1960: My uncle is the FBI Director

Chapter 288 I just wanted to see
Five o'clock in the afternoon, at Leo's house.

Leo returned from the mountain with his mother.

Leo rarely did such physical labor, and he was so tired that he collapsed into a chair.

Leo's parents, without even eating, poured the berries into a basin and began washing them, preparing to make jam.

Ripe berries will rot at least half if left overnight.

Leo's father was very happy.

They gained a lot today.

The weather has been good these past few days, just in time for the end of the peak season for wild berries, and many berries that were not very ripe before have now ripened.

He felt that if they could maintain this level of sales for the next few days, they could make a lot of money.

Leo's mother, however, had some concerns:

"There definitely won't be this many fruits left in a few days."

She asked her husband:

"Didn't you go to see Luke? What did he say? Could he hire Leo?"

Leo's father silently turned over the berries in the bowl and shook his head.

Leo's mother was a little anxious:
"why?"

“Tell him we can ask for less, just half of what others pay!”

"The harvest season is almost over, we can't just leave Leo here forever, can we?"

The joy of the harvest was overshadowed, and Leo's father became somewhat irritable.

He pointed to the injury on his face:
“That bastard Luke Morrow said he would never hire Leo unless he was dead!”

He glanced into the living room and lowered his voice:

"That bastard still remembers how Leo bullied Danny."

A brief silence fell over the backyard.

Leo's father nudged his wife:
"The gentlemen from DC want to speak with Leo."

"I think this is an opportunity."

"If Leo performs well, he might be able to ask them for help in finding a job in DC."

"That's DC!"

"It would be even better if they could get Leo to join the FBI!"

He straightened his back; a long day's work had left him with a sore back.
Leo's mother looked at him as if he were a fool:
Why should they help us?

"Want to go over and talk for a bit?"

What sweet dream are you having?

Leo's father was silent for a moment:

"Let Leo go over and make contact with them first, so he can leave a good impression."

“Isn’t Will always with them? I’ll go find Will and ask him to put in a good word for me.”

Leo's mother stopped washing, somewhat hesitant.

Sheriff Hawkins always says others are kind-hearted, but in the eyes of the townspeople of Lone Pine, he is actually the kindest one.

In decades of law enforcement, he has never arrested anyone; he always reasoned with people and did his best to help anyone in need.

In the hearts of the people of Lone Pine, he held an even higher position than Pastor Sal.

Leo's father called out loudly into the living room:
"Leo! Leo! Come here!"

Leo didn't want to move, but he also didn't want to receive his father's care. Dragging his tired body, he reluctantly went to the backyard.

Leo's father stared at him for a while, until Leo began to review his actions that day, wondering if he had done something wrong that had angered his father, before he finally spoke:
"Listen, Leo, the FBI gentlemen want to see you."

"This is an opportunity. You better perform well, and maybe we can find you a job in DC!"

He pointed to his wife:
"Go and get my suit and have Leo change into it."

Then he pointed at Leo:
"Go take a shower and clean yourself up!"

Leo's father checked the time; it was almost 5:30.

He waved his hand dismissively, urging his wife and son to hurry up:
"Go! Go!"

Leo was somewhat reluctant.

Leo's father glared at him, untied his apron, and walked toward him.

Leo immediately agreed and ran off like a rabbit.

A dozen minutes later, Leo stood in front of his parents wearing an oversized suit.

Leo's mother was helping him tidy his clothes.

Leo's father, still worried, gave him some instructions:

"Be more polite and learn to talk like Uncle Ted!"

"If the gentlemen think you're good enough and put in a good word for you in DC, then you can leave this godforsaken place and go to a big city to broaden your horizons!"

"Don't go back to the mountains! What future can you have with those wild fruits!"

"And then there was that incident this morning when Luke went crazy."

"They were just watching from the sidelines, and you just had to answer whatever they asked you."

“We’re going to see Luke for legitimate work.”

“If they ask about Danny, just say you were all young and didn’t understand back then, it’s all in the past.”

"Say some nice things, say that you feel sorry for him too."

Leo hesitated before asking his father:
"I heard they're here to investigate the murder of the Billy family?"

Leo's father glared at him:
"This has nothing to do with you."

"Remember, don't ask random questions. Just answer their questions honestly."

"But you're not allowed to mention a single word about those scumbag acts from the past, like stealing money, skipping school, or getting into fights! Do you understand?"

Leo nodded reluctantly.

He stood in front of the mirror, twisting and turning, feeling awkward all over.

He thought for a moment and quickly found a new excuse:

“Wilbur Hawkins was there too; he probably already told them.”

Leo's father disapproved of Leo's wriggling manner and raised his foot to kick him, but then remembered the clothes Leo was wearing and had to put his foot down, scolding him:
"Straighten your back!"

"This is a golden opportunity! The FBI has specifically requested to see you! Stop acting so pathetic!"

Leo was startled and quickly stood up straight.

Leo's father then replied:

“Will is a good man, he wouldn’t say these things.”

Leo's mother was somewhat worried and asked her husband:

"You should go with Leo. If he messes up, you can keep an eye on him."

Leo's father, considering Leo's usual behavior, also became somewhat worried.

He hurriedly told his wife to find a clean set of clothes for him to change into, and led Leo straight to Anne's tavern.

At the door, he gave Leo a final warning:
"I'm warning you, Leo, don't you dare mess this up!"

"If you ruin this because of your stupid mouth, I won't let you off the hook!"

…………

Six pm.

The heavy wooden door of the tavern was pushed open.

Theodore and his group all looked towards the door.

Leo's father walked in with a big smile.

He explained to everyone that Leo had just returned from the mountain and was covered in dirt, so he took a shower, which caused the delay.

He then showered Leo, who was wearing an oversized suit and keeping his head down in silence, with compliments, and tried to gain Sheriff Hawkins' approval.

Sheriff Hawkins was so engrossed in the grief of 'My friend killed my friend's child, and then my friend killed my friend's whole family' that he paid no attention to Leo's father.

Leo's father was somewhat embarrassed and quickly changed the subject, bringing up the conflict from that morning.

He explained that he and Leo just wanted to be hired and find a decent job, and they never expected Luke Morrow to actually use a gun.

Bernie shook his head, pointed to Sheriff Hawkins beside him, and kindly reminded Leo's father:

"This matter falls under Will's jurisdiction."

Theodore glanced at him sideways.

When did it come to the point where people call him 'Will' instead of 'Mr. Hawkins' or 'Wilbur'?

Bernie glanced at Theodore, then looked at Leo's father:

"We are here to investigate the murder of the John Cartwright family."

Leo's father suddenly realized what was happening and looked regretful.
"Leo and Billy from the Cartwright family were classmates; they used to play together a lot." "When Leo heard about this, he was so upset he didn't eat for days, right, son?"

The FBI agents from DC all looked at Leo.

Theodore sat up straight and asked Leo:

"You often hung out with the third victim?"

"Don't you guys fight all the time because of Danny Morrow?"

Leo's father looked somewhat bewildered.

He looked at Theodore, then at Sheriff Hawkins, hoping someone could explain to him what 'Victim Number 3' was and why the conversation was so different from what he had imagined.

Agent Cronin pulled out his notebook and began taking notes of the conversation.

Bernie straightened up and his expression became serious.

He explained to Leo and his son in a deep voice:

"The third victim refers to John Cartwright."

Leo's body stiffened, his mind went blank, and he looked to his father for help.

Leo's father felt a little embarrassed, so he nudged Leo again and whispered a reminder:

"I'm asking you something!"

All eyes turned to Leo.

Leo nodded reluctantly:

“Before Danny came, we were friends. After Danny came, he started hanging out with Danny and stopped hanging out with me.”

Billy Hawke asked him:

"So you've been bullying Danny Morrow?"

Leo nodded again.

Theodore looked at Bernie.

Bernie got up and led Leo's father inside:

"Let's go sit over there. There are a few details related to this case that I need to confirm with you."

Billy Hawke followed.

He was very dissatisfied with his performance this morning and wanted to learn from Bernie.

Sheriff Hawkins put down his beer, stood up, hesitated for a moment, then sat back down, moving his chair closer to Leo.

Theodore glanced at him and confirmed with Leo:
"Did the third victim never bully Danny Morrow?"

Leo nodded.

Theodore asked him:
Did you look for Danny Morrow after school the afternoon before he disappeared?

Leo remained silent.

Theodore then asked:
"You've seen him, haven't you?"

Sheriff Hawkins also looked at Leo:

"You killed Danny?!"

Leo was startled and immediately retorted:

"I don't!"

His voice was loud, which attracted the attention of Bernie and the other two inside, who all looked over in his direction.

Annie, who was in the kitchen, also peeked out to take a look, but then shrank back in when she saw that nothing was wrong.

Leo shrank back and repeated in a low voice:
"I didn't kill Danny."

"I didn't kill Danny."

Theodore immediately followed up with:
"Who else are you?"

There was another moment of silence.

Leo shook his head and answered softly:

"I do not know."

Theodore thought for a moment, then asked him again:
"Did you see Danny Morrow the night before he disappeared?"

Leo hesitated for a moment, then nodded slightly.

Sheriff Hawkins immediately looked at Theodore, then turned back to look at Leo.

If Leo had seen Danny Morrow before he disappeared, it might suggest that the Cartwright family was not involved in Danny Morrow's disappearance.

If the Cartwright family is not involved in Danny Morrow's disappearance, it means that Luke Morrow may not be the murderer.

Sheriff Hawkins felt as if he had been brought back to life.

He stared intently at Leo, afraid of missing something.

Leo nodded again.

Theodore then asked:
Where? When?

Leo paused for a few seconds:

"On the mountain behind the school."

“He has several wooden soldier sculptures, which his father carved for him. They are even painted. I saw them during class this morning.”

He paused for a moment, feeling that what he was about to say was a little difficult to say.

Theodore continued for him:

"You want to steal those wooden soldier sculptures."

Leo shook his head hastily, then stopped:
“Billy and I once helped him find a road in the mountains behind the school. From there, you can go all the way to Blackwater Creek. If you come down from Blackwater Creek and keep walking, you can reach his house.”

"That route doesn't go through the school's main gate, so it avoids being blocked by other students."

"That day, Billy had been kept at school by his teacher, and he took that road."

“I followed behind him and blocked him halfway.”

He defended himself:

"I just wanted to see those wooden soldier sculptures!"

“I’ve never seen this before, and I’d like to ask him where he bought it.”

"He wouldn't give it to me, so we started fighting."

"Then Billy arrived, and I left."

"The next day, I heard the news that he had disappeared."

Leo was initially good friends with Danny Morrow and John Cartwright; they were among the few kids who played with Danny Morrow.

Later, when other children bullied Danny Morrow, Leo and John Cartwright continued to help him.

But soon the town's children began to gradually isolate Leo and John Cartwright.

Leo couldn't accept being ostracized by all his peers in town and stopped helping Danny Morrow.

This infuriated John Cartwright, and the two even got into a fight.

From then on, Leo drifted further and further away from John Cartwright and Danny Morrow.

Leo was especially jealous of the growing relationship between Danny Morrow and John Cartwright.

He started joining the kids who bullied Danny Morrow and took it much more seriously than the others.

Sometimes the other kids thought Leo was going a bit too far.

He would come up with all sorts of bizarre ways to bully Danny Morrow.

Danny Morrow complained to his father, Luke Morrow, to his school teachers, and even got Sheriff Hawkins involved.

Leo was beaten by his father and forced to apologize to Danny Morrow.

He apologized verbally, but in his heart he had already blamed Danny Morrow for all the beatings he had suffered.

He told every kid his age that Danny Morrow was a snitch, a coward, and that all he did was cry and tattle to the adults.

He hated Danny Morrow.

This animosity intensified after seeing John Cartwright and Danny Morrow almost inseparable, and even after Danny Morrow got into fights with other children his age.

Theodore asked him:
"How do you know those wood carvings were carved by Luke Morrow?"

Leo's response:

"He told me."

He said his father carved it for him on the mountain.

Theodore nodded:

"Since he has already told you that it was carved by Luke Morrow, why are you still asking where he bought it?"

Leo opened his mouth.

(End of this chapter)