Harper sat in the lush, green park on an iron bench by a gravel path. The birds sang and the crickets chirped. the cicadas made their music across the pond. He was by the neighborhood park where the frogs croaked in unison. He sat soaking up the midafternoon sun.
Briggs, a stern man with olive skin, black hair, and a stocky build sat next to Harper. He wore a blue suit with a brown cowboy hat and his police badge on his jacket. He also had his gun belt around his waist.
“I heard narcotics use you for information.”
“You’re going to scare away my customers.”
Briggs smiled and ruffled Harper’s hair. He stated in an overly polite tone, “I want you to get a confession out of Brinus. I know most nights you drink with him at your friend’s nightclub.”
“No.”
“I heard you started smoking recently” Briggs offered Harper a cigarette.
Harper took the cig and lit it. “Why are you so obsessed with him?” He inhaled and blew smoke into Briggs’s face.
Briggs coughed. He sneered, “I know you love Brinus but I need a confession, we don’t have enough evidence to arrest him. Do it and I will speak to your parole officer at your next meeting about how much you helped us.”
Harper looked Briggs in the eyes after blowing more smoke into his face. “I will die before I betray Brinus.”
Briggs coughed and waved his hand in front of his face. “Really? you have only known him for what? three weeks? And you’re willing to go to prison for him?”
“He’s helping me with my education. By the end of this year, I will be able to join the Navy.”
“What if I speak to your parole officer and say you’re refusing to fulfill your obligation to the saffron police department?”
Harper laughed cynically and then stated with a fuck you smile. “He would say I am an informant for the magi for not the saffron police. I am not under obligation to help you.”
“We’ll see.”
Briggs came up from the bench and ruffled Harper’s sandy brown hair and walked away.
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Brinus was in the velvet room of a private clubhouse with Medusa. The room was filled red with red leather padding and mirror-paneled walls. There was a brass-plated booth with a polished table. It was smokey and smelled like cigarettes. It also had a sweet chemical smell to it almost like drugs. The overhead light shined through the swirling clouds of vapor and smoke. The room, despite being clean, smelled and looked like it was used for nefarious purposes.
Medusa slapped Brinus across the face leaving a red handprint.
“Why Brinus?!” She screamed. “You are going to prison, you know that?! Briggs is ruthless! You could have just tazed those two guards and used knockout juice to erase their memories!”
“Ma’am I…”
She slapped him again and yelled, “Shut the fuck up! We need to figure this out.”
For a second, Brinus’s pupils dilated and his palms became sweaty.
“You should be scared! I want you to call Saul Redman. Next time the police ask you to the station you talk through our lawyer. You need to get statements for your actions that night. You will meet with him later that day. Now fuck off and don’t ever kill someone at a burglary again!”
Brinus left the velvet room and his hands started shaking. His chest heaved up and down and he couldn’t catch his breath. He put a cigarette in his mouth and lit the other end. He inhaled deeply in order to calm down.
He dialed the number for Saul Redman on his TriQuarter.
“This is the offices of Saul Redman Associates, Victoria Lovegood speaking how may I help you?”
“I need to see Saul today. Tell him it’s ‘syndicate business’.”
“Might I inquire over the phone or do you need to see Sual directly.”
She went quiet. After a few moments, she said, “He can see you at 1 pm today. It is his lunch hour so he will charge a premium. Is the syndicate willing to pay?”
Brinus took a drag from his cigarette and then thought for a second. He said blankly, “Yeah.”
“You must be valuable. Okay. I will put you down as a priority syndicate client at 1:00 to 2:00 pm at the restaurant ‘Cafe Von Dom’ three blocks from the courthouse.”
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Harper sold a package of pills to an addict in exchange for credits. Once he left, he recorded the sale and wrote down the name of the customer. He began reading a chemistry book Brinus had bought for him to get his high school chemistry degree.
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
A man in a suit and tie walked down the gravel path. He had a wand in his wand holder, a can of mustard gas spray, a shock stick, and two sets of cuffs on his gun belt.
He sat next to Harper and crossed his arms. “The police are telling me you’re refusing to cooperate with them in a murder investigation.”
“They want me to snitch on my boyfriend.”
“If you want out of a life of crime we can help you. You’re just a kid so you get benefits other people don’t.”
Harper laughed. “It isn’t about that. I love him.”
The Magi Agent rolled his eyes. “Why do you have to be so difficult? Two people are dead. One of them is a father.”
“Not my problem.”
The magi agent realized Harper was loyal to Brinus. Even if they violated his parole, Harper would not turn on him. “I will tell the police I spoke to you. I am disappointed in you. Why do you love him so much after just three weeks?”
Harper balled his fists and shouted, “Because he gives me hope!”
The agent stood and left. As Harper resumed reading the chemistry book.
Brinus had a bottle of tequila in a brown paper bag as he walked down the gravel path lined with two-hundred-year-old white oak trees.
He bumped into a Magi Agent who sneered. “Your boyfriend is very loyal to you. Don’t you dare break his heart or the magi will become interested in your burglary.”
“Who the fuck r’you?”
The agent made a chilling smile. “Your worst nightmare. Have a nice day Mr. Helios.”
“Fuck you too!” Brinus gave the magi agent his middle finger with a look to match.
He found Harper by the side of the path. After Harper finished with a customer, Brinus came up to him and they kissed passionately for a moment.
Brinus handed him the tequila and stroked his face. “I got the drink ya’ wanted.”
“Did you bring the other thing I asked for?”
“Who do you think I am? A man needs his smokes.”
Brinus Handed Harper the coffee flavored cigs and lighter.
His eyes lit up. “Thank god I’ve been dying!”
Brinus kissed him on the head and then said, “Hey I’ve gotta go meet my lawyer. I’ll see ya’ tonight at the club.”
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Saul Redman wore a purple button-up shirt with a pink tie under his black suit and shiny black shoes. He was in a restaurant with his paralegal. The restaurant had a few people in it as they enjoyed their meals. It was a basic cafe with plain furniture, gray marble floors, and baroque-style paneling.
The food Saul ate was garlic bread with a roast game meat stew native to Saffron. It had white sauce and roast vegetables. It smelled like savoy meat put in a succulent, salty gravy. The vegetables were soft with a slightly salty flavor.
Brinus entered the restaurant and was shown to Saul’s seat.
“You must be Brinus. I am Saul. Medusa and Long Ho told me about your situation. I have the perfect solution. Meet Ina Pantelli.”
Brinus crossed his arms and frowned. “Who the fuck is that?”
“He is paid by the syndicate to go to jail for their younger members. The money goes back to his family in the Federation. Follow me?”
He cocked his head to the side and laughed nervously, “I think so. So I basically will make a statement. Basically explain’ why I was there half a mile from campus on the night of the robbery and why I was on campus four days after the malware attack. Or why I set up the fake accounts? Ina takes the fall and goes to juvie?”
“Basically. Medusa and Long Ho made your statements for you. All you need to do is memorize and then sign. We will meet with the police in an hour.”
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Brinus walked into the police station with Sual. Brinus was dressed in Blue jeans, skateboard shoes, a white tee shirt, and a black leather jacket. He also had a coffee in his hand and his TriQuarter.
Briggs smiled when he saw Brinus as he guided them both to an open interrogation room.
The room had an ashtray on a metal table and four steel chairs. The room was cold at 60 degrees Fahrenheit. There were three, white tile walls and a bright light shining into Brinus’s and his lawyer’s face. The room had a wall of shatterproof one-way glass. The room smelled like sterile cleaning fluid.
Briggs sat down across from Brinus and Saul. He addressed Brinus, “Do you need anything to smoke, eat, or drink before we get started?”
Saul spoke. “We are here to deliver three statements. Brinus was not at the Campus at the time of the robbery. He was at home with his boyfriend.”
Detective Briggs made some notes on his TriQuarter laptop. “Do you have anyone vouch for that?”
“Harper can.”
Briggs snickered to himself. “I need a little bit more of that.”
“His landlord.”
“And why would Brinus’s landlord know about Harper cuddling at night?”
Saul produced a receipt Brinus made and a syndicate-owned business generated through laundered money. “He was moving in with his boyfriend.”
Briggs took the receipt and shined it under the light to check for holograms. He then shined a black light. It had the business watermark which he verified on his laptop.
“Okay, checks out. Now why did Brinus create a fake identity and trespass into Pen Corp five days before the murder robbery.”
Saul laughed. “Is it a crime for a young man to be interested in weapons tech? Bombs and boys go together like bread and butter.”
“But how did he know the warhead was being developed?”
Saul laughed again. “Who knows what they discuss on online forums? Maybe he heard about it on some conspiracy theory site? Maybe there was a data leak? Who am I to say how he found out?”
Detective Brinus laughed to himself but kept a stone-faced expression. He stated in his low gravely police voice, “I am going to file a complaint for the fake profile and the criminal trespass incident.” Briggs began writing a ticket and handed it to Brinus. “Your court date is set for the 14th of this month. You will get your court summons in a week. I think we’re done here. You’re in luck. A young man named Ina Pentalli took the fall for you so my captain wants to close the case. Must be nice to have a get-out-of-jail-free card. You can go now.”
Briggs came out of the interrogation room followed by Brinus and Saul.
He went to his captain and slammed his onto the desk. “What the frick?! Seriously?!”
The captain took off her sunglasses and looked him in the eyes. “For now he gets away but he is 16. The syndicate won’t bail him out a second time.”
“He is dangerous and should be in custody or at least in the military.”
Brinus woke the next morning at 6 a.m. after partying until 5 a.m. His phone said it was Wednesday. He went on a twelve-hour bender with Harper and then slept for two days. His hands shook with tremors. He felt like he wanted to claw his eyes out of his head as the light burned his head. His hands shook like a tree in the wind. He tried getting up but was too weak to get out of the bed. He shook all over like a junkie needing a fix. He realized he was in the early stages of AA nicotine withdrawal.
After spending the morning smoking and getting his withdrawal symptoms under control, breakfast arrived. Brinus ordered pancakes and bacon from a 24-hour shop on the ground floor of the building.
He noticed a text message from the police. We have removed the cameras from your home while you were asleep. Your boyfriend let us in. Our investigation with you is not concluded.
There was another message from Medusa. I have another job for you. It is a defaming job of an anti-smoking activist. The Tarken Tea companies want you to shut up a man who is going on the news talking about how dangerous the new cigarettes are. When you’re recovered give me a call and I can give you the details.
Brinus smiled. A nice easy job after a high-stress week.