Freddy had no such qualms. “Is the doggy going to church with us?” he asked, bouncing on his tiptoes with excitement.
“I don’t know, honey. It’s possible.”
“You asked. I heard. So he’s going, right?”
Zoe had to smile at the child’s expectations of the perfect day. “The Security Forces man may bring Star if they’re on duty today. We’ll have to wait and see.”
“They could come anyway.”
“I know. I know.” But the chances of that were probably slim, she added to herself. No telling why Linc had acted so put off when she’d suggested he accompany them to church, but she didn’t think it had anything to do with her or Freddy. No, it was something else. Something deeper. He wouldn’t be the first soldier to turn from God after experiencing combat, although oftentimes the reverse was true. Strong Christians could be formed in the trenches, too. It all depended on the man or woman and their willingness to trust in a higher power rather than relying only upon themselves. Bowing a knee could be tough for someone who had always felt totally self-reliant.
Or for someone who simply chose evil over good, as her brother had. Sadly, she was beginning to lose hope that Boyd would ever repent. At this point, the most she could hope for was that he’d stop hurting others and be brought to justice. As much as she’d loved the boy he’d been when they were growing up, she could not accept his adult self. Whatever goodness was still inside him had been masked by a blackness that encompassed his heart and made him a different person. Someone who had to be stopped. In that regard, she almost wished he would contact her, because she wouldn’t hesitate to turn him in.
A small head ducked beneath her hand and she felt Freddy’s silky hair. “Don’t be sad, Mommy. If the doggy doesn’t come, you can pet me. See?”
Laughing, Zoe gave his hair a gentle tousle. “Okay. But you have to promise to behave in church and not bark.”
The child’s eager “Ruff, ruff” made her chuckle more.
“Careful or you’ll be eating kibble instead of cookies.”
He giggled, eyes sparkling. “I’m not really a dog. Little boys need cookies.”
“Okay.” She smoothed the skirt of her dress and patted her knot of hair that she’d twisted neatly and clipped at her nape. “You ready?”
“Uh-huh.” Freddy grasped her hand.
“Then let’s go.”
The closer Zoe got to the street, the more butterflies there were cavorting in her stomach. Would Linc be waiting? Would he go to church with them? She kept telling herself he wouldn’t, but in the back of her mind was the hope he would. Why it mattered, she wasn’t sure, but she desperately wanted him with her. Going to services was a step in the right direction, and perhaps she was meant to be the catalyst that led him back to the fold.
Yeah, right. Some Christian disciple I am when all I can think about is how safe he will make me feel, she countered. That was the basic truth. She wanted Linc and Star with her for protection far more than for altruistic reasons, and it was just as well to admit it. Matter of fact, she was going to tell him the same thing the first chance she got.
Which was about to be...later, Zoe realized as an unfamiliar enlisted man got out of the SUV and greeted her.
“Good morning, Sergeant Sullivan,” the younger airman said with a broad grin. He gestured at the car. “I’m here to give you a ride to church.”
“No, thanks. We usually walk.”
He sobered. Seemed nervous. “Sorry. I was told to drive you, and if you don’t want me to get busted, I’d appreciate it if you’d get in.”
Zoe noted that his neck and face had reddened and he was breaking a sweat. “Who did you say sent you?”
“Um, Tech Sergeant Colson.”
“I see. You have written orders then?”
“No, ma’am. It’s just a ride.”
If the young airman hadn’t sounded so unsure and acted jittery, she might have got into the car without question. Looking around her, Zoe noted others passing by on the sidewalk and in the street. At least she and Freddy weren’t isolated there. Once she entered the vehicle, she’d be hidden behind its tinted windows and lose any advantage she had now.
Despite the fact that the driver opened the rear passenger door for her, Zoe didn’t get in. Instead, she slowly backed away. Her eyes narrowed, taking in everything about the airman and committing his features to memory. The trouble was, he looked a lot like every other immature green recruit. Acted it, too.
“You’ll—you’ll be late for church,” he said with a wheedling tone.
“If I am, I am.” Still balancing Freddy on her hip, Zoe took her cell phone out of her purse and quickly found the number Linc had entered the day she’d chased away the prowler. In seconds she had him on the line.
“Colson.”
“This is Zoe Sullivan. I want to thank you for sending a car for me, but it’s really not necessary.”
“What did you say?” His shout was loud enough that she eased the phone away from her ear. By the time Linc added, “I didn’t send anybody to get you,” his words were practically broadcast volume.
Zoe saw the driver’s face pale. “It—it was just...” he began before wheeling, jumping into the car and hitting the gas. The tires slipped and screeched on the pavement. Holding her son close, Zoe stepped up on the curb and melted into a small crowd of onlookers.
Her phone was still on, Linc’s voice strident. “Where are you now?”
“The street in front of my apartment. He drove off. I don’t know who he was. He said you sent him and I—”
“Stay there. I’m on my way,” Linc ordered. She heard the roar of a motor in the background as he added, “ETA less than five. Are you and the boy all right?”
“We’re fine. I didn’t fall for the trick.”
“Can you ID the vehicle or the driver?”
“It looked like one of your black SUVs. The driver was just a nervous kid.”
“The same one you caught in your apartment?”
“I don’t think so. This guy was shorter. And less belligerent.” She pulled Freddy closer and backed farther from the curb until she was partially standing behind the trunk of one of the cottonwoods lining the street. “How much longer before you get to me?”
“You should be able to hear my siren. I’m only a couple blocks away, turning off Canyon Drive and passing the Base Command Office.”
“Copy. We’ll wait right here.”
As the wailing of Linc’s siren grew louder, Zoe’s fear waned. She had thwarted an enemy once again, and her knight in shining armor was about to ride up on his prancing steed and protect her.
On second thought, she didn’t need any knight. She needed information, some of which her so-called knight might be withholding, she realized, because he didn’t trust her. Maybe now he’d open up more. As long as she was even partially in the dark about what was going on behind the scenes, she was more vulnerable.
A chill chased up her spine as she thought about their near abduction. Only common sense and a niggling warning in her subconscious had kept her from believing the clean-cut young airman and getting into that car. How many other traps were waiting? How many more dangers would she have to identify and avoid before this nightmare was over?
A black SUV that was the twin of the first one rounded the corner