Hi everyone, well, here's the first chapter of Badasses. It's only a short story with short chapters, for the Banner Bunnies Story Contest...
There will more than likely be some slightly unrealistic things happen as they're straight out of the fantasy in my head
but hey, this is a work of FICTION! :-)

So, sit down and enjoy the ride...!

Badasses by Kessafan

Chapter 1

"So... can I rely on you to get this done?"

Dimitri Belikov sat staring at the snivelling weasel of a man on the other side of his desk as he had done for the last twenty minutes. Stan Alto was unfortunately, the man that he had to deal with most of the time, him being the son of the man whom he essentially worked for.

"Have I ever let your father down before?" Dimitri asked, his patience wearing thin.

"There's always a first time." Stan answered. It wasn't that he didn't like Dimitri; he was very well aware of the huge Russian's capabilities and the speed and stealth he utilised to 'get the job done'... It's just that Stan also knew that when his father looked at Dimitri, he saw the son he wished he'd had instead of the one he'd actually sired.

"If you believed that Stan, I doubt you'd be here right now." Dimitri took a deep breath before standing up and gathering the papers that had been spread out in front of him; what little patience he'd had, was now gone. "Tell your father I'll be in touch with him within forty-eight hours."

Stan stood up, eyeing the man in front of him who stood more than half a foot taller than himself, but before he attempted to shake on the deal, there was one more bit of information that he had yet to impart...

"One more thing my father wanted me to let you in on." Dimitri raised an eyebrow as he tried to decipher the look on the shorter man's face. "You know my father and his need to have what he wants, immediately. He's also a very smart man and knows that the merchandise he's asked for is not the easiest to come by, so he wanted me to let you know that on this occasion, you won't be the only... employee."

Dimitri's jaw clenched as he realised what he was being told. Old man Alto was hedging his bets and now, Dimitri was not only working against the clock to find the items, he was also going to have competition too...

"Who?" Was the only question Dimitri wanted answered.

Alto's eyes narrowed as he decided if he should let the big man in on his adversary. "Let's just say that you rival's reputation for ability and reliability in this... arena, is as good as yours."

Dimitri groaned as an image of who he meant came to mind... If he was correct in his assumptions, then this job was about to get a whole lot more interesting...

Bad!

"Are you sure it's him?" Lissa asked her best friend.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Who else would it be?" Rose said as she paced the floor of her bedroom. "There is no-one else Emil would get to do this... other than me of course."

Rose and Lissa had been firm friends right from the first day of kindergarten when bullies tried to intimidate the quietly spoken blonde and Rose stood up to them. Even though Rose was shorter than Lissa, she was as tough as they came. She was fast and afraid of nothing and no-one. Rose had grown up in a rough neighbourhood where the majority of the kids had been male. For her to survive and have the respect of the much larger and much stronger boys, she had to be tougher...

"Are they really that rare?" Lissa asked.

"Yes... you know that Liss. We've been doing this long enough now that you know exactly how rare some of these are."

"Yeah, I know..." she smiled.

Rose watched her closest friend as she puckered her lips in thought. Rose may have been the brawns of the operation, but Lissa was definitely the brains. Unlike Rose, Lissa had been born into wealth and opportunity and her parents were less than enthusiastic once they realised that their 'Princess' of a daughter was never going to let go of her 'best friend Rose'... Unfortunately for the Dragomir's, Rose had an aura that appealed to Lissa's wild side and no matter what they did, the two girls' friendship stayed strong and unbreakable.

"What are you thinking?" Rose asked her friend.

"If it is him... then we need to move fast. No doubt he's already been told about you and there's no way he's going to let you beat him to victory."

Rose couldn't help the smile that spread over her face as she thought about exactly what it would be like to beat Dimitri Belikov at his own game... The man was the best... Everyone knew his name and reputation, if not his face, a face Rose had seen at a distance quite a lot lately... and the thought of one upping him was something that appealed to her in the most basic of ways...

"Well then... what are you doing just sitting there Liss... Go do your thing while I go make some calls. We need to find the merchandise before him."

"What are we going for first?"

Rose smiled as an image came into her mind... "The '66 Shelby Cobra; we already know where that one is... Now we just need a way in."

Both girls lived for the thrill of swiping the rarest of cars right out from under the rich, snobby owner's noses, and this job would net them some serious money... if they could just get to the cars before Dimitri.

Oh, this is my 1st foray into telling a story from the 3rd person POV, so let me know what you think...
Till next chapter... Sandy XXX