“Then it’s time you put your faith in them.” She nodded toward the masses.
That feat would’ve been considerably easier to accomplish had his nemesis not chosen that moment to stroll into the tent. Vick flashed his too white teeth like a shark. “Well good morning to you Councilman, Miss Burke.”
“Burgess,” Cam said.
“We’re having a fine turnout to the polls and an exceptional response to our promotion. Why, everybody’s jumping at the chance for a free year’s membership to GrandGoods. We’ve given away six hundred memberships already today.”
A number almost equal to the last hour’s tally at the polls. It didn’t mean anything. Logically, Cam knew that. There’d be people who’d take the deal and vote for the size cap anyway. There would likely even be people who’d take the membership and not vote at all. But some would feel that psychological contract and vote in favor of the store. The question was how many would be wooed.
“It’s still early. There are nearly three thousand more people who can vote in this town. And I promise you, the majority won’t care about GrandGoods’ empty promises.”
Vick shook his head in pity. “When are you going to get it through your head, Crawford? GrandGoods is going to be good for this town.”
“They’ve certainly been good to you, haven’t they, Vick?” Sandra stepped into the tent, trailed by a handful of other
people. Leigh Billingsly, the City Comptroller, looked pissed. Jay Quimby, the resident tech guru, looked smug. Officer Judd Hamilton looked deceptively at ease, but beneath the calm exterior, Cam recognized the same coiled readiness for action he’d displayed on the defensive line of the Wishful Stars football team back in high school. Not until the appearance of Chief Curry, bringing up the rear, did Vick’s confident expression falter.
“I beg your pardon?” he asked, innocence with a layer of affront.
“Well, you know how we’ve been doing system upgrades at City Hall the last couple of weeks?” Sandra asked. “Jay, here, found some…concerning emails on your computer.”
“Email is private.”
“In fact, it’s not. Everything you do on your work computer is technically the business of the city since your business is to help run the city. So imagine our surprise when Jay brought to our attention a string of emails between you and Bill Sutto, making it clear that you’ve been taking kickbacks from GrandGoods.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Vick began to tug at his collar.
Cam was dimly aware that everyone in the tent had fallen silent, watching the show.
“Turns out, that was plenty of evidence for Judge Carpenter to let us subpoena your bank records,” Chief Curry said. “You’ve been a bad bad boy, Vick. Our forensic accountant is still going through it to determine the total amount, but at first pass, it looks like, in addition to getting all cozy with GrandGoods, you’ve embezzled over a hundred thousand dollars from the city.”
“This is ludicrous!”
“What’s ludicrous is the fact that you are sworn to work in the best interests of this town and its people and instead you’ve been abusing your position to line your own pockets.” Sandra’s voice crackled with temper.
“Victor Burgess, you’re under arrest.” Chief Curry nodded to Judd, who grabbed Vick’s arm, twisting it with a little more force than necessary as he cuffed the older man.
“You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say, can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney…” Chief Curry finished reading Vick his rights, then he and Judd marched him out of the command center.
That was when Cam realized the camera was rolling and WTVA News had caught the whole thing.
“This is Deanna Fossett, live with a WTVA News exclusive. In a shocking turn of events here in the tiny town of Wishful, where a David versus Goliath battle is being waged over store size caps at the polls today, City Planner Victor Burgess, local champion of GrandGoods and the big box store movement, has just been arrested. Burgess stands accused of taking kickbacks from GrandGoods and embezzling more than a hundred thousand dollars from the city. Mayor Crawford, what do you have to say?”
Deanna tipped her microphone to Sandra, who blinked at the camera. Cam recognized the look on her face as she choked down the more profane remarks that weren’t appropriate for addressing the public.
“We are deeply disappointed in the actions of the City Planner. His greed has impacted this city in ways we’re only beginning to understand. He has been removed from his position, effective immediately.”
“Does this impact the vote today?”
Cam stepped in to take that one. “The vote will continue. The legislation on the ballot today is not specific to GrandGoods, but will impact all future commercial development in the area. We still encourage everyone to make it to the polls today. And we hope that they’ll all look at this situation and recognize the cost of doing business with big box stores before they cast their vote for the future of our town.”
“There you have it, folks. The vote continues. This reporter will certainly be interested to see how this battle shakes out in the end.” She made a slashing motion, and the camera stopped rolling “Well, nobody can say y’all are dull!”
Norah slipped her hand into his. “Nice save. I couldn’t have said it better myself.”
“I’ve been paying attention.”
“If we could’ve tailor made a blow to GrandGoods and their position, I’m not sure we could’ve done better than this.”