Less Time

“Everyone down on the ground. Don’t move and nobody gets hurt”, the male voice yelled as he waved a short barrel shotgun around the room. A stern and forceful female voice silenced the room, “Listen up, all we want is the money and we will be out the door and you can go right back to your normal little lives.” Using her Glock, she motioned toward the clerks behind the counter, “I need all of you to put the money in bags and make it quick. I know someone here has already pushed the button and we have only a few minutes. Don’t make me shoot someone if I don’t need to.” Out the corner of her eye, she saw the security guard’s hand slid toward his weapon. She turned her gun on him, “I don’t want to leave bullet holes in anyone today but in saying that you touch that weapon and you will be my first.” The Security guard pulled both hands into the air. She responded to his gesture, “Now that we have an understanding, I need you to go behind the counter and grab those bags and bring them out here.” The guard did as he was told. Both Olivia and her brother Jasper grabbed the bags and backed toward the door. Jasper looked out front for the all clear and said, “Lets roll.”

    As they exited the bank, they could hear the sirens approaching and before that could make it to the black Dodge Challenger on the corner, a police car came speeding toward them. “Faster Jasper!” Olivia yelled as she noticed he was lagging behind. She rounded the car and looked up as she opened the driver side door and saw that Jasper had tripped and a police officer was down on the ground handcuffing him. She jumped into the car and took off. Olivia slammed her hands against the steering wheel. “Shit! How could he get caught!” She pushed the gas petal and swerved around a mini van as she sped through a red light. Olivia knew Jasper wasn’t good under pressure. He was easily swayed. Five bank robberies and he gets caught now. All she could do at this point was head out of town to the family cabin until she could come up with a plan. It was just her and Jasper now. He was all she had left. Jasper had never been in trouble with the law so they would go easy on him as a first-time offender. As for as Olivia was concerned, she would be facing some hard time. This was not her first rodeo as they say.

    Back at the police station, Jasper sat in an interrogation room not knowing what to expect or what to do. He saw Olivia pull off and he knew she was probably headed to the cabin. He realized they never discussed what they would do if one of them got caught. He had never gotten into trouble before. Not even a speeding ticket. Olivia on the other hand had been in trouble since she was a teenager. He remembers their mom getting the call to pick her up from the police station for shoplifting. With it being her first offense as a juvenile, she only served six months on probation. She finally received prison time for Fraud when she was twenty-two. She was trying to straighten out her life now that she was out. She had found a job making minimum wage. Since she was a felon, it was hard to come across good paying jobs. Life seemed to be moving in the right direction until Olivia caught an attitude with her boss and was fired. That night they went out drinking in an effort to cheer her up. After a few too many drinks, Jasper said to Olivia, “How about we rob a bank?” Olivia was all for it. Her face lit up. It was like she had a shot of adrenaline. The next day Olivia woke Jasper up early and said, “Come on we have to make a plan.” That was six months and five banks ago.

    “Alright, you ready to tell us what we want to know?” a short, bearded detective asked as he sat across from Jasper with a cup of coffee in each hand. He sat one cup down and pushed it toward Jasper. Jasper continued to look down not knowing what to say. “How about we start from the beginning and you tell us how all of this started and who your partner is. From witness statements, we know it’s a female.” Jasper knew it would be harder for them to Identify Olivia right away since they were wearing mask during each robbery. Plus, he and Olivia had different last names. Olivia had their mother’s maiden name which was Winston, and his mother married his father when Olivia was two, so his last name was Jackson. “So, you don’t want to talk? Ok, well let me. You look good for five robberies with or without your partner. I’m guessing the judge will be considering ten to twenty. Now maybe, just maybe the DA will be willing to make a deal. How does five years sound? With good behavior you could be out in three. All you need to do is give up your partner.” Jasper knew he didn’t want to spend ten plus years in prison. He wasn’t cut out for that life, but he also didn’t want to give up Olivia.

    The door opened and in walked a tall broad-shouldered man. “I’m Detective Harris.” He pulled out a chair next to the short detective and sat down. “Let’s cut to the chase Mr. Jackson. You have never been to prison, have you? Let me give you a little description of what life is like. You’re told when to go to bed, when to get up, and when to eat. You are no longer Jasper Jackson. You are Jackson with a number behind your name and you will be wearing the same color every day. They even say the food leaves something to be desired. Are you sure you want to take your chances spending more time than necessary in our lovely prison system?” Jasper was starting to get a little anxious. Could he really handle prison for longer than five years? Hell, he wasn’t sure he could handle it for three to five but what he was sure of was the fact that Olivia would never forgive him if he turned her in.

    Jasper thought he would play it cool. Call them out on having him for the one robbery. How did they know he was involved in the other four? “Ok. Maybe you have me for this robbery. You can’t prove I was involved in the other four. So, I think I will wait on my lawyer.” The short detective leaned back in his chair, “Well dumbass, are you sure you want to play it out that way since you were wearing the same mask in all five robberies. I mean we do have you on camera.” Jasper didn’t think about the camera footage from all the banks. If that was the case, he didn’t stand a chance. Detective Harris asked, Should I call the DA and let her know you’re ready to make a deal?”

    Sweat dripped down Jasper’s face. He didn’t know what to do. Olivia was his blood, his sister. Since their mother had died two years earlier, it had been them against the world. How could he rat her out? Yet, he couldn’t see himself spending all those years in prison. There were so many things he enjoyed like drinking a few cold ones on the weekend with the boys, eating his favorite foods, watching sports, and most of all the company of a good woman. “So, what’s it going to be Mr. Jackson?”, Detective Harris asked as he was tapping his pen back and forth on the table. Tears ran down his cheeks as he realized the decision he had just made. He told the detectives, “Call the DA. I’m ready to talk.”

    Olivia was packing her bags in the trunk of the car when she heard sirens approaching. In her heart she knew Jasper had sold her out. She would be facing ten to twenty years if convicted. She loved her brother but right then, she wanted to kill him. This was all his idea and now she would be the one spending some heavy time in prison. She was sure he would have gotten less than five years. As she closed the trunk, she looked toward the road and saw the blue lights. There was no where for her to run. It was over.