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Chapter 3: Operation Teddy Bear

Martin grabbed the check and gave it a quick look, realizing it was way off—just a measly $100.

"Hey, this is supposed to be two weeks' pay."

Thinking back, Martin said, "Mr. Rivera, we agreed on $45 a day. I worked 12 days over two weeks."

Max, already prepared for this, shot back, "You never signed a daily wage contract, so it defaults to minimum wage."

Max had thought this through when Martin got hurt. Injuries to a worker's head can be a mess, and if the worker gets pushy, it can be a real headache. So Max had prepped: "You fell off the roof and wrecked Mr. Smith's doghouse. That thing cost $1,200, and I paid him $1,000 for it. Check with Mr. Smith if you want."

Paul, Max's buddy since forever, had already agreed to back up this story: "Bill and Jones, who worked with you, said you were drinking on the job, breaking safety rules, and ignoring warnings. That's why you fell and caused a big financial hit to the company. It's mostly your fault."

"Plus, your actions trashed the company's rep, and we lost three contracts because of it." Dealing with a broke, dropout like Martin was a piece of cake for Max.

He slid a folder over to Martin: "Check this out. It's the termination agreement because of your screw-up, which made us lose three big clients."

Martin skimmed the papers. They looked legit, but it was easy for a company to fake this stuff.

Max put on a fake smile: "I didn't drag you to court for damages. Out of the goodness of my heart, I gave you $100. You should be thankful."

He added, "If you got a problem, go file a complaint with the union and ask for arbitration. Oh wait, you don't have a steady job, can't pay the dues, and never joined a union."

Martin closed the papers and started thinking. Things were looking pretty grim.

Max, getting more excited, said, "You can't afford a lawyer, but you can try for legal aid from the ATL Legal Aid Society. Might take a few months, though."

This was a total win for Max, even though he was just a small-time business owner.

Martin didn't know much about American legal stuff, and the guy he was before didn't even finish elementary school, so he was clueless.

Max banged the table: "Go home, kid. Heal up. The company will always welcome you back."

Martin pocketed the check and looked at Max. Solving this mess the usual way seemed impossible.

It was all about money and status.

Just then, the door behind him opened, and a big Latino guy walked in.

With his bum leg, Martin couldn't do much, so he turned and left Max's office.

As he went downstairs, he dug through his memory to confirm what he had just figured out.

But if Max was just using drugs, it wasn't a big deal, and no one cared.

Drugs were everywhere in Atlanta anyway.

Martin got in his car and saw a Cadillac parked nearby. From his memory, he knew it was Max's ride.

He thought for a bit, jotted down the license plate number, and remembered more about Max, especially the route he took home. Martin started the car and headed that way.

Max lived in a middle-class area, not far from Clayton.

Martin drove the route he remembered, then turned back to the Clayton neighborhood and went into the Carter house.

Elena stormed up and asked, "Did that jerk give you the cash?"

Martin pulled out the check and handed it to her: "Ran into a real tough boss."

"Only $100?" Elena fumed. "Does he think you're a beggar?"

Harris, doped up on painkillers, asked, "What's the chance we win if we go for arbitration or legal aid?"

Martin plopped down on a single sofa and said, "We're broke. We can't afford to fight this in court."

Hall suddenly chimed in, "Let's grab a gun and take him out!"

Lily snorted, "With your little pea shooter? It’s not even scary."

Elena smacked both of them on the head and pointed to the bedroom door: "Get in there. And don't come out until I say so, you idiots!"

Hall and Lily sulked off to the bedroom.

Once the door shut, Martin spoke again: "Harris, can you move okay?"

Harris nodded: "Painkillers are working, I'm good."

Martin cut to the chase: "I worked for Max for two weeks, got to know his routine. He’s a family guy. Leaves the office at 3:30 every day, takes the same route home. There's a spot on that route where we can wait for him."

Elena's eyes widened: "What are you planning? Highway robbery?"

Harris hesitated: "Robbing Max? We’ll end up in jail for sure. I still want to apply to college."

"What are you two thinking?" Martin slammed his fist on the sofa armrest: "I have principles and a bottom line!"

Elena was puzzled: "I don’t want to go to prison. And Lily and Hall, those two morons..."

"Either shut up or listen to me!" Martin quickly laid out his plan, then said, "Playing by their rules, we’ll never win. We gotta break their rules."

Harris mumbled, "Principles and bottom lines..."

Martin shrugged: "We have principles and bottom lines, but they gotta be flexible."

Elena flipped him off but agreed: "The idiot finally got a bit smarter."

Martin grabbed Elena's leg and pulled out a few hairs from the teddy bear costume. He asked, "Can you get a teddy bear costume?"

Elena raised an eyebrow: "No problem."

Martin then asked, "Do we have a camera or something?"

Harris quickly said, "Scott’s store should have one."

Scott dealt in stolen goods, barely making enough to get by.

"Perfect!" Martin said, "Elena, you get the costume. I'll go find Scott. Harris, keep an eye on those two idiots and make sure they don’t mess things up!"

Elena was the first to stand up. As she walked out, she said, "Get moving, lazy bums. The teddy bear operation is about to start!"

She drove off to the promotional mall.

Martin headed to the north side of the neighborhood and found a small convenience store.

Scott was sitting by the counter, chugging a bottle of rum. When he saw Martin, he burped and said, "What do you want, kid?"

Martin walked up to the counter: "Your son Harris broke his arm."

Scott took another swig and said, "Tell him to go to the hospital."

Martin knew Scott wouldn’t pay, so he asked, "Got a camera?"

"No camera, but I got a camcorder," Scott said, putting down the bottle and showing off a mini camcorder. "JVC, new stock, just got it last week. Find me a buyer, and I'll give you a cut."

Martin had seen this model before. He picked it up and fiddled with it: "Does it work?"

Scott craned his neck: "Of course it works!"

Martin took it and walked out without looking back: "Harris needs this for treatment. I’ll bring it back later."

"Damn it, stop right there, stop!" Scott yelled, but didn’t chase after him.

Martin returned to the Carter house, and Elena soon came back. The three of them gathered and set off together.

The teddy bear operation was a go.

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