Chapter 7 #2
Owen crosses his arms. “I can’t believe I’m going to buy drugs again, and for the police, no less.”
“Your aunt mentioned some drama you had back home. Buying drugs to help the community is not the same as getting high on the weekends.”
Owen snorts. “It went further than that, but you’re right. This is for a good cause.”
“Damn right it is. By the way, I saw you at Rodie’s last night.”
“Oh yeah? Why didn’t you say hello?”
“You seemed deep in conversation with your friends. I don’t remember who was there besides Bradley.”
“Will and Esteban.”
“Cool. You like those guys?”
“Sure, they’re great, and Bradley’s hilarious. But I think Will doesn’t like me much.”
“Oh? Why’s that?”
“I don’t know. I mean, he’s friendly, but I’m getting a weird vibe from him.”
Nate decides to seize the opportunity. “Listen, I don’t like to badmouth anyone, but since you and I are friends, I should be honest with you.
” He glances at Owen, who’s watching him intently.
“Will isn’t a good guy. He likes playing with people and fucking with their heads.
Most folks in town will tell you that if you ask them.
A few years ago, he even got someone killed.
Well, it was suicide, but Will was responsible. ”
“Will was responsible for someone committing suicide? How?”
“Well, this guy, Joel, who happened to be my best friend and the sheriff’s son, had some mental issues he was dealing with.
Instead of helping, Will dragged Joel straight to the bottom until he took his own life.
It was the biggest shitshow we’ve ever had in town, and Will was right at the heart of it.
” Nate sighs. “I miss Joel.” It’s not a lie, but the full truth is a lot more complicated.
“I’m sorry,” Owen says after a long pause. “I got a very different impression of him, but the sheriff mentioned someone being responsible for his son’s death. I didn’t know he was talking about Will.”
“Wicked William Thomas, as many tend to call him. You’d be wise to keep your distance. I’d hate to see you get hurt.”
Owen remains silent, but Nate has made his point.
They reach Eminence in less than thirty minutes due to the light Saturday-morning traffic. It doesn’t take long before they find the first junkie lying on the pavement.
“Should we help him?” Owen asks.
“We’re not here for that.” Nate drives slower. “Dealers here operate from different neighborhoods. Sometimes they fight over territory, but these days they have plenty of clients to keep all of them happy.”
“Am I supposed to buy from all of them?”
“No, that would be too suspicious in case they talk to one another. We’ll focus on one location where the dealers seem the most chilled. I think they’re brothers. There’s usually at least one of them sitting outside, waiting for clients.”
“What am I supposed to buy?”
“We should go for something light like marijuana.”
Two minutes later, Nate stops the car and points ahead.
“You see the guy over there? He’s one of the brothers I was talking about.
When you go to make a purchase, he’ll ask you questions to make sure you’re legit, and you need to stick to the truth as much as possible.
Keep your answers short, and if he gives you a hard time, act like it’s no big deal and walk away.
We can find other dealers if we have to. Are you following so far?”
Owen nods, his eyes troubled. “Yes.”
“Once you make contact, you start to form a relationship. Be friendly and outgoing. If we’re lucky, the brothers might offer you a gig. You likely won’t find out much until they see you as a potential partner, but if they happen to let something slip, you tell me straight away.”
Owen exhales. “Okay. When do I need to start?”
“If you ask the sheriff, he’d tell you to start yesterday, but I say you do it whenever you’re ready. A few more days won’t matter.”
“Okay. Can we go back now? I don’t feel great.”
“No problem.” He starts to drive. “Feel free to ask questions.”
Owen clears his throat, but his question has nothing to do with the undercover work. “Is there a chance that what you told me about Will isn’t true? I mean, I’m sure parts of it are, but stories have a tendency to escalate when too many people share them.”
Nate waits before he replies, taking a mental note of Owen’s extensive interest in Will. “I’ve seen it all firsthand, buddy. Not a single lie has left my mouth.”
Owen doesn’t reply, and Nate turns on the radio to fill the silence. Something tells him that stubborn Owen might still cause problems even after Nate’s straightforward warning.
I guess we’ll need to see about that.
*
Nate prefers to have these sorts of meetings over the phone, since there’s something unsettling about the mayor’s house.
It’s impressive in an old, Victorian way, but it gives off an eerie vibe.
The fact that it was built on top of a hill, looking down over the town like an angry parent, doesn’t help matters.
The young housekeeper, who never speaks with Nate directly, leads him into the mayor’s private office.
It’s a large room with tall windows that provide a view of the quiet street outside.
Tall bookcases stand on both sides of the room, with the mayor sitting behind his wooden desk in the middle.
He’s wearing a gray button-down shirt, its buttons closed all the way to his neck.
There’s a faint scent of expensive tobacco in the air.
“Nate.” The mayor doesn’t raise his eyes from the document he’s reading. “Sit.”
Nate does, feeling like the principal is about to send him to detention. He waits until the mayor finally puts the document down and looks up. He has never met anyone who was harder to read than this man, and Nate takes pride in his ability to read people.
“How are you?”
“Doing okay, sir.” Knowing that the man doesn’t really care, he goes straight to business. “As I told you, we found those two dead junkies last week.”
“And is that still being investigated?”
“No, we dropped that quickly. A classic case of overdose. I saw two small articles about that, but that’s it.
” Nate has a feeling the mayor is somehow behind the local media not making a fuss over drug-related deaths and crimes.
It’s just another reason why he should tread carefully while dealing with this man, who has been paying him well to spy on the sheriff’s department for the last three years.
It’s not like he’s committing a crime by being an informer.
Well, sort of. He just passes information that helps the mayor ensure that his business is kept out of the law’s grasp.
Does it mean more dead junkies? Sure. Does Nate care?
Nope, and why should he? No one forced them to do drugs, like no one forced his miserable mother to overdose when he was a teen.
“Does the sheriff plan to arrest anyone soon for a shakeup?” the mayor asks.
“Not that I know of. It didn’t work well before, so I don’t think he’s eager to try it again. Once you get them off the streets, new ones show up instead, and we prefer to know who we’re dealing with instead of wasting time figuring out who took over.”
“Okay. Anything else that I should know about?”
Nate rubs his knees, debating what to do.
A few hours ago, he was teaching Owen about undercover work, and now he has the opportunity to share with the mayor about the sheriff’s newest plan.
But something is holding him back, a feeling that this specific card should not be dealt quite so fast. It has less to do with his loyalty toward the sheriff and more to do with finding the right opportunity for such a revelation.
I’m going to hold on to that information for a bit longer.
“There’s nothing more to add, sir. The sheriff is frustrated, but he’s used to it by now.”
The mayor nods. “Mitch is a good man, but he’ll be wise to pick his battles. Have a good evening, Nate.”
Once he’s standing and about to leave, he decides to ask what he’s been meaning to ask for a while.
With how things are going with Will, he’s even more curious than before about every part of his life.
“Sir, I have a question. The sheriff noticed that your nephew comes over here once in a while. It happens at the same time you have other guests—important guests.”
Surprisingly, the mayor lets his stoic mask slip for a second. “Is the sheriff watching my house, Nate?”
“What? No, of course not! I would’ve told you that, obviously. He’s keeping an eye on Will. You know why.”
“It’s been over five years since what happened with his son. It’s time to move on.”
Nate shrugs. “Not like the sheriff has much else to keep him occupied. I honestly don’t know what he would’ve done if Will wasn’t your nephew.”
“Will isn’t my nephew—he’s the son of the woman my parents decided to adopt at a moment of stupidity. But yes, on paper, he is family, and Mitch would be wise to watch his steps.”
“I’m sure he knows that, sir.”
“And about Will coming over…” He straightens in his seat.
“Those are business meetings I’m inviting him to attend.
He gets a chance to form ties that might help with his business.
His mother didn’t leave him and his sister with anything, and I don’t want to see him fail with Julie needing his help. ”
Nate stops himself from sniffing with the stench of crap in the air. The mayor couldn’t care less about Will’s success, and both of them know it. Which means something else is going on, like the sheriff has been suspecting. Interesting.
“Thank you, sir. I figured as much.”
“You make sure to tell me if the sheriff keeps poking at this, Nate.”
“I will. It’s really not a big deal, just something he mentioned to me once or twice.”
The mayor nods as he picks up a different document from his desk.
Nate exits the office, and the strange housekeeper is waiting to walk him out.
He doesn’t bother wishing her a good evening since she won’t reply.
Standing outside, where he can see most of the town from the hill, he checks his watch and smiles with excitement.
Today has been quite busy between Owen’s undercover work and meeting the mayor, but the highlight is still to come.
He can’t wait to get home.