'What?'
'The DART buoy!' Kai shouted.
'We sure as hell did. That's a monster of a wave headed your way.'
Kai had to let Manetti know that he had left the PTWC, that Manetti was now in charge of the only operating warning center. Not only that, but Hawaii Civil Defense would be deaf to any new warnings until Palmer took over. Kai hadn't taken the time to call Brian Renfro before they left to let him know that they were going off-line.
'Listen, Frank. You need to take over now.'
'Say that again, Kai. I didn't get that.'
Kai raised his voice as loud as he could. 'I said you're going to have to…'
They had been tooling along nicely on the shoulder, but someone in a Ford Explorer got the same idea. He didn't see the bike coming up from behind and swerved onto the shoulder just as the Harley passed him. Brad jerked the bike to the right and brushed the curb, almost losing control. They missed the Ford by inches, but the jerk of the bike caught Kai off guard, and in his urgency to grab Brad to keep from falling off, he dropped the cell phone. It clattered as it bounced once and then smashed into the curb, shattering into pieces.
'Damn it!' Kai yelled.
'What?' Brad shouted over his shoulder. 'Are you OK?'
'I'm fine. I dropped my phone!'
'I've got one. Do you want me to stop so you can get it?' He started to slow down.
Brad's telephone was virtually useless to Kai because he didn't know anyone's number from memory. Not the warning center in Palmer, not Hawaii Civil Defense, not even Reggie's. It was all in the cell phone address book, which was now destroyed.
The only alternative was to turn back and find the TV van again to tell Reggie that he hadn't been able to complete the transition. It might be an hour before Reggie was able to get to Wheeler and establish contact with everyone, critical time when additional information from the DART buoy would not be getting to HCD or other Pacific island nations.
But if they turned around now, it would add at least ten minutes to their ride to Waikiki. They'd never get there in time.
Kai felt Brad downshift, and the bike slowed.
'No!' Kai yelled. 'We don't have time! Keep going!'
Brad revved the engine, and soon they were up to 70.
They approached an intersection where a policeman was directing traffic. He had the traffic on Fort Weaver Road stopped to let cars on from the cross street. Another policeman stood by his cruiser at the corner assisting with the traffic direction. He waved Kai and Brad down, and the tires squealed in protest as they stopped.
'What do you think you're doing?' the cop said.
'We need to get to Waikiki right now!' Kai yelled without taking his helmet off.
'Everybody needs to get somewhere right now. Get off the shoulder! You're going to kill someone.'
Kai lowered his voice so that only Brad could hear him.
'We don't have time for this. Just go.'
'I thought I'd never see it,' Brad said. 'My brother, the scofflaw.'
Brad saluted the officer and shot forward through a gap in the cross traffic.
Kai turned to see if the officer was going to give chase. He saw the policeman move toward his car and then throw his hands toward them in disgust. Thankfully, he had too much to do to worry about them.
In another minute they had reached the entrance ramp for the H1. It was clogged with cars and buses. But there was enough room for a motorcycle to get through on the shoulder, and this time they cruised along at 80.
Chapter 29
After leaving the clothing store where she saw the first tsunami wave engulf the hikers on the Big Island, Teresa had returned to the spot on the beach where she'd left the note in her bag. To her dismay, the bag was still there with no sign from the girls.
Her first thought had been to find another phone so that she could call someone for help. But without the phone book in her dead cell phone, she didn't know any numbers to call. Home numbers would be useless, and cell phone numbers weren't listed in any paper directories at the phone booths. When she had finally convinced an obliging tourist to let her use his cell phone, her calls to information had gone unanswered, as had her calls to the Grand Hawaiian. There was no way for her to contact anyone she knew.
Teresa had tried enlisting the aid of a policeman assisting in the evacuation, but he was so busy that all he could do was attempt to convince her that the children had likely reached safety on their own. His reassurances were empty, though, and she continued the search by herself, shouting their names and showing her photo of Mia to anyone who passed.
By this time, the evacuation had reached its peak. People walked and ran in all directions, some calm, others crying or screaming. Many of them were families, the children struggling to keep up with their parents. Teresa hadn't taken the time to get an update on the tsunami, but whatever people were seeing on TV was spurring them to get out fast. When she tried to stop passersby to show Mia's photo, most people brushed her aside, immersed in their own problems. Of the ones who did take the time to look at the picture carefully, none recognized Mia.
Numerous possibilities for where Mia and Lani had gone fluttered through Teresa's mind. The most likely explanation was that they were in one of the hotels or condos lining the beach, either oblivious to the mass panic below or dismissive of the danger. Or they could have gotten a ride in someone's car. Teresa didn't think Mia would do something like that, but given her own state of dread, she wasn't ruling out anything.
If the girls were in a vehicle or a hotel room, she'd never find them in time. Her only hope was that the girls would become aware of what was going on and come back to find her.
Teresa's search led her back to the east end of Waikiki beach where she came to a stop at the corner of Ohua and Kalakaua. While the midday sun blazed unimpeded by clouds, the ocean breeze kept the temperature to a comfortable 80 degrees. Nevertheless, sweat glistened on Teresa's arms and brow, more a result of her anxiety than the climate.
She scanned the two blocks between her and the end of the developed part of Waikiki where the Kapi'olani Park began.
'Mia!' she yelled. 'Lani!'
A few heads turned, but none of them belonged to her daughter. She was about to turn and head back in the other direction when a muffled sob caught her attention.
Tucked in an alcove was a little boy no older than six. He was hunkered down against the wall, tears streaming down his pale face, the wind tousling his ash blond hair. The people hurrying by were so engrossed in the evacuation that he had escaped attention. If Teresa hadn't stopped there, she most likely wouldn't have seen him either.
She knelt down in front of the boy, forgetting about her own lost child for a moment.
'Hey there, kiddo. Are you lost?'
He nodded glumly between sobs.
'What's your name?'
'David.'
'Hi David, I'm Teresa.'
He looked at her dubiously, as if he had already told her too much.
'My mom said I shouldn't talk to strangers.'
'That's usually a good idea, David. Where is your mom?'
He paused. Teresa could see that he was unsure whether to trust her.
'David, I'm a doctor and doctors help people, right? And all I want to do is help you find your mom.'
