Warning - This part is definitely rated T for language. But it's necessary for characterization.

Part 3 - Lack of Communication

The young thief noticed their movement and swiftly swung his gun around to cover them. John caught the action and stopped in his tracks to look directly at him, noting that the scruffy individual seemed very nervous and unsure. And although that weakness could be used to their advantage, it also meant that the man was an unpredictable factor.

As was his partner, who was now holding his revolver in full view and still yelling at the manager. "You could have just given us the money, mister. Then we would have been out of your hair. But no you had to go and alert the cops. So now we've got ourselves a hostage situation! One false move from anyone and I'll put a bullet through your head."

John forced himself to remain calm. Understandably, everyone else was terrified, and as if sensing his mother's distress, the small child started to cry. The young woman looked petrified. Frozen to the spot and she made no move to comfort her son for fear of being shot. John felt helpless as he was powerless to intervene while the second man still had his gun trained on him. To add to the situation, a phone in the back office started to ring in competition to the child's loud bawling.

Waving his gun around to demonstrate his intentions, the scar faced robber turned to the mother and bellowed. "Oh for god's sake, lady! Shut your damn kid up!"

The young mother gasped and visibly shook. She quickly leant down to fumble with the stroller straps. Once the child was free, she scooped the little one into her arms in an effort the silence his crying. The little boy didn't stop entirely but thankfully, the phone's incessant ringing ceased leaving only the occasional sob of the distressed child.

"Alright then! First off you're going to lock the door, mister." Scar face instructed the manager. "While the rest of you, except for the ugly teller, are going to slowly move over to the back wall and sit down. And don't forget, one false move and it'll be the last thing you do!"

The two female tellers looked at each other and instinctively the older one knew who he meant, but she had to get a word in. "Who are you calling ugly? Have you looked in the mirror lately?"

Momentarily distracted, the thief turned to her with an angry scowl. "Just go behind your counter and wait, ugly."

John weighed up his chances of overpowering him but there were too many innocent folk around in a confined space for him to attempt such an action. And the man's partner still had his gun generally pointed in their direction while he tried to cover Mr. Franks as he reached up to key the door's locking mechanism. Once the manager had the door locked, he was ordered to join the others who were now all sitting on the floor.

While his partner continued to cover them, scar face moved over to Rachel to grab her cash bag. It was the first time he'd really got a good look at her. "Well if it ain't the lady who turned me down last night." He moved his head to one side to scrutinize John. "And look what we've got here, brother! Mister spiky hair, minus the cool shades and fancy automobile."

So they were brothers, John noted. Maybe he could use that against them but right now, he needed to get their trust and try talk some sense into them before things got out of hand. "You do realize that you don't stand a chance, don't you? That sheriff out there isn't going to rest until he's got you. If I were you I'd…"

"Nobody asked for your opinion, spiky hair."

"Look, I'm just saying that if you surrender right now, things will go a lot easier than if you try to hold out and keep us hostage."

Scar face considered his words for a moment and shot a look at his other hostages, satisfied that they all seemed pretty terrified. "Who the hell do you think you are? What are you, some kind of lawman?"

"Just a citizen trying to stay alive, like the rest of these good people." John looked towards the younger man. "And I'm sure your kid brother isn't ready to die yet either. What is he, twenty five, or so?"

The young man shot his brother a nervous glance. "He's right, Wade, a few thousand ain't worth dying for."

"Who said anything about dying, you idiot. Shit face here is only trying to put scary ideas into your head. As long as we've got hostages, no ones gonna try anything." Wade gave John a look of pure hatred before moving over to the teller who was still waiting patiently behind her counter. He thrust the cash bag towards her. "Now fill this up...with all the money, woman."

Anita Costa did as she was told, emptying both her position and her colleague's. She handed the bag to Wade with a look of loathing before sitting down on the floor near Mr. Franks. He turned to her with a look of disapproval as if the matter had all been her fault. She swore that if she got out of this situation alive, she would look for a new position elsewhere.

Over in the office, the phone started to ring again. Wade turned to glare at the offending machine, giving John the feeling that the robber was itching to take his frustration out on it. "You know that could be the sheriff trying to contract you."

"I'm going to say this one more time. Who the fuck asked for your opinion, shit face?"

"I'm just trying to give you some good advice and could you please keep your language clean, there's a child in here. And my name's Sheppard, not shit face."

"I'll call you what I damn well like! So shut the fuck up…, shit face!"

In that moment, John knew for sure that they were dealing with a man both brainless and totally unprofessional. The fact that he hadn't even tried to hide their identity in any form, prove it. Maybe he wasn't worried that the bank might have video surveillance equipment. Not that John had noticed any. Then there was Wade's nervousness and uncertainty. His swearing, name calling, and gun waving showed someone way out of their depth and in a desperate situation, one that he had no idea how to resolve. Maybe he'd been in jail before and had no desire to return. Whatever Wade's problem was, like his brother it also made him a very dangerous and unpredictable opponent. One John would have to keep a very wary eye on, for his sake and the others.

Mr. Franks, the main reason as why they were now being held at gun point, remained obstinately silent. Maybe he was regretting his thoughtless action. Whatever, John shot him an exasperated look hoping that the idiot would take some heat away from him and try to negotiate with the robbers. Unfortunately, Franks totally ignored him, but at least the phone stopped ringing.

John sighed, he knew that he'd have to try and talk some sense into them again, even if meant only getting the women and child released. However, not wanting to push his luck too far, he decided to leave it for a while. At least until Wade had calmed down a little.

-oOo-

Sheriff Richards tried to present a picture of calm control but inside he was seething. That someone had the audacity to rob the bank in his town was unthinkable. He'd been sheriff for eight years now and in all that time, no one had attempted anything of the kind.

He looked at his watch it had been twenty five minutes since the alarm had been raised. At first, he had considered going right in and dealing with the situation. However, instinct had told him not to, mainly because they didn't know what they were up against.

Eyewitnesses outside the bank gave testimony to the fact that there were at least six people inside, including Mollie Ambrose and her baby son John. That alone had kept him from risking a shoot out if the culprits were armed. He had tried to contact someone within the bank several times while the area around was being condoned off but nobody had picked up the phone, meaning the robber or robbers were being obstinate.

He looked towards the condoned off bank and sighed. It was just a matter of time before he'd have to deal with the media as well as the damn problem inside the building. "Okay, let's try to contact them again," he informed his deputies for the third time.

-oOo-

Across town at the Sundown Motel, Mollie Ambrose's mother, Susan Watts, went about her work cleaning out the rooms for the next guests. She hated this job but it was necessary since Mollie's father had walked out on them, leaving her with little to live on. Hated the mundane work but at least Joe and his wife were good to her.

Pushing her cart to unit ten, Susan turned the key and huffed in the sight of the still occupied room. She looked at her watch. This was the last unit to clean, and she wanted to go home early to have lunch with Mollie and baby John.

Suddenly feeling very uptight and annoyed, she walked briskly into the office. "Hey Joe, I thought you said that guy in ten was checking out today?"

Joe looked at his watch. It was eleven fifteen. "He was supposed to."

"Well, his stuff is still in the room and there's no sign of him."

Joe frowned. "That's strange. I mean the man didn't seem like the type to do that sort of thing. Maybe he got…."

Just then Joe's wife rushed into the office. She'd been shopping downtown. "Have you heard the news? Someone tried to rob the bank and now they're trapped inside with Mr. Franks and his staff, and at least three customers."

Susan went as white as a ghost, "Oh my god! Mollie said that she was going to the bank this morning." Annie automatically moved over to comfort the distraught woman, but she shrugged her off almost immediately. "What if it's the man from unit ten? You know, he could have lied about his military rank and all."

Joe shook his head. "I don't think so." However, he pondered her words. After all he hadn't seen an ID. "Look, I'll take you down to the bank and we'll see what we can find out. I'm sure Mollie is already at home and getting lunch ready for you."

Susan nodded gratefully.

-oOo-

Meanwhile, inside the bank things were getting positively overwrought. Mollie's baby just wouldn't stop crying, the phone wouldn't stop ringing and Wade was becoming more and more volatile.

"Shut that damn kid up!" he shouted into Mollie's face. "Or I'll shut him up for you."

John had heard enough. Although he didn't want to risk enraging Wade's wrath future, he had to say something to that. However, surprising, Mr. Frank's beat him to it. "For goodness sake, why don't you just calm down and think about what you saying. It's bad enough that we're all trapped in here but to threaten the life of an innocent child is unthinkable."

Everyone except John nodded. Although he absolutely agreed with the manager's words, he still partially blamed the man for their dilemma. John dared to open his mouth despite the fact that Wade might just shot him out of malice. "Never had much to do with kids…huh, Wade?" Predictably, Wade spun on his heels to glare at him. John ignored him. "He's hungry and he's scared because…his mama is. If you don't want to hear his crying anymore, then just…let them…go."

"I ain't letting anybody go."

"Why not? You don't need them as hostages. In fact, you don't need most of these people. So why don't you let them go as a goodwill gesture."

"That's where you're wrong, shit face! That brat is my best bargaining piece. The Sheriff ain't going to do nothin' while I hold that kid."

John sighed. Yep, he was dealing with a real dumbass. "Then you'll just have to put up with his crying but believe me, if you hurt that child…then you're dead meat for sure."

Wade's brother looked terrified, confirming that getting through to the young man was still John's best bet. So he directed his attention to him. "What's your name, kid?

"That ain't none of your business!" Wade spat in his face.

"Well, seeing as we know your name, it only seems fair that we know his. Isn't that right, folks?" Surprisingly everyone nodded.

"My name's Clive." The young man supplied.

"Okay, Clive. You want to get out of this alive don't you?"

"Yeah, of course I do."

"Alright, then you try and talk some sense into your brother. Otherwise…," John shrugged his shoulders, "I can't guarantee what will happen, but try and get him to release some of these people, especially the child and his mom." Just as John said the last word the phone started to ring again. "Oh, and answer the phone, will you."

Wade stepped closer, his face burning with anger. John braced expecting some form of retribution but unexpectedly, Wade turned away and started pacing. "Okay, I think we've let them stew for long enough. Keep a close eye on them, Clive. Especially shit face here." He spun around to kick John forcibly in the foot before marching into the office section to pick up the phone. However, it stopped ringing before he could reach it.

John winced, the kick hadn't been hard enough to break any bones but he'd have a bruise or two to show for it.

-oOo-

Joe and Susan arrived at the bank to a scene of chaos. The media had just descended with all their paraphernalia and broadcasting vehicles. Stepping over cables and around parked cars, they swiftly moved towards the barrier but a deputy barred their way. "You can't go any further, Joe. Sorry about that but it's the Sheriff's orders."

Susan looked distraught. "But my daughter and grandkid could be in there! And we have some useful information for him."

The Sheriff heard her and shouted over. "Its okay, Chris, let them through." When they reached the Sheriff, the much large man grabbed Susan's shoulders. "I'm sorry, Sue, but Mollie's inside with John. We're doing anything we can to get them out but the darn felon hasn't answered the phone yet."

For a minute, Joe and the Sheriff thought that Susan was about to faint but she rapidly pulled herself together. "We know who did it..."

"Now hold on a minute, Sue," Joe interrupted, "we don't know that for sure."

"Oh yeah, then where is this so called colonel?"

Sheriff Richards held up his hand. "What so called colonel?"

"He checked into unit ten yesterday and didn't check out when he should have. Now he's gone missing." Susan accused.

Joe shook his head but the Sheriff wanted more details. "Okay, what's his name and description?"

Before Susan could answer, Joe quickly supplied. "He signed in as John Sheppard a Lieutenant Colonel in the Air Force. I guess about six foot tall, slim build, dark spiky hair and Annie thinks he's a good looker. You know…I'm pretty sure he's not involved." Joe added.

"And what makes you say that?"

"Just a gut feeling. His hair may have been a little on the long side for military but what thief would roll up in a white convertible and spend the night in my motel before trying to rob the local bank?'

The Sheriff nodded. "Good point but it takes all kinds. Anyway that fits the description of the guy Mrs. Perkins saw go into the bank. Said the man nearly mowed her down in his haste. We'll get his name checked out but for now, he's our number one suspect."

As the sheriff dialed his phone to speak to someone about John's ID, Susan turned towards the bank, her face a mask of fear for her family.

Joe gazed around and despite the crowds and chaos, he noticed a white Corvette parked on the other side of the wide street. When the Sheriff had finished, Joe pointed it out. "I think that's the Colonel's vehicle over there, which means he could be a victim rather than a wrong doer."

Susan turned to him, angrily. "What makes you think that?" She still needed someone to accuse.

Sheriff Richards waited for Joe's answer too. "Oh come on, if you were robbing the bank would you leave a rented getaway car so far off?"

"Nope." The sheriff answered. Then he shouted to one of his deputies and pointed towards John's car. "Go check out that white Corvette, Mike. And let's try to contact the bank again, shall we."

-oOo-

The phone's sudden shrill clang caused more than a few startled reactions in the now silent bank. Baby John had finally gone to sleep.

Wade stared at the offending machine but finally, he moved to pick up the receiver. At first, he didn't say anything and his hostage audience didn't know whether that was a good sign or not. The latter must have been the case when Wade's temper suddenly escalated until he spat down the phone. "These people are going to die if you don't give me clearance. I'm demanding that you remove your fucking asses and vehicles away from the bank. I'm demanding that me and my partner be allowed to drive away unhindered with the money. I'm demanding that no one follows us or interferes with our departure in any shape or form, or we'll blow away the hostage we intend to take with us." There was a pause. "No…you listen to me, Sheriff, the first sign of trouble and I'll blow these people away…one by one, starting with the dumbass that runs this fucking bank."

John whispered to Rachel. "Well, at least he picked the right one." If the situation hadn't been so serious, she would have laughed.

"No way!" Wade shouted down the phone before slamming it back into its cradle. "Boneheaded cops!"

John didn't know what the Sheriff had just said but obviously it wasn't improving their situation any. However, he decided to remain silent and let Wade cool down for a while because he had a feeling that Wade was just itching to take his frustration out on someone. And the most likely target, was him.

-oOo-

Sheriff Richards thumbed his phone off, pretty sure that his blood pressure had just escalated to dangerous levels. His doctor would not be pleased. At least now they had contact with the criminal, although it seemed that he was dealing with a real pigheaded fool. He'd asked the man nicely to let Mollie and her son go but the thief had flatly refused, leaving him with the horrible feeling that this was going to be a very long and tedious siege. He turned to see Mike rushing from his search of the so-called colonel's car.

The deputy panted to halt in front of him, holding out a small weapon contained in a plastic bag and a jacket. "Had…to…break the window to get in. I found…nothing much other than this hand gun and the rental papers in the glove box. The jacket was on the backseat."

The Sheriff took the wrapped gun and examined it. "Had to break the window, huh? Well, someone's not going to be very pleased when they hear about that." The Sheriff slowly turned to the motel owner. "I think you were right about that guy, Joe. I doubt that he's involved in the heist."

Susan didn't like what she heard. "Why are you saying that, Sheriff?"

"Oh, just a hunch because the man I spoke to didn't seem educated enough." The Sheriff took the jacket and searched it but the pockets came up empty apart from a pair of sunglasses and a power bar.

"Well, that's not a good enough for me, Sheriff." Susan spat. "You just get my daughter and grandkid out of there, and that good for nothing villain locked behind bars where he belongs!" With that she stormed away to stand further back.

Joe and the Sheriff exchanged a pained look. "She's just worried about them," Joe whispered.

Richards sighed. "Yeah, that I can understand."

"Sheriff!" Someone shouted. He turned to see Madge from the office moving towards him.

"Yeah?"

She stopped a few paces away. "He checks out but that's not all, someone from the Air Force is on their way. It seems this Colonel is a very important man."

Putting on his best smile, Richards thanked her but inwardly he was seething. They were coming to step on his turf. To take away his right to bring justice to the criminal who had the audacity to invade his town and threaten his people. However, when he spoke to Joe, he didn't voice his anger. "Well, let's just pray that this Colonel Sheppard can help us get out of this situation from within. Hopefully, without any bloodshed."

Joe nodded in agreement before going off to inform Susan about the latest devolvement and how wrong she had been.

-oOo-

Inside the bank things were beginning to get decidedly uncomfortable. It was a hot and sticky afternoon and despite the bank's so called air conditioned interior, the room felt like a bake house.

John gazed at the others, he didn't know about them but he was growing increasingly thirsty and muzzy headed. He could push his hunger aside but, in this heat, water was something else entirely. Consequently, he risked speaking up. "If you want to keep us alive, then I suggest you let us have some water." John pointed to the bank's bottled dispenser over in the office section.

Wade looked down at his hostages as if he needed his entire brain to work out the decision. Once the cogs had clicked into place, he went over to Anita. "Get up, ugly. Clive, you keep your gun trained on this woman while she goes and gets some water. And make sure me and you get the first cups."

Some fifteen minutes later, everyone had drunk one small cup but it was better than nothing. Silence prevailed as they continued to wait, each deep in their own thoughts and fears. Silent, except for young John Ambrose who'd just about had enough. His diaper was full and his stomach was empty and he wasn't afraid to let the world know. He started to wail again.

tbc

Thanks again for the reviews. I will try to update every other day. RL permitting.