Quest

Chapter 2

Kaylin looked up and down Meeting Street for what must have been the tenth time. Traffic was light in the historic section of Charleston. More importantly, there was no carriage to be seen. Also for the tenth time, she re-read the text message she’d received the night before.

Andy was Thomas’s closest friend, and in the time she and Thomas had been dating, she and Andy had gotten to know one another fairly well. That was why she knew there were several things wrong about this message. Foremost was the fact that he had texted her rather than calling, which was unusual for him. Second, was the lack of capitalization and punctuation, to which the English Literature professor always paid fastidious attention, even in text messages. Finally, the text had not come from Andy’s phone, but from an unfamiliar number.

Thomas was more than two months overdue from the field ecology trip he had taken with his graduate assistant and two other students. He had assured her something like this might happen, and told her not to worry. The Amazon, he said, was not like other places. Plans frequently got fouled up, connections were missed, or wires crossed, resulting in a giant mess. She wanted to believe him, but could not help wondering if Thomas was penning a cover story which would allow him to spend more time with Emily, the cute redhead who called, texted, and emailed Thomas far more often than Kaylin thought appropriate for a professor-student relationship. Now she regretted having entertained such ideas. Andy’s message had filled her with a dark sense of foreboding.

Right on time, a carriage appeared in the distance. It belonged to one of the small, private companies that catered primarily to couples looking for a romantic ride around the old parts of the city. As it drew closer, she recognized Andy’s shock of short, dark hair, high brow, and fair complexion. The carriage came to a halt and Andy offered his hand to help her inside. His palms were sweaty and his eyes were alive with a manic energy.

“Take this, but don’t look at it until you’re somewhere safe,” he whispered, handing her a small manila envelope as the carriage rolled forward. He leaned up and whispered instructions to the driver, who nodded and began loudly describing the historical significance of the Circular Congregational Church.

“Andy, what’s going on? You said it’s about Thomas. Have you heard from him?”

“We don’t have much time.” Andy looked around as if expecting someone to leap into the carriage with them at any moment. “Before he left, Thomas gave me that.” He indicated the envelope. “He said that he might be delayed on his trip, but if I had not heard from him by sixty days after his expected return date, to get help from someone I trust, and come for him. He said I should do it without drawing unnecessary attention." Andy paused, his expression tense. "He also told me to watch my back.”

“But I’ve already contacted the authorities. They say they’ve checked the entire stretch of river where his party was to have traveled, and found nothing. Their best guess is that Thomas and the others probably went into the rainforest and their boat was stolen while they were gone. They tell me they’ll keep an eye out, but they figure Thomas will show up at one of the settlements along the river and send for help. What else are we supposed to do?”

“Thomas didn’t follow his planned path. This field ecology trip was just a front to get the university to approve an expedition into the Amazon. He’s gone after something bigger. Much bigger.”

An icy sensation of disbelief crept up Kaylin’s spine. What was Andy talking about?

“For several years now, Thomas has been working on a research project that he’s kept top secret, except to say it was a very old mystery. He said he couldn’t share it, even with the people he trusts. He seems to think knowing nothing might keep us safe, though he didn’t say from whom. In fact, he said he didn’t have all the pieces, but he thought he had enough to succeed.”

“This is nuts! Are you sure he didn’t just concoct this crazy story as a cover so he could spend more time with Emily?” She regretted the words the moment they left her mouth.

Andy gave her a soft smile of understanding, took her hand, and gave it a squeeze. “There is nothing between him and Emily. You can take the word of his closest friend on that.”

“I’m sorry.” She buried her face in her hands. “That was so selfish of me. It’s just something that’s been bothering me for a long time. God, I feel like such an idiot. Thomas is lost, maybe in danger, and I’m acting like a jealous teenager.”

“Don’t beat yourself up over it. Thomas needs your help, not your regrets. Now listen carefully. I can’t be the one to do this. I’m an English Lit professor, not an explorer, and I don’t have any friends who are. Thomas specifically wanted me to tell you if it came to this. He seemed to think you might be able to mount a rescue mission.” Andy looked puzzled. “No offense, but you’re a Fine Arts teacher, so it seems odd to me. Maybe because of your father’s military background?”

Kaylin shrugged, too lost in thought to form a reply.

“So, do you know someone, anyone, who could go into the Amazon, find him and the students, and bring them back out alive?” He didn’t add, if they’re still alive.

Actually, Kaylin did know one person who fit that bill. She knew him quite well, in fact, but the mere thought of asking him to risk his life to save her boyfriend made her stomach churn. “I think so.” She bit her lip and stared out at the street. “But I don’t know if he’d do it.”

“Thomas swore that solving this mystery, whatever it is, would rock the world — his words, not mine. He seemed to think he was going to be rich and famous.”

“But that doesn’t make sense. He’s an academic. Even if he solved some sort of mystery in the Amazon, there’s no money in that. What would he get out of it? Mostly fame among scholars, maybe a few mentions in the media.” Closing her eyes, she took two deep, calming breaths and rubbed her temples. Before getting Andy’s message, she had convinced herself that Thomas was not truly in danger. He’d been overdue before and always returned safely. Now, her whole world had been turned upside down. She almost wished for a return to a few hours ago, when her greatest concern had been an irrational fear that her boyfriend was cheating on her. She needed to think about this calmly and logically. “Okay, so we don’t know what mystery he was working on. What do we know?”

“Nothing. I’ve looked at what’s in the envelope, and I’m baffled, though he insisted it would be sufficient to set us on his trail without giving anything away were it to fall into the wrong hands. I think you might have more luck with it than me. When you see it, you’ll understand why.”

“There’s so much about this that doesn’t make sense. Why didn’t he tell me anything? If he thought he might not come back, why didn’t he leave us a map or something? He could have written a note saying, “Look for me here,” and put it in a safe deposit box. And why did he confide in only you?” She wanted to add “and not me,” but she’d already embarrassed herself once today with her jealousy.

“In respect to the first two questions, I can only tell you that he believed someone might be after not only him, but anyone else who might know something about what he was doing. I think he was right. I’ve been on holiday for the last week, and yesterday I received a call from a colleague who told me that a man has been asking after me around the university. I called a neighbor, who said someone had come to her door asking about me as well. Now I’m afraid to go home.” He sighed. “As to the latter question, he knows I keep his secrets.”

Before Kaylin could follow up on that last cryptic comment, his head snapped up and he once again looked up and down the street before turning to face her.

“There’s no more time for talk. The Powder Magazine is coming up on the right. The carriage is not going to slow down, but he will pull as close to the curb as he can. I want you to slip out right in the middle of the tour group that’s waiting at the gate, and then get to your car as quickly as possible. I don’t know if you should go home, but you definitely need to get help. In fact, you should probably get out of town, just to be safe. I’ve gotten you involved now, and I regret it.”

“Andy I…”

Ever the professor, he hushed her with a raised index finger, as if she was a student. “I’m sorry to bring you into this, and I hope the situation is not as grave as I fear, but who really knows?” He gave her a small, sad smile. “Here’s your stop.”

He gave her a gentle shove and she sprang from the carriage. Her last thought before she hit the ground was, Why did I wear heels? And then she was stumbling into the midst of a dozen or more tourists waiting to see the colonial-era gunpowder magazine and its museum.

She landed in the arms of a dark-skinned young man in sagging jeans and an Under Armour shirt. He helped regain her balance and looked her over, though his expression was one of concern rather than lewdness. Satisfied she was all right, he looked toward the carriage, which was now rounding the corner onto Church Street. “Did that dude try to push you out?”

“Oh, no.” She forced a laugh. “He didn’t want me jumping out of the carriage in heels, and he tried to grab me, but I was too quick. I guess I should have waited for the carriage to stop.”

“Why didn’t you?” He was still staring at the carriage, as if he didn’t want to let it out of his sight until he was satisfied with her story.

“That’s my divorce attorney. My estranged husband’s kind of crazy, and while we were talking, I saw his car come around the corner. I guess I freaked.” Someday she would have to write a note to Mr. Harper, her high school drama teacher, thanking him for all those improv lessons. She looked around, not needing to feign nervousness. “I just want to get to my car and get out of here before he finds me.”

“I’ll walk you there.” The young man offered his hand. “Tariq.”

“Kaylin.” He had a strong grip, but his hand was surprisingly soft. “I appreciate it, but I wouldn’t want you to get into trouble because of me.”

“It’s all good. Which way’s your ride?” He stayed right beside her, shielding her from the view of passing vehicles. As they walked, he told her a little bit about himself. He was a high school senior, and hoped to attend Citadel next year. She told him that she was a Navy brat, which elicited a nod of approval.

As they neared the spot where she’d left her car, she looked down the street and gasped. The carriage was stopped on the side of the road, and someone was pushing Andy into a waiting vehicle. Another man, tall, barrel-chested, with short, ash-blond hair was talking to the carriage driver, who turned and looked back down the street, spotted her, and pointed. The man turned, his blue eyes locked on her, and he started in her direction.

They want to take me too! Her heart pounded and she nearly stumbled.

“That’s him, isn’t it?” Tariq pushed her behind him and made a beeline toward the man. “Get in your car and go.”

“I don’t want you to get hurt because of me. Just run.” She couldn’t believe this was happening, and she certainly hated that she’d gotten an innocent young man caught up in it.

“Just get in your car, alright? I got this.”

Kaylin fished her keys from her purse with trembling fingers and struggled to unlock the driver’s side door.

“Hey, lady! I need to talk to you!” The unfamiliar voice must have belonged to the man who was coming after her.

“Yo man, what’s up?” Tariq stepped in front of the larger man as Kaylin pulled the door open and slid inside.

“Get out of my way.”

“I said, what’s up?” Tariq gave the man a hard shove, but he barely budged. Kaylin slammed and locked the door, and promptly dropped the keys. Spewing curses, she retrieved them and started the car. Outside, Tariq was grappling with her would-be abductor. Horns blared as she gunned the engine and backed blindly out into the street. The man broke loose from Tariq, shoved him away, and ran toward her car.

She spun the wheel, did a donut in the middle of the street, and floored it, heading the wrong way back up Church Street. Glancing in the rear-view mirror, she saw the man quickly give up chase, and run back to the vehicle in which they’d put Andy. She wondered why the driver had not given pursuit, but then she saw bodies twisting and jerking inside the car. Andy was trying to fight them so she could get away.

Her inattention almost cost her. She returned her attention to the road in time to see a van blowing through the yellow light, coming right at her. She yanked the wheel hard to the right, going up on the sidewalk as the van shot past her, the stunned driver staring at her as he whizzed past.

Back on the road, she took another look behind her and saw the man who had come after her reach the car, draw a gun, and point it through the window.

She lost sight of the vehicle as she turned back onto Market Street. She gunned the accelerator, flew past the Powder Magazine, and blew the red light as she turned onto Meeting Street, skidding through the intersection, and barely missing a taxi cab, which swerved and took out a garbage can on the corner. She hoped no one got her tag number, but an appearance in traffic court was small potatoes compared to kidnapping.

By the time she turned onto Broad Street, she dared to hope she was not being followed. She prayed Andy was alive, and that the man had drawn the gun only to get him to stop fighting. Her eyes clouded with tears as she thought of the gentle professor fighting for his life.

She finally breathed a sigh of relief when she pulled into the parking lot of the Charleston Police Department Administrative Building. She knew someone there she could trust, and hopefully he could help her, Andy, and Thomas.