Leon Mercy, known in Bluebell, Alabama as a 'dangerous' man, known for his gambling, drinking, and otherwise reckless ways
Hero[]
Leon become a hero overnight in Bluebell after saving a family (the Rivenbark family, as well as a visiting cousin) from their burning house - however, the town had no idea he'd been so drunk at the time he had no memory of the incident, even thinking he could have gone into the house in the first place simply to rob it.
Death[]
Three months after his heroic feat, Leon was believed to have drowned in a fishing accident, at forty years old, and the town held his funeral, hanging his portrait on the wall of the Rammer Jammer that honored passed town heroes.
Discovery[]
However, a year later, in The Undead & The Unsaid, Zoe Hart hits a man with Lavon Hayes' car while driving home from delivering a baby through Settler's Woods. When she relates the story, everyone believes she's crazy, because Leon Mercy had died a year prior. However, she doesn't stop searching for him, believing him to be hurt, lost, and confused. She later is proved to be right, and discovers that Leon faked his own death, revealing that he didn't remember saving the family because he'd been so intoxicated, and because he wanted his child to remember him as a hero and not see him as the 'dangerous' monster he was. Noting Leon had no alcohol in his hidden away trailer, and doubting he was doing much gambling in his isolation, Zoe told Leon he had changed, and encouraged him to go home.
Obituary[]
Local Hero Drowns in Gulf of Mexico
Leon Frederick Mercy, age 40, tragically drowned on a solo fishing trip. After finding his abandoned boat sixty miles down the coast, the Coast Guard searched for his body for over a month but eventually, and sadly, Leon Mercy was declared dead.
Born May 1, 1970 right here in Bluebell, Leon lived in Bluebell his whole life. A gruadate of CLJ Jones High School, and a self-employed fisherman, Mr. Mercy will be forever remembered as one of Bluebell's most selfless and heroic residents- who back on July 4, 2010, he rescued the entire Rivenbark family, including an out-of-town cousin, from a horrific house fire.
Survivors include his wife, Debbie, and infant son, Ethan, as well as his mother Helen, brother Lloyd and many aunts, uncles, and cousins.
A memorial service will be held on October 31, 2010 at 11 AM at the Bluebell Community Church.[1]
Return[]
His portrait was later removed from the wall at the Rammer Jammer when he returned to Bluebell and his family, explaining what he had done.
