Chapter 1
"Gabriel, can you take Amie to the bank with you? Seth went to work, and I have to go to the library for a while. You know she won't be quiet there."
"Don't worry, Renee. We'll have fun at the bank, won't we, Amie?" He asked the little girl as she grinned at him from her highchair.
Renee kissed both of them on the cheek then grabbed her coat and headed out the door. "I should be back in about an hour," she called over her shoulder.
"Unless you get caught up in your research," he called back.
She laughed as the door shut behind her. Gabriel lifted Amie out of the highchair. "Let's get you cleaned up so we can take care of some business."
"Cwean Up. Bisnes," she squealed.
Ten minutes later, he put her in her car seat in the back of the car and climbed into the front seat. Amie chattered incoherently during the whole ride, and Gabriel couldn't help but smile at her. He didn't care much for the bank, but some people didn't like to make transactions electronically, so he still had to deal with it.
He walked inside with Amie balanced against his shoulder and found the shortest line. The bank was extremely quiet for as many people as were in the building. There were a few murmurings, but for the most part, people were just there to take care of their money business and leave.
Gabriel was beginning to get impatient when he finally made it to the front of the line. That was one reason he hated banks, the lines. "Hey, Henry," he greeted the bank teller.
"Mr. Bowman. Depositing or withdrawing?"
"Depositing." He took his bankbook out of his pocket after sitting Amie on the counter.
"Getting your daughter ready to take over the business already?"
"Not quite, Henry. Could you just deposit my money?"
Two men in business suits entered the bank as Gabriel headed for the door. He nodded at them then caught a glint of sunlight off of a pistol barrel hidden under the one man's jacket. He reached for his phone and hit a button.
The lead man drew his gun when he saw Gabriel's hand move into his jacket pocket. "Give me the phone," he demanded.
Gabriel handed the phone to him, not wanting to risk Amie getting hurt because he decided to defy a man holding a gun on him. He backed away to a chair and set Amie down in it. Then, he faced the men. "It's too late anyway."
"What do you mean?"
"I've already alerted some people to the robbery."
"You didn't have time, and there hasn't been a robbery yet." The man was completely confused. This boy should be terrified.
"But there will be. You just admitted it yourself. And soon, a force of people you don't want to mess with will be here."
The man sent his fist into Gabriel's stomach. When Gabriel doubled over in pain, the man brought his elbow down on the back of his head, sending him crashing to the floor. Amie started crying when she saw her father's body collapse.
"All right, everyone," the other man shouted. "this is a robbery."
Everyone else in the bank just stared at them. They had already figured that out.
*******
Sara's phone beeped three times in quick succession. Captain Bruno Dante glared at her as she reached for the offending object. A small electronic map showed the flashing dot at the bank. As she pushed away from the table, Dante demanded, "Where are you going, Petzeni?"
"My friend is in trouble. I need to go help him."
"Not until this meeting is over."
She glared at him, but sat down again.
*******
Ian was walking to the stables with Darvi when he heard the beeping from his phone. He dug it out of his pocket and glanced at it. Slipping it back into his pocket, he turned to Darvi and kissed her cheek. "I'll be back, my love."
"Where are you going?"
"Young Gabriel is in trouble."
"Again." Darvi grinned at him.
He turned and sprinted effortlessly across the yard. Climbing into a car, he started for town.
*******
"Someone shut that baby up," one of the bank robbers shouted.
"You knocked her father out," a teller pointed out to him.
"Leave her alone," Gabriel groaned as he pushed himself up from the floor. He put his hand to the back of his head and tried to focus his eyes. Everything was swimming before him. Shaking his head, he managed to climb to his feet. His head was spinning, and he stumbled back against the wall.
"Then shut her up."
All of the other patrons were huddled against a wall. Just as he started toward his daughter, a black-clad form flitted through the doors no realized had opened. He drew two guns from under his coat as the two men drew on him. Two shots later, both men were on the floor, dead. He scooped Amie up in his arms, and she stopped crying. "Untle Een."
He gave her one of his rare smiles he reserved for only the few people close to him. Ian handed Amie back to Gabriel, who thanked him, then he disappeared through the doors.
"Who was that?" Someone asked.
Gabriel didn't answer. He just left, wanting to get home. He remembered now why he hated banks. He arrived home first and placed Amie in her playpen. then, he went into the kitchen and filled a bag with ice. Returning to the living room, he sat on the couch and held the ice pack to the back of his head.
Renee arrived a half hour later. She saw the bag of melted ice sitting on the coffee table and asked, "What happened?"
He related the story of the afternoon, knowing it was pointless to be vague with her. She always seemed to know if he wasn't telling the whole truth.
"Are you okay?" She asked once he finished.
"Yeah, I'm fine."
"Guess it is a good thing we had that alert button installed on your phone."
He chuckled. "It definitely did prove useful."
She sat on the couch beside him and rested her head on his shoulder. "You should really be more careful."
He kissed the top of her head. "I know, Renee. I know."
*******
Gabriel was heading down to his shop when he heard a knock on the front door. He turned around and went to answer it. When he opened the door, he was met by a television crew. "Are you Mr. Gabriel Bowman?" The woman in front asked.
Uh, yeah, I am. Who are you?"
"Mira Roberts, from VCN. I'd like to ask you a few questions."
"Go ahead," he said reluctantly. He didn't care much for television reporters. They always inadvertently caused trouble.
"You were at the New York first National Bank when it was robbed Friday, correct?"
"Yeah. Still have the bump on my head to prove it."
She laughed then continued with the interview. "You have more money invested there than any other patrons, am I correct?"
He shrugged again. "I don't count every penny."
Before she could ask any more questions, Meghan ran to the door. "Who're you talkin' to, Uncle Gabiel?"
"Who's that?" the reporter asked.
"My niece, Meghan."
Meghan peeked around him then overcame her brief shyness and stepped out, grinning at the strangers. Gabriel turned to the little girl and said, "Go on back into the house."
She nodded and skipped inside. When he faced the reporter again, his face was hard. "I do not want my family on television. Now if you have no other questions, we're done."
The reporter nodded her head. "We're done."
*******
"This morning we interviewed Gabriel Bowman, a near victim of Friday's attempted robbery and dealer in odd artifacts. He is also one of the wealthiest patrons of the bank. Here he is with his young niece, Meghan Logan." The footage of the interview with Gabriel appeared on screen while the reporter. "We couldn't get much else out of him about the incident. Tune in tomorrow for more interviews with the other witnesses."
Gabriel hit the off button on the remote angrily and threw it to the floor. Renee looked up from the computer, surprised by this rare outburst of anger. "What's wrong, Gabe?"
"I told her I didn't want my family on television. Damn reporters. Don't they know when to leave peoples' personal lives alone."
Renee walked over to the couch and put her hands on his shoulders. "It'll be all right. Don't worry about it."
*******
The man grinned as he watched the news report. Nothing interesting had happened lately. He felt he was due for some excitement. Rubbing his hand along his smooth shaven chin, he chuckled. He turned the television off and sat in the darkness as he contemplated his plans.