BLACKWELL GONNA KICK SOME ASS!
"Ahlright Ryan, Close the door behind you, and have a seat if ya would…"
Sheriff Blackwell's office - much like himself - looked to be straight out of a classic western movie. The boring office desk had already been tossed out and replaced with a handcarved antique. There were various medallions and trinkets littering the windowsill and the wall behind him, and somehow the place seemed dusty, despite the fact Blackwell had only moved into this office a week ago. The midday sun was carved into slices by heavy wooden blinds. Strips of blinding yellow fell on everything in the room.
The Sheriff grinned at her from beneath his salt-and-pepper handlebar moustache, and the brim of his leather hat. He wasn't an old man… perhaps he was in his late fifties - but one could read the experience in his face and in the way he carried himself. With a loud thunk he propped his cowboy boots - spurs and all - on the edge of his antique table. Mary frowned at the bottom of his shoes. Over the phone this morning, the Sheriff had requested she come to his office to speak about their plan to catch Geese Howard in one week. Now, she was here to see what Blackwell had to say.
The very idea was insane… but the Sheriff had written it off like nothing. There was neither urgency nor stress in his voice as he made one of the most ambitious statements Mary had heard from any Sheriff to date. There were two explanations for his easy confidence. Either he simply didn't know what he was dealing with and was about to run SouthTown into a bloodbath… or he had dealt with situations like these before.
And the only reason Mary had even agreed to meet the Sheriff, was because of the latter. On her way back to the police precinct, Mary had spent some time looking up her new Boss's operational record. What she saw there made her eyes pop.
Blackwell was a career DEA agent turned sheriff. He'd spent 15 years in Columbia hunting the NESTS cartel, and after the entire organization collapsed - was there to clean up the remnants. His record of infractions was long and diverse, however his methods clearly showed results. He had seen the worst the gangs could do, and had led his men through it to victory. No wonder he was brought here to take care of Geese… but I guess Mayor Harrison got spooked? Hm….
Blackwell was an old soul who wasn't afraid of bureaucracy. The rules were his to break and bend… and so was everything else, as long as they stood in the way between him and his quarry. So, with such a long history of crushing organized crime... this old man might just be able to take Geese down. He was that glimmer of hope… Perhaps he would rid SouthTown of the plague of organized crime.
Mary saluted,
"Sheriff Blackwell. Mary Ryan reporting for duty."
"No need tah be so formal missy, I see ya. Take a look at this!"
With a thunk Blackwell put his boots back on the ground and leaned forward. In his hand, pinched between his thumb and index finger, a small button? No…
"Sheriff... That's a bug."
"That's right!"
With a twist of his wrist, the sheriff crushed the small listening device to a mess of silvery wires.
"I call them fleas… fleas spread by rats I say! And dis here police precinct seems to be crawlin' in em… tell me Ryan. How much is dat ol' goose paying his cops to pervert the good name of justice? You're not one of those, aren't you?!"
Mary shook her head enthusiastically. The Sheriff was addressing one of Mary's biggest complaint at her workplace. How was she supposed to operate when so many of her co-workers we're getting paid off by the competition? Ridiculous... It was common knowledge that nearly a third of the cops actually reported to Geese Howard, so the kingpins' budget for bribery must be tremendous.
"No, sir. My coworkers know my view of Geese Howard, and never talk to me about how much they're getting paid. I'm not sure exactly who's taking money, but there's an awful lot of them. Does anybody else know why we're here? News travels fast."
Blackwell shook his head. The grin never left his face. He reached down to pull a file from his cabinet and slid it across the table toward her. He addressed her with a nod, as if to entrust himself to her.
"Erry'one thinks yer in here being reprimanded. Even mah schedule says dis here a disciplinary meeting…At ease missy. Here's what I'm boutta do… and if you ever go to court to testify on this, you didn't hear a thing... understood?"
Mary blinked and nodded. What in the world was the sheriff about to do if he was already giving her instructions on how to respond on the witness stand?
"Good… now. Marky DiBrando. Kevin Rian. Ever heard these two names?"
Kevin and Marky?
Mary nodded, brow furrowed.
"Yes sir. Kevin is my cousin, Marky his partner… and he works… Federal. Apparently he's been missing for a couple of days. Perhaps running an undercover mission."
The Sheriff nodded.
"Well, dey were last repa'rted in our very dear SouthTown. Maybey they're unde'cover. Maybey not… but for ah purposes… were listin' them as murdered."
Mary opened her mouth, then closed it again. After a moment she half stood from her seat and leaned over to address the sheriff. She frowned deeply.
"...Sheriff do you have conclusive evidence of their murder? You can't possibly say something like this unless a thorough investigation has been conducted."
Blackwell simply chuckled and drummed his fingers against the tabletop. He waved her back into her seat, and she grudgingly complied.
"You're a good cop Mary, yer a real straight shooter… but ta catch a big fish laik this, we need ta bend a few rules… there's no need for evidence. We just need a good reason fah a search warrant… You figure that Geese Tower hols any incriminatin' evidence? If we got a chance ta lock that bastard up, then I've got no issues signing off on some faulty murdah case. I've been fired anywho… have you got a problem, Officer Ryan?"
Mary looked at the Sheriff suspiciously and pondered to herself. This man was about to declare the murder of two CIA agents by Geese Howard with no conclusive evidence whatsoever. Their families would be devastated… this broke every single paperwork protocol SouthTown PD had… but it certainly was a way to get things done. If SouthTown's Police department raided Geese Tower and managed to get their hands on HCon's accounting, not only would they be able to incriminate the man himself - but also discover his entire organization network. It would be the biggest bust of the decade.
And at what cost? The Sheriff had already been fired. He had no problem signing that paper. If things went bad in the higher ups felt the need to hand out discipline, all of it would fall squarely on Blackwell's head… and he'd be happily back in Texas.
Kevin and Marky didn't have anything to lose either. In fact, if they were actually undercover, this would only strengthen their alibi. If they were MIA, this would convince the CIA to step in with federal help in their battle against Geese, and also sent search parties for them… and if they had really been murdered… no… they're just undercover, Mary… phew.
So was she in? Mary was a straight shooter, she had never blatantly broken a rule like this… but now that she thought about it, why did the police need to follow all of these restrictive rules - when the criminals broke them on a daily basis? How could the police hope to fight an organization as large and powerful as Howard Connection if they didn't also bend a few rules of their own. Blackwell didn't have to explain it to her. Mary knew this.
And although the means were unorthodox… even illegal… Mary was in. She hardened her expression and looked the grinning Sheriff dead in his eyes. Her voice was low, calm but firm.
"Yes, Sir... I'm in. You can trust me."
"Good. Good." Blackwell beamed. "Now… here's what I need you to do…"
Lol All of Geese's efforts to cover up the murder have just gone down the toilet because Blackwell decided to pin the murders on him anyways. GG
Geese even wasted his favor from Chiz. smh.
Mary's gone and stuck her head into dangerous business again. I wonder if she's gonna die and get cloned again lmao.