“I just saw the news out of Pearson,” he stated. “I need to get there... It’s Annalise.”
There was a collective groan from some of the other agents. Evan ignored it. “I’ll need you to arrange a plane to be ready for takeoff. Also, I’ll need Hendrick’s help on this. And I’m taking Agents Brennan and Lathrop with me.”
“Call off the SEAL team, Duran is on the case, everyone,” “Agent at Large” Kane Bradshaw murmured as the three men headed for the door.
Evan ignored him. While he liked Kane okay, there were times in the past they had butted heads when Kane could sometimes be a bit of an arrogant jerk. Director Pembrook though tolerated his glib attitude. And while Kane had no official rank as an agent with the bureau, he had an extensive background with deep black ops.
Hendrick Maynard, the tech guru nodded. “You got it,” he answered without hesitation. “Heading to my desk now. I’ll send you any relevant info ASAP.”
The director narrowed her eyes, and Evan felt the frost radiating from her. “Agent Duran, you are way out of line.” She paused and continued to hold his gaze. “Ten minutes ago North Carolina state officials called for federal help...” She paused and he was wondering if he should offer to submit his resignation. “You will also take Special Agent Rogers along with the others. This is an all hands on deck situation. Rowan as usual will accompany you and provide team support.”
Rowan Cooper, an attractive woman with long dark hair who worked as a liaison between the local police departments and the TCD team members, also rose and followed the men out the door. She accompanied any crew that deployed to a different location. Her specialty was smoothing over any personality difference or turf wars among different law enforcement units on scene. But her main responsibility was arranging overnight accommodations and making sure the agents had what they needed in order to remain focused on the task at hand.
“Yes, ma’am,” he replied to the director. He knew he’d overstepped boundaries by barging in, but he’d felt the need to act immediately when he’d heard about the situation... About Annalise...
“Plane leaves in twenty minutes. Now go,” Director Pembrook said. To him she added, “Duran...don’t pull this kind of stunt again.”
Evan would have offered to quit after the assignment if he met any resistance from the director to him heading up the detail due to his personal connection to Annalise. Nothing was going to keep him from negotiating this hostage situation.
“Never,” Evan replied before turning to leave.
The team headed for the locker rooms where the agents had go bags of clothing and personal items since they often headed out on a moment’s notice. Rowan was equally prepared for the mission. Usually she would precede the agents to any given location when assignments were handed out, but in this case there was no time.
He knew he was working with the best team and that they would resolve the hostage situation no matter what. Special Agent Davis Rogers was a former army ranger and had been with TCD for only three years, but he was a good fit. He excelled at tricky reconnaissance, among other things.
Agents Nick Brennan and Daniel Lathrop were both not only easy to get along with, but they also possessed specific skills that would make them assets.
The four of them, along with the local law enforcement officials, had to work together to end the standoff with nobody else getting hurt—or worse.
By the time he and the other agents boarded the plane, Hendrick had already sent them all an email with information about the school, along with blueprints of the building.
The school had been established five years earlier by Regina Sandhurst, the CEO of a large tech company who had grown up in the area and wanted to give back. She believed the youth of the nation was a resource to nurture and foster.
She also believed children from disadvantaged communities needed to be fostered, and therefore the year-round school offered full scholarships to underprivileged girls who made up the student body.
The twenty-six students lived on the stately campus, and most were between the ages of nine and fourteen. Dr. Olivia Wright was the principal, and six teachers provided the daily curriculum. There was also a cleaning and cooking staff and six women who were live-in residents and looked after the students.
Evan read carefully over the information. High risk negotiation was what he did, but the stakes were always higher when children were involved. And Annalise...
Her name whispered through his head, but he shoved any thoughts of her away. He had a job to do, and it didn’t matter who was being held in the school; he intended to get everyone out alive and well.
“According to Hendrick, nobody has learned what the hostage takers want.” Evan broke the silence that had overtaken everyone in the plane.
“What would these people want to achieve by invading a school?” Nick asked.
“I don’t have a clue,” Evan replied. “According to Hendrick’s notes, the school doesn’t hold large amounts of cash on-site.”
“Maybe they are planning to ransom off the kids,” Daniel said.
“To who?” Evan countered as he continued to read the brief. “It seems most of these kids come from impoverished households.” He looked up. “Let’s hope by the time we touch down the local authorities will have more information for us. This situation has already gone on for a full night.”
They all fell silent once again. With each minute that ticked by, the tension in the plane increased. He knew all the agents were feeling the pressure of getting this right, but ultimately as the negotiator, the weight of this situation was on his shoulders.
While there were a lot of tried and true ways to deal with a hostage taker, much of his strategy would ultimately come down to instinct as each situation was different. There was no way to prepare for what was ahead of him.
