The Deal...

The Deal...ScrewUps

Cole

I never saw Ben so angry before. Ever. And I've known him since we were kids.

"You what?!" I just informed him about my recent activities. To say he was shocked and pissed would be the understatement of the year.

"I just thought you should know. So, you could tell her," I said.

"There's no way in hell I'm telling her that my boss slept with her mother! You ruined her parents' marriage," he accused.

"Oh well. It's her fault for her telling me not to stop."

"You bastard," he growled. "The one time I may get the chance of getting a girlfriend, and you ruin it! Why?!"

"You're focus belongs here: with the Phantom Devils. Not with some girl."

"So, you decided that it was a good idea to not only break Izabella's heart but her parents'? And mine?"

"You're Benjamin Hill. You have no heart. Now, I believe I gave you an order?" I smirked. He sneered but headed to his room. I grinned and looked back into the training room. Most people were at the shooting range in the back while everyone else was spread out. Whether they were lifting weights or practicing fighting, everyone was busy. "Keep up the good work!"

I left the room and left to my room and got ready. Black long sleeve, black jeans, black ski mask, and black combat boots. I even put black paint across my cheeks. I grabbed my lucky gun and duffel bag. I snatched my favorite knife and tucked it inside my boot. The blade never bothered me anymore, it was like another part of me.

"Cole? Everyone's ready to go," I heard Ben say from outside my bedroom door. I opened and grinned when I saw his outfit, very alike to mine.

"Great. Let's go. It's game time."

"Wait. Can I ask you a quick favor?" he wondered as we went through the building, heading down the garage.

"Make it fast."

"Can you tell Iz that you slept with her mother. And that you ruined her marriage?"

"Why me?" I questioned as we get closer. Just one more flight of stairs.

"Because it's not my place to tell." I sighed and stopped. We were only a few feet from everyone. But, we were out of hearing distance.

"Fine. Tell her to meet us at Starbucks at noon. Make sure she isn't late. I have things to do at 12:30," I told him and he nodded. "All right let's have some fun!"

"Woohoo!" he yelled and members turned their attention towards us.

"Ladies and gentlemen! I present Fourth of July Fun! For the newcomers, this is an annual tradition we do every 4th of July. We find ourselves a bank and rob it. This gives us the money so we can trade for drugs, and then we ship those drugs. No one can keep anything for personal gain, am I clear?"

"Sir, yes sir!"

"Take what you take. If you drop something, don't bother picking it up, especially if we trip the alarm, like we do every year. You fill your bag and you go back to your truck. It doesn't matter which truck. You get in and you go. You will listen to either mine or Ben's signal, letting you know that you can enter. The hackers need some time to disable the cameras. They will inform us when the cameras are down and how much time we have. The second you hear the alarm or see my signal, you go. Do you understand?"

"Sir, yes sir!" everyone repeated.

"Remember, this is a fun night. Don't be so tense. If you screw up, don't worry about it. We all did. Well, one of us didn't," I smirked to Ben and he grinned back. Ben was the only one in here who haven’t screwed up. Ever. That's why he's my best man. "All right, let's go!"

To say the raid was a success would be incorrect. I was beyond pissed.

"Ben! In my office, NOW!" I yelled at him. Everyone goes back to their separate rooms and whatever while I head up to my office, with Ben three steps behind. "Close the door."

"Cole I-"

"Shut it, Ben! How can you, out of all people, screw this up?! It was a simple plan! Wait for the cameras to deactivate, steal the cash, leave without a trace. You've done this more times than I can count. Yet somehow, this is the first time you tripped the alarm. How?" He remained quiet, with his head to the ground. "It's because of that girl, isn't it?" I assume and Ben snapped his head up.

"With no disrespect, Cole, but I wasn't the one who slept with her mother and ruined her marriage! You have no idea how upset Iz was when she saw you guys together, in the same bed! She was crying, she was hurt. How would you feel when you if you found your mom cheated on your father with your friend's boss?"

"Easy. I would beat his ass, then probably kill him. Then my mother," I simply said with a shrug.

"Of course, you're Cole Andrews. You always get your way," he scoffed.

"Look, Benjamin, what happened tonight was all that girl's fault. I could tell that she was all on your mind. So, no more contact with her. You were more uptight when she wasn't around. You were less clumsy and more dependable. You may leave," I dismissed and he nodded, leaving my office.

I sighed and rested my face in the palms of my hands. We were in slight trouble. Tonight, we were supposed to get the money, trade it in for drugs, then sell the drugs for more money. That's how we do it. But we didn't have the money this time, and we were out of drugs. Ok, let me think this through.

If we get the supply tomorrow night, at 11:30, that gives up over 24 hours to get the money for it. All we need is a couple of grand by tomorrow night. Sounds simple enough. We just need another bank. But which one was available? We robbed most of them. I'll have to do my research for the rest of the night to figure this one out.