Free Promise Kept (Perry Skky Jr.) by Stephanie Perry Moore Page B

continued, “So, you need to tell us everything you know, young man. You got a bright future over there at Tech.”
    No one pushed me, but I felt a severe kick right in the bottom of my belly. It was decision time. Mario had gotten me in a mess larger than six pounds of dog poop, but I wasn’t a snitch. I just didn’t feel right telling them everything that I knew to send him to jail, but could I afford to throw away my future to stand up for somebody who tricked me in the first place? Mario wasn’t looking out for me. Lord , I prayed, Tell me what to do here. Give me guidance. Help me see clearly what’s right. You lead. I don’t want to be too hasty in my thoughts; saying the wrong thing, thinking the wrong thing, messing all of this up. I mean, I’m in handcuffs. Being in handcuffs was a true awakening. I now needed to stop trying to cover for a friend and be a friend to myself. Besides, if Mario couldn’t see he was doing bad, then I needed to cooperate with the cops and get him off his own dangerous path.
    “What’s it going to be, Skky? Are you off to jail, son, or do you have something to tell us?”
    Knowing that I knew what to do, I was still having trouble opening my mouth and telling all, so I stalled. Looking up, looking down, taking a deep breath.
    Then the bigger one of the cops said, “Alright, let’s take him downtown.”
    “Alright, alright,” I said.
    “We just want to know how you got caught up in this? His car broke down and the next thing you know he’s at Tech and you’re chauffeuring him around to sell drugs?”
    “Hey, wait a minute. Mario told me that I was taking him to a house that detoxed. He said he wanted to get clean. My roommates can attest that he asked for my help, and not to deliver illegal substances to anybody.”
    “Well, he’s getting arrested once he comes out of the house. We just had to catch him in the act of making the sell. He has got so much on him, the problem is that he is not the big fish we’re after. Just like we could see that you had a little hesitancy to come clean and let us know what all was going on, we know he will too.”
    “So, can I go now?”
    “No, son, it’s not that easy. We need you to go back into the car and wait till he comes out and sees you. He’s going to head towards you and then we’ll swarm him.”
    “Lead my friend to the cops? Come on, man.”
    “If it went down the way you said it did, he ain’t no friend of yours, right?”
    “He’s just a little messed up, that’s all.”
    Fifteen minutes later I was back in my ride with a walkie talkie that the police had given me. They were talking to me through it. “Okay, sit still as if nothing’s happening. Don’t panic.”
    I felt like I was selling my friend out, but it was best. Why did having to do the right thing suck sometimes.
    “Okay, the door’s opening,” one of the cops said.
    Mario peered out of the door like someone else might jump him and then he tipped his hat to me and came out with the same bag. As he walked toward me, smiling and mouthing the words I’m sorry , I wondered when in the world they were going to step in and get him, but he opened up the car door without interference and said, “Man, I’m sorry it took so long.”
    “Dang, dog.” I looked around.
    “What you looking around for? I’m here now. Did anybody mess with you?”
    Then I realized what the cops were doing. They were really trying to make sure that I wasn’t in on this crap. They were able to hear everything that we were saying. It wasn’t enough to clear my name, I actually had to incriminate my boy.
    “Man, you said you had to pick up something. Why did you take the bag out?”
    “Aw man, it’s late. I needed to…you know, you know…I’m a go to the house. Don’t worry, I’ma have you back at your place in no time. It took all that time to put my stuff together but you know umm…the house is…it’s right around the corner.”
    “So, all you wanted me to do was