The Midnight Stand (The Elysia Saga Book 1) by Louis A. Affortunato Page A

command sit. Despite Maxon’s protests,
Bruce was still the second most senior member of the crew, so he warranted a
spot next to him in the cab and Bruce made sure he sat there.
    Bruce had been suspiciously cooperative with
Maxon since the incident in the common room. He didn’t answer back when given
orders and even accepted Maxon’s request that he stay outside the house and act
as watch during the proceedings, a position that Bruce would normally never
take on. A watch post meant no storming into the house with weapons out, no
man-handling occupants, no door or window breaking. Essentially, for Bruce, it
meant no fun. Sure, there were occasional instances of civil disturbances
outside that needed to be taken care of, sometimes with force, but those hardly
happened anymore and the odds of Bruce seeing any outside action in that part
of town tonight was slim to none anyway. Maxon was fairly confident of that.
    They sat in silence for a bit and then Bruce
spoke up. “Nice night, isn’t it?”
    Maxon wasn’t in the mood for small talk, but he
went along, if only to keep Bruce on his good side. “It is.”
    “Good night to be out,” Bruce mused. He had a
far off dreamy look in his eyes, like he was remembering some luxurious memory.
“Not like my first night on a wreck. Did I ever tell you about that?”
    Maxon shook his head. Their conversations
together never got deep into past histories and Maxon never was inclined to
inquire. Everything he needed to know about Bruce was from reviewing his
performance record and that was enough.
    Bruce continued: “I remember it was freezing,
middle of winter. My suit’s heating device malfunctioned and I was shaking the
whole ride there. I was only eighteen, and scared out of my mind. You know all
the things they tell you in training, what to expect, all the worst case
scenarios. I didn’t know if we were going to get there and a group of angry
people would attack us, you know?”
    Maxon nodded his head to indicate he did. He
stared ahead into the night.
    “So the whole time I’m just thinking to myself
there’s a good chance I may not make it back. When we got there though it was
quiet. Dead quiet. No mob, no angry homeowners, not even a barking dog. It was
eerie. When we went in the house the couple, a man and woman, was just sitting
there on the couch watching TV, like nothing was happening. They didn’t even
turn their heads to look at us.” He scratched at the stubble on his chin. It
sounded like sandpaper under his nails. “The Lead on that wreck was Vacasco I
think. When he told them to stand up and leave the house, they didn’t move,
just continued to sit there, like they were deaf. Finally, Vacasco had enough.
He said if they weren’t going to cooperate we were going to drag them out by
their necks. He was always a little hotheaded.”
    Maxon saw a smile creep across Bruce’s face, no
doubt at the thought of a wild Vacasco dragging an old couple out by the hair
and throwing them on the curb like discarded trash. They had never worked together,
but Maxon knew of Vacasco’s ways. He was sanctioned several times and
eventually had to be removed as Lead Wreck after too many incidents occurred on
his watch. What Vacasco never admitted was that he was the cause of all those
incidents. He’s been on special assignment ever since.
    When Maxon became Lead, a few of Vacasco’s guys
were assigned under him and he heard all the stories. He wasn’t surprised to
hear that Bruce was Vacasco’s protégé, someone he wanted to groom in his image.
    “So they still didn’t move,” Bruce said.
“Vacasco then grabs the guy by his shirt and hauls him up off the chair and
down on the floor. The woman, now we have her attention mind you, gets up and
starts screaming. One of the others grabbed her. Vacasco then gives the wife a
choice; should he break her husband’s arm or leg. If she doesn’t choose, he’s
going to break his neck.”
    Bruce held up his forefinger to Maxon