Got Your Six

Chapter 10

Cameron

Bennett is pretty amped up for tonights operation. I guess I should start calling him 'Captain Bennett'. After all, he will be my Captain once this is all over with, assuming I do well enough to still have the job offered to me. I can't blame him for being so amped up though. He has been trying to bust this guy for a long time, the way he talks about it. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't excited too. This is the most excitement I've had since I was in the service. I won't lie though, there are a few nerves inside me as well, I'm just trying my best to hide them so nobody else knows that I'm nervous.
I'm not sure why Captain Bennett wanted me to follow them over to the park. I know where it is, I could've left before them or after them, that way we don't arrive at the same time. Maybe he just wanted to make sure I didn't screw this up by chickening out at the last second. He's got nothing to worry about when it comes to me though. I know my part and I intend to play it well. Captain Bennett has put a lot of trust in me this week, me not being an actual police officer and all, but I'll be sure not to let him down tonight. There's a lot that's riding on tonight, for the both of us. He wants to catch this guy and I want this new job opportunity.
"Captain wants you to just park your car like normal. You'll be standing outside your car while you wait for Gavin to show up," Calvin informs me and then walks away from my car back to the unmarked SUV.
I've been sitting in the middle of the parking lot waiting for some sort of instruction since we got here. Finally, having some guidance, I back into a parking space one spot from the end of the lot, right next to a handicap spot. Parking here means my car faces the exit of the park. The end of the island in the middle of the parking lot is filled with bushes, a thin tree, and a big rock that displays the name of the park on it. None of these obstacles will prevent me from seeing down the road which means I've got a clear view to see when Gavin is approaching. The other guys are parked about ten spaces down in the same row, near the middle of the small parking lot. I guess that makes them far enough to hopefully not be noticed, but close enough to take him down when the time comes. I kill the engine on my car and step out, making my way over to the others.
"We've got thirty minutes until Gavin is supposed to show up. I want everyone in position in ten. I don't want any sign of movement when he shows up. Make him think it's just him and Cameron here," I hear the Captain say as I walk up behind him.
"What do you need from me, sir?" I ask, clearly startling him as he jerks his body around to look at me.
"Shit. Don't sneak up behind me like that," he says, letting out a deep exhale. "I just need you in position, waiting for Gavin to arrive. We'll handle the rest."
"All right, you got it," I tell him before making my way back over to my car.
"Make sure your mic is on, we need to be able to hear everything," Captain Bennett calls out to me.
I give him a thumbs up and lift my sweatshirt to click the microphone on that's clipped to my waistline. Positioning myself against the side of my car, I make myself comfortable and begin my long wait. In this position I've got my back to the road, but I figure I don't have to be looking for Gavin just yet, I've still got almost thirty minutes until he's supposed to show up. In the meantime, I'll just watch the others get into position.
Gonzales reaches into the back of the SUV and pulls out an assault riffle. I can see a scope on the top of it. Nothing crazy like you might see on a sniper riffle, but something that will hopefully be good enough to get the job done. That gets me thinking of how good of a shot Gonzales may or may not be. I suppose Captain Bennett wouldn't have chosen him to man the riffle if he wasn't a good shot. He only wants the best on this case after all. The only thing I can hope for is that he's good enough to not hit me on accident.
I watch him as he takes the riffle across the parking lot and then carefully climbs up a slanted wall of rocks until he gets to the grass at the top, leaving him roughly two hundred feet from where the action is bound to take place. I imagine the spot gives him a view of anyone coming down the road and of where the deal will be taking place. He lies down and suddenly becomes one with the ground beneath him. You'd only be able to spot him if you knew he was there, and even then you'd have to look very hard to make him out.
The moon isn't out tonight, which only leaves the dim street lamps along with a few stars to light the night. Captain Bennett holds a pair of binoculars to his face and then says something into his radio. I glance over to the hill just in time to see Gonzales shift his position a few feet to the right, somehow making him even more invisible than he was before. Just as Captain Bennett slides back into the passenger seat of the SUV, Calvin makes his way over towards me.
"Not nervous, are you?" He asks in a way that makes me think he might be more nervous than me.
"Not at all," I lie. It's not a big lie, though it is a lie nonetheless. Of course I'm bound to have a few nerves floating around in my body. I'm about to attempt to take down our towns biggest drug lord. I think it's okay to be at least a little bit nervous. "How are you holding up?"
"This isn't my first time doing this," he reminds me.
It doesn't really answer my question but I figure he doesn't want to freak me out if he is in fact more nervous than I am.
"Maybe not, but this is a pretty high stakes situation. Captain Bennett has made a point to remind us of that several times today," I say jokingly.
"I know, so don't do anything stupid," Calvin says rather harshly, but I know it's just a form of tough brotherly love. He pulls me in for a quick but tight hug and says, "Be careful," before releasing me again.
"You don't have to worry about anything. I'm going to be fine. We all are, and we're going to take this guy down," I say with a smile so forced even Calvin could probably tell it's fake.
"I know, I should probably get back before Captain Bennett gets on my ass," he says before turning to walk away.
"Hey!" I call out when he's midway between the two vehicles. He stops and looks over his shoulder. "When everything else is gone..."
"...We'll always have each other," he says, then he smiles and proceeds to get into the SUV with Captain Bennett.
I dip my head into my car and take a swig of water and then take my place, leaning against the side of my car, waiting for this whole operation to commence. After a minute of waiting, I realize I need to be able to see down the road. I shuffle myself around to the hood of my car and stare down the road, waiting for Gavin to join us.
Twenty minutes feels like two hours in a situation like this. Eventually I spot a pair of headlights coming down the road and then an old beat up black car pulls into the parking lot and make its way around. I watch as it passes by the SUV, seemingly not giving it any thought, good. Then I take a few steps away from my own car as Gavin's comes to a stop in front of me. The passenger's window rolls down, revealing Gavin's face. I look past him and see someone I don't recognize sitting in the drivers seat. There's a brief awkward silence as the driver and I lock eyes with each other. Gavin didn't mention he would be bringing anyone with him when we set up our meet. Although, it was only over a text message so I guess that leaves room for things to be left out. Besides, the man always has to have protection with him in his line of work, right?
"Don't mind him, that's just Manny, my right hand man," Gavin informs me, obviously catching us staring at each other. "I have him do the driving for me sometimes. The guy goes practically everywhere with me."
Manny has this mean look to him. He's Mexican and has his name tattooed in cursive over his left eyebrow. I'm guessing he's a little short judging by the fact that he has the seat closer to the steering wheel than most people would. His hair is buzzed off and he scrunches his face to appear pissed off. Either he looks like that all the time or he didn't like Gavin's comment about being his driver. Either way, I wouldn't want to get on this guy's bad side.
"Anyway, how much of this shit do you want? You never really said," Gavin points out, revealing a baggie half full of blue pills he pulled out of the glove compartment.
I resist the urge to look over to the SUV. I know they can't see what I'm seeing but they can hear what I hear. I was never given a signal. They only told me that they would step in when the time's right. Whatever that means. I guess the sale has to be completed for them to have a reason to take him down. I wonder if they'll take down Manny as well. He is an accomplice after all. Even if he gets away, they've got a first name to go off of. Unless it's some sort of nickname he gives everybody.
"How much will this get me?" I ask, pulling a wad of cash from my pocket, held together by a thick rubber band.
My mind begins to flash through several movies, making me think I'm in one right now. Before a week ago, this is the type of thing I thought I'd only ever see on TV, and now I'm living it.
Gavin's eyes nearly pop out of his head at the sight of the money. I guess he wasn't thinking I'd come with so much. Maybe I shouldn't have shown him the whole thing. I should've just gave him a little bit, just enough to make a sale and get him arrested. Regardless, it's too late anyway because he takes the money from my hand right as the thought pops into my head. He slips the money out of the rubber band, as if he's done it a million times, and begins flipping through the bills. He's mouthing the numbers as he counts every single bill, making me wish I would've counted it earlier.
"You're shitting me right?" Gavin says, finally looking up from the money and back at me.
The cold night air makes my body shiver, or maybe it's the nerves. Either way, I rub my hands up and down my arms, unconsciously taking a step back.
"What?" I say, then wonder if it even came out loud enough for him to hear.
"A thousand dollars? You come here wanting a thousand dollars worth of this shit?" Gavin asks, his voice raised yet hushed at the same time.
Why the hell would Captain Bennett give me a thousand dollars? Did he even count it before giving it to me? Maybe he didn't expect me to hand all of it over to Gavin. Too late for that I guess.
"You know how powerful this stuff is right?" Asks Gavin.
I'm on the spot, forced to think of anything to say that won't fuck this up. Anything that will convince Gavin I mean business. We didn't happen to go over anything like this when Calvin and I were rehearsing possible scenarios.
"Of course, I'm not gonna take it all at once," I manage to say, hoping my voice isn't shaking too much. "I figured I'd buy in bulk so it lasts me longer."
Gavin shakes his head, handing the money to his right hand man. Then he says something that catches me completely off guard. "You know who that SUV belongs to over there?" He says without even looking back at it. "Don't look," he says quickly, sensing my head about to turn.
"I don't know. It was here when I got here," I tell him, which isn't a complete lie. They did get here seconds before me.
"You know the park is closed. Ain't nobody supposed to be here," Gavin tells me. "The only people that come here are people like me."
The sweat on my forehead feels cold as it begins to roll down my face. I wipe at it with the sleeve of my sweatshirt as I try to convince Gavin of my loyalty. "Look man, I'm here to get a quick high and that's it. Let's get this over with."
My nerves have reached an all time high. I'm sweating underneath the sweatshirt even though the temperature outside should prevent that from happening. My mouth feels dry and I can feel myself getting lightheaded. The whole world feels like it's slowing down.
"All right," says Gavin as he lifts the bag of pills up to the window.
As I reach out to take the bag from him, his eyes go wide and his head spins to the right. I follow his gaze to the SUV just as Captain Bennett is stepping out of the vehicle.
"It's a fucking setup!" Manny yells as he shifts the car into gear, ready to take them both far away from here.
"Damn it! I knew I shouldn't have trusted you!" Gavin yells as he pulls the bag of pills back into the car, shielding them from my view.
Everything around me seems to be moving in slow motion. I look to the SUV and see Calvin exiting himself from the vehicle, a look of determination on his face. Then he draws his gun and his look quickly transforms into one of worry. I shift my eyes back to Gavin and find a silver pistol pointed in my direction.
"Get down!" Calvin screams from across the parking lot, but I'm all out of time.
I clench my eyes shut as the sound of gunshots fill the air around me. My ears begin to ring and I can feel my back hit the pavement beneath me. The ground is cold. I open my eyes, finding myself staring at the few stars in the sky. I feel as if I can't move a single muscle in my body. I can't even move my head to see what's going on around me. My clothes begin to feel wet as I lie still on the hard ground. The ringing in my ears is fading but everything still sounds so muffled.
I let my eyes drift shut as I listen to the sounds around me. Tires screeching across the pavement, Gavin must be making his getaway. The sound of bullets flying through the sky and connecting with metal, Calvin must be firing back. I hear someone scream but it's hard to make out who it is. There's more gunshots that sound like they're coming from something bigger than a pistol, must be Gonzales up on the hill. Then there's the sound of glass shattering and then the gunshots come to a halt.
My head begins to feel fuzzy and I think I hear something that sounds like a train horn. I can feel some sort of vibration in the ground: footsteps, heavy footsteps. I try to open my eyes to see who it is, but they won't budge. Everything has gone silent. I can't feel any part of my body. All I've got left is my consciousness, but before I'm able to form another thought, that's gone too.