Nabbed!: The 1925 Journal of G. Codd Fitzmorgan (14 page)

John's grin dipped. “That's not exactly true, pal. I was a bootlegger. It's all over now. As of this weekend. This is the
last run”.

“Let me guess, John,” Judge said as she took as she took a step toward him. “You were doing it all for me, right?”

John's grin grew back to full force. “That's right, darling.”

“Stop it!” Judge snapped. “Stop calling me darling.”

Watching John's face was like watching a person flip through the pages of a picture book. Different expressions flashed by
until John settled on one. He must have assumed it made him look like a tough protector. “Fine, Justine,” he said. “But it
was all for you —“

I blew out air in frustration. This was getting us nowhere, and just hurting Judge more.

I took a step forward. “How did you do it?”

John was too busy trying to gaze into Judge's eyes to bother with my question.

“Answer him, John!” Judge glared at him. “How was the operation set up? Answer him, or I'll scream so loud this field will
be filled with people in no time.”

“Do I get my part back if I do?” When Judge ignored his request, John sighed. “Locals made the liquor and traveled by boat
to the island. They left the booze hidden in the cellar. I would pick it up and deliver it around the country. It normally
went like clockwork. But the other night, the boxes of booze got mixed up with our engagement presents.”

Judge cried, “You made deliveries in our airplanes?”

“Well, yes, of course,” John answered, as if that were a dumb question. “You have no idea how thrilling it's been.”

“I was so proud of our air courier business,” Judge said. “You were just using it as a cover! You were using me! I helped
you run a smuggling ring, and I didn't even know it!”

Things were starting to come together in my mind “You had Judge arrange deliveries,” I said to John. “Deliveries to people
like Virgil Gates.”

“Right again, pal,” John said. “I would drop off crates of hooch to Virgil in Chicago. He would sell it to local speakeasies
there. Virgil made the delivery easy this weekend by coming here.”

John was on a roll, and I wanted to keep him talking. “And the Scotsman?”

“I hired him and instructed him to meet me back here before the party last night.” John sounded proud of himself. “I told
the Scotsman I needed him to broadcast a puppet show for a children's party. He jumped at the chance—it's not like his idea
for this thing called television will ever amount to anything! While you were all inside, I wheeled JENNY onto the airstrip
outside the Great Hall. At the same time, the Scotsman installed his equipment. I made him believe that I wanted the children
to think it was magic, so he must remain unseen.”

John his the liquor in the cellar.

“His broadcast was just a diversion?” I asked, but knew the answer.

“Yes, that was the plan,” John replied. “Everyone thought they saw my plane land outside the Great Hall. When the crowd rushed
out the door, I darted through the empty house against us.”

Judge gave a sharp bark of laughter. “Us? Who is US?”

“Why, you and me, dar–Justine,” John said. “I didn't do this for the money. I did it for the thrill. We always talked about
living on the edge. And look at us! I'd call this pretty exciting, wouldn't you?”

“Crazy is a better word,” I offered.

John kept his eyes on Judge, ignoring me again. “Now, Justine. Think about it. You never would have known about any of this
if the Scotsman had not gotten lost twice and wandered around the mansion. If that storm hadn't grounded me for so long, I
would've snatched up all the incriminating evidence and carried it off without anyone being the wiser. I'd still be your John
and you would still be my darling.”

There was silence. I imagined the thoughts that must be flying around in Judge's head. Was she thinking of taking him back?
I tried breaking the moment by pointing out more of John's misdeeds. “You're the one who turned off the power and nabbed the
Scotsman.”

John sighed and rolled his eyes as if I was being nitpicky. “I couldn't let him tell you about my involvement. I listened
as you interviewed him from behind the secret door in the fireplace. When I heard you get too close to the truth, I shut off
the power and brought him down into the tunnels. I tied him up and said he had to pretend to be unconscious. But I told him
it was all part of the game.”

I shot him a stony look. “I didn't think it was a game when you left me tied up in that dungeon and I almost drowned!”

“I'm sorry about that, pal,” John said. “I heard you open the trapdoor to the secret room. I had to make you thin I was a
victim, so I lay down next to the Svotsman.”

“And then you tied me up!” I was furious.

John looked at his hands. “Like I told you, I was going to let people know where you were when I landed. Justine, what do
you say?”

Judge hesitated. Then her eyes narrowed and she took another step toward John. “This was supposed to be the happiest time
of my life.this was a party for US! For our future! You used me, you used our engagement. There is no future for us!”

“You don't mean that,” John said. “I had to do what I did this weekend. My contacts in different cities told me that someone
was asking questions about our operation. I knew the police were onto us. I was afraid I might be arrested at time. The crowd
of guests at the party offered the perfect distraction for me to get the evidence out of the house.” Judge remained stone-face,
and John tried a different approach. “Think of what breaking our engagement would do to my poor old father. It would kill
him. Do you want that on your shoulders?”

Judge wasn't having any of it.

John reached out to touch her arm.

Judge jumped back as if recoiling from a snake. “Stay away from me. You are disgusting! You can't blackmail me into loving
you. You made your father think that you might be dead!”

“I am sorry about that. I love my old man.”

“You seem to be sorry about a lot,” I observed.

“I loved you,” Judge said. “Why didn't you just talk to me?”

John acted like he didn't hear her. “I planned to return here tomorrow. I was going stumble out of the woods and say, ‘Golly,
what happened? I guess I bumped my jead while landing the airplane in the storm.’

Judge said, “That way your father would never know you were a criminal and would still give you his money.”

I added, “And you could claim the glory of being the first person to fly solo across the Atloantic.”

”Well…no. I wasn't going to do that,“ John said. But it was clear from his hesitation that this is exactly what he meant to
do. Maybe he wasn't such a good actor after all.

“Liar!” I shouted. “You were never going to give this up. This was just a way to trick the police for now. You were going
to keep on bootlegging.”

I could see I had hit on the truth. John's face flashed with rage. “Boys shouldn't grown-up games. Boys who do that might
get hurt.”

Drawing herself up to her full height, Judge pointed at John like a goddess from a mount. “Don't you dare threaten him!”

John flipped through expressions and landed on the hurt puppy dog again. “I'm sorry. Honest. Justine, you have to let me go.
I really do have to act right now. The police are closer than we think.”

Judge wouldn't stand for any threats!

She crossed her arms. “ Oh, I know for a fact that they are.”

“That's why I need to leave right now! I have all the evidence of the operation on the plane. I'll destroy it, and then it
will be their word against ours. If you stand by me, we can't lose. Everyone knows you're one of the most honest people–“

Judge glared at him. “I put off my dreams of going to law school to run your delivery business!”

“Women don't breath. “Justine. Don't be silly. Think of us. Think of our life together!”

“Some life,” I said. “You were about to run her over with the plane to get out of here.”

John threw up his hands. “Justine, are you going to listen to a child or to your heart?”

“They're both saying the same thing,” she said, gazing back at him. It was as if she were searching for something in his eyes.

There was suddenly the feeling that we were teetering on the edge of cliff. The world stood still and everything seemed hushed,
as if waiting for the next moment.

Without breaking eye contact with John, Judge raised her voice slightly and said, “M. Ness, you can come out now. I think
we have all we need.”

Mr. Ness? Who was Mr. Ness?

Panic spread across John's face. “Justine, what are you doing?”

“Don't move!” A voice called. And for the second time since I met him, Mang the Magnifico emerged from the shadows. He was
reaching beneath his cape with one hand and tugging at his long beard with the other.

“No!” I shouted and took up my defensive stance.

“Relax, G. Codd! He's on our side,” Judge spoke quickly. “I'd like you to meet Mr. Eliot Ness.”

Mr. Who? I thought. The man I knew as Man was holding a badge in one hand and his long fake beard in the other.

UNIVERSITY OF CHICGO YEARBOOK, 1925

Voted most likely to make arrests…

ELIOT NESS

This 22-year-old Chicago-born graduate earned a degree in business and law. You might have seen him around campus practicing
jujitsu or quietly reading a book. Ness says he plans to work on a case down South this summer, pursuing “interesting leads.”
In the fall, he'll return to school to study criminology and work at the Prohibition Bureau. Ness say, who knows? He might
just join the Justice Department and go after the big crooks like Al Capone. (Yeah, right. That's just an untouchable dream!)