Read Cold Silence (A High Stakes Thriller) for Free Online Page B

would tear his eyes out.
    "Cody."
    She looked up at Landon. Focus on getting him back. Kirov wanted her to suffer. That was what this was about. They wouldn't kill Ryan. Not immediately, at least. But how long did she have? The thought made her panic again.
    "Jesus Christ, say something," Travis said. "Is R.J.'s father dangerous?"
    "His father's dead," she said, expelling the words as if they were her last breath. It was exactly how she felt. She was dying. Ryan was gone. No, she refused to accept that Ryan was gone. Mark was gone. She'd seen his body. Held his cold hand in hers.
    "Oh, Jesus," Travis whispered.
    But not Ryan. He was vibrant, alive. He was his father's son. He would fight. And she would find him.
    Travis was kneeling beside his child, holding his shoulders. "Did you see who picked up R.J.?"
    Peter shook his head.
    Cody drove the panic from her chest. Focus on the details. Work it like a case, like any other case. She remembered when she first heard of Mark's death, the way it had consumed her like a fever, unsettling her entirely. She felt the same heated chill now. Forcing herself to move, she passed Travis and took Peter's hand. "Can you sit down for a minute? I need to ask you a few questions."
    She could feel the pressure of Travis's gaze on her, but she ignored him. She sat Peter on the edge of the stair and turned him to face her. His eyes were wide, his jaw slack.
    "It's going to be okay," she said.
    Travis started toward them. She put her hand out to stop him.
    Travis halted as Peter looked over his shoulder.
    Travis looked from him to her and back again. "It's okay, partner," he said, casting her a glance that asked a dozen questions she would never answer. "Answer Mrs. O'Brien's questions." He looked at Cody. "I'll go call the police."
    She stood so quickly that Peter flinched. Police in a kidnapping case meant FBI, and FBI wasn't an option. She put her hand on Peter's shoulder to reassure him. "No," she said, drilling her gaze into Travis. "Don't do anything yet."
    His eyes narrowed. "We have to call the police."
    "Not until I know what I'm dealing with."
    "Who the he—" He halted and reached for his son.
    "I just want to ask a few questions first."
    Travis didn't respond.
    Peter nodded.
    Cody watched the boy, wishing his father would disappear. "Maybe your dad will make us something to drink after we're done, like you and R.J. do when you're at our house." Images of their last overnight were sharp in her mind, each smile and laugh like a dagger now. She looked over at Travis.
    Travis didn't budge.
    "Can we have hot chocolate?" Peter asked.
    Travis nodded slowly. "You want to come with me, partner?"
    Peter shook his head. "I can stay and tell Mrs. O'Brien about what happened."
    Travis stood in his spot.
    "We'll be right here."
    His gaze swept across her face. "What are you doing?"
    "I'm trying to find my son."
    "That's not what I mean. What's really going on here? Why wouldn't we call the police immediately?"
    From the corner of her eye, she saw Peter look at her. She wished she could make Landon stop. He was only making it tougher. Stay calm, she told herself. Stay calm. "I'm just working the best way I know how."
    Landon didn't bite. "By not involving the police?"
    She nodded. "That's right. Not until I know who the captor might be and what he might want."
    "The captor?"
    "The person who took my son."
    There was a pregnant pause and Cody remained silent. She didn't know what to tell him. Certainly not the truth: that she was an ex-FBI agent, that the Russian mob had killed her husband and wanted to kill her and her son, that she had been in witness protection and they had found her even there. That her son might be with the Russian mob as they spoke, that the time he was wasting might cost her the only thing in the world that mattered at all. She wouldn't trust anyone with the truth. Not after the betrayal in New Orleans.
    No, the truth was hers alone. The mob wanted her and her son dead because