Prince of Thieves by Chuck Hogan Read Free Book Online Page B

you?"
     
     
Gloansy said, "I ain't taking no more falls."
     
     
Doug said, "And I ain't taking any falls before you. The only thing the law likes less than pro outlaws are reckless outlaws. The G-- they don't like it when you rob banks, that's fine, fair. Honest heat is honest heat. Toss in kidnapping and assault, their fucking palms start getting sweaty. They take that personal. Suddenly they got jobs on the line-- reassignment, whatever. They need results. And we can't win going up against them nose-to-nose. This crazy Cagney shit you pull, it draws them out. Things go wrong on every job. Trick is, keep moving, don't fix one fucking mistake with another."
     
     
In the silence that followed, Doug realized he had gone on what was for him a tirade. He was the only one who could talk to Jem like this, and even he was pushing it. Gloansy, or especially Dez, they would have been on the floor with Jem's knee in their throat.
     
     
Jem was making a show of fishing food out of his teeth with his tongue. Doug had been sitting on this stuff too long. He didn't even know specifically why he was so pissy himself. It was the jokes, it was the beer on their breath and the hour of the day. It was all of their youth going round and round in circles on the ice down there.
     
     
"Fuck it," Doug said with a wave. "You want to duke the Florist, fine, duke the Florist. Keep him happy? Fine. But I won't work for him. We are pros here, not cowboys in a Wild West show. We're different. That's what keeps us ahead in this cat-and-rat game. Free agents, we gotta stay smart, full-time, else we'll get beat. I will walk away before I became some gangster's personal fucking ATM machine. If I even thought that was coming, I'd walk away right now."
     
     
Jem put on a grin. "Bullshit. You could never walk away."
     
     
Doug said, "Have to, someday."
     
     
"You'd make a real good old woman, you didn't have such a fucking nose for crime. Only you could be raggy about this score."
     
     
Doug chewed and watched the kids make their way off the ice, skate-walking to the doors.
     
     
"Duggy's share is back at my place," said Jem, proceeding as if nothing had happened. To Gloansy and Dez, he handed over orange-headed locker keys. "Your pieces are out front. Remember, it's all dirty linen and's got to be washed. Now, last thing-- bank manager."
     
     
Looking at Doug. Doug shrugged and said, "Yeah?"
     
     
"You grabbed her license from me. What's the scoop?"
     
     
"Nothing."
     
     
"Thought you said she lives in the Town."
     
     
"Hasn't been back home yet. I think we can forget about her. So long as you ditched the masks, she's got nothing."
     
     
"Course I ditched the masks."
     
     
"Well, you seemed pretty fond of your artwork, I want to be sure."
     
     
"Masks, tools, everything ditched."
     
     
Doug shrugged. "Then whatever."
     
     
Gloansy said, "I saw her on the news, being walked away, her father. She's too shaken up to tell them shit anyway."
     
     
"Yeah," said Doug, swiping his nose like the manufactured cold was getting to him.
     
     
"Done, then," said Jem. "We're clear. With that, this investment club meeting is officially adjourned."
     
     
Dez packed up his trash. "Gotta rock."
     
     
"I'm behind you," said Doug, bagging his.
     
     
"Whoa, where you running off to?" said Jem. "What clock you on?"
     
     
"I got some stuff," said Doug.
     
     
"Blow it off. Free ice now. Me and Gloansy gonna skate."
     
     
"Can't," said Doug, rising, Dez already smacking fists and starting out.
     
     
Jem frowned and said to Gloansy, "Guy lives in my house, I never see him."
     
     
Doug said, "I gotta breeze. You know how I get, between things."
     
     
"So stay. Have a few tall boys with us, relax. Gloansy brought his goalie pads, he's gonna let us take shots at him."
     
     
"Fuck you," sang Gloansy, lifting out the last skinny slice.
     
     
"I'm walking," said Doug, starting down the scarred planks. "Besides, you're wrong. I do