LITMIR.BIZ

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told her, grinning. “We are in the Diamond District, after all.” He offered her his hand. “I’m Matt Townsend. How do you do?”

      “Kieran Finnegan,” she told him, shaking. “A pleasure.”

      “The pleasure is all mine,” he said. “Come over here, if you will.” He led the way to the counter.

      He walked around behind it as she followed him, and ducked down to open a safe beneath the counter.

      A chill swept through her. She was suddenly terrified that something would go wrong.

      It couldn’t go wrong; she had to remain calm, act normal.

      She looked casually around the shop as she waited. She glanced at the security camera, estimating her brother’s position when he had pilfered the stone.

      She looked away to avoid suspicion, then looked quickly back at the camera again. Reflected in the lens she could see someone entering the store—another late customer.

      No, not another customer.

      The man was wearing a black hoodie, which shadowed his face. And she couldn’t see his face because he was also wearing a ski mask.

      And he was pulling a gun from his pocket.

      He was followed quickly by a second man—his twin in every detail.

      Kieran felt her knees grow weak. She’d read about the recent run of jewelry store robberies, but...

      But there were dozens of stores in the Diamond District. Why had the thieves picked this store on this day?

      “Stay down,” she said softly to the salesman.

      They hadn’t killed anyone yet—had they? Even so, there was always a first time.

      And when there were guns involved, there was no sense in taking a chance.

      No diamond was worth a man’s life.

      “Stay down,” she repeated.

      But either the salesman didn’t hear her, or he heard her and had no idea what she was talking about.

      He rose, setting out a velvet cloth with several uncut diamonds. “Here you—”

      He broke off, staring. Kieran’s back was to the new arrivals, but she knew Matt Townsend had a clear view of them and the gun—guns?—that was undoubtedly pointed at him now. He stepped back, raising his hands.

      Just at that moment, a distinguished-looking older man came in from the platinum room with a young woman in a gorgeous fur coat.

      The woman saw the thieves and screamed.

      “Shut up or I shut you up!” one of the gunmen said. “You got two seconds.”

      She didn’t hear him. She was still screaming and was clearly hysterical.

      Kieran turned to see the first man pointing his gun in the screaming woman’s direction, while two others—when had the third man entered?—kept their guns trained on Matt.

      Kieran wasn’t sure what propelled her—maybe it was the stark raving fear that if he shot one person he would shoot them all—but she wasn’t about to let the terrified woman die, much less put them all in the morgue. She hurried over to the young woman and slapped her cheek, then took her face in both hands and said softly and firmly, “Stop. Stop right now. We’re going to live. We’re all going to live, all right?”

      “Smart girl,” one of the gunmen said.

      The woman had stopped screaming. The older man—Mr. Krakowsky—looked at Kieran with what she thought was gratitude in his eyes.

      “Take whatever you want,” he told the thieves. “We won’t move a muscle to stop you or set off the alarm.”

      “Good call, old man,” the second gunman said. “You,” he told Kieran. “You look bright, and you’re definitely pretty—there’s got to be a guy out there somewhere who wants you alive. And you’re obviously the type who would really like to see everyone survive here today. So if you listen carefully to my every word, we’ll all be able to sleep in our own beds tonight.”

      She wasn’t sure if being called bright and pretty by a gun-wielding thief was a compliment, but there were three men in her life who loved her very much: Declan, Kevin and Daniel.

      She clung tightly to the concept that everyone would live.

      “So, Red,” the thief continued, “scoop up those diamonds on the counter. Now. And you, guy behind the counter, get out the other diamonds down there in your safe. The really good ones. And you, Red, you make sure he does it. I want all of them.”

      “Do what he says,” Mr. Krakowsky advised.

      “And, Red, watch him, because if you lie to me, Screaming Mimi over there gets it first.”

      Matt ducked beneath the counter again. He was shaking.

      “If the alarm goes off, I shoot every one of you,” the thief promised. “I’m a crack shot. Six bullets, only four of you. No problem.”

      Townsend was far too terrified to hit the alarm. He brought out five velvet cloths filled with loose diamonds and set them on the counter.

      “Now, man behind the counter, go ahead of me. Get out your keys so you can open the back door. Old man, you and Screaming Mimi get down on the floor. Come on—move. Time is of the essence.”

      Everyone stared at him—frozen—for a split second.

      “Down,” Mr. Krakowsky said, pressing the young woman to the floor with him.

      “You,” the first gunman snapped to Kieran. “Get those stones and come with me—now.”

      Kieran stared at him. She wondered whether she could even move, she was shaking so badly. Some instinct came to her rescue. She swept up all the diamonds while the thief who had done the talking headed to the back with Matt Townsend. A second one moved to stand close to her. Even though she knew that his gun wasn’t touching her, she still thought she could feel it.

      The third remained near the door, oblivious to the camera, his gun ready.

      The thief in charge shouted from the back that the door was open. Kieran stood with the velvet-wrapped diamonds in her hands, frozen once again.

      Then the nearest gunman grabbed her arm and turned, walking backward and keeping his eyes on Krakowsky and the other customer as he pulled her down a hallway and toward the back door.

      He fired a shot as he walked; she felt the pistol’s kick shoot through her via his grip on her arm. The sound was deafening.

      She couldn’t tell if anyone had been hit or not.

      All she knew was that she was being hustled through the store and out the back door.

      The alley beside the store had once been an open-air path. It was still a pedestrian passage, but now it was flanked by new buildings—new as in maybe only fifty or so years old—and boasted sidewalk cafés at both ends.

      “Move!” the third man shouted, hurrying to catch up to them. “Someone in there must have set off the alarm. Hear the damned sirens?”

      Her captor shoved her toward the wall, and all she could do was wonder if they would or wouldn’t shoot her in the back.

      But before she hit the wall she was grabbed by the third man. “Keep her—we may need her,” he said, wrenching her around to face him. His eyes were like chips of blue ice. “If you—”

      He stopped speaking for a moment, and she saw his eyes widen. Did he know her? she wondered.

      He quickly found his tongue again. “We’re going to run, and you need to do everything I say. If you don’t, I will fucking blow a hole right through you. Got it?”

      Kieran was trying so hard not to shake that she was afraid

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