Steal the coal

it's been nearly 10 days, the goons are slowly picking up the pace, it's not like they become body builders in 10 days, but they become active enough to move around. we climbed the hills and found a suitable spot between hills. It's a valley surrounded by mountains on two sides.

tommy suggested we should dig ground and build some sort of underground bunker. cause it attracted less attention. we all together started digging underground to make underground cave. We dug nearly one week, up to 10 feet. Then we started to arrange strong tree trunks from ground to roof for extra support. we arranged rocks on ground and covered them with gravel. then we covered the walls and gravel with thick moss. we also arranged a small chimney to burn coal during winter. it took nearly one and half months to fully construct the warehouse.

Everyone is working hard to get extra bread and cheese. We are not giving them too much, cause that creates greed in them. Now they are like grateful children, but in the future when they see what they can do when they are in our position, they would forget everything we did to them, and remember the power they will get. That's why we decided to watch everyone closely and select a leader who can control them when we are busy, who can eliminate them when they cross line.

So far rose is having a hard time, everyone is targeting her because she is the only girl in the group. But she is fighting back with her brother. So far nothing major happened and I doubt something will happens cause she improving fast and she has her brother support. She is most likely to become leader, even if she didn't show she is grateful for us.

We observed the steel factory entire month, we discovered the trucks arrive 1st of every month, we know what route they will take. where they will take breaks. Tommy and me search entire route to find perfect spot to steal. In fifteen days the trucks will come. During these fifteen days we are not ideal, we betting on horses, stealing from cargo ships in canals. stealing from drunken people. everything we earned is going to feed the goons, but it worth it. They began to put some weight, they skin becoming yellow to white color.

Finally the day we are most anticipating has came. The trucks will take a break at the supply station to refill the diesel and to eat dinner, tommy and me will distract the guards, and arthur will steal the coal with the help of goons. The best thing is, they will never noticed coal is stolen, cause nobody notice 20 to 30 kgs of coal in probably tons of coal.

We all arrived at the supply station, tommy and me waiting for the trucks in near by rocks. Arthur is with the goons. We saw trucks coming, I sign tommy to get ready. Most of the drivers gone to eat their dinner, leaving two to guard the coal. Tommy and me slowly approached them, and suddenly I snatched the purse of one driver, and tommy snatched keys of one driver. We both began to ran, with everything we got. the drivers start running after us. I'm glad they not shouting and calling for help, if they shout and call for help, we will probably fucked up. we ran into wood, we are not running fast or running slow, just enough to make them follow us.

"you little shits, give our purse." One of the driver said

tommy and me, suddenly stopped. I threw the purse into the forest tommy threw keys into near by bushes. and we started to run with all our might towards the road dodging the branches and bushes. after some time forest started to clear, we reached near the trucks and signaled to arthur, immediately he started to pack what ever they collected, ran after us.

After we reached the base, We unloaded the all the bags, by approx estimation it's up to 40 to 50 kg of coal. It's nearly takes one month to sell them for profit, after all we need to go house from house to sell them for profitable price. Everyone is in happy mood, tommy, arthur and goons and everyone. We eat simple dinner, and instruct the goons to take care of the goods and take rest. I instruct rose to observe, who are cunning and greedy, to eliminate them in future.

After completing our tasks, we returned home. Polly, as usual, enjoyed a drink, while John playing with Ada. Mom, exhausted from her daily work at the factory, diligently doing the dishes. The toll of both working and looking after us weighed heavily on her. Dad's absence seemed to take a considerable toll on her too, leaving her visibly fatigued.

"Oh.. you guys came, serious what wrong with you. You guys always come later, what will happen if you come home directly after school " She said

" hah. like we will " said Arthur

" 'Sigh' come on sit down I will bring dinner " she said

We three sat down, mom served us mashed potatoes and peas. we immediately started eating, me unlikely any sane human, mixed my peas with mashed potatoes, and started eating. It's really good the combination, eating buttery mashed potatoes with salty soft peas is another level of food hack. Mom saw me and started to smile within herself. Like,Who is to blame? Everyone becomes children in front of mom's food.

After food, we started to arrange our beds, which are basically thick mattresses and thick rugs. God, now I understand why I have had insomnia in the past life. Just a stomach full of food and no tension is enough to sleep well. While thinking about the future, I slowly drift off to sleep.

Mom woke us up early in the morning. I began my daily routine, while Tommy and Arthur explored the streets. After a few hours of my workout, I returned home to find Tommy and Arthur sprinting back – they're surprisingly punctual when it comes to food. Mom prepared scrambled eggs with tomatoes and toasted bread, and we eagerly devoured our breakfast. Within minutes, we finished, and Mom, after freshening up, headed to the factory. Swiftly dressing ourselves, we raced off to school.

We arrived at school early, hoping to avoid any trouble with Mrs. Changretta. Deciding to keep a low profile, we remained silent throughout the classes. As the school day finally concluded, we collected our portions of the stale rock they called bread. Heading towards the base, the others immediately stood up upon seeing us. With small bags in hand, we began divided the coal into manageable quantities, distributing them to the goons. We provided instructions on where to sell and for how much, how to evade snatchers, and the consequences of losing goods, by noon everyone had gone to sell their goods.

"Arthur, Tommy, and I set out toward the city to sell coal. I headed to the residential colony, Arthur to the red-light district, and Tommy to the shops. In the residential area, I visited an elderly couple's house, employing an innocent charm to persuade them to purchase coal. They succumbed to the natural aura and bought coal, requesting another delivery in three days. After securing the payment, I made my way back to our base. Upon my arrival, Rose and her brother were already present. I collected money from them and served dinner. Gradually, Arthur, Tommy, and the other goons joined us. We gathered funds and treated everyone dinner. Following the meal, we headed home."