The Review Club Forum Chain story

Without further ado, for your writing pleasure. I start this here chain story with:

Sun beating down on the crowded sidewalk, Stan stumbled out of the door. Today�d been one of those low down, miserable, rotten days. The type of day when it seemed the world itself had conspired to ruin his fun. But that was about to end. Oh yes, Stan had a plan and it was a thing of beauty. A bright, shiny thing that would wipe away snarling bosses, pissy ex-wives and nagging girlfriends.

But first he�d have to reach Todd. Whipping out the candy bar Nokia, he scrolled through the numbers one by one. The first beads of sweat popping out of his forehead, he struck Todd�s number and sighed. Now just let him be home.

The cell did it�s beep, beep chime in his ear as he waited for his friend to pick it up. On the fourth ring, someone answered. But it wasn�t who he expected.

----------
So go ahead and write the next 150 to 200 words. Someone. Anyone.

"Yah?"

Stan could smell the bubblegum at the other end of the line. Todd's jailbait sister, always thinking she knew what she wanted. Last time he saw her she had seemed to want him. He held back a sigh. "Hi, Tammy. Where's Todd?"

"Stan?" Her voice turned sugar sweet. "He's out oiling up the rig. We're going to the beach. Wanna come?"

"How long have I got?"

"Just hurry up. I'll tell him you're on your way." She added slyly, "Don�t forget your Speedos." Stan could hear her yip as she abruptly clicked off.

Stan hurried to his Cadillac and made a devil's pace through traffic. His two suitcases in the trunk held a hell of a lot more than swim trunks. He planned to go a lot further than Mission Beach, too. He just hoped Todd would see things his way. And that his pretty little sister would hold her tongue.

Ticktoc ticktoc ticktoc�

�Forty nine clicks of the clock,� Stan said as he pulled into Todd�s driveway. Every minute counted now, counted against him. Three hours is what he figured he had after taking possession of the suitcases. With forty nine minutes wasted getting to Todd�s, that left him with just under two hours. He needed to get Egypt, bum fucked Egypt and fast�

Looking at himself in the rearview mirror, he could see he was coming apart. Sweat was blooming like a field of mushrooms on his forehead. He sleeve-dried his forehead and looked again in the mirror. Damn I need some Cleareyes, red rings looked back at him. Fishing through the glove box, he found a pair of aviator sunglasses the previous car owner had left behind. He was glad now he hadn�t thrown them out.

Tammy walked out the front door holding a daiquiri in her hand. With the bikini top she was wearing he was thankful again for the cheesy gold-rim sunglasses. She toasted him a hello and the slushy pink fluid ran off the edge of the wide mouth. All tits and no wit�

�Oops,� Tammy�s voice playful as ever.

�Todd inside?�

�Depends. You bring your Speedos?�

Stan grinned, pulled out a pack of Chiclets from his pocket, tapped the box till a square dropped in his palm, tossed it up, and caught it in his mouth. �They�re in the trunk,� he said around the piece of gum.

�Well then, c�mon, cowboy. Whatcha waiting for? Pop that trunk and let�s get going.� Tammy wiggled her way to the back of the car, noisily sipping her drink.

Stan grimaced as he watched her reflection in the rearview mirror. He didn�t want her around that trunk. Hell, he didn�t want anyone near it.

�Why don�t you tell your brother I�m here. I�ll be right behind you.�

�Promise?� She shot him a seductive wink and then shrugged. �I�m in no hurry.�

Swinging one booted foot out of the car, Stan adjusted his sunglasses and stood. �Tammy!�

She gave no heed to the exasperation in his voice. He didn�t have time to waste arguing with her. The tick-tock echoed through his mind, matching his pulse.

�Damn it!� he muttered under his breath. With car keys jingling in his hand, he walked to her. �Look, Miss Thing��

Without waiting for his lecture, she grabbed the keys and clicked the trunk open with the remote. Tammy pushed it up and, before Stan could stop her, reached for the nearest suitcase. It dropped with a heavy thud, slipping from her diminutive hand.

�What have you got in there? Bricks?� she frowned and wiped sloshed daiquiri from her cleavage.

�Yeah, Tammy. Bricks. Now, go get your brother!� Stan growled.

�Alright tiger, don�t get your speedos in a bunch.� Stan watched Tammy walk towards the house, slowly dragging her pink and whites along the polished trim of his XLR. He was thankful he wasn�t wearing a speedo as he soaked up the image of a tight teen a*s squeezed into a size to small bikini. Tammy looked over her shoulder and giggled. Swiveling her hips, inviting his gaze, she continued up the front steps and into the house.

Stan lifted the suitcase back into the trunk of his car. Maybe he had a little more time than he thought. What would going to the beach hurt. The view might even get better from the sandy shore. Closing the trunk he saw Todd coming down the steps of the house. Now, maybe Todd can lend an old friend a few bucks before the rightful owners of the suitcases catch up.

�Stan, glad you showed up!� Todd reached the front end of the caddy.

Pulling out a 9mm from his Bermuda shorts, Todd fired six times into Stan's chest. Stan, hand still wrapped around the handle of the suitcase slowly slid to the concrete.

Todd grinned, stepped closer, and shot him once more in the head. "Guess that makes us even."

Don�t just leave him there, throw him in the trunk Todd.� Tammy rushed down the steps, her bikini replaced by blue jeans and a tank top.

Todd pulled Stan around the back of the car and shoved him on top of the two suitcases. �Get in the car, we have a flight to catch.� Todd moved up to the driver side car door.

�Thank god I don�t have to pretend to be your sister, it was all I could do to keep from pinching your a*s in those cute shorts.� Tammy shot Todd a gleaming grin.

�Lets get out of here.� Todd sat in the drivers seat and turned on the ignition. Backing out of the driveway he sped down the street. Tearing down the highway Todd shifted the car into fifth. Following the line of airplanes floating in the air, the XLR made it�s way towards the airport.

Pulling into a parking spot in a dark corner of the extended parking garage, Todd began to wipe down the steering wheel and dash of the Cadillac. �Hey Tam, grab the plane tickets out of the back.� Tammy turned around and bent over the back of her car seat. The way her back end wiggled made Todd remember why he joined up with her in the first place. Smiling, he tucked away his handkerchief and turned to Tammy. �You ready baby?�

�Looks like I forgot your ticket.� Tammy pulled back from the seat holding a gun.

* * *

�They�re gone!� Edwardo rushed down the grand staircase, across the foyer and into the library. He lurched to a halt in front of the massive mahogany desk, his black hair pulled into a neat low ponytail, the white of his starched shirt in contrast to his tan face.

�Gone!� Se�or Garza jumped to his feet. �Both of them?�

�Yes, sir.�

�Damn! That means someone knows. Get the car!�

�Yes, sir,� Edwardo nodded. �Where are we going?�

�The airport. Whoever took them is headed to Egypt. Get Raul in here, too.�

Edwardo gulped. Of all Se�or Garza�s henchmen, Raul made him the most nervous. His black eyes lacked a soul, or any sign of human emotion.

Edwardo exited the luxurious room while his boss pulled out his cell phone and dialed. �Get the plane ready. We�re on our way now,� he barked. Without waiting for a response, he clicked the phone shut. Swiveling his leather chair to face the window, he stared across the manicured lawn to the weeping willow by the pond. His pockmarked face scowled while his mind raced with possibilities.

Who got the suitcases? How�d they get into the house? His security team would be reprimanded � severely. But not now. Now he needed to save what he could of years� worth of careful planning.

Todd smiled, holding up a small black clip. "You really are a dumb b***h you know that don't you? I certainly didn't take you along for your brains."

She flipped the gun over, staring for a moment at the gaping hole at the bottom of the gun. When she looked back at him, she put on an oh-so-innocent face. "Come on honey I was only kidding around." Sliding forward, she caught the edge of her shirt under her hand.

Todd placed a single finger on her nose, pushing it flat. "Oh no, no, no. I've watched enough of those movies to know how this plays out. No darling, I think what we got here is a Mexican standoff."

Neither of them saw the Mexican standing behind the car, but both of them heard his whistle. And when they turned both of them saw the Glock aimed at the rear windshield.

"No. I think what you got here mister is a hell of lot of smack that belongs to one angry Chicano. Why don't you both step out of the car?"

Todd slowly raised his hands with the gun clip gripped tightly. Tammy on the other and smiled and stepped out of the car. "Raul, I was wondering when you would get me away from this slimy son of a b***h." She walked around and stood next to the large man. Wrapping her arm around Raul's waist, she tilted her head and laughed. "You didn't think I would spend the rest of my life on the run with someone like you, did you?"

Todd tipped down his sunglasses and smiled. "No, I didn't but not really because I thought I was the slimy one." Todd turned his back on the two and put his hands on the steering wheel.

"All right gringo, pop the trunk." Raul's monotone voice echoed slightly in the garage.

"Are you sure that�s what you want?"

"Stop f*****g around and do it!" Tammy slammed the top of the trunk.

Slowly Todd reached over to the glove box and let the door swing down. Pressing the button to release the trunk and instantly slinked down in his seat.

"Hola m***********s!" Stan popped out of the trunk firing two shots into the chest of Tammy and Raul.

Stan got himself out of the trunk, brushing himself off. Well so far so good. Two briefcases, check. One dead girlfriend, check. One dead Mexican, check. The car was still clean, but they'd have to trade it in soon.

"So do you got the rental worked out?" Stan smiled, looking over at Todd.

"Sure you got the meeting set up?"

"Of course. What kind of d********g do you take me for?" Stan put one more bullet into Raul and Tammy, just to make sure they wouldn't be getting up.

Nodding, Todd helped him get the suitcases out of the trunk. Stan lifted the bodies in, slamming the lid shut. This was definitely turning into the bright beautiful thing that he was thinking about. Now if Todd could just hold off from trying to kill him until they made their deal with the Chinaman. They'd be all set.

***

The Egypt, anchored well off the coast of southern California, bobbed like a cork on the rolling swells. The proverbial slow boat from China, disguised as a marine research vessel, had arrived at the coordinates twenty-two hours ago, and her master was getting antsy.

Little Wang now came rushing into Wang Da's cabin, bowed hurriedly and said, "Waiguoren lai le!"

"Hau. What markings on their vessel?"

"It appears to be a rental. Small speedboat. Only two men visible. Not much cabin space. No weapons apparent.

"Hmm. Not what I'd expect from Senor Garza. Figured him for a sixty-foot yacht. Tell the others to be on guard, lay low." Little Wang turned and ran to implement the orders. Wang Da donned his hat, picked up his walking stick and went on deck to watch the approach.

Finally, the craft pulled alongside and two young men made their way up the ladder. Little Wang had their cargo, two metal suitcases, brought aboard. Wang Da approached them in a cordial manner, had them sit, knowing his armed men had them covered from above.

"Who are you, and where is Senor Garza?"

"He couldn't make it," said Stan. He sent us to deliver the goods and collect payment."

Wang Da examined the containers. He could tell neither had been breached. He entered a combination on one and opened it. The canister was intact. The gauge on its exterior told him all was well. "I'll pay you. But before I do, I need to know what you think is in these bags."

"Why, top grade heroin," said Todd, a little uncomfortable at the question.

Wang Da smiled a little, then more broadly. Then he roared with laughter.