Page 46 of Summer with a SEAL

Cruising down the road heading toward the busy boardwalk section of the beach along Atlantic Avenue, she turned right, deciding to run a few errands. She hadn’t even had a plan when she left—she just knew she needed to get out of there.

Pulling into the parking lot at the bank a few minutes later, she climbed out of her convertible and gazed across the lot at the ATM. There’d been no more updates on the robbery from last weekend, but deciding to play it safe, she walked to the front doors instead. There was no sense in risking getting robbed at the ATM when she could just as easily go inside.

Pulling open the door, she walked across the mostly empty bank lobby. A man was speaking to the lone teller in hushed tones. A woman was in line with her two young kids, one sitting in a stroller, and a businessman in a suit stood behind her.

Jessica got in line behind them both, checking a text on her phone from Amy.

We’re going out tonight! No sense moping around over a guy.

The guy at the counter seemed to be taking a while, and Jessica sighed, glancing toward the front windows. Maybe she should just go outside and use the ATM. It was the middle of the day; plenty of people were around. What were the chances that the robber would show up the moment she was using the ATM?

She watched as traffic drove by outside, when suddenly, a loud gunshot cracked through the air, and she screamed, dropping to the tile ground.

The man standing at the teller fired two more shots at the ceiling as everyone in line crouched down, and the kids with their mom began to cry. Jessica shoved her cell phone into the pocket of her shorts with shaking hands, trying to hide it from view.

“Nobody move!” the robber shouted as she began to crawl away. “Do exactly as I say, and no one will get hurt.”

She exchanged a look with the man in front of her, who had also dropped to the ground, but he looked completely terrified, too.

“Stuff it all in bags!” the bank robber shouted to the teller. “And don’t put any of those ink things in there either—I want my money unmarked!”

Jessica’s heart pounded, icy cold dread snaking down her spine. She felt frozen in place, like she couldn’t even run if she wanted to. She took a deep breath, trying to calm her rattled nerves. It was too cold in here. Too sterile. She couldn’t die in the lobby of a bank. She had her entire life ahead of her.

Tears welled in her eyes as the man herded them off to the side, grabbing their purses and demanding the businessman empty his pockets. He didn’t seem to notice the cell phone in hers, and she trembled, kneeling down by the wall as he instructed right beside the woman with kids.

“My kids, my kids!” the mother sobbed. “Please just let us go.”

“Not a word!” he shouted, his face reddening in anger. He aimed the gun at the woman, and Jessica’s heart stopped. Surely he wouldn’t shoot the mother of two innocent young children, would he?

He glanced back at the teller. “Faster, faster!” he yelled at her. “Why the hell is this taking so long?”

Sirens sounded in the distance, and he muttered a string of curses. “You stupid bitch! Now all of you are going to die.”

Jessica held her hands up, completely terrified.

“Into the back room!” he demanded. “And get rid of those damn kids—I can’t take their screaming.”

The woman looked to the entrance and back at him.

“Go! Just go!” he shouted. “Before I fucking shoot one of them.”

Crying as she grabbed her child, the woman began rushing toward the front door with the other in a stroller. Jessica, the businessman, bank teller, and another teller who’d been working in the back were pushed into an office.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck!” the robber yelled. He snatched a bag of cash from the teller, muttering to himself. “What good is all this money going to do if I’m in jail? Huh? Tell me that!”

Jessica’s eyes widened as she saw the window in the office. This was too easy. He’d lock them in, and they could climb right out. She didn’t care what happened to the robber as long as the rest of them got safely out.

The sound of sirens grew louder outside.

“This is never going to work!” the robber shouted, eyeing the window. “Open the vault. All of you are going in there.”

“I need the key!” the first teller said, holding onto a key draped around her neck. “It’s a key and code to enter.”

“I don’t care what you need, just open the damn thing! Everyone, move!”

The phone began ringing on the desk, and Jessica glanced at it, knowing if someone answered, they’d have a real connection to the outside world. They’d have an actual chance of escaping this alive.

“Go! Now!” the robber screamed.

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