Chapter Nine
She wasn’t sure how long she sat on top of Bryant, struggling to breathe, before Freddie appeared. When he saw her sitting on top of the congressman, he stepped up his pace.
“Look at you. I called for backup. Should be here any second.”
Sam glanced up at him.
He gasped. “You’re hurt.”
“Nah, I’m fine.”
“Your face is bleeding.”
She reached up to see what he was talking about and came away with bloodstained fingers. “Son of a bitch.” Why did these things always have to happen right before a big event? Never failed.
“This is police brutality!” Bryant shouted.
“Shut up. You ran from us. Why’d you do that?”
“Cuz I’ve got nothing to say to you.”
Sam moved carefully to get up, waving off Freddie’s offer of help. Searing pain from her hip had her biting back a gasp.
“What happened to your hand?” Freddie asked.
“Nothing. Why?”
“It’s bleeding and hanging like it’s broken.”
“It’s not broken.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“Nope.”
“Sam…”
“Let’s get him back to HQ so we can ask our questions.”
Bryant resisted Freddie’s attempt to walk him toward the corner, where an MPD cruiser awaited. “I want my lawyer! You’ll regret treating me this way. I’m still a United States congressman!”
Sam gave him a scathing look. “Tell it to the judge.”
She limped toward the SUV,feeling more certain with every step that she’d reinjured her hip and that her wrist might be broken. But she didn’t have time to deal with any of that right now.
Vernon greeted her with a first aid kit in hand. He took one look at her and withdrew gauze and ointment. “Take a seat.”
She moved carefully, gasping when her backside connected with the leather seat.
“What’s the story?” Vernon asked as he dabbed at her face.
Hissing, she recoiled. “What the hell was that? Battery acid?”
“That’s exactly what it was. How’d you guess?”
“Most of the time, I appreciate your sarcasm. This is not one of those times.”
“Do you need the ER?”
“No.”
“Hold up your arm.”
“I don’t want to.”
“Sam.”
“Vernon.”
“I’m required to notify my supervisor that the first lady has been injured.”
“If you do that, I’ll never speak to you again.”
“Yes, you will.”
“I won’t.”
“Sam.”
“Vernon! I have a fitting for my dress for tomorrow night that I can’t miss at three thirty. In addition, I’ve got the entire Federal Bureau of Investigation breathing down my neck to get their sweaty paws on the Forrester case. I’ve got to make something happen today, or we’re going to lose control of this thing.”
“Might I point out that you have your very own physician on staff at home who could meet us at HQ to tend to your injuries while you tend to your work?”
“Yes, you may point that out to me.”
“And might you speak to me again if I were to notify Dr. Flynn that his services are needed by the first lady at her place of employment?”
Sam gave him a side-eyed look to gauge whether he was trying not to laugh. “Are you managing me, by any chance?”
“Would I do that?”
“Yes, I believe you would.”
“Shall I reach out to Dr. Flynn?”
“Yes.”
“Was that so hard?”
“Learn to quit while you’re ahead.”
“My wife has been saying that to me for thirty years.”
“I’d think you would’ve learned by now.”
“Learned what?” Freddie asked when he joined them.
“How to quit while he’s ahead.”
“What’d you do, Vernon? Suggest she might need the ER or something?”
“Or something. I’ll make that call now and get you back to the office ASAP.”
After Vernon stepped back, Freddie said, “What was that about?”
“He’s getting Harry to come to HQ to deal with… this.” She used her chin to gesture to the injured hand.
“That’s a good idea.”
“I have to be there for that fitting.” She looked up at him. “I know it’s so stupid, but he hardly asks me for anything. This is important.”
“Yes, it is, and it’s not stupid.”
“Compared to finding the person who killed Tom, it is.”
“Different kinds of important.”
“Dr. Flynn is at the ER with Dr. McNamara, but he agreed to meet you since her fiancé is there with her.”
“Now I feel like shit because Terry and Lindsey need him more than I do.”
Vernon glanced at the hand sitting awkwardly on her lap. “I’m not sure that’s true.”
Sam hoped her glare spoke for her. “Do not tell my husband about this—or tell anyone who’ll tell him. He’s busy.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
He waited for her to turn to put her legs in the car—and holy shit, that hurt—before he closed the door and got in the driver’s side.
“That was an awesome takedown, Sam,” Jimmy said when they were on the way to HQ.
“I got lucky when I crashed into him.”
“Did you, though?” Freddie asked.
“I kept him from getting away. That’s what matters.”
Freddie gave her a concerned look. “I really hope it’s nothing serious.”
As pain radiated from her hip, she was filled with dread that it might be very serious. No way did she have time to deal with that—again.
Terry feltlike a bear trapped in a cage as he paced the length of that small room at least a thousand times.
Harry took a call. “Yes, I can meet her there in thirty minutes.” He turned to Terry. “Sam’s been injured on the job. I’m meeting her at HQ.”
“Why not here?”
“She says she doesn’t have time—and she doesn’t want Nick to know about it yet. Call me when you hear from the doctor.”
“How much longer do I have to wait to see Lindsey?”
The door opened to Dr. Anderson. “You can come in, Mr. O’Connor.”
Terry took off toward the door and nearly knocked the doctor over in his haste.
Harry stayed with him while they went into Lindsey’s exam room.
Upon seeing her, Terry was filled with dread. He’d never seen her so pale.
She held out a hand to him.
He went to her and took hold of her cold hand.
“Sorry to scare you.”
“I’m fine if you’re fine.” He glanced toward Anderson, who was typing on a computer terminal. “What’re we dealing with, Doc?”
“Lindsey is extremely anemic, which is concerning. We’re trying to figure out what’s going on.”
“Is that why I’ve been so tired?”
“Definitely.”
“Have you been sick at all in the last few months?”
“I had a weird virus a few weeks ago that included a high fever for several days.”
“How many days?”
She looked to Terry. “Most of a week.”
Terry nodded.
“That’s good to know,” Anderson said. “It’s possible you wiped out your red blood cells fighting that off.”
“That can happen?”
“Sure can.”
“I like that better than leukemia,” Lindsey said.
“I do, too. Let me dig into the blood work a little deeper.”
“Can I go home?”
“I want to keep you overnight so we can get to the bottom of what’s going on.”
That wasn’t what she wanted to hear.
Terry wanted her right there with people who knew what they were doing. “You’re in the best place to figure out what’s we’re dealing with, Linds.”
Her eyes filled with tears. “We’ve got the state dinner tomorrow.”
“There’ll be others.”
“Terry’s right,” Harry said. “Let Dr. Anderson run some tests and get to the bottom of this so we can get you feeling better.”
Lindsey nodded and used a tissue Terry gave her to wipe away tears that further rattled Terry’s already-shredded nerves. His Lindsey rarely shed a tear. In fact, she teased him about being moved by movies and TV shows that had no effect on her. He said she’d breathed too much formaldehyde fumes at work and had gone numb.
He loved that they had their own language and inside jokes. His relationship with her was like nothing he’d experienced before, a connection so deep, she was truly a part of him.
“Whatever you’re thinking, knock it off,” she said when they were alone in her room.
Harry had left to see to Sam, and the doctor had promised to return shortly.
“I’m not allowed to think about how much I love you?”
“Oh, that’s perfectly permissible.”
“I thought it might be.”
“Hey.”
He looked up at her. “Hey, what?”
“Stop spinning. I’m okay.”
“Can’t help the spinning.”
“Don’t let it lead to the dark places, you hear me?”
“I hear you.”
“Whatever this is, we’ll figure it out and move on.”
He couldn’t get the word leukemia out of his mind. What would they do if she had something like that?
“Terry. Stop.”
“Don’t worry about me. This isn’t about me.”
“Of course it is. It’s about both of us, but I can’t focus on getting well if I’m worried about you. This is such a big week for you?—”
“Don’t even think about that. I’m not.”
“How can you not be?”
He’d been working twelve-hour days for weeks preparing for the Canadian state visit to make sure everything went perfectly for Nick. “It hasn’t crossed my mind since I heard you were in an ambulance.”
His work phone rang with a call from Nick.
“Take it,” Lindsey said.
He released her hand to fish the phone out of his suit coat pocket. “Mr. President.”
“How is she, Terry?”
“Feisty,” he said with a smile for his beloved.
“That’s always a good thing.”
“Yes, sir, it is.”
“I met with Derek, and he’s on board to see things through tomorrow.” Derek Kavanaugh was the deputy chief of staff, who mostly focused on their dealings with Congress. “Take the time you need with Lindsey.”
“But—”
“No buts. It’s done by executive order.”
Terry gave a soft laugh. “I appreciate that, and I’m a phone call away if needed.”
“We know how to find you. Take care of your family. Thanks to your preparation, everything will be fine tomorrow.”
“Thank you, Mr. President.”
“Keep us posted on how she’s doing and give her our love.”
“I will, sir. Thank you again.”
“Anything for family. I’ll check on you in the morning.”
The line went dead.
He smiled at Lindsey. “Well, I guess you’ve got yourself a full-time nurse.”
“No one I’d rather have.”