of the B&M boxcar doors were locked, up at the collection of sidings just over on the other side of Maplewood Avenue, near the B&M station. Let the B&M cops handle it.

The body is that of a white male, approximately fifty to sixty-five years of age. There is no apparent sign of trauma. There is also no apparent cause of death. A preliminary search of the body revealed no possessions save for clothing and no identification. The tattoo 9 1 1 2 8 3 was found on the man’s wrist. Photographs of the scene were taken by photographer RALPH MORANCY, on contract to the Portsmouth Police Department. The body was placed into the custody of DR. WILLIAM SAUNDERS, Rockingham County Medical Examiner’s Office, and was removed by attendants of the Woods funeral home.

A teletype with the dead man’s description has been transmitted to N.H. state police headquarters in Concord.

Sam read and then reread the report after taking the sheets of paper from the typewriter. He signed each sheet and put one sheet in a folder for this case, gave another to the department’s secretary. The third sheet he placed in Hanson’s mailbox. He looked at a clock on the far wall, shook his head, and left to play errand boy before getting home to Sarah and Toby.

* * *

As his boss had promised, the prisoner was well dressed, a tall man with a fleshy face and wavy hair. The left leg of his fine trousers was torn open, exposing a bloody knee. His hands were cuffed in front of him and his eyes were unfocused, as if he couldn’t comprehend what was happening to him. He kept silent as Sam bundled him into the rear seat of his Packard, ducking down from the continuing onslaught of heavy rain. The prisoner’s paperwork was tucked inside Sam’s coat, unread, since he had no interest in knowing why this guy had been arrested. All Sam cared about was getting this piece of crap work done as soon as possible.

Sam started up the Packard, and as he backed out into the street, the man said from the rear seat, “Are you FBI? Or Interior Department?”

“Neither.” Sam switched on the wipers, wondering why it was his luck to be out tonight in such a nasty downpour. “Local cop being a taxi driver, that’s all.”

“What’s your name?”

“Miller.”

“Mine’s Lippman. Ever hear of me?”

“Nope.”

“I’ve written some books, used to be a newspaper columnist down in New York… hell, even worked for President Wilson during the last war… now look where I am. Do you have any idea why I’ve been arrested?”

Sam braked at a streetlight. There was a small fire in a nearby alleyway in a metal drum. Three men in shabby clothes were clustered by the drum, holding their hands out over the flickering orange flames. He had a feeling that the men would be there all night, just trying to stay warm.

“No,” Sam said. “I don’t. Look, I’m just bringing you to the train station and—”

Lippman said, “Suspicion of income tax evasion. That’s the catchall charge so they can hold you until something better comes along. But the real reason—the real reason is that I kept on writing against that damn man and his administration, even after being fired from my newspaper job. That’s my story, friend. Arrested and sent away because of my opinion.”

The light changed to green. Sam let up on the clutch and headed down Congress Street, to the local station of the Boston & Maine railroad. His eyes ached and his car now held a smell of old smoke and sweat. Lippman cleared his throat. “This has nothing to do with you, does it?”

“What’s that?”

“My arrest. That’s not a local charge, not even something your state police would care about. Look, you seem like a good man, Mr. Miller. I mean, this is a lot to ask, but… you didn’t look happy, bringing me out of my cell. I’m sure you don’t like being pushed around by the FBI, the Interior Department. So why not do something about it?”

“Like what?” Only a few stores were open on this main city street, their lights brave against the rain and lack of customers.