Time is Money

by Silk White

  Stone hopped out the back of the van with a machine gun in his hand. Behind him, ten heavily armed officers in riot gear followed his lead. Each member on Stone’s team had been briefed on how dangerous the bank robbers were and they were all prepared to shoot at will.

  The closer Stone made it to the side of the bank, the more his adrenalin began to pump. His palms were sweaty and clammy. His biggest fear had now become his reality. In a couple of minutes, the love of his life would be exiting the bank and it was sad to say, but Stone’s mind was already made up. He would be shooting first and asking questions later.

  Chapter 30

  Three Minutes

  “Everybody on the fucking floor now!” Ghost yelled with his M-16 trained on the bank’s security guard.

  “You don’t want to do this buddy. You’re making a big mistake,” the security guard warned.

  Without warning Ghost blew the security guard’s head off in front of everybody. He then quickly hopped up on the counter gaining control of the situation. “Let’s move!”

  Dana kept a close eye on all the tellers while Randy grabbed the manager and rushed her in the back room. She hoped and prayed that nobody pulled the silent alarm today because she was already in a bad mood and she wouldn’t think twice about putting a bullet in someone’s head.

  “Bitch you better open this vault right motherfucking now!” Randy growled. The manager pulled the keys from her pocket, but couldn’t get her hand to stop shaking. “Bitch!” Randy barked as he back slapped the manager down to the floor, scooped the keys up off the floor, and let himself into the vault. Once inside the vault, Randy began to fill up all four duffle bags.

  * * *

  Dougie sat behind the wheel of the stolen van with a nervous look on his face. He wasn’t used to sitting outside. He was used to being on the inside around all of the action. Every car that drove by, Dougie swore that they were the police. Ever since he found out that Randy was working with the cops, he just knew that in any second, the place was going to be surrounded by cops. Just when Randy’s nerves began to settle down he spotted movement from the corner of his eye. He looked over and saw cops dressed in riot gear creeping up on the side of the bank. “Shit!” Dougie cursed as he grabbed the A.K. 47 that rested on the floor and quickly hopped out the van and opened fire on the police.

  BRAT, TAT, TAT, TAT, TAT, TAT, TAT!

  * * *

  Once Stone and his team got into position, a burst of gunfire sounded off loudly. Stone watched as two members from his team were gunned down in cold blood. He quickly took cover behind a parked car as bullets pinged loudly off the car. His team quickly returned fire turning the one sided gun battle into a shootout.

  Dougie sprung from behind the van opening fire on the cops. He could have easily driven away and escaped on his own, but there was no way he was going to leave his team and let them get ambushed by the cops. That just wasn’t how he was brought up. He quickly ducked down behind the van as the cops returned fire.

  Dougie popped up from behind the van again and opened fire, but this time a bullet ripped through his shoulder and then his thigh causing him to drop down to the ground behind the van. He looked down and saw a big hole in his leg and blood everywhere. He tried to reach over and grab his gun off the ground, but when he looked up, he saw two cops standing over him. Instead of reading him his rights, they put a bullet in his head instead.

  Chapter 31

  Time to Go

  Ghost looked down at his watch and so far only a minute and a half had passed. He walked back and forth keeping a close eye on all of the bank employees. Today he didn’t want any innocent people to lose their lives. Ghost was about to yell something to Dana when he heard what sounded like a million different guns being fired outside. He hopped off the counter, looked out the front door, and saw Dougie shooting it out with several police officers. The first thing that popped into Ghost’s mind was Randy. Ghost had made sure he kept a close eye on all the employees so he knew there was no way that the cops would be there that fast without the silent alarm being pulled. More gunshots ringing out snapped Ghost out of his thoughts. Outside sounded like the Fourth of July. Right on queue Randy came running out of the back carrying four duffle bags, two in each hand.

  “What’s going on?” Randy asked as if he had no clue on what was going down. “Who shooting?”

  Ghost quickly turned his M-16 on Randy. “What kind of man would set his own family up?”

  “Ghost you bugging! You know I would never do no shit like that,” Randy lied with a straight face.

  Ghost shook his head sadly, as he pulled down on the trigger. It hurt him to watch the bullets rip through Randy’s body like a wet paper bag.

  “Come on we have to go!” Dana said as she quickly picked up two duffle bags and placed them over her shoulder. She knew that when Ghost killed Randy it would be like losing a brother, but at the end of the day, Randy had to go. Ratting out your family was unacceptable!

  Ghost grabbed the two remaining duffle bags as him and Dana headed for the exit. “I’ll cover you,” Ghost said as he exited the bank and opened fire on the police while Dana ran and hid behind a parked car.

  The M-16 rattled in Ghost’s hand as shell case after shell case popped out the side of the rifle. He watched as his M-16 bullets had cops dropping like flies. When he ran out of bullets, Dana popped up from behind the parked car and opened fire on the cops giving Ghost time to join her behind the parked car.

  Ghost hid behind the car as he slammed a fresh clip in the base of his gun. “Come we gotta go!” He sprung from behind the car and squeezed down on the trigger as him and Dana quickly back peddled over towards the getaway van.

  Dana tossed her two duffle bags in the back and hopped behind the wheel of the van. As she climbed in the van, she stepped over Dougie’s dead body. She hated to have to leave his body lying in the street like that, but she didn’t have time to grab him. “Come on Ghost!”

  Ghost opened the side door to the van, tossed his duffle bags in the back, and then went back and scooped up Dougie’s body and laid him in the back of the van as bullets pinged loudly off the body of the van. Once Ghost was in the van, Dana stomped down on the gas pedal flying away from the crime scene.

  “You almost got us killed!” Dana yelled.

  “I couldn’t just leave Dougie’s body in the middle of the street like that!” Ghost replied.

  “What’s the plan now?” Dana asked as she drove recklessly through the streets. “Hold on! Do you hear that?”

  “Hear what?”

  “Shhh, listen,” Dana said. The sound of a helicopter hovering over them could be heard loud and clear. “A helicopter.”

  “Shit!” Ghost cursed as he stuck his head out the window and looked up into the air. There it was, a helicopter following them and reporting their every move. Without thinking twice, Ghost grabbed his M-16, hung half his body out the window, and opened fire on the helicopter. Immediately the helicopter flew out of range.

  “We got company!” Dana yelled out. Behind the van, three cop cars trailed and a black Charger brought up the rear. Immediately Dana recognized the Charger. It was the same color, make, and model of Stone’s Charger. “Get them off our ass!”

  Ghost repositioned himself halfway out the window and opened fire on the squad cars that trailed. The M-16 bullets tore through the squad cars like a hot knife through butter.

  “Shoot out their tires!” Dana yelled.

  Ghost aimed his M-16 down at the tires of the cop cars and squeezed down on the trigger, swaying his arms back and forth.

  Dana watched through the rearview mirror as one of the squad cars lost control and crashed into another squad car causing a huge accident in the middle of the intersection.

  “Take us to the Greyhound station,” Ghost instructed.

  “What?”

  “Do what I say!”

  “There’s no way we’re going to be able to escape on no damn Greyhound bus!” Dana snapped. />
  “Dana this is New York!” Ghost told her. “There’s going to be thousands of people at the Greyhound station, not to mention the subway is down there along with at least twenty different exits. We’ll have a good chance at blending in with the crowd and getting away,” he explained.

  Dana was about to respond when movement in the rearview mirror caught her eye. “Shit we got more company!” she announced as the black Charger began to pick up speed and close the distance between the two.

  Chapter 32

  No Way Out

  Stone weaved around the huge accident at the intersection and continued his pursuit. The way Ghost and Dana had shot and killed cops as if it was nothing, truly disturbed him. He never would have thought that Dana truly was this type of person that. It hurt Stone’s heart to know that a woman he loved would soon be murdered or spending the rest of her life in jail. There was nothing he could do to help Dana. She had officially reached the point of no return. As Stone tailed the van, he noticed a figure with a Bill Clinton mask stick his arm out the window and open fire on him.

  Stone ducked down right on time as bullets tore through and shattered his windshield. Once the gunfire ended, Stone quickly removed his 9mm from its holster, stuck his arm out the window, and fired several shots into the body of the van. He had told himself that he wouldn’t use his firearm unless he was left with no choice.

  Stone looked down at his speedometer that read 98 mph. He followed the van until it came to a complete stop downtown at 42nd street. He watched as two figures hopped out the van wearing mask and carrying duffle bags. The duo fired a few shots into his windshield before disappearing in the port authority entrance of the station.

  Stone grabbed his walkie-talkie, called in for back up, reloaded his gun, and headed inside the port authority entrance after the brother and sister duo.

  Chapter 33

  By Any Means Necessary

  Once inside the station, Ghost and Dana removed their masks and tossed them in the garbage as they quickly blended in with the New York crowd.

  “We have to split up,” Ghost said as he grabbed Dana and hugged her tightly. “I love you!”

  “How will we keep in contact if we split up?” Dana asked in a panic.

  “Don’t worry about that. I’ll find you,” Ghost said, flashing his signature smile. “Love you and if you go down don’t go down without a fight,” he said as he hugged her again. Then the two quickly turned and walked in opposite directions as if they didn’t know one another.

  Dana power walked through the station until she reached the escalator. She wondered if this were the last time, that she would see her brother ever again. This entire heist didn’t play out the way it had played out in her mind. Everything that could have gone wrong did. Dana made her way over to the counter and ordered a one way ticket to Atlanta.

  “Ma’am there’s a bus leaving for Atlanta in thirty minutes,” the man behind the counter told her. “You can catch that bus or the next one leaves two hours from now.”

  “I’ll take the one that leaves in thirty minutes,” Dana said quickly as she kept glancing over her shoulder. When she got her ticket, she swiftly walked over to one of the small shops in the station and purchased a floppy hat. She used the hat as a form of disguise as she headed to the gate number that was printed out on her ticket. When Dana reached the gate, her eyes lit up when she saw that they were already boarding. “Thank you Jesus!” she said to herself as she stood on the end of the line and boarded the bus.

  Chapter 34

  I Ain’t Going Out Like No Sucker

  Ghost walked swiftly through the station. He was beginning to feel like robbing this last bank was a bad idea. He didn’t know how, but he was determined to make it out of this situation alive and with his freedom. With each step that Ghost took, it felt like every eye in the terminal was watching him. Ghost walked into one of the gift shops and purchased a pair of sunglasses. He knew that the cops more than likely knew what he looked like, so he needed some form of disguise. As Ghost walked through the station, one of the straps on his duffle bag broke. “Shit!” he cursed. Ghost quickly headed to a nearby rest room. He looked under the stalls and saw a pair of feet in the last stall. Ghost quickly walked over to the last stall and kicked the door open.

  Boom!

  He roughly snatched the man up off the toilet, slapped the shit out of him, and then forced him out of the restroom.

  Ghost’s plan was to open both duffle bags and see if there were any small bills in either of the bags. He would then place all the big bills in the good duffle bag and leave the rest in the bathroom for a lucky someone to find it. Ghost opened the first duffle bag and began to go through the bills when a dye pack exploded in his face.

  “What the fuck?” Ghost said with a confused look on his face. He looked up in the mirror and saw that his face, shirt, and hands had been covered in red dye. He looked down and saw that the money was also covered in red dye. “Noooooo!” Ghost yelled as he tossed the bag across the bathroom sending money flying all over the place. Another man entered the restroom, but stopped mid-stride when he saw what was going on in the bathroom. He quickly spun around and walked right back out.

  Ghost grabbed the other duffle bag and began to fish through the bills when another dye pack exploded. He continued to look through the bag to see if any bills hadn’t been soiled, but he had no such luck. “Fuck!” he cursed loudly. Ghost turned the water on and washed his face the best he could, but his face was still covered in dye. He exited the restroom and hurried down towards the subway. He couldn’t believe that all the hard work he had went through had all been for nothing. He now had no family and no money. Everything he had worked so hard for was all for nothing.

  Chapter 35

  I See You

  Stone walked through the terminal with his gun out. He held it behind his thigh as not to draw attention to it. With so many people roaming around the station, it made it hard for Stone to pin point who he was looking for. He scanned through the sea of faces and came up empty. As he walked through the station, a man bumped into him. “Hey, watch where you are going!”

  “I’m sorry mister but can I use your phone for a second. I need to call the police. There’s a man in the bathroom right now with bags full of money and blood everywhere,” the man said, confusing the red dye for blood.

  “What bathroom?” Stone asked.

  “That one right there,” the man pointed.

  Stone quickly hurried in the direction of the bathroom. As he got close to the bathroom, Stone spotted Ghost quickly heading down the stairs to the subway. Stone slowly jogged after Ghost. There was no way he was going to allow him to escape as he did the last time. The last thing Stone wanted to do was to have a shootout in a crowded subway station, but if it came down to it then so be it. Stone jogged until he got around fifteen feet away from Ghost before he yelled, “Ghost!”

  Immediately Ghost spun around. His face crumbled up as soon as he saw Stone’s face.

  “Down on the floor now!” Stone ordered as he inched in closer. Innocent bystanders immediately began to scream hysterically when they saw Stone’s gun. “Don’t make me shoot you because I will!” Stone warned. “Down on the floor, now!”

  Ghost smiled. “You know my sister really loves you. I would have killed you myself, but the only reason I didn’t was because of her,” he told the detective.

  “Ghost please don’t make me do it,” Stone begged. “Get down on the floor! NOW!”

  “Fuck you!” Ghost said as he went for the P89 in his waistband. Before he could even reach the handle, four shots exploded in his chest in a rapid succession dropping him instantly.

  Stone inched his way over to Ghost’s body and checked his pulse. “Damn!” he said when he didn’t feel a pulse. He felt bad about killing Dana’s brother, but he had no other choice then to do what he had to do.

  Chapter 36

  I Almost Got Away With It

  Dana sat on the bus staring blank
ly out the window. All she wanted was for the bus to hurry up and pull out of the station. It seemed as if the bus driver was doing everything, but getting in the driver’s seat and pulling off. As Dana sat on the bus, she wondered how Ghost was holding up right now. Had he gotten away? Had the cops murdered him? Would she ever speak to or see him again? Those were all the questions that ran through Dana’s mind. Finally, the bus driver boarded the bus and got behind the wheel. He drove about ten to fifteen feet away before he stopped. Dana then heard his voice over the loud speaker.

  “Sorry passengers, but I’ve been ordered to not leave the terminal. It seems as if the cops are demanding that they check all buses before they depart. I’m sorry for the delay and the inconvenience.”

  Dana’s heart immediately leaped into her throat after hearing that message from the driver. She just knew that it was over for her. Tears rolled down her face as she pulled her 9mm from her waist and sat it on her lap with her shirt covering it. If she was going out, she definitely wasn’t going to go quietly.

  * * *

  Stone made his way back upstairs and saw Captain Fisher standing there with an angry look on his face.

  “Good work back there Stone,” Fisher began. “But there’s still one missing and I think she’s on one of these buses. No bus is to leave until it has been thoroughly searched!”

  “Copy,” Stone replied as he walked out to the loading dock. He immediately saw armed officers searching all of the buses. “Hey which one of these buses hasn’t been searched yet?” he asked a uniform officer.