Swift Justice: The Southern Way Read Online Free PDF

Let’s give it some time. Besides, it looks like things went bad, so they’re probably not there anyway.”
    They finally pulled up to Leon’s parent’s house and got out of the car. It was a little after five in the morning, but a person wouldn’t know it because there were many people in the street. The Negroes froze as they saw the police car appear. Negroes did not trust the police and feared them. They figured that they were part of the Klan.
    Mama Brooks ran outside to the cops. “Have you found my Leon?” she cried. “Have you found my Leon?”
    “No, we have not,” the Sheriff, said curtly. “Have you seen or heard from him?”
    Mama Brooks short stint of optimism vanished. “No,” she said sadly. “I was hoping that you had found him and were bringing him home.”
    “Well, we’re looking for him,” Junior said. “We’re going to stay here until he shows up.”
    “Can you please drive around and try to find him?” she pleaded.
    “Well, we have officers already driving around looking for Leon,” said Junior. “Can we come in your house and wait?”
    Mama Brooks hesitated. “Why?”
    “Because we want to,” the Sheriff snapped. “You’re sure Leon is not hiding in the house.”
    “I wish,” replied Mama Brooks. “Please help me find him.”
    “Okay, we’ll wait in our squad car, here,” said the Sheriff. “We got the radio and will be in constant communication with the other patrol cars. We’ll let you know if he shows up.”
    “Thank you.”
    “You make sure to let us know when he shows up, okay,” said the Sheriff.
    “I sure will.”
    The Sheriff didn’t know what to think. His men were missing and so was Leon. Should he listen to his son and drive by the area where Lucky was supposed to do the lynching? The sun would be up in about an hour, so he figured he could wait another hour.
    ~~~~
    Leon didn’t have to walk too far before he spotted a Negro driving an old, beat-up pickup truck. Leon saw that it was a Negro, and Leon waved him down. The person stopped, and Leon recognized him. It was Tyrone Stevens, an older man in his fifties.
    Leon peeked inside. Leon breathed heavily and spoke in a panic. “Mister Stevens … oh, thank you. Can you please give me a ride to my house?”
    “Why sure. Leon, everyone in town is looking for you. Where have you been?”
    Leon got into the car and they sped away.
    Again, Leon could barely speak because he had so much to say. It was like he was on his death bed and needed to speak before he died. “Oh … um … it was horrible.”
    “What happened, Leon?”
    “You won’t believe this. They tried to kill me.”
    “Who?”
    Leon sighed. “Lucky Bennett, John Favors, and Tom Jenkins. They just tried to hang me.”
    “What? How did you get away?”
    Leon started sobbing. He couldn’t help it.
    “It’s okay. It’s okay, Leon. Tell me what happened.”
    “They … they tried to hang me in the woods, north of the lake. Some person came out of nowhere and shot ‘em all.”
    “Who?”
    “I don’t know. The person was all covered. I don’t know. I think it was a he because the person was kind of tall. I think it was a white guy.”
    “What do you mean you think it was a white guy? So he shot ‘em?”
    “Yeah, he shot ‘em. I don’t know what to …” Leon sighed again. “And then they had me handcuffed. The person gave me the keys. I got myself out. The person left. Um … so there’s three white guys dead. I don’t know what to do. I got to see my pops.”
    “Oh, shit! There’s three white guys dead and you’re missing. And everyone’s looking for you. Oh, Lord, I don’t know what’s going to happen. Let’s get you home to your mama and papa. Oh, Leon it’s so good to see you. We thought you might be dead. It’s so good to see you.”
    After a short drive, Stevens’s car was on Finker Street near Pollard Avenue. Pollard Avenue was Leon’s street and only a few blocks ahead. They would need to turn right on