After being approached by the mob to collect on his deadbeat brother’s debt, a man comes up with what seems like a simple plan to resolve his problem. But then his sleazy accomplices decide to put the squeeze on him, threatening to blow up his scheme. (about 15,500 words, an hour and a quarter to read)
First published in The Society of Misfit Stories, Sept 2019; Runner-up for The Short Mystery Fiction Society’s 2020 Derringer award for best mystery novelette.