Chapter Thirty-One
Sam tilted her head, gauging his meaning. “Am I wrong about him sleeping with her to gain influence with the U.S. government? I mean, he comes swooping in, a blast from the past she never really got over, which he probably knew, and now you’re iced out again. I can see how that would make you mad.”
He slapped his hand on the table. “She got over him. She was long over him.”
“I thought you heard her say he was the one who got away. I’m married to my one who got away, and let me tell you, no one else could ever compare to him.”
He leaned in, glaring at her with absolute contempt. “That’s not true in this case. I am the love of her life, not him.”
“Would she agree with that assessment? Let’s make a note to ask her, Detective Cruz.”
“So noted,” Freddie said.
“None of this is any of your business,” Curtis snapped. “It’s personal.”
“Were you angry enough about Sergei reentering Gretchen’s life that you decided to get rid of him?” Sam asked.
Curtis folded his arms, sat back in his chair and smiled. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”
“Curtis,” Devon said. “Answer the question.”
“I didn’t kill him.”
Sam glanced at Freddie, who pulled up the security footage from Curtis’s building that showed him leaving at two thirty in the morning on the day Sergei was found dead. “Where are you going in the middle of the night?”
As Curtis viewed the video, the sweat reappeared, beading on his forehead and upper lip. “For a drive.”
Freddie showed the video of him returning five hours later, with date and time stamps on the screen.
“Just a random, five-hour drive?” Sam asked.
“I couldn’t sleep.”
“When we subpoena the security video from the Naval Observatory, will we see you lurking around your ex-wife’s home?”
“I never went anywhere near there.”
“Detective Cruz, please request a warrant for the video at the Naval Observatory.”
He pulled out his phone and took care of her request right then and there. “Done.”
“So I guess we’ll just wait to see whether your car is spotted on the video. What does he drive, Detective Cruz?”
“Since I knew that’d be your next question, we’re looking for a black Honda Pilot, Virginia registration, CRH1022.”
God, he was good. “Excellent. Thank you.”
“So… so what if I went by her house? Since when is that a crime?”
“It’s not unless you lay in wait for Sergei to leave and then killed him,” Sam said.
“I didn’t do that.”
“What did you do?”
Sweat dropped from his chin onto the table. “I… I’d like to confer with my attorney.”
Freddie disengaged the recording device before he and Sam left the room, meeting up with Hope Miller in the hallway.
“Thoughts?” Sam asked them.
“I’d like to see the film from the observatory,” Hope said.
“How hard will it be to get that?” Freddie asked.
“There might be some hoops, but the Secret Service is pretty good about aiding local law enforcement when needed,” Hope said. “I’ll see what I can do to put a rush on that.”
“Thanks, Hope.”
“Are we thinking he’ll want to talk again today?”
“Not sure what to expect, honestly,” Sam said.
“I’ll hang for a bit to see if they call you back in.”
“Feel free to use our conference room while you wait.”
“Will do, thanks. How’s everyone holding up around here?”
“Trying to be business as usual with a gaping hole in our house and three of our own, plus a reporter dead and others in the hospital.” Sam shook her head. “A lot of disbelief about the Russian involvement.”
“I can imagine.”
“How’s Molly?” Sam asked of Hope’s daughter.
“Delightful and sassy.”
“I need a picture.”
Hope called up a photo on her phone and handed it to Sam. “Aw, she’s adorable.”
“We’re enjoying her. Thinking about giving her a sibling one of these days. We can’t believe she’s already almost five.”
“Time flies, doesn’t it?”
“Sure does.”
Captain Malone appeared in the hallway, looking frazzled and exhausted. He nodded to Hope. “A word, Lieutenant?”
“We’ll keep you posted,” she said to Hope before she went to see what the captain needed.
“What’s up?” she asked Malone.
“Just got off the phone with the mayor. She’s appointed me acting chief while Joe is out and you acting deputy chief while Jeannie is out.”
“What the… What?”
“You heard me, Lieutenant.”
“But… what about all the captains? Why would she skip over them to come to me for that when she knows I don’t want it?” She’d already offered the position to Sam once before, right after Nick had become president. Thankfully, Sam had been able to talk her out of the idea before it caught wind.
“You’ll have to take that up with her. This was her order to me.”
“Do we have any latitude to say who’d be best to step into that position while Jeannie is out? By any measure, that person is not me. What about Ruiz?”
“If that’s what you want, please call the mayor and express your concerns to her.”
“Is it okay if I do that?”
“Feel free, just come out of it with someone assigned to be deputy, because I could really use the help.”
“I’m sorry to make your situation more difficult, but—”
“It’s fine. I get it. The captains would be pissed, and you don’t need that. Tell her that. Suggest Ruiz.”
“I’ll take care of it. What can I do in the meantime?”
“The press is clamoring for a briefing. Do you think you could handle that?”
She wasn’t sure what she wanted less—to be acting deputy chief or brief the press about the aftermath of the bombing. “Sure. Happy to help.”
“Don’t lie to my face.”
Sam laughed. He knew her far too well. “Can you give me the talking points?”
“I’ll brief you in twenty minutes.”
While she waited for Malone, Sam went into her office and closed the door to make the call to the mayor’s office. For ten million reasons, there was no way she could serve as deputy chief, acting or otherwise.
“This is Lieutenant Sam Holland with the MPD calling to speak with Mayor Brewster if she’s available.”
“It’s a pleasure to speak to you, ma’am.”
Sam rolled her eyes and bit her tongue to keep from snapping at the starstruck receptionist.
When she realized Sam wouldn’t engage in any first lady nonsense, the woman said, “Please hold while I get her for you.”
“Thank you.”
While she waited, Sam drummed her fingers on the desk, determined to avoid this assignment no matter what she had to do or say.
“Lieutenant,” Mayor Brewster said. “What a nice surprise to hear you were on the line. I assume Captain Malone has passed along my message.”
“He has, and while I’m honored you’d consider me, ma’am, I’m afraid I cannot accept the position, even on a temporary basis.”
“But you’re the one I want.”
“I understand. However, there’re a number of captains who’d be extremely annoyed to see this opportunity go to a lieutenant and, in particular, to see it go to me, as they feel I get more than my fair share of the attention as it is.
” She decided using the term attention whore to describe their feelings about her wouldn’t be appropriate with the mayor.
“I believe Captain Michelle Ruiz, who commands our Emergency Response Team, would be a much better choice. I’m needed in Homicide with two big cases currently in the works and—”
“Take a breath, Lieutenant. I hear you, and I’ll extend the offer to Captain Ruiz.”
“Thank you,” Sam said with a deep sigh of relief.
“You’re an odd duck, Lieutenant,” Brewster said with a note of humor in her tone. “Most people snap up the lofty positions whether they’re qualified or not.”
“I’m not most people. I’m doing exactly what I want to be doing in Homicide and have zero desire to be promoted. This is my calling, my life’s work, and it’s the only thing in the world I’m good at.”
“Then far be it from me to mess with what’s working. I just hope you recognize the esteem in which I hold you.”
“That’s very kind of you to say, ma’am.”
“You’re the first lady of the United States, ma’am. You don’t need to call me that.”
“I’m speaking to you as my boss, and as such, you are ma’am to me.”
“You could call me Monique.”
“Only if you call me Sam.”
“Deal. I understand our friend Deputy Chief McBride is a new mother this morning and that Chief Farnsworth is eager to get back to work.”
“Yes, we’re thankful that they and their faithful admin, Helen, are doing okay and that the baby was safely delivered six weeks early.”
“I’ve made the full resources of the District government available to Acting Chief Malone and will ensure the repairs to the building are made promptly.”
“Thank you. Everyone here will appreciate that.”
“Even if you’re not our acting deputy chief, please call me if there’s anything you or anyone on the MPD team needs.”
“I’ll do that. Shall I put you through to Captain Ruiz?”
“I’d appreciate that.”
“If you could mention that I recommended her for the position, that might help to smooth another situation I’m dealing with internally.”
“Understood. Will do.”
“Have a nice day, Monique.”
“You do the same, Sam.”
Sam put the call on hold, pressed the transfer button and, after looking up Ruiz’s extension, put through the call, hoping she hadn’t fucked it up. Then she let out a giddy laugh at how she’d successfully killed two birds with one suggestion.
“Why are you laughing like a lunatic?” Malone asked when he came into her office.
“I just took care of some business with Madam Mayor, who is, as we speak, asking Ruiz to be her acting deputy chief and mentioning that it was my idea to ask her.” Sam capped off the comment with her biggest, cheesiest grin. “Alas, I’m entertained by this development.”
“Only you, Holland,” he said with a grunt of laughter.
She dabbed at pretend tears. “The mayor called me an ‘odd duck’ because I’m not interested in being promoted, and honestly, I’ve never felt more complimented.”
“If you’re done congratulating yourself, let’s get you ready to brief the media.”
“Small point of order… In case you may not have noticed, this Russian bombing-slash-Ivanov-murder story intersects with my husband’s office, and there could be questions about that, leaving me to wonder if I’m the best person to brief on this topic.
Not that I’m unwilling, mind you. I’m simply mentioning the potential conflict of interest.”