Undercover Jeopardy. Kathleen Tailer

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СКАЧАТЬ holding her back? Was she actually going to see this robbery through to the end? A chill went through him as he considered the possibilities. What was their endgame? What was the bigger picture that the bodybuilder had alluded to earlier? He didn’t want to blow her cover, but he didn’t want anyone else to get hurt either. As long as the robbers were in the bank, more violence could erupt at any moment.

      * * *

      Bethany’s teeth chattered and she realized they had turned off the heat in the building and the temperature was slowly dropping. She’d given up her hoodie to make bandages for J.P., and the T-shirt she was wearing did little to stave off the cold. They were going straight down the law enforcement playbook. Step one was make them uncomfortable by cutting off the heat. Step two was keep the communication lines open while SWAT got into place in case a tactical operation was required. She was sure they already had snipers in place, looking for a clear shot if the negotiator couldn’t talk them out of the building.

      She glanced around the bank’s interior and noticed all of the Christmas decorations for the first time. Wreaths were placed under each teller station, and candles with pine cones and ribbon decorated some of the counters. She had been so wrapped up in this robbery that she hadn’t given much thought to the season. Christmas had always been her favorite holiday—that is, until she and Daniel had broken up last year just a few days before the special day had arrived. She stole a look in his direction. He was still as attractive as ever, with dark hair in a short military cut and piercing blue eyes. His features were clearly defined, and he had a strong jaw and firm chin. He took good care of himself, and his athletic build showed it. She wondered if he still ran five miles every morning the way he had back when they were together. He had been on a serious health kick back then and played basketball with his squad on a regular basis. If she had to guess, she’d bet he had probably thrown himself into his exercise routines with gusto after their breakup. That had always been his way of dealing with stress or problems in his life as long as she’d known him.

      She turned, trying to push the memories away. Their relationship was over and had been for over a year. She didn’t need to be wallowing in the past; she needed to be looking forward. She wished he wasn’t here now, forcing these memories to come flooding back in the middle of this operation. Once this undercover assignment was over, she would have her pick of assignments. Maybe it would be better if she moved out of state and started over someplace where there was no possibility of ever running into him again. Yes, that was a good plan. She’d heard Florida was nice this time of year. Or maybe South Carolina near the beach...

      The phone rang again, bringing her out of her reverie. Terrell nodded at her, tacitly giving her permission to answer it. She slung her rifle to her back and walked over to the phone, then picked up the receiver.

      “Hello,” she answered.

      “Your man is doing well,” Sergeant Michaels stated.

      “Good to know,” Bethany answered.

      “Can your boss come to the phone now?”

      Bethany looked toward the back of the bank, but there had been no news from the vault. She assumed the rest of the robbers were still working on opening it. “Nope.”

      “Well, I need to get the rest of those hostages out of there before someone else gets hurt. What can I do to help move this along?”

      “Sit tight and wait,” she replied caustically. “We’ll be out of your hair soon enough.”

      Sergeant Michaels seemed undaunted. “You have eighteen hostages. What would it take to get you to release ten of them?” Bethany’s gut tightened. She wanted the people out of danger, but she worried about moving forward with the negotiations without Jackson’s approval. He was already going to be upset that J.P. was gone. He might get even angrier if she went in the back to talk to him and interrupted his work while he was trying to open the vault. Jackson was usually a benevolent leader, but he was sometimes hard to read, and she never knew what was going to set him off. When he did get angry, his actions were often unexpected and violent. This robbery had already gone down a road they hadn’t expected. She suddenly found herself in an uncomfortable position but didn’t know quite how to get out of it.

      Lost in thought, Bethany didn’t answer, so Sergeant Michaels pushed forward. “Look, Bonnie. You probably realize we have an entry team ready to roll. We also have snipers in place, but we don’t want to use force. We want this to end peacefully. Tell me what I need to do to make that happen.”

      Bethany was stuck. She knew that if she didn’t give Sergeant Michaels something, it was going to push law enforcement into acting sooner than they wanted them to, and Jackson apparently needed more time to work on the vault. Michaels was also right about one thing. If the robbers and the police did have a confrontation, more violence was going to erupt. “Alright. We got in here before we ate lunch, and now you’ve got us freezing because you turned off the heat. Turn the heat back on and send in some pizzas, and I’ll give you five hostages. That’s the deal, and it’s not negotiable.” She hung up, trying to stay in character. Terrell was watching her every move, and the last thing she wanted was to make him suspicious. Too late, she realized Terrell’s eyes had narrowed and his back had stiffened. He was angry once again.

      “You’re giving away hostages? Who put you in charge?” He stood and walked toward her, his stance threatening. Had she blown her cover, or was he just angry about her involving the hostages? A sliver of fear went down her spine as she replayed the words she’d spoken in her mind. Little details mattered in undercover work. One slip and it could mean her life. She knew that a single misstep or, even in some circles, mispronunciation could set off alarm bells, and she couldn’t afford to have even little finger cymbals going off. She needed to be constantly without any suspicion whatsoever.

      “First you give them J.P., and now you’re giving them five more? Why? What’s wrong with you?”

      “Hey,” she answered defensively, staying in character. “You’re the one who told me to answer the phone. I’m just following your instructions and keeping the cops busy while we get into that vault, and I don’t want to go back to the vault and interrupt them in the middle of their work either. If you want to talk to the guy on the phone instead of me, be my guest. They’re threatening to bust in here with an assault team, not to mention taking potshots at us with snipers. Feel free to start negotiating with them instead of me any time you want. I’m just trying to buy the boss enough time to get the job done.”

      Terrell stopped a few steps away from her, his weapon held tightly in his hands. “No one put you in charge,” he said, his tone deceptively soft and threatening. “You shouldn’t be giving those cops anything. Jackson said our job was just to keep the hostages quiet. That’s it. Now, because of you, J.P. has been arrested and you’ve got someone coming in here delivering pizza. Did you order extra cheese?” Now his voice was dripping with sarcasm.

      “The boss didn’t know the police were going to threaten to burst in, or that J.P. was going to get shot. Now he’s alive because of me. Don’t forget that,” she said, straightening and meeting his eye.

      “Yeah, well, I would have just let him die. For all we know, he’s out there singing like a bird, giving them a complete list of our members including birth dates and shoe sizes. You’ve put this job in jeopardy.” He took a step closer. “You put the organization in jeopardy.”

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