Day 179 - Upside Down- Chapter 27 - (1049 words)

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UPSIDE DOWN, BACK TO FRONT

By Wayne Webb

CHAPTER 27

Before

The truck pulled into the warehouse, empty behind the gaping open door that they drove through.
James got out of the cab of the truck and slapped the side of the van before letting Sam out of the rear, the iron door rolling to the ground with a grinding progression as they started to prepare for the day.
Ivan appeared with a bag and a box.
They had a few hours before the run was required and they had a small job that they themselves had booked anonymously through Ivan’s Dad’s friends. They had no idea what it was for, the Senior Maxwell wanted a secure and secret pick up and move of something.
His friends, acquaintances really, knew better than to ask any questions. He did it for his son, passing the mantle easing him into the leadership role. He had been very unwell in recent weeks, his heart and breathing were getting laboured and hard to control. He would be there as much as he could for his son. He was not interested in a partnership with James and Sam, he was a unknown to them. As far as they knew Ivan had done all of this. But Ivan was a team, he followed direction to lead well.
It didn’t matter, as he was far too ill to be of use and he knew it.
He wanted his son to be happy, to secure his home and house in a way that he could not. He had imparted his wisdom and insight, advised his son on how not to make the same mistakes that he had.
Now it was Ivan’s time in the spotlight, away from prying eyes of course, but lit brilliant in his famiy’s view.
The cargo and the drop off were non-existant but still Nixon Secure Transport would be paid and the company while not real, was real enough to pay out and trace back the paperwork for the job.
No one would ever check though, it was background noise and had nothing about it of interest to anyone.
Except for the man in the overalls beneath the truck.
It took him less than 30 minutes to complete the work. He had been under the chassis, he had skewered some wiring from the inside of the box. He had been in the wheel arches and in the cab. There seemed to be nowhere on the truck he had not touched.
Sam looked at his watch.
Ahead of schedule.
They took the spare tyre, replaced it with an identical one and the spare was slashed with a knife. When they came back here to swap out the money, the new spare would be removed and the old spare returned to it’s place with a puncture that likely no one would see, or at least not for long. This was how well they had planned, that no stone left unturned.
Nothing could go wrong, well that was not true. Plenty could go wrong, it was better not to tempt fate by even thinking that nothing good.
Nothing should go wrong, the most unpredictable element was always going to be Greg, he was unstable at the best of times, and they were introducing a five minute delay into the contract job he had the most stake in. The good thing was that he wanted to save face, he could be predicted that way. He would want to have the job done asap and have the delivery done, so while they might cacth merry hell for the delay, he could not and would not interfere with them finsihing, he could not introduce a further delay and make the issue worse.
If they were coming back later to have it out? Yes he would threaten them and give them a hard time, they ma y even be docked wages or suspended or worst case fired. They would be forgotten quickly when the van, the money and his business burned.
Two hundred and fifty thousand dollars though. Split three ways an some expenses, it was going to be worth it. They did not believe it would cripple him or his business. The loss was covered, it was always going to be. It may be the nail in the coffin of Nixon Secure Transport, but that was coming one way or another, they all just waited for that thread to break and the sword to fall.
This was a good thing, a win win for everyone.
Maybe not the corporation that held the insurance policy of course, but this was a blip and unoticeable. No person would be hurt or suffer because of the loss.
Corporations are simply not people, no matter how you may want to anthropmorphise them in your own world view.
This was going to happen.
“Are we done?” Sam smiled, he felt like George Peppard as his plan came together.
“We’re done.” Ivan wiped his hands and inexpicably shook hands with his brother in law and his friend. They shook back, thinking nothing about anything except going to pick up the money.
“We may be better off than we thought.” James says as he opens the box to shut Sam inside. Keeping up appearances even when there is nothing to show, that’s the key to a good lie. Living it.
“What?” Ivan stopped cold, surprises are not a good thing this late in the job.
“Oh not a worry mate, not a worry. I heard from Annie that the take today is covering a couple of days – some stocktake accounting something or another. Sounded dodgy as, but means we may even be as high as three hundred and fifty.” He rubbed his hands together.
Ivan saw the grin and it would him up no end.
“Keep your fucking mind on the job dickhead. The money is fucking nothing until the job is done and no one knows any the fucking wiser do you understand? Do You Under Stand?” Each syllable punched home to the chest.
“Jeez, keep your …” he amended his metaphor ill thought and condecension laden as it was just went along with the job as agreed, mounting the runner and getting in the cab.
“You’re driving a ticking time bomb full of incendiary, rapidly incendiary materials with a trigger and and safeguard to destroy every trace of everything – and if you fuck up? If you time it wrong because you’re too busy counting your fucking chickens? You will be a fucking BBQ.”
Ivan shut the door but continued to stare at James.
“Keep your mind on the job like you have a shotgun pointed at your balls. If you mess this up? If I don’t get my three hundred and fifty thousand then you fucking will have one you hear me?”

As James drove out he realised that Ivan had said my.