to be in their mid-thirties, clean, middle-class. As a cop, Mick automatically took in everyone and everything. He’d already noted the two salesladies, the older couple looking at cocktail rings for an anniversary. He picked up on actions and quiet dialogue and expressions.
Caution was as basic to him as breathing. And because he wasn’t a civilian, wasn’t oblivious, he immediately detected the sudden charge in the air despite the nonthreatening scene and apparently ordinary people. It had come in like the wind with the men, and Mick didn’t like it worth a damn. He had a keen sixth sense, and he trusted it more than he trusted appearances.
The woman looked up, around, made brief eye contact with the two men who’d entered, then again with Mick. Their gazes locked and held for an instant, an instant that made his gut clench with awareness. She gave him a small smile, a simple, friendly smile that nonetheless heightened his tension, before she turned away again.
Senses on alert, Mick followed her, not too close, in no way obvious, but keeping her within reach. Because the shop was small and crowded with displays, the air thick and humid from the rain outside, he could detect her scent. It was earthy and rich, warm woman, damp skin and clean female sweat. His heart punched hard, a little fast; his sex thickened. He’d been too long without a woman, too long without any sexual relief. Sometimes being a contrary bastard was a real pain.
Her wet running shoes squeaked on the ceramic tile floor as she browsed, appearing to study the shop, not just the wares but the structure, the setup. Mick frowned as he watched her, further intrigued and a little distracted. Out of the corner of his eye he saw one of the men reach into his jacket pocket, and a silent alarm screamed inside Mick’s head.
He jerked around, but not quickly enough.
“Everyone stay still and calm.” The guy waved a SIG Sauer .45 around the room with menacing intent. “No one panic or do anything stupid,” he said with a sneer, “and I won’t have to kill anyone.”
Damn, damn, damn. Mick took a quick, inconspicuous glance around. The elderly woman, clinging to her husband, looked ready to faint, while the salespeople stood motionless, frozen in horror. His movements so slight that no one paid him any mind, Mick edged closer to the woman he’d followed. She stared at the gunman, her blue eyes darker now with fascination, but he saw no real fear.
“We’ll do our business,” the guy in the ball cap said, “and then leave and no one will be hurt.”
Mick didn’t buy it for a second; the words sounded far too rehearsed, far from sincere. And there was an anticipatory expression on the man’s face.
Things never worked out the easy way—not life, not love, sure as hell not an armed robbery.
The second man hitched his gun at the saleswoman. “You, come open the register and make it quick.”
She balked, more out of surprise than rebellion. Mick had a similar sensation. They were surrounded by diamonds and gold of unbelievable value, yet this idiot wanted what little cash might be in the register? The robber had to realize that most sales would be handled with credit cards or checks; his demand didn’t make sense.
Mick’s hands twitched. He wanted to grab his gun; he wanted to be in control. Right now, control meant keeping everyone alive. It meant keeping her alive.
Without warning, the man who’d issued the order shouted, “Now, goddamn it!” and everyone jumped, the saleslady screeching and stumbling over her own feet as she rushed to obey.
A predictable panic reaction, Mick thought, to the threat of sudden violence, not something a robber intent on keeping things calm would have instigated. Mick’s suspicions rose.
The older woman quietly wept, one saleslady turned white, the other shook so badly she had a hard time working the register. Before she could get it open, distant sirens broke the quiet, making both men curse hotly. Mick tensed, waiting for another outburst, for them to turn and run, for them to retaliate by shooting the saleslady. He’d learned early on that criminals did the most absurd and unaccountable things, often causing death without reason. He prepared himself for any reaction.
But what they did took him totally by surprise.
They didn’t yell, didn’t run. They focused their blame on the young woman next to Mick.
“Bitch,” the guy in the ball cap snarled. “You set off an alarm.”
Startled, she blinked, looked around, backed up two paces. “No,” she breathed. It was the first time Mick had heard her voice, which quaked with fear, bewilderment. “I don’t even know where—”
The man took aim at her and, without thinking, Mick blocked his path. Both gunmen froze at his audacity. He felt the woman’s small hands against his back, clutching at his jacket. He felt her face press into his shoulder, was aware of her accelerated breathing, her trembling. She was deathly afraid, and anger surged in his blood.
His voice as low and calm as he could make it, Mick said, “She’s a customer. She doesn’t know where the alarm is.”
He was ignored.
“Everybody get down!” As the guy in the ball cap yelled his order, a car screeched up in front of the shop, motor idling. The customers all dropped to the floor, panicked, including the woman at Mick’s back. He felt her jerky movements, could hear her panting in terror.
Mick moved more slowly, his mind churning as he tried to buy himself some time. If he could get his gun… His elbow touched the woman’s wrist, he was so close to her. She, like the others, had stretched out flat, covering her head with her arms, shaking. Mick kept himself balanced on his elbows, ready to move, watching without appearing to watch.
The sudden shattering of glass—again and again as each case was destroyed—caused the older woman to wail, the saleslady to whimper. The woman next to Mick never made a sound. He wanted to look at her, to somehow reassure her, but he didn’t dare take his attention off those weapons. The two men grabbed a few large items of jewelry, but it was as if they destroyed the store just for the sake of destruction.
It was by far the most pathetic, disorganized and unproductive robbery Mick had ever witnessed—and that made him more suspicious than anything else might have. By rights, they should have known where the most valuable items would be, and should have concentrated their sticky fingers there. Instead, they seemed to take whatever was at hand without thought to its worth. No one robbed a jewelry store without casing it first, without knowing what would be found inside and where.
The two men finally headed for the door. The tension tightened, grew painful, static crowding the air until it seemed impossible to breathe—and the bastard in the ball cap turned to fire.
Mick moved so fast, he barely had the thought of moving before he was over her, his arms covering her head, his muscular body completely blanketing her delicate one. Though she was tall for a woman, about five-nine, she was small boned and felt fragile to his six-three frame. He was plenty big enough, and more than determined enough, to be her protection.
She gasped at the feel of him on top of her and immediately stiffened, forcing her head up, twisting. “No! What are you doing?”
He jammed her head back down, then cursed when her cheek hit the hard tile floor. Knowing what she likely thought and wishing he could spare her, Mick said into her ear, “Be still.”
She wiggled more furiously, trying to free herself, confused
