Welcome to Willieville

Welcome to Willieville is a novelette set in 1998 about a high school graduate, Willie, whose friend is murdered while they party on a warm Friday night, out behind the 7-Eleven.

He's in a suburb north of Detroit where the primary mission of the police is to keep things just the way they are.

Willie, nearly killed in the attack that took his friend's life, didn't see who did it, so the police have little to go on, and assume that it was a drug deal gone bad.

Willie's mother is doing her best, but when Willie challenges the police, she'd rather he not make trouble.

Forced to investigate on his own, Willie makes a terrible discovery about the murderer. He realizes that the town is not ready to hear what he has learned. In fact, they don't like his attitude, and Willie is forced to grow up quickly.