"NO!" screamed Sarah and Patrick in unison as they heard the gun go off.
Nick felt the pain all over again as the bullet embedded itself into his shoulder. He fell back, onto the floor of the bus, first leaning over the seat beside him. Sarah and Patrick grew angry and jumped on the man as the others moved towards the back of the bus. Both of the teens were forcibly pushed away into the seats. Sarah cracked her head against the window as did Patrick.
"I told you to get out of this man. You didn't listen. Now, you're going to pay for it. They're more trouble than you realize. You should've seen them when I knew them well," the man said as Nick tried to back away.
Nick was holding his hand over the wound as he was doing so, the pain becoming worse as each and every moment passed. He was staring down the insides of the gun as it was still being pointed at him.
"We don't have to resort to this. We can work this out, I'm sure we can," Nick told him.
The man started to laugh.
"You don't get it, do you? These two are dangerous and you are protecting them and I think you should know my name before you die. It's Max. Max Hearst," he replied. "Not only that, they should die, as well as you, for taking away Smith. He was my source. Now that he's gone to jail, I have nothing left."
Nick stared at the man's face. He found nothing that remotely resembled pity.
"You're a cold-blooded killer if you do this," Nick told him.
"I really don't give a care," Hearst said. "Though we will leave now. I'm feeling happy enough to let you live for now but we're now heading into the city. We're taking over this bus and everyone in it better listen or someone else will get shot. Understand?"
The students nervously nodded their heads as they slowly took thier seats again. Jessica walked up to Nick and helped him into the same seat as Patrick. Nick put his good hand on Patrick's shoulder and the teen stirred until he finally regained full consciousness.
"Dad! You're hurt!" he said once he saw the blood on Nick's shoulder.
"It's nothing, believe me," Nick quietly told him.
"Nothing my foot. As soon as we get out of this mess, you're going right to the hospital. Wonder what your friends will think of you getting hurt for us again? " Patrick told him.
Across the aisle, Jessica shook Sarah awake, who quickly became aware of the man with the shotgun in his hands. She cowered in the seat as the driver started the bus.
"Max Hearst. We'd never thought we'd see you again," she heard Patrick mumble.
She nodded to herself in agreement.
"Now let's go into town," Max told the crowd as his two friends sat facing them in the front seats.
The driver slowly moved the bus forward, towards the city.
***
Letty, Rae, Harriet and Jules were in the break room talking to each other. The radio was quietly playing in the background as was the television set.
"Hey Jules, want to know what Nick told me earlier before he left?" Jackie asked her, laughing.
"He was here earlier? Really? I thought this was his day off?" Jules wondered.
"It is his day off. He went off to help chaperone one of Sarah's class trips. But anyway, he actually told me to be careful. I think he's out to get me now," Jackie replied.
"Really? Whatever for? I never thought of Nick as the vengeful type," Jules said with a laugh, not believing what she was hearing.
"Oh, nothing much it's about the nickname I simply gave him when Sarah and Patrick first came in. I think it's also because Rae had started to call him that as well. He's become known as a 'knight in shining armour', at least to me, ever since I first saw him talking to Sarah in the waiting room," explained Jackie.
The four started to laugh as Matt walked into the room.
"Alright. What's so funny?" he wondered.
"Something about Nick, that's all," replied Rae.
"Nothing serious," Rae said, a laugh still in her in her voice.
They continued to talk until Letty saw a news bulliten on the television.
"Hey guys, be quiet for a minute," she said to them as she reached for the remote.
She turned it up as they started to watch the program.
"Breaking news. A schoolbus full of students from the local high school has been taken over by three unknown men near the observatory this evening. One gunshot was heard from witnesses outside the bus though nothing else is known as of yet, whether anyone is injured or even killed. We will bring you more news as it comes in," the man said.
The five suddenly became serious as they watched it.
"Nick and the kids are no doubt on that bus. What if something's happened to them?" wondered Letty as she looked at her colleagues.
They all appeared as worried as she was.
"Let's hope for the best that they come back alive," Matt told her.
***
Patrick placed some pressure on the wound in Nick's shoulder. Nick was fast asleep in the seat, totally oblivious to everything around him. Sarah watched her older brother from the next seat.
"Is he going to be okay Pat?" she quietly asked him.
"Yes, he will be Sarah. Just as long as he doesn't get worse," he replied.
Jessica put a hand on her friend's shoulder and Sarah looked at her, sadness in her eyes.
"He means a lot to both of you, doesn't he?" she asked.
Sarah nodded.
"He's the only person who cared about us when the whole world turned their backs on us," explained Sarah.
Max stepped in her view of Nick. He stared down at her.
"I see you've gotten attached to him. I think it would be a pleasure to have you watch him die," Max told her with a small smile.
Several eyes bore into him as he looked over the students in the bus.
"You are all my hostages. You will all be here until I say so. If any of you should try and resist us, some people will be quickly very dead," Max told them.
The students lowered themselves into their seats, all worried that they wouldn't get home until Jessica stood up.
"Let us go! None of us deserve this, not even the ones who have hurt you..." she started.
"Jessica!" Sarah said, surprised.
"...or will hurt you. Have you ever thought that they had no choice?" finished Jessica.
Max lifted up his gun and aimed it at her. She quickly sat down.
"Good girl. Now be quiet the rest of the journey," Max threatened.
He started to walk down the aisle and glance between the frightened students and adults.
"Hey boss," came a voice.
Max turned around and faced the two men.
"What?" he demanded.
"We're almost to town. Where do you want to go now?" the man replied.
A smile crept over Max's face.
"Go to their high school. Their parents are no doubt there waiting for them to return. I wonder what they'd think if they saw their children like this? Let's go find out," Max told them. "Off to school we go!"
"That's right, you'd better go there or else," one man threatened the driver.
"Yes," the man managed to get out as he headed towards the school.
***
"Where are they? They're late," wondered one mother.
"Your guess is as good as the rest of ours," replied another.
All of a sudden, they all saw headlights of a bus. They watched it as it started to pull into the school parking lot.
"Finally! Jessica, her father and I are going somewhere in the morning," sighed one mother.
The bus came to a stop and the doors opened. Everyone was confused when the students didn't move a muscle to get out. A man walked out of the bus, a gun over his shoulder. All the adults there were very confused with this as they looked at each other.
"Can I have your attention please? My name is Max. Your children are on the bus and they're not coming off. They're my hostages along with all the adults on there as well. Try and save them, someone's going to have to die here and I know you don't want to see that happen," Max told the crowd.
The parents there were shocked as they listened to the man before them.
TBC...
Nick felt the pain all over again as the bullet embedded itself into his shoulder. He fell back, onto the floor of the bus, first leaning over the seat beside him. Sarah and Patrick grew angry and jumped on the man as the others moved towards the back of the bus. Both of the teens were forcibly pushed away into the seats. Sarah cracked her head against the window as did Patrick.
"I told you to get out of this man. You didn't listen. Now, you're going to pay for it. They're more trouble than you realize. You should've seen them when I knew them well," the man said as Nick tried to back away.
Nick was holding his hand over the wound as he was doing so, the pain becoming worse as each and every moment passed. He was staring down the insides of the gun as it was still being pointed at him.
"We don't have to resort to this. We can work this out, I'm sure we can," Nick told him.
The man started to laugh.
"You don't get it, do you? These two are dangerous and you are protecting them and I think you should know my name before you die. It's Max. Max Hearst," he replied. "Not only that, they should die, as well as you, for taking away Smith. He was my source. Now that he's gone to jail, I have nothing left."
Nick stared at the man's face. He found nothing that remotely resembled pity.
"You're a cold-blooded killer if you do this," Nick told him.
"I really don't give a care," Hearst said. "Though we will leave now. I'm feeling happy enough to let you live for now but we're now heading into the city. We're taking over this bus and everyone in it better listen or someone else will get shot. Understand?"
The students nervously nodded their heads as they slowly took thier seats again. Jessica walked up to Nick and helped him into the same seat as Patrick. Nick put his good hand on Patrick's shoulder and the teen stirred until he finally regained full consciousness.
"Dad! You're hurt!" he said once he saw the blood on Nick's shoulder.
"It's nothing, believe me," Nick quietly told him.
"Nothing my foot. As soon as we get out of this mess, you're going right to the hospital. Wonder what your friends will think of you getting hurt for us again? " Patrick told him.
Across the aisle, Jessica shook Sarah awake, who quickly became aware of the man with the shotgun in his hands. She cowered in the seat as the driver started the bus.
"Max Hearst. We'd never thought we'd see you again," she heard Patrick mumble.
She nodded to herself in agreement.
"Now let's go into town," Max told the crowd as his two friends sat facing them in the front seats.
The driver slowly moved the bus forward, towards the city.
***
Letty, Rae, Harriet and Jules were in the break room talking to each other. The radio was quietly playing in the background as was the television set.
"Hey Jules, want to know what Nick told me earlier before he left?" Jackie asked her, laughing.
"He was here earlier? Really? I thought this was his day off?" Jules wondered.
"It is his day off. He went off to help chaperone one of Sarah's class trips. But anyway, he actually told me to be careful. I think he's out to get me now," Jackie replied.
"Really? Whatever for? I never thought of Nick as the vengeful type," Jules said with a laugh, not believing what she was hearing.
"Oh, nothing much it's about the nickname I simply gave him when Sarah and Patrick first came in. I think it's also because Rae had started to call him that as well. He's become known as a 'knight in shining armour', at least to me, ever since I first saw him talking to Sarah in the waiting room," explained Jackie.
The four started to laugh as Matt walked into the room.
"Alright. What's so funny?" he wondered.
"Something about Nick, that's all," replied Rae.
"Nothing serious," Rae said, a laugh still in her in her voice.
They continued to talk until Letty saw a news bulliten on the television.
"Hey guys, be quiet for a minute," she said to them as she reached for the remote.
She turned it up as they started to watch the program.
"Breaking news. A schoolbus full of students from the local high school has been taken over by three unknown men near the observatory this evening. One gunshot was heard from witnesses outside the bus though nothing else is known as of yet, whether anyone is injured or even killed. We will bring you more news as it comes in," the man said.
The five suddenly became serious as they watched it.
"Nick and the kids are no doubt on that bus. What if something's happened to them?" wondered Letty as she looked at her colleagues.
They all appeared as worried as she was.
"Let's hope for the best that they come back alive," Matt told her.
***
Patrick placed some pressure on the wound in Nick's shoulder. Nick was fast asleep in the seat, totally oblivious to everything around him. Sarah watched her older brother from the next seat.
"Is he going to be okay Pat?" she quietly asked him.
"Yes, he will be Sarah. Just as long as he doesn't get worse," he replied.
Jessica put a hand on her friend's shoulder and Sarah looked at her, sadness in her eyes.
"He means a lot to both of you, doesn't he?" she asked.
Sarah nodded.
"He's the only person who cared about us when the whole world turned their backs on us," explained Sarah.
Max stepped in her view of Nick. He stared down at her.
"I see you've gotten attached to him. I think it would be a pleasure to have you watch him die," Max told her with a small smile.
Several eyes bore into him as he looked over the students in the bus.
"You are all my hostages. You will all be here until I say so. If any of you should try and resist us, some people will be quickly very dead," Max told them.
The students lowered themselves into their seats, all worried that they wouldn't get home until Jessica stood up.
"Let us go! None of us deserve this, not even the ones who have hurt you..." she started.
"Jessica!" Sarah said, surprised.
"...or will hurt you. Have you ever thought that they had no choice?" finished Jessica.
Max lifted up his gun and aimed it at her. She quickly sat down.
"Good girl. Now be quiet the rest of the journey," Max threatened.
He started to walk down the aisle and glance between the frightened students and adults.
"Hey boss," came a voice.
Max turned around and faced the two men.
"What?" he demanded.
"We're almost to town. Where do you want to go now?" the man replied.
A smile crept over Max's face.
"Go to their high school. Their parents are no doubt there waiting for them to return. I wonder what they'd think if they saw their children like this? Let's go find out," Max told them. "Off to school we go!"
"That's right, you'd better go there or else," one man threatened the driver.
"Yes," the man managed to get out as he headed towards the school.
***
"Where are they? They're late," wondered one mother.
"Your guess is as good as the rest of ours," replied another.
All of a sudden, they all saw headlights of a bus. They watched it as it started to pull into the school parking lot.
"Finally! Jessica, her father and I are going somewhere in the morning," sighed one mother.
The bus came to a stop and the doors opened. Everyone was confused when the students didn't move a muscle to get out. A man walked out of the bus, a gun over his shoulder. All the adults there were very confused with this as they looked at each other.
"Can I have your attention please? My name is Max. Your children are on the bus and they're not coming off. They're my hostages along with all the adults on there as well. Try and save them, someone's going to have to die here and I know you don't want to see that happen," Max told the crowd.
The parents there were shocked as they listened to the man before them.
TBC...
