Midnight Hero - By Diana Duncan Page 0,86

silent. As she had earlier when Tony had taunted her—and backhanded her across the face. She didn’t regret protecting Con by turning herself in. Con had said he’d never trade himself for a hostage; it was stupid and against procedure. She’d bought him over an hour to rest and recover. Time to plan and summon SWAT. One hour that could mean the difference between life and death. For him. For all of them.

She held Tony’s gaze. Unlike the man who had attacked her in the mall, Tony’s eyes glittered with fervor. A fanatic, dedicated to his cause. Not afraid of anything. There was no compassion in those crackling black orbs. No trace of humanity.

So this was what uncompromising evil looked like.

Bailey bit the inside of her cheek, battling despair. If only she hadn’t screamed when he’d burned her! If she’d seen it coming, she could have been prepared, gritted her teeth and held it in. Considering how Con had reacted when Glacier Eyes hit her…she shuddered. Her scream of pain would be the one thing that might make Con ignore his training. Make him burst in, guns blazing. Cause him to react instead of act.

Get him killed.

She raised her chin. Keep the faith. Faith in Con’s intelligence. His integrity. His love for her, love that would hold him steady. Hold him to his training. It was their only hope.

Tony pinched her cheek, which, judging from the lingering sting, probably bore his handprint. “Let’s try another question. Where are my men?”

Bailey shrugged. If she didn’t speak at all, no information would slip out by accident. No way could she tell him. If Tony’s crew returned, Con would be vastly outnumbered. The SWAT team would face five armed men instead of two.

“You’ve got more backbone than I thought, I’ll give you that. But you’re not too bright.” He extracted another cigarette from the pack on the counter and lit up. The noxious smoke attacked her sinuses, mingling nauseatingly with the smell of stale popcorn. “Or you like pain. You bent that way, cupcake?”

Bailey’s stomach clenched. He was going to hurt her again.

“Oh! You! Leave her alone!” Letty spat out, half rising from her chair by the parking lot door. Tony had positioned the old woman and the cowering, catatonic bank manager between the robbers and the police outside. The wheeled, enclosed metal cart loaded with bags of money sat in front of the concession counter. When Bailey had first arrived, Tony had made her sit with Mike and Letty while he and Rico finished bolting a clear, bulletproof windshield to one side of the cart. She’d overheard them congratulating themselves for being prepared for any eventuality with their specially made armored cart and Kevlar suits with hoods. The robbers were thrilled that the wind and sleeting rain made it impossible for the snipers to shoot accurately. They also planned to use the hostages as temporary protection to get to the chopper and take off. Emphasis on the temporary.

Letty huffed. “You’re a toughie, all right. Picking on little girls. You should be ashamed of yourself.”

Tony bared his teeth at Letty. “For the last time, shut your mouth!” He held the cigarette close to Bailey’s face. Heat prickled her cheek, and she braced herself. She would not make a sound this time. “Once more. Where is my crew?”

“Do you believe in karma, young man?” Letty asked in a falsely pleasant tone. “You’ve got a bucketload of bad stuff coming your way. You can bet your sorry buns it won’t be pretty.”

Tony growled. “I’ve had it with you, Grandma! One more word, and you’re next.” He paused, half turned. “In fact…” He slanted a sly look at Bailey. “Maybe there’s more than one way to make this hummingbird sing.” He pivoted and strode toward Letty.

Trembling, Bailey gripped the charm at her throat. Oh no! He was going to burn Letty! “Wait! Don’t hurt her.”

Tony stopped in his tracks. “So, you can speak. I was beginning to wonder.”

“Hummingbirds don’t sing. Don’t say a darned word.” Letty scowled at the robber, but her voice quavered slightly, revealing the fear undercoating her brave stand. “I’m a lot tougher than him. Had five babies, at home, with nothing but my own grit for the pain.”

“Your men are all dead,” Bailey declared.

Letty flinched as Tony lowered the glowing cigarette tip toward her wrinkled arm, and a tremor rippled over her. Tony snorted. “Try again.” He dangled the cigarette millimeters from Letty’s skin. A small gasp escaped, then she pressed her