The package on my doorstep has my name on it, but I definitely didn't order it.

I stared at the plain black envelope for some minutes, it stinks of wet paint with a heavy wet feeling.

“This is definitely strange” I said out loud to myself.
It haven't been up to three years I rented out a place far away from the city noise, after law school. And not even family, nor friends know about my new place .

So the question on my mind was,”who would have sent this?

No return address,No indication of where or from whom it came from.

I ran my fingers along the flap and tore it open, pulling out a single sheet of paper after much hesitation.

The message was typed,words stark against the black background:
“You know what you did.$100,000 in exchange for silence.”

My heart skipped a beat, my mouth went dry and I felt my throat tighten.I felt the sweat tickle down from my forehead as I read the sentence again, trying to make sense of it.

What did they mean? I hadn't done anything, not really. Sure, I had made a few mistakes, not really ,big ones, but they were in the past, weren't they?

I sat on the only furniture in the room a tiny cushion, still staring at the notes and willing answers to poop out from it.

Then I reflected on the past two decades I ve lived on earth, it dawned on me, I really have had a lot to hid .
Involuntarily manslaughter,

Yea , I know.

Don't even judge me, that have haunted me for a long while, making me stick to mostly pro Bono cases at our firm.

It was at the night of our celebratory party from law school,many drinks ,games and some wrong decisions.

A Friend who have had alot to drink and have been edgy all night was making a jokes about how he wasn't scared to take risks, unlike me.it was a joke gone wrong, one thing led to another and we had an argument, and I drunk and angry pushed him, real hard , he fell hard and hit his head on a stool, before we could say Jack, it was too late.

The police ruled it out as an accident since that was the story we told them, but I carried the guilt, the thought of it always keep me up at night, but I didn't know someone would have used it against me.
Then, there was the case if sexual assault that almost cost me everything.I didn't do it, at least I didn't think I did, but then the after effect was unbearable.
The whispers in class, the look of disgust from many, even the threat of losing my career even before I started it.I had to get someone to make the evidence disappear, just a little tampering , the case was dismissed.

I didn't know it would be nightmare in daytime on a day like this.
I rubbed my temples, trying to push the ugly thoughts away but it was there, staring right back at me.

My life wasn't that rosy,but then it was definitely mine and there seem to be nothing I can do about it .I had worked so hard to put everything behind me.

But then there was my father, a man with his own dark secret. He had gotten into trouble few years after I starting working at the firm, A business deal gone wrong.
Ofcourse he came running to me, acting all frail and helpless, I really wanted him off my back. Had to tamper with evidence then to, hidden some documents ,got someone to hack into his company server system and erase some emails, just enough to save his already dirty reputation and keep him out of prison , because that too would be a taint on my image.

All these and the tiny ones that seem unrecognisable,all in web, the lives I have ruined or nearly ruined, either through my actions or attempts to fix things.
But who could have sent this strange package? And which of my crimes did the person know of?whichever it is it would surely cost me my career, which is my only beacon of living this life.

I stood up,feeling the weight of the note in my hand.I must do something, am not going to let them win..but the money, I don't have it, and where will I even get that kind of money Even if I do, would that really stop them from doing this again?Would it be enough to silence them?That might just be the beginning of something worse .
The buzz on my phone brought out from my thoughts.Tentatively I picked the phone, I knew instinctively that it was them.
The short message; WE KNOW WHERE YOU ARE.Sent a chill down my spine.
I froze,the threatening package, and my secrets they are all connected. I wasn't just dealing with a random person trying to make quick money.This person definitely know too much.
With shaking finger, I texted the number back.“Who is this?”
The voice at the other end of the phone,sent a chills down my body.
“ Don't pretend you don't know, your time is running out, you have 18 more hours to come with the money, check your phone”
Couldn't even say a word and the line went dead.
I checked my phone , it was an address.I have to act fast,the real question wasn't who knew my secrets,it was how far they will go to punish me for it .
And how far I am willing to go , to keep mine buried.
The address was an abandoned warehouse, around my old school neighborhood.That confirmed my suspicion the the person knows me very well.
I felt my pocket to make sure the gun I had come with at the last minute was with me,I could feel my heart racing.
I entered the dimly lit warehouse,my eyes scanning the shadows.Suddenly a figure came out from the shadows.
I peered at him, then I heard the voice again,“ You ll do anything to keep this quiet , won't you”?he said with a dangerous sneer on his face.He raised a CD.
“Yes, it's my jack, I was there that night, and I got the capture from the security camera that night, I know I was the one that cleared it”,
“Remember how I cleared you dirty evidence of assault.”
By now I was fidgeting but I tried as much as I can to get hold of myself, he mustn't see my fears.
“And Aha, those other dirty little secrets of yours, I have it right here,”
He let out a loud laugh as he tapped the disc.
“Why are you doing this jack, I paid you well those days,”
“ You did, oh you did, but then you let me to rot in Prison when I was caught for tampering of evidence”
Oh yeah, that was true but I didn't really want to involve my self in an ugly situation we all know how jack was in law school.
he was a genius but also can be devilish, I only ran to him because I had to choice, and somehow he have gotten an upper hand in school.
There and then I made up my mind, When growing up I had an obsession with the law after seeing some Law series, what the law can do and undo.
To intimidate and silence people, Hide financial crimes and for tax evasion, silence whistle blowers and gag orders.
Protect people against crimes and also to cover up crimes.The segregation it makes between the rich and the poor.
I was in-between love , respect and fear for the law. So I got obsessed with the law.Got determine cause of the wonders of the law.The love for the Law made me and it have marred me.
“ Where's the money, and don't think about, negotiating”Jack's voice brought my mind back.
This was the right time to put an end to this,Jack came closer, bent down to open the camouflage bag I brought,
With heavy hands I pulled out the gun , pulled the trigger and shot him.I watched him gurge and fell over,then hit his head on the bare from.
I pulled out the package from my back pocket and dropped it on his body.“ You ordered this” I said out loud to his dead body with in a satisfied tone.
I left for sergeant kyles station,
“Barrister Moore, is there anything we can do for you”?He asked in his usual cheerful manner.
“ I need to report a crime, I killed someone at exactly 10:35pm”
The sergeant's expression changed from routine to shock.
“ Sir, please come with me, “ He led me to his office.

The prisoners looked up to me with awe and respect in a somewhat solemn serene look.
And I can feel a smile cross my lips
The look that always me forget I have my whole life to spend in here, though sergeant Kyle said I might be go through court process again and released on the argument of self defense.ofcourse, that's if I behave well in prison.