The brick building was in a narrow lane in one of the dirtiest parts of the town. It was right next to a bar. A silver car was parked in front of it.
Ryan pulled up his car behind the other one and got out.
Two burly men were standing outside the building. One of them had a beard and a lip piercing.
He walked up to them. "I - uh....Rick sent me?" He held up the package in his hands.
They shared a suspicious glance. "Wait here." The bearded guy disappeared into the building.
Ryan looked at the other guy. "What do you guys do here?" It was a stupid question, Ryan knew that he'd get no answer for that. He was right.
"Nothing you need to know about."
Ryan shrugged. He was pretty sure whatever it was, it wasn't legal. All he could wonder was why had his dad decided to send him here, rather than some other, more experienced, guy. What was he delivering? Drugs? Money?
The bearded guy stuck his head out from the door and called out! "You!"
Ryan looked over to him.
"Get in!"
Ryan attempted a smile at the other guy, but he remained stone faced.
The bearded guy led him in. The place was a mess. It seemed like a flat kept by a hoard of uncivilised teenagers. The hall was littered with cigarette butts and beer bottles. There was no furniture in the room except for an old TV, whose screen was cracked.
There was a door at one corner. It opened as soon as Ryan arrived. A man stepped through. He was thin and spindly, and barely reaching his height. He was wearing an armani suit, which did not go with the room he was in. His black eyes glittered when he saw Ryan. "Ryan Cross - Welcome." He held out a hand.
Ryan took it and shook once. "Uh...yeah. Thanks." He held out the package. "Rick - he wanted to - "
The man patted his shoulder. "Yes, Yes. He told me he was sending you. We'll get it done in good time." He gave him a smile that did not reach his eyes. "For now, how about some drinks?"
Ryan was surprised. "Drinks?"
The man shrugged, held his wrist and pulled him to the door. "Come on, just a civilised discussion, no guns, I promise."
Ryan frowned even more. Guns? He tried to pull out his hand, but the man's grip was surprisingly strong. He gave up and followed the man inside.
This room was a hundred times more better, and cleaner. The walls were clean and white - not painted with fungus - and there was a table with two chairs set in the middle.
The man gestured to it. "Join me."
Ryan put the package on the table and sat down on one of the chairs. The man sat in front of him.
"I'm Eagle."
Ryan looked at him in surprise. What kind of a name was that?
Eagle caught his puzzled look. "It's a codename," he explained. "In this business, we can't afford to give away our identity, can we?" He chuckled.
Ryan forced himself to laugh with him. "Yeah, we can't." What business was he talking about? "Uh - so what does Rick do here?"
"Your dad? He's my head transporter. Delivery man, you could say."
Ryan sighed. Not many clues. He still didn't know what they transported.
Eagle turned to the bearded man, who, Ryan noticed had followed them inside and was standing near the door. "Get the beer, Stone. Ryan - what would you like?"
"No, nothing - I'm fine."
"Oh, take something. You must at least be thirsty after that long journey."
Ryan considered the offer.
Eagle laughed again, but he did not sound happy. "I wont drug it, you have my word."
Ryan chuckled. The man seemed to be fond of making promises. "Uh - I'll just have some coke then."
Eagle nodded at Stone, who exited the room immediately. Eagle turned back to Ryan. "So....what do you do, Ryan?"
Ryan shrugged. "Uh..Study, I guess."
Eagle laughed, again a mirthless sound. "Obviously. I meant, in your free time."
Ryan shrugged again. Get beaten up by your fucking delivery man. "Sports and stuff...."
"I see. And your mom's an actress right? The Nicky Laureal?"
"Yeah."
The door opened and Stone walked in with a beer bottle in one hand and a coke can in the other. He put them on the table and resumed his place at the entrance.
"It's still sealed," Eagle pointed out.
Ryan grinned at him. "Yeah, got it." He opened the can and took a sip. "You tell me, what do you guys deliver?"
Eagle smiled without humour. "Stuff. For rich people who can afford it."
Still no clues.
"Legal?"
Eagle shrugged. "You ought to have guessed that by now."
Ryan took a large gulp of his drink, letting the wetness flow down to his throat. The man wasn't giving away anything. He put down his can. "I'll...get going then." He stood up.
Eagle followed suit. "Well, we'll be in touch, Ryan."
Ryan nodded. The two of them shook hands again.
"Good to do business with you, Ryan. Come again sometime." Eagle added just as Ryan got into his car and drove away.
He hadn't learnt much. Just that his dad was involved in transporting some very expensive, illegal stuff. All Ryan could think of was drugs. What else could it be?
Ryan glanced at the mobile. It was three in the afternoon already. He was going to miss Rick's deadline. He accelerated as much as he could.
He turned onto the highway. There was a silver car right behind him. Ryan remembered seeing it outside the building.
Ryan accelerated again, swearing. They were following him. What was it now? He swerved into the nearest lane he could find. He had to lose them.
A right. Then a left. Another left. Third left. Then a right again.
They were still there, only they were farther away. Ryan twisted into another lane, this one narrow like the one he had been to. There were people sitting on the sides, smoking and drinking. Some were lying drunk and unconscious on the road. They threw themselves out of the way as Ryan came at them.
Beer bottles were being thrown at him. One hit his window. Ryan swore and tried to avoid the others. Suddenly, his car skidded. Ryan punched the brakes in horror. Fuck. Not now. His tyre had just blown apart.
The sliver car halted beside his car. Stone and the other guy was inside. They pointed a gun at him. Ryan slowly got out of the car, hands raised above his head. First they got him drinks, and now they want to kill him? What was the deal?
The people were just watching them with mild interest, as if they were used to this. A few walked away laughing.
Stone pointed to the silver car. "Get in."
Ryan nodded and began walking towards it, as slowly as he could. He had to figure something out. "Where are you taking me?"
The two of them didn't answer. Ryan was close to them now. He chose his moment and lashed out with a punch.
It hit Stone right on his nose. He stumbled backwards, gasping, and swearing between his gasps. The other guy laughed himself at Ryan. Ryan pushed him onto the floor and ran towards their car. He had to get away.
A swish of air. Ryan ducked and twisted around. Stone had just tried to kick him. He kicked back and missed. The other guy latched onto his arms and pulled them behind his back. Stone punched Ryan straight in his kidney. Ryan kicked backwards and caught the other guy in his shin, who hissed and let him go. Without wasting time Ryan punched Stone on his eye. He collapsed to the floor.
One down.
Ryan jumped into the car's driver seat without even opening the door. The other guy, now limping, attempted to follow. Ryan reversed the car right into him, then sped away, never looking back.
*******************************************************************************
A/N
Early Update! Just for you guys! Hope you liked it!
Vote, vote on! And comments, whether critical or encouraging, would be appreciated! :P Too formal? :P
And surprise, surprise - the first to comment on this chapter would get a dedication to the next one! :P Just because! :P
And 600+ reads! Wow! Love you guys! :)
And again - check out my latest book - 'Jay Smith'. The summary is in the previous part. You can find the book listed under my works.