Unexpected Trouble (The Unexpected Series Book 3) Read online

  Damn. “How far along are you?”

  “Eight months,” she said.

  Len turned his attention toward us. “No talking.”

  “Look, you have to let this lady leave,” I said. “She’s going into labor right now.”

  Len’s expression didn’t change a bit, but Chuck grinned beside him. “Really? That’s cool.”

  The guy was obviously short a few screws, and Len glared at him. “She’s not going anywhere.”

  “Then can you at least see if there are any medical employees in here to help her out?”

  “I’m a nurse,” a woman on the far side of the room under a table called out.

  “Fine,” Len finally relented, and the nurse slowly got to her feet. She was wearing light-purple scrubs and kept her head down as she approached us, going to her knees beside the woman.

  “Hi, I’m Carol.” I listened to her ask a few questions about the pregnancy and quickly learned that this was a high-risk pregnancy. When a contraction began to hit her, I took her hand and let her squeeze hard.

  Chuck seemed enthralled with what was going on. Len, on the other hand, looked pissed off at the world as he leaned against the wall and scrutinized all of us.

  I glanced at Maggie; she was watching the pregnant woman but glanced my way and tried to smile.

  “Do you want to sit next to her?” I asked, and she nodded. I started to move and saw the booted feet coming toward me.

  “Stay right where you are!” he hissed at me as he put the muzzle to my head. “I don’t trust you one bit. You’re up to something.”

  “No, sir, I’m not. I was just trading places with the lady so she could help them. I’m not looking for trouble.” This guy was itching to get into it with someone. I already had a few pieces of shrapnel in my body, but I didn’t think a bullet in the brain would be good for the collection.

  “You just sit. Don’t talk, don’t move. If you make one more move or say one more word, I’m going to put a bullet right between your eyes.”

  I lifted my face, the muzzle of the gun dragging over my scalp, down my forehead until it was lined up right between my eyes. “Understood, sir.”

  He hissed, “Crazy motherfucker.” He dropped the gun from my head and stepped quickly back from me. Had he not moved so fast, I might have shown him just how crazy I was. Maybe he wasn’t as dumb as I thought he was.

  Chuck had been watching us, and Maggie settled herself back against the counter, peering up at him. “You are that lady, right? The one that writes about love and stuff in the paper?”

  “Yes,” she said softly and then lifted her chin. “You know I do more than just write advice columns; I write real news too. I could write an article about you two, tell your side of the story.”

  “Could you?” Chuck asked excitedly.

  Len raised his arm and shot into the ceiling again. Everyone jumped, a few screamed, and Maggie slipped closer to me. “Shut up! Just shut the fuck up, all of you!”

  He smacked Chuck on the back of the head. “She ain’t gonna write a story on us, you dork. She’s lying to you.”

  “No, she’s not. I know she’s in the paper.” Chuck looked around. “Hey, anyone have today’s paper?”

  The frazzled woman raised her hand and then pointed at the table where she’d been sitting. Chuck made a beeline for it and then started flipping pages.

  “Section two, page two,” Maggie said, and Len rolled his head toward her, his eyes spitting venom.

  Chuck found the page and handed it to Len. “See, it’s her. You can tell by the picture.”

  “Well, look at that, we have a reporter in our midst,” Len said as he looked back at Maggie. The way he stared at her made the hair rise on the back of my neck. “Nice to have you with us, Maggie Valor; maybe you might be of use to us.”

  “Oh, shit,” she murmured under her breath.

  Chapter Four

  Maggie

  I’d been really thankful that the police had shown up when they had, and the two guys had forgotten about me—at least for the moment. The last thing I wanted was to have their attention. Instead, I preferred to remain unnoticed so that I could note everything that they did. I had every intention of hitting my editor up and asking for front-page space. How could he deny me that? This story would most definitely be front-page news, and who better to report it than someone present at the scene.

  So I watched, and I prayed that Len wouldn’t do anything stupid, like put a bullet into Greg’s head. Was he crazy—Greg, not Len. We all knew the bad guy was crazy. Greg had lifted his face directly to the guy, rested his forehead right against the gun, and smiled. Okay, so maybe he didn’t outright smile, but I swear there was a little hint of a grin on his face. I remember that Greg had always been outgoing and daring when he was a teenager, but had he gone nuts after his years in the service? He had to have because no sane person would have done what he did.

  I felt for the pregnant woman, and I’m glad that they let her at least use the restroom, although, with the way she was moving, I was beginning to wonder if the stress of this situation might send her into labor right here in the coffee shop. Now that was a story to tell the kid when he got older.

  Yep, I was hankering for a shot of espresso and ended up getting held hostage instead. You were born right there on the dirty floor of Cocoa’s Coffee Café with twenty or so people there to witness your entry into this world. It wasn’t nerve-racking in the least that two men were waving guns around and the kind man that had tried to help me had gotten shot for doing so. I named you Greg after him.

  I cringed when Chuck asked me again, “You are that lady, right? The one that writes about love and stuff in the paper?”

  “Yes,” I replied meekly. Maybe if I told them I was also a serious journalist, they would make sure I lived to tell their story. “You know, I do more than just write advice columns; I write real news too. I could write an article about you two, tell your side of the story.”

  His blue eyes sparkled. “Could you?”

  I screamed when Len fired another shot into the ceiling and cowered behind Greg. “Shut up! Just shut the fuck up, all of you!”

  I was hoping that was the end of it, but no, Chuck just had to push and prove it was me. When they located a paper, I volunteered the location and earned a glare for my trouble. Why did I even bother?

  Chuck pointed at the picture, tapping his finger on it. “See, it’s her. You can tell by the picture.”

  “Well, look at that, we have a reporter in our midst.” Len turned to me, and I would have had to be blind to miss the scary joy in his gaze. “Nice to have you with us, Maggie Valor; maybe you might be of use to us.”

  “Oh, shit,” I mumbled and didn’t miss the stiffening of Greg’s back beside me.

  Len glanced around the room. “I have an idea. Everyone, take your wallets out.”

  No one moved, and then he shouted the command and waved the gun around. Most of the people began to rummage around in their pockets or purses, including me. Greg didn’t move.

  One woman began to cry. “I don’t have a wallet. I just brought enough cash with me to get my coffee. I work in an office building across the street.” Len grunted at her.

  “Everyone take out your licenses. I want to see them.” He turned to Chuck. “Collect them from everyone, and if they don’t have one, I want to know.”

  His eyes cut around the room, and I leaned toward Greg and whispered, “Get your ID out.”

  “No,” he replied, not looking at me.

  “Greg—” I started to plead with him and garnered Len’s attention again.

  “What’s so important that you need to talk to him about, Ms. Valor?”

  I shook my head instead of answering, and he approached us, glaring at Greg. “Where is your license?”

  “I don’t have one.”

  “Bullshit. A guy like you doesn’t go around without identification on him.”

  “You can check me, but I don’t have a wallet
.”

  “Then how were you going to pay for your coffee?”

  “With my phone.”

  He frowned. “Mr. Fancy Pants, using his technology to pay for things. Look at that.” He glanced at me. “Is this your boyfriend, Ms. Valor?”

  I shook my head at the same time that Greg spoke. “I don’t even know the woman.”

  I frowned at the side of Greg’s head. Why would he say that? Granted, we hadn’t seen each other in almost twenty years, but to say he doesn’t know me? What the hell?

  Len looked at the pregnant woman. “Did you hear these two talking in line?”

  The woman looked immediately scared, and Greg spoke up again. “I admit that I was talking to her. I was hitting on her, trying to gauge if she’d be worth asking out. She’s pretty enough.”

  My brow furrowed. Pretty enough? Was he serious?

  “She’s not your girlfriend?” he asked him again.

  “Nope, not really my type, seems a bit prudish, if you know what I mean.”

  My jaw dropped. Prudish? Was he serious? Oh, man, when we got out of here, I was going to show him just how prudish I was.

  Len grinned and looked me over from head to toe. I felt violated by his leer, and I looked away, noticing that Greg had his hands fisted. Len turned to the pregnant woman. “Is he telling the truth?”

  She nodded quickly. “Yeah, he was flirting with her.”

  “Turn around and get on your knees.” He grunted toward Greg, waving the gun toward him.

  Greg didn’t look at me as he spun around on the brown tile floor and then got to his knees slowly. Len called Chuck over. “Check him, see what he has in those pockets.”

  Greg laced his fingers behind his head, stared straight ahead and let Chuck pat his waist down, and then his side pockets. “What’s that?”

  “A note pad and a pen,” Greg responded. “And before you check the other side, I have a pocketknife.”

  “Take the items out of your pockets carefully and hand them to Ms. Valor,” Len commanded.

  Greg slowly took one hand off his head and pulled a small leather-bound notebook from his pocket and then a pen and held them out to me. I took them. He shifted his hand to his other side and dug around in a pocket for a moment. He held his hand out toward me, and I gave him my palm. The contents dropped into mine, and I stared at the half roll of breath mints, a Chapstick, a black pocketknife, and a condom. My eyes snapped to his. He didn’t carry a wallet, but he brought along a freaking condom? I glanced at the wrapper and saw it was a super magnum. I almost started laughing because I knew damn well that he wasn’t a super magnum size. Not that he was small, but he wasn’t that big.

  Greg winked at me, and there was just a touch of humor on his features before they went blank again. Chuck checked his other side to make sure nothing else was there.

  “That’s all he has on him.”

  “Give me that stuff,” Len said, and I held my hands up for him to take it. He removed the knife, glanced at the notebook before putting it back into my hand, and walked away. Greg seemed relieved when I put my hands down, and for a second, he closed his eyes.

  Len and Chuck went to a table, and Chuck laid out all the ID’s. Len glanced over them before he took his phone out and started snapping pictures of them. Why was he doing that?

  The phone rang again, and Len turned to the employee and waved his gun at him. The ringing stopped, and then the phone clicked as he put it back down.

  “There were four that didn’t have a license on them,” Chuck said.

  “Fine, get them, we are going to move them.”

  “Move them?”

  “Yeah, we’re going to move them.”

  A muscle in Greg’s jaw ticked against his cheek a couple of times, and a few lines crossed his brow momentarily before his face calmed back to nothingness. What was going through his mind?

  Chuck pulled the gun out of his waistband where he’d stored it while getting ID’s and went to gather the woman and two men who were on the other side of the café. “Get up,” he told them. “Leave your stuff there.”

  They got to their feet, and he told them to move toward the back of the business.

  “Sit them there, and go find something from the back to tie them up with.”

  Chuck nodded and disappeared into the back for a moment as the three people he’d collected sat around a small table. I glanced at Greg; he was still on his knees, hands still laced behind his head. Why was he still sitting like that? Why didn’t he turn back around?

  The bullhorn from outside filled the room again. “This is Sergeant Wilkins again. We really would like to settle this peacefully, but we can’t do that if you don’t speak with us. We need to know if everyone is alright in there. We heard that last gunshot. Please answer the phone so that we can discuss options and make sure everyone is alright.”

  The phone began to ring, and Len glanced at the employee. The phone stopped ringing and clicked as Chuck returned. “I found duct tape,” he announced, and I swear I heard Greg scoff.

  “Fine, bind their wrists, feet, and mouths, and put them in the bathroom,” Len stated.

  “You want me to take him too?” he asked Len as he pointed at Greg.

  “Yeah, but get those three done first. He might give you trouble.”

  As Chuck disappeared into the bathroom with one person at a time, Len walked around the room and looked carefully at all the people, especially the men. Finally, he stood in front of one of the employees and nodded.

  Chuck finished with the three people and came back to get Greg. As he got to his feet, he stared at me hard, and then he was turned and marched to the bathroom. I sure hope no one else needed to use the bathroom. From where I was seated, I could see the people gagged and bound on the floor. Gross.

  Chuck returned a moment later, and the phone rang again. This time Len walked toward the phone. The phone rang three times, and then he picked it up.

  He didn’t say anything at first, and I wondered what they were saying. “No one is injured,” he stated gruffly. “Yes, I’m telling you the truth. Here.” He must have grabbed the employee. “Tell them that everyone is okay.”

  The employee’s voice cracked as he spoke. “No one’s injured.”

  “The gunfire was warning shots,” Len stated as shuffling was heard behind me.

  He grew quiet again, and a few of us traded looks. Two people were staring at him and then the door, probably wondering if they could make it there and unlock it before they were noticed or shot.

  “Give us five minutes, and we’ll give ourselves up,” Len stated gruffly and then hung up the phone abruptly. I glanced at the pregnant woman and the nurse in surprise. They were going to give themselves up? I hadn’t expected that. Did he realize there was no way out of this? If he did, why did he put those four people in the bathroom?

  Len called Chuck behind the counter, and the two of them whispered for a few moments. Chuck came back around the counter, and so did the employee that had been answering the phone. Len went to another employee, a slightly older man who I knew from my visits was the manager and told him to get up.

  He pointed the gun at him and told him to walk into the back. What the hell was he doing? Was he going to hurt the guy?

  Chuck paced around the room and came to stand in front of me. “After we give ourselves up, will you come to see me in jail and write my story?”

  “Um, sure. I can do that.”

  He looked excited for a second, but that disappeared quickly as he stared at the front door and realized that he was about to be arrested.

  The phone rang a minute later, and Chuck went around to answer it. “Yeah, give us one minute, and we’ll give ourselves up.” He hung up the phone without waiting for a reply.

  I heard footsteps behind the counter as if Len and the employee had come back, but they didn’t come to this side of the counter.

  My hands were clammy as I wondered if this was going to be as easy as it seemed. Would they give
themselves up and just let us go?

  “This is Sergeant Wilkins again; your time is up; let the hostages go.”

  Chuck glanced around the room and swallowed. “Okay, get up and go toward the front door slowly.”

  Holy crap, were they just going to let us walk out of here? A few people got to their feet quickly, and I got to my knees, intent on helping the pregnant woman up, but one of the employees rushed to her side and helped her off the floor. She kept her arm around him as he ushered her to the door.

  We all walked out, our arms up around our heads. Well, except for the nurse, the pregnant woman, and the employee who was helping her.

  I glanced behind me as I reached the door. Chuck stood in the center of the room, looking nervous, and Len was standing at the back of the room. I hadn’t expected him to let us go this way. I raised my hands over my head and slipped out the door.

  Chapter Five

  Gregory

  These guys were both idiots. Sure, stick me in the bathroom and put duct tape around my wrists and ankles. Like that was going to stop me. My wrists were bound behind my back, and the tape was off in less than ten seconds. It took another fifteen seconds to get it off my ankles and mouth. It took me longer to get the others out, but within two minutes, we were all free. I spoke quietly to each of them, moving to the side of the door in case they came in to check on us. If they did, I’d take them out then, but in the meantime, we didn’t need to be uncomfortable.

  A few minutes after we were locked in there, I heard the police loudspeaker, and then Chuck told the group of hostages to get up and leave. Chairs scratched the floor, and muted footsteps could barely be heard from the main room. Why put us in here if they were going to let the hostages go?

  If they were letting them leave, then surprising Len and Chuck by opening the door would be a bad idea, especially since I didn’t have a firearm with me. I heard the police announce that cops were coming in, and I told the three people with me to get on their knees, face the wall, and put their hands behind their heads.