Piece Keeper

The streets were desolate and cold. James shook off the chill that shot through his bones as he pulled the skull cap slightly down over his eyebrows not leaving very much of his face to be seen. He took his time moving to the ATM machine. He had transferred a small portion of his money from the offshore account to his account in the states. He had been in Burr Ridge for almost a week now. Nothing or no one, other than Witherspoon, was connecting him to what happened to Teresa or the others he’d dumped in the river over the past year. He knew Witherspoon would never speak and their employer had no idea who it was and didn’t want to know. He felt bad about not trying to bring Teresa. He contemplated that she was better off without him. He slid the bank card into the machine, keyed in the code followed by the amount he wanted to withdraw, and then waited for the machine to spit the bills out. Once the money was out he retrieved his cash and card and went back to his car. He had nothing to worry about yet he still felt compelled to get out of Illinois. He wanted to see his sister before he left because he didn’t know when he would see her again. As he climbed into his car and started the engine, he heard the sound of a click behind his head.

“You can have the money and car,” he said.

The person behind him remained silent.

James spoke again. “It doesn’t have to end badly. I haven’t seen your face so you can just take the cash and go. Everyone’s happy.”

“This isn’t just a robbery,” the woman’s said as she pulled the trigger.