"What do you think of the fireworks?" Tracy asked him.
"I think you went overboard, kiddo," Mark chuckled, "Enough to do two or three jobs."
"I figured I’d get enough for the fourth," Tracy told him, "Besides, I didn’t know what would be good for this."
"The 400 pack of firecrackers will be perfect," Mark told her, "Should sound like a war zone if placed in an alley across the street."
"I’ll take two of them," Claire said, "I’ll hit two of the alleys."
"Good idea," Tracy said, "Should give us plenty of time to hit."
"Claire," Mark said between mouthfuls of food, "Did you walk the alley?"
"After they left," Claire nodded, "It connects behind the tenement next door."
"What address?" Tracy asked.
"156 Cross," Claire told her, "Two blocks from where we did the Robbins job last year."
"I know that place," Tracy said, "It used to be a crack house. We used to have to pull my brother out of that hell hole."
"Remember the layout of the place?" Mark asked her.
"Sure," Tracy nodded, "Straight shot through. Used to take Tommy through the side to avoid seeing more of his addict friends."
"Good," Mark said, "That’s how we’ll do it. Go through the tenement when and out the side when the fireworks start."
"Quick in and out," Claire said, "I’m all for that."
"How do we disguise ourselves?" Tracy asked, "Sexy or like street people?"
"You went sexy last night, right Claire?" Mark asked her.
"Yep," Claire smiled and winked at Mark, "Too bad you missed it."
"I’ll miss it again tonight," Mark said, "I want you to go polar opposite. Get dirty. Really dirty. I want you to play a street girl tonight."
"What about me?" Tracy said, "You and I playing street people?"
"I’m going with a t-shirt and jeans combo," Mark said, "You can go ahead and put on that tight skirt of yours. They’ll think twice about shooting you if you look good."
"Right-o," Tracy said and turned to Claire, "I’ll help you dirty up if you help me primp up, deal?"
"Sounds like a plan to me," Claire grinned, "You realize Mark that you’ll have to help me clean up later."
"Right," Mark chuckled, "I’ll get the weaponry ready. Come get me if you need me."
The girls giggled and went off to get themselves ready. Mark spent the better part of the next hour preparing the pistols, making sure they were clean of fingerprints, right down to the bullets themselves. Having cleaned them off he put them in cloth bags, bags that would serve the dual purpose of concealment and shell collection.
Mark then picked up a canvas bag for Claire to carry. He unwrapped the firecracker packs and rolled them up so they would be easy for her to lay out, light and go. He looked through a desk drawer and found his old Zippo to put in the bag for her as well.
Satisfied with his work, he sat back on the couch and turned on the television, flipping channels idly while he waited for Tracy and Claire to emerge. He stopped on some reruns of the three stooges and laughed for a few minutes until they came out. It was all he could do to keep from laughing his head off when he looked at Claire.
"Holy shit," Mark said, chuckling, "You look like you spent the night in a dumpster, hon."
"I thought that’s the idea," Claire smiled, "To look like I belong."
"It is," Mark nodded and then took a look at Tracy, "Very nice, Trace."
Tracy was dressed up in a style that the three of them had dubbed early prostitute. She was a very well proportioned young woman, and the dark form fitting clothes she was wearing very much affirmed that fact. Claire, who was also very well proportioned, was much better hidden under the layer of dirty clothes that made her look very much like a street person.
"I guess I win the cuteness battle for tonight," Tracy grinned mischievously.
"That’s all right," Claire told her, "I’ll just convince Mark to help me wash off later."
"You get to have all the fun," Tracy chuckled.
"It’s getting dark," Mark said, "It’s time to get moving. Park the car over on third and walk over?"
"Fourth," Tracy told him, "They’ll ticket your ass on third."
"All right," Mark nodded, "Let’s go. All ID is on the table?"
"Yep," Claire nodded, "I’m an unperson."
"Me too," Tracy said, "I’m assuming you’ll leave your license in the car?"
"Right," Mark nodded, "We get pulled before the job we cancel it if we can get away without being arrested."
"Check," Claire nodded, "Let’s get this over with."
"Let’s go," Tracy said, taking her bag.
The three of them went out to Mark’s old, beat up dodge and drove slowly down to Fourth Street. He was careful not to break any traffic laws and went with the flow of traffic. He found a poorly lit parking place and expertly parallel parked the car. He looked at the girls and smiled.
"You two ready for this?" he asked them.
"Ready as I ever am," Claire shrugged, "How about you, Trace?"
"It’s hunting season," Tracy smiled, "Just let me at them!"
"Don’t fire until I give the ok," Mark reminded her, "Once the first shot is fired there’s no going back."
"Right," Tracy nodded, though her excitement was evident, "Let’s go!"
"Keep it calm, chickie," Mark said to Tracy, "Claire, you go first. Scope the area. If you see something out of line signal us and we’ll abort."
"Check," Claire nodded, "See you on the flip side guys."
Claire climbed out of the car and started stumbling around a little, making herself into one of the street people. That type of person rarely had any discernable pattern, something that Claire knew and took care to avoid. She did her best to look like she had no aim in life. She was moving slowly down the street as Mark and Tracy watched from the car.
Chapter 4
"How long do we need to wait?" Tracy asked Mark, "I’m getting edgy."
"It’ll take Claire some time to work her way down the street," Mark said as he leaned back, "Relax Trace. We’ve still got time yet."
"Maybe not," Tracy said, "Cop is coming and looking at us closely."
"Shit," Mark said, "Last thing we need is to be questioned."
"Come here," Tracy said and pulled him to her, "Kiss me before he starts asking questions."
Mark looked at her for a second and recognized the dodge. He put his arms around her and starting kissing her deeply. She got into the act as well, giving a good enough show that the cop smiled a little and passed them by. The police officer figured they weren’t hurting anything and that he’d only say something if they were still at it later. They continued until the cop was safely away.
"That was close," Mark said, "Good idea."
"I’ve had worse," Tracy admitted, smiling a little, "Now I see what Claire sees in you. You’re one hell of a kisser."
"Funny," Mark chuckled, "Now let’s get moving. Claire should be just about in position."
"No sense of humor," Tracy chided, "Ok, let’s get this over with."
They got out of the car and walked lazily over to Third Street. Claire was almost to the alley that she planned to use to light off the fireworks.
Mark kept his eye on Claire to make sure that her end was going well. Claire barely even noticed them, however, as her eyes were mainly street level, just like the average street person’s eyes are.
"Looks good on her end," Mark said quietly, "I want you to go scope out that back route into the alley. I’m going to do a quick walk by and see if they are there yet."
"Right," Tracy nodded and increased her speed a little.
Mark rubbed his temple a little and walked quickly by the alley, his peripheral vision taking in the five people that were dividing the illicit proceeds of the night’s drug trading.
Claire’s descriptions had been accurate, they were there and not paying too much attention. He knew t
hat if Tracy was right about the back way they stood a good chance of taking them all without a shot fired in return.
He walked back towards the tenement and met Tracy out front. She was smiling and nodding silently. He knew that meant that it looked good to her. The door was still open. Mark turned towards where Claire was examining some trash. She looked at him and he nodded to her. All three of them knew that the job was a go.
Chapter 5
"Let’s do it," Mark told Tracy.
Tracy merely nodded and led the way into the dank and dirty building. They both put on their gloves and Mark pulled the two pistol bags out of his jacket. He handed Tracy one of the bags and they got ready to attack. They were waiting for Claire to start the fireworks.
"You take the two on the left," Mark said, "I get the ones on the right. I want quick headshots. These are silenced 9mm pistols. Body shots may give them time to retaliate. I’d prefer to avoid that. If the leader doesn’t draw a weapon, let him live for a bit until I question him."
"Right," Tracy nodded, not caring much. She was itching to get moving.
Claire stumbled into the alley and pulled out the first batch of firecrackers. Mark had worked up an elongated fuse, so she had plenty of time to light it and stumble out of the alley. She was nearly thirty feet away when it started going off.
"Go!" Mark exclaimed as he heard the first crackers go.
The two of them went out the door and their silenced pistols started firing. The two in the back went down before they knew anything else was wrong. Two more silenced shots from Mark’s gun brought down the one next to the front. Tracy fired three moderately well placed shots, taking down the fourth guard. The leader turned around quickly and thought about getting his gun, but Tracy stopped that idea cold. She fired a single shot into his left knee, sending the drug dealer down to the pavement.
"I told you not to kill him, Cowgirl," Mark said testily, "I want to talk to him."
"He’s still breathing," Tracy said dryly, "So talk."
"Don’t kill me!" the drug dealer almost shrieked, "Please don’t kill me!"
"I’d suggest answering my questions," Mark told him, "Then maybe you will live."
"You’re going to die for this!" the dealer said, "My boss will have you tortured for this!"
"What boss is that?" Mark asked the bleeding man, "Quickly, so I’ll know who to quake at before you die."
"Fuck you!" the dealer said, "I tell you that and he’ll kill me!"
"If you don’t tell me," Mark said quietly, "Cowgirl here will kill you before he has a chance."
The cold look in Tracy’s eyes was enough to make the wounded dealer want to talk. She was a pretty girl, but Tracy’s hatred for anyone dealing in drugs was overpowering. The man lying in the dirt was less than a worm to her, someone that she’d rather see dead than walk away.
"Walker Robinette," the dealer said, deciding that if he was going to die his boss was going with him, "He put us out here and said no one would bother us."
"That son of a bitch," Tracy said, "I knew we should have killed him last time."
Walker Robinette had a major reputation as a high-level drug dealer. Mark, Claire and Tracy had nearly killed him a year ago, but had held off because they were still a little squeamish about killing at the time. It was a mistake they had long come to regret, as they had taken out several of Robinette’s groups since then.
"Where are the drugs?" Mark asked him.
"What is left is in the trunk," the dealer said, "Along with the weapons that seem to have done us no good."
"Thanks for the information," Mark said, "You can finish him off now, cowgirl."
"Wait!" the dealer said, "I can get you Robinette!"
"How?" Mark asked him.
"I’m supposed to meet him in an hour," the dealer said, talking fast trying to save his life, "I meet him along with his uptown dealers every night to hand over money and pick up product."
"Where?" Mark asked him coldly.
"State Street!" the dealer exclaimed, "We park in the Roosevelt Hotel’s lot and make the trade. It’s a quick in and out."
"Thank you," Mark said then pulled the trigger, ending the dealer’s life quickly.
"Spoilsport," Tracy said.
"We’re running out of time," Mark said, "Search the bodies. Take any cash you find. I’m going to pop the trunk."
"Right," Tracy nodded, "Let’s do this quick."
Mark quickly popped the trunk of the car and found the remains of the drugs. He sliced the packets with a knife found in the trunk and dumped the packs into a barrel. He then looked at the weapons and let out a low whistle.
"Good lord," Mark said, "These assholes were loaded for bear."
"Anything good?" Tracy asked him as she rifled bodies and collected cash.
"Sniper rifle," Mark replied, "Might be a good thing to take down Robinette with."
"Any cash up there?" Tracy asked, "I’ve found some, but not enough."
"Yeah," Mark nodded, "A briefcase full. We’ll take the case and the rifle."
"Good," Tracy said, "Let’s get out of here then."
"Do any of them have lighters?" Mark asked her.
"This one had a Zippo," Tracy said.
"Light it and toss it in the barrel," Mark said, "We’ll leave the same way we came."
"Right," Tracy nodded and followed instructions, setting the flammable narcotics ablaze.
"Let’s book," Mark said, tossing Tracy the case of money, "Keep good hold of that."
Tracy smiled and followed Mark. They walked normally through the building and out the front door. People were still looking at the alley where Claire’s fireworks went off. The bodies were not public yet, which was good news for them. They saw that Claire was most of the way back up the block.
"Walk quickly," Mark said, "But don’t run. We don’t need the attention."
"Right," Tracy said, her adrenalin still up, "God, that was a rush."
"It’s not over yet," Mark said icily, "We’re going to go get that son of a bitch Robinette once and for all."
"He’ll have guards," Tracy said quietly as they walked.
"I have a sniper rifle," Mark countered, "I doubt they’ll be prepared for that."
"Let’s hope," Tracy said, not liking how fast this was going.
They managed to get to the car without incident and found Claire waiting there for them. Mark unlocked the car and the three of them got in quickly. He fired up the engine and pulled out of the parking space quickly. He breathed a sigh of relief as they drove out of the area.
"Did you actually do it?" Claire asked them, "I saw no signs of movement from there."
"In and out," Mark said, "Five down, we burned the drugs and took the cash."
"Piece of cake," Tracy nodded, "Though I think Mark wants to do something else tonight."
"What?" Claire asked him, "Did you find out who their boss was?"
"Walker Robinette is back," Mark said, "He’s meeting some of his cronies on State street in an hour."
"A frontal attack on him is madness," Claire said, "His goons will be armed to the gills."
"Open the long case," Mark said, "Just keep it low."
Claire did so and whistled at what she saw. It was a high-powered sniper rifle, one of the high dollar models that are usually used by police and military snipers. Claire had never seen one, though she had heard Mark describe it in the past.
"They had this?" Claire asked him, "Christ."
"So what’s the plan?" Tracy wondered, "We find a place and just whack him?"
"Not worth it for that," Mark said, "We hit them and take the cash."
"How?" Claire asked.
"We go into the old Clayton building," Mark said, "They have a doorman, but no security cameras. We can slide in the back."
"Not going to have time for all of us to go up and down," Claire said, "One of us has to stay low to collect the loot."
"I’ll do it," Tracy sai
d, "I’m in the mood for more."
"I can carry more," Claire said, "Besides, you’ve taken enough risks for one night, Trace."
"Why don’t we both go?" Tracy asked.
"I need one of you to spot for me," Mark said, "I can’t watch the whole scene with a scope like you can with the binoculars."
"You sure you can use that thing?" Claire asked him, "Have you ever fired anything that large."
"I've used hunting rifles. It’s a good weapon and a short distance," Mark said, "I should be able to get kill shots fairly easily."
"She’s not really dressed for this," Tracy said, "She still looks like a street person, who will stick out like a sore thumb up there."
"You’re not much better dressed," Claire reminded her, "And I can carry the stuff better."
"You’ve also got good eyes," Mark said, "Claire can do the street run better than you can anyway. You go into the building with me."
"You’re the boss," Tracy grumped, "You want my pistol, Claire?"
"Keep it," Claire said, "I’ll take Mark’s. You’ll have to watch his back anyway. He’ll be wide open while he’s aiming this monster."
"Put gloves on and reload it," Mark said as he handed the bag to Claire, "There’s a clean box of shells under the seat."
Mark drove quickly and pulled into the deserted parking lot next to the Clayton building. He took the rifle from Claire and smiled at her. She grinned and just shook her head at him. Tracy looked around nervously.
"How do we do this?" Tracy asked.
"They do it in the Roosevelt lot," Mark said, "We’ll break into an office on the south side that gives us a full view of the lot. Claire, you may want to take a position by the dumpster. When they all go down grab any cases you can and get out of there. We’ll pick you up and get out of the area."
"Right," Claire nodded, "No worries there. Have no intention of being there when the cops come."
"If I screw up stay put and melt into the alley," Mark said, "Don’t engage them yourself unless you’re forced."
"Stop worrying about me and get yourself psyched," Claire smiled, "Take care of him, Trace."
"Will do," Tracy nodded, "Let’s get in place before Robinette shows up."
Chapter 6
Mark slipped the lock in the back of the Clayton building and the two of them took the stairs up to the third floor. This building was old enough to still have windows that actually opened, which made setting up much easier for them. They let themselves into an office and set up in a perfect window, one that allowed Mark to have a complete field of fire over that parking lot.