Railed (Courage MC #2) (29 page)

“
M
y God
, Adam…I had no idea.” I said, wrapping my arms around him.

“
I
t’s okay
. I just want you to know it wasn’t as cut and dry as you think. We didn’t know she was UC back then. Now we know, but it’s too late. The crew went their own separate ways.”

“
W
hat about Jorge
? Where was he during all this?” I asked, trying to put two and two together. As far as I could tell, he had been a negative force in Adam’s life since day one.

“
H
e was down south
, making his own plans. I know how it looks, but I’m 90 percent sure he didn’t know she would skip town. He was never a real member of the club anyway. He came and went as he pleased.”

“
A
dam
, don’t you think it was convenient he left right before the robbery? I just doesn’t add up…”

A
dam sat up straight
. “After tonight, I wouldn’t put it past him. It doesn’t matter anymore. Nothing does. I’ve found you, Rose. I don’t want to dwell in the past. All I want from this life is to move forward and settle down. I want to put all that pain behind me.”

“
M
e too
, Adam…” I reached out and ran my fingers down his arm. “You’re all I want in this life.”

“
A
lright
, alright. Enough of the lovey-gushy stuff. Can one of you tell me why in the hell you’re standing in my house?” Daryl tapped his cane against Adam’s skull. Adam hit it away and stood up.

“
I
’ve got
an idea that’s crazy enough to work.”

“
S
hit
.
” Daryl muttered under his breath. “Go ahead. I’m listening.”

C
hapter
18

I
watched
as Adam explained the plan to Daryl in full detail. They were huddled, hunched and weary, under the yellow light of the bulb above them. Cigarette smoke filled the air, coyly wrapping against the rays. They spoke in hushed tones and Daryl kept shaking his head in disbelief.

“
I
don’t know
, man. Sounds good on paper. But will it actually work?”

“
I
t’ll work
.” Adam said with confidence.

“
L
ike hell it will
…but fuck it. What do I have to lose anyway? Another leg? I’m getting old and they’re about to let me go anyway. Might as well collect my retirement fund early.” He leaned back in his chair and stretched his arms.

“
S
o you’re in
?” Adam asked, shocked by his response.

“
I
’m in
.” He said. His mouth slowly formed into a smile and he reached over and shook Adam’s hand.

“
Y
ou won’t regret this
.” Adam said.

“
W
ho knows
if I will or not? I don’t give a damn. If my life ends in a hellfire of glory, that’s at least
something
to celebrate.”

“
L
ook
, all you have to do is make sure none of the police inside the building take a shot at me or Rose. I want no bloodshed, just smooth sailing. Got it?”

“
R
oger that
.” He said.

“
A
dam
,” I interjected. “I don’t mean to be rude, but how’s he gonna’ do that? He’s got one good leg…”

“
L
ittle girl
, do you know who you’re talking to?” He asked. “I’m the mother fuckin’ head of the bank security. I’ve been working there for 25 long years now. I know all the ins and outs of that place. Please. I could be in a wheelchair, it wouldn’t matter one bit.”

“
Y
ou seem confident
.” I said. “But when all eyes are on us, I want to rely on you. I want to know you won’t turn on us like everyone else Adam knows. How can I trust you?”

“
Y
ou can’t
. But in
our
world, you have to be willing to take some big risks. I thought you wanted to be a part of the free life. Now you’re making me think you’re just waiting to get back to mommy and daddy.”

H
e knew exactly
how to press my buttons. “Shut your mouth, Daryl. I’m not a little girl. I’m the reason we’re even at your place discussing your precious retirement fund. Just remember that, old man.”

H
e burst out laughing
. “Damn, Adam! That’s one fiery broad you got yourself! Okay, no problems here. I get it. You’re a grown up. Fine. But I want
you
to remember something too. You got police working their way up the coast just to find your ass and bring you back to the desert. Now maybe this works, maybe it doesn’t. Either way, you gotta’ make sure they don’t see your face on those cameras when you walk up to them doors. You’re going to need some good disguises.” He picked his fat body up off the chair and hobbled over to a box. “Here we go.”

H
e pulled
out a pair of Halloween costumes. “It’s simple, but they’ll do. Oh! I got myself another idea. Now, where’s that damn thing…” He went rummaging through a set of boxes in the opposite corner. He pulled out a toaster, mumbling to himself. “No…that’s not it…hmm…AHA!” He grabbed a small boom box. “Tada!”

“
A
stereo
?” Adam said, looking skeptical.

“
L
augh all you want
. This shit will distract and invoke fear in everyone inside that building. You play some old operatic shit and turn it up real loud, you’ll get everyone to listen up right quick.”

“
T
his ain’t a movie
, Daryl. In and out, remember? I’m not playing any music for anyone.”

“
Y
eah
. I like the costume idea. Let’s stick with that.” I laughed.

A
dam shook his head
. “Glad you still got an imagination though.”

“
Y
eah
, yeah. Even us old men can be creative.” He glanced at me out of the corner of his eyes. “Okay, I’ll answer your question once and for all. The team switches shifts at 1:15 PM, on the dot. That’s when you’ll move in. This has to be like clockwork. You move in and raise your guns in the air immediately. No one will notice because my people manning the screens will be out the door. There’s a two to five minute gap where you’ll be almost guaranteed to slip by. You bust in, do your thing, scare the tellers a bit – that part I love – and set the c4’s off at the vault. I’ve got a blueprint somewhere around here that we can look over beforehand. I don’t know how you heard, but construction is going down around the vault. They’re adding a new section to the bank, so the street’s gonna’ be closed. The sensors are disabled twice a week, on Tuesday and Thursday. You should be able to get in with relative ease. That all sound good to you, folks?”

W
e shook our heads
. Adam ran his dirty hands across my back and massaged the knots that had formed.

“
G
ood
. Grab the money and get the fuck out of there. This time, there can’t be a driver. The roads around the bank are closed, so I’ll get one of my guys to lend me his dirt bike.” Adam gave him an angry look. “Yeah, I get it. It’s no motorcycle. Still, you’re going to want to be good at hopping sidewalks and maneuvering through construction. You have to get from there back here. I’m sorry to say it Adam, but you’ll be walking in the sewage drain again. No worries though. You’ll be rich by the time you make your way outside. From there, it’s on you. I don’t speak to you. I don’t hear from you. You two are ghosts. Comprende, little girl?” He smiled at me.

“
C
omprende
.” I smiled back.

C
hapter
19

“
W
hatever we do
, we use this money for good, not evil. Right?” I asked Adam. We were standing behind a tree at the foot of the entrance to the forest. The bank was across the way, maybe 2 blocks in front of us, but we had a clear view from where we were standing.

“
W
e split it 50
/50 with Daryl. He deserves it. Been sitting on a broken kneecap for over a decade now. The rest of it, we keep. How else are we supposed to live free together?” He said.

I
put
a pair of binoculars to my eyes. “Look, they’re leaving.” I said. “It’s 1:15.”

“
L
ike clockwork
.” Adam whispered. “Daryl might actually have a plan after all.”

“
Y
ou doubted him
?” I asked.

“
I
doubt everyone
.”

I
laughed
. “Even me?”

“
E
specially you
.
Little girl
.” I punched his arm.

“
K
nock it off
!”

W
e watched
as the officers switched positions and I breathed a breath of fresh air.
So far so good
… I thought to myself. I began to wonder, would this really be that hard? It seemed like everything had been set in place for us to succeed. So far, we had avoided imminent death at least three times. What would stop us now? Whatever came our way, I was ready for it. “We got this.” I said.

“
D
amn right we do
.” He said. “Come on. It’s time to scope this place out.”

W
e grabbed
our things and left the forest trail. I looked back at the darkened passageway and kept walking. “If things go wrong,” He began, “you run back here and keep fucking running. You don’t look back. We meet at the end of the tunnel.”

“
G
ot it
.” I said. He grabbed a cigarette from his pocket and lit it, adjusting his sunglasses. Our clothes were pretty normal. Adam had changed into a suit and I posed as his daughter. From the looks of us, we didn’t stand out one bit.

W
ith every step
, I could feel my heart beat faster.
Thump, thump, thump…
I controlled my breathing, but still, I was full of anxiety. We were being attacked at all angles: the police were after us, the Feds, and the Cartel. Who knew who would turn on us next?

A
bove us were two cameras
.
Bang, bang.
We opened the door and were greeted by a worker. “Good afternoon, welcome to Northern Sun Bank. Are you making a deposit today?”

“
Y
es
, uh, I was looking to speak to someone about a possible loan…” Adam said, looking quite normal. I looked around the building. There were two guards in front, two in back, and I’m sure a few in the back rooms that we couldn’t even see. I started to get nervous.

“
W
ell that’s great
. Why don’t you two take a seat in Jackson’s cubicle right over there? He’s on his break, but it shouldn’t be more than 5 minutes.

“
S
ounds fantastic
.” Adam said, smiling. I don’t think I had seen him smile like that before and it took a lot of energy not to laugh out loud. We sat down and scoped the place out from our seats.

“
J
ust like the blueprints
, huh kid?”

“
Y
eah
, only it’s bigger than I thought. Adam, how are we going to control a crowd in this room?” It was three times the size that I envisioned in my head. A little girl and a man robbing a whole bank by themselves? It seemed suicidal.

“
Y
eah
, it’s not the best situation. I’ll give you that. But do you have a better plan?”

I
shook
my head in disbelief. “ I guess not.”

H
e leaned over towards me
, massaging my shoulders. He kissed my cheek. “I’m gonna’ need you to be strong for me. I know this is hard for you, but we have to make this work. If we don’t, I’m all out of options.”

J
ust then we
heard the jingle from the door open.

“
G
ood afternoon
, ma’am. Welcome to Northern Sun Bank can I—” The woman cut him off before he could finish. The man nearly fell backwards out of dumb shock, and stammered for a few seconds.

“
N
o thanks
. I’m here for other purposes.”