Mr. Lemchen

Mr. Lemchen is a senior authority who holds Richard Noonan accountable for the handling of Zone contraband while acknowledging the results of his investigations. In his office, praise and resentment coexist: he recognizes Noonan’s successes, but also makes clear that the unresolved smuggling network remains his responsibility.

Identity and Introduction

Mr. Lemchen appears in an official setting, rising from a large leather armchair in front of a draped window when Noonan enters. His angular, general-like face is difficult to read: its wrinkles might indicate a welcoming smile, displeasure with the weather, or the strain of some other feeling. The ambiguous expression suits a figure whose dealings with Noonan combine professional assessment and personal reproach.

Assessment of Noonan’s Work

Mr. Lemchen asks Noonan about the results of his report. He credits him with the liquidation of the Metropole gang and the apprehension of the Green Flower gang red-handed, calling the work brilliant and attributing both achievements to Noonan. His acknowledgment establishes that the investigation has produced concrete successes, rather than simply failed under pressure.

That approval does not absolve Noonan of the remaining problem. Mr. Lemchen says that he has not lost sight of Buzzard Burbridge since Burbridge left the hospital. He then gives Noonan a week to develop ideas about how material from the Zone reaches Burbridge and the others. The deadline turns the investigation from a retrospective account of solved cases into an urgent demand to explain the continuing flow of contraband.

Reproach and Narrative Role

Mr. Lemchen’s dissatisfaction is not limited to the work itself. He tells Noonan that he has nothing to say for himself and recalls how Noonan’s behavior made him feel two days earlier, breaking off his own reprimand before concluding it. The interruption leaves the grievance forceful but not fully explained; authority here is personal as well as procedural.

His scene makes the state’s pursuit of Zone smuggling feel both effective and incomplete. Noonan has dismantled gangs and earned praise, yet the route by which Zone material reaches Burbridge remains open. Mr. Lemchen’s week-long ultimatum sharpens that contradiction: official success is measured against a problem that the investigation has not yet resolved.