Summer with a SEAL

by Makenna Jameison

  “Jacob,” she said, letting out a small sob.

  Instantly he was on full alert. “What’s wrong?” he asked, suddenly all business. “Are you okay?”

  “I’m locked in a bank vault,” she said, choking out the words. “A man with a gun locked us in here. I’m scared!”

  His heart thumped in his chest as adrenaline began to race through him. “Are you at the bank being robbed?” he asked, his voice steel. “We just got an alert on base about a robbery in progress downtown.”

  The others stopped what they were doing as he turned back. Ryker started putting his boots back on, ready to move. Hunter slammed his own locker shut.

  “I was standing in line when the guy at the counter pulled out a gun. He let a woman with her two kids go, but I’m locked in the vault with three other people.”

  “Is the robber still there?” Jacob asked, his mind racing through a million different possibilities. Were they being held hostage? Locked in there simply to be kept out of the way?

  “I guess. We heard sirens coming, so he locked us in here. I don’t know if he could’ve escaped since the police were arriving.”

  “Holy hell,” Jacob muttered. “I’m coming over there,” he said, his voice deadly.

  “Jacob, I’m so sorry,” she choked out. “I got scared last night, and now I’ll probably never see you again. I’m trapped in here and—” Her voice cut off as she let out another sob.

  “Don’t say that,” he admonished. “Don’t cry. Of course you’ll see me again. Last night we had a fight, but I was planning to come over tonight to talk. I’m not giving up on us that easy, angel. Don’t be scared. I’m coming to get you right now.”

  “But you’ll get shot! He was shooting at the ceiling, and one of the bank tellers thinks he has explosives.”

  “The police are already there. SWAT is probably on the scene as well. The guys and I will head over. Colton’s an explosives expert. We can help the police when we arrive.”

  “Oh God, I just—I can’t believe this is happening. I almost went out to the ATM, but I thought this would be safer.”

  Regret churned through him. He’d told her not to use the ATM—to go directly inside the bank. Fucking hell. If she’d gone to the ATM like usual, she would’ve been fine. She could’ve been safe in his arms right now, far away from harm.

  “I’m coming, angel,” he told her. “I know you’re scared, but sit tight. Don’t do anything stupid. If he comes back in there, make sure no one causes any trouble. Do what he says, and I’ll be there soon.”

  “Okay Jacob. I’m sorry.”

  “Don’t be sorry. Be safe. I’m on my way, angel. Text me updates. I don’t want you to burn through your battery too quickly from inside the vault. But text me and let me know what’s happening.”

  “Okay,” she whispered. “Bye.”

  He ended the call, sliding his phone into his pocket. He grabbed his KA-BAR and sidearm, slamming his own locker shut. He was in camo pants, combat boots, and a tee shirt, but at the moment, he wasn’t about to stop and change. Jessica needed him. And the idea of her in harm’s way wasn’t something he was willing to tolerate. If something happened to Jess, he’d never forgive himself. Never.

  JESSICA SANK DOWN ONTO the ground of the bank vault, leaning against the cold wall. The two tellers were conferring with one another, talking on a cell phone they’d somehow smuggled in, and the man in a business suit was trying to call his wife. He finally gave up and began to text her instead.

  “Thanks for letting me use your phone,” he said, his face grim. “I’ve got a new baby at home—only three months old.”

  “I’m sorry,” she said, her eyes welling.

  “Of all the days I pick to come to the bank,” he muttered. “I thought I’d quick swing by on my lunch break—you know, get home sooner tonight to see my wife and baby.”

  He resumed texting, and Jessica stared at the wall. What was she to anyone? She was nobody’s wife or mother. Of course, her own family would be devastated if something happened to her. Her friends would be upset. But it wasn’t like she had children or someone depending on her if this was the end.

  She hadn’t even thought twice as she’d called Jacob though. Her best friends wouldn’t know what to do—they’d just panic. Cry right along with her. She’d text them soon, when she took a few deep breaths and got her wits about her.

  Just hearing Jacob’s deep voice had soothed her. He hadn’t even hesitated; he’d just instantly said he’d be there. After the way she’d broken things off with him last night, she wouldn’t have blamed him if he didn’t even take her call—if he’d gone about with his day and not given her a second thought.

  But he had answered the phone. And he was coming.

  She swiped a stray tear that rolled down her cheek, taking her phone back from the man. It buzzed a moment later, and she stared at it, blinking.

  Ryker’s going to wait at the beach house with Michelle and Amy.

  The guys and I are on our way.

  She sniffled, thankful her friends wouldn’t be alone. Maybe it would be better if Ryker told them what was happening. She’d managed to mostly hold it together when talking to Jacob, but with them she would probably just fall apart.

  Typing a response back to Jacob, she pressed send.

  I’m really scared.

  Her phone buzzed almost immediately.

  I’m coming, angel. Just hang on a little longer.

  I won’t let anything happen to you.

  Blowing out a shaky breath, she set her phone on her lap, her hands trembling. Of course he’d do everything in his power to protect her—that’s the kind of man that Jacob was. That’s how all the guys were. But he wasn’t here with her. And just like the police were waiting outside, soon he would be as well.

  If the robber came into the vault to kill them or blew the bank up with whatever explosives he had, they wouldn’t be able to stop him.

  The first teller glanced over at them. “We were on the phone with the bank manager. She’s on her way over, too. Hopefully she can help the police figure out the best way inside.”

  “Does she know anything about what’s happening out there?” Jessica asked.

  The second woman answered. “They’re trying to establish communication with the robber. Apparently he’s not picking up the phone. He was pacing around inside but now is out of sight of any windows.”

  “Too bad,” the businessman said dryly. “They could’ve taken him out.”

  “Yeah. The police were just getting into position.”

  “Maybe he’ll mess up and stand by the windows again,” Jessica hedged. “I mean, he led us all into that office with a window. Maybe he’ll start looking around for a way to escape and get too close.”

  “We can only hope,” the first woman said. “They’re trying to make contact to negotiate with him. It looked like he had some explosives in that bag he had with him. I don’t know anything about that type of thing, but I hope he doesn’t blow us all up doing something stupid.”

  “What’d he need explosives for?” Jessica asked. “You let him in the vault—did he even take anything?”

  “Nope,” the man said, shaking his head. “Just the money from the tellers.”

  Jessica frowned. “You’d think anyone robbing a bank would want to take as much money as they could.”

  “Was he trying to get into the safe deposit boxes?” the man asked.

  One of the tellers shrugged. “Maybe. They require two keys though—so even if we attempted to open one for him, if he didn’t have the other key, he’d never be able to get into it.”

  “Unless he blew it up,” the man said.

  “Yeah, but then wouldn’t he blow up whatever was inside?” Jessica asked. “That seems like a risky move.” She glanced down at her phone again, willing Jacob to text her. It was silly. He was busy driving here, trying to help her. But seeing his text earlier had stopped the frantic beating of her heart.

  Would she
ever get to tell him how much he meant to her?

  Suddenly, Jessica jumped as she heard a gunshot outside of the vault. Fear sent chills racing down her spine. “Was someone else in the bank?” she asked frantically. “Or is that the robber just randomly shooting at stuff?”

  “Maybe the police shot him,” one of the women said hopefully, turning toward the door of the vault. “The police could’ve gotten a good angle.”

  “It sounded close though,” the man said. “They would’ve had to shoot him from inside the bank. Wouldn’t we know if they were in here?”

  “What if he comes back inside the vault?” Jessica asked. “Do you have the only key? We should all get to the side to try and stop him in case he’s trying to shoot his way in.”

  “Yeah,” the businessman said, standing up. “If he’s going to shoot us anyway, we might as well go down fighting.”

  One of the women burst into sobs, and the other tried to comfort her. Jessica stood up and moved toward the door. “We don’t even know what’s happening,” she said. “He could’ve just fired at random.”

  Taking a deep breath, she marveled at how Jacob and his SEAL team did this sort of thing for a living. How did they fight enemies they couldn’t see? Or risk their lives charging into unknown territory? They did lockdown drills at the high school she taught at, but it was nothing compared to a situation like this. Here she was locked in a bank vault, and she’d never been more terrified in her life.

  Her phone buzzed, and she fumbled with it a moment, finally glancing down at the screen.

  We’re here, angel.

  The robber has rigged the front door to the bank with explosives.

  No one can enter from there.

  “Jesus Christ,” she said.

  “What happened?” the man asked, glancing over at her. “What’s going on out there?”

  “The front door is wired with explosives,” Jessica explained. “A friend of mine just got here with his team.”

  “Is he a cop?”

  “Military. Same with his friends. They all came to try to help the police.”

  The others nodded, looking worried, and she quickly texted Jacob.

  We just heard a gunshot outside the vault.

  Her phone buzzed with his response.

  I’ll update the police.

  The entire building is surrounded.

  Sighing, she glanced toward the door again. They hadn’t heard anything since the lone gunshot. If the robber was trying to get back inside the vault, he’d done a bad job of it. But what if someone had come in through a back door?

  “How many exits are there in the bank?” she asked the women.

  “There’s a back entrance,” one of them said. “It’s an emergency exit with a fire alarm, so if anyone tries to come in or out, it should sound.”

  “They probably already know that,” Jessica mused. “Maybe he’ll just...give up.”

  “Or blow us all up,” the man said. “How many explosives were in that bag?”

  One of the women shook her head. “I don’t know. I saw some wires in there—I mean, I have no idea how powerful something like that is.”

  Jessica texted Jacob again.

  We think the robber has explosives in his bag.

  One of the tellers saw a bunch of wires.

  Her phone buzzed with Jacob’s response.

  SWAT is talking about entering through an office window.

  We don’t want him to blow the entire bank up.

  Jessica sniffled, a tear running down her cheek. It was unnerving sitting inside the vault. They couldn’t see what was happening. Couldn’t escape. She should’ve just made a run for it when she heard the very first gunshot.

  Are you okay, angel?

  She tried calling him from her cell phone, praying that it went through. They had spotty reception inside the vault.

  “Hey, are you all right?” Jacob asked in a low voice. She could hear other men talking around him and the sound of sirens as more emergency vehicles arrived.

  “I’m scared. What’s going on out there?”

  Jacob cleared his throat. “SWAT is planning to breach the building, entering through the side windows or back door. The front doors are wired, and we don’t know what he’s laying down now. Their goal is to get everyone out safely.”

  She didn’t respond, just took a few deep breaths.

  “Angel?” he asked, his voice husky.

  “I’m here. I’m just scared.”

  “Don’t be scared. The police want to handle things, but I swear to God I’m going in with the SWAT team. I’m going to be the first person you see when we open the vault.”

  “I think the bank tellers in here with me have the key. And there’s some sort of code.”

  “The bank manager is here,” he assured her. “She told us how to access the vault. We’re more concerned about the robber than not being able to get you out. The building is surrounded. But if he’s got explosives, that takes this entire scenario to a whole other playing field.”

  “Did Ryker make it to the beach house?” she asked.

  “He did. Everyone’s fine there. Michelle and Amy wanted to rush to the bank to be here for you, but Ryker convinced them to stay put.”

  “God—Jacob—what if I don’t get out?”

  “You’ll get out, sweetheart. I won’t let him hurt a single hair on your head even if I have to tear down every damn wall myself. Listen, we’re going to move in soon, so I’ve got to go. Stay away from the door in the vault just in case he tries anything crazy.”

  “He locked us in here,” she protested. “Why would he try to get back inside?”

  A beat passed.

  “He might decide to try harming hostages. The police arrived before he could escape. He could just say ‘to hell with it’ and try blowing the whole place up. We don’t know what kind of explosives he has. Don’t get near the door. The vault is thick metal. It’d be hard as hell to destroy it. As crazy as it sounds, you’re safer in there right now than out in the bank.”

  “Okay,” she said, taking a shaky breath. “I’ll make sure to stand back. I’ll see you soon.”

  “You sure the hell will, angel. I’m not leaving this bank without you in my arms.”

  The call ended, and Jessica stared at her phone. Would Jacob be okay? She looked around the vault at the others. Despite the best efforts of the police and SWAT and SEAL teams, it was possible none of them would be getting out of this alive.

  Chapter 21

  JACOB SCANNED THE PERIMETER of the bank, scowling. The teams were getting into position, tactical gear on and weapons drawn. He wished like hell he’d grabbed some of his gear from base. Showing up in a tee shirt and combat boots didn’t offer him much protection. Not that he’d let that stop him from getting his girl.

  “What are you thinking?” Hunter asked as he came to a stop beside him, narrowing his gaze.

  “I just spoke with the police chief. SWAT is planning to breach the building from the back entrance. They’re disabling the alarms now, although I’m sure everyone inside will know they’re coming. We can move in from the west windows.”

  Noah raised his eyebrows. “Without all our weapons and gear? What’s your plan?”

  Jacob muttered a curse. “I don’t have a goddamn plan, but Jessica is in there and frightened. We’ve got guns. Each of us is more highly trained than that asshole holding up the place. Hell, we could take him down without weapons.”

  Hunter spat on the ground, then eyed the other men. “It doesn’t exactly go along with protocol to breach a building along with the SWAT team. You know that as well as I do. But if Emma was stuck in there, I’d be doing the same damn thing.”

  “I’m going in,” Jacob said harshly.

  “I’m in,” Noah said, looking at the others.

  “Me too,” Mason confirmed.

  Hunter nodded. “Colton’s with the explosives guys out front, assessing the situation, so it’s just us four. You clear this with the pol
ice chief?”

  Jacob nodded. “He didn’t like it but wasn’t about to stop me. I guess he knows some of the other guys from base. We wait for SWAT to enter first, and then we can move in. We’ll have to smash through the windows, but hell. We’ve done a lot worse.”

  He pulled out schematics of the bank and showed it to the other men. “This is where the vault is located,” he said in a low voice, pointing to it on the diagram. “We’ll be going in from this set of windows. SWAT will come from the back and disarm or take out the suspect, but we’re going straight for Jessica and the other hostages. Don’t go near the front of the building.”

  A police officer brought over four bulletproof vests for the SEALs. “Chief said you guys needed these?”

  “I appreciate it,” Jacob said with a nod, taking them from him. “My girlfriend is in there. There’s no way in hell I’m waiting out here.”

  “Understood,” the officer said, grabbing his walkie-talkie as someone asked for an update.

  Jacob put his bulletproof vest on, double-checking the KA-BAR strapped to his leg. It felt weird as hell to be moving in without all his SEAL gear. The minimal preparations would have to do though. Nothing was stopping him from getting to his girl.

  Hunter cocked his head the other way after the rest of the team put on their gear. “Then let’s roll. We won’t be able to communicate with SWAT or each other. Let’s hope this ends quickly.”

  “Roger that,” Jacob said, and the men began jogging to the west side of the building. Snipers were perched atop office buildings nearby, and the other police who’d arrived had maintained a safe perimeter. The SEALs moved through the police vehicles, crouching down as they readied to breach the building from the side.

  “What’s the last known location of the robber?” Noah asked in a low voice.

  “Unknown,” Hunter replied. “When SWAT enters the building, they’ll take him out. We can move straight toward the vault where Jessica is being held.”

  Jacob swiped his brow, adrenaline pumping through his veins. The sounds of everything else around him began to fade, just like when he was on a mission, and his gaze narrowed on the windows in front of him.