The ransom never came, poor fools.

The two kidnappers waited with young Jacob Cartee standing between them. The boy looked well, unhurt by the men who'd taken him. That was good. James despised child abusers. "In ten," James said softly, speaking into the mike on his collar.

He shifted his weight, noted the direction of the wind. Slowly, he inhaled as he gazed through the scope on his M99. Time counted down. At "one" he exhaled and pulled the trigger. One of the kidnappers - he'd taken to calling him Ogre - went down instantly. A second bullet escaped the chamber and the other, Snake, hit the ground. In seconds his team pulled onto the street in their black Expedition and got out, dragging the boy into the vehicle.

"Put me on speaker." Davidson reported when it was done and James began to speak. "You're okay, son. You're with friends now. We're going to take you to your father."