After these messages, we'll be back with the story…
Raya: I think they'll probably sweep all the awards at this year's "Criminals' Anonymous" Awards Show, taped on location at Riker's Island.
chyp: Thanx, as usual. I don't know where I came up with that whole double vision thing…it just kinda happened.
Quillsandbolts: It's never too late to write a story. Hell, it took me years to get off my ass.
Wesley took a sharp breath when he saw James appear again. Luckily, he was alone in the back room. The door was open, though, so he might be heard if he was too loud. He motioned with his head towards the door, silently warning his brother.
"What are you doing here?" he whispered.
"We got the bomb," James answered quietly. "We're gonna get you out of here. What was that explosion?"
"What?" Wesley asked. "I didn't hear anything. You crazy?"
"Never mind," James said, shaking his head. "Are you okay?"
"Hell no!" Wesley whispered. "These people are retarded! They're taking me to Fort Knox tomorrow to rob it! They want me to freeze the whole place! Get me out of here now!"
"Calm down," James said. "Hang tight. Oh my God! Matt! What the hell is…"
"What the hell is going on here?" Rich asked angrily. He had heard voices and walked in to investigate. He saw James talking to Wesley, but James disappeared at that moment. He ran to Wesley and grabbed him by the neck, lifting him up.
"Nothing," Wesley replied innocently. He could clearly see the anger in Rich's face. "I was…bored?"
"Bullshit!" Rich yelled. He pulled out a gun from his pocket and shoved it into Wesley's temple. "You better start talking now or else I swear to God I'll blow your brains out right here."
Wesley remained quiet; part of him was defiant to talk any more, but most of him was scared to death. His fear had him paralyzed and unable to speak. Rich, in a fit of pure rage, threw him as hard as he could across the room. Wesley slammed into the wall on the opposite side of the room, some twenty feet away. He slumped to the ground, stunned. He saw Rich take aim and shut his eyes tightly, expecting a piercing pain at any moment. He shuddered as he heard the gunshot and went limp, thinking that he had been hit. Death wasn't as painful as he had thought.
"Stop with the drama, kid," Mike said, pulling Wesley up from the ground. Wesley opened his eyes and saw that Bryan had grabbed Rich's arm from behind.
"What are you doing?" Bryan asked Rich. "What about Knox?"
"There was somebody else here," Rich said. "He disappeared when I walked in. This kid is trying to pull something. He's trying to trick us!"
"No, I'm not," Wesley lied, hiding his fear. "I don't even know what you're talking about. Y'all, he just doesn't like me and needed any excuse to hit me. His leash must've snapped or something."
"Don't tempt him," Bryan said.
"You're not that funny, kid," Mike said, pushing Wesley back onto the ground and turning to Bryan and Rich. "He knows better than to trick us. Besides, after we hit Knox tomorrow we can get rid of him then. For now, just leave him alone."
"Fine," Rich said, putting his gun away, "but if anything else happens…"
"How was I supposed to know this would happen?" Matthew asked.
"You screwed up my conversation with Wes," James scolded. "One of them saw me there."
"Sorry!" Matthew said. "I never know who you're talking to, anyway."
The explosion that James had heard earlier had occurred in Matthew's room. Both Wesley's and Matthew's closets had flown open as miscellaneous shirts and pants spilled out of them. Their desks had cracked from all the pencils and pens that had erupted from them. Across the hall, the same thing was happening in James' room. James ran back to his room to see if he was having the same problem, but as he opened his door, a mountain of socks came tumbling down on him, engulfing him completely.
"Ooh," Matthew said, peeking his head out of his door, "that's not good."
"Damn right," James said, digging himself out. "I'll deal with you later. Let's go. We have more important things to do. Get your keys. My truck is still in the shop."
"Um," Matthew said meekly, "there's another problem. I can't…find…my keys."
"What?" James asked. "How can you not find your keys if everything we've ever lost is popping up?"
"There's a huge pile of keys in here," Matthew explained. "This is gonna take a while."
Well you better get your ass together then, Matt! There is no time whatsoever to be makin' such stupid mistakes as you are. Coming up: Is Mike taking a shine to Wesley? Enough to let him go? Will Jimmy and Matt make it to wherever in time?