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Tristan had been staking out the armored car's route for days now. He knew where the drivers stopped for gas, when they took their dinner breaks, and which stops held the most wads of cash. It was Vegas, after all, and money was plentiful.
Winter had set in, and the sun was often obscured by cloud cover. Luckily, for Tristan's sake, evening came sooner in this season. When the armored car pulled into the Palms Hotel for it's final stop of the night, Tristan was ready.
The driver for the evening run always stayed behind the wheel, the motor running. A second armed guard went inside with an empty money bag and key to collect. Tristan knew a third armed man stayed behind in the rear of the armored car, guarding the money, keeping watch, and usually picking his nose. When the first man came back from his run, he'd hop in the back and this man in the rear would help unpack and secure the money.
When the first man ran inside, Tristan didn't hesitate. He followed, keeping to the shadows. At the Palms Hotel, the guard had to run up a zig zag path that had palm trees flanking either side. This path was obscured from the view of the armored car. On the left of the path was a cabana, used as a locker room. On the right of the path was the parking garage. Tristan hovered behind a palm tree, waiting for the guard to emerge with his full money bag.
Tristan was patient. He had timed this route and knew it would take the man precisely ten minutes, barring complications. Tristan grinned when he saw the door swing open, and the guard started back down the path. He grabbed the man around his neck with hardly any effort, pulling him behind the cabana. No one noticed, or no one cared. Tristan quickly dispatched the man's life, leaving his naked and drained corpse in the locker room. Now Tristan wore the guard's suit and carried the bursting at the seams money bag. He confidently strode up the path, and smirked again when the third man in the rear of the car opened the back doors to allow Tristan access.
Thirty minutes later the armored car pulled into it's company lot. The driver got out and was surprised when the rear doors of the vehicle didn't open. He wondered what the hold up was. He couldn't see a thing through the security glass that divided the driver's cab from the cargo hold. "Lonnie, Gus? You comin?" He slowly opened the doors himself to find that Lonnie and Gus were now only corpses, and the money...all of it, was gone.
By the time the investigation started, Tristan was in his motel room on the phone with the flower delivery company. Along with a hefty payment, (with a bonus,) to Heaven's Peak for Bethany, he was sending her three dozen red roses and a card which said:
Bethany,
Thanks for everything. I hope this pays my bill in full.
Tristan
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