He's followed by a man armed with a handgun. That man's face is covered by a red jacket.
As chaos breaks out, a female employee hits the silent alarm and begins screaming. A manager and owner with a handgun come running to her aid, but as the manager tries to hit the silent alarm for the second time, he is shot by the gunman.
"He does try to make it over to the panel. That's when he's shot by one of the suspects," said HPD robbery investigator Ken Nealy. "As he goes on the ground, he lays behind the counter. The owner of the business comes out, and he has his own handgun. We have a brief gun battle that takes place inside of the business itself."
The manager, who was shot in the shoulder, is expected to be OK. Despite the owner having one suspect on the ground at gunpoint, all the suspects got away.
One suspect blended into a crowd of Waltrip High School students, who had been released from class early on Wednesday. That school went into lockdown for the protection of students at after-school activities, but no students were injured. A stolen van used as a getaway vehicle was recovered.
Police are asking for anyone with information about this robbery to call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS. You may be eligible for a $5,000 reward.
