Page 19 of Be Courageous

Faith’s head spun. Her legs went weak as a cold river of shock coursed through her veins. “I have to sit down.”

Charlotte pulled her across the gully and down on the damp, dirty ground. “Put your head between your knees.”

This can’t be happening. But it was. As Faith breathed in through her nose and out through her mouth, she could hear Charlotte join Fitz in moving through the bushes, canvassing the area for more evidence.Please don’t find his body.Please don’t.

“I’ve got a cell phone!” Charlotte sang out.

Faith snapped her head up. Fitz was stepping toward Charlotte. With his gloved hand, he picked up what she was pointing to.

Faith clambered to her knees, needing to see it.

Fitz joined her by the gully. “Can you ID this?”

The battered iPhone in his hand was scarcely recognizable, but it had the same green case as the phone Grayson had received on his tenth birthday. She’d been so proud of him for never misplacing or dropping it. But now it was crushed, the glass smashed to pieces. “It’s his.”

Fitz eyed her more closely. “You okay?”

“Yes. We have a lead now.” And no body, which meant Grayson had to be alive.

Charlotte rejoined them. “There’s no sign of anyone walking through these bushes. My guess is both objects were tossed out the window of a car, headed back the way it came, which means the abductor found the phone, destroyed it, and threw it out the window after turning around.”

Fitz pondered her words a moment, then checked the shoulder—looking for tire tracks, Faith realized—but the shoulder was comprised of gravel.

“Looks like someone spun out right there, as they pulled back onto the road.” He made brief eye contact with Charlotte. “Okay, let’s get these items to our forensic team.”

As they returned to their vehicles, he kept himself between Faith and the traffic while carrying Grayson’s recovered items.

Once at their vehicles, Fitz opened his trunk and sealed the items in evidence bags of varied size. Just then the forensic team returned from their reconnaissance farther east and bent over the open trunk to examine the evidence.

Faith waited on tenterhooks, hugging herself hard as she prayed for something to be revealed by their discovery. At last, one of the forensic specialists turned to Fitz.

“Sir, there’s nothing immediately apparent that would tell us anything. We’ll need to take these items to the lab to look for fibers and fingerprints and such.”

Faith’s hopes floundered. How long would that take?

Fitz cast her a worried glance, then addressed the techs. “I want you to hop a flight from Norfolk. Every minute counts.”

Hop a flight?Faith waited for the men to shoot away in their car before asking Fitz. “Where’s the lab?”

“Quantico.”

She stared at him, too stricken with dismay to speak. Quantico Marine Base was a good four-hour drive away.

Fitz’s eyes, the color of spring grass, conveyed empathy. “Who’s watching Olivia and the baby?”

It was good of him to spare a thought for her other children. “My sister.”

He nodded, then grimaced and shook his head. “I understand why you’re here, Faith, but it makes it harder for me to do my job while worrying about your state of mind.”

“I’m fine. And I’m not leaving until I find my son.” She stared at him until he looked away with a humorless laugh.

“You’re a stubborn one.”

“No. Grace is the stubborn one. I’m just a mother. And a mother will leave no stone unturned when her child is lost.” Her throat closed up suddenly, and tears filmed her vision.

Fitz crossed his arms, as if to keep himself from hugging her. “When’s the last time you ate anything?”

“I ate breakfast yesterday.”

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