Fear Itself
Chapter Four
Catherine felt herself being held back from getting to her daughter, as were several other parents trying to get to their trapped children.
The scene was hectic, and Catherine was beyond panicked. There were police cars everywhere, firemen, detectives, and SWAT were out there as well, contemplating their next move. The school bus was cordoned off in the middle of the street with dozens of children inside banging on the windows and screaming for their parents. Catherine could see Lindsay on the bus, crying and screaming.
"MY BABY!" Catherine screamed as she fought against the police officer holding her back. "WHAT'S GOING ON!"
After a few more hectic minutes, a man, dressed in all black, emerged from the bus with a screaming child. He brandished a gun and a remote control.
Catherine was still focused on Lindsay, who was still crying.
"I'VE GOT A BOMB!" The man shouted. "IT'S ON THE KID AND THE BUS!"
"PUT YOUR WEAPON DOWN!" Officers shouted.
"ONE SHOT AND THE KID IS DEAD!" The man responded.
Catherine's heart was beating so fast, she thought it would explode. She prayed that her child along with other people's children would come out of this situation alive.
Nick, Warrick, and Grissom came up to her.
"What's happening?" Warrick asked as he cupped her cheeks to make her face him. "Catherine, what's happening?"
Catherine was too shaken up to say anything that was coherent to Warrick.
All of a sudden, shots rang out, and there were a few seconds of shouting before two large explosions knocked the wind out of the crowd, forcing Catherine, Warrick, Nick, Grissom and anyone else in the front row of the crowd to the ground.
The two fireballs seemed to grow larger, and finally, they used up all of the oxygen and just lowered themselves to the ground and burned.
Everyone was too shell shocked to speak, and Catherine sat up, rather dizzy from hitting her head, and she stared out at the scene and slowly came to consciousness.
"No," she whimpered as the tears started to fall. "NO! NO!"
She stood up and began running out to the fires.
"Catherine!" Warrick yelled as he quickly went after her. He grabbed her by the waist and pulled her back just as another explosion rang out.
"LET ME GO!" She shouted angrily. "LINDSAY!"
She collapsed in his arms and cried.
"Good afternoon, this is Francis Smith reporting for channel four news," the reporter started gravely. "Tragedy has struck the city of Las Vegas this afternoon. A bus full of children exploded today after a hostage taker held it up. The man in the dark suit, as you can see in the tape had a young boy as a hostage carrying another bomb.
Again, there were two explosions at Northwind Elementary. We will have more on this story in a few minutes."
Catherine was hysterical. Just laid in the grass knoll thirty feet down from the tragic scene. If anybody tried to comfort her, she fought them off violently, shouting profanity and pounding at them so that they would leave her alone.
Catherine heard a faint cry through all of the noise.
"MOMMY!" The familiar voice sounded again.
Catherine sat up from the ground and looked around.
"MOMMY!"
Catherine peered around through the chaos and she saw a bunch of children and teachers running from the back of the school.
Catherine got up.
"LINDSAY!" She shouted as she stumbled from shock.
"MOMMY!"
Lindsay ran and jumped into her mother's arms crying hysterically.
"My baby," Catherine cried. "Oh thank God."
She checked her daughter to see if she was hurt before covering her face and forehead with kisses.
"What happened mommy?" Lindsay asked.
Catherine was too relieved to have her daughter in her arms safe and sound to speak.