"Wake up, Los Angeles!" "It's 9:02 A.M. and already 78° on another beautiful September Saturday." "It's definitely gonna be a hot one, boys and girls." "Break out that sunblock when you hit the beach." "So get out of bed and let's get this day started." "Over here." " Good morning." " Good morning." "What..." " What's with all the suits?" " Some big dealer thing." "You got two minutes." "How do you feel?" "I'm ready." "You fuckin' better be." "Let's go." "Everybody ready?" "Was that a roger, Roger?" "Yeah." " Let's do it." " Let's bang a gong." " You're early!" " What?" "Get your hands in the air!" "Get your hands up!" "Oh, fuck." "Shit." "I'm sorry, Mr. Weston." "It's another tough one." "What are you doing here?" "You're killing me." "Whoo!" "Yeah!" "That's like 12 in a row." "That must be some new local record." "Do me a favor?" "You know, the next time, if you would, don't hit on 16." "Don't distract the other players." "Oh, there you are, sweetheart." "I thought you might have gotten lost." "Hey, what are you doing after work?" "Curing cancer then grabbing a snack." "You know, Chucky, it's the little personal touches that set this place apart from the rest." "Yes, sir." "I have half a mind to stop losing my money at your establishment." "Let's call it a night, Mr. Weston." "Oh, come on, guys." "I was getting on a roll here." "Let's not make a scene." "You know the deal." "You've sort of worn out your welcome for the moment." "I believe you still have some, uh, unfinished business" " with..." " Yeah, I..." "It's okay." "It's okay, 'cause I've taken care of all that now, so, if you would just give me... a couple hands here, a chance to win back what I lost..." " Now, Mr. Weston." " Chuck." "Hey hey!" "Ow ow ow!" "Ooh!" "What the fuck, Chuck?" "You have a nice night, Mr. Weston." "Sweetie, it's just two more weeks." "I know." "But what's the...?" "Hon... honey?" "Okay, honey, in two weeks you'll be able to shop until you drop." "But if we don't put the order in today, they won't have the Aviator chairs back in stock for another month." "Sherry, look, don't get pissed off." "I already explained this to you." "It's just how it has to work." "Roger!" "You promised me these types of things" " wouldn't be a problem anymore." " Listen, Sherry." "Jason just walked in so I'll... we're gonna talk about this later tonight, okay?" "Sherry?" "Sherry, we'll talk about this later tonight, okay?" "I love..." "What's up?" "That's the problem..." "nothing's up." "And nothing's gonna go up." "No shit?" "Yeah." "Oh my fucking God." "What the fuck happened?" "Check it out yourself." "What the fuck is this shit?" "Vinnie, JTS Brown in a bucket." "Paulie, cash, on the bar." "Cold night at the tables?" "It's fucking Siberia out there." "But I'm due for a good run." "How's it going?" " Goes in streaks." " Streaks?" "Yeah, streaks." "The last good streak you had was six months ago." "Now you lost all your scratch... you're in debt with these lovely new friends of yours." "I'm gonna pay 'em." "Like you're gonna pay your bar bill?" "Hey." "I was up almost 100 grand." "You know Freddie and that whole Valari crew." "You got a deathwish or something?" "I can't afford it." "You should have stayed in San Mateo." "Palo Alto." "Whatever it is." "I want to know what keeps you from going back." "It was too much water." "The wife?" "Well, ex-wife, I guess." "You are legally retarded." "Aw, you know, seemed like a good idea and all that." "I was finally in a position where I could give her the kind of life that she deserved." "I mean, I was making it." "My friend, you confuse a good run at the blackjack table for Shangri-La." "Now your life depends on whether or not you're gonna take a hit on 16." "Well, what's the dealer showing?" "Hey, Vinnie, how about another one?" "I'm cutting you off, kid." "Aw, come on, give me a break." "Okay, I'll give you a break... in the form of a tip:" "The Valaris have given you more rope than they give most." "And if you don't find a way to pay off these pricks, they're gonna hang you with it." "Jesus, Vin, whatever happened to just plain old "last call"?" "Paulie." "That's always brought me luck." "Hey hey, he's on the phone." "Listen, Buster Brown, when I throw a dog a bone," "I don't want to know if it's haute cuisine." "Just eat it and say "Bow-wow."" "I don't give a hog's ass what the analysts say." "If you take that deal over mine, you're gonna feel like a gnat fucked by a hippo." "Yeah, well, when your balls clank, call me." "Boys, I'm having a shit day." "My housekeeper didn't wash the socks, hence I have to wear black... with blue." "I'm gauche." "What?" "I'm working here." "What?" "We were wondering if you noticed that Markable Metals was down 12 points today." "BF deal." "When the merger closes on Monday, it'll go through the roof." "I think you should check your end-of-the-day reports." " This merger's not closing." " The hell you say." "Gonad." "As soon as one of these bondholders alerts the SEC that this account is empty, they're gonna be all over us." "They know we manage the fund." "Whoa whoa whoa." "I don't manage it." "You and Ed do." "My name isn't in there as a manager." "I didn't move any money around except for trades." "No, Stephen, you just created the bogus corporation that sold the bogus bonds that we've all been using the bogus profits of." "Besides that, you should be free-and-fucking-clear." "Doesn't matter now who did what to whom." "Once they're onto us, it'll be a matter of nanoseconds before they find out we've been remiss to our bondholders." "So..." "So, what do we do?" "So you guys get the fuck out of here and leave it to me." "I'll handle it." "But know this:" "if MM is really going south... we got ourselves a problem." "I should have been a fucking plastic surgeon." "You should have seen the way he did that." "Just like on TV." "That really smarts, doesn't it?" "Getting cold-cocked really fucks you all up." "You get those stars in front of your eyes." "No fun at all." "Freddie?" "We have a little problem here, Paulie." "Personally... we feel a little hurt." "Don't we, Bennie?" "Downright distraught." "We extend our courtesy to you at my little casino, making your stay in our establishment probably one of the most enjoyable of your time." "Then your luck changes." "You come to us for a loan, we help you out, and how do you repay us?" "You don't." "Oh, that's rude." "That's rude." "I'm not finished." "Get him up." "Bennie, stop playing with him." "It's nice to have you back." "I don't have any money." "I never did." "What about your car dealership?" "You mean you don't own a car dealership?" "No, I never owned it." "I only sold used cars." "Kid, were you born stupid or did you learn it somewhere?" "Huh?" "Oh oh, God." "He's so cute, isn't he?" "Isn't he, Bennie?" "Look, we know you have nothing." "We know that you thought you conned us into believing that you were the..." "the "Wheel King."" "The little "Tire King," yeah?" "You were pretty good at first." "As a matter of fact, for about a minute we thought you might be from the Feds." "But... the minute you started to lose and you didn't stop, we knew you were just another punk who thought he was on a good roll." "So, you see, we know the best you might do is some clunker down in Palo Alto." "Oh, yeah." "We know where you come from." "It would take, oh, 20 secondhand cars to make a dent in what you owe." "So... in the course of wondering how we're gonna deal with a little... cheap-shit- wannabe-bigshot little fucker like yourself, we sent a couple of boys down there to see what your situation was... paid a visit to..." "Natalie, I believe it is." " What did you do...?" " Hey." "Do?" "Paul, what, you think we're animals?" "We're divorced." "Besides, she doesn't have anything." "Oh, yes, she does." "She has that cute little blue house all paid for." "You want her to sell her house?" "Oh, no." "You want her to sell the house." "No, I..." "I never owned the house." "Oh." "Besides, she won't help me anymore." "But that wouldn't be our problem, would it?" "That would be your problem." "However, if you can't deliver, we might be forced to do something... very unpleasant." "Look... you know what?" "Fuck it." "You want to kill me, go right ahead." "Fuck it." "You'll be doing me a fuckin' favor." "Tempting, but no." "We wouldn't do that, but we might be forced to... bring the lovely Natalie up here for a visit." "Of course, she would be traveling in a bag of kitty litter." " If you touch her..." " Hey." "Look..." "You can't ask her to sell that house." "That's all she has." "If you have another way of paying for what is mine," "I'm all for it." "However, you have one week... to make things right." "Open it!" "Ah... oh!" "Shut it." "I know I should say "I hate to do this,"" "but I don't." "Fuck." "Shit." "Shit." "Fuck fuck." "You gonna give yourself an aneurysm, Roger." "You got to calm down, son." "That ought to be real easy with you sneaking up on me." "What'd you find out?" "Well, our info is kosher." "The merger was all set to close." "But the buyers backed off at the last second due to a new EPA investigation." "Fucking government." "Stock is down 7.5 points." "That's it then." "We're fucked." "Not necessarily." "What do you mean?" "What I mean is, until the end of the month, when the statements are generated, nobody but us is hip to the fact that that account is empty, which buys us a little time." "To do what?" "To raise the gelt," "Roger... the cash, the loot." "What?" "You want to hear it in French?" "Well, you know, I really don't have my share of the $5 million, Ed." "Oh, wait, I'll just go run to the ATM and..." "We all knew it'd be a gamble, Roger Dodger." "Well, there's a tune change, Eddie." "You know, what happened to the sure thing, huh?" "The inside information." "10 times our money in a fucking month?" "You know something, Roger?" "You haven't had a blow job in so long, you forgot how good it tastes." "You know what this business is." "It's volatile." "It's a risk." "It's never a sure thing, and don't fucking ever..." "call me Eddie." "All right." "Relax, Ed." "Jesus." "Relax?" "I don't know the etymology of that word, much less its meaning, Rog." "But I do know the meaning of the word "remember,"" "as in "recall." Seems to me I recall someone coming to me saying, "Anything you got, Ed, anything you got... under the table, whatever, Ed." "I'm in, Ed!" "Sherry's giving me a hard time at home, Ed." "I need the money, Ed."" "You're the numbers guy, Rog." "You dig that little syllogism?" ""Sherry need money." "Money need Sherry." "Sherry, money, need!"" "All right, all right, all right, all right." "I'm sorry, Ed." "Fucking gonad." "Enough." "Things have been real great since the money situation started to improve." "You know?" "She just needs a little security." "Women don't need security." "Men only think they do." "Women need three things:" "Insurmountable attention, to be licked, and shoes." "Give me the ball." "Look, if we sell now, we're what, three-and-a-half, four million short?" "If we're lucky." "Well, that's it, then." "We're fucked." "What if I told you I got a way to raise the cash in less than five days?" "I'd say you're fucking nuts." "Have I ever remotely resembled someone to you who's sane?" "I'll tell you this though: if we pull it off, get the money back into the account, recall the bond, we're home free." " Two:" " I'm listening." "Not here, not now." "You call the boys together." "Meet at my house." "I'll explain everything then." "Don't worry, Roger Dodger." "It's all gonna be hunky-dory." "Hunky-dory." "Right." "Fucking gonad." "Yeah, this is Max." "Yeah, Colonel, it's Koster." "Can't you answer the phone?" "Yeah?" "Damn, Paul, I thought you'd never pick up." "Vinnie?" "Word is Freddie and her brother came over to see you last night." "Are you okay?" "Define "okay."" "Hey, what time is it?" "It's just after 2:00." "Do you need a doctor?" "More like a welder." "Well, I know somebody in South Lake..." "Dr. Charlie Brooks, off State Line Drive." "Can you get there?" "Yeah, I think so." "Vinnie, they... they want my wife's house, or they're gonna... they said they're gonna..." "God, I can't even say it." "Them motherfuckers." "And what if you were able to come up with the cash right now?" "Well, gee, I lost the cash fairy's number." "And Nat's through with me." "She won't help me anymore, not... not that I blame her after what I put her through." "All right all right all right." "There's always a way out." "Look, I'm..." "I'm not gambling." "Meet me at the Hit-and-Miss when you're done." "I might have something for you." "I told you, Vinnie, no more gambling." "Well, this ain't gambling." "Hi, I'm Dr. Brooks." "Broken finger." "Did you injure your vocal cords, too?" "Aw, sorry." "I..." "I was expecting a man." "Sorry to disappoint you." "Why don't you have a seat, please?" "So you were in some kind of an accident?" "I closed it in a car door." "Car door have a name?" "Look, I know you're doing this as a favor for Vinnie, so..." "Actually, you know, I would have bought the car door, so I'm gonna put that down." "That's about what it would look like." "And what about your nose?" "You have a cold or you always sniffle like that?" "It got caught in the door, too." "Burns, doesn't it?" "Yeah, okay." "Let's go get you an X-ray." "It's a clean break." "You're lucky it didn't splinter." "You'll have to leave a brace on for the next six weeks." "And put some of this in your nose." "Wow, what is that?" "It's a sample." "Keep it." "Here's some painkillers." "You know what?" "Here's some more." "Feels better just since you set it." "Yeah, it usually does." "So, were you in the army?" "Marines, actually." "But those aren't mine." "They belong to my father." "And where's he stationed?" "He's dead." "Is that all right?" "Does that feel all right?" "No... yeah, that's fine." "What's wrong?" " No, I'm fine." " Let me look." "More car injuries?" "It was a damn big door." "Ow." "Nothing's broken." "It's just bruised." "So, do you need a cab home?" "Listen," "I'm a little short on cash." "Well, you're in luck." "Wednesday is free auto-related accident day." "Okay." "Anything else?" "No." "Thank you." "I mean it." "Don't mention it." "Say hello to Vinnie for me." "And tell him to stop smoking those damn cigars." "Well..." "I'll see you around." "Keep that finger out of harm's way." "Listen, this thing I want to talk to you about..." "I think I can help you." "At least I know a guy who can." "Thanks." "What do I have to do?" "Knock somebody off?" "Listen, Vinnie, I told you no more gambling." "And I told you it has nothing to do with gambling." "But it ain't legal, either." "What are you getting me into?" "Look, I know this guy." "He pulls an occasional job now and then." "He's a pro." "Nobody fucking move!" "All you cocksuckers on the ground." "He's got something lined up where he needs a fourth man." "Don't even think about calling the cops, you fucking whore." "Get down or I'll blow your fucking head off and they'll be mopping your brains off the goddamn pavement." "Go go go!" "Can't move without one." "He's got to move quick." "Wait a minute..." "I filled him in." "Says he'll use you on my recommendation." "And your end will take care of your immediate problems... and then some." "This guy is good." "All you have to do is work with him." "Don't get in the way." "Do what he says and everything will be easy." "Gentlemen." "It's paper." "You promised us a toy." "Shit." "I'm a little confused here." "Are we talking about armed robbery?" "You're insane." "I can't do that." "You... - you got to be fucking kidding." "I..." "I think maybe you've been watching a little too much late-night cable, Ed, but this... this uh... this ain't "The Wild Bunch."" "Yeah, give me a T1 line and a keyboard and I'll make sushi out of a Tokyo trader's testicles for lunch." "But this?" "No no see, I can't do this." "My boys, it's pretty simple." "The SEC doesn't take kindly to floating phony bonds." "So unless one of you have $5 million stuck away in a shoebox," "I suggest we start organizing and stop bitching." "Stephen, what about your family?" "Shit." "Yeah, your dad's worth a fortune." "Oh, what a marvy idea." "Yes, let's call up Stephen's daddy." "I'm sure the senator will appreciate that, especially in an election year." "Yeah, well, I don't think that's gonna work out." ""Hello, Daddy, it's Stephen." "Listen, I was wondering if you could slip me $5 million to pay back grandmothers I bamboozled." "Oh, you can?" "Well, goodie, that should about do it." "Bye."" "That'll go over like a turd in a punch bowl, brothers." "Plus which, there'd be a paper trail longer than the federal tax code leading from the senator right back to us." "And the SEC and the IRS and the FBI will be following it like smoke out of the ass of a semi." "My way is clean." "My way is complete." "Two weeks from now we're back at our desks making loot." "Now, that's what you want, isn't it?" "Make some loot, stay out of jail?" "If so, this is the way." "This is the only way." "No, God damn it." "Hey hey." "Sit." " Sit down." " Yeah." "Sit the fuck down." "I'm not a thief." "I can't put a gun to somebody's head and say, "Hand it over."" "I put my neck on the chopping block for you and you're gonna act this way?" "What are you gonna do?" "Work it off?" "If I have to." "What are you gonna do?" "Be a pit boss?" "A house manager?" "A clarinet player?" "Jesus, you got nothing else." "You got nothing left." "You're gonna do what Freddie wants you to." "Offer up your ex's house, maybe even her, or get in on this and settle with Freddie and have something left over." "Personally, I would suggest a down payment on a new life in San Mateo." "Palo Alto." "Listen, if you got a guy on the inside, you know, and he's just gonna hand 'em over anyway, why do we got to put on this big show of robbing the place?" "Because my guy ain't in this for the shits and giggles, Roger." "My guy needs a robbery." "He can't just say, "Oops, gee," "I lost $15 million worth of diamonds." "Can you send some more over?"" "He needs a robbery with witnesses, with guns, with cops." "Plus which, those diamonds are gonna be in his shop for about two hours before they're allocated and dispersed to the retailers." "So, this ain't an absolute lock." "An absolute lock, Jason?" "What, have you been going to Roger's School of the Sure Thing?" "No, Jason!" "I'm sorry." "I can't come up with a multimillion dollar absolute fucking lock!" "Jesus!" "You guys absolutely fucking slay me." "We log on, make a few phone calls... two weeks later, 250 geriatrics hand over their entire life's savings and that's okay." ""But gee, Ed," "I don't wanna be a real crook."" "We always intended to pay that money back, Ed." "And how were we gonna pay back the money, Stephen?" "From the trading account." "And the trading account is what, Stephen?" "It's almost empty." "Excuse me?" " Empty." " Thank you, Stephen." "Your voice was muffled, you had your head so far up your ass." "The trading account is empty, earth people." "Which leads me back to question alpha:" "How do we get the scratch?" "Which leads me back to plan A." "Speaking of plan A, Ed... not to look a gift horse in the mouth..." "Then don't look a gift horse in the mouth, Roger." "What, you think we're the only folks that need a shitload of change yesterday?" "My guy's been waiting for something like this a long time." "A long time... except it's very difficult to find folks who will pull it off." "But we can pull it off, see?" "This is it." "So grow up!" "You got a better plan?" "No, you do not." "So, get some balls that clank, and let's get to work." "Alrighty?" "I don't know, Vinnie." "I just can't do it." " Can't do what?" " Play softball." "The bar's forming a league for softball." "Man." "You sure fixed my boy up good." "That's what I do." "May I?" "Yes yes." "Let me help you there." "Thanks again for..." "for everything." "Yeah, car doors can be hell." "So what brings you here?" "I was supposed to meet some friend after their shift change at the Valarian." "I think I got stood up." "Yeah, and I saw my patient over here, and I thought maybe I should check up on him." "So, how are those painkillers working?" "Oh, a few more minutes, you might be able to have your way with me." "Why do you think I came over?" "Look, I gotta go." "Good to see you again." "Thanks, Vinnie." "Paul?" "I need your answer tomorrow by noon, and it better be positive." "Need a ride, cowboy?" "Aw, no thanks." "My horse is just around the corner." "Come on, get in the car." "You're full of drugs." "You're gonna kill yourself, or worse, your horse." "That's okay, my horse is sober." "Hey, I am your doctor." "You have to do what I say." "Listen, I'm sorry I laughed at you back there, okay?" "Hasn't been my week." "Well, the week's still young." "So, are you enjoying Tahoe?" "I guess you must be really having a tough time." "Well, for what it's worth," "I've treated a lot of Vinnie's friends, but you're the first one that I've ever given a ride to." "Ah." "So, out of all the losers, I'm your favorite one." "Without a doubt." "Okay, I gotta ask... so... so why didn't you just take the money and run?" "Well, it's nice to know Vinnie can keep a secret." "Why didn't I just take the money and run?" "Well, I guess the stock answer to that question is it's not about the money." "It's about the power, the rush." "Okay." "But that's bullshit." " It is about the money." " Okay, so..." "So, why didn't I just quit while I was ahead?" "Ha, 'cause you never know." "The most cash I'd ever seen in my life was $2,500, and it was a commissions check, and that was before taxes." "New Year's Eve, I was sitting behind $95,000." "Now, three days later, it was $80,000." "Now, that's pretty good, but it's not... it's not 95." "And so on, and so on, until it's... it's not just the money you've lost, but it's the job, the girl, the self-respect." " The girl?" " Oh, yeah, there's always a girl." "Wife, actually." "She became part of all the deals I was making." "Deals?" "Deals with who?" "Aw, fate, God, whoever." "Natalie, my wife... she just wanted to have a family, and a little house." "That wasn't good enough for me." "I wanted the American Dream, you know?" "I was in a dead-end job and I came up here on a whim." "And I just started raking in the money." "It was unbelievable." "Okay, so now you had 80 grand..." "No, it was only 60 grand at that point." "Only." "She begged me to stop." "Ah, and I swore that I would." "But I just knew if I had one more good run," "I could get all that money back." "I just knew that I could." "The sad thing was, I was still making deals, even after the money was all gone and she had told me to get lost." " Well." " Yeah." "It's pretty damn impressive." " Hello?" " Colonel Max, it's Koster." " Are we set?" " Yes, sir, we're all set to come through the door at 0910 hours." "Very good." "Remember that you can be inside no more than two minutes." "That's affirmative, sir." "We're ready." "Ah, my contact is set to get 60¢ on the dollar, and we will rendezvous at the safe house in two weeks." "Alrighty, sounds good to me." "Oh, and Ed, I..." "I appreciate this." "I would not ask this of you if there were any other options." "No need to explain, sir." "I can't say I'm not having fun." "Look, you kind of caught me in an off year." "Thanks for the ride." "What, no drink?" "I don't have anything here." "I..." "I just want to make sure you'll be okay." "Sure." "Would you excuse me for a minute?" "Sure." " It's the best I could do." " Thank you." "Yeah, I wasn't planning on entertaining tonight." "Make yourself comfortable." "I always do." "So... have you lived in Tahoe long?" "About a year." "Do you like it?" "Well, take it or leave it." "Was it hard to become a doctor?" "Well, you do have to go to medical school." "Hey, I'm sorry I brought up your father." "I..." "I didn't mean to." "Oh, no, that's okay." "I'm just still very sensitive." "It hasn't been that long and we were very close." "So, um... so, how long were you married?" "A little over three years." "And when did you get divorced?" "Couple of months ago." " Really?" " Yeah." "And you?" "Have you ever been married?" "No." "No, I never found the right guy." "Oh." "Besides, the... the guys that come into my office... they're usually not my type." "And what is your type?" "Hello?" "Paul?" "Nat, is that you?" "It's me." " Are you okay?" " I'm fine." "You?" "How... how did you find me?" "Your friends gave me the number." "My friends?" "Yeah." "They came by." "They were looking at the house, asking all these weird questions." "Did..." "did they do anything?" "I thought we were done with all of this, Paul." "You said you'd walk away and leave me alone." "You said that." "I..." "I..." "I know, I'm..." "Nat, did... what did they say?" "Listen, don't go thinking you can borrow against the house again." "Look, Nat..." " I'm in..." "I'm in trouble." " No no." "Not again." "My father left me this house so I wouldn't have to worry, and there is no way in hell I am going to let you ruin that." "I..." "I'm sorry, Nat..." "You..." "look, you're in trouble." "Don't start." "It wasn't supposed to be like this." "I know." "I've got a new life now." "Time to move on." "I'm..." "I'm sorry." "I'm sorry." "You're right, I'll take care of it." "I'll leave you alone." " I miss you, Nat." " Don't, Paul." "I wish..." " What?" " Just... take care of yourself." "Sherry?" "Honey?" "What the fuck?" "Sherry?" "This is..." "Yeah?" "Roger?" "Hey, it's Jason." "Ah, Jason." "Jason, you know, this really isn't a good time." "Why, what's wrong?" "Oh..." "You know, I don't know." "I may be in prison inside of a month, and... oh, yeah, my wife... she seems to have left me." "Whoa whoa." "Why?" "What happened?" "Hell, you know what?" "Let's ask Ed." "He seems to have his finger on the pulse of just about fucking everything." "God damn it." "I don't even know what to say." "Did she leave a note?" "Took the furniture." "Pretty big clue." "Oh, shit." "Yeah, man, shit." "You know, Ed was right." "Hmm, Ed was fucking right, you know?" "I should have seen this coming." "It was always about the money and the lack of it." "Fuck." "Oh, fuck." "She took the big screen!" "So what are you gonna do?" "I don't know, since this just happened about five fucking minutes ago," "I really have no idea." "Hey, maybe I'll burn the house down, since it usually comes in threes." "So, what good news do you have?" "Shit, man..." "I don't even want to bring it up now, but Ed wants us to come out to the cabin Friday after work." "You know, planning and all that stuff." "Of course he does." "Have to keep on a tight schedule." "Can you make it?" "Hold on." "Let me ask my wife." "Sherry honey?" "I have to go meet up with the guys on Friday to talk about this robbery we're planning to get back the money I lost trying to keep you from leaving me." "Okay?" "Yeah yeah, that shouldn't be a problem." "Hey hey." "Remember what I told you:" "This guy is a pro." "And if you have any second thoughts about getting out, now's the time to do it." "Because once you're in, you're in." "You can't get out of it like a job offer." "One more thing:" "the vig is" "I get 10% of your in." "'Course you do." "Thank you." "Here's Paul." "Come on." "I'm gonna take a walk outside." "You rolled Freddie Green, and all she did was break your little digit." "Man, are you lucky." "She must really like you, son." "What do you want?" "Vinnie said I could get in on a job with you." "What else he say?" "He didn't know all the details." "Do you want to know all the details?" "Yeah, I want to." "Pretty simple, actually." "If you want in, you're in." "If you want out, that's the door." "And if you fuck up, then I will kill you." "Now, are you in or out?" "I'm in." "I like that." "I like that." "You are in." "I like you." " You've got a shot." " Hi." "I'm Todd, I'm the wheel man." "Oh, sorry." "Let's start again." ""I'm Todd."" "I'm Todd." ""And I'm an asshole."" "And I'm an asshole." "And you will not speak again until you are told to speak." "And I will not speak again until I am told to speak." " "And this is because..."" " And this is because..." ""I don't come into a room whenever I want to and introduce myself to people as a wheel man or anything else."" "Is that what you do?" "You walk into a fucking casino and you say, "Yeah, wheel man on the end." "I fold at 16." "I'm not gonna go for 21." "I fold at 16." "I just wanted you to know that's what I do."" "You're a fucking asshole." "You know, this sucks." " Huh?" " I mean, Jesus Christ." "I mean, look at us." "We drove all the way up to a cabin to practice for a robbery, when we should be fucking playing golf, man." "Yeah, it's a little over our heads." "But, it is a way out, man." "Yeah." "Let's talk about that." "Doesn't it seem a little odd to you?" " What?" " Ed." "Look, he... he got us into this, and what?" "It takes him what, about a whole day to figure out a way out?" "Isn't that just a little too convenient?" "Huh?" "It's almost like he wanted this investment to go south." "Yeah, but why?" "I don't know." "Maybe to give himself permission to do something exactly like this." "Come on, Roger, don't you think you're reaching just a little bit?" "Maybe, but you got to admit, man, he's a little too much into that army shit." "It's like time stood still the day he was fucking discharged." "All right, I'll give you that." "But he's also the sharpest manager we've ever seen, man." "Maybe he just feels guilty." "For what?" "Huh?" "His wet dream come true?" "No, for dragging us into this thing." "I mean look, you got to remember, it was his idea and his inside info that went bust." "Look, all right, Stephen and I, we've been talking." "He's willing to go to his father if we're willing to turn ourselves in." "Turn ourselves in?" "Man, Ed will never go for that." "I'm not sure I would either." "I mean, we should at least think about it, considering the alternative plan." "How the fuck did I get into this?" "Shit." "We go in a little after 9:00 A. M..." "Shipment arrives at exactly 9:00." "South Africa ships its diamonds quarterly." "West Coast diamonds come in at one location, then all the dealers in the area show up to claim their allotments." "The first set of dealers arrive at 9:30 A.M. sharp." "That's why we have a small window of time before the rest of the dealers arrive, to divvy up the stones." "Should be worth about 15 mil." "Fuck me." "What about security?" "That's the beauty of it..." "only two security guys." "The thing of it is, nobody knows about this except the dealers, and the location changes each time." "Won't there be a lot of people around the area?" "It's the jewelry district on a Saturday." "Downtown L.A. is practically a ghost town on weekends." "So no customers?" "No customers." "Just the security guys and employees that work in the store." "It's as easy as it gets... couple of guys, one satchel to carry the goods." "We go in, hit 'em hard and fast... piece of cake." "We're in, we're out." "We're in the clear." "Thing of beauty." "How do you fence stolen diamonds?" "You don't." "You get your share when it's over and you're done." "How long will I have to wait for my money?" "You won't." "I'll pay it." "How do you even know that the diamonds will be there?" "Son... you ask a lot of fucking questions, I'll tell you that." "We got a man on the inside." "Speaking of the man on the inside..." "You're prompt like this on gameday, it's gonna be easier than I thought." "What the fuck is this?" "The doctor here is the reason we're all here." "She's our man on the inside." "She's the one that guarantees that the diamonds will be there, and for that she gets a cut." "Look, I know I'm up shit creek already, but I got to be honest with you." "This looks like a fucking joke." "Vinnie told me you'd done this before." "I'm sorry, but this doesn't look like the ideal team to pull off a big-time diamond robbery." "What makes you think I'm a joke?" "Answer me!" "Look..." "I don't have much experience with this." "And you said that she doesn't, and he doesn't look like he has much experience." "So, you know, if you're such a professional, why don't you just pull this job yourself?" "I would do it by myself if I happened to be lucky enough to have six God damn eyes." "But I don't." "How do you think this shit gets done?" "You don't do it alone." "It is not about the team." "It's about the fucking plan." "Now, if we all stick to the plan, it should be pretty God damn easy." "Why the hell are you here, anyway?" "It's none of your business." "In other words, son, she's got her fucking reasons, just like you do, and I've got that covered." "Yeah, right, of course, because you..." "you're the professional." "You know what that is?" "You know what it does?" "If there is any problem here... most decidedly, it will kill you." "Gene, Gene." "Calm down." "It's okay." "Okay, he's just never done this before." "Maybe he just needs to know why we're so sure we can do it." "Enlighten him." "Now." "I used to work at this place in med school." "All you need to worry about is that I know this place inside and out." "And I know all about this shipment." "They've been planning it for nearly four years now." "It's the goddamn Diamond Olympics we're talking about." "Now, let's get to work, okay?" "Just think of this as robbery camp." "Look, Ed..." "The truth is, this is up your alley, not mine." "I've never even held a gun." "Now you have." "I have no desire to learn how to use this thing." "And I have no desire to go to the joint for a decade." "But life's a bitch, so pay attention." "Put your left hand on the forestock, the grip." "Put your right hand on the trigger." "Easy." "Hold it away from you." "Steady." "Put it out from here." "Hold it tight." "Remember it's an automatic, so fire in short bursts." "And try to relax." "Jesus Christ." "Do you see?" "This is ridiculous." "I told you, I cannot do this." "We'll work on it." "Work on it?" "I don't want to work on it!" "There's got to be another way to get out of this." "I'm open to suggestions." "Look, if you're really going through with this, I'll help you plan it." "But there is no way I can go on the actual job." "Stephen, to tell the truth, I'd rather have a case of the Manila clap than have you on this job, but if I'm gonna get dirty, you're gonna get dirty." "I just think that we're getting in too deep." "Too deep?" "What about passing $5 million in phony paper?" "That fucking deep enough for you?" "We're first-time offenders." "Maybe... maybe we'll just get probation or something." "You gonad, don't you read the news?" "White-collar crime is about as popular as plane-jacking, and they ain't gonna send us to Club Fed." "They're gonna probably reopen Alcatraz just for us, and five minutes in a joint like that ain't worth it." "And you're such a cutie, Stevie, you probably won't last the night." "Yeah." "Well, maybe we're willing to take that chance, Ed." "Take the chance, huh?" "So, let me get this straight:" "world according to Stephen is, we turn ourselves in and face the music, right?" "Seems that way, Ed." "You fucking feather-merchants." "Don't you see what he's pulling here?" "Of course he can take that chance, because his family's gonna fix it for him." "What?" "Your dad's got a couple of judges in his pocket, Stephen?" "Well, that's just peachy, but come court time, folks, it's gonna be us three over here, looking over there at Stevie and Daddy, and a couple of congressmen and 15 or 20 lawyers." "If I wanted that, I wouldn't be here." "Right, Ed, you know?" "He would have rolled over on us by now." "He is gonna roll over on us, champ." "What are you talking about?" "You got into this for the thrill, Stephen." "You never thought you'd get hurt because you're Senator McKinley's son." "Ease up, Ed." "Joyboys like you never do an honest day's work." "Fat boys like you..." "senators' sons, you never serve your country." "You just hide behind your fat daddy and his fat bank books, right?" "Well, not on my time, punk!" " Jesus fucking..." " Fuck this." "Where you going, brother?" "What the fuck are you doing?" "How's this feel, rich boy?" "Daddy ain't here." "It's just you and me and 10 rounds." "Take it easy, Ed." "Fuck easy." "Ed, Ed, be cool, man." "All right, be cool." "He's just a little scared." "You know, we're all..." "we're all a little shaky right now, but you got it all planned out." "No one's gonna get hurt." "And Stephen..." "Stephen's gonna be right there for us." "Right there." "You're gonna be right there, aren't you, Stephen?" "Yeah yeah yeah." "I'll be right there." "See, we're..." "we're with you." "We're all with you." "I'll be God damned." "Well, I guess I better use the old facility." "You want something to eat?" "Yeah, get me a box of Jacks." "You know, the one with the toy in it." "A Coke... the 16-oz cup." "Pour some ice in it." "Why don't you get something for everybody?" "Okay." "Yeah, it's important that we keep our strength up for co-ed armed robbery." "Yeah, that's right." "Oh, does that mean you have done this before?" "'Cause I was thinking maybe we could buddy up." "You could show me the ropes..." "who to shoot, what to say," " all that stuff." " What is your problem?" "You have been giving me attitude ever since Tahoe." "I'm sorry, I didn't know lady-jewel-thief doctors were so sensitive." "What do you want to know?" "What?" "What, what's a nice girl like me doing, blah-blah-blah?" "Yeah, I want to know what a doctor is doing mixed up with a guy like Gene." "He was the wrong guy at the right time." "I don't see you asking Gene why he's doing it." "He's a scumbag thief." "I know why he's doing it." "I know why I'm doing this." "I..." "I don't think Todd would know if you told him." "Yeah, so what?" "Well, I'm here because I have to be here." "You're a doctor." "Why the hell are you here?" "You don't need it." "God." "Oh, you think you're the only one with problems?" "I have my reasons." "I know why I'm doing it." "Okay, and it's none of your business, anyway." "Look, I just want to come out of this alive..." " Fine." " and I want to get myself square." " Okay." " Okay?" "You went out of your way to set me up, and that tells me you might not want me to come out of this at all." "How could I possibly set you up?" "Ha, a little free medical care, a little sex." "You do the math." "How can you say that?" "I was just supposed to check you out." "What happened between us had nothing to do with the plan." "In that bathroom stall I was just in, a guy had written on the wall, carved with a knife, you know...?" ""I am 10 inches long, and 4 inches wide." "Are you interested?"" "And another guy answered him back, saying, "I'm fascinated." "How big is your cock?"" "We gotta roll." "Come on." "But it was interesting." "I went to fucking Princeton." "Calm down." "Ed's fucking losing it, huh?" "We're in some deep shit here." "Gone from fraud to armed robbery, to murder one." "What the fuck is planned for tomorrow?" "It's actually murder two, or manslaughter, since there was no intent." "Intent?" "Fuck you." "That's it." "I'm out." "Huh." "You're both fucking crazy." " Roger." " Fuck you." "Roger." "Have a water." "Have another one." "He doesn't have to stay, but he ain't leaving." "Ed, what the fuck, man?" "Just... just give me a minute with him." "Just give me a minute." "And I came bearing gifts." "Rog..." "Roger!" "What?" "Fuck you." "Leave me alone, man." "This is so fucked up, Jason." "We were supposed to be worth fucking millions by now, huh?" " I can't do this." " Calm down, man." "Think!" "Huh?" "What are you gonna do?" "Go back to your wife?" "Go back to work?" "Just go trade some fucking stocks and wait for the marshal to show up?" "Come on, man!" "We're in this... to the end." "I'm sorry about Stephen." "I am." "But the truth of the matter is, we're better off without him." "Ed killed him." " Sure a jury's gonna agree with that?" " Bullshit." ""Your Honor, I just had the gun in my hand, that's all." "And if Roger didn't come up and bump my arm, little old Stephen would still be alive today."" "Fuck you!" "Guys, I'm just trying to stay out of jail here, all right?" "Stephen's dead, and that's it." "He's gone." "You guys want to quit, you walk off this hill right into the joint." "Okay, don't you think that people... all right, his parents... are gonna realize that Stephen is gone?" "What the hell are we gonna do about that?" "Shit." "As far as I'm concerned, last time I saw Stephen was Thursday when he walked out of my office." "So we ditch his car..." "there's nothing to tie him to us." "Look, my boys, 9:00 A.M. tomorrow morning, my man's gonna be there." "So are those diamonds." "You want out?" "Fine." "You want in?" "Get your butts off this porch and help me finish this thing." "Fuck fuck." "No affairs of the heart tonight." "Fair enough?" "I want you to be tough, like me... no heart." "You will have absolutely no heart tomorrow." "You gotta be tough." " Promise me?" " Yeah." " Okay, kid." " You're right." "Okay?" "You're right, yeah." "Look, I'm sorry about what I said earlier." "You're right." "You got your own reasons for doing this and I got mine." "That's right." "It's not such a bad view of the city for such a shitty room." "You want to know the real reason why I didn't quit while I was ahead?" "It's none of your fucking business." "That's right." "Are you nervous about tomorrow?" "I'm terrified." "I hate this town." "Morning." " Exciting day." " You said it." "Over here." " Good morning." " How you doing?" "What's with all the suits?" "Some big dealer thing." "All you motherfuckers down on the floor." "Get down, you!" "Open your mouth!" " Get down." "...very gently." " Drop your gun!" " Gently, gently." " Get down, get down!" " On your knees, on the floor." " All the way down." " I want help." "The diamonds, where are they?" "I don't know what you're talking about." "You fuckin' liar, where are the diamonds?" "I don't know what you're talking about." "Where are the diamonds?" "You lie, you die." "Give me the fucking jewels." " I've got 'em." " Give me the fucking jewels." "Over here." " So you know where they are?" " Yeah." "That'd be very nice." "How's about you get 'em for me before I blow your fuckin' head off?" "Get 'em out!" "That's it." "Thattaboy." " You're early." " What?" "Shut the fuck up!" " Let's do it." " Let's bang a gong." "Fuck, Ed." "What was that, man?" "Holy shit." "Fuck, Ed." "It's about fucking time, Ed." "Hurry." "Hurry." "What the fuck?" "Drive." "Drive!" "Get down!" " Just keep driving." " What the hell's going on?" "Who are you people?" "What the fuck just happened?" "This way, hoss." "Alrighty." "Okay, right there!" "Everybody put your hands in the air!" "Put your hands up!" "Oh, fuck!" "Well, ain't this a real box of Mars Bars?" "Okay, Sasquatch, give me the rocks." "I said, give me the rocks!" " Now!" " Fuck you!" "Damn it." "Who the fuck are they?" "Do I remotely resemble a goddamn crystal ball?" "Shit!" "Get over by that door." "What?" "I said, get over by the door and we will get them in a crossfire." "Fuck you, Rambo." "I'm outta here." "Get up." "Ed, I'm fucking shot, man." "So am I. Get up." "Get up." "Ed, just give me a minute." "Pussy." "Son of a bitch." "Where'd Charlie go?" "What the fuck?" "Get the hell outta here!" "Whoa... now, hey." "Take it easy." "I mean, that's not what you're looking for." "Where are the diamonds?" "Give me your gun." "Give me your gun, God damn it!" "They want to flank us." "No, here, take these." "Cops, cops!" "There's cops!" "Shit!" "God damn it." "Shut up!" "Shut the fuck up!" "Charlie!" "This is LAPD!" "We have the building surrounded." "Shit." "Just one." "Throw out your weapons, release the hostages and come out with your hands up." "This is your final warning." "If you do not comply, we will storm the building." "About fucking time." "Hurry, hurry." " What the fuck?" " Drive!" "What the fuck is this?" "Oh, fuck!" " Ah!" " Shut up!" "Holy shit!" "Okay, what the fuck just happened?" "This is your last chance!" "Come out with your hands up!" "Semper fi, motherfuckers." "Shit." "Who the fuck are you people?" "What the hell just happened?" "What the fuck was that?" "Yeah, what was that, Charlie?" "Your private little thing's suddenly become extremely public knowledge." " Meaning?" " Meaning that you said that nobody'd know those diamonds were supposed... supposed to be there, but us." "I've seen people cover their asses in my life, but that was fucking ridiculous." "Oh-ho!" "Gene, you are clever." "No, you found me out." "Yeah yeah." "I knew you'd fuck up so I got those guys to hit the same place at the same time, and shoot at me just to make me look good!" "Excuse me, excuse me." "Shut the fuck up." "Who are you?" "Um, I'm uh... um..." "Gene, you're bleeding." "I know." "I took one, but I think it went all the way through." "I think I got lucky." "Pull over." "I got to take a look." "This car's not stopping until we can dump it." "What do you mean, dump the car?" "No, you're losing a lot of blood." "Every goddamn cop in the city knows this car by now." "Don't worry, kid." "We need a new wheel man." "Fuck this fuckin' economy." "Can you believe it?" "You gotta stand in line to pull a job now." "How pathetic is that?" "What are we gonna do now?" "Turn ourselves in." "How's about we do that?" "No, I mean, where are we gonna go?" "Every cop in L.A. is gonna be after us now." "Everything's the same, except I'm bleeding... to hell all over myself, and we picked up... this rather pathetic person." " I'm Rog." " Everything's the same." "I'm still the same." "I'd say the plan just went to shit, Gene." "Where'd Charlie go?" "Shut up." "Where are the diamonds?" "Charlie?" "What are you doing here?" "Over there, on your knees." "Charlie, I don't understand." "Where you been?" "Where..." "Get over there and get down on your knees." "Oh..." "Oh, Charlie..." "Charlie, I..." "I don't understand." "What?" "There was no robbery last year." "What?" "Max..." "I was there that day." "Yeah." "Charlie, I never meant for him to get involved." "Shut up." "Charlie, I swear, I never meant for him to get hurt." " I never meant for him to get hurt!" " Shut up!" " Shut the fuck up, shut the fuck up!" " I always loved him, Charlie." "Yeah, fucking right, you did!" "I see how you loved him!" "They didn't want Dad." "They came after you because you owed them money." "Please, Charlie." "Please." "Fuck fuck..." "I'm sorry." "I watched my father die." "And it should have been you." "It should have been you." "Fucking shoot me, then." "Shoot me." "Charlie!" "Shit." "Come on." "We're gonna try out back." "Don't forget those." "Come on, go on!" "It's no big deal!" "Come on!" "The plan has not gone to shit, Charles." "We've got our diamonds, the bad guy is dead, and now it's caused friction." " I didn't want him dead." " It sure looked like you did." "Who was that guy?" "What the fuck was going on back there?" "Maybe it's time that... the doctor here comes clean." "Shut up, Gene." "Did you know that... we just ripped off" "Daddy's little jewelry store?" "Would someone mind telling me what the fuck you two are talking about?" "That man was my father's partner." "He got himself in some trouble, and my father was killed." "Any other questions?" "Was... was I in line for a murder rap all along?" "Excuse me." "Somebody mind telling me where the fuck we are going?" "Ever heard... of the Salton Sea?" "The Salton Sea?" "Gene, that's over 100 miles from here." "Even I can tell you're not gonna make it like that." "He's right." "I got..." "we gotta pull over." "I have to close you up." "This car will not stop... until I am out of L.A. County." "You got that?" "How's it look?" "Not good." "Look, uh, I know that this is an inopportune time, but I..." "I have to ask him." " What about me?" " What about you?" "Well, you know, I have been of some help to you guys, right?" "I'd like to know now if I'm cut in on this thing or if the big guy there is just gonna put a bullet in my head once we get to the "Salty Sea,"" "or wherever the hell it is that we're going, because if that's the case, hey, I'd soon as hell just leave right now." "Okay, could you please just be quiet?" "I mean, I realize that you guys wouldn't want to take a smaller cut than you're intended, which is why I would consider a smaller share than the rest of you." "I mean, hey, I'm willing to see this thing through." "I really... really don't have many options." "Oh, please..." "But I do think that we should come up with a percentage now," " before..." " Jesus." "I mean, that way I'll know exactly what I'm getting paid for..." "Okay, you know, who asked you to talk?" "I mean, who are you, anyway?" " I'm..." "I'm Rog..." " Please, just shut the fuck up!" "Hey, Jesus, Charlie, take it easy." "The guy's life just went to shit today with the rest of us, so let's..." "let's just take it easy and work this thing out." "Yeah, take it easy." "Hey, shut the fuck up." "So, what the fuck are we gonna do?" "'Cause this thing is a lot sloppier than we planned." "Sloppy?" "I thought this was all part of your grand plan." " Fuck you!" " All right, listen." "Just slow down." "All right, look, I've seen the shit hit the fan myself in the last couple of days." "No point in arguing now." "Okay, fine." "What are we gonna do about him?" "He's a loose cannon." "Yeah, you know how to hear that." "I knew one myself till this morning." "If I had to do it again," "I would have just dropped him off and left him there." "That might not be a bad idea." " What?" " What?" "He's not gonna make it anyway." "What, you want to just leave him here?" "It's gonna be hard to move the body and not get caught." "What are you saying?" "Okay, are you the doctor here?" "No." "He's practically dead, so either here or sometime in the car, we're gonna get rid of the body." " We can't do that." " Why not?" " 'Cause he's a person." " You do not know him." "If that was you laying there instead of him, we would not be having this conversation." "He would leave you face down in a ditch a long time ago." "One way or another," "this dame... just plain gets it." "Jesus." "Jesus Christ." "What did you do?" "You killed him." "You fucking shot him!" "Okay, who the hell are you people?" "You... bitch!" "He was gonna kill us." "Bullshit, how?" "By bleeding on us?" "What was she supposed to do?" "You ever hear of a hospital?" "Oh, yeah." "We just pulled an armed robbery." "We got a gunshot victim here, huh?" "What... what hospital do you suggest we go to?" "No no no." "You know what?" "You're right." "Let's just shoot him." "Why the fuck didn't I think of that, huh?" "Can I shoot him some, too?" "Give me a gun, any gun." "Hey, how about that one?" "I wanna get in on the action." "You know, he might not be quite dead." "Look, I think I just saw him move." "Please!" "Let me shoot him!" "Motherfucker!" "Shoot him." "Shoot him, Paul." "Shoot him, Paul." "Come on..." "it can be just you and me." "Shoot him." "We can start fresh, have new lives." "Shoot him." "Kill him, God damn it!" "I..." "I can't." "I can't." "Oh!" "Fucking figures." "No wonder you wife left you." "Have you ever done anything right in your entire pathetic little life?" "Have you ever had any fucking balls?" "Charlie." "That was giving me a headache." "Yeah, me, too." "She sure has a set of pipes on her, huh?" "Yeah, dead ones." "Vinnie?" "What..." "What are you...?" "Why?" "What?" "Why'd I do her?" "I know her." "The bitch can shoot." "What are you doing here?" "Do you think Freddie's gonna send an amateur gambling junkie to do a $15 million heist without any insurance?" "You think she wanted your old lady's house." "She wants her goddamn diamonds." "Freddie." "Hey." "Do you know this guy?" "You think Gene was here on his own?" "He's been Freddie's boy for years and years." "All this was Freddie." "You know him?" " You set me up?" " "You set me up?"" "I'm your Mother fucking Teresa." "You're clear for Freddie now." " And who the fuck are you?" " I'm uh..." "Do you know Freddie, too?" "I can't believe you two guys are still living." "I can't figure that out." "Who the fuck is Freddie?" "Get over there 10 steps." "Take 10 steps now." "Go." "Now go." "Washed-up-white-trash motherfucker." "I'll tell you: next time you pick a better crew, you understand me?" " You understand?" " Yeah." "I wish I had me a piece of the action there." "I tell you right now, that's sad." "She was a hell of a doctor." "I remember when she pulled that bullet out of me." "She didn't ask any questions." "Yeah, even though it was a fucked-up job, it would still be good to have a piece of ass to remember this by." "I'm sure she was worth it." "Huh, Paul?" "You know, Bennie," "I think Paulie had a little thing for Dr. B." "That's okay, Paul." "I know she loved you very deeply." "Like I told you, kid, true loser right there." "Time to settle up some loose ends." "Pretty boy, you're up first." "Vinnie." "See that?" "Paul's pointing a gun at me." "Paul?" "You're not gonna shoot me." "You don't got the nuts." "Damn it." "Son of a bitch!" "Thanks." "Don't mention it." "Could you hold this?" "God." "I hate margaritas." "Margaritas?" "Huh?" "Probably get a good price for these down in Mexico." "Mex..." "Mexico?" "Probably..." "live on Easy Street." "Maybe not that easy." "Boy, you can say that again." "I'm Paul." "Roger." "Nice to meet you, Roger." "Yeah, you too."