Read Online Midnight Captive by Elle Kennedy - Free Book Online Page B

to the window and raising his arms in the air as if trying to signal the cops beyond the glass to stand down. He held up the phone in his hand, gesturing wildly.
    Bailey held her breath as silence crashed over the room. She studied Sean from the corner of her eye, saw the rigid set of his jaw, but he didn’t look over.
    Every single hostage jerked when the phone suddenly rang.
    The man at the window relaxed, his shoulders sagging with visible relief. Then he raised the phone to his ear, hisboots slapping against the floor as he retreated to the back again.
    Urgent murmuring wafted into the lobby. Bailey’s peripheral vision caught a muscle twitch in Sean’s jaw, but he remained expressionless. The air was thick with tension, which only deepened when the gunman returned, tailed by two other men, and signaled for the remaining robbers to join them. As the five men gathered in a tight huddle, Bailey used their distracted whispering to touch her earpiece.
    “Rafe,” she murmured. “Abandon post. Request pickup.”
    She felt Sean stiffen beside her, but she didn’t acknowledge him. Whatever was about to go down, she had to be ready. She and Rafe had already arranged for a rendezvous point if she needed one.
    And it looked like she was about to need one.
    “All right, on your feet, boys and girls.” The brusque order came from the man holding the cell phone.
    When nobody moved, he let out a frustrated shout.
    “Now!”
    Everyone shot to their feet, Bailey and Sean included. God, just looking at the other hostages upset her. They were like a group of miners who’d been trapped underground for weeks. Swaying on their feet, pale and disoriented.
    She donned the same petrified mask, trembling as she awaited further instructions.
    The masked man pointed to the door. “Let’s go.”
    Not a single person made a sound as the group headed for the entrance. The gunman unlocked the door, opened it, and hooked a thumb at the barricade on the street.
    “Go,” he told them.
    There was a split second of hesitation, and then the hostages ran out the door as if the room was on fire. Bailey was jostled, shoved out of the way, and almostknocked down as a dozen people streamed past her in a mad race for the street. Two police officers in full assault gear sprinted forward at the freed captives, urgently guiding people away from the bank.
    “We need to clear the area,” a male voice barked. “Everybody move.
Now.
”
    A hand landed on Bailey’s shoulder, ushering her toward the blockade of law enforcement vehicles. Someone urged her along, pushed her forward, and she lost sight of Sean amid the crowd. The other hostages were crying with relief and stumbling to safety as half a dozen officers moved past them with military precision to form a line in front of the bank.
    Where the hell was Sean?
    She searched the faces around her, spotted him, and breathed in relief. Someone urged her through the line of crime scene tape, a young garda who swept his gaze over her as if assessing her for injuries.
    “Are you all right, Miss?”
    She quickly turned on the waterworks, blubbering incoherently as she threw herself into his arms. “Oh my God. It was so scary! I thought they would kill us!”
    “It’s okay.” A hand awkwardly patted her head. “You’re safe now. You need to go to those ambulances over there. The people there will check you out and take your statement.”
    Bailey nodded rapidly, feeling Sean on her six as she made a beeline for the ambulances. She didn’t dare to turn and look at him, but she sensed his urgency, knew they had to make a move before they reached the emergency vehicles.
    They were ten yards away when Sean halted in his tracks. Bailey turned, saw his green eyes focus on the bank doors. The five robbers had just stepped outside. Their guns were lowered, but the way Sean’s shouldersstiffened, you’d think they were gunning down the police.
    “Son of a bitch,” he mumbled under his breath, clearly seeing