Featured image by Bruno /Germany from Pixabay
Despite my trepidation about the dealer in Birmingham, the transaction went smooth. Almost too smooth. He gave us one of the keys and told us he would lock the other inside of the vehicle when it was done. Ended up buying a 2014 Lexus ES 350, that Lexus shade of beige so pale it disappears when an albino stands next to it. Paid the dealer to put new struts and tires on it. He showed us the lot where he would park it and said it would take about two weeks to get the plates from IL. Yes, he would make sure the tank was full. They even let me use their computer to print out an insurance card for the glove box.
That reminds me. I need to check in with the woman who collects the mail and pays the bills for three of my companies. She has been dipping into the funds a bit heavy. It appears there are now three credit cards issued to the company which I don’t carry or have stashed. Why do women always try to suck the life out of a man? Before I leave this life I’m going to find the people who came up with that “because I’m worth it” campaign. They ruined all females everywhere. Sentenced women to a series of broken relationships only to die old, alone and bitter, blaming all males for what really is their own damned fault. Yes, the people behind that campaign deserve the 180 day treatment. You are only worth what you earn as determined by others, not what you feel entitled to take.
I no longer got any shit about wanting new suspension under a vehicle. Everyone noticed the difference in the ride of the Avalon. They only thought it rode good before. People just don’t take care of cars anymore. One high speed chuck hole or hard turn and we could have been dead. People only boost a perfect car in the movies.
We took turns driving to our destination in New Orleans. Very little talk happened during the drive. Nobody even complained when I tuned to an NPR station. The weight of what was coming was starting to set in. For all of their oddities the Acrobats were professionals. This time we were walking in cold. They had never done that.
The human instinctual tendency is to wrap yourself in body armor carrying as many weapons as you can. Nobody can deny that. It’s that self preservation trait. Training and experience teach you that nobody walking around in 100+% humidity on an 80 degree evening wearing body armor or carrying half a dozen weapons will go unnoticed. The hats and t-shirts we bought in Richmond would be all of the body armor we could afford. We had to look like tourists. Part of me regretted not having stopped at some tourist trap on the way here so we at least looked like tourists who had been in New Orleans a while.
I parked about 3 blocks away from the address Slim had memorized. The trunk held our company phones in one bag and their batteries in another. Could not risk tossing them just yet. Might need the access they could give us.
Part of me wished we had stopped for beer and plastic cups to complete our tourist look, but, that would tie up a hand. I only had silencers for two of my pistols. What we had to do would have to be done with blades most likely. Assuming there was anything for us to do other than leave.
Stretch derailed my mental train. “So, how do you want to play this Old Timer?”
Which of you is the best shot with a pistol? Before you answer, it will be this pistol with this silencer on the end. No, they don’t work like in the movies. It’s still going to sound like a door slamming. Now that it is getting dark, there will be a flash. You have to carry it concealed to the rear of this place keeping an eye on the door while peaking in the various windows. When the big sticky chunks hit the fan, draw and kill whoever is in there trying to kill us.”
None of us have shot a silencer before” offered Stretch. “We are all about the same at the 25 yard range, depends on the day. I think I’m tall enough to look in the windows without trying to jump or attracting too much attention, so it will be me.”
Ordinarily I would have Slim lift Giant to peak in a front window or three, but, I’m guessing the location was chosen for a reason.”
Care to tell us what you are thinking?” asked Giant.
Henry’s dead, the money’s gone and teams have the front door zeroed in by snipers. That would be my first guess.”
How many guesses you got?” asked Giant.
More than enough to cover the rest of the walk” I responded. “Henry is in there alive and the teams have the front door zeroed in by snipers. Some fool booby trapped the door with a claymore land mine or some other kind of explosive. Company probably owns every house on the street and whoever set us up is watching a live video feed laughing their ass off. Do you want me to continue or am I damaging your calm?”
Nah. I just wanted to document how fucked I was. I’m part Russian. We like to fully describe and document our stupidity just before we go ahead and do it” replied Giant.
That I didn’t know. I mean about you being part Russian.”
I wondered where I got the trait so used a fake ID along with Ancestory.com. If you can trust their DNA test, I’m 25% Russian. When the parents were around I wasn’t old enough to even think about asking” answered Giant. “As I got older I really wanted to know where the trait of fully cataloging my stupidity came from, but, they weren’t around to ask. Now I know.”
Hmm” I mused.
What?” asked Giant.
If you were Scottish you would catalog the stupidity then say you didn’t mind as long as they paid you first” I responded.
[…] <Previous Part Next Part> […]