The glittering gems in the jewelry store enticed the man. His mouth salivated, and palms got a bit sweaty. He was a dirty man, who took the wrong paths in life. Unshaven, ragged and unkempt, he certainly wasn’t in prime condition. He wasn’t always like this. He used to be a model child, but some wrong decisions and betrayals landed him here: broke and bad. He glanced over his shoulder to make sure he had his backpack on. He stopped walking on the aging sidewalk and pressed his nose up against the window, staring at the precious metals. The smudged glass gave way to multiple customers buying wedding rings or a new watch for their beloved. They were unaware of the ruffled man who pulled an itchy ski mask over his face.
The man stepped into the store, ringing the little brass bell on top of the door. The man at the counter looked up. “Can I help you?” he asked, a little fearful of the masked man.
“Oh, yes.” The man approached the glass showcase and asked “Do you have any watches made of gold?” It was an unnecessary question. They were littered all around the store. The man at the counter walked over to another section of the store, beckoning for the man to follow. But instead of following, the greedy man opened his backpack, took out a black object, lurched towards an elderly man and put the gun to the old man’s head. Chaos was unleashed upon the store.
Every customer but the elderly man scrambled out and the robber allowed them to escape. “Give me everything with emeralds, rubies, gold and silver and the man doesn’t die. Also, if you sound the alarm, he dies. Make this quick.”
The man at the counter quickly filled the robber’s black bag with precious items. “Nice doing business with you,” the robber said. He spared the elderly man and the man at the counter.
He scurried out with his bag and glanced around. What luck! A bright red convertible Ferrari with the top down was parked near the store. He tossed his belongings in the backseat, but kept the gun in the passenger seat.
He leaned down and pulled wires up from under the car’s dashboard. Sparks flew as he connected a couple of the wires and the engine coughed, sputtered, and once awake, roared. He sped out of the parking lot just as the sirens got in earshot.
The police force consisted of four people: three seasoned, jaded veterans, and the fourth was new to the job. Each had their own cruiser, and they were speeding down corridors of asphalt, cleared by the piercing shriek of their sirens. A bright red shape, indistinct at this speed, appeared and disappeared like a wraith.
The Ferrari turned onto a highway and kicked up smoke while burning its rubber tires. The more experienced and cautious police officers didn’t dare go as fast as the Ferrari. But only three of the officers were that conservative.
The new officer was still beginning his career and wanted to start strong. He had always been good at racing. He was always first, too. In everything. He was the classic example of a model adult. Clean shaven, tousled brown hair and inquisitive eyes, his cheerful attitude was loved by everyone. The adrenaline soared through his system and he stepped on the gas pedal, eager to rid his country of crime. The robber smiled, peeking in the rearview mirror watching the determined cruiser trying to catch up to the Ferrari.
The cruiser coughed, sputtered, and lurched after the screaming, blazing Ferrari. It was a wonder it didn’t already escape. Then, relief for the officer. Red taillights dotted the landscape just ahead. They boarded a bridge that ran above another highway. The robber, seeing the traffic, veered to the right past a sedan and broke through the cement barrier. He freefell towards the other highway and landed just at the edge of the road disrupting traffic.
The officer wasn’t about to let his target escape. The overconfident robber believed he’d escaped the police. But in the remaining officer’s mind, he was dead wrong. Steel flowed through the officer’s veins and he roared off the top highway and landed near where the robber had fallen. The chase commenced.
Ready to end this chase, the officer pulled out his gun. This chase got altogether more deadly. Now, threading between trucks and cars at a breakneck speed, a gun battle ensued. The robber pulled out his gun and aimed behind him. Nobody fired a shot. An eerie silence descended. Only the engines trembled making a sound. Time seemed to slow, and then they were kicked into reality. The officer had the advantage of shooting ahead. But it was also tough to shoot in a moving car. He fired. And it pinged against the Ferrari’s trunk. A round of five shots was returned and only because of sheer luck four of them did not hit the car. One bullet smashed into the front bumper. Even shooting backward, eyes on the road, the robber had a good shot.
The officer shot again at the robber and it pierced the convertible’s windshield. A spider web of cracks expanded around a small hole. The officer knew shooting was against protocol, but it was the only way to stop his adversary. The officer warmed to his role as a hero.
Adrenaline surged through the robber. Nothing like the chase, he thought. A smile pierced his grim demeanor and soon it turned into a wild, crazed grin. He was having fun. It reminded him of his childhood racing on bikes with his older brother. He could never beat his older brother. A flicker of a frown shadowed the man’s face, but he cast those childhood thoughts away. He remembered that it was a good day and the frown disappeared. First, he struck lucky with the jewelry store, and now he was enjoying a luxurious long chase.
He gunned the engine and it all ended.
A bulls-eye shot from the officer struck the Ferrari’s rear left tire. The car veered and smashed into the truck in front of it. The robber flew through the windshield on impact and was killed instantly.
The officer felt remorse that he had killed someone but he was also overcome with curiosity about who it was that robbed the store and led him on this tragic chase. The officer halted traffic and approached the corpse.
The officer ambled to the razed car warily. He approached the unmoving body and knelt next to the lifeless robber. The officer ripped the mask off the robber and immediately recognized him.
It was his younger brother.
The breath was knocked out of him. Witnessing the grinning, cold, dead face of his younger brother shocked him. The officer silently interrogated the dead man. Why did you do this? What happened to you? The questions flew through the officer’s mind but there would be no answers. The look of bliss on the brother’s face was unnerving. It was a face that didn’t know it was dead. It was the face death forgot to steal.