"Sorry, I don't know who did it either. No one came by our place…" Owen didn't tell Brock about Harry and Scott. A guy like Brock was easy to read—classic type: "I don't bother others unless they bother me. But if they do… I burn them to the ground."
If Brock found out, he'd definitely retaliate—and probably go too far. If things escalated to involve the FBI, then there'd be no way to keep his family's identity hidden. The FBI wasn't like the Reville sheriff—they didn't play games.
Back home, Owen sat and thought about how to handle this. By now, it was clear the root of everything was yesterday's school incident. That meant the problem started with Nicole's family. It was likely they hired some thugs to cause trouble for both families.
Report it? Judging by the sheriff's attitude, that wouldn't go anywhere. And besides, it'd be messy and there wasn't hard evidence to prove what happened to Brock's place was connected.
Which meant… he'd have to take care of this himself.
But he didn't plan to confront Nicole's family—they were just civilians, nothing worth talking about. No, he planned to go straight to "Crocodile" Billy. The short-haired and long-haired punks were definitely his crew.
Seeing Billy's photo again, Owen recognized him. He was the smug guy at the café who gave him attitude during breakfast the other day. Just looking at his face made Owen want to throw a punch.
This sort of problem was actually pretty simple. Nicole's family had clearly hired Billy. If Owen could "convince" Billy to stand down, then Nicole would lose her leverage—no one else would dare help her.
Would someone else replace Billy? Owen seriously doubted it. The fact that Billy even showed up in records meant he was considered a known figure in Reville's underground scene. Once word got out that someone beat Billy to a pulp, the rest of that crowd would back off fast—none of them would be stupid enough to go toe-to-toe with someone who took him out.
With everything clear in his head, Owen headed downstairs and grabbed his keys. From the kitchen, his mother called out, "Steve, dinner's in an hour. Where are you going now?"
Owen waved her off. "Don't worry. I'll be back before dinner."
For a minor issue like this, he was confident he could wrap it up quickly.
As night approached, Owen drove to the town's bar—the liveliest spot in Reville after dark. If Billy was out and about at this time, this would be the most likely place to find him.
He parked and stepped inside. The place was open but still mostly empty—it wasn't peak hours yet.
He scanned the room: no Billy, no Harry, no Scott.
He turned to the bartender. "Have you seen Billy around?"
The bartender was polishing a glass with a white rag. Without even looking up, he replied, "Nope. Haven't seen him today."
Owen frowned and was about to leave when a guy at the bar chuckled and said, "Looking for Billy? I saw him earlier, having dinner at the Italian restaurant in town center."
"Oh? Thanks a lot."
Just when he'd been wondering what to do, someone handed him the answer on a silver platter. Owen jumped back in his car and headed for the Italian restaurant. Reville was small—he'd passed by the place before but hadn't had a chance to try it yet.
Soon, he pulled up and walked through the doors. Sure enough, there was Billy, sitting smack in the center of the room with that same irritating, punchable smirk on his face.
He was slicing into a steak. On either side of him sat the short-haired and long-haired punks that Owen had beaten up the other day. And across from them… was a woman.
Nicole. The mother of the chubby kid from school.
"You told me they were just regular people! Since when can a regular guy take down two of my guys like it's nothing?!"
Billy was chewing Nicole out, clearly pissed. If she wasn't his sister, he probably would've smacked her already.
"How was I supposed to know? They looked normal! They're new in town…" Nicole tried to explain.
Billy cut her off sharply. Just then, he noticed Owen walking in. Their eyes locked.
…
Meanwhile, at Brock's house
A pickup truck loaded with lumber slowly pulled into the clearing near the stables. Bill, the friendly Black guy, stepped out with his usual smile. But when he saw the state of the stable, his eyes went wide.
"Jesus! What happened here? Did a comet hit your place last night?"
The stable was trashed. Just days ago it had been freshly built. Now it looked like it had been through a war.
Brock stepped outside. "Nothing much. Just a little… incident. I need your help fixing it up. Interested in the job?"
"Of course. Glad to." Bill's smile widened. A job was a job. Money was money. No reason to complain. But then Brock added another condition.
"But I also want you to tell me who did this."
Bill froze. Brock held out a stack of bills—$100 in cash.
"I won't tell anyone. It's simple—just tell me, and this $100 is yours. How many hours of work do you need to earn a hundred bucks?"
Brock's voice was calm, persuasive. Tempting.
Bill hesitated. Reville was small—if you sat down at a pizza joint for five minutes, you'd hear the latest gossip from every corner of town.
But Billy's crew… they weren't the kind of people you wanted to mess with. Bill remembered the last guy who crossed them—his legs were broken and he was dumped out in the wilderness. Nearly died.
"Okay," Brock said, seeing Bill waver. "How about this. I'll meet you halfway. I'll say the names—you just tell me if I'm right."
Bill nodded silently.
"The two guys I beat up at the gas station—short hair and long hair. Was it them?"
Without hesitation, Bill nodded. His eyes stayed locked on the cash.
Brock had suspected as much. He hadn't offended many people since coming to town. Those two were the only real candidates. But he pressed on.
"Why would they do this? Just to get back at me for the gas station incident?"
This time, Bill hesitated. Brock noticed it immediately—something else was going on.
He pulled out another bill. "Tell me, and this $200 is yours."
Bill's expression twisted, torn between fear and greed. After a long pause, he finally caved.
"It's not just revenge. Those two work for Crocodile Billy. And that woman you beat up that day? That's Billy's sister."
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