Category : Blogs

Sub Category : Motivation

When the day came for them to carry out their plan, Carl went over to see David; one of the guys he ran with at the trailer park. They needed to get a motel room to hole in before and after they carry out their plan and with very limited funds between them, they would have to look for a cheap motel room, one that they can afford. Logistically, Roseland was the best place for them to go as it was far away from their home in Sebastian and also far enough away from Wabasso. But to do that, they needed wheels to get there and that was where David came in; he owned a van. 

"Hey Dave, is it possible to loan me your van for a day? Me and a couple of friends need to get to Roseland." 

"What for?" 

"Vicky needs to meet up with some relatives of hers from out of town but she's afraid to go on her own so she asked Stevie and I to accompany her there." 

"I have some things to do myself and I need the van. Tell you what, I'll take you guys there if you want." 

Carl wasn't about to argue with David. The main thing was to get to Roseland one way or another so he accepted David's generous offer. 

David dropped them off in front of the 2-storey building of the Shady Acres Motel. After checking in, they made their way up to the room which was small and cosy. It had a queen-sized bed, a 32" TV,  a small kitchen and dining area with a refrigerator and a small stove. The bathroom was a modest toilet, sink and shower combo. Carl had been feeling anxious from the time they left the trailer park, more so with having Vicky there with them. If he had his way, he wouldn't want her to be there with them. She had no idea that the trip to Roseland that day was to rob the gas station in Wabasso as they both had kept that little detail from her. She had unexpectedly showed up bright and early at the trailer park that morning, wanting to hangout with them and to blow her off without arousing her suspicion was highly unlikely so they had no choice but to bring her along. Stevie fed her some bullshit about spending time away from the trailer park and she bought it. Carl wasn't going to say anything. His plan was to watch and observe how Stevie was going to play this whole thing out. 

The three of them spent the entire day holed up in the motel room with Stevie keeping them amused and entertained with his many tall tales. Each hour that passed made Carl more and more anxious. Finally, just as the twilight sky began to show its brilliant colors, Stevie made up an excuse about going out to score some weed, and he and Carl made a quick exit. Vicky didn't kick up a fuss or insisted to follow them as she knew the drill. She was happy to stay and wait in the motel room for their return. 

As soon as they escaped Vicky, they walked over to Tony's house, about ten minutes away from the motel. Tony was a mutual friend who would come around to the trailer park to ride ATV's with the boys. He was a big guy for a 15 year old; standing at 5'11", weighing almost 200 pounds, yet, there wasn't much fat in his thick frame. He was a little wild and would never hesitate when it came to a dare. Just for kicks, he would run his motorcycle over people's lawns, spinning his tyres and leaving trenches in his wake as he sped off. He was a real prankster, which was why he was always getting into trouble with the law. The police department was so familiar with him that they knew him by name, where he lived, knew the colour of his helmet, and the size and type of bike he rode. 

Tony didn't ask any questions when they asked to borrow his bike. In his driveway, while waiting for him to get his bike key and helmets, Stevie pulled out a gun to show Carl. It was an old 22 calibre revolver that would sometimes fail to operate. Click, and the hammer either wouldn't fall right or something is jammed. Carl knew better than to ask where Stevie got the gun from. Truth was, he really didn't want to know. They flipped a coin to see who would carry the gun for the hold up; a rather amateur way of intending a robbery but that was how it went down. Carl won the coin toss and so Stevie was left to handle the temperamental gun. 

Wabasso is like an older version of the ghetto. Right after the Lemon Tree Bar with a bright green and yellow lemon tree painted on a signboard, stood the Double Dee gas station; their target of robbery. In a small town like Wabasso, the gas station was pretty old but it was well kept.   

It was already dark when they pulled up on Tony's motorcycle at the well lit station. There was no one was around apart from the middle-aged attendant who was sitting behind the counter inside the station. Without removing their helmets, they entered the station with Stevie leading the way. Carl was only a couple of steps behind him. As soon as they walked in, the attendant somehow immediately sensed something was up. He moved from behind the counter and came forward towards them. Carl wasn't a full step pass the door when Stevie opened fire. The shot hit the attendant in the neck and the bullet went right through. The attendant, still on his feet, staggered forward and Stevie fired another shot which hit him in the chest. He fell to the ground in Carl's path. Blood was splattered everywhere. Carl simply crossed over the fallen man's body, careful not to step on the splatters of blood on the floor and moved quickly to the counter. As he was stuffing money into the pockets of his pants, he heard another shot. Without missing a beat, he grabbed the last few notes from the counter and they both rushed out. Everything happened so quickly. On his way out Carl saw what appeared to look like a lifeless body laying on the floor. 

"What happened?" 

"The fucker tried to get up," Stevie said nonchalantly, "so I put the gun directly at his temple and fired it straight into his brain. That finished him." 

As they were leaving the gas station, neither of them were aware of a woman in a car nearby. She happened to have driven by the gas station when she heard a gun shot. She slowed down to make a U-turn at the entrance to the Lemon Tree Bar, killed off her lights and sat quietly in her car. She heard two more gun shots and then saw two guys wearing helmets rushing out of the gas station towards a motorcycle. She watched them climb onto the motorcycle and noticed they were heading north on US Highway 1. Once she was certain they were out of sight, she started her car and slowly drove up to the gas station. She got down from her car and as she opened the door of the station, she saw the attendant sprawled on the floor in a pool of blood. She quickly went outside to a payphone and called 911.

Before heading back to the motel, they swung by Tony's house to return his motorcycle. They were both anxious to get back to the motel so they just left the bike, key and helmets in his driveway and walked away. Carl was in a daze when they got back to the motel room. He never expected what happened to happen. He was shaken up by the whole incident and was thankful to find Vicky fast asleep in bed. He couldn't handle any questions from her at that moment. He dashed for the shower, feeling the need to wash the crime off of him. 

After his shower, he and Stevie counted the loot they got from the station. He felt drained; mentally and physically exhausted. He grabbed a soda from the fridge, lit a cigarette and plonked himself on a chair by a little table next to the kitchen. The room was quiet with only the bathroom light illuminating the room from the small crack of the door that was left ajar. Stevie appeared to be in deep sleep next to Vicky on the bed. The image of the bloodied, lifeless man on the floor of the station haunted Carl. At that moment, he couldn't help thinking, "We just killed an innocent man for a miserable thirty five bucks. Fuck!"

Meanwhile, the police department had received a call from a woman reporting of a crime that had taken place at the Double Dee gas station. When she gave a description of a blue Yamaha YZ80 leaving the crime scene at the gas station with two suspects, one wearing a red helmet and the other a black helmet, the police went straight to Tony's house. 

The scene at Tony's house was like one out of a nightmare for him. The number of police vehicles there seemed so excessive to him and for some reason that ridiculous point stuck in his head more than anything else in that confusing moment of flashing lights and blaring sirens. A S.W.A.T team surrounded his house with automatic weapons drawn, ready to fire, while an officer lifted a bull horn to his mouth and demanded that Tony exit the premises with his hands raised. His blue Yamaha YZ80 was parked in the driveway with both helmets hanging from the handlebars, and the engine was still hot from it's recent use. The police were taking it seriously but Tony had no idea what was going on and his confusion led him to his usual devil-no-care attitude. It was his mother, who out of tremendous fright, had forcibly moved him to the front door, opened it, and walked by his side with his hands raised. He was immediately put in cuffs and taken into custody for the suspicion of murder. 

Tony was interrogated the entire night at the police station. Finally, when morning came, out of sheer exhaustion, he told the police about Carl and Stevie who had come by his house earlier that evening to borrow his bike. The police then learned that Tony literally had no part or knowledge of the murder that had taken place at the gas station with the use of his motorcycle. He was asked to speak to a sketch artist to give the descriptions of both Carl and Stevie, which he complied. Once the sketches were done, a BOLO was sent out and just like that, Carl and Stevie had received instant fame with sketches of their faces published in newspapers and broadcasted in the news on TV. 

First of all, who in their right mind would even dare to stage a robbery with a faulty gun? It takes a whole new level of stupidity to pull a stunt like that. 

And all that hooha for a miserable thirty five bucks??!! Sheesh! 
How far can Vicky possibly go with thirty five dollars? Or the more humane question would be: is the value of a human life worth only that much?