Jesse James (gotawaywithit) wrote in forgotten_gods, @ 2010-08-06 21:56:00 |
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Entry tags: | jesse james, john dillinger |
Who: Jesse James and John Dillinger
What: Besties get back together!
When: Friday, late morning
Where: The offices of Sparks and Klein
Warnings: N/A
If there was one thing Jesse couldn’t abide by, it was being greeted with phone calls and messages first thing when he entered the office. Being forced to walk through the hustle and bustle of the city and then the flurry of activity that were his offices was more than enough noise and commotion after his morning commute, thank you. His mood for the entirety of the day suffered if he had to do anything before having twenty minutes to himself and a large cup of coffee. It was doubly true now, what with four children back at home who –unlike normal children—always seemed to be wide awake when he left for work at seven in the morning. Was that honestly normal? Had he been granted his usual twenty minutes to himself that morning, Jesse might have taken the time to contemplate the question. But there were phone messages. Seven of them.
Sitting behind his desk, he listened to each one of them and felt his mood descend each time he pressed the ‘next’ button on the handset. Maybe it was his own fault for taking so much time away from the office in the summers, but he had an incredibly capable staff to handle the little issues that arose. However, after listening to the problems and tones the messages addressed, it was little surprise that no one had been able to come up with a solution during his absence from work, and since he’d threatened them each with death if they’d dared to bother him on his days off with his family they hadn’t called him at home.
It wasn’t but fifteen minutes before Jesse stood up again and slipped his suit jacket back over his shoulders. He took only his wallet and phone, fully intending on returning to the office before the day was out so that he could actually call back those who’d left the annoyed messages with him. The meeting he intended to go and have now wouldn’t take particularly long.
Well, unless it turned into lunch. And it was quite possible that lunch would turn into a cigar and a drink. A cigar and a drink could turn into dinner at Club Macanudo. Which could turn into an entire evening at Macanudo, because –of course—after Jesse laid into his old friend, Johnnie, for stealing from banks with his security systems installed, they were going to have to catch up.
At least he thought it was John. “One of the suspects jumped over the teller window,” one of the phone messages had said. How many times had Jesse watched John pull that same stunt during that one year of mayhem. He’d always rolled his eyes; his ides of showmanship had been different, aimed more towards generating publicity in the local papers through interviews, not flashy moves. Being known as ‘The Jackrabbit’ was all well and good until you fell on your ass during a robbery while taking stupid risks, Jesse had always said. There was every possibility that it was a copycat, someone who’d seen the movie about his old friend from the summer before and decided that emulating his distinctive style was a brilliant idea. But Jesse’s ego wouldn’t let him believe that it was a coincidence.
Four banks, one train, and two government buildings had been robbed in the tristate area—all equipped with Woodson Security systems. Someone was obviously trying to get his attention. And now that he thought about it, was there a bit of a pull in the back of his mind? Had he been too distracted at home to recognize the feeling? John Dillinger was in New York City. Jesse knew it instinctively.
He took a cab to Sparks and Klein. The law firm was over fifty years old at this point, and Jesse hadn’t been by in almost as long. As a habit, he made it a point to stay away from lawyers and buildings of law (his brother excluded). But John was a friend—well, would be again, once they’d established what a bad idea it was to play around with his security systems.
In the lobby, he waited, figuring it would make a better impression after all these years rather than pushing his way in. Besides, if he and John were anywhere near as close as they’d once been, then the other man would know, even without hearing the news from a clerk.