Call Him Nemesis

"Call Him Nemesis" by Donald E. Westlake is a crime fiction story that mixes suspense with the strange appearance of a kid vigilante during the early 1960s. The story kicks off with a bank robbery that doesn't go as planned, drawing in the cops and introducing the Scorpion, a young boy named Eddie Clayhorn who can change the temperature of things with his mind. As the plot thickens, the Scorpion steps in to deal with different crimes, such as a guy shooting up the place and gang violence, leaving Detective-Sergeant Stevenson and the police confused by his icy interventions. The story creates a strange contrast as it balances serious crime with the childlike innocence of Eddie, whose alter ego leaves a bizarre trail of crime fighting in his wake, resulting in a mix of humor and tension as the cops try to figure out the mystery behind this young, super-powered avenger.