Jake fidgets, twisting against the grip holding him.
"Get the hell off of me!" he shouts.
"Calm down," a familiar voice says, sternly.
Jake turns to see Marcus in the seat beside him.
"Before you start, just listen, please. I can explain."
"You better have one hell of an explanation! What the hell are you doing here? And the answer better be, this is all a big misunderstanding—a classic case of wrong time, wrong place!"
"Just listen! I know what you said, but these guys gave me no choice! They said they were going to kill my mom if I didn't run with them… Said they'd kill you too."
"Did our last conversation mean nothing?! What did I say? This isn't some game! If you or your mom were at risk, you come to me. Point blank. Period! What the hell were you thinking?!"
"I—I was just doing what you said. You told me I put people at risk, so I was trying not to drag anyone els..."
Marcus's shout cuts him off. "People were killed, for Christ's sake! What the hell were you thinking?! You could've died, Jake! Does that mean nothing to you?!"
Jake shouts back, tears in his eyes. "You don't think I know that?! Do you have any idea what I went through tonight? I—I…"
Jake falls silent for a moment.
Then lets it out. "I killed someone…"
Marcus freezes. "Y-you… what?" He falls silent, the fire draining from him, his posture sagging like a coach who just realized he failed his player.
"Marcus I…"
Marcus brings up a hand, cutting Jake off without a word.
Finally he breaks the silence. "Jake, you had the right cards in front of you. Yet, you still chose the wrong hand."
"My hands are tied, son." He pauses. "The law doesn't bend, not for me, you, not anyone... I have no choice but to take you in."
Jake's voice cracks. "H…he drew first! I couldn't just let him kill someone. There wasn't time, everything happened so fast. I just reacted."
"Jake, enough." He exhales slowly. "There's nothing more to say. Samantha, take us to the station."
"Marcus, come on. Don't you think you're being a little rash." Samantha cuts in. "He killed a criminal! You heard him, they threatened his family. What choice did he hav…"
"Enough! Take us to the station or get the hell out and let me drive!"
The car falls silent, Samantha looks back at Jake in the mirror, then starts the engine.
Marcus I…
Jake can't find his voice, Marcus's disappointment pressing down on him.
Marcus doesn't say another word for the rest of the drive.
They pull into the station, concrete and light closing in around them.
Marcus gets out and opens Jake's door. He cuffs Jake and escorts him into the station, refusing to meet his eyes.
He hands Jake over to an officer, but before leaving, he turns him back and grips his shoulder.
A tear slips down his cheek as he speaks. "This is something you're going to have to live with for the rest of your life. You didn't have to take this path. There were other ways out." He swallows. "You had me."
Jake shrugs off his hand. "Yeah? And you would've helped me?" His voice tightens. "Like you're helping me now?" He turns his back to Marcus and waits for the officer.
Marcus's hand lingers, then falls away.
"All good here?" The officer chimes in.
Marcus gives him a nod, and the officer begins to escort Jake away.
I'm sorry Mark… But, he has to learn.
Marcus turns away and walks out of the station without turning back.
Jake peeks over his shoulder, watching him go.
Later, Jake sits in a detention cell, alone with his thoughts.
Did I do this to myself?
I mean why didn't I hesitate?..
I don't even know Slim like that.
So why?
If I'd done nothing… would any of this have happened?
Would…
His thoughts are cut short as the door buzzer sounds, and someone enters behind him.
A manila folder slides across the table in front of Jake.
"The guy you shot was as dirty as they get. Thought it was funny to beat on women and steal from them. If you ask me, you did the everyone a service." The woman's voice feels familiar.
Samantha steps into view.
"Listen, Jake, we don't have a lot of time. There's a way out of all this, but we need to move fast. All I need to know is: are you in?" She meets his eyes and holds them.
"In for what?" He looks at her, confused. "Does Marcus know you're in here?"
"Listen. Marcus is one of the good ones, he follows the law to a T, but this time he's wrong. What you did wasn't stupid. It's not something you should be ashamed of—and it's definitely not something you should spend the next twenty years behind bars for." She pauses for a moment.
"You did what you thought was right and made a decision under pressure to protect your own. That instinct—protecting the people beside you—that's commendable."
Jake hears the words and feels something ease inside him.
"But Marcus said…"
"Forget Marcus for now. What I'm offering you is a way out. No jail time. Tyler out of the picture. And you get your life back."
"What do you mean? How could-I? Marcus said there was nothing he could do."
"Well, Marcus isn't the one here now, is he? Listen—you need to make a choice, and you need to make it now. We're running out of time. And the longer you're gone the more suspicious they're going to get."
"What? Who are you talking about?"
"Jake. No more questions. Are you in or out?"
He takes a moment, everything that's happened rushing back at once.
Got nothing left to lose.
Jake lifts his head. "I'm in."
"Good. Now let's get out of here." Samantha calls in the officer from earlier, to removes Jake's cuffs.
"Appreciate the help. We'll take him from here." She offers a quick smile.
She quickly escorts Jake out of the station and into the side door of a van.
"Listen, Jake. I know you probably have a million questions. For now, all I need you to do is go back to the warehouse and act like everything's normal."
"Wait, you want me to go back there?" His voice spikes. "Those assholes left me for dead!"
"That's exactly what I want you to do. If we're going to take these guys down, we need you on the inside," she says, eyes fixed on the road.
"What do you mean take these guys down? I thought the we were done with them?"
"This is how you get out clean. We wait, we plan, and we catch them red-handed. Then we shut the entire operation down. But we need time and that's what you're going to go buy us. So go back there and act like everything's fine. Only difference now is I'll have eyes and ears in the room."
She reaches back and drops a button-sized device into his hand. "Here, put this somewhere no one will find it."
"And this goes in your ear." She passes him an even smaller device.
"You want me to wear a wire?! What if someone finds it?"
"Relax. No one's going to sniff you out. And that thing doesn't even classify as a wire, it's a button-sized transmitter. Now stop freaking out. Just act normal and you'll be fine."
Jake fiddles with the device, fascinated by how small it is.
"Okay, we're almost there. Get ready, I'm going to drop you a mile out, so no one spots us."
She pulls the van to a stop and turns back to him. "Remember just act normal. Now go."
"That's it?! What if they notice something's off?"
"Just go already! Every second you wait makes you look more suspicious. It's going to be fine!" She shoos Jake out of the van.
Jake slides the door open and steps out.
She yells from the front seat, "Just be normal! And put that thing in, it'll be like I'm right there with you!"
The door slams shut as she takes off.
Jake shakes his head, devices in hand. He takes a deep breath.
Here goes nothing…
He clips the button to the inside of his shirt, slips the piece into his ear, and heads for the warehouse.
Jake approaches the warehouse and slips in through one of the bay-side doors.
He walks in to see the others grouped together, being addressed by an unfamiliar face.
*Can you hear me?* Samantha's voice crackles in his ear.
*Don't answer—this isn't a two-way comm. I'm patching into their old security feed now. Give me a second… and—done.*
Jake drifts toward a stack of crates, keeping his head down.
*Lovely place, real five-star operation they've got here… Do these guys usually look so nervous?*
The feed catches Tyler beside a sharply dressed man in a charcoal suit and fedora, a crimson pocket square at his chest as he addresses the group.
She zooms in on the man.
*That's Dennis Pettinelli. He's an enforcer for the Brotherhood. Get closer. I need to hear what he's saying.*
Jake eases closer and blends into the crowd.
"You boys did good. Keep deliverin', and we'll make sure you're fed well." A thick Brooklyn accent colors every word.
"Who knows, a few more jobs like this and we'll talk about something a little more permanent."
He snaps his fingers, and his men toss massive duffel bags full of cash onto the table in front of everyone.
"We'll be in touch soon."
The man strides off, his men at his back.
*Crowd's relaxing. That wasn't just a payday. The Brotherhood only fronts that much cash when they're expanding operations. Looks like they've got their eyes on your boys.*
These aren't my boys…
* See if you can pull anything from Tyler.*
Jake hesitates for a second, then slips his hands into his pockets and wanders toward Tyler.
As he's about to reach Tyler, a hand slams into his chest, forcing him back—Slim.
"Where the hell have you been?" he presses.
Jake tenses up.
"I was —uh..."
*Just stay calm. Remember—normal.*
Shit! I got nothing.
Tyler moves in, cutting off the interrogation.
"Jake, my man! You made it back in one piece. Told you he would, Slim."
Jake eases up, unclenching his hands.
"Yeah…ha. Just barely."
Slim cuts back in. "The place was swarming with uniforms, how'd you manage to get out?"
Tyler watches him carefully, expression unreadable.
Jake swallows. "Well the dumpster you guys left me in made for one hell of a hiding spot. The smell alone kept them from checking it." He wafts his armpits. "I just waited for the coast to be clear and made a run for it…"
Tyler plugs his nose. "Well, happy you made it out!"
*Nice one…*
"Hmm. Lucky… cops seem to miss a lot these days." Slim turns away.
"Is that the thanks I get for saving your ass?"
Slim grabs Jake by his shirt, fingers inches from the transmitter. "You must've hit your head in that dumpster. Don't forget who you're talkin' to."
Tyler wedges himself between them. "Down Slim! Jeez! What's gotten into you?"
Slim lets out a sharp breath, then turns away.
"Tonight we celebrate! Crank the music and there better be some broads here within the hour!"
Tyler gestures Jake forward. "Come with me for a sec." Slim goes to follow, but Tyler stops him with a wave.
*Well… this just got interesting. Let's see what he wants.*
Jake trails Tyler up the stairs toward an office that overlooks the warehouse below.
The door clicks shut. Tyler motions for Jake to take a seat.
"Funny how things started turning around right after you joined." Tyler circles the desk, searching through something just out of Jake's sight.
Shit, he knows.
"I've been thinking to myself why that is?"
Jake's shoulders tighten as the room falls quiet.
"And now I think I know why…"
Fuck, how does he know?!
Tyler slaps him on the back and hands him a glass. "You must be my good luck charm."
Jake eases back into his seat and exhales.
*Not going to lie I thought you were toast for a second there.*
Ha. He lets out a relieved laugh.
"I'm serious, Jake. I knew I had a good feeling about you ever since that china shop job."
Tyler pulls out a fine bottle of scotch and pours Jake a glass.
"I know it's soon, but there's something special about you. Slim's gonna hate it—but I want you to be a capo."
Jake blinks.
Capo?
*Just a fancy word for lieutenant, Jake.*
Tyler keeps talking, unaware of Jake's confusion. "I know it sounds like a lot. You'd still be under Slim, of course, but you'd outrank all the rest of the crew. Comes with a pretty nice bonus, too."
"I…uh."
"Ah-ah. Let me finish."
"You've proved yourself to the gang and it seems you've got an angel on your shoulder for when things go to shit. That's the kind of person I need if we're going to grow."
*This changes everything. It could shave months off the operation. Hell we could get this done in a week.*
"Now I know we started off on the wrong foot—all the threats to your mom and all that, but what do you say? Water under the bridge? He holds his cup out, waiting.
Jake doesn't respond right away.
The boy who died in his arms.
The man he shot.
Marcus walking away.
There's no going back now…
The glasses clink.
"Atta-boy!" Tyler grins—then the smile fades. "Now that you're on board, let's talk work. Those guys weren't here just to congratulate us. They've got another job. And it's soon."
He extends his hand. "Take this."
Tyler presses a burner phone into his hand.
"Keep it on you. Job's in two days. I'll fill you in later—but for now, it's time to celebrate." He downs his drink.
"Now, I'd invite you to stay, but… you smell like shit. So go home. Can't have you scaring off the ladies."
Jake sniffs himself and winces. "Can't argue with that." He nods at Tyler, "Won't let you down boss."
Enjoy the party… while you still can.
Jake starts toward the door.
"Here—don't forget your signing bonus!"
Tyler tosses him a fat wad of cash. Jake catches it against his chest.
"Big things are coming our way, Jakey." He exhales, satisfied.
He opens the door and leaves.
Jake heads down the steps. He feels Slim's eyes on him from across the room.
I see you.
You'll get what's coming soon enough…
*That's more than I was making at your age.* Samantha chimes in.
*That's being confiscated, just to be clear. Now get your ass back to the drop, so we can debrief.*
After my cut. Feel free.
Jake exits the warehouse, tucking some of the cash into his back pocket.