Chapter Twenty-Two
They were back downstairs, asleep in bed, when a whimper on the baby monitor woke Sam from a sound sleep around two a.m. She stayed still to listen as the whimpering continued. She got up, put on her robe and went to check on the twins. It was rare for either of them to wake during the night.
Aubrey sat up in bed, weeping.
Sam scooped her up and carried her out of the room so she wouldn’t disturb Alden, who was asleep on the other side of the bed they shared.
She carried the little girl into her sitting room, where a night-light put out a warm glow. “It’s okay, sweetheart. I’m here.”
The little one’s sobs shook her body and broke Sam’s heart.
“Do you want to talk about it?”
Aubrey shook her head.
Sam had learned that the best thing she could do at times like this was to be there and to take her lead from them as they grieved the loss of their devoted parents. The grief struck less often these days than it had at first, but it was always with them. Her heart ached for the child, who’d lost so much in a senseless act of violence. While Sam was forever thankful to have Aubrey and Alden in their lives, she would give anything to take away their pain.
“You want a drink of water?”
“Y-yes, please.”
Sam brought her with her when she got up to get the water and some of the animal crackers Aubrey loved.
She took a tentative sip of the water and a bite of a cracker as Sam ran a hand over her golden curls. “Do you feel any better, love?”
Aubrey nodded. “I had a dream about Mommy.”
“Oh, sweetie.”
“I was sad when I woke up.”
“I’m sure you were.”
“I miss her.”
“I know you do. I’m so sorry you’re hurting.”
Aubrey rested her head against Sam’s chest as she nibbled on her animal crackers. Sam couldn’t imagine enduring a loss like hers and Alden’s at their tender age. They were far too young to understand any of it, but hopefully they knew how loved they were in their new life.
She must’ve dozed at some point because she woke quite a bit later with Aubrey asleep in her arms, which were tingling with pins and needles. Moving carefully, she got up to carry Aubrey into their bed, to keep her close if she woke again during the night.
“What’s up?” Nick whispered as she got into bed, putting Aubrey between them.
“A dream about Mommy.”
“Oh no. Is she okay?”
“She will be.”
“How about you?”
“Sad for her.”
“Get some rest. I’ll get up with her if she wakes up again.”
Sam reached across the sleeping child to hold his hand as she closed her eyes and tried to sleep.
The blast of her alarm was a rude awakening at six o’clock.
She was so not ready to be awake as she reached for her phone to see if there was anything new from Carlucci.
Dug all night and didn’t find anything, not so much as a credit card or a credit score. I also couldn’t find an address for him. Was going to request the warrant for his phone, but was unable to get the number, carrier or anything else that would help. The guy is truly off the grid. I dug a little deeper on Cox and learned he had a messy divorce from the first wife. His current wife, Bianca, winters in Palm Beach and is the toast of the polo set there. Her dad raises champion polo ponies, and her brother is one of the best polo players in the world. She and Cox have been married for twenty years, second marriage for both, never had children. If he visits her in Palm Beach, I can’t find any record of it. He’s not in any of the society photos that I sent to your email.
Thanks for being thorough. Will pick it up today.
Sam copied Dani’s text and forwarded it to Gonzo and Freddie. Possible threads from Carlucci.
Aubrey never stirred when Sam got out of bed and stretched muscles sore from hours in heels and probably from dancing, too. It’d been a while since she’d gotten her groove on and would pay for that today. Thankfully, the cortisone shot was holding, and her hip didn’t hurt at all. In the bathroom, she unbandaged her hand and ran her sore palm under cool water, wincing at the sting. After a shower, she applied the antibiotic ointment Harry had given her and put on a new bandage. Her wrist was still stiff but felt a tiny bit better than it had yesterday.
She felt like she was trudging through quicksand or something equally dense as she made coffee and tried to act like she was awake.
Nick came into the kitchen as she poured coffee into a travel mug. “How are you?”
“Tired.”
He put an arm around her. “You took one for the team overnight.”
“I was glad to do that. I always want to be there for them when they need me.”
“I’ll make sure she’s okay before school.”
“Celia is leaving this afternoon, and my mom is coming to stay, so if there’s any issue, let my mom know.”
“I will. Don’t worry. She’ll be fine.”
He kissed her goodbye and sent her on her way with a protein bar and her travel mug of coffee. “Be safe out there. I love my wife more than life.”
“I’m always careful. Got a lot to live for. Have a good day leading the free world.”
She was heading for the stairs when Scotty came out of his room, looking grumpy and out of sorts, like he did every morning. Skippy followed, full of her usual morning energy. If Scotty didn’t love that dog so much, he’d be annoyed by her. Rather, he was amused.
“Why did I have to get a morning-person dog?”
Sam kissed his forehead. “She’s keeping you on a good schedule.”
He and Skippy walked her down the stairs as they headed outside for Skippy to pee.
“Have a good day. Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
As she zipped up her own coat, Sam knew she should’ve told him to put a coat and shoes on, but that was pointless. Tracy had told her that teenagers often disdained coats and shoes, and it was a battle not worth fighting in the grand scheme of things that came with kids that age.
Vernon was waiting for her and opened the back door to the heated SUV.
“Morning.”
She got in the back seat, thankful for the heat and the ride to work. “Morning.”
“Has Cinderella’s coach turned into a pumpkin this morning?”
Sam chuckled. “Something like that. Too much partying, not enough sleep makes Cinderella cranky.”
“You and the president were stunning last night. We were so proud.”
“Aw, thank you. That’s nice to hear. It seemed to go well.”
“Very well.” Jimmy handed the Washington Star to her. “You got rave reviews.”
“Did we?”
“Yep.”
Sam scanned the headlines and photos from the state dinner. “We clean up pretty well.”
“Very well,” Vernon said. “The whole world is buzzing about the elegant first couple.”
“How’d the tea go?” Jimmy asked.
“It was actually fun. She asked for wine because she doesn’t like tea either.”
“That’s great,” Jimmy said. “I love it.”
“Any word on Agent Hill?” Vernon asked.
“I haven’t talked to Shelby yet today. Let me text her.”
Shelby replied a few minutes later. He had a good night, and thankfully so did we. Mama got some sleep so she can take care of everyone else. Heard you guys were a huge hit last night, not that there was ever any doubt.
Glad to hear all is well. We were a huge hit thanks to you and the incredible team that supports us. We were dazzled by it all.
It was a pleasure to put it all together. So much fun. I still can’t believe I work for the first lady and the president. Pinch me!
I’d rather hug you when I see you later.
That’ll work! So proud of my friends.
I’m so thankful to hear Avery is doing well.
God, me, too. Let me know what you hear about the investigation.
Will do.
“Avery had a good night and so did Shelby. She got some sleep.”
“That always helps.”
She dashed off a text to Celia, wishing her a great time on her cruise to Alaska with her sisters.
Celia responded a minute later. Thank you! I’ll miss you all.
We’ll miss you, too. Love you.
Love you, too!
Next she sent messages to Terry, Derek, Shelby, Lilia and Gideon Lawson, the chief usher, complimenting them in a job well done with the state dinner. Nick and I were blown away by every detail. Please pass along our thanks and appreciation to everyone who had a hand in pulling off such a wonderful evening.
Sam’s phone rang with a call from Gonzo. “Hey, I’m almost there.”
“We got ballistics back. Same gun did Tom and Avery.”
Sam sat back in her seat as the implication hit her square in the chest. The investigation had just taken a whole new turn.
“Everyone in the conference room.”Sam unlocked her office and dropped her coat onto one of the chairs. Grabbing the travel mug of coffee, her notebook and a pen, she followed her team into the room and closed the door.
Before she could say a word, Captain Malone came in with Chief Farnsworth.
“Good morning, gentlemen,” Sam said.
“Morning.”
They took seats at the table.
Sam turned to Gonzo. “Talk to us.”
“Ballistics determined the bullet that killed Tom and the one that was retrieved from Avery are from the same gun. There was a telltale mark in the same place on each bullet. It was determined they came from a nine-millimeter Glock.”
“What does this mean for the investigation?” Freddie asked.
“It changes the whole picture,” Sam said, “and forces us to ask who’d want to kill both Tom and Avery.”
“It also forces us to ask who might be next,” Malone said.
“That, too.”
“As much as I hate to say it, we’re going to need some help on this from the Feds,” Sam said.
“Agreed,” Farnsworth said. “I was about to say the same thing. We need them to tell us what cases Tom and Avery worked on together. We need to know what judges and other personnel were involved so we can warn them.”
“If they weren’t already locked up, I’d be looking hard at the couple who did the home invasion at Avery and Shelby’s,” Sam said.
“Might be worth having a conversation with them,” Cameron said.
“Where are they?”
Freddie went to the computer terminal. “Jessup. As a repeat offender and parole violator, he was denied bail. The wife, a first-time offender, was apparently unable to come up with the bail. I’ll request she be brought over from the women’s prison.”
Sam didn’t feel like trekking to Jessup, but if that’s what it took, so be it. “Freddie and I will start there. The rest of you get with Avery’s deputy, George Terrell, and Faith Miller to sync up on cases they had in common. I want everyone else involved in those cases put on notice as soon as possible that the two shootings are connected.”
“What are we doing about the follow-up we started on Tom’s case?” Gonzo asked. “Carlucci briefed me on the problem with getting the warrant for Henry Allston’s phone. Before she left this morning, Dani called the AG’s office and asked Allston for his cell number, saying it was for the file. He gave it to her, and she requested the warrant. It came through ten minutes ago.”
Sam thought about that for a second. “Go ahead with requesting his cell phone data.” She updated the others on her conversation with Cox the night before. “Something is off with him. I want to know what it is. I also want to know where that golf pro has gone.”
“I’ll put Lucas and Coheeny on that,” Gonzo said. “Harper is in court today for one of his ongoing cases.”
The mention of court reminded Sam of the hearing Thursday in Spencer’s case. She needed to check in with Angela about whether she planned to attend. Either way, Sam would be there.
“Before you disperse, I want to give you an update on the situation at Stahl’s house,” Farnsworth said. “As of this morning, we’ve recovered fourteen bodies from the yard and four from inside a cell that’d been sealed off with a concrete wall. Haggerty’s team believes it’s possible those victims were still alive when they were imprisoned in that room.”
Sam felt sick at the thought of what they must’ve endured before death claimed them.
“What about the storage unit?” Gonzo asked.
“We’ve hit a dead end,” O’Brien said. “When the new owner took over the facility, Stahl was in arrears on payment for the unit for several months. When he was unable to locate Stahl—because he was in prison—the new owner had the unit cleaned out. That happened months ago. Whatever was in there is long gone.”
“Damn it,” Gonzo said.
“My thoughts exactly,” O’Brien said. “We looked into what it would take to try to track down the contents at the landfill. I made a few calls and learned that there’d be a mountain of shit on top of it by now, and it would be nearly impossible to find anything.”
“Thank you for being thorough, Detective,” Malone said.
“I just wish I had better news.”
While they talked about the storage unit, Sam couldn’t stop thinking about the tomb Stahl had erected in his house of horrors. She felt cold all over as she recalled being wrapped in razor wire and threatened with fire at his hands.
“Sam.”
Freddie’s voice broke through the daze she’d slipped into as past trauma resurfaced.
“Yes?”
“Are you all right?”
“Uh-huh.” She took a deep breath and realized her hands were shaking.
“Get her some water,” Malone said.
Freddie rushed out of the room.
Malone sat next to her.
“I’m fine.”
“You’re not, and that’s understandable.”
“We shouldn’t have shared those details when you were in the room,” Farnsworth said regretfully.
“I don’t want to be given special treatment. You know that.”
Malone leaned in. “In this case, you should have all the special treatment.”
“We’ll keep the details away from you going forward,” Farnsworth said.
“That’s not necessary.”
The chief gave her a meaningful look. “It wasn’t a suggestion.”
“Yes, sir.”
“If it makes you feel any better, I’m sick over it, too.” The chief shook his head in disbelief. “It’s reached the point where I have to share details with family members and the public. How do I go out there and tell people what one of our former colleagues has done? Eighteen people. So far…”
“It’s unfathomable that he was doing this while pretending to be a law enforcement officer.”
“The job gave him cover,” Malone said.
“Yes, I guess it did.” She shuddered. “The thought of him sealing off those people in a tomb while they were still alive…”
“It’s the stuff of nightmares,” the chief said bluntly. “As is the hearing we have this afternoon to vacate the charges against Eric Davies, who Stahl framed on rape charges.”
“Sixteen years in prison,” Malone said, “all because Davies complained about the way Stahl treated him during a traffic stop when Stahl was in Patrol.”
“What’s the blowback going to look like on all this?” Sam asked.
“We’re working with Public Affairs to craft a statement that adequately reflects our shock and revulsion at learning a colleague we trusted could’ve betrayed us all this way.”
“That’s a good angle to put on it,” Sam said.
Freddie returned with a cold bottle of water.
“Thank you,” she said with a grateful smile.
“Are you okay?”
“I am. Don’t worry.” She took a few sips of the water, made sure she had her emotions in check and then stood. “Let’s get to Jessup. I don’t want another day to get away from me.” To Gonzo, she said, “I’ll call with an update.”
“We’ll get with George and Faith in the meantime.”
“Sounds good.”
“One other thing for you before you go… The golf pro. We ran him through NCIC, and it turns out his real name is Tristan Walsh—he’d added the O to get the job at the country club. As Tristan Walsh, he’s wanted in multiple jurisdictions in the area on charges ranging from BE to larceny.”
“Wow.”
“I’ve updated those departments on the info we’ve found on him, and they’re picking it up from there.”
“Excellent work, Gonzo. Thank you.”
She and Freddie left HQ a few minutes later with Vernon driving them to GW so she could see Avery.
“Are you sure you’re okay?”
She wanted to tell him to quit asking her, but she’d never do that. He loved her and was concerned. “It was a lot to hear what they’d found at the house, but I’m okay.”
“I’m trying to imagine how anyone gets to the point in their life where they decide to do something like that to other human beings.”
“I think he probably came out that way. It’s baked into the DNA with people like him.”
“I guess but imagine actually doing that and then going on with your life as if you hadn’t condemned people to the most unimaginable death.”
She shuddered. “I can’t.”
“I’m sorry. I’ll drop it.”
“It’s okay. I get the desire to understand it, even though we never will.”
“No, we won’t.” He looked over at her. “You should check in with Trulo on this.”
“Yeah, I will.”
It’d been a lot lately. More than usual. Between Nick’s ascension to the presidency, Spencer’s shocking death, her fractured hip, the revelation of Stahl’s murder spree, her nemesis Detective Ramsey smashing his car into her Secret Service SUV, the home invasion at Shelby and Avery’s, the shooting at Fort Liberty, Tom’s murder, Avery’s shooting, the relentless pace at work and home, it was all she could do to keep her head above water sometimes.
She fired off a text to the department’s psychiatrist, Dr. Trulo. Got time for an old friend this week?
He wrote back ten minutes later. Always.
I’m in the field but will check in when I’m back at the house.
I’ll be here all day.
Thanks, Doc.
“I’ll see him later,” she told Freddie.
“Good.”
“Don’t worry about me, okay? It was a shock, but I’m over it.”
“Are you? How does anyone ever get over what he did to you, let alone the rest of what we know now?”
“I have to get over it, or I can’t function on the job or at home. I can’t dwell on the bad stuff. I just can’t. I hardly ever think of it anymore, until something happens that brings it up again.”
“You shouldn’t be anywhere near this new investigation with him.”
“The chief said the same thing—and added it wasn’t a suggestion.”
“That’s just as well. You know that, right?”
“I do. A few years ago, I would’ve objected to being sidelined. But now? I have a family to think about, multiple jobs to do, and I have to protect myself from things that’ll make it impossible to get shit done.”
“I’m glad you’re thinking that way.”
She put her hand on his arm. “I’m fine. I swear. Let’s get our heads back in the game, okay?”
“Sure thing.”
“I appreciate you.”
“Same. I hate to see that guy hurting you any more than he already has.”
“Hopefully, after all this, we’ll have seen the end of him.” Even as she said that, she feared they might never see the end of Stahl.
“We’ll lock him away and toss the key.”
Sam gave his arm a squeeze and then released him, determined to take the time it took to get to Jessup to get her head straight and be ready to face off with the scumbags who’d threatened Shelby and Noah.
Thinking about the terror of that day made her so furious that she was able to push aside everything else to focus on justice for people she cared about.