CHAPTER THREE

 

The next morning, a cab dropped them off at the corner of Fleet Street and Fort York Blvd. It was a short walk to Fort York CI. The stone building was impressive, with tall ceilings and columns in the front of the structure on either side of the door. The original stone facade gave way to more modern stone when additional wings had been added. The addition attempted to match the original architecture of the 1700s but hadn’t quite hit the mark.

Broad steps led up to the door to the main building. They stopped at the office to inquire about Gina.

"Did she come into work today?" Rachel asked the harried secretary. Phones continued to ring no matter how many times she picked up and asked if she could place the person on hold.

"Yes, she's here. She's in the middle of a class right now."

"It's important that we talk to her about Leyla." Rachel toyed with the idea of putting a thought in the woman's head that they were with the police. But how much magic would that take now that they were on Earth with no way back home?

The secretary, Joan, going by the nameplate on the desk, shuffled papers as she tucked the phone receiver under her chin. "Are you with the police?"

"We're councilors," Sarah answered.

Rachel shot her a look. Sarah shrugged. As angels, they often counseled people, guiding them to do the right thing and helping them through situations they didn't think they could handle on their own. People were stronger than they thought they were. They just needed to be reminded sometimes.

"We're all in shock here. Leyla was much loved by her students. Gina has a free period at ten. You can talk to her then."

Becky did the honors of signing them in, then they followed a custodian down the winding corridors of the school to Gina's room.

Promptly at ten, the doors on both sides of the hallway burst open like a river overflowing its banks. Students hustled to their next class, ran to their lockers, or shuffled down the corridor deep in conversation with each other. Not many noticed them waiting beside the door. Of the students who did pay them attention, they shot questioning glances at them, then went back to their conversations.

Gina came to the door and visibly sagged when she saw them. "Is there news?"

"No, not yet."

The woman's face brightened a little. "So, she could still be alive?"

Rachel took Gina's hand, patting it in reassurance. A little angel power couldn't hurt. "Of course, she can. There's still hope. That's why we came to talk to you. We need to see her classroom and find out what she was teaching her students."

"I can take you to her room. Her lesson plan should be in her desk."

Gina stood, and they followed her down to the end of the corridor, then they turned left. Just short of the end of that hallway, Gina stopped, waving a hand at the door.

"This is it. There's no reason why anyone would want to hurt her. I told the police that last night, but I don't think they believed me. They think it's an ex-boyfriend."

"Could it be an ex?" Rachel asked.

"No. She wasn't seeing anyone. Hadn't been seeing anyone in a long time. This has to be for something else, but I have no idea what."

“Did she have any non-school projects? Any hobbies that might have brought her into contact with someone who would want to kidnap her?” Rachel asked.

“She’s a history teacher. She loves Renaissance fairs, medieval fairs. Anything ancient, especially old scrolls and documents.”

“Was she acting differently at all lately?”

“Not that I can think of.”

Becky strolled around the room, checking out the shelves, cupboards, and a desk at the back of the classroom. Rachel followed her with Sarah right behind. Nothing of note on the desk snagged her attention until Becky lifted a pile of papers, revealing ancient maps.

“What’s this?” Rachel asked.

“She liked researching.”

Becky opened her mouth to ask a question, but Rachel shot her a quelling look.

“Thank you for the information, Gina. If we need anything else, we’ll be back, if that’s okay.”

Instead of trying to navigate the transit system, they walked up to the corner of Fleet Street and Fort York Blvd. to hail a cab. As long as they didn't have to travel too far, they'd be okay.

Once back in Rachel's room at The Rex, they pulled out their laptops. After speaking to Gina, they'd talked to a few more of Leyla's co-workers. No one knew much about the woman except the usual stuff someone would reveal to people they worked with. No one seemed to be an actual friend except Gina and even she didn't know everything about Leyla. From the centuries watching humans, Rachel knew people hid things from the world. Even their closest friends and family.

"Becky, do you think you can check the internet for anything that might give us a clue as to why Leyla was taken?"

Becky pulled open the laptop, and her fingers flew over the keys. "Tall order but I’ll see what I can do."

"I'll see if I can hack into the police database to find out what they know," Rachel said.

Sarah pulled out her laptop. "I can check hospitals to see if anyone else has been attacked."

Rachel turned on the television that was mounted in the corner, high up on the wall, with the remote on the bedside table. Midday news flashed on the screen with a brief mention of the kidnapping. The police were asking for anyone who had seen something to come forward. Rachel doubted anyone would. If the roving sorority sisters had seen anything, they wouldn't have been giggling, even if they were drunk.

Though Rachel was tempted to tap into her power to get into the police database, she stopped herself, trying a few more password combinations first. It hadn't been difficult to find the link she needed, but the security would take a little while to get through.

"Beck, how are you doing?"

"I found her social media accounts, an old resume posted on a job website, and a few photo accounts. She's got most of her stuff set to friends only so I can't see much. If we could get her laptop or phone, it would be much easier."

"That's probably out of the question. We might be able to get into her house, but we'd have to wait until the police check it out first. I don't think Detective Williams likes us very much." Frustrated, Rachel tapped into a little angel power when she typed in a password. The police system came up on her screen.

"We can put that on the agenda at some point," Sarah said. "I've had no luck with the hospitals."

Becky snapped her fingers to get their attention. “Found something! Looks like there have been other kidnappings.”

“All teachers?” Rachel asked.

Becky clicked news article after news article. She nodded. “From all over the province. Wait, all over the world. Looks like the first one in Ontario was Nathan Lamb.”

“You guys keep checking the internet for anything that might help. I’m going to pay a visit to Detective Williams.”

***

The large concrete building at the corner of Adelaide and University boasted floor to ceiling windows on the bottom floor. A line of bike racks in front of the building was full. The potted flowers, at the start of each new pane of glass, still bloomed due to the warm September weather.

Rachel took a deep breath as she passed the large sign in front of the building that indicated it was 50 Division. Disappointed to find the station was close to their hotel, she'd hoped the walk would take longer. She needed time to collect her thoughts, figure out what she was going to say to Detective Williams. Maybe he didn't like civilians interfering with his investigation. From his reaction to their robes and wings, it was possible he dismissed them as potential sorority sisters. It had been far too long since she'd had to use courtesy and not her angel powers to convince someone she was a good person.

She pulled open the heavy double-paned, glass door. The metal handle was cold to the touch from being in the shade of a large stone outcropping over the doors. Air conditioning hummed, barely discernible, in the large foyer. A uniformed officer sat at the front desk. She looked up and smiled as Rachel approached.

"Good morning. What can we do to protect and serve today?"

"I need to see Detective Williams. If he's in."

The officer picked up the desk phone and punched in a number. It hadn't occurred to Rachel that he might not be there. What if he was out on a call? The kidnapping wouldn't be his only case, not in a city this size.

The officer replaced a phone receiver, the smile still present on her lips. "He'll be right down."

Relief that he was there was momentary. How would she convince him to talk to her about the case? Could she persuade him to take her upstairs to the bullpen or whatever they called the room where they mapped out their cases? Though she was low on power, she needed to use some to get into the inner sanctum. Hanging out in the lobby would do her no good.

A few minutes later, Detective Williams stepped off the elevator and walked away from the bank of cars. The smile on his face momentarily changed to a grim line. By the time he reached her, hand outstretched to shake, the smile was back. It didn't reach his eyes.

"Rachel, isn't it? What can I do for you?"

"Thanks for seeing me, Detective. I know you're busy. I wanted to ask about Leyla’s kidnapping. Have you found anything yet?"

If the police had found Leyla already, it would have been splashed all over the news. Since they'd checked into the hotel, the televisions in their rooms had been permanently tuned to one news station or another. She particularly liked the one that had various local events being discussed with a ticker tape news feed scrolling across the bottom. On the side was the traffic and weather. Everything you could need for your day on one channel.

"I can't comment on an ongoing investigation."

"I'm not a reporter."

"What you are doesn't matter. I can't compromise the investigation by letting information out."

Frustrated, Rachel tapped into her power, just enough to make him think she was an ally. Someone who should be read in. “Is there somewhere a little more private where we can talk?”

"Follow me."

They went to the elevator which whisked them up to the third floor. A cacophony of sounds greeted her when the doors opened. Phones ringing, a photocopier whirring to the right, multiple conversations about various cases. She couldn't concentrate on just one unless she used power.

She followed him to his desk. It was piled high with papers, file folders, and a half-empty cup of coffee that at best was lukewarm but she guessed it was probably cold.

He sat and folded his hands across a report on his desk. She took the seat opposite him. Other officers looked their way, curiosity on their faces. It wasn't everyday he brought someone upstairs. And they had no idea who she was. Her power didn't stretch that far unless she used it again. But it would drain her too much. Better make the visit quick.

"We discovered there have been other kidnappings in the province," she said.

"Down to business. Good. Yes, there have."

"That's it? Any pattern? Do you know who will be next so you can stop it? Catch the people?"

"Do you think this is a television show? Solving crimes takes patience, time, and a lot of investigating. We're working on it."

"So, no pattern then?"

Enchantment gone, suspicion crossed his face. His jaw set, a muscle twitched. His eyes hardened. "No comment."

Shit. She hadn't used enough power, and now, he saw her as the enemy again. Maybe not enemy but certainly not an ally anymore. Before he could kick her out, she stood. Her gaze focused on every paper visible on his desk, searching for names, dates, locations. A name popped out at her. A face she’d seen splashed across the news this morning right after the entertainment update.

"Thank you for your time, Detective. I'll see myself out."

She forced herself not to run for the elevators. Once inside, she jabbed at the lobby button until the doors closed. On the way down, she sent a text to Becky with the name she'd seen and the location that had been written beside the name. Another day, another victim.

Outside, she walked quickly, dodging the occasional pedestrian. At mid-morning, the sidewalks weren't that crowded, but by lunch time, they would be milling with office workers taking much needed breaks from their cubicles. With new information in hand, she was happy the walk to the hotel wasn't longer.

Rachel went through the bar instead of going around the corner to the hotel entrance. Taking the steps two at a time, she thought about what they needed to do. If they could discern a pattern, maybe they could find Leyla or figure out who might be next. A bad feeling in her stomach told her there would be more kidnappings. This morning's victim wouldn't be the last.

She knocked on Becky's door. It swung open as soon as she finished. Sarah sat cross-legged on the bed, her laptop out. Becky's laptop was on the bedside table, and Becky's face was bright, the smile tugging her lips reaching her grey eyes.

"We have a pattern!"