Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained

by Brennen Tammons

  “My name is Katrina Peterson. I’m Kevin’s aunt. I’m his father’s younger sister. I came from Chicago to see him. Me and Kevin were the same age. If you don’t mind me asking, can I ask how you knew Kevin?

  Russell starts to feel anxious, and is unable to react at first. He is able to calm himself down, and he quickly thinks of a reasonable fib, with some elements of truth to tell her.

  “Well, I’m Russell McCoy. I was a close friend to Kevin. He was my classmate. This is Max Newman. You know how Kevin was into computers? Max was one of his teachers. Kevin was really dear to both of us, and we are here to pay our respects.”

  Katrina smiles at Russell, and she shakes both Russell and Max’s hands. She then quietly faces forward. Russell is relieved that the woman bought his fib, and accepted everything he told her. Russell faces forward as well, and at this time the procession begins. As the memorial service goes on, several of Kevin’s family members including Katrina, walk up and say their remarks towards Kevin. Russell patiently waits for the time for open remarks, so Russell can give his eulogy. Russell starts to feel more nervous as time progresses. Max once again comforts Russell, as he can tell he’s under a lot of pressure. Brian, Jesse and Victor can’t see Russell, but they know he is nervous. The time finally comes for those who wish to say their final remarks, to do so. Russell takes several deep breaths to himself, and he starts to grab his Tanakh. Katrina rubs on his leg, and smiles at him. Russell smiles back at her, and walks towards the pulpit. Every step he takes, feels like his feet are made of stone. The pressure and anxiety which are surrounding his body, is about too much for him to handle. He reaches the pulpit, and uncontrollably starts to cry. Russell takes out his handkerchief and wipes his face. Russell gets himself together, and then opens up his Tanakh. He starts to give his eulogy to Kevin.

  “My name is Russell McCoy, and Kevin was my best friend. Kevin, I love you.”

  Before he continues, Russell remains standing at the pulpit, silent for a short while. He keeps his vision down, not saying a single word. Russell begins to feel extremely depressed, and tries to compose himself. Russell is currently unable to continue, due to the current state of events. Brian, Jesse and Victor watch Russell at the pulpit, understanding his emotions; having an identical feeling of sorrow themselves. Russell quickly manages to recover himself, and to deal with the hurt he’s feeling; he proceeds to recite the Psalm of Comfort in Hebrew, in honor of Kevin.

  .מִזְמוֹר לְדָוִד: יְהוָה רֹעִי, לֹא אֶחְסָר

  .בִּנְאוֹת דֶּשֶׁא, יַרְבִּיצֵנִי; עַל-מֵי מְנֻחוֹת יְנַהֲלֵנִי

  .נַפְשִׁי יְשׁוֹבֵב; יַנְחֵנִי בְמַעְגְּלֵי-צֶדֶק, לְמַעַן שְׁמוֹ

  ;גַּם כִּי-אֵלֵךְ בְּגֵיא צַלְמָוֶת, לֹא-אִירָא רָע-- כִּי-אַתָּה עִמָּדִי

  .שִׁבְטְךָ וּמִשְׁעַנְתֶּךָ, הֵמָּה יְנַחֲמֻנִי

  ;תַּעֲרֹךְ לְפָנַי, שֻׁלְחָן-- נֶגֶד צֹרְרָי

  .דִּשַּׁנְתָּ בַשֶּׁמֶן רֹאשִׁי, כּוֹסִי רְוָיָה

  ;אַךְ, טוֹב וָחֶסֶד יִרְדְּפוּנִי-- כָּל-יְמֵי חַיָּי

  .וְשַׁבְתִּי בְּבֵית-יְהוָה, לְאֹרֶךְ יָמִים

  Russell finishes his eulogy. He returns to his seat, and Katrina starts to rub the back of Russell’s shoulder. Soon after that, the procession ends. Russell stands up, and Katrina hugs him. She then immediately walks away. Russell then starts to push Max’s wheelchair, and they start to leave the area. As he’s leaving, Russell notices Detective Henderson who’s wearing a fedora hat, walk away from the procession and drive off. He is surprised to see him there, and starts to slightly feel scared. Russell did stand in front of all the attendees, and Detective Henderson has met Russell before. At this time, Russell ignores this. Russell continues to push Max to the car. When Russell gets to his vehicle, Brian, Jesse and Victor have all reunited with him. They help Max out of his wheelchair, and into the car. Russell then drives back to his home. When they get back, Brian informs Russell that he can drive Victor and Max back to “Home Base”. Russell helps Max into Brian’s car, and Jesse and Victor put Max’s wheelchair in Brian’s trunk. The men all say goodbye to each other. Russell and Jesse walk back into Russell’s apartment. As they walk in, Russell heads towards the freezer, and takes out a bottle of Vodka. Jesse walks over to the sofa, and takes a seat. Russell takes out two glasses as well, pouring the liquor into each glass. Russell directs himself over to the sofa where Jesse is sitting, and brings the bottle and both of the glasses. Russell gives Jesse one of the glasses. Jesse takes a sip of the alcohol. While taking a sip of the liquor, Russell starts to feel depressed. He starts to cry, and wipes his face. Jesse watches him, and feels upset as well. Jesse moves in closer to Russell on the sofa, and tries to console him by petting his cheek. Russell however physically pushes Jesse away, and screams at him in return.

  “Why did you touch me? Don’t touch me. I don’t want you touching me. Don’t ever touch me again. You keep your faggot hands away from me. Don’t touch me ever again.”

  Jesse looks at him puzzled. Jesse finishes his glass of vodka, and walks towards the bedroom, responding to Russell.

  “Bullshit, you always say that crap, then an hour later, it’s a whole different dance and tune. Russell, you’re such an asshole. I’m going to touch you whenever I feel like, because I can. I don’t give a fuck what you say, because it’s all shit. I’m going to take a nap, I’m tired.”

  Jesse closes the bedroom door, and starts to undress himself into a T Shirt and undershorts. Jesse then lays down on the bed, and proceeds to rest. Russell still has his suit from the funeral on, and is in the living room. He takes more swallows of the Vodka. The television is not on, but Russell has heavy metal music playing on his phone. At this time, he’s feeling out of control, and under a heavy depressive episode. Russell is also extremely inebriated as well. He makes himself several drinks with the vodka. Hours pass, and it is now nighttime. Russell is still drunk on the sofa, listening to rock music. He is highly intoxicated, and smiling to himself on the couch, moving to the music. Minutes later, the music on Russell’s phone all of a sudden stops; his phone has run of battery. Russell is angry at this, and breaks the glass he’s drinking by squeezing it in his hand, with the shattered pieces causing his fingers to slightly bleed. Russell laughs to himself, and licks the blood from his fingers. Russell then stumbles over by the television, and charges his phone. Jesse wakes up from his nap, and walks out of the bedroom. He notices the broken glass on the floor, and Russell’s bleeding hand. Russell and Jesse make eye contact, and Russell laughs at him. Jesse frowns at Russell, shaking his head. He then takes the vodka bottle.

  “Russell, you’re way too drunk. You don’t need to drink anymore.”

  Russell then snatches the vodka bottle away from Jesse’s hand and opens it. Russell unscrews the top, and tips it over to Jesse; motioning for him to take a drink. Jesse laughs at him, and Jesse takes a couple of swallows of the liquor. Russell then takes several big gulps from the bottle. Jesse then snatches the bottle from him again.

  “Okay big guy, that’s enough of that. You’re gonna get yourself killed if you drink anymore. No more. You don’t need to drink anymore Russell. You’re drunk as a skunk.”

  Russell then lifts his hands up in the air, and shrugs his shoulders. He then takes a seat on the sofa. Jesse places the vodka bottle back inside the freezer, and joins Russell. Russell then laughs to himself, staring into space. Russell then stands up. He grabs Jesse by his hands up from the sofa. Russell leans close to Jesse, and kisses him passionately. Russell then hugs Jesse tightly. Russell then silently and softly speaks to him.

  “How much do you love me? Because I don’t love you at all. I’m just curious on how much you love me though. You’re the despera
te one, not me. How much do you love me?”

  Jesse looks at him, and laughs over Russell’s drunken behavior. Russell then snaps back.

  “How much do you fucking love me?! Say it! I’m waiting! How much do you love me?!”

  Jesse starts to rub Russell’s face, and he whispers in Russell’s ear.

  “I don’t know how much I love you. I do know that I can’t get enough of you.”

  Russell laughs at Jesse, and immediately lifts Jesse’s whole body in the air, with his arms. Russell then whispers out to Jesse, while still lifting him in the air.

  “Would you die for me? Do you love me that much to die for me?”

  Jesse while still being lifted by Russell, simply laughs. Russell laughs as well, and runs to the kitchen area carrying Jesse on his back; stopping at the balcony door. Before he opens it, he whispers to Jesse.

  “Don’t say a fucking word. Shut your fucking mouth. Don’t say anything at all. If you say one syllable, I will fucking drop you. Shut your fucking mouth.”

  Russell opens the balcony door, and shuts it behind him. He stands on the balcony, cradling Jesse in his arms. He reaches across the edge of the balcony, and completely dangles Jesse’s whole body over it. Jesse stays silent, as Russell has a wide grin on his face laughing. Russell starts to loosen his grip from Jesse, and Jesse simply looks at him stone faced. Russell then starts to snap out of it, feeling guilty, He quickly carries Jesse back inside. Russell closes and locks the balcony door, and he stares at Jesse for a few seconds. Jesse then punches Russell across the side of the face very hard. Jesse runs into the bedroom, slamming the door behind him. Russell laughs, and stumbles across to the sofa area, smiling to himself. Jesse opens up the bedroom door, and peeks over at Russell. He walks over to him, and takes his suit jacket off and removes his tie, setting them both behind the sofa. He then takes Russell’s shoes and socks off, and sets them under the table.

  Russell steadily laughs while Jesse is doing all of this. Jesse walks over to the freezer and grabs some ice cubes, putting them in a Ziploc bag. He sets the bag of ice over the side of Russell’s head, and lays him down on the couch. Jesse kisses him on the forehead, and turns out all of the lights in the room. Jesse then walks into the bedroom, and shuts the door, falling asleep seconds after that. Russell eventually drifts off to sleep as well.

  Chapter 20

  NOTHING HIGH, NOTHING LOW

  Detective Henderson pours himself a cup of coffee at a convenience store nearby the Downtown Los Angeles Police Precinct. He has been running on very little sleep; trying to crack the case on the heists the men have done over the past couple weeks. They have been dubbed the “Snowman Bandits”, by police. Detective Henderson is frustrated that he hasn’t been able to get any solid leads or hints in any of the heists. The only thing he has been able to figure out, is that the men always strike on Fridays. Based on that information alone, he has a strong suspicion that the “Snowman Bandits”, are going to hit a bank tomorrow. It so happens that Detective Henderson is holding a meeting with other officers and investigators at the station; discussion being focused on the “Snowman Bandits”, and figuring out their tactics and plans.

  Detective Henderson gets inside his car, and drives to the station. When he arrives, before he gives his meeting to his other colleagues, he heads over to this office. He watches over the surveillance tapes from both of the heists. He tries to spot any key details out, that would aide towards solving this investigation. He studies the tapes very carefully, and is not able to find out any new information that he wasn’t already aware of. Detective Henderson shakes his head out of aggravation, and takes the surveillance tapes with him. He continues onto a private meeting room. As minutes pass, more people gather inside of the room. Detective Henderson then decides to start the meeting. He plays the surveillance footage, from the heists the guys participated in.

  “Good morning ladies and gentlemen. The reason to which I have called you for this meeting, is that we are dealing with serious bank robbers. These guys are professionals, and know exactly what they are doing. They are extremely armed and dangerous, and they need to be taken off the street and caught. Sadly, we have nothing on them, as that’s how swift they are.”

  Detective Henderson’s fellow officers and detectives listen as he continues to explain.

  “These men are a group of four. It seems that two of the men act as the ones that do most of the action, and are the ones that gather all of the money. The other two are usually kept as lookouts on the floor. This is an interesting setup they have planned out. Even though these men have done a good job, and have also kept their identities concealed, I believe we can crack this case.”

  Detective Henderson takes a swallow of his coffee, and carries on with the meeting.

  “We have to take a stand against these men; we cannot let them get away again. Because of this, on Friday, every major bank in the downtown area is going to have an armed security guard present. This includes ‘Union Bank’ on Wilshire, ‘First National’ on Western, and ‘First Federal’ on Grand. The possibility of them taking one of these banks, are extremely high.”

  Detective Henderson fast forwards the security tape, to the point where the men run out.

  “These guys have some type of getaway vehicle located away from the bank. I don’t understand how they can run out so fast without being recognized or stopped. Whatever system they have, we can beat it. It’s important that we find out the method they escape in. If we know their getaway vehicle, we can get the helicopters, and the whole nine yards to track them down.”

  An officer listening into Detective Henderson’s meeting, raises his hand to speak.

  “I have a slight suggestion and idea we could implement. Maybe we can have an officer stand outside the possible targeted banks in an unmarked car, waiting for the men to come in. He can also call for backup, while he goes in to deescalate the situation. It’s a suggestion I have, and I feel it definitely could work.”

  Detective Henderson takes another swallow of his coffee, nodding his head in agreement.

  “You know what, that is a great idea. I love it, let’s do that. In addition to making sure armed guards are present at every major bank on Friday, I also want a peace officer car to hold outside every bank, waiting for the men to go in as well. Better safe than sorry.”

  The detective continues to analyze the surveillance tapes, and present other key details to everyone in the meeting. Detective Henderson points out how fast the men plan out their actions.

  “Remember, these men are quick. They are in and out of these banks in a flash. If we don’t act a step quicker than they do, they will once again flee. That will not happen this time. Fool me once, shame on me; fool me twice, shame on you. You can’t fool me three times.”

  Detective Henderson takes yet another sip of his coffee, and sits down on the surface edge of the table. He runs his fingers through his spiked hair, and shakes his head.

  “Yesterday, I went to a funeral of someone who I truly believe, was an innocent hostage in their last hit. This man had a loving family, and it’s sad they had to see him go the way he did. I don’t want to see anything like that ever again. These guys have to be stopped.”

  At this time, Detective Henderson begins to wrap up, and says his final remarks.

  “Alright people, that will do it. Our plan is to have guards set up at all the banks, and to have a plain patrol car outside the bank, waiting for them to run in. Take care everyone.”

  Individuals begin to walk out of the meeting room, and Detective Henderson starts to gather all the evidence and surveillance video tapes related to the heists. He puts them in a large cardboard box. Once everyone else has left the room, Detective Henderson closes the door. He starts to feel an uncontrollable anger, which makes his blood boil. Under normal circumstances, Detective Henderson can solve armed robbery cases quite easily, and he always finds a hint, or something which gives him a big break towards the investigation. With this particular
case, he feels that due to the lengths the men are taking to execute their heists flawlessly, he starts to feel hopeless. He starts to question that he isn’t good at his job, which is to protect the civilians against cases such as this.

  The detective plays the surveillance videos of the heists one final time. For some strange reason, he feels as as though Russell and Brian’s bodies are familiar to him, and that he has met them before. He cannot put the pieces all together, as the men are wearing heavy disguises. This feeling that Detective Henderson is experiencing, is causing him to be even more upset than he already was. He feels confident that he recognizes the body types of two of the men, but that simply isn’t good enough when it comes to a bank robbery investigation. Sadly, he cannot figure out who these men actually are, as the ski masks and snow outfits make their identity nearly impossible to tell.