Chapter One #2
“It’s my fault you got caught in the first place,” Sam said.
“My feud with Ramsey led to this. He was looking for a way to hurt me by going after you.” There’d been bad blood between Sam and the Special Victims sergeant for some time now.
From what she’d been able to gather, he resented her rise through the ranks, among other beefs he frequently liked to air out to anyone who’d listen.
Their feud had intensified when the U.S.
Attorney declined to indict her after she punched him and he fell down a flight of stairs, breaking his wrist and suffering a concussion.
“This is my fault, Sam,” Gonzo said. “I took a massive chance with my career, my reputation and my life. I knew it at the time, and I didn’t care.”
“That was the addiction speaking,” Sam said. “The Gonzo I’ve worked with would’ve cared. It’s not something you would’ve done if you hadn’t been sick. And why were you sick? Because your partner was murdered right in front of you on the job.”
“I know this is upsetting to you, Sam—”
“If you do this, you’ll never move past sergeant,” she said.
“I know, and I’ve made my peace with that.”
“It’s wrong,” Jeannie said. “You’re the best of us all. You could be chief someday.”
“Once upon a time, I might’ve wanted that, but I’m learning to find comfort in what is rather than what used to be or what might’ve been.”
“Before you sign anything, let me have a word with the chief,” Sam said.
“I agreed to the deal. I’m due to sign the paperwork when I get out of here, and that’s what’s best for me, to not have this shit hanging over my head.”
She wanted to scream, yell and break shit over the sheer injustice of him pleading to a criminal charge when scumbags like Ramsey were getting away with ruining the career of one of the best cops Sam had ever worked with.
“When do you get out?” Freddie asked.
“They’re saying this week sometime.”
“How’re things with Christina?” Jeannie asked.
“Better,” Gonzo said. “We talk a lot, and we’re both ready to get back to normal, whatever that is after everything I’ve put her through.”
“She loves you, man,” Freddie said. “It’s gonna be okay.”
“I hope so. I guess we’ll see. So, enough about me. What’s going on with you guys? Tell me everything about the Tara Weber case. I feel so cut off in here.”
They filled him in on the case they’d recently closed in which the president’s mistress had been murdered, leaving Sam and Nick once again breathless with dread as they waited to see if President Nelson could hang on to his office through yet another scandal.
“You guys must’ve been dying,” Gonzo said to Sam and Nick.
“Ah, yeah, kinda,” Nick said. “I expected that being his VP would be mostly boring—and it’s been that, too.”
“You couldn’t have predicted his son would become a murderer, or that he’d have an affair while his wife was undergoing cancer treatment,” Gonzo said. “I still can’t believe that. It’s so disgusting.”
“That was the hardest part for me to swallow, too,” Sam said. “Gloria is a nice lady, and she’s stood by his side through his entire career. She deserved better than what she got from him.”
“At least she left him,” Jeannie said. “None of that ‘stand by your man’ nonsense that political wives are known for.”
“This political wife has already told her man the same thing,” Sam said, grinning at Nick.
“And my wife knows she has nothing to worry about on that front.”
“The word castration was used,” Sam said, making the guys wince.
“She’s all bark and no bite,” Nick said.
“Um,” Freddie said, “I think there’s some bite behind her bark. Just sayin’.”
“That’s right,” Sam said with a big grin, “and don’t you guys forget it.”
“I miss you all so much,” Gonzo said with a sigh. “I can’t wait to get back to work.”
“How much longer?” Freddie asked.
“A few more days in-patient, and then they want me to take a week or two at home before I come back part-time.”
“We’ll take whatever we can get,” Sam said.
They spent another hour chatting with him before they stood to leave. Nick went to the door and gave a knock to let Brant know they were ready.
“We have to wait for him to come get us,” Nick said.
“This is fascinating,” Michael said. “Truly.”
“Glad you think so,” Nick said. “It drives me bonkers.”
“But it beats the alternative.” Sam took hold of her husband’s hand, hoping to calm the agitation he felt whenever he was reminded of the many restrictions of being vice president.
They said their goodbyes to Gonzo and loaded up the SUV for the ride back to the District.
“He seems good,” Nick said when they were on the way out of Baltimore.
“So much better than he was,” Jeannie said.
“I’m fuming about him pleading to anything,” Sam said.
“Ah, yeah, we could tell,” Freddie said. “As usual, you had no poker face.”
“It’s complete bullshit,” Sam said. “I’m not about to pretend otherwise.”
“Is there anything that can be done?” Nick asked.
“I’m going to talk to Malone,” she said, referring to the detective captain who was her boss and mentor. “And the chief.”
“Gonzo sounded pretty determined to take the plea,” Freddie said tentatively.
“He’s going to screw his entire career if he takes that plea,” Sam said.
“We can’t let that happen.” She caught Freddie and Jeannie exchanging concerned glances and knew what they were thinking.
Tommy’s recovery was fragile. This was what he wanted.
And she respected that, but if there was anything she could do to save him from taking this massive hit to his career, she was going to do it.
Her phone rang with a call, and the single word on the caller ID made her groan. “Dispatch.”
Which meant someone in the District had been murdered, and that was now her problem.