"THE WAY OF THE GUN" "Hey." "Hey" " Yeah, you." "Get up." "What are you, retarded?" "Get off the fucking car." "Hey, dickless!" "Get off the fucking car!" "Hey, fuck-suck!" "Get your slippery fucking ass off the car!" "Listen to me!" "Get off the fucking car with your fucking ass!" "Shut that cunt's mouth, or I'll come over there and fuck-start her head." "Do something." "Go." "You're gonna wish you never fucking got up this morning, asshole because my boyfriend's gonna fuck you up." "And then after that, while he's fucking up your fucking gay uncle over there I'm gonna fucking cut off your cock and mail it to your mother, you faggot." "Gaylord fucking bitch." "How do you like that?" "You like that a lot?" "You fucking faggot." "You like to ass-fuck?" "Fontanel fucking baby-head fuck?" "Go ahead." "You like to fuck baby heads?" "You like to fuck boys?" "He's gonna fuck you in the ass!" "You like that?" "He's not even gay, but he'll do it just" "Honey, honey." "She's got a big mouth, but she's not kidding." "I'm gonna whip you silly and I'm gonna fuck you stupid." "You wanna do the man dance?" "First dance is yours." "Hold on." "Get real." "Come on." "Why would you pick a fight with them?" "Look at my fucking face!" "You look beautiful." "You look more beautiful than ever." "For the record, I'll call myself Mr. Parker." "My associate will be Mr. Longbaugh." "There is a natural order." "The way things are meant to be." "An order that says that the good guys always win that you die when it's your time or you have it coming that the ending is always happy, if only for someone else." "At some point, it became clear that our path had been chosen and we had nothing to offer the world our options narrowing down to petty crime or minimum wage." "So we stepped off the path and went looking for the fortune that we knew was looking for us." "Once off the path, you do what you can to eat, to keep moving." "You don't blow your chance with nickel-and-dime." "No possessions." "No comforts." "Need is the ultimate monkey." "A pint of your blood can fetch you 50 bucks." "A shot of come, three grand." "You keep your life simple, and you can literally self-sustain." "What would you say qualifies you as a donor?" "I would say I am a fairly intelligent good-looking man, physically fit, stable." "Thank you, Mr. Hermann." "Heterosexual?" "Can I ask you something?" "Sure." "Are you a faggot?" "See, you asked me if I was heterosexual." "I asked you the same, only I was clear about the answer I was looking for." "I just asked if you were heterosexual." "Well, I've never killed a man." "Pardon?" "I've never killed a man." "I didn't ask if you had." "I think of that as qualification." "I'm just wondering why that strikes you as a qualification for semen donation." "I would say that's a fucking-- Excuse me, an important qualification." "No one's ever said that before." "Have you ever asked?" "No." "You should." "You take Los Angeles, okay?" "If I say that Los Angeles has become, over the years a mecca for homosexual migration, I am in the right." "But look at what I am saying." "I am making it sound like faggots are nomadic, if not predatory, miscreants who have some implied need to move around." "I am also likening them to Muslims, or Muslims to them." "Saying L.A. is filled with faggots is being honest." "Is that a big deal?" "Nobody brings up sex with dead people." "It's sick." "You brought it up." "I never did it." "I didn't ask that." "You should." "Faggot." "Just say it." "Nope." "Say it." "I'm not." "Don't you think it's funny that if I grab a woman's ass and she punches me she's fighting for her rights?" "But if a faggot grabs my ass and I punch his lights out..." "..." "I'm a homophobe." "Let's just move on." "Are you a faggot?" "Any trace mental illness in the family?" "It's not what you say anymore, is it?" "It's all in how you say it." "Yeah." "Can you hold on just a sec?" "All right." "Where were we?" "Okay, listen." "Pretend you don't smoke two packs a day." "Let's overlook the jack-and-coke breakfasts." "Imagine you get your life together, get up before noon and somehow land the gig." "Steff?" "Please." "You're still not cut out to be a surrogate mother." "Look, there's this one girl who comes in here, due any day getting paid a million in cash." "Sounds like a lot, right?" "Wrong." "She comes in for treatments, like, three times before the embryo takes." "Turns out the couple is perfectly healthy." "Because the wife just couldn't be bothered to carry her own child." "They tell the girl what to eat, when to go out bodyguards watching her every minute she's out of the house." "Of course it sounds fishy." "That's what I'm saying." "She's gotta live with these people for better part of a year." "Poor girl's like a prisoner." "It's just not worth it." "All right, look." "If that's how you feel, then go with God." "I don't know." "Why do you call and ask if you're not gonna listen?" "Just call the doctor." "Maybe he can help you." "No." "He's in the book." "His name's Painter." "Allen Painter." "Yeah." "And here was the thing." "Some deep pockets, a pregnant woman some bodyguards, and a doctor's name." "The longest distance between two points is a kidnapper and his money." "But we were through jerking off." "You feel that, hon?" "Fantastic." "Yes." "It's fabulous, Hale." "She doesn't hate you, Robin." "She most certainly does, Mr. Chidduck." "You're worried about the baby." "No, I was" "Come on." "A woman needs security like a man needs approval." "She wants her past, present and future to all be secured right now." "And in a few days, this baby will be a part of your past." "And for you to leave and not know it's secure...." "I would never ask you to trust me." "It's the cry of a guilty soul." "But trust life." "Always trust life." "If you're careful enough to listen life does take care." "You're gonna be a good father, Mr. Chidduck." "And she's gonna be a good mother." "You'll see." "As soon as she lays eyes on him, nature will take over." "I know it will." "I hope to God you're right, Robin." "Because if this baby doesn't change...." ""Him"?" "You didn't wanna know." "I'm sorry." "I...." "You did say "him."" "Him." "I have to go to the appointment now with Dr. Painter." "I'm going to have a son." "I'm going to have a son." "So I didn't spoil it then?" "No, you didn't spoil it." "Right?" "Yup." "Right." "Come on." "Every goddamn time." "Four to One." "Go ahead, One." "Yeah." "I'm sure it's nothing, but could you drive by the front of the building?" "How's your back feeling?" "It's better." "Yeah?" "Yes." "It's better." "Down here?" "Bet you can't wait for this little guy to get out." "Actually, I don't mind if it stays in there forever." "So unless there are any complications, I shouldn't be seeing you until the 15th." "Here's that video I was telling you about." "Some things you should know about your delivery." "Thanks." "Yes, you can discuss that with...." "Hey." "Okay, boys, we want this to go down nice and quiet, so put the guns down." "Come on, we got you." "It's over." "Hey, hey, hey." "What?" "The people, man." "The people." "Can't you people see there are guns here?" "Get the fuck out!" "Get out!" "All right, guys." "Come on." "This is no good." "You put the guns down." "I'm gonna count to three, and then I'm gonna" "Oh, fuck." "What the fuck are you doing?" "You're supposed to be protecting her." "Oh, fuck." "What'd I tell you?" "Shit." "Walk away." "Just walk away." "They don't care about dying, just losing." "You're not gonna make it out of here alive." "Somebody called the cops." "You know they're gonna come." "Just walk away." "Move." "You sure?" "Move!" "Yes." "Relax." "Try to relax." "Moving." "Got her." "Okay." "Moving." "Move." "Moving?" "No." "Moving?" "Move." "Get her." "Move." "It's okay." "Move." "Four to One, they made a pass." "They're coming out to you." "Do not, I repeat" "Take the girl." "Do not go to the doctor's office." "Go upstairs to the top floor and wait as long as it takes." "Do you understand me?" "Do you understand me?" "Yes." "Go." "Wait for me." "Come this way!" "You care about this baby?" "Then you'll walk." "Cover!" "Move!" "Are you okay?" "Miss?" "The baby's kicking." "The guns and noise." "The baby's kicking like crazy." "Please." "Relax!" "Could you be easy, please?" "It's all right." "You can open your eyes." "I don't wanna look at your faces." "It doesn't matter." "All right." "Follow me downtown." "All right, give him room." "What's your name?" "Robin." "And the father?" "You guys had it all figured out, huh?" "Listen, the sooner you tell us who the money is, the sooner" "And the sooner I end up dead." "I know that as long as I'm carrying this baby and you two don't have the money, I'm alive." "We're not talking about how long you're gonna live." "We're talking about how slow you're gonna die." "What do you call your baby?" "It's not mine." "Like that matters." "You have to have a name." "What do you think--?" "When you think about deaf people, people who are born deaf who have never heard a spoken word what do you think they call the sun or their mother or their own reflection in the mirror?" "That's what I call it." "There's no name." "I'm not gonna name it." "For what?" "Help." "Shit." "Hello?" "This is Colleen at your message service." "I have an emergency call from Robin." "It's hard for me to say that to you, but I can't." "You always said you could tell me anything." "I can't tell you this." "It's not illegal, is it?" "No, Daddy." "That was a stupid thing to ask." "He's a doctor, man, he'll do what we say." "Really?" "I need help." "You have too much faith in people." "How can you kidnap somebody with honor?" "Go straight." "Now, would you get me Mr. Chidduck?" "Hi, Robin." "Look at me." "Talk to me." "How do you feel?" "I'm dizzy." "I'm not gonna make it." "Am I--?" "Am I gonna have it?" "How long has it been since you had water?" "I don't know." "No." "You'll do what I say." "Do you understand me?" "You do what I say." "If anything happens to me..." "...if this all goes terribly wrong" "It already has gone terribly wrong." "I'm sorry." "Just get me a fucking figure." "You know-- What kind of a kidnapping is this?" "I mean, aren't we in the demands phase at this point?" "You can't pay, Hale." "Certainly, I can." "It's not about the money you're losing, the life of the girl, even the child." "Listen." "They get caught crossing the border caught in another kidnapping, running a fucking red light that money's coming right back to you." "That is money you're gonna have to account for, explain." "Understand what I'm saying here, Hale?" "You cannot pay." "Joe can't you just go over and whatever?" "You know what." "Rub them out?" "No, no, no." "If we call the police, surround them, sweat them out the only thing they have is their lives." "We no longer have to negotiate." "They do." "Robin is their bargaining chip." "They have to give her up to live." "It's that simple." "You keep your money, get the girl, and nobody is looking at your books." "I can't." "No." "No police." "Just, you know...." "Hell, figure it out!" "She's dehydrated." "In her condition, her pain can feel very much like labor." "But she won't lose the baby." "No." "But she should have it no later than six days." "Don't lie to me, doc." "Look, now, I'm not gonna lie to you." "I'm concerned for the health of my patient." "The baby is over eight pounds and should come out by the 15th." "Bushes, man." "Can she have it sooner?" "You mean induce?" "Here?" "Absolutely not." "Don't hand me that, doc." "First baby was born in a cave." "It had to be." "But if you had to?" "Yeah." "Now, as for the chances of the baby and the mother surviving?" "All right, forget that." "Who are the parents?" "You guys don't--?" "Who are the parents?" "It's Francesca and Hale Chidduck." "Oil-and-steel Chidducks?" "Vegas union-buster Chidducks?" "You guys have never--?" "Not our crowd." "He's a front man for clean developers that don't wanna get shot at for cutting in on rough territory." "Sometimes for not-so-clean developers laundering money out of Mexico." "He's fucking crazy." "He makes his living collecting other people's enemies." "Shoot-you kind of enemies." "Their worst nightmare, and you didn't know who you were grabbing?" "How much money does this guy have?" "I have no idea." "Will he deal?" "Anything to keep it quiet." "Hello?" "Abner?" "Joe." "Yeah." "You busy?" "No, not at all." "You drunk?" "A little." "What can I do for you?" "There's somebody I need you to stay with." "Listen, man." "She needs medical supervision." "She's not well." "Let me stay with her." "Don't get smart with me, doc." "Superman never gets the girl." "What's this?" "It's the ransom note." "Just sit tight with this Chidduck guy and we'll be in touch." "You're gonna be the bagman." "What?" "You're gonna meet me with the money." "She'll be with my partner, and even I won't know where until he calls." "You'll come alone." "You'll come equipped to induce labor." "If not, she dies." "If you're followed, she dies." "If I don't answer the phone when my partner calls, she dies." "It's on your head now, doc." "The more careful you are with her life, the less I have to worry, got me?" "That baby's coming out, understand?" "I understand." "All right." "You got a number for this thing?" "Don't say, "Who, me?" "He, she--" You got a number?" "We'll call you when we're ready." "Go." "Are you gonna eat that other half of your sandwich?" "I was gonna, but are you hungry?" "Yes, I'm pregnant." "I like bacon." "It's from a gas station." "It's still good." "Thanks." "management Director Singer is accused for forcing minors to work...." "deadline for ratification when the contract expires at midnight tonight." "The shooting began before 5:00 after the suspects tried to abduct an unidentified woman." "The incident claimed the lives of five people private security officers...." "Thursday night at Dive Bar." "Thanks, Jack." "Which one of you is Jeffers?" "Who are you?" "Of course." "I'm Joe Sarno." "Mr. Chidduck sent me." "When can we--?" "I'm working on your release right now." "Police are not ready to charge you, but they are a bit upset that no one will tell them what's going on." "You a lawyer?" "Do I look like a fucking lawyer?" "I handle Mr. Chidduck's laundry." "Things like you." "I make unpleasant decisions for him, which he can't and never will know." "And he sleeps very well." "You're a bagman." "Let's just say I deal in the fine art of adjudication." "Now, Obecks, is it?" "What did you tell the cops?" "Cop wanted to know why there was two bodyguards and no body to guard." "I told them who the client was was confidential." "He asked who took the client out." "I told him that was confidential." "He said the client was a witness, I said no." "The client was removed from the scene." "He said I had all the answers." "I said yes, because it's the truth." "Was there a time when one of the deceased could've been in touch" "Wait, you don't think--?" "No, I don't think." "Nor do I assume, speculate or hypothesize." "I merely observe." "And what I observe is one frantic fuckup on what should've been a routine exec protect." "The way I hear it, two fucking yahoos wipe out half your staff empty-handed." "Empty-handed." ""How can this happen?" I ask myself." "She was running." "Unlikely." "Making a play for herself." "I had the girl in the box headed back upstairs." "You think a woman with a baby is gonna walk into a hail of pistol fire for some fresh air?" "She's been acting hinky." "First time she's out of sight for a minute in nine months, and she goes for the door." "She was" "You picked her to be the host, didn't you?" "So, naturally, this has to be our fault, right?" "Fuck me." "Well I am, to say the least, perplexed, as well as frustrated." "It is Mr. Chidduck's wish that you two idiots remain in his employ." "He speaks very highly of you." "He feels you'll be extremely motivated in resolving this matter despite my urging him to fire your fucking ass and have you fed to the fish." "Beyond this, the matter's been left to my discretion." "The aforementioned art of adjudication." "Precisely, Mr. Jeffers." "To wit should another macabre spectacle like the one that presented itself this afternoon take place you will be cut loose." "And then, Mr. Jeffers, I will have my druthers." "And I can promise you a day of reckoning that you will not live long enough to never forget." "There's something you need to learn about this business." "What's that?" "The only thing you can assume about a broken-down old man is that he's a survivor." "Jack." "You think she was running?" "It doesn't matter." "The way I see it, she crossed over when she got off the elevator." "If Mr. Chidduck wants us to resolve this, we will but from here on out, our only concern is with the child." "We have to consider the girl to be as much of a threat as the two men." "The subscriber you have called is unavailable or has traveled outside the coverage area." "Shouldn't you be out there with him or something?" "He's fine." "What if something happens?" "Aren't you guys a team?" "He'll be fine." "Yeah?" "What if he doesn't come back at all?" "He always comes back." "The subscriber you have called is unavailable or has tra" "Fuck me." "Are you sure she's all right?" "I think so." "And the baby?" "As far as I can tell, it's fine." "And they had no idea?" "None." "Not until I told them." "And I'm sure you didn't mention your relationship." "Hey, fuck you, Francesca." "What was I supposed to" "Hey, easy." "Easy." "What good would that have done?" "You did the right thing." "God knows he wouldn't wanna lose his place at the table." "Francesca." "Allen." "Allen." "I didn't ask to come back here." "You asked me." "And I will not have her, of all people, telling me what" "For God's sake." "For God's sake." "She's not herself." "More today than most, I'd say." "If Mom could see that cunt" "Are you gonna pay?" "I'm going to the police." "You're here out of a basic need." "You needed money from me." "I needed discretion from you loyalty, obedience." "You are here, quite frankly because after what happened in Baltimore, you were for sale." "And you will do as you are told." "What about Robin?" "What about her?" "The girl needs to be reassessed." "What does that mean?" "She ran, doc." "She panicked." "What happened to your eye?" "Where's Sarno?" "Sarno came and went." "We thought he'd be with you." "Just hold on there a minute." "Sit." "Sit down." "Move your fucking hand." "Hello?" "Are you the client?" "I am the client." "Tell the doctor to get on Highway 19 south." "Across the border, he'll come to a town named Salsipuedes." "There, he'll find the Nacio Madre motel." "Across from it, there is a payphone where he'll wait." "He comes ready to induce labor, and he'll leave with the baby." "We let the girl go when we feel safe." "He comes alone." "He brings $15 million." "$15 million?" "We're gonna need some time to get that." "Give me 24 hours." "You got 12." "Goddamn it!" "Twelve fucking hours?" "Jesus Christ!" "How do you expect me to--?" "Okay." "All right." "Fine." "Twelve hours." "Jesus." "Is that it?" "Yeah, yeah, yeah." "Small, unmarked bills." "You know how much that weighs?" "Yeah, try a couple of thousand pounds." "All right." "Fine." "Hundreds." "That it?" "What do you think?" "It has holes." "Well, we're new at this." "You're not gonna make it, kid." "One's backfire." "Three is gunplay." "Step out." "Put it down." "A cop will come by, blow your head off." "Put your hands on your chest." "Who are you?" "Well, son right now, I'm the button man." "I'm the guy you wake up to one night maybe a year from now maybe two." "And all you'll see is a pillow over your face, and you'll hear a pop." "Plenty more where I came from." "Yeah, I used to be one." "What's happening?" "Looks like a bagman." "He'll make an offer, something small." "You should take it, maybe." "No, you can't trust a bagman." "They'll always double-cross you." "Tell you what I'm willing to do, kid." "I'll take you to the man right now." "He'll hand you a million in cash." "You wait while your partner sends the girl." "If she gets there, we let you go." "Sounds shaky." "Yeah." "It's better than the alternative, I can promise you that." "You wanna wait here for 12 hours?" "I mean, look what happened when you just stopped for some gas." "We just wanna do this clean and quiet." "Get the girl, the baby back safe." "I'll buy you a cup of coffee." "Can we have a couple cups of coffee, please?" "So are you the brains of the outfit, or is he?" "Tell you the truth, I don't think this is a brains kind of operation." "You think I agreed to help you because of Baltimore?" "I know that before Baltimore, you hadn't" "I honestly hoped that if you eased back into delivery, just" "Don't be an idiot." "No one incident makes anyone what they are." "Baltimore simply taught me who I am." "As for what I am I learned all about the value of human life from you." "That certainty is more important than morality." "So abortion is more certain than" "Exactly." "I don't make mistakes anymore." "I correct them." "So I empathize with you, Dad." "I really do." "Francesca." "Hey." "Fascinating, isn't it?" "I had no idea." "It's really gotten me excited." "Excited, huh?" "I missed you." "They'll kill us." "The people I'm in business with." "The money I have leads back to them." "We pay, they kill us." "Any police, they kill us." "That's your bed to lie in, not mine." "You're my son." "I love you." "And it's your bed too." "That's the sort of people they are." "I'm sorry." "I'm sorry I've gotten you involved in this part of my life." "I know it isn't your way of thinking, and I'm grateful for that." "I never wanted you to be that way." "But don't be naive." "She understood who she was dealing with." "She understood the situation." "It's a simple fact of life that anyone who would do business with a man like me can't be trusted." "I'm a mother." "As we speak, my child is waiting to come into this world." "And suddenly, for the first time, I feel like I" "Well, that he deserves me." "Francesca" "I don't mean I've earned him the way that a mother who's carried a child has but I feel I've worked hard to become the kind of woman who could have one naturally with you." "You know where the baby is, don't you?" "Of course I do." "You know we have to go get her?" "I understand." "If the girl should die...." "God forbid that anything should happen but if there's any complications we'll take care of it." "You understand?" "You just bring me back my baby." "I've been watching them pile up." "Nightstick, flashlight, with a bulletproof vest." "Fucking utility belts, right?" "Fucking sign on his head reading, "Why bother?"" "And they love to say shit like "ascertain."" ""Surveillance." -"Affirmative."" ""I need backup."" ""Adjudicate."" "Adjudicate?" "Yeah." "But, you know then you got the other side." "You got these trigger-happy cocksuckers all about the shooting and the posturing." "You-don't-know-who-I am thing." ""I've been to prison."" "You got caught, you dumb fuck." "These days they wanna be criminals more than wanna commit crime." "Well, that's not just crime." "That's the way of the world." "What?" "I'm just talking here." "But by their design, all we really need to come back with is the baby." "Think about it." "No money, no perps, no nothing." "We could kill these two, keep the money bring Chidduck his baby, and say it all went well." "Well mostly well." "What?" "The girl?" "Yeah." "No, see, when she doesn't show up it'll be assumed that she ate a bullet and they made off to Bolivia." "Damn it." "It doesn't work." "The doc." "The doctor gets shot in the fray." "Right." "We tried to help him but it was either him or the baby." "He was alive when we took off." "He must have died calling for help in the desert." "Creative articulation, my good man." "Just talking, of course." "Sure." "So all we need is a nice quiet place to have a baby." "As I said before my only concern is for the child." "This is Jeffers." "I need to speak to the Question Mark." "We might be needing a room later on tonight." "You know you seem like a good guy." "You ought to get out of this business." "What would I do then?" "You know, you get to be my age, you start feeling a little different." "You realize one day you're gonna zig." "All that time you're thinking you're gonna put something away tomorrow." "Then, one day, you're fresh out of lives." "You got some money put away?" "I got a daughter." "She's...." "She's putting something together, says she'll take care of me, but...." "Not working out?" "Something like that, yeah." "Something like that." "You sure you don't wanna take a ride with me?" "Million in cash?" "Wish I could..." "...but you're" "Yeah." "I'm a bagman." "You are a bagman." "Until that day, then, huh?" "What do you think?" "Oh, we can get her out of there right now." "Just the two, right?" "Please." "I have to take a ride back." "Don't do a thing without me, no matter what." "Jesus Christ, Joe, she's right" "I'm counting on you to remain pitiless here." "Help me out." "Just stay with her and let it play out." "I'll be back." "What?" "Wait a minute." "What's so funny?" "Hold that card so I can whup your ass." "You're cheating." "No." "I'm not cheating, I'm winning, all right?" "What?" "What are we playing?" "Hearts." "How do you play?" "Well, the object of hearts is to play the safest game possible and finish with the least amount of points." "A heart is the only thing of value." "If you have one, get rid of it." "Start with the two of clubs." "You'll need to throw down a club." "If I don't have one, then you can throw a heart." "You can't lead with a heart unless you have nothing else to throw." "Or if someone breaks the suit." "You follow?" "Couple of rounds, and she'll get it." "See, now, you had the high card, so you take the trick." "Now you lead." "First trick always takes the odd card." "Shit." "You got the bitch." "She's 13 points." "Fuck the bitch." "Just get rid of your hearts." "Or shoot the moon." "That's when you finish with everything." "You get all the hearts and the queen of spades." "Everyone else loses." "Next to impossible." "If somebody figures out what you're up to they can sacrifice and hold onto a heart." "And then you lose." "Is that so?" "Yep." "I needed the money." "It's a million dollars cash, and I needed it for...." "That's what it was about." "I told myself that the Chidducks they'd be good, you know, and that the baby would have a good life." "I thought it through a thousand times." "I thought I could do it." "I was" " I was certain, and it was" "It was the" " What was best for everyone involved." "For the baby, for the Chidducks for myself." "The baby." "Then I felt it move." "And I saw his little hands." "The baby's mine." "Okay, I'm sorry, but by "yours," do you mean that--?" "I mean that the Chidducks' embryo didn't take and this is my son that I'm carrying." "So that means that you and Mr. Chidduck...." "No." "Dr. Painter." "That sneaky little quack." "But it wasn't his idea." "It was mine." "I made it happen because I needed the money." "I made it happen." "Listen, you don't want guys like him or me touching your belly." "Please?" "That's creepy." "Oh, no." "We'll meet just right past the border." "Oh, listen, I appreciate it." "Okay, thanks a lot." "You enjoy your coffee?" "I deal in counteroffers and adjudication." "You do your job, Mr. Bullet-Catcher, and I'll do mine." "I'm curious as to why they didn't kill you." "Maybe I didn't present the real threat." "Not like you, shooting at guys who agreed not to commit a crime." "All right." "All right." "Come on." "The money coming?" "In a while." "Then I suggest Dr. Painter goes in now with 50 grand." "Might help calm their nerves if they feel the real money's getting close." "And when you go out, I'll go in." "And adjudicate?" "If it comes to that, yes." "You go in by yourself." "I think I can handle it." "And you, Cufflinks stay here and watch Mr. Chidduck in case there's a contingent." "In case there's a what?" "A third man." "A button." "Something, anything that we haven't thought of." "It's called CYA, you fucking moron." "Cover your ass." "Sir, as a collector of prewar cop jargon I find the old man refreshing." "Nevertheless, he's one against two who killed two of my four." "I suggest you let him C your A." "What seems to be the problem here?" "The decision's already been made." "The doctor goes in with the money alone." "He follows the demands to the letter and delivers the child." "We keep our distance." "We move in if there's a complication." "Our only concern is for the lives at stake." "I hope you're not seriously" "I'm in a tight corner, Joe." "It's pure geometry, Mr. Sarno." "We've been head-to-head with these guys, remember." "One old man all alone out there...." "No one will come out alive." "To be honest, Joe that's not what this is about." "You're conflicted here." "Your job has been to protect me and my associates and my money." "But I no longer care about any of that." "This is about my child." "And that, in itself, presents its own special conflict, now, doesn't it?" "Emotional detachment, Joe." "For what it's worth I think these two pretty much define it." "Are you up to this?" "I'll do whatever has to be done." "All right." "Jeffers and Obecks will follow you." "See that you come out safely with the baby." "Sarno handles the money." "Sorry, gentlemen." "I'm not trusting any of you." "I'm afraid I want to eat my cake and have it too." "The subscriber you have called is unavailable." "Shit." "You were talking about killing her." "No one said "kill."" "He said "adjudicate," and that can mean a lot of things." "There's more going on than you were seeing." "You don't have the eyes for it." "What I heard was you ready to put a woman's life at risk for money." "Not money." "$15 million." "Money is what you take to the grocery store." "It's what you get out of an ATM." "$15 million is not money." "It's a motive with a universal adapter on it." "You don't think that those" "Never, never, never think." "Thinking's how you lost your nerve in the first place, Dr. Painter." "What, you think I don't know you?" "You think your father and I have secrets from each other?" "I know about your residency, your so-called hiatus." "I know about that bad piece of luck you had in Baltimore." "I didn't lose my" "I know you weren't expected to deliver this kid." "I know you can't." "I know your skull is splitting down the middle because you think this thing's gonna play out and you're gonna have to deliver this baby into the world." "Well what happened in Baltimore will not happen here." "You understand?" "Because I won't let it." "So...." "So don't think, Dr. Painter." "Just do." "And whatever you do don't tell them what I know." "Keep your mouth shut, and everything will be just fine." "Just fine." "Dumping Sarno's gonna be tough to explain." "Tougher still to do." "I ain't buying his survival bullshit." "He'll drop from a skull shot like any other man." "We just take him out before he goes in, bring the money in ourselves." "And after that, it's our word against the desert's." "Creative articulation, baby." "What is it?" "Something in there between Sarno and Chidduck." "Ain't clear." "It's chapping my ass." "What was that shit he said about conflict?" "He said, "This is about my child." "This is a special conflict."" "Why would saving somebody else's child be a conflict to anyone unless...." "The girl." "Sarno." "All set, doc?" "I was up on this robbery bit with a public defender." "I was looking at my first long stretch." "Out of nowhere, this lawyer comes to see me, says he can get me off." "He says he'll do it for free." "I just gotta do a favor in return." "Then he tells me about this teacher who's molesting his son." "I went up alone." "Didn't make a sound." "There was nice thick carpet on the stairwell." "A light busted in the hall." "And the door was open, man." "It was like it was meant to be." "And I slipped in and I found him in the bedroom, naked with all these pictures on the bed." "Man, that lawyer was right." "He was more than right." "And then he turned around, and I didn't hit him." "I didn't hit him." "I just said:" ""Lay on the bed, face down."" "And he did it." "I was savoring it." "I mean, really, really enjoying it." "Thinking about how I was gonna take a Polaroid and send it to that lawyer so maybe he could sleep better at night and maybe take one for myself, so I could" "And then I heard him praying:" ""Now I lay me down to sleep." "I pray the Lord my soul to keep."" "And you know something?" "It stayed with me." "It bothered me." "Of all the people I'd done it to, that had to be the one I felt." "And to this day I can't go to sleep unless I say that prayer." "You wanna get out now?" "You wanna quit?" "This is never gonna come your way again." "What if the day comes and you're face down, waiting?" "And what, if in that final fleeting second of life, you start to believe in God?" "What are you gonna have to give him?" "What will you say in your defense?" "What does it matter we take a child away from his mother?" "After all the people we've robbed and maimed and murdered you think it matters?" "It matters." "Believe me, it matters." "Wanna leave her a note?" "No." "You know, I think it's better if we just leave." "You can't leave her alone." "She's not alone." "There's some guy behind the diner." "He'll get her as soon as we're gone." "All right." "I left my jacket in there." "I'll get it." "You know what I wanna tell God when I see him?" "I'm gonna tell him I was framed." "I'm at the Nacio Madre Hotel." "There's been a shooting." "A woman in your condition" "The police are on their way." "You can come in shooting." "At least I'll be taking one of you with us." "Just get in your fucking car and move on!" "I got all night long." "I'm not moving." "Test me." "Peekaboo." "Is that baby hungry yet, Robin?" "Whose money is it?" "The worst." "Do you believe in karma, Joe?" "Karma?" "Karma's only justice without the satisfaction." "I don't believe in justice." "Well, tonight, I certainly hope you're right." "Fucking useless." "It's okay." "Robin, get in the car." "It's okay." "Robin." "Robin, let's get in the car." "Who are you?" "Robin." "Robin." "Robin." "Get in the car." "Don't do it." "Who the fuck are you?" "Who the fuck are you?" "Robin." "Mind your business." "Robin, come with me and get in the car." "Come on, it's over now." "Robin, get in the car." "Tranquilo, okay?" "What are we doing?" "He wants us to put our hands on the car." "He wants us to get on the ground." "Get up." "Get up." "She's going for the car, man." "Robin, come get in the car." "Careful." "If I wanna hit her, I hit her." "If I wanna miss, I miss." "Robin, come get in the car right now!" "To the right." "To the right!" "To the right!" "Come on." "Why are they headed south?" "Where are we going?" "Fuck." "We have her." "Just take us back." "Those shots were from north of the motel." "I'm not going through more of that." "What about Sarno?" "Shouldn't we call?" "Yeah, I'm gonna call Sarno, all right." "I have a place we can go until it's safe." "Trust me." "It's okay." "The worst of it is behind us." "Promise me something." "You promise me I'll see my baby before he takes him back to the Chidducks." "I promise." "Yeah, it's me again." "We're coming." "Tell him to be ready." "Yeah?" "It's me." "Where the hell you been?" "I've been trying to get a signal." "A couple of guys showed up." "It got pretty choppy." "One of them made off with her." "They're headed south." "Is Robin all right?" "Yeah." "Yeah, she seems okay." "You just keep heading south." "I'll talk you in as best I can." "Look, Abner." "Listen" "I'm sorry I couldn't put my hand to her." "I gotta go." "Hey, Abner" "No!" "I'm gonna pull out some of your fingernails and I'm gonna leave you to think about it." "Then later, I'll come back and slash your eyeballs." "Whatever else I do to you after that I'll pour gasoline into your eyes from time to time to keep you from passing out." "Bottom line, guy, I'm gonna ask you one more time and I'm never gonna ask you again." "Where did they take the girl?" "I don't know." "No!" "No!" "Oh, God!" "Oh, God!" "Please help me." "Please." "I need to get to a hospital!" "Bitch." "What is this?" "What is this?" "I got a business to run, for chrissakes." "I left her with the doctor." "Where were you?" "I had to go to the" " What happened?" "Please." "Who took your IV out?" "Let's get it back in." "I can't have pregnant women walking around bleeding and upsetting my customers." "You are getting paid a lot of money, sir, and I cannot do this by myself." "Don't let her leave your sight again." "If I don't put the IV back in, contractions are gonna slow and labor's gonna stop." "No!" "What's the matter?" "It's killing me." "Something's wrong." "I don't see any money." "This is 50." "I will make a call, you will have double that in under an hour." "So make the phone call." "I need the fucking baby first." "Will you please help me tie her down?" "It won't come out." "It's killing me." "Oh, my God." "Is she supposed to be bleeding like that?" "She's had an abruption." "The placenta has separated from her uterus, and she's bleeding internally." "It's gonna be okay." "It's gonna be okay." "Make it stop." "Is the baby going to die?" "What?" "What is it?" "I have to give her a C-section." "Do it." "A delivery is one thing." "You're talking about major surgery." "I could kill her." "I have to get her to a hospital." "My only concern right now is for the child, Dr. Painter." "No one else." "Now do it." "It's our baby!" "It's our baby." "Tell him it's our baby and he'll let us go!" "It's not the Chidducks'." "They could have another baby!" "Just tell him!" "Tell him it's our baby!" "Is this true?" "Tell him!" "He'll let us go." "Tell him." "Are you comfortable, Robin?" "We're gonna take out your baby now." "No!" "What is that?" "It's a spinal." "Don't knock me out." "I have to see my baby, Allen." "I just wanna see my baby." "It'll only numb you from the waist down." "Now stay still." "Okay." "I'm gonna get a smoke." "She's" "She's up there with the doctor and the colored fella." "Oh, Jesus." "I'm sorry, Joe." "There's no need to be sorry, Abner." "I'm dying." "We'll get somebody right away." "It's not like I'm scared or anything." "Listen, Abner." "I'm dying, Joe." "Remember that time the time that we...?" "Jeez." "What--?" "Oh, I'm dying, Joe." "I know." "I'm sorry, Abner." "Joe?" "Yeah, Abner." "I'm right here." "If it's not too much trouble I'd kind of like to be alone." "Till that day, pal." "For chrissake, will you--?" "I think there are some men here to see you." "Can I get some help in here?" "Can you walk?" "I wanna get this cocksucker." "Oh, no." "What is it, man?" "Bagmen." "Let's get the girl." "I wanna see..." "You got it, doc?" "Almost." "...my baby." "No!" "I'm sorry." "I'm sorry." "I'm sorry." "I'm sorry." "Is my baby okay?" "I wanna...." "My baby." "How's the baby, doc?" "What's going on with the baby, doc?" "Doc?" "How's the baby?" "Get back in there, doc." "Sorry." "They're coming, man." "Come on." "I wanna...." "I want my baby." "Come on, brother." "Let's do this." "She's had enough, pal." "Move." "Just relax now." "Almost there." "It's under control." "There's nothing you can do here." "Get out." "There's always free cheese in a mousetrap." "What do you think?" "I think a plan is just a list of things that don't happen." "If we die we die alone." "Are you all right?" "Yeah, I'm still here." "Are you still with me?" "I'm still here." "Yeah." "Come on up." "So are you gonna let her keep the baby?" "It's her baby." "Her and the doctor." "Is that true?" "What do you think?" "Come on." "You can tell somebody is family just by looking at them." "Until that day, then." "Until that day." "What are you gonna tell God now?" "We don't want your forgiveness." "We won't make excuses." "We're not gonna blame you even if you are an accessory." "But we will not accept your natural order." "We didn't come for absolution." "We didn't ask to be redeemed." "But isn't that the way it is every goddamn time?" "Your prayers are always answered in the order they're received." "I'm pregnant."