Page 80 of Zero Hour

She glanced at all the law enforcement officers, admin staff, and operators milling around.

Too late for that.

Attached was a photo of Ryan. It was a proof of life. His eyes were wide with fear, his mouth taped shut, his hands bound behind his back.

She gave a strangled cry, then bolted from the office to find Patrick.

CHAPTER 30

Jasmine looked like she was about to collapse. Huge, frantic eyes locked onto his, filled with terror. “What if they find out? Oh, God, Patrick. They’ll kill him.”

“They won’t risk killing him until the attack is in motion,” Pat said firmly. What he didn’t add was that they’d have no use for him after that.

She swallowed hard, her breath coming in shallow gasps. He wanted—needed—to pull her into his arms, to steady her, to kiss the fear from her trembling lips. But he couldn’t. Not here. Not in front of everyone.

Blade came over. “You got something?”

He nodded. “A text message with proof of life.”

Jasmine showed him her phone.

“What should I do?” she whispered.

Pat nodded to the device in her hand. “Reply. Tell them you’re in hiding and you promise not to go to the police. That you just want your son back. That you’ll do whatever it takes.”

Jasmine’s entire body tensed. “What if they want to do an exchange. Me for Ryan?”

“No.” His tone left no room for argument. “They’d kill you.”

She sucked in a shuddering breath.

“Unless,” Blade interjected, “we use it to our advantage.”

Pat’s jaw clenched. “Using her as bait would be risky. If they suspect a trap, they could call off the attack. We’d lose our one shot at taking them down. And I’m not handing Jasmine over to them. Not when they already have Ryan.”

He didn’t need to elaborate. If they had no intention of letting the boy go, why the hell would they spare his mother?

Blade exhaled sharply. “So, how do you want to play it?”

“She texts them, plays the terrified mother in hiding. If they push for an exchange, she refuses. She says she’ll only show up once they release Ryan.”

Blade frowned. “They won’t fall for that.”

“They won’t release him anyway,” Pat said flatly.

Jasmine inhaled sharply, her body stiffening.

He turned to her, his tone softer. “The goal here is to convince them you’re scared, alone, and nowhere near law enforcement. That’s all we need right now. It’ll buy us time.”

She gave a small nod. “Okay. I’ll do it now.”

They watched as she typed the message.

Please don’t hurt Ryan. I promise I won’t go to the police. I just want my boy back. Amir, please don’t hurt him.

Pat nodded.

Jasmine hit SEND.

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