Page 38 of Special Agent Murphy

Chapter Twenty-five

Kayti had noticed as the night passed that Murphy always praised others, and they treated him with respectful deference. It mattered. Made him a better agent, and one day, a good boss.

She stared out her window, saw they were passing Vinnie’s store and noticed something strange. The Christmas lights weren’t lit and the enter sign had been turned off, yet the store lights inside glowed faintly, revealing his shadow behind the counter. He’d said they were open 24/7.

Not willing to have Murphy rolling his eyes over her wild hunch of something out of order, she asked, “Can we stop at Vinnie’s? I need some ground coffee for the morning.”

He didn’t say anything, just pulled into the parking lot and sat waiting behind the wheel.

“I’ll only be a moment.” She stepped into the convenience store and knew instantly, she was right. Earlier, Vinnie had called her sweetie and his welcoming wink had cheered her so much. Tonight, he did neither. Sweat rode his cheeks and dripped off his chin. She could smell his fear and wasn’t sure if it was for him or her.

“Shit, Vinnie. Sorry. I left my wallet in the car; I’ll be right back.”

Now totally convinced there was trouble in the store, she grinned, winked and turned to leave.

That’s when the gun in her back pushed into her ribs.

“Jesus, kid, take it easy before you hurt someone.” She could see the menace in the mirror over the door, and her stomach dropped. He couldn’t have been more than thirteen or fourteen. Nervous as hell, the red surrounding the pupils in his eyes made her wonder if it was fear or some crap he’d used to string him so far out.

Could be his brain cells were occupied with a high so crazy, he ran on pure adrenalin fired by some shit he had no business even knowing it existed. “I’ll do whatever you want.” She slowly raised her hands so they could be clearly seen in the window.

“You tell that old fuck to give me his money, or I’ll shoot.”

“Shoot who?”

“Whaddaya mean, who?”

“Well, if you’re going to shoot me, I might have to stop you. But if you want to shoot him, I’ll get you the money and wave you on your way.”

She couldn’t believe the ruse worked. The kid was loco. He stepped to the side of her and aimed at Vinnie, leaving his gun exposed and close enough for her to reach out and pull the rubber toy out of his hands. “Sorry, kid. Real guns don’t bend when they’re shoved in someone’s back.”

Before she could add more, another voice interrupted. “Then it’s a bloody good thing this baby is real.” She looked into the eyes of a killer, and her heart wriggled inside, trying to find a hiding place.

“Ahh, sending in a kid to do a man’s job. Not smart.”

“Yeah, well they won’t throw him in jail if he gets caught, will they. Stupid shit never could do anything right.” He slammed a kick in the kid’s side, driving him to the floor. Twisted into a fetal position – no doubt a position he spent a lot of time in with an old man like this lowlife – the youngster began to beg. “Ow, Dad, don’t.”

Vinnie spoke up, his voice wavering at first and then strengthening. “Leave the kid alone. I’ll give you the cash. Then the both of you get out.”

Suddenly, the thief with the gun spotted Kayti’s phone held in her hand and hissed his command, “Give me that.”

“What?”

“Don’t play bullshit games, lady. Give me that phone.”

She handed it over, hoping the 911 call she’d been placing had been the right numbers.

He snatched it from her hand and stuck it inside his jacket. Then he turned to the boy. “Get up, you idiot. Grab the cash.”

Maybe if she hadn’t seen the bruises already decorating the boy or heard the hiccup that broke loose, she’d have played it safe and waited for Murphy to get through from the back.

But this kind of abuse from a father to a son burned away every bit of her training. Just as the foot came back for a second aim, she grabbed the six-pack of Diet Coke on a rack close by. Grasping the wrist holding the gun – to make sure his aim, should he pull the trigger, wouldn’t hit Vinnie – she swung. When the Coke hit the side of his head, he shook it off.

When she went to deck him again, he pushed her so hard he drove her against one of the displays, and she landed on her backside.

Grabbing the kid’s arm, he dragged him off the floor. Kayti tried to stop him from taking the kid, and his fist connected with her ribs. That’s when father hauling son flew out the front door.

Vinnie swore, but not louder than Murphy, who’d taken the time to break in through the back. Not wanting to threaten the perp into doing something drastic, like shooting Vinnie or Kayti, he knew getting the drop on the guy was the best plan, until fucking Superwoman pulled her stunt. He rushed over to Kayti, his furious expression scary.

“Are you hurt?” He lifted her up as if she weighed less than a kitten. “Lady, you’re a disaster just waiting to happen. No matter where you go, crazy shit follows.”

Almost in tears, bruised and feeling sorry for herself, she weakly hid her face against his chest.

“Don’t you be mean to my little friend,” Vinnie broke into Murphy’s scolding. “She saved my life and tried to protect the boy from getting kicked again.”

Oncoming siren’s screamed. Seconds later, flashing lights appeared outside the building. Murphy looked over at Vinnie. “You got an alarm button back there?”

“Nope, but I’m thinking to follow my son’s advice and get proper security. Modern toys today scare me, but I guess it’s time.” Vinnie pointed to Kayti and in a boastful way he admitted, “She called 911 before that bastard took her phone. I saw her fingers push the buttons when she had her hands up over her head.”

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