SYNOPSIS
“After Hours Trading” is the story of Doyle, a twenty-something college dropout left behind by the Great Recession. Hounded by debt collectors for his unpaid student loan and embittered by his prospects, he prefers to scrounge and scrape together an existence rather than slave away at a minimum wage job. After a chance meeting with Nik, a shady eastern European con man, Doyle, hoping to make some quick cash, reluctantly accepts his offer to become his partner in crime.
Nik introduces Doyle to a series of increasingly risky scams: fraud with counterfeit canines, extortion via parking boot, and straight out breaking and entering. After a rocky start, Doyle’s illicit abilities and confidence improve under Nik’s tutelage. As they grow closer, he learns that Nik intends to use the proceeds from their efforts to buy the freedom of Mila, a young woman who has been human trafficked, from a local crime boss. At first he is mystified that Nik would sacrifice so much for a woman he barely knows, but he slowly becomes more invested in the goal.
When Mila, who is unsure if she can trust Nik, refuses to leave after her bond is paid, Doyle convinces Nik that they should make one last attempt to free her -- by force. While they manage to free Mila, they are captured and given an ultimatum: one of them will walk, one will die -- they have to choose. As Doyle and Nik argue about which one will die for the other, they discover that Mila has been recaptured. Frustrated with their stalling tactics, the crime boss attempts to kill them both. Doyle takes a bullet for Nik, allowing him to overpower the crime boss. Doyle survives, and together he and Nik free Mila and several other trafficked women.