Want to take part in a writing contest?  Well, now you can.  All you have to do is write a story that starts with this:

It might not have been the smartest choice but the offer of a quick payday was hard to turn away from. If it was done the right way, taking all the factors into play then it should go off without a hitch. Going in guns blazing to knock over a casino wasn’t smart in any way shape or form but if I waited for the trucks to be loaded with the days take then it was far safer.

Can be about whatever you’d like it to be just as long as it starts with the above paragraph. You've got a week, post it here, and the winner gets the cash, five million for first, three million for second and two million for third. Best of luck to the entrants.

I notice there are only three days left. If no one else tells a story here, I will personally split my winnings with all of you. Lets work together to become rich, we could very well make at least $300,000 per person.

It might not have been the smartest choice but the offer of a quick payday was hard to turn away from. If it was done the right way, taking all the factors into play then it should go off without a hitch. Going in guns blazing to knock over a casino wasn’t smart in any way shape or form but if I waited for the trucks to be loaded with the days take then it was far safer.

I, however, was not a man of safety. So doing it the right way was not an option. I didn't even want the pay day, in fact. All I wanted was the cold hard reputation that came with stealing from a casino, think of the publicity? "Unknown man robs Casino-- more at Eleven." it was the kind of thing that could propel me into the limelight of the underground and towards the peaks of greatness that I've always told mother I was bound to reach.

Pulling out my favorite shotgun, I rushed into the casino by myself with no backup. The fear the men and women displayed was palpable and in no time I had made it to the inner workings of the place, the police having been tipped off surely by now, I had to work quick. Noticing a truck sitting out back, I knew this must be where the money was. Had I just done my original plan, there would have been no hitches and I'd be driving down the highway with tens of thousands of dollars.

But, like I said. I am not a smart man. Which is why when I did reach the truck, there were officers surrounding it. Fuck, I would be in the news now, but it wouldn't be for good reasons. I had to act fast.

"The guy! He went that way."

By the way they were still pointing their weapons at me, I could tell this plan didn't work. I was off to prison. Oh well, maybe next time I'd just do it the proper way.

IF YOU ARE READING THIS THE STORY IS NOW OVER THANK YOU OR MAYBE YOU SKIMMED IDK THIS IS REALLY BOLD AND PROBABLY THE FIRST THING YOU LOOKED AT. PROBABLY STUPID ON MY PART. NOW I LOOK LIKE A LIAR. THANK YOU THOUGH IF YOU DID READ IT ALL. :)

There you have it. Your first and last entrant. I'll take the money early, if that's okay with you?

It might not have been the smartest choice but the offer of a quick payday was hard to turn away from. If it was done the right way, taking all the factors into play then it should go off without a hitch. Going in guns blazing to knock over a casino wasn’t smart in any way shape or form but if I waited for the trucks to be loaded with the days take then it was far safer. Having scouted the place the perfect time to hit it was right before they had loaded everything to drive off. It was quite the entourage though which would have to be considered a problem. Two trucks, with one driver and and two guards each. A total of six people to be controlled. I could most certainly not do this by myself. Fortunately I had the perfect people in mind. Four people was probably going to be enough. At least for the plan that was under construction. 

Having invited Stoney, Aramil and Furiouswolf for a quick meeting I laid out the plans for the upcoming heist. It wasn't the most elaborate plan. More a simple one and straight to the point. I had never been one for stealth and finesse.

"- Guys, welcome. We have an opportunity. Riches beyond belief. Tomorrow we are hitting the casino. Truckloads of money. Aramil and Stoney, you're in charge of taking care of the drivers and the getaway. I and Furious will take care of the security helping out with the loading of the trucks. We go in guns blazing. Any questions? Thought not. Lets all get some rest tonight." I had a good feeling about it all. Things surely would work out perfectly.

As we all woke up the next day we gathered by the car Aramil had stolen the day before. Everyone seemed focused on the drive over there. No chit chat at all, only game faces. Aramil parked a few minutes walk away from the loading dock. It would get a lot more difficult if we were noticed too early driving up close. I could feel the adrenaline starting to pump as we started walking with our Tommy Guns well hidden under our coats.

We watched the security as they were loading the last of the money bags onto the trucks. As they were getting ready to drive off I gave the sign. Everyone sprang into action. A complete bloodbath, mayhem. Bullets started raining towards both sides. Fortunately nothing hit us and we could slowly make our way towards the trucks. When the last security guard dropped we all jump onto the trucks. There were bullet holes everywhere. This was not going to be an easy escape. Anyone laying their eyes on these trucks would have a pretty good idea what was going on. We drove off hastily.

Everything seemed to be going nicely. The score of a lifetime. Getting closer and closer to the warehouse, where we would spend the upcoming days laying low, our confidence rose. Relaxing a bit in my seat I glanced backwards. Out of nowhere it seemed like the coppers had caught up to us. This was not over yet. I felt how my entire body stiffened and got ready for the upcoming fight.

"- Fuck."

It might not have been the smartest choice but the offer of a quick payday was hard to turn away from. If it was done the right way, taking all the factors into play then it should go off without a hitch. Going in guns blazing to knock over a casino wasn’t smart in any way shape or form but if I waited for the trucks to be loaded with the days take then it was far safer.

But there had to be another way, a way that would make my friends and me rich - Rockerfeller rich.  What was it?  We'd been doing into that casino, day in, day out.  Trying different games, watching, waiting.  All we had to show for it was debt.  We started a book - loansharking to the gambling addicts.  Sure, that brought us some cash, but not much.  But it did get us an in.  We were studying their patterns - how they played, when they played, who they played with.  And then we noticed a guy from a casino down the road betting big ... and losing.

So, we followed him, offered him some cash.  I didn't beat about the bush - I came right out with it; "we know you work at the Goldust down the strip, and we know that you need money."  He looked at us like he'd been waiting on us to make the move.  He said "buy me a drink" so I bought him a drink.  Then he started talking, about how people had owned casinos for years without realising that they could be skimmed.  Skimming wasn't the problem - it was moving the money about.  He said he'd taken some money off for himself, here and there, but never a lot.  

This guy, let's code-name him Punk, broke it down.  We would have to get jobs in the casino.  So we did.  We realised that some of the money from the tables gets put in a room prior to being counted.  We'd have to pay off the guard in front, but we could skim it no problem.  

So, we did a dummy rum: a suitcase of money.  Boom, done.  Then two, then four, then two of us with holdalls.  Punk was right, it was getting to be so big that we didn't know what to do with the money.  We invested some, but it came back double.  We bought huge coteries of bodyguards.  We threw a lot around.  We got greedy.  We got stupid.

We should have done it for a while and stopped.  But we didn't.  And that's why I'm telling you this story from jail.

Now, if you wanna hear about what jail is like, that's a whole other story...  

It might not have been the smartest choice but the offer of a quick payday was hard to turn away from. If it was done the right way, taking all the factors into play then it should go off without a hitch. Going in guns blazing to knock over a casino wasn’t smart in any way shape or form but if I waited for the trucks to be loaded with the days take then it was far safer.

The trucks were late, fuck. Looking over to Ricky D I sighed in displeasure. "Well what the fuck happened to the truck?" I asked, it was rhetorical. We knew what happened to the truck. Apparently the bitch couldn't keep her mouth shut and by bitch, I meant none other than Madam Monte Salvatici.

Two months ago we brokered a deal. If I allowed her to skip a few months protection dues for her and her whores safety then she would do me this one little favor, but apparently we have a failure to communicate. Taking a long inhale of my cigarette I looked towards the only family I had known since coming to these shores.

Ricky D my 1st in command stood at my right, Carlito stood at my left with Davido flanking Carlito's right. Grinning with maniac delight I said, "Lets go rob a casino.." Allowing my  words to trail off for a second the team waited knowing that I was not quite finished, "But first lets go teach the Madam a lesson on Omerta."

It might not have been the smartest choice but the offer of a quick payday was hard to turn away from. If it was done the right way, taking all the factors into play then it should go off without a hitch. Going in guns blazing to knock over a casino wasn’t smart in any way shape or form but if I waited for the trucks to be loaded with the days take then it was far safer. Brute force was all I needed. Yeah, brute force from a 5 foot 6 woman who weighed a little over 120 pounds. That should scare them into submission.

Shaking my head, I figured I shouldn't be focusing on my shortcomings but rather playing to my strengths. Intimidation and strength may not be my strong points, but manipulation and seduction definitely are. I took one last look at the trucks being loaded with copious amounts of bills before driving away, taking the loss for tonight but planning the next moves for tomorrow.

When I stepped out of that limo and onto the entrance of the casino, I felt like time slowed down. Necks turned and jaws dropped as all eyes were on me -- clad in the slinkiest and tightest black dress I'd ever donned in my entire life. The fabric clung to every curve of my body and flowed like liquid as I sashayed into the casino and straight to the high-rollers poker table, where three men sat with a mountain of chips in front of each of them. But no matter how rich a man is, they can never be immune to a woman -- especially one that wants a seat at their table.

"Sorry babydoll, we've got no seats open that you can afford. I'll let you sit on my lap though." I forced a smile even though every fiber of my being wanted to rip this man's eyes out with my fingers. Alright, assholes, you can leer now but I'll be the one laughing later. Buying my way in, I flipped my hair, batted my eyes, and grazed their arms into submission, distracting them from what was really happening. You see, while they were busy nursing their hard-ons and thinking the lewdest of thoughts, I'd been sharing knowing looks with the dealer, who was more than willing to, err, "help me out" for a cut out of my winnings tonight. In the flurry of flirting and seduction, the men seemed to have thrown all caution to the wind, not once wondering how I got full houses, five rounds straight. And whenever one of them would run out of chips, I'd just have to pout and whine about wanting to spend more time with him and he'd be back in a heartbeat with another million in chips.

By the time they'd caught on, I was already peeling off the godforsaken dress I had on and was safely back at my apartment, a duffel bag filled with hundred dollar bills sitting on my coffee table. I wish I felt pity for those men, but honestly.. they had it coming -- they should have known better than to underestimate a woman in a little black dress.

It might not have been the smartest choice but the offer of a quick payday was hard to turn away from. If it was done the right way, taking all the factors into play then it should go off without a hitch. Going in guns blazing to knock over a casino wasn’t smart in any way shape or form but if I waited for the trucks to be loaded with the days take then it was far safer.

There was no reason to take any unnecessary risks at this point. The owners of the casinos were usually cutthroats. If even a meager amount was missing than they would pick up on it and hunt down whoever was responsible. This needed to be done with a subtle touch, one that would point fingers in a different direction. 

It wasn’t terribly hard finding an identical truck that made the pickups. They were always from the same company and they had enough on their lot that if one went missing it would take some time for someone to notice. I waited for the night before, I didn’t need to be displaying it all around town that I was driving one of their trucks, and hopped the fence easily enough. The security was much more lax than I thought it would be but I wasn’t going to complain about that now. I got luckier as I went on and slid into one of the trucks in the back row, the keys tuck up in the visor, dropping into my lap as I opened it.

The next step was all about timing. If I showed up to early than it would set off red flags but if I showed up to late than I’d miss the score completely. I found the truck that was supposed to be picking up the days take and discreetly slashes the tires without being seen. That should throw them off track enough that whenever they did manage to make it to the casino I would be long gone and on my way to comfortable living. 

Fortunately enough for me, they always used different drivers so a new face like mine wasn’t out of the norm. I stayed in the drivers seat as I felt the weight shift in the back. Before too long I heard the loud rapping of knuckles on the back, indicating that the haul had been loaded. I pulled away as casually as I could, fighting off the urge to jam the gas and peel out away from the loading dock. I needed to keep things as normal as possible before I was well away from the place. 
 

*I am in no way, shape or form entering my own contest, just wanted to get some writing in. I am clearly not eligible to win any of the prizes.*

It might not have been the smartest choice but the offer of a quick payday was hard to turn away from. If it was done the right way, taking all the factors into play then it should go off without a hitch. Going in guns blazing to knock over a casino wasn’t smart in any way shape or form but if I waited for the trucks to be loaded with the days take then it was far safer.

At least that's what I told myself from the driver's seat of the massive cash-in-transit truck as it idled in the underground casino loading bay.  I'd been undercover at the bank for weeks as "Dominic Grey".  Lucky for me it was a hard position for the bank to fill.  The city was a war zone these days and the pay was garbage. 

They didn't look too hard into "Dominic's" past or they would've seen the bum was so fake he didn't cast a shadow.  Allen was the guard sitting next to me.  We'd run a few deliveries together already so I knew his habits.  He started nodding off to sleep as we waited for the casino employees to come out with the cash.

Two shadowy figures lurked nearby in the loading bay, their footsteps echoing off the cold concrete.  It was Green and Black.  Nobody knew each other's real names, a third party had reached out to us and put together the team for the job.  I nodded in their direction and gave the signal.  The shadows rushed forward toward the truck.  They were already wearing the bank guard uniforms I'd acquired for them.

Green, a tall man and well-muscled, rushed to the passenger door.  I reached across Allen and threw open his door as he sputtered awake.  Before he knew what was happening he was halfway out the door with Green's hands around his throat.

"Hey, hey!" I shouted, "Just tie him up, already.  He ain't gonna fight back."

Green grinned and muttered, "He won't be able to."  He brought down his massive fist into Allen's stomach, threw him to the ground and pressed his knee into the guard's back.  Allen moaned but barely struggled.

Black, a rail thin gunner who never seemed to smile, sauntered over.  He tossed a pair of hand cuffs to Green and stared right through me as he said, "Open the back."

I knew better than to make Black wait as I jumped out of the truck and ran around back to open the armored trailer.  I knelt down beside Allen and rummaged through his pockets for the key.  I tried not to meet his eyes as he looked up at me from the ground. 

"Dom?  Wha- Why?" Allen sputtered.

Green threw a heavy punch into the back of Allen's head, who's face bounced off the concrete as he lost consciousness.  I winced and glared at Green who just smiled.  The man was actually enjoying himself.

I unlocked the trailer and Green tossed Allen's limp body inside.

"He's just knocked out right?" I asked.

"Don't be a wimp," Black growled.  I clammed up.

It wasn't a moment after Green had covered up Allen's body that the casino's vault crew started wheeling out pallets of cash and bags of coins.  There must've been a hundred grand on each one and the pallets were stacked taller than Green.  I'd never have to do anything like this again if we made it out with a haul like that.

Standing alongside the crew was a man I recognized from a few of my previous visits as driver.  His tacky crushed red velvet suit cost more than I could afford even after today's take and he looked like he was walking around in his pajamas.  He looked down his nose at me for staring and I looked away.  Black was glaring holes in him.  Green hopped down out of the trailer and approached the first pallet of cash.

"My father is gonna have you idiots all fired if one dime of this is missin' when it gets into the bank vault, you understand me?" the man in the red velvet suit barked.  He sauntered up to the cash and took a fat stack of hundreds for himself, "Maybe you should be more careful next time, eh?  If you're even still workin' here."  He laughed as he tucked the money away in his pocket.

I climbed into the trailer and started loading the bags of coins the crew passed up to me as Green readied the pallet jack to raise the cash in as well.  BLAM!  I dove for the floor of the trailer as a shot rang out in the loading bay.  BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!  I scrambled for my gun as I looked around to see what was happening.  Green had ducked down behind a pallet of cash and was fumbling with his pistol as Black walked toward the man in the red suit firing shot after shot into his chest.  The loading crew panicked and started to run.

"Kill em all," Black ordered.  Green started squeezing off shots at the fleeing crewmen.  I raised my gun and didn't know where to aim.  Green placed precision shots into each of them as they struggled with the door back into the casino.  It was locked.

"You think you're gonna run this place?" Black snapped at the man in the red suit, "Think your old man was gonna put up with this forever?"  BLAM! BLAM! BLAM!  Black stopped to reload his gun.

"You had this coming since the day you first dishonored him," Black said as he paced around reloading his weapon, "And for what?  For this!?"  Black threw a stack of cash at the man in the red suit.  The band holding it together broke as the bills scattered around him.  The man in the red suit didn't even flinch.  "You were never gonna live up to him."

BLAM!

The final shot echoed throughout the loading bay.  I couldn't force myself to look too long at the body in the red suit.  It slumped to the side with a wet slap as it collapsed into the growing pool of blood surrounding it.

As the pistol smoke cleared Green stormed up to Black, "What do you think you're are you doing, Black!?  This was supposed to be a heist not a-"  BLAM!

Green fell like a tree that had just been cut down.  Black didn't say a word.  He turned towards me and lowered his gun.

"You were never cut out for this," Black barked as he threw a heavy bag of coins into the trailer, "Take it.  Take it and get out of this town.  That's enough to take care of whatever you need for a long time, but I swear if I ever see you creepin' around here again..."

I stood stock still, still in shock from everything that had just happened.

"Take it!" He shouted.

I fumbled with the bag and as I scrambled to get down out of the trailer with it I saw his arm raise up again.  Dropping the bag of coins to the ground I fixed my grip on my pistol and pointed it at Black.

BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM!

Smoke filled the air as we emptied our clips at each other.  The bag of coins hit the ground and broke open scattering silver dollars everywhere.  I squinted through the glare of the muzzle flashes as I strafed over to the pallets for some sort of cover.  I crouched down next to Green's lifeless body and struggled to reload my weapon when I heard a wet thud.

I peered around the stacks of money carefully as I slipped my next clip into place.  Black's body lay strewn across the man in the red suit.  At least a few of my shots must have hit true in the shootout.  I didn't stop to check if he was still breathing.

I grabbed the now empty coin back and stuffed it with wads of cash.  I wasn't getting out of there in the truck without getting noticed.  With my cut of the take I ran up the sloping concrete to the surface.  I didn't know where I could go but I decided to leave the rest of them to rot in the hell below the casino.  The night air hit me like a wave at the ocean and I cleared the pistol smoke from my lungs.  "This is the last time I get myself caught up in something like this."  At least that's what I told myself.

The casino heist writing contest is now closed. Thank you to all that entered. I’ll be announcing the winners and dishing out the cash shortly. It’s been a pleasure ladies and gentlemen.