Morgan realized, those kind of things only existed in Die Hard films, and the roof of this car was one solid piece of metal.
“Okay,” he said. “Maybe we can pry the doors open.”
Theo kicked the door again, widening his boot imprint.
“I don’t think that’s helping.”
“Listen, asshole,” Theo said. “Every second we’re stuck in here, there are other folks selling product. And when they come back at the end of the day with higher receipts than us, you tell me then to calm down. I’m not in this to lose, Morgan.”
Morgan stood there, nodded, figuring anything he said would only enrage Theo more.
Five minutes went by. Ten. Theo stopped kicking.
He tried his cell phone, but they didn’t get reception in the elevator.
Theo was shaking. His hands were trembling, knees knocking against one another. A sheen of moisture appeared on the young man’s lip, and he licked it away, his eyes darting around the car looking for some way out.
“Theo, you okay?”
“Shut up, I’m trying to figure out how we can get out of here.”
“I don’t think…”
“I said shut the hell up.”
Morgan moved into the corner of the elevator, looked at his watch and hoped for a miracle.
Finally, after fifteen minutes, Morgan felt a jolt and the elevator began to move.
“Oh, thank God,” Theo said.
Morgan held his breath until they reached the first floor, then as soon as the doors opened the pair bolted into the lobby before the elevator could change its mind.
“Holy crap, man,” Theo said. His hands were shaking, and his brow was covered with sweat. “I was worried we’d be stuck in there until the cleaning crew came by or the thing just detached from its cables.”
“Well, we’re out now,” Morgan said. “We can get back to business.”
“Next stop,” Theo said, still breathing heavy, “you handle all the talking.”
“No problem. I’m a fast learner.”
“You might be a fast learner, but I’ve already learned.”
Theo looked at Morgan with a cocky smile, letting him know that they weren’t just partners, but competitors.
Theo wanted to move up the ranks just as much as
Morgan did, and the longer it took Morgan to catch up the farther ahead Theo would pull. His reaction inside the elevator only proved it. Theo didn’t want to waste a single second not making money.
They exited the building into the early sunlight,
Morgan squinting as he took out the cell phone to wait for the location of their next customer.
“That went easy,” Theo said.
“Yeah. Hope they’re all like that.”
“I’m sure some of these freaks will be a little more strung out than our man up there but just remember that all they want in the end is the stuff. They don’t want to haggle and they don’t want a lot of fuss. Some of these guys might have coke muscles, but if in the end they think you’re going to hold out on them, they’ll bend faster than an elbow.”
“I hear you.”
“So what’s the next stop?” Theo asked.
Morgan looked at his cell phone, reception returning after the elevator fiasco. He had one new text message.
Morgan pressed Retrieve Messages, and an address appeared on the screen.
“That can’t be right,” Morgan said.
“What? Where is it?”
Morgan checked the time and date it was sent. The time stamp was dated just minutes ago, while they were stuck in the elevator.
“Hold on, I need to confirm this.”
Morgan went to the address book and dialed the number marked Home. A strange, deep, robotic voice answered. It was clearly being masked by some sort of voice-altering technology.
“Yes?” the voice said.
“Hi, uh, this is Isaacs and Goggins. We just wanted to confirm the address just sent to us.”
“Three-forty East Nineteenth. Apartment five A,” the voice said.
“Yeah, um, that’s where we just left.”
“And that’s where you’re going back to.”
“Uh, okay.”
The voice explained the situation to Morgan, who stood there, eyes widening. He understood everything that was being relayed, but couldn’t understand why it was happening so quick.
He didn’t know what was in those little black rocks, but it must have thrown pajama dude in 5A for a loop.
The other line went dead. Morgan closed the phone and put it back in his pocket.
“What was that?” Theo said.
“We’re going right back upstairs,” Morgan said. “That guy we just sold to, he took one hit of the Darkness and put in an order for half a dozen more rocks at the standard price. Guy said it was the best high he’s ever experienced.”
“Good for him, good for us,” Theo said.
“And,” Morgan continued, “after we’re done here they’re sending over another address where the customer wants another ten. Home base said to expect a lot of
Darkness deliveries today.”
“Another hundred and fifty bucks for five minutes’ work,” Theo said. He tried to whistle, but again it came out more like an aborted attempt at a raspberry. “Let’s not keep the man waiting.”
“Agreed,” Morgan said. He felt a strange sensation, and for a moment couldn’t place it. Then, as they were about to reenter the brownstone, it occurred to Morgan the last time he’d felt that singular feeling of joy, confidence and ambition.
The day he got his first paycheck at his old job. That was the first day he truly felt like he was going to conquer the world.
“Let’s hurry it up,” Morgan said. “But this time let’s take the stairs.”
29
“Always makes me smile a little,” Jack said.
“What does?”
“Tourists. They spend thousands of dollars to see this city, but they really know nothing about it. You don’t get a sense of Manhattan by taking pictures or sitting on a double-decker bus.”
“Not everyone has had the fortune of being at gunpoint in Vietnam,” I said. “For some people this is as close as they can get.”
“I suppose,” Jack said, “but sometimes I wonder if I even understand the city after all these years.”
“Are you still thinking about Paulina’s article?” I asked.
“A little. I never used to get scooped, Henry. Every time
I went out for lunch, I could feel a dozen eyes on me, hating me. They were other reporters, and they were staring daggers through me because they knew I was working on stories that they’d never get. They’d be working mop-up duty on yesterday’s page seven while I was breaking news.
It’s a great feeling to be hated for doing your job well. And right now, I hate Paulina Cole. Not because she
