SYNOPSIS:

Career criminal Julian “Juls” Cooper is on a shakedown with his longtime friend “Touch” when the harsh realities of street life kick in. On the ride home, Juls expresses that he no longer desires to live an illegal life and has made moves to free himself and his family. After some criticism, Touch ultimately agrees. He also alludes to possessing a large amount of money that will aid in the process. Meanwhile, Ex-Detective Francis “Frank” Cartino visits the grave of his slain partner to pay his respects and continue to cope with the loss. He goes home and receives some emotional counseling from his wife until his studious daughter, a law student and future attorney, interrupts. Frank uses an opportunity to ride his daughter to class to try to connect and stay in tune with her, though concluding with minimal success. Over breakfast, Juls and Touch update their boss, Pittsburgh Crime Lord “Hendrix”, on the previous night’s shakedown. Juls uses this opportunity to “resign” from Hendrix’s faction, though secretly the news doesn’t take very well with him. Hendrix sends two of his enforcers, Donnie and Cube, to investigate Juls’ home on speculation that Juls has a large stash of money he acquired while on an unrelated assignment from Hendrix. Juls begins to adjust to his life outside of crime with his family, while Frank attempts to keep his family and mental strong. In the midst of these conflicts, his daughter Rebecca is persuaded by her outgoing friend to attend a popular nightclub that she frequents. Ultimately, she submits, heads to the nightclub, and gets too intoxicated. Following a series of events, she’s kidnapped by Hendrix (whom also happens to be there) and taken to his private farm once he learns she is Frank’s daughter, due to bad blood between Frank and himself. Meanwhile, Donnie and Cube infiltrate and wreck Juls’ home, then steal his stash, and ultimately decide to keep it for themselves. Hendrix alerts Frank of this and tells Frank if the police become involved he will kill Rebecca, sending Frank out of control. While launching a self-investigation at the nightclub, Frank notices Juls in attendance and remembers him from his past affiliation with Hendrix causing him to follow him home. Juls returns home to find his house not only ransacked from Donnie and Cube, but his stash missing from the wall. While going in to investigate, Frank attacks him, they fight, and determine that they both are no longer in their previous careers. Once Juls waives affiliation with Hendrix’s actions, Frank requests help from Juls, but Juls declines as he now has his own problem. Frank secretly enlists his detective friend Stan Riley to help him look for Rebecca under the radar, while Touch convinces Juls he will help him get to the bottom of things. After eavesdropping Hendrix’s conversation at an MMA match, Touch learns of Hendrix’s connection to Juls being robbed. He relays this information to Juls, which causes him to agree to help Frank search for his daughter to the point of him regaining his stolen money from Hendrix. The pair devises a scheme to interrogate Hendrix’s mistress Egypt, a stripper, for information while also stirring up trouble at the Club she works at. After harsh persuasion, Egypt reveals the location of Hendrix’s pad in the city and says there are special walls the prevent sound from escaping. After allowing her to flee to safety, they decide to investigate the home. One of the guards Hendrix employed, El whom is a sexual deviant, takes several pictures of a drugged Rebecca with plans to savor them following his plans to perform a drug induced rape of her. This act causes him to accidently upload the pics to his social networking profile, which tips of Frank and his wife, just before he is caught and capture by the other guard present via orders from Hendrix. Frank and Stan determine that they can now trace the pictures to the origin to find the location of Rebecca. Stan agrees to do so, while Frank and Juls investigate Hendrix’s pad. They end up getting caught by a neighbor, which prompts Hendrix to send a group of gunners to kill them, though to no avail. Hendrix learns of El’s actions and sadistically butchers him to set an example for his soldiers. Hendrix reveals his main goal through a conversation with South American Cartel Official Angel Villanueva. Stan traces the photo and comes up with El’s information, then relays it to Frank, who wastes no time in investigating. It is also during this time Chris, one of the soldiers present during Hendrix’s “example”, alert Touch and Juls of Rebecca’s presence on the farm. Juls makes a move to gather the rest of his stash money, which was not hidden in his home, just as Frank updates him of the new developments. Working together, the two quickly head for the farm but arrive just too late as Hendrix and company extract her and attempt to inflame the entire farm. Chaos and action builds as the stage is setting for: Hendrix to strike a deal with the Cartel, Frank to find Rebecca, Juls to get his money, and Donnie to reveal his plans for his future, as well as Juls’ money. Donnie follows Hendrix to the point he and Angel are supposed to meet, then alerts the police so they can provide a distraction. Meanwhile, Hendrix reveals his intended fate for Rebecca: a gift to Angel and the Cartel to use in their sex slave endeavors in exchange for direct access to a surplus of narcotics from the Cartel. Donnie interrupts the meeting and reveals his intention to become his own faction with help from the Cartel and Juls’ money , just as Frank, Juls, and the police force (lead by Stan) arrive. A huge shootout occurs which ultimately causes: Rebecca to be freed, Donnie’s actions to be discovered by Juls, Hendrix to be apprehended and Frank learning whom Jack’s killer is.

UNEVEN EXCHANGE (FIRST 10 PAGES)