Undercover Jeopardy. Kathleen Tailer

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      He leaned closer and his whisper was a low hiss. “No names, remember?”

      She motioned around her. “Who’s gonna hear me? I’m serious. Stay out of my way.”

      “You stay out of my way, girl. I didn’t want you here in the first place.” He spun around and angrily threatened one of the other customers with his rifle. “Get back, did you hear me?” He raised the weapon up as if he was going to hit someone else, then abruptly stalked off.

      * * *

      Bethany blew out a breath of relief as the man moved away. Her heart was beating so strongly she was sure J.P. could hear it. What in the world was Daniel doing here, of all places? Thankfully, she had been able to distract J.P. before any further violence had happened. She had once seen J.P. beat a man into unconsciousness for borrowing his truck without asking. He was vengeful and a loose cannon, and there was no telling how far he would go if he continued unchecked. She said a small prayer of thanks under her breath, then motioned to Daniel with her gun.

      “Sit with the others. Now.”

      Daniel put his hands up in a motion of mock surrender, then nodded and sat. She didn’t like the way he was studying her, but it couldn’t be helped.

      She glanced over at J.P., who was stalking the floor, threatening anyone who dared to look up. The kid was a hothead, and she had been trying to avoid him ever since she’d infiltrated this band for the FBI a year ago. He was always challenging her, and if anyone was going to blow her cover, it would probably be him.

      She looked down at Daniel and her heart continued to pound. She didn’t think he had recognized her, and she wondered how long she could keep her identity a secret from him if this robbery took longer than expected. Her feelings were in a jumbled mess where Daniel was concerned. She had loved him once, or thought she had, but that seemed like a lifetime ago. Their last words had been said in anger, and she had taken this undercover assignment only a few days later. It had been an excellent escape and helped her refocus her energy after their breakup. Now that a year had passed, she had no desire to bring those feelings to the surface and sort through them all over again. The past was better left in the past.

      “Okay, I want everyone’s cell phones. Now!” She turned to see their leader, Jackson, swinging his gun around and carrying a trash can. He walked down the line of hostages and waited impatiently as they each deposited their cell phones in the metal can. The captives were all in different stages between panic and disbelief. A couple of the women were crying, and a few of the men were pale and withdrawn, but they all complied with Jackson’s orders. When he came to Daniel, he stopped and Bethany held her breath, hoping that neither Jackson nor Daniel would start an altercation. Being undercover meant sometimes walking a thin line between the legal and illegal. Her participation in this bank robbery had been authorized by her handler at the FBI, so they could trace the stolen money and make bigger arrests, but it was hard to see anyone get hurt. Still, she would blow her cover in a heartbeat if any of the robbers tried to kill an innocent victim. The problem was that she knew Daniel was a fellow officer who would do everything within his power to foil this robbery. She held her breath, not sure what to expect, her body tense and ready to react.

      “Was this man giving you trouble?” Jackson asked, looking between Daniel and the other robbers.

      A cold sweat ran down her back. Should she tell their leader that Daniel was a cop? Her mind focused on the heaviness of Daniel’s weapon resting in the waistband of her jeans. If he saw Daniel’s police badge or somehow discovered that she’d known he was law enforcement and hadn’t said anything, it could blow her cover. But if she did tell, Jackson might lose his temper and try to hurt Daniel, and she would be forced to intervene. There was no telling what he would do if he found out one of the hostages was a detective with the local police department. This entire assignment could blow up in the next few moments if she didn’t quickly think of a solution. Her mind was spinning when surprisingly J.P. solved her problem for her.

      “He was mouthing off. I had to show him who was in charge,” J.P. offered with a sardonic grin.

      Bethany blew out a breath of relief, her dilemma temporarily fixed. She watched Jackson carefully, waiting for his reaction.

      Jackson finally nodded, apparently accepting the response, and pointed his gun at Daniel’s head. “Give me your cell phone.”

      Daniel’s pulled out his cell phone that was clipped to his belt and in the same motion, surreptitiously pushed his detective shield into his pocket, hiding it from view. Bethany noticed and quickly looked down so it seemed like she wasn’t paying attention. He dropped the phone in the trash can with the others and Jackson continued down the line, none the wiser.

      Suddenly a shot rang out, and J.P. shrieked and grabbed his side. A dark circle of blood appeared on the hoodie near J.P.’s abdomen, and J.P. slowly sank to the floor, his face contorted with pain. Bethany crouched, her weapon ready, searching the room for the source of the shot. Would the next bullet take her out?