“Call him,” Colt said. “Find out what’s going on.”
Julie pushed his contact button, but the call went straight to voice mail. She looked up to see Colt sliding out of the car, and her heart began to pound. As he headed toward the big double doors leading into the dome-shaped gym, she hurried to catch up with his long-legged strides.
“That’s Coach Nunez over there.” Julie pointed to a lean, sinewy man with olive skin and coarse black hair.
Colt walked right up to him. “Where’s Tim Spearman?” Colt asked. “His mother’s been waiting outside but he hasn’t come out yet.”
The coach barely looked up from his clipboard. “His dad picked him up.”
Fear slid into her stomach, followed by a wave of nausea. “You...you didn’t just let him go off with a man you don’t know!”
“Mr. Spearman called this afternoon. He said he was picking the boy up from practice. I checked with the principal’s office. There was nothing in the file that said Timmy wasn’t allowed to leave with his dad. His father had ID and Timmy seemed excited to see him.”
“Oh my God!”
“What’s going on?” the coach asked, frowning. “Do I need to call the police?”
“Give us a minute.” Colt took Julie’s arm and led her a few feet away. “Bringing in the cops right now might not be a good idea. Not until we know what’s going on.”
Before she had time to argue, her phone rang. She looked down to see Timmy’s name on the screen.
“Timmy! Where are you?”
“This is Ray. The boy’s with me.”
“Ray. Let me talk to Timmy.”
“Take it easy. Tim’s fine.”
“This is kidnapping, Ray. If you don’t take Timmy home right now, I’m calling the police!”
“Calm down, Julie, and listen very carefully. Tim’s my son. I have every right to see him, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
She was shaking. “You...you’ve been gone eight years. Timmy doesn’t even know you.”
“Yeah, well, that’s about to change.”
“I’m telling you, Ray—”
“No, Julie, I’m telling you—and you had better listen good. Tim and I are going to spend some time together, get to know each other. You get the cops involved, you’ll never see your son again.”
A sound came from her throat. At the stark terror in her face, Colt took the phone from her trembling hand and pressed the speaker button.
“My name is Colt Wheeler. I’m a friend of Julie’s late husband. Let Julie talk to the boy.”
“No cops,” Ray said, “or she won’t see the kid again.”
“Put Timmy on the phone,” Colt repeated, tamping down his own fury.
Seconds passed. “Mom...?”
“Timmy! Sweetheart, where are you? Are you all right?”
“Dad came to the school. He said it was okay for me to go with him. He said you knew.”
She clamped her lips together, fighting for control. “It’s all right, honey. It’s not your fault.”
Ray came back on the line. “No cops,” he repeated. “You got it?”
She looked up at Colt, who nodded. “I’ve got it,” Julie said. “How long before you bring him home?”
“Not sure yet. I’ll let you know when I’ve figured it out.” The line went dead.
“Oh my God,” Julie said.
“We need to get out of here. Wave goodbye to Coach Nunez as if nothing’s wrong, and let’s go.”
She walked on shaky legs out of the gymnasium and Colt pulled her aside as soon as they cleared the door.
“You need to call Marsha’s mother,” he said.
“Marsha’s mother?” The rest of the blood drained from her face so suddenly she felt light-headed. “Oh my God, you don’t think—”
“Tell her to pick the girls up right now. Call Megan first, tell her not to leave with anyone but Marsha’s mom.”
“I’ll call her, but...but the cell service in the mall is always spotty.” And just as Julie expected, Megan didn’t pick up and the call went to voice mail. She told herself it didn’t mean Megan was with Ray, but her heart was hammering so hard she could feel it in her temples.
Fumbling with the phone, she called Ellen Crowley, Marsha’s mother. “Ellen, it’s Julie. I need you to pick up the girls right now.”
“I’m almost there, just a few blocks away. You sound upset. Is something wrong?”
“I—I just need to make certain Megan’s safe.”
“I’ll have her call you as soon as I pick her up.”
“Thanks, Ellen.” Julie hung up the phone. She looked up at Colt, saw a muscle jump in his cheek.
“We’ll get him back,” he said. “That’s a promise.”
Julie wiped at tears she hadn’t realized were sliding down her cheeks. Staring up at Colt’s hard, determined features, she almost believed him.
DINNER WAS FORGOTTEN. Lissa listened as Julie relayed the events of the evening, including the fact her ex-husband had abducted her son. Megan was spending the night with Marsha, unaware that her brother was missing, giving them time to come up with a plan.
“Colt doesn’t think we should call the police,” Julie said. “At least not yet.” She was exhausted and shaky. Lissa had never seen her look so fragile.
“He’s threatened to run if we bring in the cops,” Colt said. “If he does, things could go from bad to worse in a hurry.”
“Colt may be right,” Lissa agreed. “At this point, there’s no reason to believe Ray will hurt Timmy. Tim’s his son. I know Ray hasn’t been around for the last eight years, but blood is blood. The bigger problem is, will he take Timmy somewhere we can’t find him?”
“Oh God.”
“Try not to panic,” Colt said. “We’ll find Ray and once we do, we’ll bring Timmy home.”
“What if something happens before you catch up with him? A couple of years ago, Timmy had an asthma attack. The doctor said it was a mild case, but if Ray does something that causes another attack, he won’t know how to handle it. It could become life-threatening.”
Colt quietly cursed. This was getting worse by the minute. “Tim’s a smart kid. He’ll know you’ll be looking for him.
