The man rolls his eyes. “Please, I am not an idiot.” He hikes up on a hip, drags my cell phone from his pants pocket. “I’ll pull up his number, and then we’ll put him on speaker.”

“Let me see the kids first.”

“Jade. May I remind you that you are unarmed and tied to a chair?”

“Please. I’ll call Cam. I’ll say whatever you want me to say to him, but I need to know my children are okay. Let me see them, please.”

He stares at the floor, sucking his bottom lip, thinking. Dragging it out. Making me sweat. Enjoying it. The seconds stretch and dilate.

His gaze whips to mine. “If I do that, if I take you in there and let you have this little reunion you want so badly, how do I know you won’t try something? How do I know you won’t find yourself a weapon, or go for mine?” He glances over his shoulder at the gun, an ominous hunk of black metal on the dresser, as if I need the reminder. The threat is plenty clear, and the pressure in the room changes in an instant. He turns back, giving a slow, sad shake of his head. “I don’t think so. I don’t think I can trust you.”

“I won’t try anything. You can trust me. I swear.”

“Call me a cynic, but I don’t think I can.”

“But I told you about the cameras. I didn’t lie about those.”

He doesn’t respond. He just sits there on the edge of my guest room bed and stares me down, his eyes hard, his expression—what I can see of it—ice-cold. I tell myself to shut up, to stand down. There’s no winning this argument. And yet I can’t stop myself from begging one last time.

“Please,” I whisper, cheeks heating, eyes stinging. “Please let me see them.”

I know that I’m being reckless, putting my life, my children’s lives on the line here, but I can’t think of anything but them in the other room, knowing I’m in here strapped to a chair. They must be so terrified. I need to see with my own eyes that they are safe. To comfort them, as much as the sight of them will comfort me.

The man heaves a sigh.

“Fine, you can see them, but not until after.” He stabs the air, one gloved finger pointed to the ceiling. “After you make the call, after I know I can trust you to do what I say. If you do everything I tell you to, I will take you into the playroom for a little visit with the kiddos.”

He’s lying.