At the check-in counter of the Castle Hotel, DS Hook pounds the brass bell repeatedly until the desk clerk ambles out of the office, looking sleepy and irritated—until the VPD uniform has its effect and he transforms into the Concerned Host.
“A very good day to you, Officer. And how are we this afternoon?”
“We are fine this afternoon, thank you, sir.”
“And how may I be of some assistance?”
“I need to speak with Mr Edward McCurdy—is he in his room?”
The desk clerk’s voice tightens, as does his face. “Ah yes, Mr McCurdy. I’m sorry to say, Officer, that we haven’t seen Mr McCurdy for several days now.” His tone implies, And I hope we never do again.
“Sir, I caution you that your sarcasm is overdone. In any case, when he does check in, please give him the following message: that Detective Sergeant Hook dropped by to commend him on a job well done, and to say that he will be in contact tomorrow and will keep him abreast.”
The desk clerk’s gaze grows cold. “Beg your pardon, sir? A job well done?”
“Very much so. We couldn’t have solved the case without him.”
“Solved? Mr McCurdy solved something?”
DS Hook leans over the counter as though speaking in confidence. “McCurdy is one of the best undercover detectives in the country. I’m not at liberty to say more. Please keep it under your hat.”
He flicks a conspiratorial wink, turns briskly and exits the hotel, passing two fellow guests in cheap suits and hobnail boots who have been listening from behind their newspapers.
Moments later, almost as though on cue, Mr McCurdy himself enters the lobby. The two newspaper readers glance at the new arrival, glance at each other, fold their newspapers and leave the building.
The desk clerk’s nostrils flare as McCurdy approaches, though his face remains a mask of professional politeness. “Welcome back, Mr McCurdy! Very good to have you back, sir.”
“Thank you, Rodney. I’m touched. Have there been any messages for me?”
“Actually, a Detective Sergeant Hook was here just moments ago. He wished to commend you for, as he put it, ‘a job well done’ and to say that he will contact you tomorrow.”
“Excellent. Now I’ll have my key—and no visitors or calls, please. I wish to take a long, hot bath.”
What the Attorney General Knows
Cecil Harmsworth
Staff Writer
The Beacon
It has taken a crime wave to do it, but finally the Government of BC has emerged from its moderationist cocoon and has opted to take action.
To assess the current sorry situation, one must first understand the forces lurking behind it.
It has long been known that foreign elements have been steadily working to undermine the moral fibre of white Christian British Columbians and to assert values particular to their race.
One tactic among many is to ply the white working man with alcohol and drugs.
Behind the epidemic of drinking, bootlegging and alcohol deaths is a syndicate of foreign conspirators who feel free to spread their poison, encouraged by permissive laws and lax enforcement.
Meanwhile, defenders of the public good can only look on, helpless, stymied by laws that, although intended to preserve and protect us, have been twisted to accomplish precisely the opposite.
The current Crusade Against Bootlegging is well named. For white Christians it is a war of survival.
But the tide is turning.
Thanks to the combined efforts of civil, provincial and federal police on the front lines, and thanks to laws that put the onus on the wrongdoer to explain himself, our prisons are bursting with miscreants reaping their reward at the treadmill and the crank.
As Deputy Minister Bertram Bliss remarked, “We’d have a thousand more if we had the prison space.” Indeed, this reporter has learned that a committee has been struck to examine possible locations, estimate costs and make recommendations.
Upon his ascension, Attorney General Stalker has sent the message loud and clear: “Bootlegging and its attendant vices will no longer be given free rein in our province. It is high time for British Columbians to take a stand.”
Stalker’s message is a clarion call to arms, inspired by Paul in Ephesians 6:11: “Put on the full armour of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes.”
Our Attorney General is doing the Lord’s work. Let us wish him godspeed.