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REPEAT OFFENDERS
By Wayne Webb
CHAPTER 1-1
“Don't do that again.” Michael waved the gun at Ivan who shrugged in return.
There was crying and whimpering from the assembled bank patrons who were lying on the ground, face down with the third as yet unidentified bank robber standing over them. Ivan went to the tellers and made them come around from behind the counter to lie face down with the others in the main area. He nodded to the third man and introduced him.
“Everyone? Brian. Brian? Everyone.” Then he walked away from him and rejoined Michael who was still near the bloody mess that had been three people and the calm and unfazed Bank Manager.
“How are you so calm Mr White? I don't understand.” Michael asked him with a smile that was contradictory to the situation they were in.
“I don't know.” Harold lied, because he did actually know.
As Ivan walked up he sniffed the suited man and leaned in as close as possible. “He doesn't smell drunk and it is a bit early for booze. Drugs? Are you on something?” Ivan tapped the man's chest with the barrel of the gun and still got no more reaction than him staring at the barrel quizzically, as if he did not understand the question. “Oh he's totally high. See that look?”.
“We should find out what he's on and get you to take some before we come back next time.” Michael sounded sarcastic and Ivan ignored him.
“Keys please, and the code.”
“I don't...” The manager started but the reaction from Ivan was swift and violent.
“Yes you do.” He almost spat the words at him and drove his knee into the Bank Managers mid-section, causing him to keel over and expel air, loosing balance and falling to the floor. He flopped about like a fish out of water, as if he no longer knew which way was up.
Brian lifted his gun and shot a round into the air, hitting the ceiling twenty feet or more above them and causing debris and building materials to drop on where he was standing, making him cough and sputter through the detritus. He laughed and looked at his comrades who did not look amused.
“Well I won't do that again, will I?” All he got in response was silence from the people nearest him and fearful murmurs from ones further away.
“Well I hope one of you set off the silent alarm? Hmmm?” There was no response. “Oh come on now, one of you tellers must have set off the alarm? I won't be mad, I'm not mad I promise.”
Still nothing.
“Ok, tell you what, I can see that you think I am going to punish the person who set off the alarm but the opposite is true. I will shoot someone, anyone randomly, until the person who set off the alarm confesses. Then the shooting will stop. Huh? Can't say fairer than that, and if you confess now then no one gets shot. Right?”
Still there is silence and Brian looks over to Ivan and Michael who are standing over the gut punched Bank Manager, Harold White. Ivan points at the crowd and mimes pulling the trigger on a hand pistol. Brian looks back at the people and raises his gun towards a man lying face down in front of his feet.
The gun wavers, betraying the lack of confidence in his stance.
“Come on now, just fess up or this guy gets it!” Brian sounds very unsure of himself and he looks back at his friends for support but all he gets is a roll of the eyes from Ivan and a nod from Michael, both indicating her should just get on with it.
“Last chance. Come on guys?” The second come on was whined.
“Oh for fuck's sake Brian, none of it fucking matters, just cap someone and get on with it.” Michael curtly yelled across the room, and the noise from the hostages increased, crying rose up to sobbing and moaning to wailing.
“Brian? Brian!” Ivan shouted at his partner in crime and then walked over to him, leaving Michael with the Bank Manager to stand by Brian and put a calming hand on his shoulder. “Look it's easy if you don't think about it. Just aim” Ivan put a guiding hand on Brian's gun hand and lifted it and held it steady. “And pull the trigger.” Ivan squeezed Brian's hand and he contracted his grip in a reflex action in response.
BANG>
The gun shot echoed in the chamber of the bank floor, the sound bouncing around and off the marble pillars and reverberating back from the ceiling.
“Who set the alarm.” Brian's voice was shaking. He cleared his throat and started again. “Who set the alarm?” Much louder and bolder, this was a voice that was not to be messed with and was in opposition to the weaker persona he was displaying.
The whimpering and wailing rose in volume and Brian sighed heavily, unheard over the noise the hostages were making.
“You good from here man?” Ivan clapped Brian on the shoulder and moved away when he got a nod.
“Who SET THE FUCKING SILENT ALARM?” Brian screamed at the hostages and then put the gun on the back of a woman's neck, she started screaming and he started a countdown. “Three! Two! One!”
“ME!” Squeaked a voice at the front where the five tellers were and a young man was standing, tears rolling down his cheeks, his arms out in front of him, willing Brian to stop what he was doing.
“There? Was that so hard? What's your name son...oh.” Brian saw that he was wearing a name tag and squinted to read the lettering “Aaron? Ok, Aaron it is then.” He stood and stepped over the quivering woman whom he had been holding at gunpoint a moment before and came to the young man who looked to be no more than twenty years old. “Aaron?”
“Hmmm?” Aaron made a noise but could not look at Brian directly, shaking like a leaf.
“You just saved this woman's life Aaron. And if you were going to make it to tomorrow you could take that as a comfort.” Brian put an arm around the young man's shoulders.
“You said! You said you wouldn't shoot me! That's not fair!” Aaron had crossed the line from fearful to indignant.
“Oh, I'm not going to, you just won't remember. I can see what you mean though, poor choice of words. I'll do better with you next time.”
Sirens could be heard approaching and the sound increased, more than one or two directions and more than three or four police cars.
“Ah there they are. Now Aaron, when did you hit the silent alarm? How long ago?” Brian pulled him around and looked at him in the eyes, like he was testing him, checking that the answer would be the right one.
“I don't know?”
“Before Ivan shot the guard and the unfortunate Barbara? Or after?” Brian asked.
“I...” At the mention of his dead colleagues Aaron almost collapsed and the scary reality came flooding into his consciousness.
“Before or After Aaron? Keep it together now.”
“After, just after, when I heard the gunshots start?” Aaron said, but he rose his inflections and made it sound like a question.
“High rise terminals. Want some free advice Aaron? I mean, I know tomorrow never comes for you, again unfortunate term but what else can I say? Anyway, if you want to get anywhere in life Aaron, stop asking and start stating. No more fucking High Rise Terminals.”
“They're here gentlemen.” Brian called to his comrades.
“Yes and the shipment isn't.” Michael looked annoyed and Ivan was grinning.
“Yep, the one week they come late is our first attempt. We'll have to come back and try again.”
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