Fatal Chaos

by Marie Force

  “Letting him off the hook in any way wouldn’t be justice.”

  “Understood. I’ll let you get to work. You’ll let us know what happens with Forrester?”

  Sam glanced at the door and saw that everyone else was occupied. “Nick told me last night that he requested a courtesy heads-up from the AG if an indictment was imminent. There’s been no heads-up.”

  Malone’s smug smile relieved some of the tension in his face. “Is that right? Well, that’s good to know.”

  “I thought so too.”

  “Bet you did. At any rate, let us know when he makes it official.”

  “We need to prepare for Ramsey being less than pleased with the decision.”

  “‘Less than pleased,’” Malone said with a laugh. “That’s a good way to put it. We’ll take care of him. Don’t worry about it, and for the love of God, stay the hell away from him.”

  “You don’t have to tell me that. I want nothing to do with him. I still have no idea what I ever did to deserve the shit he’s thrown my way.”

  “You exist. That’s enough for him.”

  “He’s a member of the good old boy network around here, and they hate to see a woman get ahead on the job.”

  “I’ll never acknowledge the existence of this network you speak of, but your assessment is fairly spot-on.”

  Sam rolled her eyes. “Whatever.”

  “Listen, Sam, not all of us old boys are members of that club. You’re one of the most effective members of this department, and everyone knows it. If people have a beef with your success, that’s on them, not you.”

  “So you’re saying it’s more than just Ramsey?”

  “I’m saying that success breeds contempt. Keep your friends close and ignore your enemies.”

  “Thank you, Captain, for your unwavering support of me and my squad. It means the world.”

  Flustered by the unexpected compliment, he said, “Sure, no problem. I’ll, ah, let you get to it.”

  What was it with men who couldn’t take a compliment, Sam wondered, as she gathered her keys, phone and notebook and locked up the office to hit the streets. Nick was the same way. Every time she made a comment about his extreme hotness, he turned bright red and got all flustered. She loved making that happen and smiled just thinking about it.

  “You won’t have much to smile about later,” said a snide voice that she quickly identified as Ramsey’s. “Forrester’s going to throw the book at you, you cocky bitch.”

  “We’ll see about that, won’t we?” she said without stopping or looking back.

  “You’re going down, and there’re a lot of people here who’ll be celebrating.”

  Sam didn’t justify that with a response. He couldn’t get to her if she didn’t let him, and she had no plans to let him. She began to actively look forward to the meeting with Forrester, if for no other reason than to see or hear about Ramsey’s reaction when he found out there wouldn’t be an indictment.

  Sam giggled at the thought of his rage and pushed open the door to the swampy summer heat that was always such a relief after being inside the frigid building. The relief was short-lived, however. Within seconds, she began to perspire and walked faster to get to the cool comfort of her car.

  Freddie leaned against the car, checking his phone while he waited for her to unlock the door. “Ready?”

  “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

  “What’d Malone want?” he asked when they were on their way.

  “A decision about Stahl and the Alford plea.”

  “What’d you tell him?”

  “No deal. I’d rather go through a trial than let him off easy.”

  “Good.”

  “Is it wrong that I sort of relish the idea of his face turning purple when he hears that I refused the plea deal?”

  “It’s not wrong at all. He deserves every bit of hell that’s coming his way for what he did to you.”

  “On that we agree.”

  “Speaking of hell, what’s the plan for Joe Kramer?”

  “We’re ruling out anyone who might’ve had a beef with either of them. Working the case, checking the boxes. I don’t expect there to be anything, but you never know, so we check the boxes.”

  “Got it.”

  “Why don’t you take the lead with him?”

  He all but spun in his seat, mouth agape, eyes bugged. “Seriously? Now you want me to take the lead?”

  Sam tried to hide her amusement. “You’re at your best in situations that require a softer touch. You got this.”

  “And you love to torture me.”

  “That is simply not true. I’m training you. Big difference.”

  “Whatever.”

  “You used to be such a nice, respectful boy,” she said with a cluck of disapproval. “I can’t understand what happened.”

  “You happened.”

  Sam snorted with laughter. He was always so fun to mess with. “Let’s talk about your approach with Joe. Where will you start?”

  “With our condolences and concern for him and his family.”

  “Good. Then what?”

  They went through it step-by-step until Freddie felt confident about what he needed to do.

  “You got this.”

  “If you say so.”

  “I say so, and I’m always right. You know this.”

  He muttered something under his breath.

  “Let’s talk about your bachelor party. Do you want it to be a surprise or not?”

  “No surprises.”

  His emphatic response made her laugh. Poor, sweet Freddie had no idea how many surprises she’d dreamed up for his big night. Whether or not she’d act on any of them remained to be seen.

  “It’s not funny. I swear to God, if you make me regret asking you to be my best-man woman—”

  “Freddie… Of course I’m going to make you regret it. Was there ever any doubt?”

  His tortured groan sparked another round of laughter for her. “I knew I should’ve asked Gonzo.”

  “Um, I hate to tell you that he’s been my most willing coconspirator.”

  “I have the worst friends ever.”

  Sam couldn’t stop laughing. It was mean to torture him, but at least he was no longer obsessing about having to question Joe Kramer.

  They arrived at Joe’s Eckington townhouse a few minutes later. The three-story dwelling had a brick front, black shutters, ironwork around the windows and black window boxes full of flowers. While they waited for someone to answer the door, Freddie said, “You’ll step in if I forget something, right?”

  “Nope. You won’t need to me to step in. You’ve got this.”

  The inside door opened, and Sam could immediately see the toll the last few days had taken on the handsome young man. They showed their badges out of habit, and he opened the storm door.

  Sam nudged Freddie.

  “We’re sorry to disturb you, Mr. Kramer, but we wondered if we could have a few minutes of your time.”

  “Have you found the people who killed my wife?”

  “Not yet, but we’re working on it. Do you have a minute to talk?”

  His shrug conveyed a world of helplessness. “I have nothing but time.” He stepped aside to admit them. “My work told me to take a few weeks off, but that gives me too much time to think. I should just go back.”

  “What do you do for work?”

  “I’m the director of marketing at a creative firm in Alexandria.”

  “And what did your wife do?”

  Joe led them to a living room where they took seats next to each other on a sofa while he sat in an easy chair. “She worked in the financial management office at Interior.”

  Freddie hesitated but only for a second. “I hope you know that we have to ask certain questions so w
e can fully investigate what happened. We mean no disrespect.”

  “I understand.”

  “Did either of you have problems with anyone in your lives? Family members, coworkers, neighbors? Anyone who might want to cause you harm?”

  Joe shook his head. “I can’t think of anything, and I’ve been racking my brain trying to think of who could’ve done this to her. I just keep coming back to the same conclusion that it had to be random. Everyone loved Mel. She was a doll.” His voice caught and his eyes filled. “I’m still getting used to speaking of her in the past tense. How can she be past tense when she was just here two days ago?”

  “I can’t imagine how hard this has to be for you and your family.”

  He ran his fingers through his hair repeatedly until it stood on end. “It’s a fucking nightmare.”

  “I also have to ask if either of you was having any sort of financial problems.”

  “We had the usual challenges everyone has. We chose to live in the city for a few years before we have kids, and it’s not cheap to buy here so we decided to rent until we’re ready to buy. We also ran up some debt with fertility treatments. When we found out Mel was pregnant, we started talking about looking for a place in the suburbs. She wanted a yard for the baby.”

  It was, Sam thought, so unbearably sad to sit with this man days after his life had been destroyed in a matter of seconds, most likely in a random act of violence that would never make sense.

  “No gambling or risky investments or anything that might grab the attention of someone who wanted to hurt you?” Freddie asked.

  Sighing, Joe shook his head. “Nothing like that.”

  Freddie glanced at Sam, who nodded in approval.

  “We won’t take any more of your time.” Freddie handed his card to Joe. “If you think of anything else that might be relevant, please call me.”

  Joe took the card. “I will.”

  “We’ll see ourselves out.”

  “Is it possible you’ll never catch them?”

  Sam turned back. “That’s always possible, but I promise you we’re doing everything we can. The FBI is assisting in the investigation, and every member of the MPD is looking for these people.”

  “That’s something, I guess.”

  “The minute we know anything,” Sam added, “we’ll be in touch.”

  “Thank you.”

  As they emerged into the swampy heat, Freddie released a deep breath.

  “You did good. I knew you would.”

  “It’s so hard to have to grill someone who just lost the most important person in his life.”

  “It is, but you get why it has to be done, right?”

  “Yeah, I get it. What’s next?”

  “Now we check the boxes on some of the stuff that’s been called into the tip line.”

  They spent the next few hours crisscrossing the city, talking to people, doing interviews, gathering information, none of which was of much use to them, but like the conversations with the victims’ families, it had to be done. At quarter to two, Sam asked Freddie to drop her at the federal building on Fourth Street Northwest for her meeting with U.S. Attorney Tom Forrester.

  “You want me to wait for you?”

  “Nah, I’ll walk back to HQ.”

  “You don’t walk, especially not in this heat. Call me, and I’ll come get you.”

  “Yes, Mom.” Sam got out and shut the door before he had time to form a retort. The intense heat smacked her in the face and had her dashing up the stairs to get inside. Never let them see you sweat.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  THEIR LAWYER FRIEND Andy Simone and his colleague Kurt Hager were waiting for her in the lobby. Sam shook hands with them.

  “Did Forrester give you any hint of which way he was leaning?” Kurt asked as they headed for the elevators.

  “No, but Nick did.” She explained about Nick’s request for a heads-up that hadn’t come.

  “Well, that’s good news,” Andy said, visibly relieved.

  “No kidding,” Sam said. “We’ve got enough headlines with our names in them without adding to them.”

  Kurt held the elevator door for her and Andy.

  Even though Sam felt confident about the outcome of this meeting, it still made her nervous to be summoned by the U.S. Attorney on a matter that involved her personally. She wasn’t proud of how she’d let Ramsey get to her or of punching him, but she’d probably do it again under the same circumstances.

  Forrester’s admin gave Sam a VIP welcome, just like the last time she’d been there when Forrester told her he was taking her case to the grand jury. When they were offered beverages, the lawyers asked for coffee while Sam chose ice water.

  The had finished their drinks by the time they were shown into Forrester’s spacious office. The U.S. Attorney came around the desk to greet them with handshakes. Tall with silver hair and sharp blue eyes, he spoke with a thick New York accent. When they were settled in the conversation area next to a big window, he said, “I appreciate your patience while the grand jury considered your case. After careful deliberation, the people have declined to recommend charges.”

  Sam tried to conceal the euphoria that erupted inside her. What a relief!

  “I want you to understand that your actions constitute felony assault. While I appreciate that neither you nor the vice president asked for any special favors, you are in fact catching a lucky break here.”

  “I understand.”

  “I don’t want to see you here again under circumstances such as this.”

  “You won’t.”

  “You should also know that we’ve notified Sergeant Ramsey of the grand jury’s decision, and needless to say, he is less than pleased. He mentioned his intent to file civil charges against you.”

  “Okay.”

  “Well, unless you have any other questions, that concludes this matter as far as my office is concerned.”

  “Will you issue a public statement?” Kurt asked.

  “We will not. If you wish to, that’s at your discretion.”

  Sam stood and reached out to shake his hand. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  She led the lawyers from the room and nodded to the admin on her way by. None of them said anything until they were in the elevator.

  “Thank God that’s over,” Andy said, breaking the silence.

  “It’s over with from a criminal standpoint,” Kurt said, “but I’d expect Ramsey to follow through with his threat to file a civil suit.”

  Sam shrugged. “Let him. I don’t care.” With the threat of prosecution off her shoulders, anything else seemed minor in comparison.

  “Let us know if you require representation in a civil matter,” Kurt said. “We’ve got some good people who could handle that for you.”

  “I will.” Sam shook hands with them. “Thank you both for your help with this. I appreciate it.”

  “We didn’t do anything,” Andy said.

  “Your presence at the meetings with Forrester was a big help. Make sure you bill me for your time.”

  “Nah, it’s on the house,” Andy said. “Anything for you and Nick.”

  “Thanks again,” she said with a smile for him.

  “You need a ride?” Andy asked.

  “No, thanks. I’m going to walk back to work. It’s only a couple of blocks.”

  “All right. Talk soon.”

  “See you later.” As she walked the short distance to HQ, she placed a call to Nick, who answered on the third ring.

  “What’d he say?”

  “Well, hello to you too.”

  “Come on, Sam. I’ve been waiting for you to call.”

  “As you already know, no charges will be forthcoming.”

  She heard his deep sigh of relief. “That�
��s great news.”

  “Yes, it is. However, when Forrester told Ramsey there’d be no criminal charges, he mentioned his plans to pursue the matter civilly.”

  “Okay.”

  “That’s what I said too. Let him sue me. Who cares?”

  “We don’t, that’s for sure.”

  “Forrester said they have no plans to make a public statement about the outcome of the grand jury proceeding, but there’s nothing stopping me from doing it. I was thinking about giving Darren an exclusive to keep him on my good side. What do you think?”

  “Go for it.”

  “It’ll resurrect the story of me punching one of my fellow officers.”

  “So? He had it coming.”

  Sam laughed. “This is one of many reasons why I love you so much. Most politicians would have hives at the thought of their wife being back in the news for punching a colleague.”

  “I’m not most politicians, and you’re not most wives.”

  “Don’t you ever wish you were married to a nice sweet girl who hosted teas and fundraisers for her husband like a good political wife?”

  “Hell no. I’ve never wanted to be married to anyone but you, as you well know.”

  He still made her heart beat fast when he said things like that, even after all this time. “It takes a special kind of guy to put up with a wife like me, and I’m thankful every day that I found a special kind of guy.”

  “I’m the lucky one.”

  “Thanks for all the support during this episode. I’ll try harder to think before I punch in the future.”

  His laughter made her smile. “If anyone else ever says you deserved what Stahl did to you, you have my permission and encouragement to flatten them.”

  “Duly noted. What’s happening in your world? Any news from the hearings?”

  “They’re just getting started today with Nelson’s chief of staff testifying. He knew nothing about what Christopher was up to, of course.”

  “Of course. When does the president testify?”

  “Not until later this week or early next week. That’ll be a three-ring circus.”

  “I’m looking forward to that being over too.”