Blood In The Water

Chapter 4- Out Of Your Mind

Ranahan was a silent city with rundown buildings and drugs stores on either side of the road, Sam had grown up just north of the void town. Though it was so close to one of the largest cities in the state, it didn't look grand or loud or extraordinary in any way. In fact, the plain brown color spoiled the sunlight and left shadows over the ghost town. Scotty rolled down his window as he pulled alongside Joel who had also stopped and was typing on his computer. They were halted in a row in front of a dead end brick wall that connected to a slightly nicer brick house. It was still an apartment complex but none of the windows were smashed in and it had a balcony overlooking the other side. "This is the Place?" Sam called to Joel, glancing from his computer to the building and then Scotty who sat back and hit his tongue. "If the drive is where I think it is, this is the place." Joel muttered back, tucking his computer back into the seat and stepping out, standing in his polished boots and expensive clothes. His members followed after him and stood at his side, gazing up at the building in mixtures of awe and unease.

Scotty glanced back at the cars and flicked his trunk open, moving the cover aside and smirking to himself as he hefted a huge black bag over his shoulder. "What's all this?" Damien asked, though he took a bag and then another to show off that he was stronger than the older boys. "They could take the Lambo's but this stuff is important. Take a bag and let's get inside before anyone sees." Scotty explained vaguely, tossing a bag to Sam and Joel and then slamming the trunk. So maybe four of the worlds most expensive cars would look suspicious out in the open. It was still better to get caught for that than whatever Joel had planned.

The inside of the apartment was much nicer than outside, there was a huge living room and separate bedrooms but one room caught Scotty's eye. Joel led the boys down the corridor towards where the balcony faced out over a quarry and in front of a maze of alleyways. Behind the allies was a huge house that was shadowed in mystery and swarming with covert activity. The room against the balcony was an office with library shelves pushed against one side and a desk against the other. Joel set his bags down under the table and spun the desk around so the screens faced everyone. "We know our objective, that drive is the most important thing we can steal from that house. But here's the catch." Scotty sighed and ruffled his hair into his eyes as he flipped onto a chair across from Joel.

There was always a catch in Joel's plans, mostly because he was insanely ambitious and risk never factored into his head. "The road to the house is a maze of allies that was designed to deter people from entering. Good news is that we have a map." Joel flicked on the computer screen and a bird eyes view of the alley flashed in the center. "So we're carrying a computer monitor into tiny allies? Smooth as hell." Sam snapped, lighting a cigar and rolling his eyes as Damien laughed and crossed his arms seriously. "Well that's the other problem, because the mission is so critical you can't take a nap with you. You have to memorize it." Joel's voice lowered and he swallowed hastily as the room fell into silence with everyone staring at him with unbelieving eyes. "You're out of your mind. That's five thousand routes to pick and we don't even know how to get in yet." Sam retorted, pointing the cigar at the screen and glaring at Joel who molded slowly and took a breath.

"Now wait a second, we aren't this stupid are we?" Scotty asked with a laugh, standing up and typing what Joel had linked, smiling as a blinking red light zoomed into the back of the maze. "There's your drive for you." Scotty dipped his head to Joel who Scribbled something on a pad of paper and stuck it into the drawer. "To make sure I heard this right, we aren't this stupid are we?" Sam mocked, glaring at Scotty who straightened up and allowed him to elaborate. "Great, we found the drive but we still don't know how to get in. It's like telling a blond man; 'oh the foods right there' you're letting him starve! You're letting us get caught if this is the best we can do, point out what we want. We know what we want!" Sam exclaimed in a rage, slamming his fist on the table as Scotty deflated under his hurtful glare.