“Do you know when you’re seeing Crewe again?” he asked.
“Monday night, sir.”
“Alright. Anything else?”
“No sir, that’s everything so far.”
“OK, get back to it.”
“Yes, sir.”
I pulled at the door handle, but before I’d opened the door more than a crack, Sergeant Shelton grabbed me by the elbow. With the rain streaming in through even that tiny gap, I turned back to my commanding officer.
“Sarina?”
“Sir?”
“Do what you need to do, but even with such a fast start, this isn’t going to be easy. You’ve had a short and impressive career so far, and I have every faith in you, but you’re the youngest undercover cop I’ve ever supervised. And I’ve seen more seasoned officers than you lose it after being completely submerged in this shitty world for too long. Look after yourself.”
“I will… thank you, sir.”
“Don’t miss your bus.”
I dashed out into the rain again, practically sprinting for the bus stop. That was a harrowing experience that my heart, career and life might not be able to endure again.
Ryan
“One million dollars,” I said, handing my friend, Billy D, a brown paper sack under the table that looked like a giant’s lunch.
“OK, assuming nothing unforeseen comes up, that’s the last of it. Payroll, materials, and… uh… danger money are covered now, as agreed,” he said.
“Except for-”
“Anything else for the two of you?” the waitress asked.
“Not for me, thanks. Billy D?”
Back in college there were three Billys in our class, we’d taken to calling them Billy D, Billy G and Billy W (we’d pronounce it “Billy Dubya”) just for the sake of clarity. Even now that Billy D was the only one I still spoke to, I couldn’t shake the habit.
“No, I’m fine. Just the check then.”
“Sure thing.” She put her little notebook away and left.
This diner was barely within city limits, a couple streets off the main drag into Highston coming from the north. Not only was it out of the way, but they played the music pretty loud too. It was great for keeping your conversations to yourself even if people were reasonably close.
“Except for the explosives, how much more do you need now?” I asked.
“Four hundred pounds.”
My eyes widened. “That’s… a fairly big jump over the initial estimates.”
“It is, sorry. But, hey, at least you know now and if you can supply it at the same rate you have been, it’s all good, right? We’re still right on schedule.”
“I’ll have it ready in two months, two deliveries,” I said.
“Even better.”
“Yeah, easy.” I rolled my eyes. “So, hey, I forgot to ask, how’s Laura and the kids?”
“Good, man. She’s looking forward to relocating somewhere warmer when this is all over. It’s good timing too, before Brandon starts school. Great time to turn up in a new city, retired and rich from “selling my app” or some shit.”
“Sounds good to me. I think the life will suit you,” I laughed.
Billy D joined in. He was living proof that the old saying was true:
Give a man some fish and he’ll say thank you. Give a man some pussy and he’ll say thank you forever.
He’d have my back until his dying day, ever since I introduced him to his wife, who was working as a stripper to pay her college tuition fees at the time. Seven years later and they had a picture-perfect little family going on.
The waitress returned with the bill. I picked it up to have a look before sliding it across to my friend. “This must be your treat, knowing what you’ve got in that bag.”
“I’m not opening that h-”
I waved him into silence. “I know, I know. I’m just fuckin’ with ya.”
I pulled out my wallet and left a few notes on the dish with the bill before standing up. “I’ll be in touch. Thanks again, you’re doing a good job.”
“Gotta use the degree for somethin’, right?”
“Exactly. Catch you later.”
“Later.”
Billy D still had half a cup of coffee left and he sipped at it as I walked out the door. It was a happy coincidence that he happened to be exactly who I needed to really fuck the Acardis. I hoped to have time to visit him in whatever tropical paradise he called home next year.
For now, I had a shitload of work to do.
I carried a few of the smaller items I’d requested to my own private area in my lab. It was tough to keep the smile off my face.
Sure, I was making cash hand over fist for the Acardis, but if they knew how much of that money was being used to wipe them off the map, they’d shit a brick. Out there in the main area, my grunts were making F, F-Pro, and conducting a few “experiments” for me that would result in large quantities of explosives, as well as a few legitimate cases of research and development.