her the reasons to think him selfish.
“Did you see how carefully his hair was arranged? And how meticulous his clothes were? He spends a lot of time making sure he looks his best. He wants others to think as well of him as he thinks of himself.”
“Considering how much time you spent with him, that’s very impressive,” Malloy allowed.
“Oh, stop with the blarney, Malloy. You’re turning my head. And speaking of blarney, did you see the newspapers this morning?” she asked, outraged anew at the thought of them.
“I try to avoid reading the newspapers as much as I can,” he said.
“They said the most horrible things about poor Nelson! As far as they’re concerned, he’s another Jack the Ripper, slashing innocent women to death in the dark of night,” she said in disgust.
“What did you expect? They’re trying to sell papers, not get the facts right.”
“But they’re newspapers ! Don’t they have an obligation to tell the truth? Mr. Pulitzer has devoted himself to uncovering scandal and corruption in society,” she said, naming the publisher of the World . “His paper is always crusading for one cause or another. Why would he allow his reporters to make up lies about innocent people?”
“That’s something you’ll have to ask Mr. Pulitzer,” Malloy said with a tolerant grin. “The fact is that newspapers will publish anything if they think it will make people buy papers. Look at that Italian woman who killed her lover, for instance.”
The story had sold millions of papers through her trial after she slashed her lover’s throat because he refused to marry her. “The press certainly wasn’t very kind to Miss Barberi,” she recalled, remembering the salacious details they had published about her.
“That isn’t even her name,” Malloy said.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean her real name is Barbella. Somebody got it wrong in the beginning, and the rest of them picked it up. I asked a reporter once why they didn’t correct the mistake, and he said that Barberi sounded like barbarian, so it made better copy.”
“That’s horrible!” Sarah exclaimed.
“I’m not arguing with you. I’m just telling you what goes on. Let me guess what they said about Nelson. They said he’s an evil seducer who ruined an innocent young woman, got her with child, and then killed her so he didn’t have to support them.”
Sarah sighed. “One even suggested he’d killed her just because he got tired of her and wanted to find a new victim for his evil lusts.”
“Very imaginative. At this rate, the police are going to have to arrest him just so the public feels safe from a monster.”
Sarah groaned. “What are we going to do?”
“ We are not going to do anything. You are going home to make sure Nelson and his mother stay safely in their house while I go back to Thompson Street and try to figure out who really killed Anna Blake before Bill Broughan decides to close this case by locking up Nelson Ellsworth.”
They’d reached Washington Square and stopped on the sidewalk at the southwest corner.
“What are we going to do about the newspapers?” Sarah asked.
Malloy looked pained. “Didn’t you hear what I just said? You do not have to do anything at all except worry about the Ellsworths.”
“Malloy, you know you need my help in this! I can get more information out of Catherine Porter and the maid. I just need to catch them when Walcott isn’t around.”
“Do you honestly think anyone will ever let you back in that house again?”
He might be right about that, so Sarah decided not to argue. “Then I can talk to the newspapers and try to get them to print the truth.”
“How are you going to explain your interest in Nelson Ellsworth’s welfare?”
“We’re neighbors!”
“You’re a woman, and he’s a man. You are no relation to him. You will be drawing the unpleasant attention of the press to yourself by trying to convince people he is innocent of killing a woman he
“Did you see how carefully his hair was arranged? And how meticulous his clothes were? He spends a lot of time making sure he looks his best. He wants others to think as well of him as he thinks of himself.”
“Considering how much time you spent with him, that’s very impressive,” Malloy allowed.
“Oh, stop with the blarney, Malloy. You’re turning my head. And speaking of blarney, did you see the newspapers this morning?” she asked, outraged anew at the thought of them.
“I try to avoid reading the newspapers as much as I can,” he said.
“They said the most horrible things about poor Nelson! As far as they’re concerned, he’s another Jack the Ripper, slashing innocent women to death in the dark of night,” she said in disgust.
“What did you expect? They’re trying to sell papers, not get the facts right.”
“But they’re newspapers ! Don’t they have an obligation to tell the truth? Mr. Pulitzer has devoted himself to uncovering scandal and corruption in society,” she said, naming the publisher of the World . “His paper is always crusading for one cause or another. Why would he allow his reporters to make up lies about innocent people?”
“That’s something you’ll have to ask Mr. Pulitzer,” Malloy said with a tolerant grin. “The fact is that newspapers will publish anything if they think it will make people buy papers. Look at that Italian woman who killed her lover, for instance.”
The story had sold millions of papers through her trial after she slashed her lover’s throat because he refused to marry her. “The press certainly wasn’t very kind to Miss Barberi,” she recalled, remembering the salacious details they had published about her.
“That isn’t even her name,” Malloy said.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean her real name is Barbella. Somebody got it wrong in the beginning, and the rest of them picked it up. I asked a reporter once why they didn’t correct the mistake, and he said that Barberi sounded like barbarian, so it made better copy.”
“That’s horrible!” Sarah exclaimed.
“I’m not arguing with you. I’m just telling you what goes on. Let me guess what they said about Nelson. They said he’s an evil seducer who ruined an innocent young woman, got her with child, and then killed her so he didn’t have to support them.”
Sarah sighed. “One even suggested he’d killed her just because he got tired of her and wanted to find a new victim for his evil lusts.”
“Very imaginative. At this rate, the police are going to have to arrest him just so the public feels safe from a monster.”
Sarah groaned. “What are we going to do?”
“ We are not going to do anything. You are going home to make sure Nelson and his mother stay safely in their house while I go back to Thompson Street and try to figure out who really killed Anna Blake before Bill Broughan decides to close this case by locking up Nelson Ellsworth.”
They’d reached Washington Square and stopped on the sidewalk at the southwest corner.
“What are we going to do about the newspapers?” Sarah asked.
Malloy looked pained. “Didn’t you hear what I just said? You do not have to do anything at all except worry about the Ellsworths.”
“Malloy, you know you need my help in this! I can get more information out of Catherine Porter and the maid. I just need to catch them when Walcott isn’t around.”
“Do you honestly think anyone will ever let you back in that house again?”
He might be right about that, so Sarah decided not to argue. “Then I can talk to the newspapers and try to get them to print the truth.”
“How are you going to explain your interest in Nelson Ellsworth’s welfare?”
“We’re neighbors!”
“You’re a woman, and he’s a man. You are no relation to him. You will be drawing the unpleasant attention of the press to yourself by trying to convince people he is innocent of killing a woman he
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