Chapter Twenty-Six
“Just the lieutenant I was coming to see.”
“What’s up, Doc?”
“I received official word that we’re good to go with the grief group.”
“That’s great news.”
“We’ll need to talk about who we want to reach out to in order to get it started.”
“I’ll give that some thought tonight and let you know after I wrap the Weber case?”
“Perfect.” He gave her what she’d come to think of as his probing look. “How’re you holding up?”
“I’m doing okay.”
“I hear there’s been another in-house arrest in your father’s case.”
“Yes.”
“I’m sorry. It has to be so incredibly disappointing to you.”
“I feel like I shouldn’t be surprised, and yet…”
“It’s a stunning betrayal of your father and you.”
Sam nodded because she didn’t trust herself to speak. She cleared the emotion from her throat. “In a way, it’s a blessing that he never knew. Especially with Conklin, who was his so-called friend.”
“Indeed it is.” He gave her arm an affectionate squeeze. “Find me when you have time to talk about our grief group.”
“I’ll do that. Thanks, Doc.” She continued on her way, thinking about the group she’d suggested for victims of the crimes they investigated.
She’d met so many people in the course of her work who would benefit from added support.
It would be nice, in the future, to be able to refer devastated family members to the group, rather than sending them on their way never to be seen again until the trial.
She used the drive home to stew over the case, to start from the beginning and think it through every which way while wishing she could stop by her dad’s to bounce it off him.
He’d always had good ideas and suggestions.
Since it was still fairly early, she made an impromptu decision to swing by the cemetery before she went home.
Located a few blocks from her home on Ninth Street, she had the cemetery to herself, which wasn’t necessarily a good thing.
Cemeteries had always creeped her out, but she was determined to get past her aversion so she could visit her dad’s final resting place without it being an ordeal every time.
His headstone hadn’t been placed yet, but she found the mound of dirt that covered him with no problem.
By spring, grass would cover the dirt and the headstone they’d chosen would be in place.
But for now, the site was lonely, desolate.
A wave of profound sadness came over her.
She squatted to get closer to him. “Hey, Skippy. It’s me, Sam.
I’m not sure if you can hear me but I wanted to stop by to say hello.
I’ve caught a new case. Tara Weber was murdered after her affair with the president came to light.
I know, right? What was he thinking? And get this—it happened when his wife was undergoing treatment for ovarian cancer.
Nick is trying not to freak out about Nelson being forced to resign.
People are so disgusted with him. Gloria is moving home to South Dakota and divorcing his cheating ass.
Can’t say I blame her. That whole stand-by-your-man thing doesn’t count when your man cheats on you when you have freaking cancer.
“The woman, Tara… I’m having trouble figuring her out.
She broke up with her longtime boyfriend—or I should say, he broke up with her—and she went a little wild, dating all kinds of guys, some of them married like Nelson.
Her friends say that wasn’t like her, but after the breakup she was different.
I’m trying to figure out who would’ve wanted her dead while still maintaining her privacy.
It’s no one’s business if she dated around, and I don’t want people to judge her.
I’m not sure where this one is leading, but I sure could use your input.
I also wanted to tell you that your good buddy Conklin is pond scum.
He knew all along who was behind your shooting.
Can you believe it? And it turns out that freaking Hernandez knew, too.
It’s disappointing, to say the least. I’m kind of glad you’re not around to hear how we were let down by people we should’ve been able to count on to have our backs.
Feel free to haunt Conklin if you can. Go after Stahl and Ramsey, too, especially Ramsey.
He’s making trouble for me—and Gonzo. Not that you’ll be surprised to hear that.
“Anyway, I wanted to come by and tell you I miss you. Nothing feels right without you around to tell me what to do and act like you’re the boss of me.
” She stood and stared down at the barren ground for several minutes.
“I got a hot date with my husband tonight, so I ought to get going, but I’ll be back soon. See ya, Skippy.”
She returned to the car and sat for a few minutes in contemplative silence, getting her emotions in check before she went home to her family.
Oddly enough, she felt a little better after having aired the case and the latest news to her dad.
She had to believe he was close by and could hear her all the time, not only when she came to see him there.
She called her sister Tracy.
“Hey, I’m with Ang, and we were just talking about you.”
“Hi, Sam,” Angela said.
“What were you guys talking about?”
“Just wondering how you and Nick are holding up with all this Nelson nonsense,” Tracy said. “We can’t believe he cheated on Gloria. She’s awesome.”
“I know. She is.”
“He didn’t kill the mistress, did he?” Ang asked.
“I don’t think so, but I hope not.”
“Ugh, what a mess,” Tracy said.
“Yep. Hey, I went to see Dad at the cemetery. Did we order the headstone?”
“I did it two weeks ago,” Tracy said. “They said it could take a month or two.”
“Thanks for doing that. How you feeling, Ang?”
“Sick as a dog.”
“That sucks. Sorry to hear it.”
“Eh, no biggie. I hear the kid will be worth the all-day morning sickness.”
Sam laughed. “If he or she is anything like Jack and Ella, they’ll definitely be worth it. I gotta jet, ladies, but let’s do something as soon as I close this case.”
“You got it,” Tracy said. “Call if you need us.”
“Will do.”
When Sam arrived home a few minutes later and was waved through the Secret Service checkpoint, she was happy to see black SUVs lining the street, which meant Nick was already there. She was surprised to see FBI Agent Avery Hill getting out of his car, toting numerous bags.
Sam took two of the bags from him.
“Thanks.”
“What’s all this?”
“I was tasked with picking up takeout because, as I was told, ‘Mom and Dad are going out to dinner.’”
Sam laughed. “So you’re babysitting for me tonight, I take it?”
“Apparently.”
“That’s awesome.” The agent who’d once been such a thorn in her side had become a friend, especially now that he was engaged to Shelby and raising her son, Noah, as his own.
“I’m glad I ran into you. I was going to stop by tomorrow to invite you and the vice president to a little gathering at our place for Shelby’s birthday next Saturday.”
“We’d love to come.”
“The kids are invited, too, of course. She’d never forgive me if I left them out.”
“We’ll all be there. What can we bring?”
“Nothing. I’m having it catered.”
“Look at you stepping up to the plate.”
“I figured it was the least I could do. She handles everything all the time. She deserves a night off.”
“Yes, she does. I’ll have to think of some fabulous pink present I can get her.”
“Jesus, more pink. I can’t take any more.”
They walked up the ramp together.
“You’re engaged to the woman. Your whole life is going to be pink.”
“Ugh, don’t remind me. I suppose the pink is a small price to pay for the rest of what comes with the amazing Shelby Faircloth.”
“Indeed. She’s the best.”
Inside, they were greeted by the usual mayhem of the twins running around, shrieking with laughter as Scotty chased them in a circle around Noah, who sat on a blanket in the middle of it all, clapping his chubby hands and laughing at everything the other kids were doing.
Shelby was close by, ready to intervene if needed. She lit up at the sight of her handsome fiancé and came over to kiss him. “Thank you so much for picking up takeout. It’s such a pain to get anything delivered here.”
“No problem.”
The twins came running over to jump into Sam’s outstretched arms. She hugged and kissed them, asked them about their day and got a full rundown of another day in kindergarten.
“How was the algebra test?” she asked Scotty, planting a kiss on his forehead after the little ones squirmed out of her embrace to return to their game.
“We’re not discussing that.”
“Uh-oh.”
“I don’t think it was a total disaster.” He looked into one of the brown bags. “What’s for dinner, Avery?”
“Spaghetti and meatballs.”
Scotty pumped his fist into the air. “Yes. Let’s eat, you guys.” The twins ran after him when he took the bags into the kitchen.
Sam loved the way they followed him around like two adoring puppies and how he tolerated them with patience, love and understanding that only someone who’d once been where they were now could understand.
“He’s so good with them,” Shelby said. “They worship him.”
“I’m so glad he’s getting to be a big brother.”
“Me, too.” Shelby squeezed Sam’s arm. “Go get ready for a night out with your man. We’ve got things covered here.”
“Thank you for giving up your evening for us.”
“It’s no problem. We’d be doing the same thing at home.”
“You’re very good to us, and we appreciate everything you do.”
“I love my job and all four of my kids.”
Sam smiled and gave her a quick hug before heading upstairs to find Nick. She found him in their bedroom, fresh from the shower, a towel wrapped around his waist.
“Hey, babe.”
She leaned back against the closed door and gawked at his bare chest and the defined abs he worked hard to maintain.
“What’s up?”
“Nothing much. Just checking out the magnificent scenery.” She dropped her coat on the floor, kicked off her shoes and pulled the sweater over her head. “What time is our reservation?”
“Not for an hour.”