Page 73 of Zero Hour

She exhaled shakily. “What should I say?”

“We’ll talk about that when we get to the office.”

The same giantof a man who’d driven them to Patrick’s place met them in the underground parking lot. Like most military men, his expression was unreadable. “Special Agent Ed Hollis and his partner are in your office,” he told Pat. “They’ve been tracking the vehicle.”

Jasmine’s pulse leaped. “Have they found it?”

Blade hesitated. “I’ll let them explain.”

Oh, no. That didn’t sound good.

They rode the elevator to the Blackthorn operational team headquarters and stepped out into a plush lobby area. She followed Patrick and Blade through a set of glass doors into an open plan office filled with state-of-the-art equipment, enormous television screens, and computers. A handful of administrative personnel strode about purposefully. Theoperators were easy to spot, for they were larger and tougher-looking than anybody else.

Patrick marched past everybody and into an adjoining office, in which stood a solid man with sharp eyes and the coiled tension of someone used to high-stakes situations.

“Ed.” He shook hands with the agent. “Appreciate you coming in.”

“Always,” Hollis said, then turned to Jasmine. “Ms. McCarthy. I’m sorry you’re going through this.”

“Have you found my son?” she asked, breathless.

“We’ve got a lead.”

She nearly collapsed onto the floor.Thank God.

“What are we looking at?” Pat asked, his voice cool and controlled.

Hollis nodded to his partner, a plainclothes officer in a sharp suit. “Sergeant Cooper, fill them in.”

Cooper cleared his throat. “Thanks to your operator, we tracked the Toyota heading west on I-495 shortly after the abduction.”

Pat gave a sharp nod. “Go on.”

“They turned north on Route 29 and surfaced again in Silver Spring. We’ve got local LEOs in the area, keeping an eye out. An alert’s out on the vehicle.”

“What if they switch cars?” Pat asked.

“That’s our biggest concern,” Cooper admitted. “But my guess is they’re holed up somewhere, waiting for the heat to die down.”

Pat’s expression darkened. “Who’s the car registered to?”

“It was reported stolen yesterday. No clear links to a known suspect.”

Jasmine’s heart sank. “So we don’t know where they are?”

Pat’s gaze sharpened. “Where’s your phone?”

She pulled it out of her back pocket and held it up. “Here.”

“They’ll contact you,” he said. “It’s their best play.”

Her throat tightened. “And if they don’t?”

Pat didn’t answer.

Instead, he turned to Blade. “Get a trace set up. If her phone rings, I want to know where that call is coming from before the second ring.”

Blade held out his hand and she handed over the device. He nodded his thanks and left the room.

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