by Bob Blanton
Matthew wheeled around to see Shirley picking up the small man’s gun. He calmly walked toward her.
She deftly clicked the safety off and pointed the gun at Matthew. “Boy, you’re as stupid as these two idiots,” she said. “What a shame, I was going to take you with us.” She pulled the trigger twice, two shots rang out and the glass window shattered.
Matthew had placed his portal in front of him and the other end on the glass window. The impact of the bullets on the portal had shattered the window while the bullets fell harmlessly in front of Matthew.
“What the hell?” Shirley said, as Matthew walked toward her. She looked at the gun then she pointed it at Matthew again and fired two more shots. When Matthew continued to walk toward her unfazed by the bullets, she threw the gun at him.
Matthew took the opportunity to rush Shirley. When he got close, he wheeled and executed a crossover kick to her chest. The kick knocked her back against the wall with such force that she passed out.
The older gentleman in the far table had been protecting his wife, but when he heard Matthew rush Shirley, he rushed over to pick the gun up. “I may be an old man, but I’ve been shooting guns all my life; so any of you yahoos want to try me, go ahead, make my day.”
“You got ‘em?” Matthew asked.
“Darn tootin’ I got ‘em,” the old guy said.
Matthew turned and walked back toward his friends and mother. Along the way he paused to stoop down and pick up the four bullets lying on the floor where Shirley had been standing. He could see the lights from a police car outside the window.
“Matt, you could have been killed!” Mrs. Brandt cried, as she rushed to her son.
Two sheriff deputies ran into the café with their guns drawn, “Everybody, hands up,” one of them yelled, as he ran over to the old man holding the gun over Shirley and the small robber.
“You boys are a little late,” the man said. “We got these robbers under control.”
“Gus, I’m glad to see you were packing your gun,” the deputy said. “Now don’t shoot me while I cuff this guy.”
“Ain’t my gun,” Gus said. He pointed to the small robber on the floor who was crying and holding his hand. “Belongs to that feller there; and while you’re at it, put a set of cuffs on Shirley.”
“No! You mean Shirley was in on it?”
“Yeah, she’s the one that fired those shots you boys heard,” Gus said. “Don’t know how she missed that young ‘un, but she did.”
The deputy grabbed the small man and put the cuffs on him. “I think this guy might have a broken wrist,” he said, as he reached for his shoulder mic. “We’ll be needing an ambulance out here.”
“This guy’s got burns on his face,” the second deputy hollered.
“Shirley, what got into you?” he said, as he put another set of cuffs on her. She was just starting to regain her senses.
“I wanted to get out of this hick town,” she said. “We would have made it if it wasn’t for Superman.”
“I’m sure Gus appreciates the compliment,” the deputy said.
“Not him, that boy over there,” Shirley said, nodding her head toward Matthew. “I shot him four times and look at him, the bullets just bounced off; and he must have used his x-ray vision to burn Bill’s hand.”
“Now, Shirley, we don’t need any of your wild stories here,” the deputy said.
By this time a second pair of deputies had arrived on the scene followed by the EMT from the ambulance.
“Here, Jerry, you and Rex take care of the prisoners; Mike and I will start getting statements.”
“Sure thing, Roy. Just these three?”
“Far as I can tell. You can question Shirley in the car, she’s always a talkative one.”
“Mike, why don’t you question Gus and his wife? I’ll talk with this family over here,” he said, motioning to Matthew and his group.
“You’re the boss,” Mike said, as he walked over to Gus to take statements.
“One of you call this in?” Roy asked, as he took out a pad and paper.
“Yes, I called as soon as they drew their guns,” Matthew said.
“Fast thinking,” Roy said. “Now let’s figure out what happened here. Young lady,” he said, pointing at Emily, “why don’t you come over here with me and I’ll take your statement. The rest of you relax and we’ll get your statements and get you on your way as soon as we can.”
“Figures he’d take Emily’s first,” Jason said.
“Just be quiet,” Mrs. Brandt said, as she sat down in a clean booth. “Matt, I can’t believe you, you could have been killed.”
“They were going to kill us anyway,” Matthew said. “Once they started shooting, they weren’t going to stop.”
“I still don’t know what happened,” Jason said. “It was all a blur.”
“I’d appreciate it if you folks wouldn’t discuss anything,” Roy said. “I don’t want to separate you, but if you don’t stay quiet, I’ll have to.”
“That’s okay; we’ll stop talking,” Mrs. Brandt said.
The cook, Bo, dusted off his apron. “Roy, is it okay if I get these folks something to drink?”
“Go ahead, just don’t touch the register or nothing.”
“I ain’t going to charge them,” Bo said, “just want to be hospitable an’ all.”
“Go ahead,” Roy said.
Bo walked over to the booth, “You folks want anything to drink?” he said. Then in a low whisper he said to Mrs. Brandt, “I got me some whiskey in the back if you need some.”
“No, thank you, but coffee would be nice,” Mrs. Brandt said.
“I’ll have a Coke,” Jason said, “and a little splash, if you would.”
“Jason,” Mrs. Brandt hissed.
“Don’t worry, Ma’am,” I ain’t serving no minors. How about you?” he asked Matthew.
“A Seven-Up,” Matthew said.
“Coming right up,” Bo said, as he went behind the counter to get their drinks.
Matthew used the time and the enforced quiet to check in on Emily.
“Now they pulled their guns out and told everyone to put their hands on the table? Is that right?” Roy said.
“Yes. Then the little one emptied the cash register.”
“What did the big guy do?”
“He just stood at the door, watching.”
“Then what?”
“Well then the small guy goes over to that couple and tells them to give him all their money and jewelry. He hollered at the big guy, Luke, to get all our stuff and our car keys.”
“He wanted your car keys?” Roy asked.
“Yes. Oh yeah, it makes sense now. When they came in, the waitress made some comment about their car and said they should get a reliable one, like a Mercedes. They made a joke about it.”
“And your car is the Mercedes?”
“Yes, the big black one out there,” Emily replied.
“Don’t need the color; there’s only one Mercedes in the parking lot, probably the only one in the whole town. Now back to them robbing you.”
“The big guy came over and demanded our stuff. That’s when the little guy pointed his gun at Gus. Gus hollered that he’d promised not to shoot anyone; then the little guy said he’d lied and it looked like he tried to shoot him.”
“Okay, then what?”
“Well, Matthew had given me his mom’s coffee; I threw it into the big guy’s face, and Matthew ran over and grabbed the little guy. I guess the safety was on or something because the gun didn’t go off.”
“Kind of stupid not having the safety off,” Roy said.
“That’s what Shirley said when she picked the gun up.”
“Is that what happened next?”
“No, first Matthew ran over here and punched the big guy in the throat. He has a black belt. Anyway, the big guy fell to his knees crying about the burns on his face and trying to breathe.”
“Okay.”
“That’s when I saw Shi
rley pick up the gun. She called them stupid, and said something about why did she pick them up.”
“Then?”
“Then she fired four shots, the window shattered behind us; I guess she missed.”
“Four times?”
“I don’t know what she was aiming at.”
Matthew whispered in Emily’s ear, “Thanks. When you’re done, tell me what Jason and Mom saw?”
“You didn’t see what she was aiming at?” Roy asked.
“When the first shot went off, I dove under the table with Jason and Mrs. Brandt,” Emily said. “We couldn’t see anything.”
After the deputies finished interviewing everybody, they compared notes.
“Seems like everything ties together except how Shirley managed to miss that boy four times,” Mike said.
“Shirley swears she shot the boy, Matthew, twice, shot the window and then shot him twice more,” Roy said. “I don’t see no bullet holes in the boy or in the café, just the busted window, so I got to believe that she’s making it up.”
“Yeah, the boy says that when she pointed the gun at him, he did a roll on the floor and came up into a side kick, he called it,” Rex said. “Shirley took a good lick and was out for a bit, so I wouldn’t trust anything she says.”
“I wouldn’t trust anything Shirley said even if she hadn’t taken a lick,” Roy said. “That woman is always dreaming up some story.”
“Well, Gus, his wife and Bo’s stories all line up with theirs.”
“I don’t see any reason to keep them. We’ve got enough to make the case,” Roy said. “I’m sure they’ll plead. Besides we’ve got everyone’s phone numbers, we can call them back to testify if we need to.”
Roy walked over to Mrs. Brandt. “You folks are free to go. We’ve got your statements and we’ll call you if we need anything else. We’re sorry your visit to our town was scarred by the robbery attempt, and we do appreciate that you folks were able to help out and keep anyone from getting killed.”
“Thank you, deputy,” Mrs. Brandt said. “I’m sure this wasn’t a reflection on your town. If you need anything, call us.”
“Good day,” Roy said.
“Who’s driving?” Jason asked, as they walked to their car.
“I’m driving,” Mrs. Brandt said.
Matthew crawled into the back seat, and Emily quickly hurried to get the other back seat. Jason was left with the front seat beside Mrs. Brandt.
“Next time, I think we’ll stick with McDonalds,” Mrs. Brandt said, as she started the car. They pulled out of the parking lot and soon were merging onto I-40 east.
◆ ◆ ◆
“Matt,” Emily whispered, leaning over to him. “Why didn’t the bullets hit you?”
“I opened the portal just in front of the gun,” Matthew said. “The bullets couldn’t penetrate it. They just bounced off a little.”
“What happened to the bullets?”
Matthew reached in his pocket and pulled the four bullets out. “I’m glad they didn’t search us,” he said. “I’ll dump them at the hotel tonight.”
“Man, are you lucky or what?” Emily said.
“I hope I’m lucky. I’m worried about that waitress, Shirley, yelling about me being Superman. I hope nobody pays attention to her.”
◆ ◆ ◆
“Good morning, Matt,” Emily said, as she sat down next to Matthew in the café. “Where’s Jason?”
“He’s in the shower. He let me go first so he could get some extra sleep.”
“Your mom let me go first, too, but it was so she could call Jessie.”
“It’s kind of early to call Jessie,” Matthew said. “No wait, she’s in New York now, so two hours later. I guess I should call her while we’re driving.”
“Just one more night on the road and we’ll be in New York.”
“I can’t wait. Hopefully nobody tries to rob us,” Matthew joked.
“No. Tell me what’s up with Sayid.”
Matthew looked around to make sure no one else was close. “He’s started to sell put options on oil.”
“How do you know?”
“Caruthers’ briefing.”
“I thought you sold puts when you believed the price was going down,” Emily said.
“You buy put options, the right to sell at a price, when you’re worried about the price going down. You sell when you’re sure it’s going up. It’s a huge risk though. You’re forced to buy the oil no matter the price, so if it drops a bunch, he could lose big bucks.”
“I thought he was buying options, why change?”
“He’s using the money he gets from selling the put options to buy more options. He’s really sure that the price is going up.”
“Anyone figure out why he’s so sure?”
“No, maybe he knows about a plan to attack a major oil exporting port, or something that will destabilize a major exporter for a while. They’re focused on D.C. after the bank thing, but I’m still worried about why Sayid was so pleased with himself. There has been almost zero press on it.”
“Well, sooner or later something will make sense.”
“I just hope it makes sense before it happens so we can stop it,” Matthew said.
New York Skyline
“The George Washington Bridge,” Jason said, loudly. “What a beautiful sight! So nice to be back in civilization.”
“What are you complaining about, you’re the one who wanted to come along,” Matthew said.
“I know, and I’m happy I did. But if I ever suggest a cross-country drive again, you have my permission to shoot me.”
“It hasn’t been that bad,” Emily said. “But it does wear on you after the first two days.”
“Come on, someone tried to rob us on the second day,” Matthew said. “You can’t order up that kind of excitement.”
“Kids, tone it down,” Mrs. Brandt said. “And I’m with Jason, never again.”
“Okay, so depending on traffic, we’re one to three hours from my grandparents’ house.”
“Ugh, and you call this civilization.”
“Well, civilized people don’t drive around New York City. That’s what the subway and taxis are for.”
“I charged up our express pass before we left, so we can use the express booth,” Jason said. “That way we can just keep cruising. I still think you should have let me drive this leg; I am the native New Yorker after all.”
“I know, but my nerves can barely handle New York traffic when I’m driving. A teenager at the wheel would be way too much,” Mrs. Brandt said, as she maneuvered the car into the express pass for the tollbooth.
“I’m with you,” Emily said. “I wouldn’t want to be driving in this mess.”
“Okay, okay, lighten up. My app says we have just under two hours with traffic. So I’ll call and let them know where we are, then we can just relax.”
“Good, I’ll read then,” said Matthew. “We let you sit up front because you wanted to see all the sights, so relax and listen to the music.”
◆ ◆ ◆
“Hi guys, how was the trip?” Brianna said, as they parked the car.
“Long,” Jason answered.
“How was your trip?” Matthew asked.
“Easy, just five and a half hours. We had six Marines from Camp Pendleton with us; they’re on leave and all of them are from New York.”
“Were they nice?”
“Seemed so, they were quiet, and I was playing Dixit with the three munchkins most of the way.”
“How did you manage that?”
“There were only twelve of us, so Mom arranged the seating plan so we had four seats that faced each other. One of the Marines was a woman, and she spelled me for a while. Then the girls and I took a nap, and suddenly we were landing. Easy trip.”
“Matty, Matty,” Jessica yelled, as she ran out of the house. “I got to go sailing!”
“Well, that’s good,” Matthew said, as he scooped Jessica up.
“Hanna said
I’d get sick, but I didn’t.”
“That’s definitely good.”
“Hi, Mommy,” Jessica said, as she squirmed out of Matthew’s arms so she could go hug her mother.
“What do we have planned for today?” Matthew asked.
“Well, Grandfather says he’s ready for a chess rematch,” Brianna said. “He’s been practicing.”
“Well, that’s a couple of hours.”
“And we’re going sailing tomorrow. And of course shopping in the city.”
“Haven’t you already gone shopping? You’ve been here three days.”
“But Emily’s here now.”
“She’s going to be shopping all next week,” Matthew complained.
“But not with me.”
“Okay, Jason and I can go sailing again.”
“Party pooper.”
“You don’t really want us to tag along on your shopping trip, do you?”
“I guess not, boys are such a pain, always telling us to hurry up.”
“There you go.”
“And we have tickets tomorrow night for a play, “Hamilton,” on Broadway.”
“We’re going to be busy.”
“We’re flying to Italy in two days, so we don’t have much time.”
“Come on, Jessie, do you want to go sailing again?”
“Yes!”
◆ ◆ ◆
“Are we going sailing tomorrow?” Jason asked. “There should be some great winds, so we can work on our racing skills.”
“The girls want to go, so I think we’ll make it a family outing,” Mr. Winthrop said. “Elizabeth and Margaret, are you up for an afternoon on the water?”
Mrs. Brandt and Mrs. Stevenson looked at each other and nodded, “We’d love to.”
“Okay. The Carringtons have a sixty-foot Beneteau Oceanis; I’ll call Gerald and see if we can borrow it,” Mr. Winthrop said.
“Man, that’s a great boat,” Jason said to Matthew. “It’ll be nice.”
◆ ◆ ◆
“Are we ready, ladies?” Mr. Winthrop asked, as he started up the boat’s diesel engine.
“Almost. Just let me get this life jacket on Hanna,” Mrs. Winthrop said. “She’s been helping Jessica and Sonja with theirs, and hasn’t been willing to sit still so I could get hers on.”