Devious Lick

Endgame

Randy continued to stare at the last spot he had seen Ramee as calls began coming in over the radio.

"What's happening Randy, where's Ramee?" April's voice called out from the radio. He could hear the panicked edge to her words. It echoed the feeling in his chest.

"I lost sight of him. Pinging you now, he's just west of here," he said, pinging his location on his phone to April. "I don't know if he's okay. Prepare yourself."

She didn't respond, but Randy knew it was out of fear for Ramee. He felt it, too. He had to tear his focus away from the last place he had seen Ramee and find Ray again. Her radio silence was concerning. He saw her landing in the parking lot across from the bank, and angled his chute to land close to her. As he touched down and released the chute, Ray jogged up to him.

"I can't just leave him out there," he said to her. "I have to go find Ramee."

"I have half a dozen people already on their way, including several who were still in the air and close to him," she replied, looking at her phone. Randy realized she must have been calling people while they were landing to go back for Ramee. "We need to go. The boys and April will find him. He'll be okay. I promise."

"You don't understand, Ray. He's my brother. I need to save him." He turned away from her, starting to walk back towards where he had seen Ramee go down.

"And undo everything he worked for to get you out?" She demanded from behind him. "I understand Randy, I really do. It's taking every ounce of self-control for me to not drop the entire plan here and run into the woods to find him. He's my brother, too." He turned back and could see tears in her eyes. "But I have orders from K to finish this mission. No matter what it takes."

"Even if it means his life?" He asked her.

"This job came with the risk. We all knew it."

"When did you become so cold?" Randy asked, astonished at her.

"When did you become so soft?" She shot back, stung.

"I've always been like this for my gang," he argued. "I'll risk everything for them."

"And yet you're going to take that same sense of devotion away from your best friend? He did that for you!" she shouted at him, tears streaming down her face. He stepped back, stunned. Was that true? Was he taking away a moment of glory for Ramee by giving up on the plan? If he went back and got caught, what was Ramee's sacrifice for? He scowled at Ray, gritting his teeth in anger.

Ray pressed her lips into a thin line. "I promise, I will do everything I can to make sure Ramee's okay. I AM doing everything I can to make sure he's okay by sending people back for him. People who are risking their lives and freedom to go back for him. But what I CANNOT do is let you go out there and look for him. I have to finish this mission."

"Let me? You couldn't stop me," Randy scoffed, walking towards her menacingly.

Ray pulled her pistol out and aimed it at his head. "I could. If I had to."

He glared at her, but he didn't doubt her word. He'd been shot by her before. And he wasn't angry at her. He had promised Mr K that he would follow the plan. There was nothing he could do, except take his anger out on someone who didn't deserve it, and he wouldn't do that. Not again.

He nodded shortly and brushed past her, headed for the back of the bank. It was pointless to continue the conversation when inside he knew she was right. Randy could hear bikes revving their engines as he approached, a silent Ray trailing behind him. As he turned the corner of the bank, he saw it was packed with dozens of bikes. Raymond Romanov slid the visor of his helmet up as they saw Randy and Ray.