Page 28 of Acting on Instinct
Kira smiled widely. “Perhaps tiaras will become popular if the world is turning to fantasy to escape the reality that’s unfolding.”
“That is what I told Nu’ma, that people hate how things are becoming in the world, and so they wish to escape. Some, you, for example, enjoy the pages of a book. I,” he touched his hand to his heart, “prefer a tree and a fishing pole, while Nu’ma is content to focus on family and make her paintings.”
Abdul turned his attention to Ty, and as she’d feared, Abdul gave her a nod before he raised his voice a bit to say, “The diamond market is losing favor now that there is concern over slavery and the terrible conditions of the miners, especially for the children. Now, most people are choosing lab-grown diamonds. They are so close to a natural diamond that they must be marked during production. But much more reasonable for a young couple’s budget.”
Appalled, Kira pointed Ty’s attention toward the walls. “Ty, Abdul’s wife Nu’ma did these paintings, aren’t they amazing?”
“Your wife is very talented,” Ty said. “I love the bright colors.”
“And the lines, they make me think of childish abandon and dancing,” Kira said.
“Thank you.” Abdul offered a slight bow. “Let me go look in the back and see if I can come up with some choices that might work for you, Ty. I can change the size, if you know your mother’s ring size.”
“I’ll text my dad,” Ty said, pulling his phone from his thigh pocket.
Kira turned to the other side of the store and leaned over the selection of cloisonné. There was a large oval ring that was quite pretty and within Ty’s budget. So if Abdul didn’t land on something from the back, she’d point that one out to him.
She tapped the glass and walked forward. The next case was filled with watches of different kinds. Kira wonderedwhether people wore them as an adornment or actually checked the time.
Ty wore a watch, but it had to do with his survival. It had a built-in compass and other gadgets with lots of places to press and hold that would give Ty information about how high he was on a mountain and the slope's incline. It also had times in various zones, and he would talk on the phone about Zulu Time, which was the standard, so that if one person on the phone was in Turkey, he was in D.C., and a third person was in Australia, they could all coordinate their time zones.
Kira was glad those types of calculations weren’t part of her life. She liked puzzles of words and thoughts, ideas and emotions, and while math was something she was good at, knowing that it was life-or-death math didn’t appeal to her at all.
Kira trained her focus on Rory, who sat in a seemingly uncomfortable posture, staring hard at the door.
Waggling his phone in the air, Ty turned to Kira. “Mom’s a size six on her ring finger and a size eight on her index finger.”
Kira lifted her chin. “What’s up with Rory? Do you think he’s in pain?”
What happened next was wholly unexpected.
Ty turned and looked, then, in one swift move, reached down and unclasped Rory’s lead.
He strode to the door, his eyes sweeping from left to right across the panes of glass, and just as Ty reached out to turn the lock, a man moved into view from the side of the building.
Pulling down the front of his balaclava so it covered his face, the man was dressed head-to-toe in camo and wore the kinds of things Ty did when he was dressed for work: a bulletproof vest, heavy boots, MOLLE bags with battle-provision pockets. There was a can in the holster by his waist on one side—pepper spray? And a pistol rode his other hip. A rifle hung from a strap across his chest.
Kira was aware that Ty was commanding Rory and that he was conflicted about how to handle the situation. As the men poured into the jewelry shop, they each pulled their ski masks down over their faces.
Were these ICE agents coming to speak to Abdul? Because Abdul and his wife were both naturalized United States citizens. And their daughter was born right there in Durham. So while Abdul looked like a foreigner and had a thick accent, he certainly had the right to be here.
Were there even ICE agents functioning in Durham?
Kira hadn’t seen them out before. But then again, she hadn’t been out of her house much lately.
The men fanned around the room as they looked toward the back.
Kira saw a news report that ICE agents could enter a building but not enter the employees’ areas.
For a moment, she was afraid for herself. She might have a look that would draw attention with long, straight black hair and a Middle Eastern skin tone. She wondered if her driver’s license would be enough to prevent further scrutiny. It hadn’t occurred to her to carry her passport.
Ty must have signaled Rory because suddenly Rory spun around to land plastered against her right leg.
No one had said a single word.
Kira walked over to stand next to Ty, and Rory stayed glued to her side, not allowing a whiff of air between them.
A last man moved through the door, and he held a pickaxe. Kira focused on it hard. Did ICE agents wield pickaxes to break down doors?
