“Thank you very much.” Taking Josh by the arm again, she led him to her house, where Malone waited for them at the foot of the ramp. Sam introduced Josh to him and the agent on duty admitted the three of them into the house.

Malone called HQ to cancel the APB for Josh.

Josh released an audible sigh of relief when the front door closed behind them. “Thank you,” he said softly.

“No problem. I should’ve kept you here to begin with. I’m sorry I didn’t.”

“You were—and are—under no obligation to protect me.”

“The minute I put you in my car on Friday, I’ve felt an obligation to protect you.” She gestured for him to have a seat on the sofa. “What happened to you after you left the hotel?”

“I wandered around for a while. I ended up in Rock Creek Park and fell down a hill. That’s how I got dirty.” He jumped back up and began to pace. “How long do I have to stay here? What happens now? Will someone tell my father to leave me alone?”

The rapid-fire questions, the jerky pacing and the trembling of his hands put Sam on alert. “Are you on something, Josh?”

He stopped short. “What? Why would you ask me that?”

“You’re extremely jittery.”

“My father, the director of the FBI, wants me dead. Wouldn’t you be jittery if you were me?”

“Is it possible you’re wrong about what he wants from you?” Malone asked.

“No, I’m not wrong.”

“Why do you say that?” Sam asked.

“Because he’s a ruthless bastard. If this is true, if he took me or paid someone else to do it or however it happened, he’ll kill me before he’ll admit to having had anything to do with it.”

“It won’t matter if he kills you now, Josh,” Malone said. “We’ve got your DNA. If it’s a match to Taylor Rollings’s family, then your father will have to answer to how you came to be in his custody, whether you’re alive or dead.”

Josh stopped pacing and turned to face Malone. “He... He doesn’t know I gave DNA.”

“I think it might be time for you to return his calls,” Sam said, playing a hunch.

“You’re sure that’s a good idea?” Josh asked.

“I’m sure it’ll send the message to your father that you’re cooperating with the investigation,” Sam said, “and that it won’t matter now what he does. We’ve got the info we need to make a connection to Taylor Rollings, if a connection does in fact exist.”

“He needs to know that,” Malone added. “It would also give you a chance to ask him if he knows anything about Taylor or his abduction.”

“If he does, he’ll deny it,” Josh said.

“Still won’t hurt to ask,” Malone said.