Billionaire Mountain Man

“Was Mr. Mask wearing his mask that day?”

William shook his head. “No, he wasn't. He wouldn't have been able to get into the school if he'd been dressed like he usually dresses.”

“So, what was he wearing? What did he look like?”

“He was dressed like a janitor. I guess he figured like that, nobody would have given him a second glance when he was walking around school grounds.”

“Good disguise, appropriate,” I grudgingly admitted. “But what about his face? What can you tell me about what he actually looks like?”

“He's uh, I guess he's maybe your age?” he said. “And he's actually a pretty good-looking guy. I'm saying that as a straight guy, yo, I'm not gay or nothing, but yeah, he's got that pretty boy look. Blond hair, he's real neat and clean and stuff. Pretty big, strong dude as well, I guess he pumps iron regularly, coz he's pretty jacked. I wouldn't want to get in a tangle with the dude; he looks like he could kick some ass if he needed to. But yeah, he looks way more like a respectable businessman or something than a, uh, a drug dealer.”

“Okay. Would you be able to pick him out of a police lineup?” I asked.

“I would, yeah.”

“And you would be willing to identify him in front of a judge, and testify under oath that he was both selling drugs and that he shot Kendrick Green?”

“And if I agree, you'll let me and Leon off?” William said.

“You won't get off completely, no,” I said. “But I'll make sure you're treated leniently. And you will have to go to rehab to get off the substances you're hooked on. There's no getting around that, I'm afraid.”

He bit his lip as he thought deeply about it.

“And you're sure that, like, Mr. Mask couldn't, you know... get us... if we testified in court against him?”

“We would make sure that you two were completely safe. I guarantee it,” I assured him.

He nodded. “Yeah. In that case, yeah. I'll testify.”

I looked at Ben and saw the same triumph that was now glowing inside me reflected in his eyes. We were just one step away from putting this piece of crap behind bars for a very, very long time. We had a key witness who would testify against him and that, coupled with Kendrick's testimony, would be enough to put the man away for a very, very long time, and hopefully end the scourge of the drug problem that was plaguing my school. Now, we would just have to catch him, and that would be no simple feat.

“Excellent. Alright, William, thank you for your cooperation. You'd better stay at home from now on. And call your friend Leon – I assume you know where he is – and tell him about what we've just talked about, and let him know that he should come back here as well and stay home. Can you do that?”

He nodded.

“Good, thank you, William, and thank you, Mr. Stevens,” I added.

“Don't mention it,” he growled. “I'll do whatever it takes to keep this punk out of prison. I hope he's learned his damn lesson.”

“I believe he has,” I smiled reassuringly at William who nodded back at me. It seemed we had an understanding. He was going to keep his nose clean. “Alright, Ben, you ready to go?” I asked.

“Sure am. Thanks again, William, and thank you, too, Mr. Stevens,” he said, and then we turned around and headed toward our cars.

We started talking as soon as we reached Ben’s car.

“This is big, Ben, this is real big!” I said excitedly. “We've almost got this scumbag! Almost!”

“I know, I know. Now, we just have to catch him. There's more than enough evidence to put him away for a long time. But here's the big problem: this guy is elusive, man, like Jason Bourne elusive. How are we going to actually catch him?”

I grinned. A plan had already started to formulate in my mind. “We set up a sting.”

“How, Everett? We're not cops; we're not the FBI, we don't have the means to do that.”

“You've forgotten something, Ben.”

“What have I forgotten?”

“We have someone on the inside.”