Chapter 7: "Rats! They're everywhere."

Albert himself does carry a leather bag full of goodies designed to make an obvious crime scene useless.  Albert’s means of despair are his two angry hands which when clenched have broken many a man’s jaw.  Albert also carries a S/W 9mm pistol, like Joe’s.  In fact, Joe gave Albert the pistol.  None of the other men know why, but they do agree that maybe Joe should have given Albert flowers, candy or a puppy.  Albert’s most famous means to an end is his axe, which looks more like a cross between an axe and a scythe.  The amber wooden handle is about two-feet long.  The head goes in two directions:  The axe side looks like it’s used for chopping wood and the other side of the top is a curved blade like a sickle.  The weapon looks like calligraphy “P.”  It also looks incredibly dangerous even for the person using it. 

“Are you the ‘Jawbreaker’ Albert?”

Albert is the person known to everybody as “Jawbreaker,” but he gave the Commissioner no answer.  Again, Albert had no intention of confirming or denying his secret identity.  The Commissioner picked up on this and moves on.

“Then there’s the big man, Melvin Maroni.  There is no file that we keep on him.  No secret document for privileged eyes only.  You see, you don’t become the king of the underworld without a few dirty cops on the payroll.  Dirty rats!  They’re everywhere.  I don’t need to tell you that sniffing those rats out is harder then… do you know who they are?

“Who?  Your dirty cops?”

“Yeah!”

“Sorry, mate.” Albert says honestly, “Only the governor knows all the players at the match.  He code names them too, but I never paid much attention to that.”

  

“Of course,” the Commissioner does not believe Albert.  “Well my predecessor decided before I joined the team that the best way to confuse the rats is to put the cheese all over the maze.  Essentially give the information we had to the entire Police force.  Even embellish the facts a little.  You see, anytime there was a file on Mel it somehow went missing… a long with anyone leading investigations against him.  This method became a double-edged sword.  Officers investigating Mel could remain anonymous and it confused Mel’s men on the inside, but it also gave Mel his notorious reputation here in town.  The average citizen feels they know more about him then the police do.”

Albert can’t sit in the chair anymore.

“Mel simply inherited the business from his Grandfather.  It seems the old geezer could not give the business over to his own son, what being dead and all.”

“Dead?” Albert sat forth serving the duel purpose of emphasizing his shock and giving his ass some relief.

“Only after he went completely insane.”  The Commissioner reassured Albert.  “He was committed to the Fairview Asylum for the Criminally Insane.  While there in the 70’s he was subjected to various forms of experimental treatments including the ever-popular electro-shock.   But to no avail, he died by hanging himself with his own underwear in the bathroom.  Sick bastard just let his feet out from under himself in the stall doorway.  If he wanted to live all he had to do was stand up.  During their grief Mel started to be groomed for the role of Don.  At a very young age too, Mel went into this game with enthusiasm it seems.  On his twenty-first Birthday, which we refer to as Black Friday, the Families enemies disappeared off the face of the Earth and all properties, lumber yards, Casino’s, abandoned or otherwise were put in his name over night.  Two years later Papa Maroni passed away and Mel’s empire engulfed the entire city.  The rest, as they say, is History.”

“This is all well and boring copper, but the reason I am here has nothing to do with me or any of the men you may just mentioned.”

“Really!” The Commissioner leans back in his chair again and crosses his arms.  “Then why are you here, Al?”

“That sick wanker.  The child-torturing killer.  Walter Dwyer.”

            “Who the hell is Walter Dwyer?