Chapter 9 #3
“I don’t know. Why would the Feds be out there if it were just a gas leak?
I’m betting that they’re making meth or something.
Remember how we thought they were putting in a lot of heat for the place when we were screwing around?
I think it might be drugs, and we’re going to find out that the girl had something to do with it.
” He asked him when he’d gotten so paranoid before.
“I’m not. I just read a lot of murder crime books.
I’m reading one right now that talks about how this entire family was caught making meth in their basement.
It wasn’t until a cartel went in that they were found out.
That’s probably what happened out there. ”
“You need to get laid. At the very least, get out and date more. And quit reading those books. They’re going to get your ass in trouble.
” They were home in a few minutes, but Raphael kept talking about the Sheep.
He had the entire household talking about it while they got dinner.
He was sure that they were all just humoring him, but he couldn’t tell.
Gleason just wanted to eat his pizza in peace and quiet.
That wasn’t going to happen with this family.
After dinner and clean up, they watched a preseason game on television. Wylie had the biggest television, so it was like being on the field with the players. Rosie knew a great deal about the game, so it was fun to watch her as well. The rest of them sat around the room, cursing and yelling.
By ten, they were hungry again. Since the pizza shop had closed at nine-thirty, they were out of options with the food.
Mae, the cook, had been able to make them all subs, and it would tie them over until they got home.
He wanted his spicy and wasn’t really surprised when she was able to produce one hot enough for him.
Rosie had her own special blend of the stuff, and he was going to have to get with her to get the recipe. It was too good to pass up.
As the game was winding down, he heard his brothers talking about the restaurant again.
It was a big deal, and he understood the reason behind talking about it, but he was sick of it.
And even if the girl had anything to do with it, she wasn’t standing around talking about it all the time.
She seemed to be just as quiet as she normally was when he saw her around town.
After making his way home, he decided that he needed something sweet.
Pulling out the container of ice cream that he had, he was happy to see that there was just enough for him.
Gleason really didn’t like flavors either when it came to ice cream, but he would eat it if it was around.
He liked his tea plain, too, and not flavored with things like pumpkin spice or oranges.
If he wanted either, he’d cook something with it.
Going up to bed, he tried to remember if he’d had to work in the morning.
He’d been hanging out at the feed store for the gossip and would be asked to help carry heavy loads of feed to the car.
While he didn’t need the money, they would usually pay him under the table, and he’d use that money to buy himself dinner somewhere.
He enjoyed eating out more than he did cooking for one.
It just wasn’t any fun to cook, then clean up, too.
Getting ready for sleep, he picked up the book he’d been reading.
It wasn’t a murder crime novel like Raphael had been reading, but it held his interest. It was a book on investing and called Investing for Dummies.
He didn’t care what the title was; he was learning a great deal from it and would recommend it to anyone who was only just starting out in doing what the books suggested.
His cell phone was ringing when he was ready to turn out the light at eleven-thirty. It was his brother Raphael. He said that he’d had some news about the Sheep.
“I just read something on the internet. It says that there were fourteen people killed, and they’re still looking for bodies.
I guess the basement caught fire when there were shots fired, and the Feds are looking into a cartel that was pissed off about the restaurant making meth and selling it to their customer base.
” He asked him where he’d read that. “I swear it came from a good source.”
“What source? Are you looking on the dark web again? I told you that it’s going to get you into trouble.
Do you want to spend the rest of your life in prison like Dad did?
Just give it up. There isnt anything wrong with the place out there other than a few nutballs making shit up.
” He said that McGee was part of the cleanup.
“Why would you believe that? We do have enough news going around now without making up things to go with our new chief of police.”
“I tell you, Gleason, it’s true. The web has witnesses out there who have seen the place.
And you have to admit that it has some merit.
” He said he didn’t have to admit anything of the sort.
“You’re just jealous because I was right.
You’ll see. It’s going to come out that there are bodies everywhere and that it had to do with meth being made on the premises.
I’m going to see if I can get into the place to see what’s going on. ”
“It’s your funeral, dumbass.” He wondered if Raphael would really do it and decided that he would.
“Don’t go out there. If it is what you say, then they’re not going to take too lightly that someone is sneaking around the property and getting caught.
I’m sure that there have been people who have been caught doing the same thing and are right now in a federal prison.
You can’t be serious about trying to get there. ”
“I’m not stupid.” He let go of the breath he’d been holding, thinking he wasn’t sure about his brother right now.
“I’m not going to go out there other than to drive by.
Just to see what’s going on. There has to be something.
Why would they still have the road closed off if there was nothing going on? Answer me that.”
“I don’t know.” He really didn’t, but he didn’t think it had to do with meth.
They were a small town, and that sort of thing never happened in small towns.
Or did it? He didn’t know, but he was sure that Raphael was going to get his ass in trouble if he didn’t leave this alone.
“What about talking to McGee? He might be able to tell you something. I don’t know that I like him all that much, but he might have answers if you were to catch him in his office. I’ll even go with you.”
“Great. Tomorrow morning, then. We’ll go to the police station and ask him point-blank what’s going on.
We as citizens of this town have a right to know, don’t you think?
” He didn’t know what to think, but he figured that if McGee knew anything, they’d be able to get it out of him.
He wished that Rosie were still chief; she’d be able to tell them everything that they wanted to know.
He had a feeling, however, that she was just as much in the dark as they were.
“We’ll get to him before he leaves for the day.
He’s not been in his office for the last few days.
I’m betting that he knows something. I mean, it did happen on his watch. ”
“I’m going to ban you from reading period if you don’t stop with the murder crime books.
You’re becoming as bad as some of those people under the bridge in Zanesville.
You know the ones, they push around shopping carts all over looking for bottles to cash in.
” Raphael said that he wasn’t that bad and that he was right.
“Right or not, you’re going to get your ass in trouble if you keep this up.
We both know that you can take things a little overboard sometimes. ”
“I’ll show you. I was right about that girl from high school, too.
She was pregnant.” She had been, and it had been all over school that her father had been the father.
Turned out that Raphael had been right in that it had been her uncle and that the uncle had gone to prison for a long time when he’d killed her because she told someone that she was going to have his baby.
That had been at least fifteen years ago now.
“I’ll see you in the morning. You’ll see.
I’m right about this. I’ve put a lot of effort into figuring it out. ”
He really had, and that was the scary part. Gleason always thought that Raphael should write books he had read so many. And murder crime had been the one that he usually read.