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Foto do escritorCarl Boniface

The Paper Boy – part 3 of 3

Atualizado: 27 de jun.

Continuation from part two – a short story.


The man invited John into his home and sat him down, made a pot of tea, and asked how he had been coping with the psychological damage these young gangsters had subjected him to.

The man named Bill asked, “Do you want to get rid of them?


John, shocked, faltered the words and then murmured, “err…... alright then, let’s do it!


I’ve got one word for you, “Defenestration!


John, puzzled…. Mumbled, “What’s that?


Bill recalled how John had learned the name of the gang leader. Then he says, “You told me Mark, right?


John nodded in agreement.


Bill went on, “So the best way to kick this all on the head, is take out the Big Kahuna.” He paused momentarily, and then continued, “Let’s use defenestration!


John thought it was a bit of a laugh, and smiled. Then he asked one more time, “What is defenestration?


Bill said, “Relax. All in good time.” He then rolled up his sleeves and said, “Let’s get to work!


Over the next day, Bill came up with a plan that would involve luring the ring leader into an apartment complex.


He devised a plot for John to get Mark’s attention. Tell Mark that he has found a suitcase on the side of the riverbed that was full of cash, and if he was interested, to help him by laundering the money.


Fortunately, John already knew where Mark lived because he had followed him home one day. So, one day after school he popped around to see mark.


He knocked on the door, and Mark’s mum answered. “Hello! Could I speak to Mark. Please?


She called her son, and seconds later Mark appeared. Once his mum had gone, he exited and pushed the door closed, and then grabbed John around the neck whispering in his left ear, “What the fuck do you want?


For your knowledge money laundering works as follows:

  • Placement: Injects the “dirty money” into a legitimate financial system.

  • Layering: Conceals the source of the money through a series of transactions and bookkeeping tricks.

  • Integration: Laundered money is disbursed from the legitimate account.


Of course, Mark wouldn’t have a clue, so John could make it up as he wanted. Bill had briefed him beforehand, so he knew Mark would be a sucker because a briefcase of money is a large wad of cash. Who would turn that down?


John explains, “Mark, I found a briefcase full of money, but I haven’t got a clue how to make it legitimate so I can spend it as I feel fit.” Then he explains, “I need to launder it. We’ll split 50/50 if that’s alright with you?


Mark smiles while not hesitating to respond, “Of course, mate! We can do that. No problem. Show me the money!


This is where it would be easy to convince Mark to meet him upstairs in an apartment complex. Fortunately, the apartment buildings he was going to use had a balcony entrance. Council flats were made that way.


John found an estate that was in decay, and only had a few tenants. He found the fourth floor was tenantless on the north facing side. The pound notes Bill had given him were hanging over the edge to dry, or at least that is what he led Mark to believe.


Mark came upstairs by foot, as the lift wasn’t working. By the time he got to the apartment John had invited him to, he saw the notes hanging over the side of the balcony outside. They weren’t too close to the edge, however, the sight of money encouraged Mark to stretch over the side to grab them.


That’s when John on the other side of the flat door, jumped out and pushed Mark. Mark lost his balance and fell.


The morale of the story is crime doesn’t pay. Hurting people either physically or mentally if unprovoked is wrong.

 

Have a great day!

Prof. Carl Boniface

 

Vocabulary builder:

Gangsters (n) = criminals, mobsters, hoodlums. Racketeers, mafiosi   

get rid of (v) = dispose of, discard, throw away, throw out, chuck out, dispense of, jettison (abandon), offload, dump, get shot of, ditch

Defenestration (n) = 1. Formal, humorous. The action of throwing someone out of a window. "Death by defenestration has a well-regarded history to murderers because it’s quick and often thought to be suicide." 2. Informal. The action of dismissing someone from a position of power or authority. "That victory resulted in Churchill's own defenestration by the war-weary British electorate."

Big Kahuna (n) the most important or dominant person or thing

Luring (v) = enticing, tempting, attracting, decoying, alluring, trapping, persuading, draw in

Ring leader (n) = the leader of a group of people who are doing something harmful or illegal: The ringleaders of the plot were arrested and punished.

Devised a plot = came up with a scheme or plan

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