This case predates my license, the website, or any thought of becoming a private investigator.

When cash was tight, I'd tried my hand at tracking people down for rewards. Knowing this, a friend at the police department sent me a message about a young man who was wanted for attempted rape and attempted murder. He was on the run, and there was reward money involved.

"Bet you can't find this one," she wrote. Even though it was a joke, I decided to prove her wrong anyway.

It turned out the young man was still using his Facebook page, even after months on the run. I took screenshots of everything: his photos, friends, and family. Then I reached out on Facebook Messenger. I told him I could help him if he did the right thing, but he was understandably suspicious and deleted his account minutes later.

That didn't stop me. I kept reaching out to people in his network until my phone rang. It was the man I'd been searching for, and he was ready to talk and listen.

I told him the truth: running wasn't a life, but the absence of one. I promised that if he turned himself in, he could at least take his chances in a proper courtroom with a decent attorney beside him, and that I'd help him.

He took me up on the offer.

He walked into the local jail and said, "Wesley Cepin told me to turn myself in."

I proudly walked into the fugitive recovery office and collected my $500 reward. Then I kept my promise, added $500 of my own, and used the full $1,000 to hire an attorney for the young man.

In the end, the District Attorney had sufficient evidence against him, but I had kept my word.

Before leaving, the fugitive recovery officer pulled me aside and said, "You ought to go talk to a private investigator I know. Fifty years in this business."

That was the first domino, and after that, they fell fast. My best friend and I were swept into the whirlwind of the investigation world together. We obtained licenses, launched a website, and suddenly calls were coming in from everywhere.

Until then, we honestly thought private investigators only existed on TV. We had no idea real people actually hired them.

We also didn't know it would be the beginning of many new adventures.