The Black Deal

I hear the gun cock behind me, sending a shiver down my spine, knowing what was about to happen if I make the wrong move. I stood there still, silent, and loathing what was happening And hoping they couldn’t sense my fear trembling through me. I didn’t mean to get involved, but they didn’t know that. Meaning one wrong move could end the whole deal all together.

-Three months before-

I jolt up, feeling like I had just been falling through the floor, only realizing it was just one of those stupid dreams. I looked around to see if anyone had noticed that I had jumped out of my seat, and luckily I don’t think anyone did. It was one of those days where it felt never ending yet speedy. I decided while “listening“ to the lesson that I would go get a drink at Milo’s Bar in downtown Rockers Ville after class. I know I’m not old enough but a fake i.d never hurt anyone.

Class had finally ended leaving me packing up my belongings I had taken out to pretend like I was physically present yet mentally day dreaming about the drinks I was going to dine on later. It had been a long week and I thought some drinking could help a little; making the weekend a tad bit easier to study for the finals zooming in soon. I start to walk out of my class when Mr. Axel stops me. I slowly turn to him when he begins talking.

“I love to day-dream myself, but I also love to learn new things don’t you think Arryn?”

I stared at him for a moment. “Oh sir I- I wasn’t day-dreaming..I was um- mentally taking notes in my head to of course study for later.” I really hoped he had taken that, even though stuttering was a telltale sign that I was most certainly lying.

He looks at me for a moment before speaking once more with a stern tone in his voice. “Phycology class isn’t the best class to lie in Arryn, please pay attention next class because you’ll never know when I might just give you a pop quiz. Understood?” I nodded my head at him and was dismissed. I started to finally walk out to my car and be able to head to the bar.

As I got there I made myself look a little older by roughing up my hair a little and applying some tinted chapstick. I grab my purse and make sure my wallet and fake i.d is in there so I can be ready when they ask to see it. When I walked in something felt off. I could feel like there was a presence staring straight through my soul, but I looked around and couldn’t see anyone that was easily seeable from my standpoint. I brushed off that feeling and continued to head to the big curved circle bar table in the middle of the room.

“Drink and i.d please?” The bartender asked. I could hear the confusion in his voice, probably thinking that I was not actually 21, which I’m not. I hand him my i.d and tell him I want a bourbon on the rocks. As he hands you the drink I look around at the place then notice a small black notebook on the stool next to me. As instinct I pick it up and look around the bar to see if someone accidently left it. I didn’t so then I of course ask the bartender to see if he maybe saw someone, he didn’t. I decided to drink the last sip of my bourbon, tip him 20 because he was nice, and leave to go home.

As I got into my car I checked the backseats for anyone and then pressed the start button, because I love to be fancy. I put the stick in reverse and head home thinking to myself if I should have not taken the book so I could have just left it there in case someone came back for it, but I was also super curious what was in it.

When I pulled into my driveway I turned my car off, grabbed my backpack from the back and made sure I had the black book with me. I walked to my door and unlocked it but when I turned the key lock the door locked back, meaning it was already unlocked. As I start to think that maybe my mom was home from work early I hear footsteps upstairs and say out loud “who’s there?!” I then hear the footsteps stop then hear a man call out something I could distinguish, but that’s all I remember til it went dark.

“Okay now take your time for this part. I promise we will try to make this over as fast as possible.” A nice FBI agent told me.

“Okay well...”

When I woke up I had a pounding feeling in my head that made me want to vomit my brains out but I kept my composure not knowing where I was. I opened my eyes and looked around frantically and tried to move but I could feel the zip ties keeping my secure to the chair so tightly I thought my wrists were going to pop off.

That’s when I heard “She’s awake boss” from a man sounding way older than my dad who is a good ripe age of 65. Then I started to be questioned by them with random questions like “where did you find this little black book” and “Did you open and read it” Of course I told the truth but I stayed hard to hear because I was worried.

One of them finally said something that made me jump.

“Well she has seen our faces and doesn’t seem like any help we truly need, so boss what should we do with her?”

“Well maybe she does have some use for us, she could kill Myen and we could reward her to stay quiet.” The man with an accent said. I’m guessing he was the boss.

”Could I please take a break SSA Kate? I just need some water.” I say as my voice breaks.

“Of course sweetie, the water bottles are over near the man in the black suit.”

As I take a bottle and open to take a sip I sit back down near the agent and continue talking.

“Boss do you think she could actually pull that off? We got her today and she looks like a piss baby for sure.”

I scoffed under my breath but they still heard me, sadly.

“Got something to add there you—“ til the boss cut him off.

”So what do you say, would you like to kill or be killed?” The boss growled very sternly staring deep into the tearful eyes I had.

“Ye-yes I’ll ki-kill for you.” I had to hold the ugly sobs I was about to unleash. Then the world went dark again and I woke up in a van driving fast with me being held again with the zip ties.

“So do you know how to shoot a gun?” The assistant to the boss asked.

With sarcasm in my voice “Oh you know very often I get to go down to my shooting range and shoot some hoops” I answered.

”Oh wow really, that never happens.”

“You idiot she was kidding” The boss growled.

“Oh, um well you better be a fast learner.”

“I guess I can be, at least that‘s what I‘ve been told.”

And so that’s what the idiot man showed me how to do, he told me about all the tips he has learned and even stopped on the side of the road to let me shoot a few rounds, and to be honest it was fun, but they weren’t.

As we were close to the destination, the gps said, the idiot man told me what the prize was, for some odd reason he’d seemed excited to give me it if I completed this task.

“So 20k all to me, just me?!’ “But what if I miss the shot and he—he kills me, will y’all save me?” I started to gather tears in my eyes but the excitement still lingered deep in my gut.

When we pulled up to the place the boss gave me a new gun, but the same model as the one I was learning with , and shoved me out of their van. I started to walk towards the building trembling under my feet and looking back to them constantly. As I reached the entrance I opened the big clanky metal door and walked through quietly closing the big door behind me. I held out the gun acting like I was ready to actually kill the man or a woman for all I know.

After walking through this place anxiously biting the inside of my mouth when I heard footsteps coming near me. That’s when I hear the gun cock behind me, sending a shiver down my spine, knowing what was about to happen if I made the wrong move. I stood there still, silent, and loathing what was happening and hoping they couldn’t sense my fear trembling through me. I didn’t mean to get involved, but they didn’t know that, meaning one wrong move could end the whole deal all together.

BANG.

That’s when the shot rang through my ears making me jolt up in my bed I had fallen asleep on with the small black book in my hands.

“That was all a dream, how was that a dream that was so vivid.” I sat there pondering that to myself and now realizing I haven’t actually read the book I had found. So I opened the front cover and when I saw numbers, enough numbers to look like they went to a lottery ticket, which I took as a sign and took a quick trip to the grocery store, picked up a few items like snacks, toiletries, and some drinks. I then headed over to the lottery ticket machine and went on with that required number and had the biggest prize of 20k. This one I would have to wait to get my answers on the TV and even though I hate waiting I entered my numbers on the screen and bought it. I went to check out and purchased those goodies and headed home turning on the TV to the station that would say the winning numbers.

As I sat there with my snacks that I got waiting for what felt like days to see when this one would pop up, until it did.

“Welcome back ladies and gentlemen to the grand prize card named blue bell with a winning prize of 20,ooo dollars, do you think you have the winner?”

I sure hope so

“Okay the winning numbers are 15, 6, 84, 09, 67, and 37!!!”

I looked down at my card and matched up the numbers slowly til I got to 37, which mine was 36. I shouldn’t believe everything a book says.

“I’m so sorry ladies and gentlemen the last number is NOT 37 but is 36!, Congrats to the winner!”

I jumped up out of my seat dancing round with joy realizing that I had just won 20,000 dollars! I could buy so many snacks with that.