Stand Off

by Jamie Begley

  Lonnie deserved to be fired. She didn’t feel the least bit guilty for it. With his ties to the Predators, it would place him with too much power. He would be able to provide all kinds of illegal services for them, and Casey wasn’t going to stand back and watch it happen by turning a blind eye.

  She sighed. Max was going to be furious, and they hadn’t been together for several days. She missed having him in her bed. It was too big and lonely without him. When she left Queen City, she would leave the bed behind, just like everything else.

  * * *

  Max tapped his knuckles on the desk. “Hurry up.”

  As soon as the papers were placed in front of him for his signature, he signed them then was given his wallet and cell phone. His lawyer took the paperwork from him as they walked outside into the hot day.

  “Try to stay out of trouble,” Creed advised. “At least until I can get these charges dropped. Did you have to kick his ass in front of so many witnesses?”

  “I lost my temper.”

  “If I can’t find something on his parents or him, you’re going to do some time, Max.”

  “You’ll find out something. You always do,” Max said indifferently. If he went to jail for a few months, it was worth it.

  “Ice will fire me if I don’t. I’ll call you when I find out the court date,” Creed said, going to his car. “I’ll drop you off at the clubhouse.”

  Max got in the front seat. He was halfway to the clubhouse when his phone rang.

  “Yeah?” he answered.

  “Where are you?”

  Max instantly recognized KC’s voice.

  “On the way back to the clubhouse. Why?”

  “You still seeing that chick from the bank?”

  “Yes.”

  “The Bandits are hitting the bank at closing time today.”

  “You couldn’t have given us more warning?” Max yelled into the phone.

  “They didn’t tell us until an hour ago when X told us to get our weapons ready. I have to go; they’re waiting on me. I’ll do what I can to protect her.”

  “Hurry the fuck up,” Max screamed at the lawyer.

  Creed stepped on the gas, going through a red light. As soon as he stopped in the parking lot, Max jumped out of the car.

  Jackal opened the door as he drew close.

  “KC called. The Bandits are going to hit the bank at closing time.” Max looked at the clock behind the bar.

  While the brothers went for their weapons, Max ran to his bedroom, tearing up the floorboard to pull out his.

  Max heard Jackal yelling directions to the brothers then the sounds of the bikes being started. He ran out the club door, getting on his bike. Then Ice led the men out of the parking lot, their weapons hidden behind their jackets. He sped past the brothers, down the busy road, weaving through the heavy traffic.

  Max knew the Predators were going to stop the Bandits because they were pulling off a job without their permission, but he only had one purpose, and that was to make sure Casey wasn’t hurt. He owed her for taking care of Maxie. Max refused to acknowledge to himself that wasn’t the only reason, despite the fact that his heart was pumping with fear for the woman he had been fucking for the last two months.

  The Predators hadn’t forgiven her—they never would—but Max owed her his own personal debt, and he always paid his dues.

  The bank looked eerily quiet when they pulled into the parking lot behind it. Max got off his bike, striding toward the building.

  “Fuck! Max, get back here,” Ice yelled.

  He didn’t slow. Casey was inside that bank, and no one was going to stop him from getting to her. Jackal and Fade came running up behind him, trying to catch his arms.

  “Are you fucking crazy? You’re going to get yourself killed!” Jackal snarled.

  “Go back. I’m going inside.” Max went to the front of the bank and saw the cars out front; however, there was no sign of anyone coming or leaving the bank.

  He stepped forward to push the door open, expecting it to be locked, yet the door easily flew open. Max wanted to pull his gun out, but if nothing was going down, he would be creating mayhem.

  No one was sitting at the front desk as he came around the corner to find his suspicions were proven correct. The bank employees were on the floor. The Bandits had been too fucking stupid to place someone at the door. They were standing over the employees and customers with guns pointed at them.

  A chill ran through him when he saw they weren’t wearing masks. It was a clear sign they planned to take out everyone inside.

  “X, we have company!” one of the gunman yelled to the leader of the group who had Casey on her knees in front of her office.

  “Shit! I told you to watch the door, Rafe!”

  “I was until this bitch took off running.” One gunman pushed an attractive black woman toward the rest of the hostages on the floor.

  Max found several guns pointed at him.

  “I needed to make a deposit, but I guess I won’t now. Don’t want any of you fuckers taking my money.” Max’s snide voice had X leaving Casey, moving toward him.

  “We have a smart-ass who wants to die!” The barrel of a gun was pushed into his face.

  “Don’t want to die, just want to keep my money.” Max was used to playing stupid. He had learned, the dumber someone thought he was, the more they underestimated him.

  “Those two behind you want to make a deposit, too?” X asked sarcastically.

  “Fuck no. They were going to make a withdrawal.” Max groaned inwardly. He had thought Jackal and Fade had broken off when he had entered the building.

  “Rafe, lock the fucking door. You three, over there.” He motioned them toward Casey, which suited Max.

  He went to Casey, dropping down to his knees beside her. Jackal and Fade dropped down on her other side without being told.

  “I told you the Predators would show up.” One man dressed in an expensive suit came from behind the counter.

  “Lonnie, don’t do—” Casey began.

  X raised his gun, slamming it into the side of her face and knocking her into Jackal, who put an arm around her to support her weight.

  “Shut the fuck up! When I want to hear your fucking voice, I’ll tell you.”

  Max wanted to take Casey from Jackal but didn’t want to show X she meant something to him. She had a cut next to her eye which began to ooze blood.

  “Did you get the vault open?”

  “It’s on a timer.” Lonnie glanced down at his watch. “It will open in another fifteen minutes.”

  “Get them tied,” X ordered.

  While the men began zip-tying the employees and customers, X went behind their backs.

  “I’ll take care of it, X. You keep them covered.” KC stood after zip-tying a man who was lying on the floor.

  KC went behind them, and Max felt him wrap the plastic cord around his wrist, leaving enough space that, if he was careful, he could wiggle his hands free. He then moved behind Jackal and Fade, tying each of them. When he went to tie Casey’s wrists, X stopped him.

  “Leave her hands free. We’re going to need her palm print.”

  “Cop is pulling up outside!” Rafe yelled from the doorway.

  “Unlock the door and let him get inside the door before you take him down. If anyone opens their mouth, I’ll put a bullet in their head,” X warned.

  Max couldn’t see the doorway from his position, but he heard the scuffle that was taking place. The police officer was shoved toward the lobby by Rafe with a gun at the back of his head.

  “Get his weapon, KC.” X kept his gun trained on them as KC took the cop’s weapon and tied his hands behind his back.

  “Bring him here.” X motioned KC to place him beside Max. The officer was thrown to the floor. “I’m going to give you one chance to go home tonight. Call the station and tell them the bank is clear. If not, you’re going to be leaving in a body bag. You get me?”

  “Yes.” The officer was young, and
his shaky voice didn’t inspire confidence that he would be able to keep his head when all hell broke loose.

  The officer pushed a button on his shoulder. “Officer McDaniel reporting. Checked on the silent alarm. It was a code eight. All’s clear. Going on my dinner break.”

  A voice answered back, giving him a code. X pressed the gun tighter to his temple.

  “Code four.”

  “Rafe?” X questioned.

  “He told them it was a false alarm and that he’s okay.”

  “Smart move.” X removed the gun from his temple. “Get his hands tied.”

  KC tied his hands then moved back to watch the others lying on the floor.

  “Lock and watch the door.”

  Rafe went back to the front of the building.

  “Ten more minutes,” the little weasel reminded X. He reached down to grab a handful of Casey’s hair, jerking her face upward. “You stupid bitch, the Predators weren’t the only one willing to pay for my help, the Bandits and I have had this planned for weeks. We had this arranged for next weekend, but you firing me made us step our plan up before you could delete my codes.”

  “You didn’t have to shoot Jack.”

  The security guard was leaning up against the cashier station with blood coming from his shoulder.

  Lonnie shrugged. “I never could stand him, anyway. I fooled everyone but him. He was constantly watching me.”

  “You didn’t fool me, either. I knew you were dirty. No one kissed more ass than you.”

  Casey’s words enraged Lonnie. His foot struck out, kicking her in the stomach. She huddled over, gasping for breath.

  “You think you’re a big man, kicking a woman? Let’s see how brave you are with a man.”

  Lonnie turned to Max with a hate-filled expression that quickly turned to alarm when Max pulled his hands free and grabbed Lonnie’s legs, jerking them out from underneath him. The sound of a loud, meaty thunk sounded through the bank when his head hit the tiled floor.

  Then all hell broke loose.

  Chapter 21

  Casey found herself jerked to her feet by Jackal.

  “Get her behind some cover,” Max yelled.

  Casey saw Max stand, pulling his gun from behind his back and firing at X as he ran to jump over a low wall. His gun came up to fire back at Max and shattered her glass wall as Max dove behind her desk.

  Jackal shoved her back behind the cashiers’ booths, jerking his gun from behind his back then firing at the men guarding the customers who were frantically trying to escape the bullets flying around the room.

  “Stop shooting! Someone’s going to get killed!” Casey screamed.

  Jackal lowered his gun, reloading it. “They don’t plan to leave anyone alive. That’s why none of them are wearing masks,” he snarled.

  It had never entered her mind that the men would brutally kill them all whether they cooperated or not. Her frantic gaze searched for Gianna and her other employees, wanting to make sure they were okay. Many of them had managed to make it to the break room which had a steel fire door. Casey gave a relieved breath, seeing her friends were safe. The only ones still exposed were Jack and the police officer who had tried to block a bullet aimed at her.

  “We have to help them!”

  “If we try to get to them, we’ll be sitting ducks,” Fade said, taking a shot at one of X’s men.

  Casey tried to scoot behind Jackal, attempting to crawl close enough to Jack to drag him behind some cover.

  “Stay still.” Jackal jerked her back as a bullet tore through the wood by their heads.

  “Fuck!” Jackal muttered. Taking her arm, he dragged her backward to a door. Casey felt the carpet burning her skin as she was pulled along the carpet. “If we get out of here alive, I’m going to kill Max myself.”

  Fade dived headfirst into the back room as two of the Bandits came around the side of the booths.

  Casey screamed as she was roughly shoved through the doorway with Jackal falling on top of her. Fade slammed the door closed. The sound of bullets hitting the door had Casey placing her hands over her head.

  “This door isn’t going to hold them for long.”

  “If we can get to the vault room, we’ll be safe in there as long as Lonnie doesn’t wake up,” Casey said shakily.

  “Lead the way, then. Another minute and we’re all dead if they get inside.” Fade flinched as another round of bullets hit the door.

  “Go now!” Jackal yelled when the gunshots stopped.

  The three of them crawled along the floor toward the vault room where Casey rose to her knees to key in the code to open the metal door. Once inside, they slammed it closed. The vault light was blinking green, so Casey hastily placed her hand on the lit screen, and the metal door slowly started to open.

  “Thank God!” Casey said, jumping up to run inside as they heard kicks on the wooden door from the room they had just crawled from.

  “Don’t thank him yet! How do you close this motherfucker?” Jackal snapped.

  Casey ran to the vault door, reaching for the handle then slamming the door closed, enclosing them inside. They were safe for now. Even if Lonnie regained consciousness, it would take thirty minutes to reset the timer.

  Casey fell to her knees, trying to slow her frantic breathing. “It can’t be opened for thirty minutes. By then, the police should be here.” Casey saw the two men stare at each other.

  “What?”

  “You think Max has time for the cops to get here?”

  Casey swallowed in fear. Max was still out there, and he didn’t have a metal door protecting him from the bank robbers. She stood up, going for the display board by the metal door, beginning to key in the override sequence.

  “What are you doing?”

  “We have to help Max!” she screamed at the two men.

  Jackal’s arm went around her waist, pulling her away.

  “Stop! We have to help him!” Casey fought against him like a crazy woman. Her nails cut into his arm around her waist. When that didn’t work, she managed to lift his arm enough that she could bite down on one of his hands.

  “Dammit!”

  Casey felt a hand go to her neck as she continued to struggle frantically, and her vision quickly began to dim. Whimpering, she tried to keep fighting.

  “I have to help him…” she pled to the merciless face that was staring down at her.

  “Max would kill us if you were hurt. Sorry, but you’re not going to open that door.” Jackal’s face tightened into a merciless mask.

  Casey tried one last time to escape his hold, but her legs gave out as the darkness spread through her consciousness…

  * * *

  Max fired his gun, trying his damnedest to hit X. The son of a bitch managed to avoid being struck by the flying bullets. When he saw KC run toward the cop lying on the floor, Max stood, giving him cover as he dragged him into Casey’s office behind the desk.

  “You crazy fucker, what in the hell are we going to do now?” KC scooted next to him.

  “Beats the fuck out of me. Just try to get out of here without getting your head blown off!”

  “That’s what I was trying to do.”

  “KC, I’m going to kill your ass, traitor!”

  “Guess they figured out I’m not with them anymore.” A bullet hit the phone on Casey’s desk, shattering it into bits of plastic.

  “You think?” Max stated sarcastically.

  “Shit.” KC aimed and fired at one of the Bandits who had gotten brave and was attempting to get closer. He fell to the floor, a bullet hole through his gut. “Never could stand that son of a bitch!”

  And everyone thinks I’m the crazy one, Max thought.

  Two more tried to get closer, but he and KC both fired, making them retreat.

  “I have to get out of here before the cops get here.”

  KC had been the only one smart enough to put a bandana across the lower portion of his face.

  Max used his foot to slide Casey’s chair c
loser. “Cover me.”

  Max waited a second for KC to begin firing a spray of bullets before standing and picking the chair up, smashing it through the bullet-ridden window to the outside.

  “Get your ass out of here!” Max shouted, dropping back down behind the desk.

  “I’m not going to leave you!”

  “Go! I’m going to be right behind you,” Max lied.

  KC didn’t argue, taking a flying leap out of the window. Max saw him hightail it across the parking lot.

  The cop lying on the floor next to him groaned in pain, regaining consciousness.

  “Lay still.” Max pulled him closer to his side, seeing X trying to crawl through the bank to get closer. Two others were coming at him from different directions.

  “Motherfucker!” Max fired at the one who was almost on him then shot again to make sure he wouldn’t be getting up. Nothing happened; he was out of bullets. Reaching down, he slid the knife he had in his boot out. If he was going to die, he was going to take at least one more with him.

  The sound of crunching glass had him jerking around to see Ice, Buzzard, and Stump coming through the window.

  Ice handed him a gun then took another from behind his back.

  “Where’s Jackal and Fade?”

  “They made it to the back of the bank with Casey. Everyone else managed to get to a room at the side of the bank,” Max quickly filled them in.

  “I’m going to kick your ass for this, Max.”

  “No shit,” Max answered, finally getting a bullet in X’s shoulder, but it didn’t stop him. At least he was backing off to try a different tactic.

  The sound of the police bullhorn from the outside heralded the first time that Max could remember he was glad the cops had arrived.

  “How are we going to let them know we’re not the ones who started this crap-fest?” Buzzard looked at Ice for the answer that would keep them alive.