The rusted fire escape groaned under Dex's feet as he climbed. He tried not to look down at the dark alley four stories below. Heights had never been his thing. When he reached the landing, he slid open the window and climbed inside the musty apartment.
"I don't tolerate unpunctuality," a gravelly voice issued from the shadows.
Dex turned to see Vlad, the Russian mob boss, sitting in a worn leather armchair. Vlad's frigid sapphire eyes were like dagger's stabbing into Dex, slicing through his composure.
"Sorry, I got held up," Dex mumbled, glancing around the dim apartment. He noted the peeling floral wallpaper and threadbare carpet that had seen better days. "So what's the job?"
Vlad leaned forward into a shaft of light coming through the curtains. His face was creased with scars and his meaty hands were covered in prison tattoos.
"There's a certain...item I need retrieved. You'll find it at 555 Maple Street, apartment 4D. My sources tell me the occupant won't be home tonight."
Dex raised an eyebrow. "And what exactly is this 'item'?"
"The details are classified," Vlad spat. "Just infiltrate, snatch the package, and disappear. And don't even fantasize about glimpsing what you're collecting."
He tossed a ring of keys at Dex, who fumbled and nearly dropped them.
"Sorry, I'm just a little nervous," Dex said. "Jobs of this nature are new territory for me," he confessed, anxious about his inexperience.
Vlad's eyes pinched. "To be welcomed into the fold, exhibit your capability. Pull this off cleanly, and work will expand. Bungle it... He slashed a finger before his throat with ominous portent.
Dex gulped. When he had agreed to do a job for the Russian mob, he thought it would just be petty theft or something minor. But breaking and entering? This was way above his pay grade. Still, It was too late to back out now.
"I got this handled," he boasted, projecting a boldness that belied his rattled nerves.
Vlad nodded. "See that you don't. Now go."
Dex slipped back out the window and onto the fire escape. As he climbed down, all he could think about was how he wished he'd never gone to that underground poker game where he'd gotten in deep with Vlad's crew. This was not how he imagined his life going at all.
The drive to the apartment building on Maple Street took fifteen tense minutes. Dex parked a block away and walked the rest of the way, keys jangling in his sweaty palm. The neighborhood was eerily quiet for a Friday night.
He let himself in through the front door using the buzzer key and took the stairs up to the fourth floor. At apartment 4D he sorted through the keys with shaky hands until he found the right one. The lock clicked open easily. Too easily. Dex hesitated. Could he really just turn and leave at this point? No, Dex knew abandoning the job was not an option, not with Vlad's threats still ringing in his ears.
Taking a deep breath, Dex entered and shut the door behind him. The humble yet cozy apartment, decorated with plants and family pictures, amplified his guilt. What kind of person was he robbing blind?
Just get it and get out, he told himself, slinking through the dark rooms with his phone flashlight until he reached the bedroom. He swept the light over the top of the dresser, looking for some kind of box or package. Nothing. He checked the nightstands and under the bed. Still nothing.
Starting to panic, Dex hurried to the kitchen. A quick search revealed no secrets, only dirty dishes in the sink. He was about to give up hope when his light flashed over a door he hadn't noticed before. Holding his breath, Dex approached and turned the handle.
The door swung open to reveal...a nursery? Illuminated by flashlight were a crib, changing table, and rocking chair. Stuffed animals lined the shelves on the walls. Step by step, the import of it all seeped through, illuminating his realization. Vlad had sent him to rob a baby's room.
Dex's heart hammered. How could he go through with this? He imagined the fear and heartbreak these parents would feel returning home to find their baby's things stolen. They might never feel safe here again.
Before he could think twice, Dex pulled the door shut and re-locked it. Then he left the apartment as quickly as he could , vowing to never speak to Vlad again. The Russian mob boss thought Dex was just a junkie who would do anything for his next fix. But Dex still had some shred of decency left in him. And no payoff was worth destroying an innocent family.
There would be consequences, No doubt. But as Dex walked away into the night for the first time in a long while, he felt something that had evaded him for too long. Hope.