American Tax Officer-Chapter 522 - 268: Funeral_2

"May his friends, family, and colleagues find strength, and may God grant Mr. Huggins eternal rest, Amen!"

As the words fell, everyone at the scene made a solemn sign of the cross and recited "Amen" in unison.

In America, a funeral generally consists of five ceremonies, the first being the opening prayer by the priest, and the second being the remembrances of the deceased by friends and family.

Mr. Huggins’s wife was the first to take the stage, sharing stories of his life and the praiseworthy deeds that made him memorable.

Then, his son and other relatives also took turns speaking.

Almost an hour later, upon the priest’s indication, it was finally David’s turn.

He straightened his clothes and walked to the platform with a serious demeanor, saying solemnly, "Inspector Huggins worked diligently in our federal tax bureau for 11 years, a very capable Inspector. That’s why, shortly after I became the Director, I had him join the investigation into the Sackler family’s tax matters. Unfortunately, fate is often unkind to the talented... may the Lord bless him in heaven!"

This eulogy had been prepared by David the day before. After speaking at length for nearly ten minutes, he finally stepped down from the podium.

Following him, colleagues like Nisen from the federal tax bureau also took their turns to pay their respects before the second ceremony of the funeral came to a close.

The religious ceremony followed, with clergy from the church taking the stage to recite passages from the Bible. This led into the farewell ceremony and the final blessing by the priest, concluding with the burial of the casket.

At the priest’s prompting, Nisen, accompanied by three Inspectors, approached the casket and draped the prepared American flag over it.

In America, whether one is a military member, a police officer, a firefighter, or a federal agent, anyone who dies in the line of duty is entitled to be draped in the national flag, and federal tax bureau Inspectors were no exception.

In the eyes of Christians, the church is the closest place to heaven; hence, there is a cemetery not far from here.

After Nisen and the others had carried the casket to the burial site, the lined-up Inspectors fired a gun salute to the sky in a final tribute and farewell to the fallen Inspector.

"Huggins... oh, oh, oh..."

As her husband’s body was lowered into the ground and covered with soil, Mrs. Huggins, and the other relatives couldn’t help but break into sobs once again, releasing their sorrow with loud cries.

Half an hour later, when the grave was completely filled in, Morridge, Mr. Huggins’s son, approached David with a pained expression.

Seeing him come forward, David said, "I’m sorry, please accept my condolences..."

"No, Director David, there’s no need for you to apologize or feel guilty about this incident."

David lifted his head, looking at him with slight surprise.

"My father had always wanted to serve you, and when he heard you were assigned to the Director’s position, he was overjoyed. While that operation did have an unexpected outcome, I believe if he were given another chance, he would not hesitate in the slightest."

These words made David feel somewhat ashamed.

This 𝓬ontent is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

Truthfully, before the incident occurred, he didn’t even know who Huggins was, as the gap in status between an Inspector and his current position was too great for him to know each one personally.

And as for the action against the Sackler family, he had merely instructed Nisen to handle it without knowing that Nisen would choose Huggins to carry out the task.

"Oh, Director David, may I make a request of you?"

Morridge suddenly changed the topic.

"Of course, you can."

"I want to join the federal tax bureau and work under you in the future. It would be a way to carry on my father’s legacy and fulfill his wishes. Is that possible?"

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David looked at him and asked, "Are you sure you want to join the federal tax bureau?"

"My father always said that the federal tax bureau is the foundation of this country. It’s thanks to the tax bureau that we can afford to build planes, aircraft carriers, develop cities, distribute welfare to the public, and improve everything about this nation. It’s a noble profession, so becoming an Inspector at the tax bureau, I believe, would make my father very proud!"

David nodded in acknowledgment of his words and asked, "You are currently in university, aren’t you?"

"Yes, I should be able to complete my studies in about two more years."

David took out a pen and paper, wrote his personal number, and handed it to him privately, saying, "When you’ve finished your studies and if you haven’t changed your mind, just give me a call."

Although the selection process for tax bureau Inspectors is stringent, if Morridge was truly determined to join, David’s current position could easily facilitate that with just a few words.

"Thank you, Director David."

...

After the funeral, David did not return to the Director’s office but instead went to a prison overseen by the federal tax bureau in the suburbs.

His reason for coming was straightforward: he had discovered that the Camora family, whom he had personally sent to prison, had some business dealings with the Sackler family regarding the drug OxyContin.

So he was here to find someone from the Camora family willing to testify as a witness in court against the Sackler family.

"Director David, it’s a pleasure to see you!"

Upon hearing that David had arrived, the Warden promptly abandoned all his work to greet him.

"Warden Erickson, good to see you. My main purpose for the visit today is to speak with Victoria from the Camora family."