The Blue Suit
By Josh Resnek
“I have a confession to make. The mayor wears me out. He takes advantage of me. He hurts me. He takes pleasure in hurting me, which I hate to say, is exactly what he does with so many others,” the mayor’s blue suit said to me.
“Can you imagine if I were a blue dress? I hate to think about it.”
“He isn’t a good guy to me. He doesn’t honor those who serve him. He is often nasty and angry, jealous and underhand- ed. I know, I am with him a lot. The things he does sometimes are unspeakable! He wears me so often I could cry. I am the holder of many of his secrets,” the Blue Suit said to me.
“What do you mean secrets?” I asked the Blue Suit.
“Does the mayor have secrets?” I asked the Blue Suit. “Who doesn’t have secrets, Josh,” the Blue Suit said to me. “Now don’t get nasty on me,” I told the Blue Suit. “I’m not him.”
“Calm down, Josh. Calm down. I know you’re not him.
Boy does he hate you,” the Blue Suit told me. “He hates you because you know his secrets and you write about them…and people believe what you write. He knows you know his biggest secrets. He has trouble living with that knowledge every Wednesday when the Leader Herald comes out.”
“I’m not worried about the mayor hating me or wanting to put me out of business. Not to worry about that at all. Everyone in this city is afraid of him, is afraid to speak out about him. Well, everyone except me and Councilor Gerly Adrien.”
“You are hitting the nail on the head about that,” The Blue Suit said.
“He can’t stand Adrien. That’s putting it mildly. I can’t re- peat to you the things he says about her, the names he calls her, the fits he has about her. What his buddies say about her. You should hear the comments he and Jerry Navarro – and the mayor’s cousin Anthony the councilor. Their comments together are X-rated. Those guys can’t control her. They can only make fun to her behind her back. That’s their style. She drives them crazy. I know he’s afraid of her. They are, too. They’ve told the mayor to watch out for her. She is likely to run for mayor.”
“They said that about Adrien?” I asked the Blue Suit in disbelief.
“Yes. What’s worse, they agreed, she could win!”
“No!” I exclaimed.
“Yes,” the Blue Suit repeated.
“When they talk about Adrien they fear the unknown. They worry about the folks behind her – that is – common Everett folks who aren’t behind him or them,” added the Blue Suit.
“What about Councilor Fred Capone? Are they worried about him running for mayor. Many of his closest friends say he is running?” I asked.
“They aren’t nearly as uptight about Capone as they are about Adrien. But they hate Capone just the same. They love to hate,” the Blue Suit revealed.
The Blue Suit continued.
“They hate Mike Marchese. They especially hate him. They are so jealous of him. The hate of Marchese goes way back with the mayor as you know the Blue Suit told me. Marchese was kind to the mayor, as he is to nearly everyone in the city, but Carlo did him in and embarrassed him years ago. There was no need for that.”
“Do they hate my buddy Wayne Matewsky. He’s every- one’s friend and the biggest vote getter in the city from election to election,” I asked the Blue Suit.
“The mayor considers him someone he must put up with. The others want nothing to do with him. They compliment him to his face when they meet. The moment they turn their backs they sticker daggers in his back. They make fun of him or ridicule him,” the Blue Suit added. “and they have a good laugh about controlling him.”
“What about Mike, Mike McLaughlin? What do they have to say about him running against the rep?” I asked.
“The hate runs deep against Mike. They talk about being with the rep but at the first sign the rep is going to lose, they’ll try to persuade Mike they are with him. That’s the strategy among the mayor’s brain trust,” the Blue Suit said.
“They try to control Mike but in the last analysis, they know they can’t control him.”
“Back to Adrien,” I said.
“What do they believe she is going to do?”
“The mayor, Jerry and Anthony all agree. They say she is a troublemaker, that she is a danger zone for the mayor, that her power is difficult to assess except that many people are willing to aid her and to follow her. They know she’s dangerous. They don’t want to believe it, but they are keeping a close watch on her,” the Blue Suit said.
“Explain that, please,” I asked the Blue Suit.
“Not until you give me something ,” the Blue Suit ordered. “What do you want, a payoff like the man who wears you so often?” I asked.
“I apologize,” the Blue Suit said to me.
“I’ve got to go. I hear Carlo walking around the house. I don’t want him to hear me talking with you.”
“I’ll call you next week when I have a moment,” the Blue Suit said to me.
“Thanks buddy,” I replied.
“Don’t get worn out.”
“Very funny,” the Blue Suit finished.