It is also known that Ed has passed the exam for promotion to inspector and is first on the promotion list. Here some notes of discord appear. It is generally viewed that Thad Green will retire in the next several years and that Ed might well be chosen to replace him as chief of detectives. The great majority of the men I spoke to voiced the opinion that Capt. Dudley Smith, older, much more experienced and more the leader type, should have the job.
Some personal observations to supplant your outside agency report. (1) Ed’s relationship with Inez Soto is physically intimate, but I know he would never violate departmental regs by cohabitating with her. Inez is a great kid, by the way. She’s become good friends with Preston, Ray Dieterling and myself, and her public relations work for Dream-a-Dreamland is near briffiant. And so what if she’s a Mexican? (2)1 spoke to I.A. Sgts. Fisk and Kieckner about Ed–the two worked Robbery under him, are junior straight-arrow Exley types and are positively ecstatic that their hero is about to become their C.O. (3) As someone who has known Ed Exley since he was a child, and as an ex–police officer, I’ll go on the record: he’s as good as his father and I’d be willing to bet that if you made a tally you’d see that he’s made more major cases than any LAPD detective ever. I’m also willing to bet that he’s wise to this affectionate little ploy you’ve initiated: all good cops have intelligence networks.
I’ll close with a favor. I’m thinking of writing a book of reminiscences about my years with the Department. Would it be possible for me to borrow the file on the Loren Atherton case? Without Preston and Ed knowing, please–I don’t want them to think I’ve gone arty-farty in my waning years.
I hope this little addendum serves you well. Best to Helen, and thanks for the opportunity to be a cop again.
Sincerely,
Art De Spain
LAPD TRANSFER BULLETINS
1. Officer Wendell A. White, Homicide Division to the Hollywood Station Detective Squad (and to assume the rank of Sergeant), effective 1/2/5 8.
2. Sgt. John Vincennes, Surveillance Detail to Wilshire Division Patrol, effective when a replacement officer is assigned, but no later than 3/15/58.
3. Capt. Edmund J. Exley to permanent duty station: Commander, Internal Affairs Division, effective 1/2/5 8.
PART THREE
Internal Affairs
CHAPTER FORTY-TWO
The Dining Car had a New Year’s hangover: drooping crepe paper, “1958” signs losing spangles. Ed took his favorite booth: a view of the lounge, his image in a mirror. He marked the time–3:24 P.M., 1/2/58. Let Bob Gallaudet show up late–anything to stretch the moment.
In an hour, the ceremony: Captain E. J. Exley assumes a permanent duty station–Commander, Internal Affairs Division. Gallaudet was bringing the results of his outside agency validation–the D.A.’s Bureau had gone over his personal life with a magnifying glass. He’d pass–his personal life was squeaky clean, putting the Nite Owl boys in the ground outgunned his Bloody Christmas snitching–he’d known it for years.
Ed sipped coffee, eyes on the mirror. His reflection: a man a month from thirty-six who looked forty-five. Blond hair gone gray; crease lines in his forehead. Inez said his eyes were getting smaller and colder; his wire rims made him look harsh. He’d told her harsh was better than soft–boy captains needed help. She’d laughed–it was a few years ago, when they were still laughing.
He placed the conversation: late ’54, Inez analytical–“You’re a ghoul for watching that man Stensland die.” A year and a half post–Nite Owl; today made four years and nine months. A look in the mirror, a claim on those years–and what he’d had with Inez.
His killings pushed Bud White out: four deaths eclipsed one death. Those first months she was all his: he’d proven himself to her specifications. He bought her a house down the block; she loved their gentle sex; she accepted Ray Dieterling’s job offer. Dieterling fell in love with Inez and her story: a beautiful rape victim abandoned by her family dovetailed with his own losses– once divorced, once widowered, his son Paul dead in an avalanche, his son Billy a homosexual. Ray and Inez became father and daughter–colleagues, deep friends. Preston Exley and Art De Spain joined Dieterling in devotion–a circle of hardcase men and a woman who made them grateful for the chance to feel gentle.