Unseen (Will Trent / Atlanta Series)

clock counting off the seconds, and below that, a flat line like on a heart monitor.
    The line bobbed up and down when Will told Vickery, “I think he recorded us.”
    Vickery shook his head, but didn’t answer.
    Twelve minutes, twenty-three seconds. That’s how long the recorder had been running. Franklin must’ve started it when Will woke up from his Taser fugue.
    Vickery said, “You gonna call somebody or what?”
    Will pressed the red button. The timer stopped. He wasn’t familiar with the phone’s operating system, but they were all pretty much the same. He touched his thumb to the icon of a house. He touched the symbol with a telephone receiver. The keypad rolled up. Will dialed Faith’s number. He rested his hand on his face as he waited for the connection to go through.
    She answered on the first ring. “Franklin, what is it?”
    “It’s me,” Will told her. “I’m at Cayla’s house.”
    “Will?” Faith’s voice trilled up. “We’ve got sixty cops combing the woods for you. We can’t pinpoint your phone.”
    “You need to put an APB on Sara’s car. Tony Dell and Cayla Martin stole it. They’re headed toward the Atlanta airport, taking the back roads. International terminal. She’s going to Germany.”
    Faith didn’t bother to cover the phone as she shouted orders to her team. As soon as she finished, she asked Will, “What about Benjamin?”
    “He’s safe.” Will looked at Paul Vickery. He still didn’t trust the man. “What about the other thing?”
    “They’re at Grady. Sara called over an hour ago. They’re both fine.”
    Will felt relief flood his senses.
    Faith said, “The boy started talking in the ambulance. His name is Aaron Winser. Amanda was right. His parents live in Newfoundland. They were going through a bad custody battle. The father was on a fishing trip. The mom thought he’d abducted the boys. The police were about to arrest him.” Faith seemed to realize she was talking too fast. She slowed down her words. “The parents are on their way to Atlanta right now. Jesus, Will. You had me scared to death.”
    “Hold on.” Will couldn’t stay on his knees any longer. He didn’t want to sit down, so he pushed himself up against the wall. Vickery’s eyes tracked his every movement. They both heard sirens in the distance.
    Will asked, “How far out are the cruisers?”
    Faith said, “Five minutes, tops. Call Sara.”
    “She’s probably busy.”
    “Don’t be an idiot.”
    Will heard a click as she hung up the phone. He glanced at Paul Vickery. The man was still on his back, his elbows and knees bent at an uncomfortable angle.
    Vickery asked, “You gonna help me here? This hurts like a bitch.”
    “It certainly looks painful.” Will felt some give in the twine that was digging into his ankles. After a few unsuccessful shuffles, he hopped toward the kitchen.
    “Where’re you going?” Vickery shouted. “Come back here!”
    Will didn’t stop until the saloon doors flapped behind him. He leaned against the counter to catch his breath. And also to catch himself, because hopping around was harder than it looked.
    DeShawn Franklin’s phone had gone back to screensaver mode. The picture showed two little girls dressed in Mickey Mouse ears. Will didn’t want to think about someone telling the man’s nieces what had happened. He swiped the screen and dialed Sara’s number.
    She was used to getting strange calls on her hospital phone. Still, her tone was strained when she answered, “Dr. Linton.”
    Will said, “I’m okay,” in a voice that sounded exactly the opposite.
    “Are you sure?”
    “Yeah.” Now that he had her on the line, Will felt it all start to catch up to him. Sara had literally saved him by the short hairs.
    “Will?”
    “Everything’s fine.” He made his voice stronger. “I’m just a little tied up at the moment.” He stopped himself from laughing at his own joke, mostly because he was pretty sure Sara wouldn’t find it that funny. “I don’t know about your car, though.”
    “Sweetheart, do you think I give a damn about my car?”
    Will hoped she still felt the same when she turned on the news and saw her BMW being tracked up I-75. “Are you at the hospital?”
    “I’m at home. Denise gave me a lift while Amanda interviewed the boy. She’s going back to Grady to stay with Aaron until his parents are there. Did Faith tell you?”
    “Yes.” Will closed his eyes. He liked thinking about Sara being safe at home.