Heist Recycled (312 hits)
Category: NoneRating: 1.57 on 9 reviews (Rate this item) (V)
Submitted by Drew "ajanssen" Janssen (View user info) at 2007-02-14 00:40:28 EST
Drew sat in silence in the smokey room. Josh had introduced the two others but he already met them before. It was just a formality. Josh liked to look as professional as possible. He took great pride in his work and wanted everyone to appreciate that. He was constantly showboating.
Josh dramatically put out his cigarette before speaking.
"Glad you boys could make it. It's been awhile in the planning and we will all be smiling in about 4 hours." he reassured them with a slight Southern accent.
He flipped over a dry erase board and began spelling out the plans and assigning instructions.
A total of 2 security cars patrolled exactly 34 properties spread out over 18 square miles. The alarm system reported at least 10 false alarms each night and they were going to exploit this.
The plan was to use keys Josh had acquired to enter and cut a wire in the alarm box. The alarm would go straight to the dispatch office and security would be dispatched. After security showed up and wrote the report everything would look like a false alarm and the dispatcher would write up a work order to have the constantly tripping alarm system fixed. Because the wire was cut, when they entered again it wouldn't trip the alarm again. The alarm was already tripping. So long as they could hide the cut wire and lock the door back, the security guard would have no clue as to what was going on. He would just write up his report that everything was ok and advise dispatch it was a false alarm. Hell, it happened at least 10 times a night among all the properties. Nothing out of the ordinary.
The drive to the building was nerve wracking. Drew glanced over at Josh in the passenger seat and Josh grinned back and handed him a pair of rubber gloves.
"Put these on under your utility gloves. You will sweat more and you don't want prints leaking through."
"Yeah, what about a GPS system in it? They will be able to track us."
"Don't worry about it, Drew." he scolded him "I've done my homework. Nothing but zippered bags."
Somehow this didn't seem to have the calming effect it intended.
Drew took his eyes off the road to turn and face Robert in the back seat. His face was white and his eyes were wide and unblinking.
"Robert"
He stared back at Drew, unblinking.
"Shit boy, you ever committed a felony?"
Roberts eyes widened a bit more
Josh immediately jumped in. "Drew, quit fucking with the guy. Beside it's a multiple felony and having 4 of us will make it a Fed case for organized crime. Anybody rolls over and I'll fucking kill them"
The seriousness in his tone let Drew knew he meant business.
Drew pulled the SUV over at the designated drop point and let Jeff out to cut the alarm wires. Along with Josh they both had wireless headsets on to keep in contact.
For the first few minutes there was only heavy breathing. After what seemed an eternity, Jeff started hissing into his mouthpiece.
"Well shit Jeff, is it done?" Drew inquired.
"Roger, I need an extraction."
"An extraction??? What, are you on a fucking Black Ops Mission? Yeah, let me see if we have room to land the Chinook here to get you out. You need some cover fire so you can light up the LZ? How about I call in close air support and artillery fire?"
"Goddammit, Drew. Now is not the time to fuck with me. PULL THE FUCKING CAR AROUND!!"
Drew laughed as he slowed the SUV down enough for Jeff to jump back in.
Drew smiled at him, "Everything ok, soldier? Any Charlies?"
Jeff's only response was to turn to stare out the window. He was clearly riddled with anxiety.
They parked across the street behind a couple trees and Josh clicked his stop-watch.
Within 15 minutes, security pulled up and they all stared nervously out the window at him. He disappeared for a about 5 minutes and returned scribbling something in a clipboard.
Josh let out a deep sigh as he climbed back in the truck.
It made Drew nervous. Josh was never anxious.
Josh gave Drew a somber look and nodded.
"Alright boys, grab your nuts and get your game face on." he commanded.
Within seconds gloves and ski masks were in place.
Josh jumped out to affix new plates. This gave Drew several moments to contemplate what was doing.
He looked in the rearview mirror as he slid the itchy ski-mask over his face and adjusted the eye holes.
A faceless generic criminal stared back.
"You only live once, Drew" he told himself.
"It's not too late," the other part of his brain retorted.
He slid the gloves on purposefully as if to convince himself that he had to follow through with it.
Josh startled him when he jumped back in the car. He looked at Drew and could tell he was a nervous wreck. It wasn't Drew's first rodeo but it was definitely testing his nerves.
"Never noticed how a ski-mask brings out the blue in your eyes" Josh laughed " Got any dinner plans, sugar-britches?"
"Yeah" he replied, "Me and Recon Jeff back there are off to Nicaragua to suppress a guerrilla uprising."
Drew had to reassure him that everything was ok but Josh ignored him and turned to face Jeff.
"Jeff, throw out that fucking cigarette. It's time. And no, not out the fucking window. Jesus H. Christ people. We are here to commit aggravated burglary not play spades. Snap out of it"
By the time Drew had the SUV backed up to the door everyone had cleared out and Josh had the front door propped wide open.
Josh and Jeff were standing at the entrance with a hand-cart and beckoning to Drew.
"Motherfucker, LET'S GO."
Sweat was dripping profusely by the time they got to the safe and adrenaline had mostly taken over.
Drew was the first to see the latches that bolted it to the wall.
"Fuck, Josh. This piece of shit isn't going to budge."
Josh flashed his confident grin and spun Jeff around to reach in his pack. He produced a small hatchet and started chopping like his life depended on it.
"Drew, check the stopwatch," he gasped "90 seconds and we need to be gone."
He nodded and let his eyes dart nervously around. 2 cameras were on them. God help them if they were linked to the dispatch office.
Jeff abruptly interrupted his thoughts.
"Time?"
"53 seconds"
"Perfect, let's get the dolly under this thing."
The safe was the size of a kitchen stove and bits of wood and drywall hung onto the latches that secured it.
The 3 of them guided it out the door to find Robert with an AR-15 rested on the hood. A pair of headlights appeared in the distance and Robert tensed up.
He was ducking behind the passenger side of car with the rifle sticking over the hood. His knuckles were as white as his face from his tight grip.
Josh was the first to speak.
"Drop that fucking rifle and help us load this." The irritation in his voice was obvious.
Robert stared back like a deer in the headlights while the passing car got closer.
Josh was now about to blow his temper.
"ROBERT, If you don't drop that fucking assault weapon and get over here I will use it to break your little sister's hymen."
Robert slung the weapon around his back and jumped to help out. Just as they slid it in the back of the SUV and jumped in, the car finally passed by. Josh tensed up and his finger slid toward the trigger of the gun he had just confiscated.
The rest of them ducked as the car continued harmlessly down the street.
Josh let out a gasp.
"Drew, get us the fuck out of here."
Drew had the engine turned over before he could finish his sentence.
They crept out onto the street and stopped for Josh to pull off the fake plates.
Drew hit the lights and pulled off his ski mask as they swung out on the main street.
A wave of relief washed through the car but they were still running on adrenaline and they still weren't completely out of harm's way. The safe might as well have been packed with bodies and it was weighing down the back end of the SUV.
Drew slowly crept down the back streets and alleys and into Josh's garage.
They let the safe slide out and the weight of it broke a chunk of cement as it hit the floor.
In no time Josh was slicing through the steel plates in the bottom with a plasma cutter. In just several minutes a large plate fell off the bottom revealing solid concrete.
"Fuck, Josh, I know you can't cut cement with that thing."
He once again gave Drew his signature cocky grin and produced 2 sledgehammers.
"It's a 50 year old fire proof safe," he explained, "The old cement used to fireproof it has long since dried and you'll find it to be very brittle."
He handed Drew and Robert a hammer and walked back inside.
They swung at it in perfect rhythm like expert blacksmiths. Fault lines were appearing in the 4 inch thick cement.
Josh reappeared with a glass of iced tea. He leaned back in the recliner and gave them the look of a proud father.
He took a long pull off the iced tea and closed his eyes. He abruptly burst out in song. It was an old Negro hymnal about breaking rocks on the chain gang and for some reason it seemed very appropriate.
At this Drew let out his first laugh since he had fucked with Jeff. The rest of adrenaline and fear slowly faded. He was now exhausted but most of the cement was gone and within minutes Josh would be able to cut the steel plate that stood between them and the inside of the safe.
User Reviews
Submitted by Void_Where_Prohibited (user info) at 2007-02-14 19:05:41 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
Why not? I've seen some pretty good writing on this site. It would have been better for him had it been a bit more factual (such as the prints reference) and more proper paragraphs. Sorry, I'm oldfashioned that way. Presentation is a very big part of a story's credibility. No worries thought, I do the same thing when I'm at the movies.
:-)
Submitted by JonnyX (user info) at 2007-02-14 18:53:02 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
apparently, someone thinks that this is a serious writer forum
Submitted by Void_Where_Prohibited (user info) at 2007-02-14 11:12:38 EST (#)
Ranking: -2
Because of this ----- > "Put these on under your utility gloves. You will sweat more and you don't want prints leaking through."
Prints can manifest themselves through cloth onto the surface being handled? I must have missed that episode of CSI.
Submitted by odin (user info) at 2007-02-14 10:48:08 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Submitted by Amontillado (user info) at 2007-02-14 09:28:25 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
No Comment
Submitted by Director (user info) at 2007-02-14 02:21:29 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Izzat what your felony is for? You pulled this gig an got busted, right?
RIGHT?!?!?
Submitted by ajanssen (user info) at 2007-02-14 01:42:37 EST (#)
Ranking: 0
rad you make me engorged.
Submitted by rad1101 (user info) at 2007-02-14 01:29:17 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
I saw your name and engorged.
Submitted by ih8u2man (user info) at 2007-02-14 01:15:42 EST (#)
Ranking: 2
Hell...you're back. This was cool.