Alyssa thumbed her mic. ‘Joe, Tony, do you have eyes on her?’

‘Affirmative. She’s wearing a yellow visor and carrying a burgundy tote. She’s near the middle of the line, third bus from the front. Holding position until you tell us otherwise.’

Adrenaline caused Alyssa’s heart rate to triple as she surveyed her surroundings. There were too many options for escape, and they didn’t have much time. ‘Okay, Joe, Tony, you approach from behind, but wait until you see me. Cord will come in from the right. I’m coming in from the left. Be careful not to let her see your uniforms. I don’t want her to spook.’

‘Okay, we’re moving in behind.’

What probably only took a minute felt like forever as Alyssa waited for the signal that everyone was in place. And just as she thought things might actually go their way, a little kid, maybe three years old, spotted Joe or Tony and began jumping up and down as he tugged at his father’s shirt, and squealed with excitement.

‘Daddy, daddy, peece off-cer!’ His little finger jabbed at the air, pointing. ‘Peece off-cer! Hi, peece off-cer! Bang bang!’ He clutched his chest, pretending to be shot as he collapsed to the ground.

Everyone – including Tatiana Salazar – turned to stare at the kid before looking to see where he pointed. Her eyes strayed from Joe to Tony before spotting Cord moving in closer to her, and then finally landing on Alyssa as she, too, approached.

Pandemonium erupted when Salazar reached into her bag and pulled out a gun. She waved it wildly in the air before grabbing the person nearest her – a teenage boy with braces and a face full of freckles. The boy’s mother screamed as she reached out to clutch at her son only to have the gun pressed harder into her son’s head. Some passengers scattered onto the buses while those behind Salazar skittered out of the terminal. Those closest to her were frozen to their spots, afraid movement would draw attention to them, causing them to be shot. Mothers and fathers still out in the open carefully tucked their children behind them.

Alyssa tuned out the horrified wail of the teenager’s mother, her laser-like focus on Tatiana’s hand. From the corner of her eye, she noticed the two transit officers join Cord, but they stopped when she gave a barely discernible shake of her head.

A wild-eyed Tatiana now had the boy gripped around his neck as she dragged him in front of her, stopping to point the gun at the boy’s mother. ‘Shut. Up. Or I’ll drop him in front of you, and then I’ll shoot you in the mouth just for the hell of it.’

Alyssa, now less than twenty feet away, ignored the frightened cries and whispers of the people still outside the buses. She raised her voice to pull Tatiana’s attention away from the terrified mother as much as to distract her from the woman dressed in military fatigues who had exited the bathroom and crept in closer to Salazar. ‘Tatiana, it doesn’t have to go down like this. We just want to talk to you. That’s all.’