Chapter Thirty-Two #3
“Yes,” he said through gritted teeth. “I’m not going to lie.
I hated him. I hated that she had something with him that she’d apparently never had with me, even though I was the one who married her and gave her the children she wanted so badly.
Yes, I also disappointed her, myself, the kids…
But I worked hard to get past all that, and my entire motivation during rehab and all the meetings and doctors’ appointments was to get my wife back.
To put my family back together. And it was happening…
Gretchen and I were in a better place than we’d been in years, and it was good. ”
Sam found it interesting that as he’d spoken so passionately about Gretchen, the sweating had stopped.
“So you picked him up…”
Curtis nodded. “I asked him if he needed a ride. He wanted to know why I was there. I said I thought we could talk unless he wanted me to blow the lid off him sleeping with the vice president. That got his attention.”
Sam took notes as he spoke. “Where did you go when you left the Naval Observatory?”
“We went to Glover-Archbold, a park on Macomb, and took a walk.”
“Did you intend to harm him?”
Curtis recoiled. “What? No. I just wanted him to fuck off.”
“What did you say to him?”
“Same thing I just said to you. How Gretchen and I were in a good place, working on reconciling, and I wanted him to know… Our family is everything to me, and being with him was risking everything for her—our relationship, her position as vice president, all of it. Turns out, I was right about that. Devon told me that Gretchen was fired as VP because of him.”
“Yes, she was. What did Sergei have to say?”
“He said he wasn’t trying to mess anything up for her, but he needed her help. I said if he really cared about her, he would leave her alone. According to him, that’s not what she wanted. She liked having him there and wanted to help his cause.”
“Did she care that he was technically still with his wife despite their divorce?”
“His wife supported him seeing her, because she knew Gretchen could help him.”
“Did his wife support him sleeping with her?”
“They didn’t sleep together.”
“That’s not what Gretchen told us.”
Curtis’s face lost all expression. “She wouldn’t do that.”
“She told us she did.”
He broke down into sobs. “That’s not possible. She was with me. We were back together.”
Shit, Sam thought, fearing further delay. “What happened in the park, Curtis? We need to know the details if we’re going to give you immunity from prosecution.”
Thankfully, he pulled himself together somewhat.
“We were walking, talking, arguing really… It got pretty heated. He told me the lives of millions in Russia were on the line, and his movement was the only hope they had of taking back their country. Gretchen could help, and they needed her. That was the last thing he said before we were jumped.”
“By whom?”
“I don’t know. They got me in the neck with a needle, and whatever it was knocked me out. When I came to, the sun had come up, and Sergei was gone.”
Sam looked to Freddie. “Find out what we have for cameras in that area.”
He got up and left the room.
“I swear to God that’s what happened.”
“Did you see the people who jumped you?”
“Not at all. One minute I was talking to Sergei, and the next I was waking up to sunshine. I guess I’m lucky they didn’t kill me, too.”
“Why didn’t you report this incident to anyone?”
“I was afraid I might get blamed for whatever happened to him, and I didn’t want Gretchen to know I was with him. As far as she knew, I was in the dark about her rekindling things with Sergei.”
He was indeed very lucky they hadn’t killed him, Sam thought. “Stay here. I’ll be right back.”
She went out to the hallway to meet with Hope. “If the video supports his story, I vote to spring him after we get a written statement.”
“Agreed, as long as he commits to staying local.”
“Thanks for the support.”
“Always. Let me know what the video from the park shows.”
“Will do.”
After she left, Malone said, “Sergei was murdered by the Russians.”
“I agree.”
“Cruz can take the statement and follow up with the video. Go home.”
“Thanks, Cap. I’ll see you in the morning.”
“I’ll be here.”
Sam turned back to him. “You’re not overdoing it, are you?”
“Nah, I’m fine. Taking it one emergency at a time, and I put Acting Deputy Chief Ruiz in charge of overseeing the repairs to the building, so that’s one thing off my plate.”
“Thank God it’s not on mine.”
She left him laughing as she walked to her office to get her stuff.
Freddie came into the pit from the morgue side as she was locking her office door. “Archie is looking for video.”
“Can you get Curtis’s statement nailed down in writing and then let him go if his statement jibes with the video?”
“Yep.”
“Thank you. I have to, um… The new VP thing…”
Smiling, he said, “Go. I’ve got it.”
She squeezed his arm. “I owe you everything.”
“It’s quite the other way around.”
“No, it isn’t. Our entire shift is long gone, and you’re still here because you’re my partner.”
“And I wouldn’t have it any other way. Go on home. You need some… fixing up… before you go on TV.”
“Shut your mouth.”
“Truth hurts, pal.”
She flipped him off and left him laughing, too, as she headed for the morgue exit, texting Vernon and Lilia to let them know she was coming.
Too bad there wasn’t a switch she could flip to change gears from detective to first lady to wife to mother to sister to friend to whatever role she was required to play at the moment.
That would be nice to have. Maybe she could invent such a thing.
She’d work on that as soon as she got a spare minute—probably ten years from now.