She obeyed. Ryan searched the front seat before grabbing her purse.
"Officer, please," Mia said carefully. "There are medical papers inside."
He ignored her. He dumped everything onto the hood of the patrol car: lip balm, a bottle of prenatal vitamins, car keys, insurance papers, an ultrasound photo, and a tiny knitted pink sock she had bought that morning. The wind carried it onto the pavement.
Mia instinctively stepped toward it. Ryan immediately shouted, "Stay where you are!"
"I was only trying to—"
"I said don't move!"
People had begun gathering outside nearby stores. Several shoppers quietly watched from a distance. A young mother whispered to her husband, "She doesn't look dangerous." Another man replied, "Maybe there's something we don't know."
That uncertainty was exactly what Ryan wanted. He held up Mia's wallet. "No ID?"
"It's in the clear pocket."
Ryan slowly pulled out her driver's license. "Mia Cole." He compared the photo, then looked at her stomach. "Convenient."
Mia blinked. "What does that mean?"
"It means fake identities aren't exactly uncommon."
Her eyes widened. "You think my driver's license is fake?"
Ryan smirked. "I haven't decided yet."
Tom walked toward the back of the SUV. "Open the trunk."
"It's already unlocked."
He lifted it. Inside sat neatly arranged baby supplies: boxes, blankets, a portable crib, a stroller, and several shopping bags. Tom picked up one bag, still sealed, another receipt still attached. Nothing looked stolen. Still, he wasn't ready to admit Ryan might be wrong.
Ryan reached inside another shopping bag. "Where's the receipt?"
"In my wallet."
Ryan looked back toward the scattered belongings. The receipt had blown several feet away. Before Mia could say anything, a gust of wind carried it underneath another parked vehicle. She pointed. "It blew over there."
Ryan laughed. "Of course it did."
Mia felt frustration replacing fear. "Officer, please listen to me. I'm married. My husband is a Marine. We're expecting our first child. I bought those things this morning. If you let me retrieve the receipt—"
Ryan interrupted. "I've heard better stories."
Tom crossed his arms. "We're still missing one thing: the baby."
Mia stared at him in disbelief. "I'm pregnant!"
Tom looked directly at her stomach. "You could be wearing padding."
For several seconds, Mia couldn't even speak. She had expected questions; she had expected caution. She had never expected complete disbelief.
A woman from the growing crowd finally stepped forward. "I was inside the store," she said. "I saw her paying."
Ryan pointed at her. "Ma'am, stay back."
"But she's telling the truth!"
"I said stay back."
The woman reluctantly retreated. Another customer held up his phone. "I've got video from inside the checkout line."
Ryan noticed immediately. "Stop recording."
"I have every right."
Ryan walked toward him. "Unless you want to become part of this investigation."
The man slowly lowered his phone. Several others did the same. Fear spread through the crowd; no one wanted trouble with the police. Mia watched hope disappear one person at a time.
She reached carefully toward her stomach as another sharp cramp tightened across her abdomen. She closed her eyes. Not now. Please, not now. The baby suddenly kicked hard. Her breathing became uneven.
Ryan noticed. "What are you doing?"
"My stomach."
"What about it?"
"I need to sit down."
"No."
"I'm feeling dizzy."
"You'll stay standing."
Mia tried taking a slow breath exactly as her doctor had taught her. Instead, another stronger pain swept through her body. She bent slightly. Ryan immediately interpreted the movement as resistance.
"Hands behind your back."
"What?"
"You heard me."
"I haven't done anything!"
"Hands behind your back!"
Mia looked desperately around the crowd. "Someone please call my doctor!"
Ryan grabbed her wrist. She instinctively pulled away—not to escape, but to protect her stomach. That tiny movement changed everything.
"There!" Ryan shouted. "She's resisting!"
Within seconds, Tom rushed forward. Another officer arriving as backup grabbed Mia's other arm.
"No!" Mia cried. "Please don't pull my arms! I'm pregnant!"
Ryan twisted her wrist higher. "Stop resisting!"
"I'm not resisting!" Tears streamed down Mia's face. "My baby!"
The three officers forced her toward the ground. She desperately tried turning onto her side to protect her abdomen. Ryan shoved her shoulder face-first. The side of her cheek struck the hot pavement.
Gasps erupted across the parking lot. "Oh my God, she's pregnant! What are they doing?"
A teenage girl near the front of the crowd burst into tears. An elderly man pushed through the people. "Enough!" he shouted. "Can't you see she's carrying a child?"
Ryan didn't even look at him. He planted one knee against Mia's upper back while another officer held her legs still. Cold steel cuffs clicked around her wrists.
Mia screamed. "My baby! I can't breathe! My baby!"
The elderly man took another step forward. "This isn't right!"
Tom turned sharply. "Sir, back away!"
"She's not fighting!"
"I said, back away!"
When the man refused to move, Tom shoved him hard in the chest. The seventy-year-old stumbled backward, barely catching himself against a parked car. Several people cried out in shock.