by Hunt, Jack
“What did I say?” Gabriel asked, leaning over testing to see if he could reach him. His shackles jangled. What he would give to be able to wrap the chain around Jesse’s neck and strangle him. He’d already attacked his brother once inside, cut him across the abdomen and promised him the next time would be worse. But Gabriel. He didn’t come near him. He knew better than that.
His conversation was interrupted by Stevens. “Johnson!” he said from his seat upfront. Stevens shook his head and Gabriel scowled and leaned back in his cramped seat.
“Don’t we get peanuts or a drink on this shitty flight?” Torres asked.
“Yeah,” a few others joined in.
Stevens just looked at them. Even if they could have a drink or a bite to eat, he wouldn’t have let them know, or allowed it. He enjoyed watching them suffer. Any chance he got to take away an inmate’s privileges was a good day in his books.
Gabriel turned to his brother. “You know—”
The plane lurched violently, and dropped before leveling out.
“Whoa. What the hell?” Jericho yelled.
“It’s just a little turbulence,” Stevens said. “Calm down.”
Again it occurred. The plane heaved and they were forcibly pushed forward in their seats. Gabriel felt his seatbelt cut into him. It was tight around his waist, holding him securely in place. A few seconds later the plane was calm again. He craned his neck around to check on his brother. He knew he was afraid of heights. Even as a young kid he wouldn’t climb many of the trees Gabriel would, he had to literally coax him and even then he never went high. Marcus had his eyes squeezed tightly shut and was white knuckling it.
Another jolt in his seat, and the overhead lights flickered.
The plane felt like a rocky van ride. It kept bumping up and down.
“How long we got left?” an inmate asked.
“Long enough,” someone replied.
A few more minutes of turbulence and it eased off again. From his seat, Gabriel noticed Lee leaning over and talking to Stevens. He nodded with a scowl on his face and Lee unbuckled himself and motioned to another correctional officer. They disappeared behind the divider and emerged with a cart. He began rolling forward and handing out packets of chips, and asking if anyone wanted a drink.
There was a cheer that washed over the inmates but not Stevens. He gave Gabriel a cold stare as the smile left his face. For a short while he thought the rest of the flight would be peaceful. That soon ended when the lights flickered again and this time went out. Someone yelled, asking what was going on.
That was followed by the plane banking hard and Lee and the other correctional officer losing their balance and falling into the laps of inmates. In the darkness shouts could be heard but Gabriel was unsure of what was going on. He was too busy clutching his seat and hoping it leveled out like it had before.
It didn’t. In that moment it dropped fast, several feet at first then that was followed by at least thirty feet in one swoop. Gabriel slammed into the seat in front of him and then was thrown back.
More yelling and cursing before it finally leveled out.
He glanced out the window trying to get a bearing on where they were. It was hard to tell at night what the landscape looked like. It was cloudy and dark. Were those trees or mountains?
“My God, I want to get off this plane,” Marcus said.
“Don’t be a pussy,” Jesse said.
The overhead lights didn’t come on so one of the correctional officers turned on his flashlight. Something wasn’t right though. They could no longer hear the rumble of the engines. It was quiet. Too quiet. They were gliding. Only the rush of wind could be heard as it passed over the plane.
“Lee. Palmer. Get back in your seats,” Stevens said.
They hurried back, taking the carts with them as the plane continued its descent.
“We’re not near an airport, are we?” Gabriel asked grabbing Lee’s arm as he passed him. He shook his head and pulled his arm away before moving quickly back to his seat and strapping in.
“There’s no engines. We’re going to crash,” Jesse said. “We’re going to crash.”
“Who’s the pussy now?” Gabriel said.
“Fuck you, Johnson.”
Everyone was gripping their seat. Unlike a traditional flight, no one had gone through what to do if the plane had to make an emergency landing. He looked back at his brother, fear masked his face.
“Put your head between your legs.”
“What?”
Gabriel showed him as his words just went in one ear and out the other.
Others who weren’t doing it followed suit. Many were already preparing for the worst. The rumble of the plane got stronger, making it feel like it would tear wide open. As he sat there gripping his legs tight, Gabriel thought of all the people he’d ever cared about and every decision he’d made. What if he didn’t survive this? Had he wasted his life? He looked up and saw Stevens trying his phone. A look of surprise and anger on his face as he showed it to Lee. It wasn’t working.
From his crash position he glanced out the window and watched the puffy clouds wash over the plane. They were losing altitude fast as the plane took another sharp dive. Oxygen masks dropped down and all of them struggled to get them on their faces. His pulse sped up, and sweat formed on his brow as he clutched tightly and looked back at his brother one final time. Would this be the last time he saw him?
“Everyone keep your heads down,” Lee yelled out.
Stevens gripped his seat, a look of fear masking his face as his body was shaken. Hierarchy no longer mattered. The playing field had been leveled. They were no longer prisoners and correctional officers but humans stuffed into a metal tube, praying and holding on for dear life. Each of them had been given the same sentence, the same chance of life or death, and each of their fates were sealed.
Adrenaline pumped through his body, and overwhelming fear took hold as the plane shook and shuddered and he felt the violent grip of the air take hold in the final minutes before they would merge with the earth.
Then it dawned on him. Where were the exits?
He looked up briefly and made a mental note. Eight rows from the left exit at the front of the plane. He turned and yelled to Marcus. “When this bird lands, if you’re still alive head towards the exit on your left.”
Marcus didn’t reply, his head was down and he was too scared to look up.
The plane began vibrating so hard that Gabriel was sure that it would tear apart in midair. Then came the sound of something hard slapping the bottom of the plane, thump, thump, thump. Metal creaked and bent, and it sounded like a piece was severed. Out the corner of his eyes he caught sight of trees and mountains, and then he prepared for the impact, he prepared for death.
4
Around the same time, not but a few blocks from Las Vegas Boulevard, Nate Griffin was finalizing a deal with a guy only known as X. A red light flickered inside giving the whole interior of the apartment an exotic feeling. He’d been coming to X for the past two years. The gig was simple. He stole bags, phones, anything of value that he could snatch out of people’s hands or off their shoulders. In return X would give him top dollar for every credit card and electronic device he had — phones, tablets, computers — everything had a monetary value, and back in Nigeria it could be sold for even more. Previous to meeting X he’d been taking it to another buyer but the payoff was peanuts.
X never showed his face. He wore a skull bandanna covering the bottom half of his jaw, and sunglasses and a beret. He always met him in different locations throughout Vegas and Nate only knew where to go about five minutes before meeting him. If he was five minutes late, X would be gone.
Nate arrived with his buddy Zach. Both of them were always dressed in tight leather motorcycle gear. Zach had long blond surfer hair that he usually tied back in a man bun when he wasn’t wearing a helmet. He banged on the door and after a few seconds it opened and he was led in by an armed guy. X surrounded himse
lf with armed heavies, guys who wouldn’t think twice about blowing a hole in someone. Initially when he made the contact, he was worried that X would rip him off, kill him and throw him in a shallow grave but he’d been reassured that would have cost him money and he wasn’t frivolous with his cash. No, as long as he delivered, and there was no heat following him, X would pay good money.
“So, what you got today?”
“A nice little stash,” Nate said pulling off his backpack and emptying out the contents. In the course of an hour he could steal upwards of twenty phones. Many times he could take three or four on the same street before disappearing down the back streets. Cops didn’t bother him. On the odd occasion they had been in the neighborhood or had given chase, Nate was able to lose them because they were always driving cars, and some of the narrow streets in Vegas were only accessible to bikes. They often changed out the bikes, many of which were provided by X himself. He had a collection of upwards of fifteen dirt bikes. License plates were stolen, clothing was changed, locations were never the same on any given day. The police didn’t stand a chance. That was why he’d managed to elude them for the past three years. He and Zach would take turns riding a dirt bike. Whoever wasn’t riding was the grab man.
“iPhone 10, an iPad, two Samsung phones, three Mac Airs and a whole range of other makes and models.” Nate laid them out on display while X ran the numbers in his head. He pulled out a huge wad of notes from his leather jacket and thumbed off hundred-dollar bills. It was a good day. Seeing all that green made the risk worth it. It was more than enough to cover him and Zach if they wanted to take the rest of the week off but that wasn’t like him. Nate had a goal to leave it all behind. Long before he’d got caught up in the criminal underbelly of Vegas, he’d been trying to pay his way through college where he was taking a game programming course. Everything was going well until his mother became sick and he had to quit to look after her. He had no siblings. An absent father. And no prospects on the horizon. It was like life wouldn’t give him a break. After the death of his mother in Colorado he’d dodged creditors coming after him for money and packed up what little he had and headed for the city of lights. He had no idea what he would do or even where he would stay. But that all changed when he took a job at a local gas station, and met Zach. At first, Zach had been a little hesitant to tell him but when he got to know him more, he asked him if he wanted to make more money. The rest was history.
Nate counted the money and nodded before clasping hands with X and smiling. “Good doing business with you again.” He gave half to Zach and they turned to leave.
“You guys interested in doing another job for me? Pays three times what you’re earning now.”
“What do you have in mind?” Zach asked.
“Bikes. I have a client that is interested in a large purchase but that means getting my hands on them and well, that’s where you two come in. I have a few others guys who are up for it, so you wouldn’t be going in alone.”
Nate threw up a hand. “Nah, man. We’ll stick to what we’re doing, but thanks.” He slapped Zach on the arm and turned towards the door. A few seconds and Nate looked back. Zach hadn’t moved.
Nate frowned as Zach threw up three fingers “Three times, Nate.”
“Are you serious?”
“Of course I’m serious,” X said. “You won’t be doing this alone. I’ll provide the muscle, you just have to take the bikes. You call up the restaurants and fast food establishments and ask them to deliver. We already know they send out guys on bikes. They arrive. My guys will take care of the rest while you drive the bike to the drop-off point. Boom. You get paid!”
Nate stared at X and then his eyes darted to Zach. He couldn’t believe Zach wanted to get involved in that shit. He’d heard about it happening. Delivery guys getting robbed at knifepoint, some of them ending up with acid in the face, all so bikes could be stolen and resold. Maybe he might have got involved had he never worked as a delivery driver. That had been his first gig when he came to Vegas. He knew the blood, sweat and tears those delivery guys had to go through to earn minimum wage for their families. He couldn’t do it. Stealing phones was one thing, hurting people was another. Besides, if they were caught doing that, the time behind bars would be a hell of a lot longer.
Zach walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder trying his best to convince him that it made sense. “We make good money, Nate, but this shit is small time compared to what X will pay.”
“Doesn’t matter. It’s too risky.”
“You didn’t hear the offer,” X said.
Nate looked past Zach. “I already know. People talk.”
“Do they?” X asked motioning to two of his guys. They strolled towards Nate and shoved him back into the center of the room.
Nate took off his bag and scowled at them. “What the fuck is this?”
X rose and walked over. “Who talks?”
Nate shrugged. “You know, people.”
“Like you?”
Nate threw his hands up. “Whoa, dude, I did not say that. How long have we worked together, X? You know I have got your back.”
“And yet here you are wanting to walk away from good money.”
“It’s not the money. It’s the risk.”
“I told you. My guys will handle it. You’re just paid to be a driver. No different than what you are doing now, except you earn more.”
“Yeah, because if we get caught, we’ll go down with your guys. I’m sorry that’s not happening.”
For the first time ever, X dropped his mask, removed his glasses and hat and revealed who he was. Nate couldn’t help but stare. He was a black guy with a scar down his cheek. Now he could see why he wore the bandanna, it was as much a cover for his disfiguration as it was to prevent those around him knowing who he was. Nate didn’t recognize him but he knew immediately what X was doing. It was a form of blackmail.
“Now you’ve seen my face. You know what that means?”
Nate nodded.
“You’re going to do the job, Nate. Okay? You’re doing it. Now you can either get paid and keep your mouth shut or…” he trailed off. He didn’t need to finish, Nate knew what would happen to him. Long before he met X, Zach had warned him not to fuck with X. Not to argue. Not to get into negotiating with him. What he said was gold. Untouchable. Even as far back as three years ago, he understood the risk but back then he didn’t have a pot to piss in so he did what Zach said.
“Fine. I’ll do it,” Nate said.
Zach smiled.
“Good man,” X replied before waving him off. His guys stepped out of the way of the exit and he and Zach left the apartment.
They hadn’t got but a few yards down the hallway when Nate dropped his backpack and ripped into Zach, pinning him up against the wall. Through gritted teeth he spoke. “You ever do that again, and you and I are done. You hear me?”
“Get the hell off me. If it wasn’t for me you would still be filling up gas tanks.”
Zach pulled Nate’s hands off his leather jacket and straightened out his top.
“What the fuck is up with you? You used to be cool.”
“Yeah, well maybe I’ve changed.”
“A leopard doesn’t change its spots,” Zach said turning to walk away. They walked over to the elevator. Nate kept his distance, watching the lights illuminate on the elevator as it came up.
“You know, Nate…” Before Zach could finish what he was saying, the lights flickered and then suddenly went out in the building.
“What the hell?” Nate said looking down the hallway. They saw the silhouettes of people coming out of apartments wondering what was going on.
Zach tapped the elevator button a few more times. “C’mon, man. Shitty, low-end apartments. Doesn’t this elevator have a backup system in place?”
“Not a place like this,” Nate replied.
From inside the elevator they could hear a woman crying out for help. Nate put his ear against the steel and listened. �
�Someone is stuck down there.”
“Tough shit. The janitor will have to get them out when they get the power back on!” Zach said out loud as he strolled off down the corridor heading for the stairwell.
“Zach. Wait up.” Nate adjusted his backpack and hurried over to him. “There’s people in the elevator.”
“And?” he said pushing into the stairwell as if it didn’t matter to him.
“I heard a kid in there.”
Zach stopped at the top of the stairs and walked back to him. “This is not the time to grow a conscience. Let’s go, I’m hungry.”
“Is that all you think about?”
“That, money and pussy, yeah,” Zach said with a smile forming on his face. He headed down a few steps before he realized that Nate had gone back into the corridor heading for the elevator.
“Nate. C’mon, man. You are really getting on my last nerve.”
“I want to see if I can help.”
“Now you want to help? Maybe you should think about a different profession,” Zach said coming up behind him as he raced towards the elevator. On some level Zach was right. He didn’t owe those people anything. The fire department or the janitor of the building would probably get them out but that didn’t mean he had to ignore the plight of others. Call it his one good deed for the day, or a guilty conscience from having stolen one too many iPhones from unsuspecting tourists, but he couldn’t in good faith head out without at least seeing if he could help. People from the apartments were in the hallway talking, others trying to get their phones to work, while several more were at the far end looking out of a window. Nate leaned up against the elevator door.
“Can anyone hear us?” a male voice cried out followed by a young girl wailing. Their voices echoed inside the shaft. Nate banged a few times just to let them know that someone had heard them. He called out to tell them that help was on the way and not to panic. With that said he turned and looked around for anything that might be used to open the doors. Zach was leaning against the wall smoking a cigarette.