Page 24 of Be Courageous

Faith clenched the bedspread to contain her runaway panic. “So, this is an act of vengeance.”

Fitz frowned. “How so?”

She gripped the bedding harder as the room went into a slow spin. “Brian Sutton was the gun dealer Jerry befriended when he was working undercover.” Her voice went faint with horror. “When troopers went to arrest him, Jerry said Sutton’s son was in the shop playing with a water pistol. One of the troopers got spooked when the kid popped up over the counter with a water gun. They shot him, thinking it was Sutton. I’m pretty sure the boy’s name wasTommy.”

Fitz stilled, his face a taut mask. All at once, he lurched across the space between them, sitting on the bed beside her and pulling her into his arms. Clinging to him, Faith quaked with the terrible certainty that Brian Sutton was avenging Tommy’s death.

“He’s going to kill him.” Articulating her suspicion made it even more real. Faith pushed her face into the crook of Fitz’s neck and burst into tears.

Not my son, Lord. Please don’t take my son from me.

Her shoulders heaved as grief tore into her heart, wrenching sobs from her that sounded like they were coming from someone else. Fitz held her tightly to him, rocking her ever so gently, saying nothing.

At last, when her sobs came intermittently, he murmured, “We’re going to find him soon, Faith.”

He meant the kidnapper, of course. Grayson’s fate wasn’t so certain.

Faith lifted her head from Fitz’s damp collar to read the reassurance in his gaze.

“The man is on probation, which means his probation officer knows where he lives. We’re tracking him down even now. We’ll have him by morning.”

The words were meant to be comforting, but they also meant by morning, she might learn that her son was dead. An eye for an eye. A son for a son. How could God let this happen? He’d always been there for her, comforting her, blessing her.

With an indrawn breath, Fitz caught her face between his hands and gazed deep into her eyes. “I know how you feel. You’re not alone right now.”

Through her misery, she recalled the story he’d once shared, how he’d come home one night to find his entire family dead in their beds. How could he have endured the loss of, not just his wife, but of all three children, the youngest just a baby? Yet here he was, sitting here with her now, still alive, still functioning.

“I love you.” The words slipped off her tongue, uncontainable. She’d been guarding them in her heart for months now.

His fingers seemed to tremble as he stared back at her, clearly caught off guard by her confession.

“It’s okay.” She tried her best to smile but couldn’t. Dragging his hands down to her lap, she held on to them, squeezing hard. “I know you love me, too. What I don’t know is how things will ever work out for us, but I hope they will. This world is full of so much suffering. What we have is a gift.”

A sheen of tears appeared in his eyes before he lowered his lips to hers and kissed her—a bittersweet kiss that, nonetheless, contained the promise of passion and permanence.

With a groan, he severed the kiss and lifted his head. “I need to get back to my team.”

She nodded, releasing him reluctantly. “Please come back,” she begged him. “I won’t be able to sleep…”

He sent her the smallest of nods, as if reluctant to get too close but helpless to stop himself. “Okay.”

Before standing, he brushed a thumb across her cold cheek, then walked briskly to the door, letting himself out. The look he shot her through the closing door enjoined her to be strong: She wasn’t alone.

Even in this terrible trial, God had not abandoned her completely.

CHAPTER7

In the middle of the night, Grayson was awakened by the sound of the door on the woodstove opening. Slitting his eyes, he suffered the despair of knowing he wasn’t dreaming any of this. It was real, and it would remain his reality until he was found, or managed to escape, whichever came first.

Brian was down on one knee, poking the embers in the woodstove. Grayson realized he had never caught Brian sleeping. The man spent most of his time sitting in his chair, considering his circumstances with a look of desperation on his lined face. He had to know he couldn’t keep Grayson here forever. No one could take Tommy’s place.

Poor Brian was in over his head. With that thought, Grayson drifted off to sleep, the musty blanket heavy on his chest.

Hours later, light was shining through the window. Sensing Brian standing over him, Grayson lurched awake only to shrink back at the intent look on his captor’s face. Cradling his shotgun like a baby, he stared at Grayson as if for the last time.

There aren’t any shells in the shotgun.

No sooner did that reassuring thought cross his mind than Brian slid a hand into his pocket and pulled out three of them. With sharp alarm, Grayson watched him load the shells one at a time.

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