Making Waves

Chapter 2

"What can I do for you?" the woman asked, glancing at the clock in anticipation of going home soon. She had forgone the usual greeting and welcome, not that Percy minded.

"I'd like to withdraw some cash, $1700 in 10s," Percy had been here enough times to know how to streamline the process. She slipped the teller her ID without being prompted and took the time to read the teller's name tag, Janet.

"All 10s?" Janet raised an eyebrow at her and managed to look both bored and exasperated at the same time. Percy's face turned sheepish as she shrugged and apologized.

It's not her fault that Carol preferred smaller bills, so that 'the government couldn't track her', or something along those lines. Honestly, Percy thought the government was a pile of minotaur dung. The lack of response or follow-ups to her cross-country adventure to retrieve the lightning bolt, or any of the other quests she had been on, only cemented that belief in her mind. The mist hid all the mythological aspects but that didn't change the fact that the entirety of New York City's population lost multiple hours of their life and the government simply chalked it up to 'freak power surges' and 'something in the water'.

Janet said nothing in response to her apology but a moment later asked her to recite her account number, which Percy did. Janet left her chair and returned a few minutes later with a hefty envelope which she set down next to her keyboard. Percy waited, knowing that it would take a few more minutes to confirm the withdrawal electronically.

While she did, she found herself shifting on her feet and flitting her eyes over the room. The woman at the table had momentarily abandoned her slip to attend to her child. She had crouched down and was holding her daughter's hands while she spoke to her softly. Percy smiled to herself, the gesture reminding her so very much of Sally. I haven't visited in a while, maybe I should, Percy thought to herself before realizing that she had just quit her job and, not wanting to deal with her mother's reaction to that just yet, mentally postponed her visit to a later date.

The second man was still talking to the teller, two booths down from her. The first and third had gotten in line, having, respectively, finished filling out the slip and speaking on the phone. Percy hoped there was enough time before closing for the tellers to help them both. It would be a shame if they had to come again another day.

Percy heard the bank's door opening and furrowed her brow. As she turned around, the back of her mind was already wondering who would be coming inside only 10 minutes before the listed closing time. When she did see who had made such a poorly thought-out decision, she briefly closed her eyes in frustration and annoyance.

Four men in black clothing, black ski masks, and large dark grey guns slung around their shoulders by straps had shuffled in one by one and were now spread out in a horizontal line. The second one down the line stepped forward, breaking the pattern, and hefted his gun up to point it in Percy's general direction, while the others stayed in place and followed suit, making sure to cover all the people in the room.

"Everybody listen up! This is a robbery. I want the tellers to stand up and put their arms in the air," the main one ordered in a gruff but loud voice.

Fuckkkkk.

The same robber who had spoken before trained his eyes on Percy, gesturing to her and the man a few feet behind her. "You two, step away from the glass and put your hands where I can see them."

No really, why me? Percy thought to herself but did as she was told.

She was beyond annoyed. She just wanted to pay her rent and then maybe go back home and watch Finding Nemo for the one millionth time while she tried to not think about the fact that she spent four whole years of her life getting a degree that she no longer wants to put to use. Actually, maybe The Little Mermaid is a better idea, her being able to relate to the whole 'girl trying to find her place in the world' and what not. The last time she had watched that movie with Triton, she had enjoyed seeing his face turn different shades of purple as he digested the uptight portrayal of himself, but that meant she wasn't able to give her full attention to the masterpiece of a film. Maybe...