Blood In The Water

Chapter 7- Viper Venom

The police force looked proud of themselves as they tightened the cold steel handcuffs around Scotty's wrists. Scotty never got caught but his tattoos showed that he had reason to be, they knew the others but he was new. He was like a strange exhibit in the zoo that obnoxious children just couldn't keep their stupid hands off of. Scotty hadn't asked because he trusted Joel but he was starting to doubt whether the drive was important enough to have risked their lives. Sam would say yes, Damien would nod along, but Joel, Joel would give Scotty the real answer. What did four men ruling the streets really gain? Hate from police, that they already had? Was it Damien getting revenge on the boy who killed his mother? Knowing him he would have anyway. Was it Sam peaking his chaos and steeling enough money to burn? He did that all the time. Was it Joel jumping in to save his brothers? No doubt he would have done that too. So what was the point?

"You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can and will be held against you in a court of law. You have the right to a lawyer and one phone call." The police behind Scotty instructed as he grabbed the back of Scotty's head and pushed him into a car. Scotty stayed quiet and lowered his eyes, the metal cuffs cutting into his wrists. He could hardly talk, let alone complain. Joel was shoved in beside Scotty and his piercing green eyes searched him for an answer. "How's being caught feel, this is the lap of luxury, isn't it, babe?" Joel tried a fake laugh as the car fell into uneasy silence between them. "Why'd you do it, Joel? Why did we have to get that drive? Now we're locked up and-" Joel punched Scotty in the mouth, sending him slamming against the barred window. The two cops grabbed Scotty and pinned him to the pavement outside as he struggled to reach Joel who glared down at him. "Touch him and you'll meet the same fate as your buddies back there." Damien hissed, spinning and kicking out at the gun, watching as it skittered across the road. "Get in the car." The cop warned in an icy voice as he leaned back, gazing down at his coworker who had been knocked out by the blow. "Make us." Joel shot back, swinging the handcuffs around his finger and stepping up beside Damien with gritted teeth.

The weight of Scotty's back lightened and he smirked, seizing the opportunity to throw the cop off and leap to his feet. "The judge will hear about this! This is harassment, your little game is over and you're caught so get in the damn car!" The cop shouted, looking wildly and reaching for the gun that had been kicked from his grasp. "I said, make us." Joel answered, blocking the cop and stepping on his hand to grab the gun for himself. "Here's a lesson for you; Heist men aren't done until they finish the job, and when you mess with their friends, that's a no-no." Joel cackled, cocking the gun and examining it as if the cops had tricked him with a fake. "When you mess with their friends, especially if a murderer. See where I'm going with this?" Sam rolled up the cuff of his suit and glanced down at the cop pityingly with an air of superiority. "I work for the Ranahan police force, you couldn't kill me." Scotty brushed the dirt from his chest and couldn't help but laugh, what stupid thing to think. "I'm Scotty Mayer, you can't take me to jail. That doesn't mean jack now does it?" The cop looked from Damien to Joel and then the weapons.

Scotty slowly lowered his gaze and put his hands over the barrels of Joel and Damien's guns as they glared at him. "What're you doing? We could kill him and get the drive, we could go free and have everything we came here to get. Move!" Joel's eyes were wild as he shoved Scotty's hand away but Damien grabbed his arm and swung him back around. "What would that get us? It's a drive, Joel, we could download all of that information from our computers. You drove us into a death trap again." Sam blew smoke from his cigar ice this head as he talked and turned his frozen eyes on Joel, unmoved. "You can go to jail then, I'm not going back without a reason. You watch, I'll kill each of you too and then what?" Damien grabbed Joel by the shoulder and lifted his fist to the side of the eldest boys head, their eyes locked. "Do you really think any of us want to get caught either? You led us into this mess and you'll lead us out, that's what a big brother does." Damien's voice was soft and pleasing a she gazed evenly with Joel who opened his mouth to oppose and slowly shut it. "That's what I have to do." Joel talked more to himself than anyone but Scotty heard, watching him lower the gun in defeat.

Joel turned towards the cop and gazed down at him with a frozen expression as it still contemplating his plan. Damien spun the knife between his fingers and stepped closer to the officer, dropping into a crouch. "Or, we could see how good his training did him." Sam stomped his cigar into the ground and the cops swallowed as they met his eyes. "It would be interesting to see what exactly they teach cops in that school. Perhaps a little about stealing a drive I suppose?" Damien held the blade to the man's throat and blood trickled across the stiff metal. "I'll turn you in, just wait until we count up all of these charges." Scotty laughed, kicking the body of the first guard who rolled over, eyes glazed over lifelessly. "We as in you and your will? There's no one here except us and to, what a pleasant arrangement." Joel pulled at the lapels on his jacket as Scotty slowly walked in a circle around his prey. "See what happens when you get blood in the water?" Damien's voice was barely above a whisper as he flicked his wrist and let the officer's body hit the ground.

"Back into the mazes! They won't suspect us for long since we played easy to get. Damien and Sam; stay here to make sure no one comes back. Scotty, let's go." Joel slid his jacket off and laid it over the first cop, swallowing as he stared at the one Damien had killed. "What? Are you going to stand around all day and gäl. as the job I finished? Get in and get out, no casualties." The youngest repeated his leader's words and nodded as Joel smashed his glasses into the pavement. "What was that for?" Scotty asked, kicking the stray glass away and crossing his arms after Joel. "So that I can trust you blindly." Joel took off down the alley and Scotty glanced back and Sam and Damien who looked just as perplexed.

The sun rose and cast long shadows along the maze, making the bodies stacked against the walls smile like dolls. Joel slowed as they neared the corner where the boys had been ambushed. "I'll start shooting, you run down the left side and wait for me inside the quarry." Scotty looked up at Joel, his mismatched eyes piercing the older boy lifted his hand to touch the cut on his palm. Closing his hand, Scotty took a glance back down the alley where only a few men sat in a circle. "I'll grab it and your sit for me by the cars once everyone is dead, don't look back, just start running." Scotty didn't look at Joel as he took off and rolled into his stomach against the left side of the brick.

Surprised shouts came from the group as they stood up and looked around having not seen but heard something. Joel jumped out from behind the wall and started shouting, one eye closed as he walked forward like you'd see in movies. Scotty smiled, the leader was showing off, the cloth along his ribs tore and he winced as he crawled to the quarry. In an instant, the onslaught of bullets and screams came to a stop as the breath was knocked from Scotty's lungs. "Thought you could escape, did you? If the cops hadn't killed you by now I will." Scotty yelled as the boot dug harder into his back and screwed his eyes shut as he realized what they'd been missing. The entire quarry was flowing with eyes and growls of dogs who had alerted their owners long before Scotty and Joel had arrived.

A black German shepherd lowered its nose next to Scotty's head and bared its teeth, slobber dripping from its fangs. "Rip 'me apart." The weight moved from Scotty's back but in a moment flashing lights whirled as the dogs dug their claws into his shoulder. "Joel!" Scotty screamed as he shoved the dog away, when he kicked one dog away it felt as if seven more would latch on.

"Heal! Heal! We'll handle this!" The cop who Scotty had thought was knocked out grabbed him by the collar and flung him to his feet. "You guys really have no heart, so you?" The cop asked, his icy blue eyes meeting Scotty's same eye and shadows danced behind his marbles one. "It's not heartless to end someone's suffering." Scotty wheezed back, breathing hard and feeling his heart hammer as he searched for Joel. "How's that?" The officer asked, cuffing Scotty's hands behind his back and dragging him through the alley. Scotty clenched his jaw and pursed his lips until the officer stuffed him into a cop car alone. Their eyes locked for a moment and the cop leaned in with a raised eyebrow, still waiting for a reply. "Life is painful, you either leave it or you end it. The choice isn't predator or prey." The man laughed and glanced over at one of his buddies before nodding for Scotty to continue. "The world has always been you versus me, some people decide to win and others decide to lose. You're raised in a viper lit and when I decide I want to live, someone else has to die." The cop nodded slowly, his smile gone as he slowly closed Scotty's door but held it an inch open. "The viper's bite, I guess this time you lose." The door slammed shut and Scotty stared at the rusted metal around his wrists, begging for Joel.