Derrick’s eyes glanced at his watch. Eight o'clock — eight o'clock and there was still no sign of Robert. He couldn’t wait for him, so he began. But just as his mouth opened and the words were close to trickling off his tongue, the warehouse door flung open and Robert stepped inside.

  “Oh, look who decided to show up,” Travis said. “Mr. Hollywood so graciously blessing us with his presence.”

  Robert’s head lifted, casting a side eye toward Travis as he continued walking into the room.

  “Get off my case, Travis,” Robert responded. “Some of us have real lives. We can’t all be criminals like you and pick our working hours. I have kids, a wife—family.”

  Travis shot up from his seat and turned to face Robert. “Oh, how could I forget, Hollywood. You just have a normal job that’s funded by the likes of people like me.”

  “A mistake I’ve had to live with every day since,” said Robert. “I guess you must think I’m here by choice, because people like me love to dabble in your world, don’t they?”

  Travis turned, his eyes squinting toward Derrick. “He’s got a point, Derrick. There’s no place in our world for someone like him. He’s a liability. He’s just going to get himself killed or all of us caught.”

  Derrick’s eyes rolled, and a deep breath escaped him. They were so close to D-Day, and now they were choosing to be at each other’s throats. Derrick wasn’t going to let it happen. He simply couldn’t afford the lack of cohesion between the men.

  “Travis, Robert has his role in this mission,” said Derrick. “He’s an integral piece.”

  “Well, Derrick, if you care to indulge the rest of us as to what this supposed role is, it would help us fill in some of the gaps,” said Travis.

  “Like I’ve said to you all a thousand times already, there are many moving parts to this plan,” said Derrick. “And they will be revealed at the right time. Not a moment sooner.”

  Travis flung his hand toward Derrick, then walked back to his seat and sat down. “Well, as long as you stick to your promise that I’m taking over the crew after this mission,” said Travis, “then you can do whatever you see fit.”

  “What!” Malakie shouted. “This has got to be some joke — Derrick, tell me this is some sick joke.”

  But Derrick’s head dropped, and his eyes refused to meet anyone’s in the room. The cat was out of the bag, a secret he had hoped wouldn’t be revealed until he was long gone. But what was done in the dark was now revealed in the light, and Derrick found himself in a compromising position.

  “Uh-oh,” said Robert. “Looks like there’s trouble in paradise.”

  Malakie stormed over, wrapping his arm around Derrick’s shoulder. “We need a word — now,” he said through gritted teeth.

  “Sure,” Derrick responded. “Sure.”

  The pair walked over to the far side of the warehouse, away from prying eyes, where they could speak freely.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me,” said Malakie. “You promised me I was next in line. I put pain in these streets in your name, risked my life, beefed with the baddest crews for you,” he continued. “And what did I ask in return? Nothing. Nothing but your respect and your word. Your word was bond, and you promised me next. Now you’ve got to explain to me what the hell is going on, because this isn’t it.”

  “Mal, I know how this looks, but I was caught between a rock and a hard place and I had decisions to make,” Derrick said. “You were my most loyal soldier, my go-guy. I never had to second-guess you or any of you three, but I knew how big this mission was and how big the risk. The reward had to be worth the risk for him, and the only thing he wanted was my spot.”

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  “And you didn’t think to tell him that spot was already promised to someone else — no?” Malakie asked. “Of course not, because Malakie is loyal. Whatever Derrick says, Malakie does. His go-guy, his own little crash dummy.”

  “Mal, come on. It’s not like that at all. If I could have it any other way, you know I would. So don’t come at me like that. I rescued you from your life, put you on, and fast-tracked you to the top. Every step of the way my word remained solid and I always came through. It’s just this one time I’m stuck,” he said. “For the first time in our relationship I’m turning to you and I’m begging — please put this to the side and help me. I know it’s a big thing to ask, but you’re all I’ve got.”

  Malakie stood there completely silent, staring lifelessly into Derrick’s eyes. “I’ll do this job, my guy, because you see me, Derrick — my word was truly my bond. No deviating, no excuses,” he said. “Just straight up meaning what I say and standing ten toes down. So you don’t need to worry about me, but I’m not taking orders from Travis. You feel me?”

  “I feel you,” said Derrick. “And I thank you for understanding, Mal. I appreciate it.”

  Malakie turned his back to Derrick and started walking toward the group. “No one said I understand, my guy,” Malakie said under his breath. “You taught me a valuable lesson — one I’m never going to forget. Always look out for number one.”

  As the pair arrived back, Robert couldn’t help but throw a little jab. “I really do hope you’ve sorted out your family tiff,” he said. “So we can actually get down to what we came here for.”

  “I know this fool isn’t talking about family,” Malakie said. “The man who chose science over his kids. Your son ended up with me, my guy, because you were too busy chasing dollar signs and appreciation from people who couldn’t give two damns about you. But it’s okay though, Robert — I played a good daddy figure to Daniel, and I put him over my lap and disciplined him when needed,” he laughed.

  But Robert wasn’t laughing. He was seething. His hand clenched by his side, the veins bulging in his head.

  “If you’re going to do something, old head, do something. But you can only be angry at yourself. If you were an actual father, Daniel wouldn’t have ever come across people like me. It’s parents — fathers like you — that put themselves first, still chasing their dream no matter what the cost. But what it should’ve been was, as soon as your boys entered the picture, the chasing should’ve stopped and you should’ve created realistic expectations. But here we are — a Scientist of the Year later, award after award, and respect among the science and urban community — but all at the cost of exposing your kids to the life your mother and father fought so hard to get you away from,” he laughed.

  Robert launched himself across the room in a blinding rage, but the guys stepped between them, separating the men.

  “Oh no, don’t do that, boys,” Malakie said. “Let Mr. Bigshot have his moment. I want to know if it’s true what they say — once from the streets, always from the streets. Looks like he was proving that theory right,” he sniggered.

  That was when Robert realised Malakie was goading him. He calmed down, his hands raised in a form of surrender as he looked down at the floor, shaking his head.

  “Listen, Malakie, I don’t know what game you’re playing, but I’m not taking part. I’m taking my ball and going home. I may have been around that street stuff, but I can assure you I was never in no streets.”

  “Enough!” Derrick shouted. “How much more time are we going to waste going back and forth bickering? Let’s get back to why we’re actually here.”

  All the guys nodded in agreement, took their seats, then Derrick began to go over the plan.

  “D’Angelo and Travis, you guys hit the vault,” said Derrick. “My tech guy will make sure their cameras are looped, and my guy on the inside will meet you and help you load up the truck.”

  “You sure we can trust this guy?” asked D’Angelo. “What’s stopping him from double-crossing us?”

  “A fair question to raise, but you needn’t worry about him. The enemy of my enemy is a friend,” Derrick said. “He’s been wanting to take down the Marquez family for years, and if he tries to double-cross us, I’ve got enough evidence in play to put this all on him.”

  “Clever thinking, boss,” responded D’Angelo. “That puts my mind at ease.”

  “Robert, Malakie — you’re with me. We stall Julian for as long as the boys need. Once I get the message from the boys that they’re in the clear, we bring the meeting with Julian to an abrupt end and we get out of there as quickly as possible before he realises his money and jewels are gone,” Derrick said. “Then we split it up equally amongst ourselves, then I’m in the wind. Everyone got that?”

  Everyone nodded their heads. The message was received loud and clear. The boys had prepared for this moment for weeks. There was no time for second-guessing — second-guessing got you killed in this line of work. And with the mission days away, everyone had to play their part perfectly in order for all of them to walk out with their lives.