He ran a hand through his dark, curly hair. His blue eyes shined brightly in the dark store window he was walking by. After a minute of admiring himself, the man continued on his walk. His tailored suit fit his frame closely, and his Italian leather shoes shined brightly in the sun.
It was the perfect day, the perfect time to rob a bank.
The man walked into a bank with a spring in his step. Without hesitation and with a smile, he walked up to a young guard-woman. She looked up, pushing her straight red hair out of her face.
"Hello, can I help you Mr . . . ?" She asked.
"Halden. Nicholas Halden." He answered.
"Mr. Halden then. What can I do for you?"
"I was supposed to report for a job interview today, and they gave me a pass to get back there. Silly me, I forgot it at home. On my counter. And I'm already late. If I don't get in there soon, I'm not going to have any chance of getting the job. But I really need it, because I don't like my current boss, I mean talk about crazy. So I don't have time to run back to my place. I can't . . . " The man stopped his rushed words when the woman raised her hand at him.
"Stop. It's okay. Here's a visitor's pass. And good luck." He shook her hand, smiling at her and oh-so-casually taking her badge and workers' ID from where they were clipped on her belt.
"Thank you. And have a nice day." He walked away, scanning her ID and entering the back-room.
He smiled, banks would never learn. They kept the money in one easy access room. The hardest part was walking out with a straight face. But that was something he had mastered.
"Goodbye." The man waved to the guard with the hand that wasn't holding his now-full briefcase.
"Goodbye, Mr. Halden. I hope you get the job." He smiled and walked away.
A couple million dollars never hurt anyone.
"Neal robbed a bank."
It could not be told from where in the busy room where the words had come from, but all movement stopped instantly.
"Neal what?" Peter Burke demanded from the balcony just outside his office. He was met only with silence.