Not what I thought

Supply

Alastair tucks his tablet under his arm.

"Come on. We've got to get your stuff for Monday."

He briskly walks out of the room, I follow behind, almost jogging. We go back the sardine elevator and go right down to below basement level.

"Welcome to supply."

All my interior design dreams have come true. Industrial crossed with hardware. Metal shelving units and benches with timber feature finishes crowd my vision. Wow is all I manage.

Trying to stay close to Alastair, we head down the back to a bench. A middle aged man waits at the desk.

"Sir. Good to see you."

"Likewise. I need a couple things for this young lady."

"Alright. Let's get what you need."

I follow Alastair and this other guy through the shelves.

"What do you need?"

"Full body kevlar with extra plates and a couple of earpieces."

"Alright. No problem."

I'm handed a velcro vest. It seems light. Then I'm handed 6 bullet proof plates that slot into the vest. Yeah, it's not that light anymore.

The vest isn't the comfiest or the lightest but it will save my life if any shots are fired so I'm not complaining.

We head over to another shelf and a Alastair is handed a small clip box with 4 small pieces sat delicately inside.

"One of these will be in your ear and the other attached somewhere on your shirt so we can hear what is happening and tell you what to do."

"Sounds good."

"Any weapons?"

"No. We're done."

"Sir, all due respect but I don't feel comfortable standing face to face with murderer. I know you will have agents nearby but things happen quickly."

"I want to say yes but there's only two problems. One, it's illegal for quite a few reasons and you don't know how to-"

"Sir, YouTube has more videos than you think. At least let me try. Please."

"You can try. If I'm not 100% happy with how you shoot, holster, load and aim you can't have one. Deal?"

"Deal, sir. Thank you."

Alastair turns back to the supply guy.

"And one 9mm Glock pistol."

"Shall I take it to the range, sir?"

"Yes, please."

I follow them once again to a firing range. I think this building has doors that use the same technology as Mary Poppins bag; fits more than it looks.

"I trust that you'll be safe. Just thought I should let you know that in front of you is a weapon with enough power in it to kill me 12 times over. Please, don't do anything stupid."

I stare down the lane that I'm in. A paper target is hung a couple metres in front me from the ceiling.

I've shot a gun before. Not a handgun but a hunting rifle. But they are very different. This is all new. I wrap my fingers tightly around the grip and rest the end of the tip of my index finger on the trigger. I hold the base of the grip with my other hand and take a breath, firing three shots in quick succession between inhaling again.

To my surprise and Alastair's, they all make fatal shots. One in the neck, one dead centre in the chest and one slightly above where the heart is.

"Alrighty then. Yeah you can have that on the day."

Alastair reaches out to me and takes the pistol from my hands. I remove my vest and follow Alastair back to the car.

"Short day, sir?"

"Yes, today is. Everyone is getting ready for Monday. It's one of the biggest cases of the year. I should probably have told you that we have been tracking this group for a long time, a year at least but they're like ghosts. The keep disappearing and reappearing. I hate to put it this way but your parents death was a lead that we all really needed because it was a way to prove they were still active."

"What have they done in the past?"

"They came up on our radar a while ago for things like dealing and shoplifting. We just saw them as scumbags and tried to arrest them but they were never put away for long enough. They'd get out of gaol and go straight back in a few days later."

We drive in silence again back home. By this time it's just after midday. As we pull into the garage Alastair turns to me.
I'm
"May I add, now that you have a weapon and we have something big to convict them of, try not to kill them. If you have to, get them in the leg or something."

"Sure. And again, thank you."

I'm pretty tired so I head up to my room and collapse onto my bed staring out the window at the sky.

"Big morning?"

"Busy. Very busy."

Xavier hangs in my doorway staring at me.

"What's did you do this morning?

"Not much. Slept in. Made breakfast. Worked out. That's about all."

"What about you."

"Been crushed in and elevator. Stood up in front of a lecture room. Got a Kevlar vest and shot a gun that I'll be possibly using on Monday."

"Your morning sounds way more interesting than mine."