The wind whistles past me as I cross back into the makeshift fortress. The contrasting darkness momentarily blinds me as I walk in.

“Tie him up.” Says Moe barking orders at thing 1 and thing 2.

Curly comes right up to me and gives me the butt end of his rifle just below my right eye. Little uncalled for if you ask me.Clipped me pretty good too. I can feel the slow drip down my cheek as they tie me against the cowering manager.

“Looks like we match.” I joke trying to lighten the mood.

“Thank you.” He says in a hushed tone.

“For what?”

“For coming back.”

“Don’t you worry about that. Sorry I couldn’t get you out with the rest of them but I’ve got a plan.”

He lets out a whimpering sigh and looks up to the heavens hoping for his nightmare to end. All the while, the idiots are frantically pacing the floor awaiting their ride to salvation.

“You really think you can just drive right out?” I ask.

“Do you ever stop talking?” Asks Moe fiddling with his rifle.

“I’ve been told that I’m quite the angel when I’m asleep.”

“Will you just shut up?”

“I’m just trying to give you guys a few pointers. You are clearly wet behind the ears when it comes to this stuff.”

“Has it been 30 minutes? I really want to kill him now.” Asks Curly whining like a little bitch.

That guy wouldn’t have lasted 10 minutes overseas.

“Relax.” Says Moe, waving a hand and turning to me. “What is it that you believe we are doing wrong?”

“What’s the plan? Try to escape by car from the middle of the city? They’ll take out your tires within a couple blocks leaving you stranded.”

“What do you have in mind?” He asks, leaning in close.

“A distraction. You’ve got hostages. Lead them out one way and escape the other.”

“You expect me to believe that if we send out a decoy that we can just walk out the other way?”

“That’s right. With my help that is.”

“How so?”

“I call them. Make them follow the bait.”

“Why would you do that?”

“My goal was to limit casualties. I don’t give a shit if you get away.”

A sinister grin creeps onto his face.

“I like you.”

“Don’t get me wrong. I think you are all pieces of shit. I’ve just got other priorities.”

“So what do we do first?”

“Get me a phone.”

They untie me and take me into a ravaged back office. Every drawer was torn out and spread throughout the floor.

“I need you to shut up while I make this call.”

Curly and Larry look at themselves for guidance before making a decision. A shoulder shrug and a nudge was all the response I got. I pick up the phone and dial the most dreaded number I know off hand. The first ring is interrupted by a fumbling phone on the other end.

“Hello?”

“Hey Bill.” I answer in a rushed whisper.

“Hanes? What are you doing?”

“Bill, I need you to listen to me very carefully.”

“Uh ok. Aren’t you in the bank?”

“Yes I’m in the f…”

Gotta keep my cool.

“Yes Bill. Now are you listening?”

“Yes.”

“When the truck gets here I need you to park it in the south side entryway as close to the building as you can. I can confirm that they are taking myself and the other hostage and won’t release us until we are all the way out of town. I’ve spotted some explosives. My guess is that they are going to rig the truck to blow if anything happens. You are going to have to wait until they are on the outskirts of the city so that we don’t risk collateral damage. Got that?”

“Got it.”

“I need you to be sure not to engage until after they leave the outskirts.”

“Sure thing.”

“I think I hear them coming…”

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

I cut the line to make it all that more convincing.

They drag me back to hogtie me against the manager again.

“Did they buy it?” Moe asks the henchmen.

“It was quite the performance boss.”

“Glad to hear it.” He turns back to me. “What's the next step?”

“Now we’ve got to sell it. When the truck comes, me and the manager take it going west. Once the coast is clear you guys make your way east.”

“You should have gone for a different line of work, Detective.”

“I’d put you out of business.” I say with a shit eating grin.

Thirty minutes pass. No truck. Just an unsettling calm. The manager has gotten very quiet. Looks like the hit he took early really rang his bell.

“Where’s the truck Detective?” Asks Moe, impatiently.

“You do know that thirty minutes is more of a ballpark. Armored trucks don’t exactly grow on trees.”

I know they’ll be here soon but they’ve got to hurry. If my plan is going to work I need Bill to follow exactly what I said.

“Five minutes. That’s all.”

“It’ll be here.”

“It better be.”

Moe’s calm demeanor seems to fade away as the minutes tick by. If I can’t keep him under wraps this is going to get ugly real fast.

“Fuck this!” Burst out Curly, lifting the barrel between my eyes.

It’s funny. I used to get this full body tingle when I had a loaded gun pointed at me. Kind of a warm feeling now.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“What does it look like? It’s been thirty minutes. I’m shooting him.”

“Put that thing down.”

“Come on Boss. We told them thirty minutes. If we don’t off one of these guys then we look bad.”

“I said put it down.”

Looks like he’s gotten his cool back. Suddenly, the rev of an engine breaks through the silence. It’s here.

“Alright load them in.”

“Hold on. You guys have got to think. Hey dirty harry. Grab that stack of cash and some tape from one of the kiosks.”

“What? Why?”

“Just grab it will you.”

Moe gives him an approving nod and he brings it all to me.

“Now what you want to do is tape a bunch of those bills together and then in the truck you’ll be able to cover up the windows. That way they can’t ID anyone.”

“Do it.”

Watching the fumble about trying to tape the bills together made me assume they were the kids who ate paste.

“Alright. Decoy is ready, we will head west and once the force follows us you’ll head east.”

“Actually…” Moe says, taking the safety off and pressing the chilling metal to the back of my head. “He’s going. You're coming with us.”

Guess I don’t really have a choice. The last hostage looks like a deer in the headlights. It’s the only way we can get everyone out.

“I’m sorry guys but I can’t join your little A-team.”

“Not exactly, Detective. You simply pose too much of a threat if we just left you unsupervised.”

“Fair point. You know I take back all the things I’ve thought about you.”

“We will see if you make jokes when you’re begging for your life.”

“We’ll see if you piss your pants when that barrel is pointed at you.”

The atmosphere got a lot darker as the truck drives away. Curly is the most fidgety, constantly readjusting his grip. He’s most likely to act on instinct and make a mistake. Larry has steady hands but his eyes keep veering off of me. Probably the best to catch off guard. Moe is focused. Always looking for the slightest danger. Won’t be catching him off guard. They cuff me and make our way to the west exit. Not a soul in sight. The plan seems to have gone perfectly. Now let’s just hope my investment pays off. If I’m going to get out of this alive I’ve only got one shot at this. We make our way through the alley carefully examining the surroundings. Larry to my left, Curly to my right and Moe at point.

Come on Kid. Where are you?

Their heavy steps crunching through the fresh snow give off a lot of cover. If I’m going to act I’ve got to get out of these cuffs. I’m left handed so I guess I’ll have to sacrifice the right one. Cuffs are too tight to slip out so I’ll have to break my thumb. Haven’t done that since I was a POW and that hurt like hell. Don’t really have a choice now. I’ve just got to wait for the right moment.

Come on Kid.

I squeeze my right thumb tightly in the palm of its hand and place my other thumb firmly against the back of it.

I need you soon Kid.

I catch myself looking for her in every alleyway, but it’s dead quiet. Seems like a storm brewed while we were inside. Looks like I’m alone. OK I can’t just slip out of it with them all on such high alert. I know…I’ll fall and slip towards Larry. That’ll be my chance. Never really cared much for the sneaky tricks but when push comes to shove. A small rock up ahead. Perfect, I'll use that. In a stern step I smash my foot against the rock causing me to twist my ankle. As I fall I make sure to twist my body so that I land on my back hitting Larry to the ground with me. The impact is the worse part. A spine chilling crack as I land on my placed hands. Did a fucking good job. The thumb is completely out of its socket. The pain is teeth gritting. Not to mention the landing knocked the wind out of me.

“Fuck!” I try to scream out as my lungs seize from inside of my body.

I’m successful. There should be enough space to get out now.

“Get the fuck up!” Curly yells, whipping his gun at me.

Not yet regained my breath, I gasp like a fish out of water trying desperately to get up.

“Are you listening? Get the fuck up!” He yells again.

All the while Larry behind me starts brushing the snow off.

“Freeze!”

A voice that echoes through the blinding snow. Curly whips over to find Ashe fifteen yards away. This is it.

In a violent tug, I tear the cuffs off my crooked hand and grab at Larry’s rifle slapping it out of his unaware hands. As he scrambles to retrieve it I manage to get hands on it first causing him to fall flat on his face. Right in front of the barrel. As I pull the trigger the bullet flies clean from one temple blasting a bloody confetti along the pure white snow. As I hear two shots fired I take aim at Moe. In an instinctive moment, I fire the next shot at his knee causing it to buckle. I continue my rotation to Curly to be met by a sprinkling of blood and snow as his body falls to my right. Shot straight through the chest. Nice one kid. I turn my aim back to Moe as I struggle to make it up to my feet.

“Hands behind your head!” I command.

I’ve seen a face like his before. A broken man. In an instant his whole life… devastated. I make my way to him placing myself at his back as his body slowly loses its will to live. Every step closer to him makes my blood rush. My fingers etching grooves into the grip of the rifle.

Fuck. It’s here again.

Like a taunting succubus I can hear its call.

Kill him.

My mouth salivating at the thought.

Kill him.

I make it to the shadow of the man who commanded so much loyalty just a moment ago.

Kill him.

Why not? Who knows how many lives he’s taken. I’m ridding the world of just another piece of shit.

I take the shot. His head opens from the front creating a beautiful Jackson Pollock along the brick wall.

“Scott?” a faint voice nips at my ear.

Haley? Fuck. What did I just do? I lost it. They fucking took over again. I can’t lose her too.

“Kid! Look…”

I’m interrupted by a haunted sight. In the snow bleached sky, blood soaks the ground.

Ashe is down.