Derek quickly came up with Plan B.
He would step into the coffee shop, ask if it was too late for just one more latte on the go, and offer Vicki and Misato a ride home, and in that order. That would give him a chance to talk to Misato without having that heavy-duty bar counter between them. Maybe a quiet evening in a relaxed setting was what he needed to get her interested in him.
He was reaching for the door when it slammed open in his face.
"Whoa."
"Derek!" Misato stopped in her tracks and gasped. "I'm so sorry. Are you okay?"
"Fine. What's going on here, Misato? Vicki? What's the rush?"
"Oh, Derek, it's Caroline, my high school teacher," Vicki said. "Caroline's on a chartered bus returning from a school excursion up in Stenton, but it's been hijacked. We're heading out there to help her."
"Do you know where along the route from Stenton to Hunter's Wharf the hijack took place? What about the police? Have you contacted them?"
"Yes to both. The police said officers are on the scene, and reinforcements are on their way."
"I'll drive you there. It's faster."
They took off in his Ferrari, which he'd had parked in a parking lot across the street. Derek expertly wove through downtown traffic, maneuvred through back alleys, and was speeding across Granville Bridge onto Highway 67 in minutes.
"Hey, Derek, stay under the speed limit," Vicki insisted from the back seat. "The last thing we need is to have the police stop us."
"Don't worry; I know how not to get caught." He turned to Misato, who sat nervously in the passenger seat. "Misato, tell me where to get off the highway."
She nodded, her eyes looking straight ahead, focused on nothing in particular. It seemed as if she was willing the car to go faster.
"You said Caroline and her students were on their way back from a trip to Stenton, right?"
"That's right. It was a class trip to the big nuclear power plant. Caroline sent me a text message saying two men had hijacked their bus. I haven't been able to get a hold of her since, and I think she must have turned off her phone after that."
"There was just enough time to track her location before the call was disconnected," Vicki added. "I hope to God that we'll be able to find them."
"I don't think that'll be a problem," Derek said. "There will be a lot of police cars up there by the time we catch up."
"I'm praying to all the Gods to keep Caroline and her kids safe. Misato, how many did you say were in her class again?"
"Around thirty, I think."
Derek could see that Misato was terrified. Her eyes were now closed; her hands folded in Buddhist prayer style, probably to prevent them from shaking. He had no idea that Misato was trying hard to connect with Caroline—sans phone. It was tough enough to do with a living person since her specialty was communicating with the dead. It was even harder to create a link without making the necessary sounds—chanting— that would give her away to Derek and Vicki, though they weren't likely to recognize her as a shaman. They would probably just think she had lost her mind.
The Ferrari soon left the urban area and was proceeding north. Rocky white cliffs lined the highway, and few cars were around. Derek was expertly negotiating a curve when red police lights appeared ahead.
"That has to be it. I'm going to slow down."
He parked on the side of the road, far enough away from the police cars so they wouldn't be ordered to leave the area.
"Let's go."
Vicki put an arm around Misato when she jumped out of the car.
"Take it easy, girl. Stay calm."
"Yeah, I'm trying to do that."
The threesome wove their way through a crowd that had gathered outside the police tape and saw a chartered bus about a hundred feet away.
"That must be Caroline's bus."
Derek stepped past the women and approached a policeman who stood guard.
"What's he doing, Vicki?"
"Shh."
"Good evening, officer."
"Sir, you need to stay back."
"Of course." Derek glanced around as if looking for someone. "Excuse me, officer, is Detective Maggie Thorpe around?"
"Huh? Detective Thorpe?" Derek had his full attention now. The cop straightened his back. "Do you know her?"
"Yes, I do. The detective's a legend, isn't she? I presumed that she would be here in a situation like this. We have some information regarding this incident that I think we should pass on to her."
"Information? What kind of information?"
"I think it may be useful, and I need to give it to her in person. Will you let us through, or—could you ask her to come here?"
The officer appeared to be debating what to do when a tall woman, followed by a muscular man who was slightly shorter than her, made her way through the crowd.
"Excuse me," she said, briskly pushing her way past Misato and Vicki.
The officer gave her a quick salute when she glared at him.
"Ma'am."
"At ease, officer. Derek? What're you doing here?"
"Maggie. It's good to see you again, though the circumstances couldn't be worse. Can I talk to you a minute?"
"All right, but make it quick."
"How about over there?" He said, indicating an area past the tape.
She narrowed her eyes but agreed. "Okay."
He led the way, prompting Misato and Vicki to come with them.
"All right, talk fast. What do you want to tell me?"
"This is Vicki, and this is Misato. Misato talked on the phone with their friend Caroline a couple of hours ago. Caroline, uh—"
"Simmons," Vicki supplied.
"Right, Caroline Simmons. Misato, why don't you tell the detective what she said?"
"Let me quickly give you some background first," Vicki said. "Misato lives with Caroline, who teaches at Lord Roberts Secondary School. Caroline taught me when I went there. She was out on a day trip to the power plant in Stenton on a class excursion. Isn't that right, Misato?"
Misato nodded.
"Go ahead, tell the detective what you told me."
Misato cleared her throat and sorted through what she knew.
"Caroline left the house early this morning, I think around six-thirty, saying she'd be home for dinner. Her bus was supposed to come back to the main downtown terminal at five, and from there, she was going to come straight home instead of going back to her school. She texted me from the bus." Misato showed the detective the message exchange on her smartphone screen.
"It was four p.m. when she said the group was running a little late. Quarter past four when she says that two men with guns have taken over the bus. Then she turned off her phone."
"Or the highjackers could have noticed what she was doing and taken the phone from her." Thorpe finished writing in her notebook. "Thank you, Misato. Vicki. Both of you have been a big help."
"Not at all. Please, detective, bring them back safely."
Derek asked Thorpe to allow them to stay where they were now standing. "I promise we won't try to do anything stupid, like move closer to the bus. We just want to be here for Caroline when she gets out of that bus instead of waiting in that crowd where she probably won't be able to see us right away."
He had a point, of course.
"You absolutely cannot move from this spot. Okay? Promise you won't do that?"
"Cross my heart."
Misato was impressed. Was this what Derek Reilly was really like? He didn't act anything like the carefree flirt she saw daily. Smart and smooth, Derek had gotten them closer to the crime scene. He didn't even have to be here, but he'd driven her and Vicki to the middle of nowhere.
"Thank you. I genuinely appreciate what you're doing for us."
"Don't thank me yet. You can shower me with your appreciation when Caroline gets out of this situation safe and sound. Ah." He saw a familiar face in the crowd and gave him a little wave. "There's Connor."
Connor waved back from where he stood, holding a camera with a five hundred millimeter lens attached to the body.
Detective Thorpe had picked up a loudspeaker by then, attempting to build a rapport with the culprits. She asked them if they needed anything, what they hoped to achieve.
Misato felt Caroline's presence and wondered if she could connect with her. She appreciated the negotiation tactics the detective was employing, but it was frustrating not to do something—anything. Though her ability to form a link was much weaker than communicating with someone who was no longer alive, she thought the least she could do was encourage Caroline to hang in there.
She closed her eyes and began chanting silently in her head.
That was when a gunshot rang out.