Chapter Seventeen #2
Gunnar was nowhere near certain that taking Bryn with him was a good idea but arguing about it would have taken far too long.
As they drove to the store, he kept his focus on the road.
The thick drizzle made everything gray and the traffic was sluggish.
He’d been tempted to take the Harley but didn’t want to make Bryn even more of a target than he already was.
“Do you think Emmett’s right?” Bryn asked, fiddling with the straps on his bulletproof vest.
“Yeah, I do. The more I think about it, that car crash was far too convenient.”
“How do you want to approach this?”
“I think we go in and say we need to take a look at Dave Frederics’ office. Tying up loose ends, that kind of thing. Then we have a reason to check in with Romano and you can read him.”
“Okay. You want memory or future intent, because there won’t be time for both if he realizes what I’m up to?”
“Memory. If he’s our perp, his strongest memory is most likely to be one of the murders. Then we’ll know for certain.”
“Okay.”
Gunnar pulled into the parking lot and they both got out of the car. “It’s busy in there, if the number of vehicles here is anything to go by. We need to be careful.”
“What do you mean?” Bryn stared at the store.
“If he in anyway suspects why we’re here, we can’t put members of the public at risk. If he thinks he’s cornered, he might get violent. No confrontation in the main store area.”
“Right.”
The piercing wail of a fire alarm sounded across the parking lot and for a moment everyone froze.
Shoppers paused mid-stride, heads turning toward the Walmart entrance.
Then, the doors opened and people poured out in a chaotic stream.
A mother half-dragged, half-carried her crying toddler, while a teenager sprinted past, glancing back over his shoulder.
An elderly man shuffled slowly, his cane tapping, assisted by a young store employee.
The automatic doors struggled to keep up, sliding open and shut as people flooded through them.
A garbled loudspeaker announcement fought against the alarm’s screech, but it was impossible to decipher.
“Not a coincidence, right?” Bryn said as he and Gunnar walked toward the store.
“Nope. He must have been watching the security feeds and saw us arrive. This isn’t good.”
A small group of onlookers had gathered in the middle of the parking lot.
Some speculated on the cause of the alarm, while others stood, phones held up, recording everything.
A man in a baseball cap shook his head as he scrolled through his social media feed, muttering, “This’ll be all over the goddam news in ten minutes. ”
Gunnar couldn’t see any smoke coming from the building—at least, not yet. A woman in a Walmart vest came past, guiding a cluster of employees to a designated meeting point. “Keep moving, everyone. Gather over there, please.”
Gunnar flashed his badge at her. “Is this a drill, ma’am?”
“No, sir. No drills planned for today.”
“Thanks.” Gunnar placed a quick call to Emmett and asked him to contact the fire service to let them know that all might not be as it seemed.
The crowd of evacuated shoppers swelled, spreading across the lot.
Those lingering too close to the entrance were nudged along.
When the stream of people trickled to a halt, the store’s entrance stood empty.
Gunnar showed his badge again outside the doors.
“We suspect a crime is in progress. Keep everyone away from the store.”
Inside the store, the fluorescent lights overhead flickered, casting a cold glow over the aisles. Abandoned shopping carts stood all over the place.
“It’s like one of those movies where everyone dies then they all turn into zombies,” Bryn muttered. “I don’t smell smoke, do you?”
“No.”
“It’s creepy as hell in here.”
Gunnar grunted in agreement. Shelves loomed high on either side, creating canyons. “We’ll head to the staff door we went through before.”
“He’s probably watching us.”
They reached the back of the store where the staff door stood open. A faint noise—something between a scrape and a shuffle—came from somewhere ahead.
“Let’s go,” Gunnar said. “Stay behind me.”
Gunnar approached with caution but both the security office and Romano’s office were empty, as were the staff break room, supplies closet and restrooms. There was no sign of anyone.
At the end of a corridor there was another door.
Gunnar nudged it open with his foot and discovered it led to the store’s warehouse.
The lights were off and rows of racking stacked with boxes stretched into the gloom.
Bryn found the torch app on his cell and aimed the beam ahead of them. From somewhere ahead, a metallic clang reverberated through the space. Bryn swung the beam in the direction of the sound as Gunnar drew his weapon.
“We know you’re in here, Romano. Show yourself!” Gunnar shouted. For a moment, there was nothing—just the faint hum of refrigerated stores—then a shadow shifted about halfway down the aisle near a gap in the shelving.
“Don’t move!” Gunnar barked.
Romano stepped into the wavering beam of light. He held a trembling woman, no older than thirty, her face streaked with tears. He had a hunting knife pressed to her throat. She whimpered, clutching at Romano’s restraining arm, her terror evident.
“Don’t come any closer, Detective.”
Gunnar froze. He kept his gun steady. Bryn tried to remember to breathe. “Okay,” Gunnar said, his voice calm, measured. “Let’s talk. Nobody needs to get hurt here.”
Romano laughed. “Don’t give me that crap. She’s the insurance that gets me out of here. You know I’ll slice her throat if I have to.”
“He’s giving me serious evil villain vibes right now,” Bryn muttered.
“Not getting any closer. Setting off the alarm was clever. You saw us arrive, right?”
“It was a bit of luck being in Dave’s office at the right time.”
“Did he help you kill those people?”
“That moron? Of course not. He was so soft he let shoplifters go if they returned the goods they stole. Pathetic. How did you work out it was me?”
“Someone a lot cleverer than me unscrambled your name then connected the dots. Is Romano even your real name?”
“Changed it legally years ago. This ain’t my first rodeo.”
“Christ, how many people has this maniac slaughtered? If he gets away with that woman, she’s dead. Fuck, this is a bad idea but…” Bryn stepped forward, his hands raised. “Let her go. You don’t need her.”
“What the fuck are you doing, Bryn?” Gunnar made a grab for him but Bryn sidestepped him.
“And what? Let your partner shoot me?” Romano said.
“No one’s shooting anyone,” Bryn said. “You let her go, and I’ll take her place.”
“Bryn…” Gunnar’s voice was low with warning. Bryn didn’t look at him—he kept his gaze fixed on Romano.
“You want leverage, right?” Bryn continued. “She’s not it. She’s terrified, she’s no threat to you. But me? I’m worth something. You’ll have a better chance of walking out of here if you take me instead.”
“Don’t do this,” Gunnar muttered.
“You have a better idea?” Bryn shot back.
Romano’s face twisted into something unreadable. “An augur for this silly bitch seems like a good trade.”
With a hard shove, Romano pushed the woman forward. She stumbled, collapsing into Gunnar’s arms as Bryn took her place. The knife was pressed to his side now, Romano’s arm around his neck.
“Bryn,” Gunnar said again, sounding furious.
“I’m fine,” Bryn said. “Just get her out of here.”
The hostage sobbed quietly as Gunnar guided her to the door. His eyes never left Bryn.
Bryn stood completely still. “You made the right call,” he said softly. “Shall we figure out how we both get out of this alive?”
Gunnar guided the store worker through the empty store. Her breathing came in shallow, panicked gasps. “You’re okay,” he said, “just keep moving. We’re almost out.”
She nodded but stumbled into an abandoned cart. Gunnar tightened his grip on her arm, steadying her. “Slow breaths,” he instructed, glancing over his shoulder to ensure they weren’t being followed.
The front entrance came into view, the glow of red and blue lights flashing faintly through the glass doors.
When they got outside, the parking lot was alive with activity—uniformed officers bustling everywhere.
The woman collapsed to her knees on the asphalt, sobbing uncontrollably.
Gunnar crouched beside her, his hand still on her shoulder.
“You’re safe now,” he said gently. “It’s over. ”
“It’s not over. He’s still in there—your partner…he was so brave.”
Gunnar clenched his jaw. Every fiber of his being screamed to get back inside but he forced himself to stay, just long enough to ensure the hostage was out of harm’s way.
“Officer!” he barked, waving over a nearby uniformed cop. The officer jogged over. Gunnar checked his name tag. “Take her…Officer Harris,” Gunnar said, helping the woman to her feet and handing her off to the officer. “Romano was using her as a hostage. Get her checked out. Are the feds here?”
“Yeah, it’s their scene.”
“Find Special Agent Bell. Tell him Detective Ericson is in the store and that Romano has his partner. You got that?”
“Got it.”
Gunnar wasn’t about to abandon Bryn. Gun in hand, he went back into the store and straight through to the warehouse. He walked past Bryn’s abandoned bulletproof vest.
“Romano!” Gunnar’s voice boomed, amplified by the cavernous space. “You’re surrounded. Let Bryn go, and maybe I’ll consider not blowing your head off.” Not guaranteeing it, though.
“Still think you’re in control, Detective?” Romano’s voice crackled through the warehouse’s PA system. The sound echoed and Gunnar froze, scanning the rows of shelves, his gun raised. He has to be near a fixed phone.
“You want me to slip my knife between your partner’s ribs? You’d be surprised how easily a blade penetrates flesh. The sensation is…satisfying.”