Inside the bank, the female clerk was still on the floor, her face swelling up like an over-inflated balloon.
The mont the alarm had sounded, a middle-aged man in a suit had rushed out, looking flustered, followed by over a dozen more security guards.
"What is the aning of this?" the man demanded. His gaze swept over Ethan, and Ethan expected to be imdiately confronted. Instead, the man turned his attention to the woman on the floor.
"Mr King, it was him! He harassed , then assaulted people! I think he’s trying to rob the bank!" the woman shrieked, clutching her face. The words "rob the bank" made all the guards tense up. Several of them drew their firearms.
Ethan knew the guns carried by bank security weren’t loaded with real bullets, but with rubber rounds. They hurt like hell but weren’t lethal.
The man called Mr King adjusted his glasses. He stared at the female clerk for a solid ten seconds before finally turning his gaze to Ethan.
"Sir, may I ask what you are here for today?" The man’s voice was eerily calm. His composure struck Ethan as unusual for an ordinary bank manager.
"I’m here to make a deposit," Ethan replied flatly.
"Is that so? Then might I ask how this conflict with Miss Serana began?" Mr King’s eyes betrayed no emotion, and his tone remained asured.
"Heh..." Ethan raised his wrist. The guards flinched back in unison.
"Don’t move!" one of them yelled.
Ethan ignored them, simply pressing a button on his Shatterstar control system, which was styled like a wristwatch.
[DING... Playing back audio recording.]
...
A mont later, after the recording finished, every pair of eyes in the lobby was fixed on the female clerk. Even the guards looked embarrassed; those who had drawn their weapons lowered them.
"Miss Serana, what do you have to say for yourself?" Mr King adjusted his glasses again, his stare boring into the clerk.
"I..." The woman was flabbergasted. Who ca to a bank carrying a personal recording device? Faced with ironclad evidence, she had no defense. However, her ability to pivot was impressive.
"I apologize for my choice of words. But how do you explain him assaulting people?" It seed she wouldn’t give up until she hit a dead end.
"You saw hit soone? Did anyone see hit anyone?" Ethan spread his hands innocently.
"You... Fine! We have a comprehensive, zero-blind-spot surveillance system. I refuse to believe the caras didn’t catch it!" The woman was infuriated by his innocent act. If he hadn’t hit her, had she slapped herself?
"I demand to see the footage!" she continued to shriek.
"I’m sorry, you do not have permission to access the bank’s surveillance system. Furthermore, I reviewed the footage before I ca out. This gentleman was, indeed, standing perfectly still. He did not move," Mr King stated coolly.
"Impossible! If I don’t have permission, fine! I’ll have Vice President Ford check it!" she spat, pulling out her phone.
"Heh, ’Vice President’? Why not go straight to the actual President?" Ethan scoffed.
Mr King continued to ignore the woman. Just then, the blare of sirens erupted outside. Four SWAT trucks screeched to a halt in front of the bank. Dozens of armored tactical officers sward in.
But once inside, they froze. They’d been told it was a bank robbery. Why did it look so... peaceful? A bunch of guards were surrounding a guy in casual wear who looked about twenty, holding no weapons. He didn’t look like a robber at all.
Ethan’s attention was drawn to the commotion. His eyes scanned the tactical team and paused on one man. That man also spotted Ethan and did a double-take.
A mont later, the man made a sharp gesture with his hand. While Ethan didn’t understand the specific signal, he recognized the aning when the tactical officers imdiately shouldered their weapons and stood at ease.
"You again..." The team leader’s face held a wry, almost pained expression.
"Captain... Zane? Long ti no see," Ethan also offered a weak smile. This was the sa team leader from the operation when he’d investigated Kiara’s disappearance at the noodle shop, where he’d taken down two powered individuals. The incident in a crowded area had quickly drawn a police response, including a tactical unit led by this very man. Back then, he’d said he was from the Zane family. Ethan had rembered.
"I’m not a Zane. Just an outer mber of the House of Zane. The na is Larry. First na, North." Larry North stepped forward, offered this correction to Ethan, then glanced at the five guards on the floor and the woman with the swollen red cheek. The woman, after making her phone call, had gone quiet, her face pale. Whatever she’d heard on the other end had clearly shaken her. She shot Ethan a look full of pure resentnt.
Seeing that the tactical team leader was actually acquainted with Ethan, she finally snapped. Furious, she slamd her phone onto the floor. The innocent device shattered into pieces.
"Jordan King! You set up!" she scread, then turned and stord out of the bank.
"I did no such thing. I was rely on a video call with President Ford, the actual President, at the ti," Jordan King said calmly, pulling a phone from his breast pocket where it had been peeking out the whole ti. He looked at the screen. "President Ford, I need to handle the situation here. I’ll speak with you shortly."
Ethan caught a glimpse of an elderly man on the screen, his face a mask of thunderous anger, before the call was abruptly disconnected.
"Alright, my apologies. It was our employee’s error and has caused you all unnecessary trouble," Jordan King said, first offering a polite smile to Larry North.
"It certainly is trouble," Larry replied, shooting a sidelong glance at Ethan, who could only rub his nose in embarrassnt.
"If there’s no situation, we’ll stand down," Larry said, clearly wanting to leave. He turned and made a gesture.
"Wait, don’t go. We might still need you in a minute," Ethan said, reaching out and placing a hand on Larry’s shoulder.
Larry’s body jolted.
THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.
Three distinct concussive shocks emanated from within his body, audible only to him. Ethan felt three powerful forces surge from under his palm, impacting against it from Larry’s shoulder. But Ethan’s hand, resting lightly on the man’s shoulder, didn’t budge an inch.
A flicker of surprise passed through Larry’s eyes. He slowly turned back. "There’s more?"
"Yep. Like I said, I’m here to deposit money. There’s just a lot of it. I’m not sure if this branch even has a vault large enough. If not, I might need your team for a secure transport," Ethan said casually.
"A lot?" Larry frowned. Jordan King’s eyes glead with interest.
"Yep. See that truck outside?" Ethan pointed through the plate-glass window. "I’m not even sure exactly how much is in there. You’ll probably need to count it."
User Comments
0 comments from readers