Ingrams & Assoc 2: Retreat Ch. 05

Putting that aside for now, she simply said. "You are a good man Raph. Now, what time are you free for me to bring the Pinkerton agent by?"

*****
In the end, it was ultimately a bit anti-climatic, at least by action movie standards. No one went through a window. There were no shots fired. No car chases.

April contacted Astrid via text, using the number she'd been provided with. She'd been asked to go through some ridiculous scheme of dropping off the details of the mall store via a dead drop. She'd spent some time writing up a convincing report of the mall store, as though her company was doing a security test on them. The conversation with Pinkerton had been strained – they still didn't like Ingrams very much, but the chance to actually take down the armed robbery gang was too much to resist. Pinkerton doesn't actually have arrest capacity, so they worked with the local police department – nicely obscuring the trail to April and Ingrams, both because she asked for it, and also because it meant Pinkerton got all the credit.

She'd arranged the raid to be late in the evening, when all of Raph's people could be sent home and the Pinkerton agents take their place – it was a calculated risk that the gang would case the store and might notice all new personnel, but she couldn't cover everything – some things just had to be left to chance, bearing in mind Ingrams as a company had no clue what she was up to. But it did mean she could sit in the food court, eating some late fast food slop and watch the action. The store was located on the corners of the center of the mall, right by the food court, as so many jewelry stores are.

They came in at exactly eight thirty, masked and armed, straight in from the outside door, next to the JCP Penny's, and directly into the store. Voices were raised, hands raised, and then the place was swarming with armed police and even a swat team. Someone came up to her and asked her to move back, something she did willingly. She didn't want to be recognized, but she did watch as the gang,- now unmasked,- were led out in handcuffs. Astrid was there, along with Sam, and the Neanderthal who'd been at the coffee shop, plus two others she didn't recognize.

Either way, it was done.

*****

There was hell to pay at work, of course. No one at Ingrams was in any doubt of what she'd undertaken. She was harangued by both Dermot and Jessica Ingrams herself. But everyone knew. They knew what she'd done. Some of the field agents applauded her, some privately wondered at her revenge ethic.

In the end, Pinkerton got all the attention, Ingrams faded into the background, but got a double sized bonus from the Northwestern Bank, and April got a reprimand on her official record – and as her friend Megan said "Who gives a shit? There's no vertical mobility here anyway – no higher position to attain anyway, so who cares?" and April got twice the bonus she was initially promised.

She followed the trial of Astrid, Sam and the rest of the gang three months later. Raph was called as a witness, and she smiled as she saw him lie his ass off under oath.

Astrid and the rest were given five years a piece. April was worried – they would get out and they would probably try and find her, but that was years away yet. Worry about that when the time came.

*****
A month after the trial, April called Raph and asked him to dinner. He showed up, more out of curiosity than out of any thing else.

April was dressed casually. He was in a suit, having come just from work. He'd been made area manager, in recognition of his starring role in the drama of the armed robbery. His immediate manager was not too impressed that he'd acted on his own recognizance, but after a visit from the Pinkerton agents, and then from head office, had decided that silence was the better part of valor; trying to take down the hero of the hour was not a great career move on his part, so he accepted head offices suggestion of advancement, and so Raph was now the manager of eight locations, and traveling constantly.

"How are you April?" he said, somewhat wearily, when he sat down at the bar table she was sitting at. She smiled at him sweetly, looking him over. They'd had no contact since the day of the robbery, even though she'd seen him on TV.

"I'm fine. Off on another job in a few days."

"Lots of nice recreational fucking then? Or is it just a job to you, now?" he didn't bother to hide his slight bitterness.

April's smile became more forced, but she was determined to keep it there.

"I... does it matter? Look, I can't stop here. I'm not actually here to have dinner with you."

"Then what do you want April?" asked Raph, looking a bit perturbed.

"I'm not here for dinner," repeated April, "Wendy is."

"Who is Wendy?" demanded Raph, seriously not thrilled at this point.

"Someone you should meet. Here she is."

Wendy approached the table, threading her way through the crowd, on the way back from the bathroom. She stopped short of the table, seeing Raph sitting there, evidently not happy.

"Raph, this is Wendy. Wendy, this is Raph, an old friend. Err.. look, work came up. I need to run, but you guys have dinner, ok? Raph, don't leave and don't get all pissed off. Wendy, Raph is a great guy. And he's looking, if you know what I mean. You kids have fun. Bye now."

And without looking back, April got up and left the bar.

Wendy stood stock still, looking at Raph sitting at the table, debating what to do.

Eventually Raph said, "Well, I dunno. I'm hungry. You hungry?"

Wendy just nodded, dumbly, thinkingthis man is lovely!

"Lets eat, then. I wonder how you get a waitresses attention here? Think I should dance a jig or something?"

Wendy smiled at that, the ice melted and she sat down at the table.

"So Raph, tell me about you....?"

April and Ingrams & Associates will return in 'American Life.'