like the bullet went straight through and exited the other side. The bleeding wasn't exorbitant so no major arteries could have been damaged. A wallet fell onto the ground at the cop's feet so I grabbed it.
"Stop!"
I froze. "I need to stop the bleeding. A credit card is good for that since it's small, hard, and if pressed against the wound, it can seal it. You don't want this man to bleed out. That's the same as murder."
"I didn't shoot him," grunted the bank robber.
"It doesn't matter. It's felony murder. You're all liable for murder if you get caught," I said, trying not to stare at him in case he spooked. "May I proceed?"
"Yes."
I plucked two cards from the wallet and tore the bloody shirt further open where the bullet ripped through his shoulder. I pressed the cards over the wound and hoped for the best. I didn't think the cop would die from his injury but since I didn't know how long it would take for him to receive any medical treatment, I had to rely primarily on hope.
"Thanks," whispered the cop, gulping hard, his face still pale.
"Hang in there, buddy," I encouraged him. From my new upright position, I could see more, but I kept my head tucked down. I didn’t want the robbers to notice me obviously watching my surroundings as I clamped my hand over the cop's wound. I took my time observing each one of the remaining three bank robbers. As I initially thought, their clothes were all identical but I spotted something a little different about one of the robbers guarding the door. That one was a little shorter in height, maybe by only three or four inches, and a little less bulky than the others. I had the other two pegged at six feet or a little bit under, with blocky torsos.
My interest returned to the guy walking around the group. From his movement, I wondered if he were ex-military. A glance back at the other two, standing alert and ready, seemed to confirm that. They appeared confident and self-assured. Even the brief gunfight didn't rattle them. I wondered if the two by the doors ever left their guard positions.
Even more curious was knowing where the other three went. I shifted slightly so I could see. They had to pass through an internal security door but there wasn't any movement behind the tellers’ station so they didn't go there to empty the cash registers. Were they committing some kind of cashless crime? I'd heard of hackers who could gain control of banking systems and simply empty all the money into accounts that were then emptied into other accounts just a few moments later. That created a hard-to-follow route, enabling the money to disappear quickly and later get withdrawn as “clean” cash. Could that be the plan in play here? If so, why bring an armed crew of six to take over the bank? Surely, that kind of crime could be committed on a laptop anywhere in the world? Why did they choose to break in?
Someone sneezed, pulling me back to the moment. I checked the cop's wound, thankful that his blood seemed to stop flowing so readily. He was still horribly pale. The sooner he got into capable EMT hands, the better. Just as I thought that, I was reminded again of the lack of any emergency vehicle noises. Even if the tellers didn't activate the emergency buzzers, surely someone outside must have noticed the unusual occurrence of closing the big wooden doors during banking hours? Then I sighed. Of course, they didn't. The bank was only minutes away from closing time when I reached the teller. A casual passerby probably didn't even question the closed doors.
I glanced around, looking for the other half of the gang to return but saw no movement. They were gone for what felt like hours. Surely, they would come storming through any moment to make their escape?
A boom sounded in the bank and the whole floor shook. Several people cried out and I ducked down. The cop yelped as I pressed harder against his wound than I intended to. A second, smaller blast shook the floor again and someone began to cry.
"Let's go," yelled a voice from across the room. The two bank robbers guarding the door ran toward the group, their weapons drawn. The shorter of the trio slipped, his hand hitting the ground near the little boy, only to recover a moment later. I threw