Page 52 of Jackson
The bell on the door chimed as she went in, and she worked to stay calm even as her adrenaline kicked in. She headed straight for the refrigerated section, using her peripheral vision to note one of the perps at the counter with a weapon pointed at the young female cashier. She wasn’t afraid of him but had to locate the other one before he could jump her. She ducked into an aisle.
“Who came in?” the perp at the counter called. “Get over here where I can see you.” As he spoke, she saw the second man at the other end of her aisle raising his shaking gun toward her. The way he held the sidearm told Paula he had no experience with it.
From her crouch, Paula raised her weapon. “Police. Put your weapon down.” Faced with a gun aimed at him, the young man dropped his own. “Get on the ground. Face on the floor, hands behind your head.” She moved quickly to get his gun and cuff him then turned in the direction of the counter. “I’ve got yourpartner. I suggest you lay down your weapon, too.” She couldn’t see him yet, but she hadn’t heard any sound of movement. She headed to the front of the store, and as she came to the end of the aisle, she risked a glance around the edge. The partner was pointing his gun not at her, but at the floor, apparently undecided about his course of action. “Put down your weapon and get on the ground, now.” Paula was thrilled when the perpetrator did as ordered. “Kick the gun toward me and get on your knees.” As he obeyed, she turned to the cashier. “Call 911.” She cuffed the perp then moved the two together so she didn’t have to split her focus. She removed their caps only to discover that her perpetrators looked to be no more than fifteen. What had prompted them to try something so foolish? They didn’t look any older than Josh.
The cashier came back and said, “The police are on their way.”
“Good job. What’s your name?”
“Candace. Candace Winters.”
“Hi Candace. I’m Paula. Do the security cameras work?”
“Yes, ma’am. At least I think so.”
“Call your manager and get them down here. We’re going to want a close look at the video.” They both turned toward the door as they heard multiple sirens approaching. A few moments later, two uniformed police entered, weapons drawn.
“Detective Seargeant Stone. Here’s my badge. These two jokers tried to rob the place.”
A plainclothes officer entered, and the first uniform called, “All clear, sir.” Paula looked up, pleased to see her partner, Detective Bill Christopher, had gotten the call. “Bill. I thought you were off tonight?”
“No, I traded with Shepherd for on-call. I’ve got a date tomorrow night. What do we have here?”
“I hope it’s the break we’ve been needing on the convenience store robberies. We’ll see what these two have to say when we get them back to the station. The manager is on his way, and the cashier let him know we need the video from the security cameras. Especially the one outside. I didn’t see where the kids came from.”
Paula parked her car and went up to Jackson’s condo. It was now almost 11:00 pm and she was afraid of what his reaction would be, but what could she have done? It was work.
Okay, maybe she should have called. That was what people did when they were running late or got held up. Normally, she would’ve sent a quick text, maybe even called on the drive. But tonight... she hadn’t.
She could tell herself it was because she’d been caught up in paperwork, interviews, and the kind of detail-choked chaos that sucked up hours without warning, but that wasn’t the whole truth.
She hadn’t called because some part of her hadn’t wanted to. Because calling would’ve meant admitting that she owed him something—an explanation, a heads-up, consideration. And that felt dangerously close to vulnerability.
Still, standing at his door now, she wondered if her silence had done more damage than a missed dinner ever could.
“Paula, where have you been? I’ve been worried sick. Why didn’t you call or answer your phone?” He looked relieved, and she hurried to press a kiss to his unresponsive lips.
She pulled her phone out of her pocket, only then realizing she’d had it off since she’d entered the Quiktrip. Fifteen texts and ten missed calls. Oops. “Well, I got hung up at work bookinga suspect and then when I was on the way here, there was more work, and I forgot about the phone.” Surely he would allow her to explain, wouldn’t he? “I’m really sorry I’m late, Sir.” Paula told him what had happened. To her bewilderment, his face grew more and more stern as she related the evening’s events.
When she finished, she was confused and didn’t know what to expect. She’d done a good job, hadn’t she? Why was he so mad? Yes, sure she was late, but she had a damn good reason. She’d prevented an armed robbery.
“Strip and kneel.” Jackson stood with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He looked as cold, hard, and immovable as a marble statue as she complied with his order. “I’m not pleased with you and the decisions you made today, Paula.”
If his posture or tone of voice weren’t enough, the use of her given name instead of Melda told her he was upset with her.
Jackson ticked off her infractions on his fingers. “One: knowing you’re going to be late and not calling; two: ignoring your phone for hours; three: not calling for backup; four: attacking not one but two armed men; five: not wearing your vest when going into an armed situation—and all because you didn’t do the shopping when you were supposed to.” He held up his hand with outstretched fingers. “This is serious, Paula, and I can’t and won’t let you off easily. You’ve earned five strokes with my belt on your bare bottom.”
Paula looked up at him in horror. He’d never used a belt on her before. “B-but, Sir?—”
He halted her words with a stern shake of his head. “Are you my submissive?”
“Yes, Sir.”
“Did you do the shopping when you were scheduled to?”
She dipped her head lower. “No, Sir.”
“Were you late tonight?”
