Page 12 of One Cry Too Loud (Coastal Crime Unit #9)

“ T his isn’t because of the phone,” tag said, his voice shaking and his breathing rapid. “He didn’t get through the phone.”

“That’s not important,” I said, my eyes on the archer as he walked toward us.

“It is important! This phone is a modern marvel of cyber security. I have an IQ that would make Einstein blush with insecurity. Some idiot with a bow and arrow didn’t break through my phone! He must have found you guys some other way,” Tag replied.

“He’s reloading,” I said, spying the man as he stopped and pulled another arrow from his quiver. “So hit the floor. Otherwise ‘some idiot with a bow and arrow’ is going to take your head off. Then it won’t matter what makes Einstein blush.”

Tag didn’t move. So, I placed my hands on his shoulders and pushed him down. It didn’t come a second too soon. The arrow pierced through the air, narrowly missing the boy as he fell backward. The others all had the common sense and humility to already be on the floor. As such, I nodded to Kat.

“I need to check on the old man,” I said, motioning to Miller, who presumably was behind the counter.

“I’ll cover you,” she said from the floor. Her gun was already in her hand.

Without another word, I sprinted toward the back. I felt the whizz of an arrow as it moved by my shoulder, pricking at my skin ever so slightly. I winced but kept going as I heard gunfire sounds from behind me. Kat was shooting. That would buy me a few seconds.

I leapt over the counter and found the man there. He was crouched, almost kneeling as he rifled through a cabinet under the cash register.

“You okay?” I asked, taking him in.

The old man, Miller, pulled a pistol from the cabinet and checked to make sure it was loaded.

“I’m three bullets worth of okay. How about you?” He asked.

“A little better than that. We’re as armed as we need to be, though,” I answered. “Are you hit?”

“Nah,” the old man said, looking himself over. “I had to double check. I haven’t had much feeling in this shoulder since ‘Nam.”

“I appreciate your service,” I said. “And I think I need to apologize. I think we might have brought some bad people to your doorstep. It wasn’t our intention.”

“It never is, is it?” He asked. “And don’t worry. If it was you , it’d be somebody else. This is the swamp, son. Bad people are never too far away. You gotta be prepared.”

“Speaking of that, do you happen to have a place here where I can hide my friends until I can take care of this guy?” I asked.

“Got a closet in the back with a reinforced steel door,” he said. “It serves as a kind of vault for me. We get bandits from time to time. A couple of your friends can hold up there until I give this sonofabitch back to the Good Lord.”

“I was kind of hoping you’d go in there with them, sir,” I said.

“Can’t happen, son. This place has been in my family since my grandfather put it up with his bare hands.

” As his words flew through the air, so did another arrow.

It slammed into the wall, shattering another glass.

“He blew those mason jars too. My grandfather was a man of many talents.” Miller didn’t seem affected, let alone afraid of what was going on around him.

“The point is that this place is important to me. I’ve never read away from anything, and I’m not running away from this. ”

“It wouldn’t be running away, sir,” I said, trying to convince the old man to pull himself from danger.

“This place is important to you. I understand that, and I’ll fight for it, sir.

I promise you that. My friends are important to me too, and if this guy gets through me, I was hoping you might be there to-”

“Say no more. Second lines of defense are important,” Miller said. “Send your crew to me. I’ll make sure nothing this side of heaven gets to them.”

I nodded. “Thank you sir.” Another arrow flew through the air, smashing another in the line of mason jars. I jumped up, grabbing the two remaining pieces and placing them beside Miller on the floor. “For your grandfather. Now, if you don’t mind-”

“I’ll cover you,” the old man said, reading my mind. This obviously wasn’t the first time he had said that.

“I got someone up front doing that. Keep your three bullets in case you need them. Watch for my friends, though, okay?” I said.

He nodded and I rushed toward the others, keeping as low to the floor as I could. No arrows flew as I slid toward them.

“Is he-”

“He’s fine,” I said, cutting Kat off. “He’s got a steel reinforced closet back there too. So, I’m going to need you guys to go back there with him.”

“You’re not talking to me,” Kat said. It wasn’t a question.

“The rest of you then,” I said. Stay as low as you can and follow Miller to the closet.”

“Why the hell would we do that?” Tag balked. “We know where this guy is. Why not just run out the back? It seems stupid to lock ourselves up together when we could just get away from him.”

“Because there’s more to learn about the world and the way it works than what’s on a computer screen,” I said.

“Like the fact that we can see him and the fact that he’s making sure to stay in view means he’s very likely causing a distraction.

It also means that he’s almost certainly not alone.

If we go running out the back, I can practically guarantee that there will be someone out there waiting to pick us off. ”

“Good catch,” Kat said.

“Okay. So, in that case, why don’t we all just go into the closet and wait them out?” Tag asked.

“That’s what sitting ducks are, buddy,” I said. “We all pile together and they’ll light this place on fire. Trust me, kid. I’ve been through this kind of thing before. Listening to me and doing as I ask will give you the best chance at surviving this.”

“Chance?” Tag gulped.

“Life’s all about statistics, kid. Einstein would know that,” I said. “No, go. Get to Miller and lock yourselves away. Kat and I will come to get you soon.” I shrugged. “Hopefully.”

“Now you’re just trying to scare me,” Tag muttered, though he and the rest did as I asked and scurried toward the counter. Kat shot a time or two for good measure, just to keep the arrows from flying.

“How many of them do you think there are?” Kat asked.

“At least two,” I answered.

“So, what do we do?” Kat mused.

“He’s obviously trying to drive us out the back,” I said, smiling at the woman. “So, why don’t we run through the front door and meet him where he stands. You know, really shock the hell out of him.”

I grabbed my gun as she answered, smiling back at me. “God, I love working with you.”