Brody was probably thinking about the cash all the time.
He continued, talking to the rest of the men "the road won't be too busy by 1pm. It doesn't Bother me anymore, we just do it discreetly…" they nodded. And I raised my hand, for the first time , to ask a question "So where exactly is the deal going to take place?"
My question raised a momentary silence, then the host cleared his throat, looking right at me "The deal should be carried out along the suburbs, to be exact, but the Van carrying the package will be in downtown, along along the L - Axis.
My curiosity was raised, and I found the courage and pathway to ask more questions "why should the van miles away from the deal point?"
The others looked at him as if they were waiting for him to go against his own rules, I could see the weight of his followers drag on his face
"Because we would need to confirm if the other party is serious or not."
And I questioned, with deep reasoning "And this Van, it is the one I and Brody would stay in? The one carrying the package?"
"Yes, Arianne."
I was going to ask why it should be me and Brody? But he wasn't going to answer me again, it was obvious from his metallic expression.
But shouldn't the van containing the goods be guarded by strong and able bodied men? Why should it be I and Brody? Why?
It was a question I couldn't stop asking myself, until 2 hours was up, and we set out as planned.
****
I and Brody were placed in the bigger van, at the back "and don't touch anything." One of the men warned, shutting the door and leaving us in half darkness. The goods were there, but we didn't know what it was.
The other vans were loaded and tbe engines, in no time ignited. It was a total of three cars.
The driver started the engine, and drove slowly behind them. Some reasonable feet away.
All we knew was that we were going somewhere, but we didn't know the exact place.
I looked at Brody with a soft chuckle, dude wasn't even moving his body, but stared dead at the packages before us. I could literally hear his heart beat, and could feel his nervous breath..
"Brody, what do you think the package is?"
The driver looked at me, with his side eye, across the shields.
"I would rather not guess…" and he wrapped his palms together in self assurance "All I know is that there is 25 grand in there for us."
I stared back at the packages, Brody was right after all, the 25 grand was all I saw, and it made me relax.
Although there was no clock to make reference with, I had predicted not less than thirty minutes before the van stopped.
The driver brought out a cellphone and brought it near to his ear.
He was inaudible, very much and even when our ears were strained, we couldn't hear a thing, until the man hit his hand on the van's glass, sending a tumor of fear across to I and Brody, and in a high need for alert we got up, ransacking the surrounding with our eyes
"Damn it! I can't even see a thing!" I gritted, and could see the man's terror possessed face from the side mirror "the fuck is going on man?!"
He brought out a pistol and looked back at us with a mixture of frustration and anger running wild on his face, growling "Shut the fuck up and sit the fuck down!"
His scold got our ass a hard thud on the van's floor begging for our lives "Yo! That's a gun!? Please don't shoot us man, we ain't done shit man, please please"
"I said shut the fuck up you dumb fucks!" But how could we shit our mouths when fear had taken over and our hearts begging for it's survival.
"Then stop pointing that gun at us! Damn it you're gonna get us killed man! I swear I don't want the money no more, let's just get out of the van, we ain't telling no one a thing, I swear…" and the man started the engine at once but our voices stupified the van, and he hit the brakes with force, before he could turn around.
We heard the other vehicles approach, he stopped to have them lead the way, but something else happened, yelling, and then … gunshots!
It was the cops! Damn it!
"What fuck is happening man!!!" I became terrified, as my heart kept trying to beat out of my chest. The driver started shooting at a police car in front of us. He dropped the pistol and brought out a shotgun, joining in the fight before us.
I and Brody, dropped down, laying straight on the floor with our heads covered with our hands, until we stopped hearing a loud bang from the shotgun.
"Brody, that's the cops, we are so busted, these people are criminals and we are just their scapegoats!..." I touched Brody, fear had taken total control of his body, he was as flustered as I was, but not much mine compared to his.
And then, I made a promise of a hopeless and dying man. "I'm gonna get you out of here, I promise!" That is, if we were ever going to get out alive, I wished to be alive, even if it was to spend the rest of life in prison.
The gunshots became a bit distant, and wasn't as loud and bloodcurdling as it was before.
I slowly lifted up my head, covered with my hands still. My eyes met first, the windshield designed with bullet holes, cracked lines and the splinter of blood.
My heart skipped, clenched in fear "Brody…" Brody was still shivering, but I had to hit his blood to heat!
"Damn it Brody!... I shook him continuously, and with more gunshots, one hit the van's lock and it was unlocked, having the door slowly part ways… my eyes widened, I thought it was the cops that had opened it to seek out the package.
But a few moments later, no one was seen, I started moving towards the door, I managed to drag myself out of fear and led my head to pop outside, it was clear from my view, and I saw an Alleyway, where we could run from.
"Come on Brody, we gotta go!" I pulled him up, and he got on his two feet "that's it! Be a man. Let's get out of this mess"
We got out of the van, and upon setting my foot on the ground, I looked left to see that the cops had managed to gun down two men, leaving one wounded, and a cop laid some foot away, still breathing, had a gunshot wound.
"We must not let him see us, Brody, let's take the right, stealthily, let's see where the Alleyway lead's us"
On getting some meters away from the van, and the Alleyway's entrance right before us, "if you move, I shoot!" A cop saw us! Damn!
"Hands where I could see them!"
I thought about every good thing I could still achieve, every good place I could still go, and every good woman and man I could still be with, escape was just right in front of me, would I, give it up? Risk escape for my life? Or risk my life for my escape?
I immediately took to my heels, with life and death in my mind, to escape, for all the best and worst reasons, leaving my best mate, Brody behind, all man for himself. The alleyway welcomed me, and I ran through it, then a gunshot… I was still alive… and then, another gunshot!