Turnabout

[NoAzMale]

Turnabout
by J. B. Tilton
email: aramath@isot.com
Rating: K

* * *

Underworld crime boss Joseph Burrows is offered a deal the he can't refuse by a young man. Little does he realize what that deal is going to cost him.

* * *

The man sat facing the large picture window as he puffed on a five dollar cigar. His back to the large oak desk, he stared out over the large manicured yard.

He had a good life. Thousand dollar suits. A brand new car every year. A personal bank account that was in the six figure range. People who would do whatever he ordered without question or hesitation. And best of all, no police authority had ever been able to prove him guilty of any criminal activity. Yes, he had a very good life.

"Bang. You're dead."

The voice practically startled the life out of him. He swung the chair around. Standing in front of the desk was a young man in his mid-20s. He was wearing blue jeans and a T-shirt. He had his arms folded across his chest.

"Who the hell are you?" asked the man behind the desk. "What are you doing here? How did you get in here?" He reached for his intercom.

"Go ahead, Mr. Burrows, call your goons. But you'll be missing out on one of the greatest opportunities in your life."

Joseph Burrows recoiled his hand from the intercom button. He was intrigued by this young man. He apparently had no fear of Burrows. He knew Burrows's name so he must also be aware of who Burrows was; and what Burrows could do to him. He had walked in, possibly placing his life on the line, and this intrigued Burrows.

"All right, young man. You've piqued my curiosity. Now if you'd be so good as to explain yourself. Just who are you, how did you get in here, and what do you want?"

"My name is unimportant. For the time being you can call me Steve. How I got in here is also unimportant. It's just important that I did. As for what I want: I can be an invaluable aid to you."

"Is that so? And how is that?"

"Just this," answered Steve. "I could have killed you just now. Instead, I came to make you a proposition."

"A proposition?" questioned Burrows.

Steve reached into a small box on the desk. Taking out a cigarette, he lit it, then sat down in a comfortable chair. He stared at Burrows as if he hadn't a care in the world.

"By all means, make yourself comfortable," said Burrows. "So, what's this proposition of yours?"

"This," said Steve. "You're going to put me on your staff, so to speak. I'll be a sort of trouble shooter for you. I'll eliminate problems for you; very special problems."

Burrows laughed. Is that all this fellow wanted? A job?

"Why should I? I have hundreds of people to do the jobs I want done. What can you do for me that they can't?"

"Oh, I'm not talking about just any jobs. I'm talking about impossible jobs. Jobs that you want done but, for one reason or another, can't get done."

"And you can deliver, I suppose?"

"Exactly."

"And how do I know you can do what you claim?"

"I'm here, aren't I? Walked right in pretty as you please through all of your state of the art security systems. My being here should be proof enough that I can do what I claim. But to be fair, I can understand your skepticism. So, as proof of my claim, I'll perform a little test for you. If I'm successful, you put me on the payroll."

"And just what kind of 'test' did you have in mind?"

"Peter Majors."

Burrows suddenly became intensely interested in this young man. Majors was a rival crime lord. The two had been harassing each other for years. Lately, Majors had been moving in on his territory. He had wanted to get rid of Majors but hadn't been able to get anyone close enough to do the job.

"Here's the deal," continued Steve. "I make sure that Majors is taken care of. Permanently. What's more, his primary lieutenant, Jeffery Storm, will be the one who takes care of him. In full view of plenty of witnesses. Majors will be eliminated, and there will be no question of who 'does' him.

"If I pull this off, you put me on the payroll. I get only the jobs that no one else can do. You pay me $50,000.00 per job. I get final say so as to whether or not I do the job. And I have total control over where, how, and when the job is done."

"And if you don't take out Majors?"

"I disappear. You never hear from me again."

Burrows sat thinking for a moment. He was definitely interested. If this guy could deliver, he could be invaluable.

"What about me? Would there be any connection to me?"

"Absolutely none. In fact, no job I do will be traceable to you. Guaranteed."

"Okay," said Burrows. "You pull this off, and you have a job. But I warn you. I do not tolerate deception. Fail me, and no one will ever find your body."

Steve smiled, stood up, and walked out of the office.

Three days later, Peter Majors was sitting in his office. He was making plans for additional movement into Burrows's territory. He had four of his men in the office giving them instructions. Suddenly, the door opened. Jeffery Storm walked into the room. Storm had been with Majors for over ten years and was his most trusted man.

The other men glanced up at Storm and turned back to Majors. They were used to Storm. He had access to any area of Majors's businesses and he often came in late to meetings. Major's smiled at Storm then returned to the papers on his desk.

Storm walked up to Majors's desk. Without warning, he pulled a pistol from his jacket. He pointed it at Majors and put three slugs in the man's chest. Majors slumped over his desk; dead.

The other four men sat stunned. One reached into his jacket. Storm turned and placed three rounds into him, killing the man instantly. Storm then removed another pistol from his jacket. He tossed the first pistol on the desk and, holding the second pistol on the remaining three men, backed out of the room.

The next morning the papers carried the story of the cold blooded assassination of Peter Majors. Jeffery Storm had been arrested in a coffee shop less than an hour after the murder. Although he denied the entire incident, there were three witnesses and his finger prints were found on the weapon. In addition, Majors had video cameras throughout his estate. The entire incident was captured on video tape.

Steve again appeared in Burrows's office unannounced.

"Well, Mr. Burrows? Convinced?"

"Very nicely done, I must say. Tell me, how were you able to arrange it? I mean, you even had his fingerprints on the gun. All very nice."

"My methods are a trade secret, you might say. How I accomplish my jobs are not a matter for your concern. All you need to concern yourself with are the results. So, do we have an arrangement?"

"Absolutely. If you can deliver this effectively each time, I can make good use of you. How can I contact you when I need you?"

"That's easy. All you have to do is place an ad in the morning paper. Have it read, 'Father wishes meeting with favorite son.' Have it signed, 'S.L.' I'll get the message and be here that afternoon."

Steve then turned and left the office.

For the next six months, Steve performed several jobs for Burrows. And good to his word, the victims were usually assassinated by close subordinates or friends. They were always killed in the presence of many witnesses and their fingerprints were always found on the murder weapons.

Burrows tried to discover Steve's true identity. But he was thwarted at every turn. He even tried to have Steve's fingerprints traced. They weren't on file with anyone. His first lieutenant, Karl Johnson, called in several favors. But no one seemed to know who this young man was. It was as if he had simply appeared one day out of thin air.

And what bothered Burrows even more was the fact that no one ever saw Steve enter or leave the estate. He simply appeared in Burrows's office when he was sent for. Once, Johnson attempted to follow Steve when he left the estate. Steve left Burrows's office as usual. He moved silently down a corridor and disappeared through the kitchen door. Johnson quickly followed, but when he entered the kitchen, it was empty.

There was only one other exit from the kitchen. It led to a door which opened onto a back porch. Johnson hurried through the door feeling confident that Steve would be close ahead. All that greeted him was an elderly woman who was busy polishing some silver.

"Did a young man in jeans and a T-shirt just come through here?" he demanded of the old woman.

"No, señor," replied the woman with a thick Puerto Rican accent.

Johnson stared at the woman. She had worked at the estate for more than seventeen years. She knew better than to lie to him. Johnson moved out the back door. Directly across the backyard were three of his security men. If anyone had come out that door, they would have seen him.

"How long have you men been there?" demanded Johnson.

"About ten minutes or so, Mr. Johnson," replied one of the men.

"Anyone leave by this door within the last two or three minutes?"

"No sir. No one's come out that door while we we've been here."

Johnson was furious. Steve had apparently disappeared into thin air. He stormed back into the house past the woman polishing the silver. The old woman watched him disappear into the living room then she moved out the back door and disappeared into the woods beyond.

One afternoon Burrows was sitting in his office going over the books of his "businesses" for the last week. The door to the office suddenly opened and Karl Johnson walked in.

"Mr. Burrows, we need to talk." He closed the door and locked it.

Burrows looked up with a perplexed expression on his face.

"Karl, why so formal?"

Karl simply walked over and sat down in one of the chairs in
front of Burrows's desk.

"I'm afraid Mr. Johnson is temporarily indisposed at the moment. But we do have to talk."

Suddenly Johnson began to glow. The glow became a human shaped light. When it had subsided, Steve was sitting where Johnson had been. Burrows reached down and picked up the receiver on his phone and started to push one of the buttons. Steve reached down and pulled the telephone cable from the wall.

"Sorry, Joe, but we can't be disturbed right now. We have some business to finish."

Burrows reached into an open desk drawer and removed a small pistol. He leveled it at the young man.

"Sorry," said Steve, holding up a magazine clip. Burrows turned the pistol upside down noticing the empty chamber where the clip should have been. He dropped the pistol onto the desk.

"Well, Steve, it seems that you have my undivided attention. Now, what is this business you say we have to discuss? I didn't send for you. I don't have any jobs right now."

Steve just sat staring at Burrows.

"That's not the business I'm talking about," he said. "I mean the real reason I came here in the first place."

Burrows looked at him. He didn't know what to make of this punk kid. He had been perfectly reliable for the past six months. And now, suddenly, he was in here raving like a madman.

"Let me tell you a story," began Steve. "About twenty years ago there was a man who ran a store on the lower east side. It wasn't much, but it was enough to keep the man, his wife, and their five year old son living comfortably.

"One day, another man came into that store. He said he was selling insurance. Only it was the type of insurance the police frown on. Actually, it was extortion money. You know the kind. You pay so that your store doesn't fall prey to some mysterious accident. The store owner, being an honest businessman, refused. The other man tried several times to change the store owner's mind. But always the man refused.

"Then, one day, the man and his wife were coming home from visiting friends. Their son was at home with the baby sitter. Suddenly, the 'insurance salesman' appeared out of an alleyway with another man. The store owner told him that he wasn't interested. The man, however, said he wasn't there to sell any more insurance. The store owner had his chance. Now it was time to find out what happened to people who didn't have an adequate insurance policy.

"Then he pulled a gun from his jacket and shot the store owner and his wife dead. Because the man wanted only to run an honest business, his young son was left an orphan. For the next few years, that gunman did very well. Eventually, he became the head of his organization. I must say, Joe, you've come a long way in the past twenty years. From a hired thug to head of the entire family. Very impressive."

Burrows sat staring at Steve. He didn't remember that evening. It had been so long ago and there had been so many incidents of that kind. But in those days, it was routine to eliminate those who wouldn't cooperate. It was an example to the others of what could happen if they refused. It was usually very effective.

"And you're that young boy, I presume. I must admit, you've come a long way yourself. You're very good at what you do."

"Oh, you don't understand," continued Steve. "I only performed those jobs for you because I felt you owed me something for all the years I spent without parents. The only people I eliminated were others like you. Scum who prey on the helpless and innocent people of this city.

"You see, I discovered at a very young age that I had a very special talent. I found that I can literally become anyone I want. I can alter my form and become anyone. Right down to their fingerprints. It's perfect. Not even their closest friends or family members can detect the difference.

"But now I've gotten the money that I figure you owed me. So it's time that I got on with my life. And my plans. I'm going to take some time off and enjoy the money I've earned these past few months. I don't know how long I'll be gone. Maybe a couple of weeks; maybe a couple months. I haven't decided yet. But then I'm coming back. I'm going to return for one last job. Only this one I'm not going to get paid for. I'm going to do it for my mother and father. So goodbye for now, Mr. Burrows. It's been a pleasure. I'll show myself out."

Steve walked to the door and opened it. Just before he left he turned to Burrows and said, "I'll be seeing you, Joe."

Steve turned and left the office. He knew that he wouldn't be stopped by any of Burrow's men. He simply assumed the form of one of the men on the grounds. He would be able to slip quietly off the grounds, as he had done so many times before.

Burrows just sat stunned. Even if he called his security men, what would he tell them? Who would he tell them to look for? Karl? One of the other guards? One of the staff? It suddenly occurred to him that he didn't know who Steve would be impersonating next. Joseph Burrows began to get worried. And then, he began to get scared.

Steve finished packing his suitcase. A young woman came out of another room with a suitcase of her own.

"We'd better hurry," she said. "Our flight leaves in less than an hour. How long are we going to be in Hawaii?"

"I'm not sure, Patty. Probably a month or so."

"Then what?"

Steve thought for a moment.

"I thought we'd settle down in the Midwest, just as you've always wanted. Once we're married in Hawaii, we can do whatever you want."

Steve just smiled. Patty was the only person who he had let in on his secret ability. Peter Majors had ordered her father killed. The fact that Majors and Burrows were opposing crime bosses had given Steve the idea for his revenge.

"Steve," said Patty, "I was just wondering. What about Burrows? I thought you were going to go back and pay him back for your parents?"

Steve just smiled at Patty. She knew that smile. It was his secret smile. When he knew a secret that no one else knew.

"I've had my last contact with Mr. Joseph Burrows," said Steve.

THE END

[tessalynne]

Oh Jerry, this was really great. I loved the ending. What better revenge then to leave Burrow's looking over his shoulder in terror for the rest of his life. Unable to ever trust anyone or allow ahyone near him for fear that it will be Steve.

Bravo!

[Island Breeze]

A shapeshifter, huh? Cool! That is a powerful revenge on the guy who killed his parents. Burrows won't die fast... He'll die a thousand deaths... slowly... always looking over his shoulder, and he can't do a thing about it.

Great story, Jerry! :D

[majiklmoon]

Jerry, this story has so much promise. I hope you haven't abandoned it