Chapter 10

From down the passage that led toward Foley’s, I heard “Police! Clear the way!” The crowd that I hadn’t noticed before parted and four uniformed officers came through with guns drawn but pointed up.

I looked up in time to see the guard, who was still standing where I had first seen him, turn automatically and hold up his hands. His gun hung loosely from his trigger finger only.

Feeling fairly comfortable where I was sitting against the Chick-Fil-A booth, I clasped my hands on top of my head. It didn’t help my headache any.

I watched as the officers approached the guard. One officer, with a burgundy aura, took his gun and picked the other up off the floor. Another officer with a teal aura was already putting his gun away as he spoke to the guard. The other two officers came my way, guns pointed. I remained as still as stone. No need to spook them. No need to make my headache any worse.

One of the officers went to Jeff and checked for a pulse. He said, “He’s alive but unconscious.” Both of them had eyes only for me.

I wasn’t sure what to say, so I said nothing. I probably wouldn’t get in as much trouble that way.

One of the officers said, “Stand up, very slowly, turn around, and put your hands on the counter.”

That would have been easier said than done. “I’m not the one who caused the ruckus.” I nodded at Jeff, still lying on the floor. “He is.”

The officer that was kneeling over Jeff looked down at him. The other never took his eyes off me.

Movement caught my attention. I looked over slowly to see the guard and the officers he was talking to approaching. The officer with the teal aura called out, “Marks, Davis. Not him. Arrest the man on the floor.”

Technically I was on the floor, just not prone. I sat there with my hands still on my head trying to give the officer pointing his gun at me a blank face. I’m sure I looked scared. I could feel it. It would suck to keep everyone from getting shot only to be shot by the police after the fact.

The officer kneeling over Jeff pulled out cuffs and slapped them on him.

The other officer was still pointing his gun at me. I said, “Could you please not point that at me?” My voice was nice and steady.

I hadn’t paid attention to the officer or his aura. His gun was holding my attention. When he pointed it skyward, I could see him. He had a pale green, almost yellow aura, light-colored hair which was very short like a burr, and his eyes were pale blue. Sweat trickled along his forehead. A rookie? Boy was I glad I hadn’t moved.

The officer with the burgundy aura stepped up next to him. “You can put it away Marks. This guy helped Briggs stop the guy on the floor.” He looked down at me. “He’s a hero.”

I didn’t feel like a hero. I felt like a water balloon ready to burst. My ears were popping with pressure.

Officer Davis, who had a reddish-orange aura, felt for and found a wallet on Jeff. He got up and took it to the officer with the teal aura. Then he returned to stand watch over the prone man. Marks of the pale green aura and the burgundy aura officer went to keep the crowd back, which had started inching forward once all the guns had been put away.

The officer speaking to Briggs was nodding and taking notes. I couldn’t hear what they were saying. What would Briggs tell him? I wasn’t sure. For that matter, I didn’t know what I would tell them when it was my turn.

Officer Davis noticed the bullet on the ground, and then he looked at me. “Are you hurt?”

I shook my head. “Just a bit shook and a headache.”

He nodded, taking my word for it. When the Paramedics arrived Davis asked if they had any Tylenol. One of them pulled out a small white bottle and handed it to him. The other one came through with a gurney and started checking Jeff. Davis tossed me the bottle but remained where he was in case Jeff woke up and tried something. I didn’t know what he could do with his hands cuffed, but then, I wasn’t with the police either.

I took four Tylenol and swallowed them dry. The medications I had taken when my headaches started years ago had been stronger than that. The Tylenol wouldn’t help, but I didn’t try to explain that to the officer.

I watched as the paramedics checked Jeff’s vitals. When one of them pulled out one of those long hard boards to get him up onto the gurney, I shook my head. “Do you guys have any smelling salts?”

One of them looked at me as they shoved the board under Jeff.

“Try it. I’m sure he’ll wake right up,” I said.

The paramedics looked at one another. One shrugged. The other pulled a vial out of their medical bag.

One wave under Jeff’s nose and he was coughing and sputtering and trying to sit up. When he realized that his hands were secured and a police officer was standing over him, he went still.

One of the paramedics, an older man with salt-n-pepper hair and an aura the color of a dark avocado asked, “Are you hurt?”

Jeff looked at him, hesitated for a second, and then shook his head. “Just my head.”

The avocado aura paramedic ran his latex-gloved hands through the man’s hair. “I don’t see anything, but there is a lump here.” He looked up at Officer Davis. “He’s not bleeding, but he may have a mild concussion. We should have a doctor check him out.”

Davis nodded and waved the paramedic back. Once the paramedic was out of the way, the officer bent over to help Jeff up. Jeff’s aura hardened, but I was sure it was from the stress of being arrested rather than wanting to attempt anything.

Once he was standing, he stared at me for a long moment. The look on his face was a mixture of confusion and disbelief. His aura flowed and stuttered with the mixture, telling me he wasn’t sure of what to make of me. Then his eyes drifted down to my arm and over to the bullet that still lay on the floor. He looked at me again and asked, “How did you...?”

I just stared back at him, not saying anything.

The woman Jeff had been threatening came striding back over. “You sunavabitch!” She screamed. Officer Davis stepped between them and held his other hand out to ward off the woman. She didn’t push any closer though. Her aura was frazzled but fairly hard. Her face was contorted with rage at Jeff.

I looked at Jeff. His aura was hard too, but his face was a mix of anguish and anger.

More officers showed up and escorted Jeff out of the mall. The woman started to follow, but Officer Davis caught her arm and held her back. He whispered something in her ear and she nodded vigorously. Then he led her out through the crowd. I was pretty sure she was going with him to give her statement and press charges against Jeff.

Past the other officers and the guard, I spotted Rachel. She was sitting at one of the closest tables, her hands clasped tightly in front of her. Her aura was just on the hard side of neutral. Was that concern for me? I didn’t know. I tried to relax. She caught me looking at her. I smiled. She smiled. It warmed me to my toes.

I gave the pill bottle back to the paramedics as they packed up to leave, and then turned to watch the police still talking to Briggs. I knew they would want to talk to me. I had read too many crime novels. What would I say though?

I looked at my arm again. It looked fine, but what was that shield that had appeared? Could I recreate it any time or was it only for emergencies? Well, having it today was good. For emergencies only was acceptable. But then I thought about the headache that accompanied it. Emergencies only were fine, as long as I didn’t already have a pulverizing headache first.

There was also the question of the push. How had I done that? I remembered not wanting to see anyone die. I knew I couldn’t reach Jeff before he fired and I instinctively threw my hand at him. It was what Rachel had suggested, trusting my instincts. But what had I hit Jeff with? The Force? No, that wasn’t right. I wasn’t a Star Wars Jedi.