Page 41 of Target Acquired
The man shrugged. “Sure. All the time.”
Cole planted his hands on his hips. “Anyone in particular who likes pears?”
Jonathan laughed. “You’re kidding, right?”
He wished. “I know. It’s a crazy question, but I have a reason for asking.”
“Naw, man. I don’t have a clue who bought the piece of fruit that was attached to that label.”
“I know. We didn’t really expect you would. We’re just asking a few questions.” Cole shot him a tight smile. “Thanks.”
“Sure. That it?”
Kenzie hesitated. “Actually, no. One more thing. The next time a guy comes in dressed in SWAT gear or police gear and buys a pear, will you see if you can engage him in some conversation? Maybe introduce yourself and get a name?”
Jonathan’s eyes narrowed. “What’s this all about anyway?”
“Just running down a lead,” Cole said. Which was probably going nowhere, but shots in the dark had panned out before. Might as well give this one a try.
Kenzie shifted and Cole noted her gaze had snagged on something in the far-right corner. “Kenz?”
TEN
Kenzie glanced behind her, the feeling that someone was watching her creeping up the back of her neck and settling at the base of her skull.
“Hey.” Cole placed a hand on her shoulder and narrowed his eyes at her. “What is it?”
“Just a feeling. I may be a little sensitive after what’s happened.”
He nodded. “It would be weird if you weren’t.”
The market was busy but not overly crowded. People pressed past and went about their business while she and Cole examined the area around them.
Kenzie spotted a man wearing a hoodie, his hands shoved into the pockets. He wore tattered jeans and hiking boots that had seen better days. She couldn’t get a good look at his face. She nudged Cole and nodded toward the guy. “I don’t want to profile, but—”
The figure had his back to them but seemed to be trying to look over his shoulder unobtrusively—and honestly, Kenzie probably wouldn’t have noticed him if she hadn’t been looking at every single person in the market.
“Should we see what he’s up to?” Cole murmured.
The man turned once more and met her gaze. It was then she noticed the rag tied across the bottom of his face. He hunched his shoulders and looked away. Well, that wasn’t suspicious at all. She had a hard time seeing him dressed up in a SWAT outfit, paying a twelve-year-old to throw a hand grenade at the team. Then again, criminals came in all shapes, sizes, abilities, and surprises. Who knew what he was capable of? And Micah had mentioned he’d kept his face covered.
She and Cole started walking toward him. He moved away and seemed to exhibit an interest in the display in front of him. A case of knives. He picked one up, and Kenzie tensed, her hand going to her weapon that her sweatshirt covered. Cole did the same.
Their suspect looked at the knife, then set it back down to move a few more steps to his left. Kenzie picked up the pace a bit and Cole stayed with her.
Her target turned, met her gaze once more, then hurried toward one of the side exits, which would lead him to the sidewalk and then down to the riverfront. Kenzie bolted after him and Cole was right beside her.
“Fire!” The shout echoed from the fleeing man. “Fire! Run!”
Panic stirred. People who had only moments before been a relaxed group of shoppers were now a desperate, writhing mass, pushing and shoving in their desire to escape the building.
“Fire!”
Smoke billowed from the store and into the rest of the market. Screams mingled with shouts.
“Kenzie!”
She whirled to see Cole hunched over a woman who had fallen, protecting her from the stampede of feet. A lightning bolt of pain stabbed her side just under the edge of her vest. Before she could spin back around, a hard shoulder shoved her. She bounced off an older man, who fell against a younger woman who let out a harsh cry and tried to keep the old man from tumbling to the ground.