The Black Book Heist

It all started about three weeks ago. I was taking care of my sick father, since the covid-19 hit, I decided to take care of him. He did not have Covid. However, he was sick with cancer. It was hard seeing him like this with his face sunken in, dark circles under his eyes, his wrinkles in his weak smile, his beard that grew in because he did not have the will to shave it. He used to be a real hero; he used to have muscles that once saved my brother from being squished by a car. Anyways, we were out on one of his walks, he moved at a slow pace, and I had a hard time slowing down to his tempo; I could hear him wheezing behind me as we walked along the paved path in the park. We stopped by our usual bench, dedicated to Susan Martin, great friend, mother, sister, and humanitarian.

"I don't remember being this tired," he said in an uneven voice.

"We should take a longer break this time," I suggested.

"Sure. Sure," he rasped.

I tucked my legs under the bench when I felt my foot kick something.

"What's that?" asked my father.

"I don't know," I looked down and saw a black Moleskine notebook; my ex-girlfriend used to have one...no, I think I bought one for her birthday. It was 26 dollars for a notebook. Someone who left it must have had a lot of money. To leave a 26 dollar notebook lying around would be a stupid thing to do. Maybe they left it here by accident. I picked it up, and it was strangely light-weight for the amount of paper in it.

"Maybe, there's a name inside it?" suggested my father. I opened it, and there was not a name. Instead, there was a note:

You know you need the money. 12 pm Benny's. Sunday, April 3rd.

That's what the strange part was, I certainly did need the money and fast. I looked over at my father.

"Well, what's it say?" he asked impatiently as he clicked his jaw.

"Yeah, it belongs to someone that works at Benny's. I can drop it off after church," I told him. It was a lie, but it could save the man's life.

"Alright, take the black notebook, and let's get back home. I am so tired," he said, and he straightened his cane, and I got up from the bench with the black notebook underneath my arm and helped my father off the bench. We walked home, and I made lunch for both of us.

It was finally Sunday. I would find out. I did not know who to look for...I drove my dad to church, and I impatiently tapped my foot as the sermon went a little over time. I hurried him back to the car and the house.

"What do ya got a hot date that you are rushing me? Let me live a little," he said, and I helped him get home and to bed. I drove to Benny's, frantically ignoring the red stop sign. No cops this time. I smiled to myself. I found a parking spot, and I grabbed the notebook and walked in. The hostess smiled at me.

"Are you waiting for someone?" she asked in a polite voice.

"I-

"Are you here for the Black Notebook club," she said, and she motioned towards the black notebook.

"Yes..." I said slowly. She led me to the restaurant's very back, where four others were sitting and waiting who also held black Moleskine notebooks.

"What is this?" I asked as I sat down beside a red-headed girl with a nose piercing and a shoulder tattoo of a bouquet of roses.

"That's what we are trying to guess," said a dark-skinned man with a beard.

"Did we all get these notebooks with the same message?" asked a young blonde man with rectangular glasses and a crooked smile.

"You mean about the money?" asked the Asian girl, who I did not notice at first because she was so small, and the small girl was shoved in the corner of the booth.

Finally, the group was greeted by a man with round sunglasses; he was tall and wore a sweeping coat that hung below his knees, nearly reaching the ground.

"Hello, you will all address me as Black Master; if you are willing to steal and have the potential of being thrown into jail, you can stay if you do not, please leave now," he said, and not one of us moved. "As I thought, you all need the money," he said, and he sat down next to me, I moved down, and everyone else did as well. "Great. You guys feel like robbing a bank?" he asked, and he removed his sunglasses.

"I work at a bank," said the small Asian girl.

"Exactly, you have all been chosen because you are an asset to this operation. You have been chosen because you all need the money," he said.

"So, if you desire to have this money, here is the plan...Ms. Ying you work on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. We will do this on a Wednesday because they change the passwords right after 1:00 pm, and I believe you are next for changing the passwords. Next, we've got Mr. Sanders," and he motioned towards the skinny blonde with glasses; you will hack into their system, notifying everyone of a lockdown. During the lockdown, Ms. Ying will let Mr. Sledger in" this time he motioned towards me. Black Master had given me an alias without even thinking twice. So, everyone had a fake name. Not just me. "You will immediately put everyone to sleep" then Mr. Smokes will get the smoke started, and during that time, Mr. Sanders will break into the vault, and Ms. Spike will go in and out and meet me at the van." He said, and I looked at everyone's faces, and they all nodded as if this plan was foolproof.

I needed the money. I needed it bad.

"Wednesday at 9:00 am, don't be late," he said, and he got up, slid his sunglasses on, and left.

We all sat there with our jaws hanging open. The plan had so many flaws...but I really need the money. I could tell everyone else was thinking the same thing. Either way, we all got up and left the diner.

Wednesday came, and I waited outside the bank just around the corner. The wind was hitting my face, I checked my watch, and my eyes watered from the wind. Then, everyone else showed up; the man with the sunglasses came a little bit later.

"Thank you for showing up," he said, and he reached into his pocket and pulled out five envelopes. "Here you go," he said, and he passed out the envelopes. "Have a great life!" he said cheerfully. We all looked confused. I opened the envelope, and there was a cheque. I pulled it out and looked at it through the light. It was real.

"Wait! What about the plan?" asked the red-headed girl.

"Haha, that plan? that was a joke; I know you all need the money. My name is Arnold, I work with Bill Gates, and I know that each of you has something hard in life to deal with; he set up a fund for the money," he said, laughing in between his words.

"So we don't need to rob anything?" asked the man that Arnold had labeled as Mr. Sanders.

"No," He said, and with that, I left to go tell my dad. I home rushed, nearly forgetting the red lights. I parked the car and went into my house.

"Dad?" I called; he must be still asleep...

"Dad?" I called out even louder this time. I rushed into his bedroom, and he was still asleep.

"Dad!" I shook him, and his body felt stiff and heavy as I shook his body.

"Dad!" I called out, and he was unresponsive...oh no...he was dead. I checked his pulse...nothing came about. He can't be dead! He could not be! I heard him snoring just this morning. I pulled out my phone, and my hands were shaking uncontrollably. I dialed 911, and the ambulance came.

"I don't know! I don't know. He's not breathing, and he's not doing anything. He's stiff." I dropped my phone and felt dizzy. I could see the room spinning, and everything went black.

When I woke up, a man's face was near mine. As my vision came into focus, I realized it was a doctor.

"Mr. Jameson, you are in the hospital. You've had a fall, and we had to give you stitches. You have twenty of them on your forehead," he said slowly.

"What about my father?" I asked groggily.

"He passed away," he told me. It was true he was gone. My father was gone. He fought cancer and lost. I wasted my time with that stupid black notebook. That stupid little black notebook.

Five years later, I set up a foundation under his name. Now, with that money, instead of saving his life as I planned. I am saving plenty of other lives. Thanks to Arnold. The mystery man that changed my life with a small black notebook.