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“Are you sure this is going to work?”
Noah had parked in the Walmart parking lot, next to a Wendy’s restaurant. They had a full view of the Sunoco gas station at the end of the strip plaza, one hundred and twenty feet away. The parking spaces around them began to fill up by mid-afternoon as people stopped by on their way home to grab some groceries or fast food. The gas station had a steady stream of customers coming and going.
Leslie Taylor’s wallet contained everything a modern human needed to survive in the industrial world—a library card, credit and debit cards, and a driver’s license. Anything that was personal and could be used to identify or trace her whereabouts was left behind.
Before they had parked, Hutchings had gone to the station and left the debit card on top of pump six. It had a tap to pay under a certain amount and didn’t require a PIN.
“We’re about to find out.” Hutchings took the large cowboy hat and threw it in the backseat. The wide brim kept his face from being recorded by the overhead cameras. A minivan pulled in for gas. The driver, an older woman, was not tall enough to see on top of the pump, and after filling up, she drove off.
They didn’t have to wait long for another customer. A gray Hyundai SUV now occupied the same spot, and a teenager got out and opened the filler cap. When he picked up the debit card, he looked around the station for the owner, but no one ran forward. With a smile on his face, the card tapped against the reader and filled the tank.
“Bingo.” Hutchings grinned. “It’s a nice neighborhood, but in the end, people are all the same.”
“Some people. Not all.”
“True enough.”
Noah glanced at the time. Four-thirty in the afternoon. “Best guess for a response time?”
Hutchings shrugged and leaned back in the seat. “I would say between fifteen to twenty minutes? Even if someone is monitoring, they have to send the call, and a team is deployed.”
They didn’t have that long to wait. Only two minutes after the card was tapped, things started happening. The concussive thump of rotor-wash was almost felt as the UH-60M tactical helicopter flew in low, barely over the buildings, and hovered twenty feet over the gas station. In the distance, the wail of sirens drew close.
Noah’s jaw dropped, and he glanced at Hutchings. “You have to be kidding me.”
The side door of the helicopter swung open, and a figure dressed in green combat fatigues leaned out with the butt of an H&K MP5 jammed into his shoulder. The muzzle swept the crowd for a target. Many had stepped out of the restaurant and stood in the parking lot as the drama unfolded like an action movie before their eyes. Cell phones appeared and recorded the scene from dozens of angles.
Virginia Avenue traffic came to a standstill at the three-minute mark as two unmarked SUVs screeched through the intersection and blocked access to the parking lot. Strobe lights flashed behind tinted windows as men in suits got out and sprinted toward the gas station.
“I’ve heard of a Quick Reaction Force, but this is ridiculous.” Noah shook his head. “Are they even allowed to fly here?”
The White House was within fifteen miles, and the area was a well-known no-fly zone.
Hutchings jerked a thumb toward a series of people that didn’t want to stick around and watch the show. Many had forgone their cars and made their way on foot. The parking lot was quickly emptying. “We got our answer. Fairly sure we don’t want to get caught here, rookie.”
All the customers at the gas station, including the young woman who worked inside, were face down on the ground as more suits arrived. Everyone was being detained, and they would sort it out later.
The helicopter slowly circled the area, and Noah could feel the unease in his stomach. “This is several pay grades above us, Hutch.”
For the first time, Noah noticed his old partner looked nervous as they shook their heads at the confusion they had created.
“You can say that again.”
“I’m thinking we rely on good old-fashioned police work. You up for it?”
The staff sergeant nodded and kept his gaze fixed on the side mirror as they exited the parking lot from the east exit. Noah couldn’t help but wonder how badly they kicked the hornet’s nest.