Page 20 of Deadly Hacker

“What the hell is going on?” Rad demanded to know.

“Robbery-turned-potential hostage situation,” Finley sighed. “There’s a gunman in Saguaro Bank, keeping several people trapped with him in the lobby. Snipers are trying to get a scope on him, but he knows how to avoid the cameras and windows. He’s firing like crazy, but I think he’s more organized than anyone expected.”

“COME OUTSIDE NOW WITH YOUR HANDS UP!” shouted the hostage negotiator.

“Yeah, that’ll be effective,” Rad scoffed.

Another three shots rang out, followed by a chorus of panicked screams.

Rad and Finley instinctively ducked down. “So the bank is his main target. Where are the others? Staff members? Clients?” he asked.

Finley shrugged. “We can’t get a visual of the upper floors. 911 is flooding with calls from people in the area reporting the gunshots, but there have been a couple calls from inside the building. Someone who works in the gym up top.”

“The gym? Was it a woman named Emma Jean Porter?” Rad pressed.

“No, a man named… what was it? Michael? Miguel?” Finley recalled.

“Shit,” Rad muttered. “Has he released any hostages yet?”

“No. Our guy is doing more threatening than negotiating. It’s not going well,” the officer admitted.

Just then, the front doors of the bank flew open with a bang. All eyes were on the young woman who came stumbling out, clutching her obviously pregnant belly. EMTs swarmed around her, helping her onto a stretcher to carry her to an ambulance.

Rad and Officer Finley took off after them while the police continued to watch the entrance. Finley flashed his badge at the paramedic, and he let them into the back of the ambulance. Rad knelt at the woman’s side and took her hand. She was shocked to see an extraordinarily handsome stranger peering down at her.

“Ma’am, are you okay?” he asked gently.

“I-I think so. But my baby; I’m worried about him,” she whimpered. “I’m almost thirty-four weeks.”

“The paramedics will take excellent care of you and your little one. Everything is going to be all right. I promise,” Rad told her. “Can you tell me what it’s like in there?”

The woman frowned. “Horrible. Terrifying.”

“Are there any casualties?” asked Finley.

She shook her head. “Not yet. But there are some injuries. That bastard has no regard for human life,” she spat.

“He did releaseyou,” Finley pointed out, rather unhelpfully.

The woman glared at him. “The negotiator said the snipers would hold fire if he agreed to release two hostages.”

Rad filled in, “Two in one.”

“Is he playing around?” asked the officer.

Rad nodded. “Mind games. He’s technically playing by the rules while still fucking with the negotiator’s headandprobably humanizing himself in any media coverage.”

“They’ll have more empathy for a guy who let a pregnant woman go free,” said Finley.

“Exactly,” said Rad. “He’s crazy, but he’s methodical.”

“I need to monitor her,” the EMT interjected.

“Of course. Thank you. Take care,” Rad said, ducking out of the ambulance with Finley close behind. The mustachioed cop struggled to keep up as Rad hurried toward the complex.

“Where are you going?” Finley asked.

“I won’t wait for the cops to work this out,” Rad replied, whipping out his cell phone.

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