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ABE SLAMMED A FIST AGAINST HIS desk as he got to his feet. He’d been sitting for a few minutes but had to start pacing again. “Where is Rajesh? He was supposed to be here three hours ago!”
Even Edrice wore an anxious look. She pursed her lips and Abe knew exactly what was coming. She was about to tell him not to worry. Well, that wouldn’t do any good.
He started talking before she could open her mouth. “We need pictures from Rajesh. We need proof in order to get the Kenyan police involved. If something went wrong, he should have been here by now so we can fix it. He should be here!”
But Rajesh remained absent, and Abe was ready to strangle him.
“He said it might take longer than we expected,” Husani said.
Abe felt his lips curl into a sneer. “Not this long. Something went wrong; I know it.”
Edrice bit her lip and tapped at her hologram screen. “I’m sure he’ll be here any minute.” She frowned and tapped again. Her unease only made him angrier. None of them cared about Imara like he did. Why did he let them go through with this idiotic plan?
At least Keiko looked sufficiently upset. She had tucked herself into a corner and held her knees up to her chin. The permanent glare she usually wore still graced her face, but it did have more worry etched into it than usual.
Husani stood up with his hand reaching out, as if an idea sat before him, just within reach. “We should track their location. Has anyone allowed location sharing with Rajesh or Imara?”
Keiko laughed, her curled up lips looking smug.
Husani glanced toward her and clenched his jaw. “What?” he asked. “You think it’s unrealistic that one of us allowed location sharing with them? Or do you think it’s obvious someone has?”
Keiko rolled her eyes. “Neither. I think the first thing Takara did when she chose a spot for her base was block the location. I guarantee it’s impossible to track them if they’re anywhere near my mother’s base. Probably not a kilometer around it either.”
Husani blinked before he let out a huff and slumped to the ground.
“She’s right,” Abe said. “And just so you know, I thought ahead and got Imara and Rajesh to allow location sharing with me before we went through with this stupid plan. I’ve checked it a thousand times already. Their location pins disappeared by the citadel. They’ve been dark for hours.”
Edrice drummed her fingers on the desk and bit her lip yet again. “We could try messaging Rajesh.”
“You think I haven’t tried that?” Abe said as he glared at the ground. He grabbed a fistful of his hair, but it didn’t help him think. Nothing did. He rolled one hand into a fist and cracked his knuckles as he stared at the door. He kept expecting Rajesh to burst through the door and tell them everything was fine.
Another few minutes passed while he finished cracking his knuckles. Rajesh still didn’t come. Abe kicked the chair under his desk and folded his arms over his chest. A moment later, he released his arms. “I’m calling Naki,” he said.
“Who’s Naki?” Husani asked as he tapped his fingers against his knees.
“It’s Imara’s sister,” Keiko said. “Don’t you ever pay attention?”
Husani frowned and gave Keiko a sideways glance. “I’m starting to like you a little less.”
Keiko glared back. “I’m starting to not care.”
Ignoring them, Abe tapped Naki’s picture to call her.
Edrice stood up and tugged at her hair ribbon. She was full on chewing her lip now. “Don’t call her yet. We can’t even prove to the Kenyan police that Imara is in trouble. We have to be reasonable. We have to wait for Rajesh.”
Abe turned his back on her. Something had gone wrong, and he knew it. He wouldn’t wait around for another second. Soon, Naki appeared on his hologram screen. She sat on a couch millimeters away from a guy who twirled her braids around his fingers. She looked bored. He didn’t wait for her to speak before he launched into the conversation. “Imara’s been kidnapped,” he said.
The guy stopped petting Naki’s hair for a split second and glanced mildly interested toward Abe.
“Already?” Naki asked. “I thought you weren’t supposed to do it until next week.”
The guy leaned closer to Naki and raised an eyebrow. “Supposed to? She was supposed to get kidnapped?”
Naki pushed him away as she rolled her eyes.
“We had to do it early.” Abe closed his eyes as he took in a deep breath. How could he explain? When he opened his eyes, Naki had leaned closer to her hologram screen. Her eyes bugged out, which didn’t make his next words any easier to say. “Something went wrong.”
The random guy gasped, and he tried to put a hand on Naki’s shoulder. She immediately pushed him away even harder than before and turned back to Abe with a hardened glare. “What do you mean something went wrong? You said this plan would work!”
His jaw tightened as he shook his head twice. “I never said it would work. Imara said that. I said it was dangerous and stupid, but nobody seemed to care about my opinion.” He let out a breath, trying to relax his jaw in the process. “Can you help?” he asked.
Naki brought her eyebrows so close together, they were practically touching. “If anything happens to her, I’m holding you responsible.”
“That’s a little redundant since I already hold myself responsible, but fine. Can you help? We probably won’t get proof, but I’m hoping Imara’s police friend will help anyway. Can you contact her?”
Naki’s eyes widened as she clapped both hands over her cheeks. She shook her head in hurried jerks. “I don’t have her contact information. Imara never left it with me. She and the police woman had a meeting next week. The kidnapping was supposed to coincide with the meeting so I could meet with her in Imara’s place. I’ll have to call the police department.” She stood up and pushed her hands into her cheeks as she shifted her eyes from one side of the room to the next. “I don’t know if I should ask for Safiya directly. Something weird happened in their department. The meeting was supposed to be the perfect thing.”
She shook her head suddenly and shifted her eyes back toward Abe. He could tell she wasn’t looking at him, but at her hologram screen. She started tapping and scrolling through it. She stopped suddenly and plucked a blanket from the ground to look under it for something. When that didn’t give the desired result, she snatched a jacket off the ground. Then some pants.
“What can I do to help?” the guy said.
Naki gave out an exasperated groan. “You can leave. You’re so clingy, Basara. I’m sick of you hanging on me all the time. Why do we have to be together every free minute of your day? Sometimes I like having space.”
The guy, apparently named Basara, frowned. He reached for her shoulder and put his other hand on her cheek. “You don’t mean that,” he said. “You’re just upset about your sister.”
“I do mean it!” Naki said. She turned away from him and plucked more articles of clothing from the ground. “Ugh. Where are my shoes?” She turned to grab a purse from off the ground, but Basara grabbed her hand instead. She ripped it out of his grip. “I’ve been thinking about breaking up with you for awhile. Maybe now is a good time.”
Basara’s face fell. “Naki, no. Please. I’ll give you space. I’ll do anything.”
Naki put her hands onto Basara’s shoulders, giving him her complete attention. She sighed. “I don’t mean to be rude, but this has gone on long enough. I need a break. Maybe I need more than a break. Maybe I need—”
“Naki, focus!” Abe said through his teeth.
She sneered back at him. “Has Imara ever told you you’re very bossy?”
“She’s been kidnapped, remember?” Abe rubbed circles into his temple. “Something went wrong. We need to find her as soon as possible. What’s the name of the police lady? Imara was supposed to tell me before she got kidnapped, but she left early and now everything is falling apart.”
Basara dropped to his knees in front of Naki. He took her hand and buried his face in it. “I love you, Naki. More than anything.”
Naki rolled her eyes and looked back at Abe. “Safiya,” she said. “I can’t remember her last name, but I know it starts with an O. Otten or Otno or something.” She glanced back at Basara who was now stroking her arm. “I’ll call you back as soon as I get rid of him,” she said indicating the guy on the ground. Then she tapped her screen and ended the phone call.
When Abe turned around, everyone stared at him. Edrice had a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. “That was Imara’s sister?” she asked.
“Yeah,” Abe said. “Naki’s life is a little dramatic. Husani and Keiko, you two get out and scout the area where Imara and Rajesh’s location pins went dark. Edrice, get ready to do some P.R. because we might need the entire Nairobi police department on our team, not just Safiya. And I will try to contact Safiya. Let’s just hope she agrees to help us.”
