by Marie Force
“Sam. Stop.”
Ignoring the captain, Sam said, “Are my questions about my father’s murder making you uncomfortable?”
“I’m so sorry.” Her voice was soft as she blinked back tears. “I had no idea that he was involved. He always talked about your father in such glowing terms.”
“I don’t need to hear that. Especially not now that I know how little regard he actually had for my father or our family. Did you know my dad took him in after his first marriage ended and he went on a drinking bender that threatened to ruin his career? He slept in my room. I didn’t know that until my mom told me recently. My dad saved his career and possibly his life. Don’t you think he deserved better from your husband than what he got?”
A sob erupted from Kaitlyn. “He deserved much better. I’m as disgusted as you are by all of this.”
“I doubt that.”
“What do you want from me?” Kaitlyn’s chin quivered and her big doe eyes glistened with tears.
“I want to know every single thing you know about your husband, his career, his friends inside the department.” Sam produced a copy of the anonymous note they’d received, tucked into a sympathy card. “I want to know who would’ve sent this to me after my father died.”
As Kaitlyn reached for the paper, Sam noticed the other woman’s hand was trembling and took satisfaction in her nervousness. She ought to be nervous. Her husband had covered up an attempted murder of a police officer who’d been his friend for thirty years and the murder of another officer who’d been killed years earlier.
Sam watched intently as Kaitlyn read the message.
“I have no idea who could’ve sent this. Paul hardly ever talked to me about his work. He would say he needed to leave it at the office and get a break from it when he was home.”
“Someone knew that he and Councilman Gallagher were involved. I want to know who that is.” Gallagher and two other prominent city businessmen had run a secret gambling ring for years that Conklin had gotten sucked into. The three coconspirators had resorted to the murders of two police officers to keep their cash cow from being discovered, and Conklin had known that the entire time Sam was desperately trying to figure out who’d shot her father.
“I don’t know! I never met Gallagher, Santoro or Ryan or had any idea he was involved in anything with them. I didn’t know until the rest of the world knew.” She broke down into sobs. “Do you know what it’s like to realize you didn’t know the man you were married to for years? Do you have any idea what that’s like?”
“No, I don’t.” Maybe that made her a heartless bitch, but so be it. She had no patience for this woman or her rat fink husband.
“You’re so smug. Do you honestly think you know everything there is to know about your husband?”
“Probably not, but one thing I know for certain is that he’s never been an accessory to murder.”
“I didn’t know that about Paul!”
“So you said. Tell me this—when he asked you to take my father’s messenger bag and do something with it, what did you think of that request?”
“That was a particularly busy week for me at work, so I tossed it in my car and never gave it another thought.”
“It didn’t strike you as at all odd that he was asking you to basically hide something for him?”
Kaitlyn met Sam’s gaze with defiance that only further irritated Sam. “No, it didn’t.”
“That’s kind of funny, don’t you think, Captain? I mean, if my husband asked me to basically dispose of something outside of our house, I’d at least stop to ask him what it was I was disposing of.”
Kaitlyn smirked and shook her head. “Paul always said you were a cocky bitch.”
“Did he?” Sam smiled widely at Malone. “I bet he thought that was an insult, right?”
“He said you were allowed to do what you want because your dad was good friends with the top brass.”
“He said that, did he?”
Kaitlyn leaned in, her expression filled with hatred. “Everyone says that.”
Sam rubbed her hands over her eyes, affecting a childlike pout. “Oh, my feelings are so hurt! Captain, how will I go on?”
Malone’s subtle eye roll amused her, even if the things Kaitlyn said left a sting in her gut. She knew perfectly well that not everyone within the department thought she got special treatment due to her father’s long friendship with Farnsworth, Conklin and Malone. But certainly some people thought that, and even though she knew how hard she’d worked to get justice for her victims, the idea that people thought she only succeeded due to favoritism rankled.
“I think it’s time for you to leave my house.”
“And I think it’s time for you to think long and hard about who might’ve sent that note. If we find out you had information material to this investigation, we won’t hesitate to charge you.”
“You can’t charge me. Paul made a deal.”
“If you’re holding out on us, the deal is null and void for him—and for you. So do some soul-searching. Think about who else might’ve known about this and let me know.” Sam placed her business card on the coffee table. “If we discover later that you held out on us, we will charge you, deal or no deal.”
Sam got up and headed for the front door, eager to get out of the house where the answers to her father’s case had been for four of the longest years of her life. If she lived forever, that would never make sense to her.
“I want to see Conklin,” Sam said to Malone when they were back in the cold air that washed over her like a balm after being inside that stifling house. “I need to know who sent that note, and I bet he knows who it was.”
“What makes you think he’ll tell you?”
“Maybe he’s feeling guilty for what he kept from me for all that time. It’s worth a shot, isn’t it?”
Malone leaned against the car, arms crossed, expression serious. “I don’t know if it is.”
“What do you mean?”
After a long pause, he removed the aviator sunglasses that covered his gray eyes. “I’ve thought a lot about this after we talked earlier. You’ve done an admirable job of powering through this, of losing your father suddenly and then solving the case. But this—you seeing Conklin—that might be too much, you know?”
“I get what you’re saying, but if other people knew, I want to nail them. Don’t you?”
“You know I do.”
“Then what choice do we have but to confront him with this?”
“Well, we could confront him, but it doesn’t have to be you who does it.”
Sam thought about that for a second, trying to take her emotions out of the equation, but that was nearly impossible in this case. “I feel so betrayed by him, as a daughter, a friend, a fellow law enforcement officer. It’s worse, in some ways, than what Stahl did. At least I always knew Stahl hated my guts, but Conklin... He pretended to be a friend to me and my father while keeping a secret that blew my dad’s case wide-open. He knew who did it. All that time... Maybe it’s not in my best interest to see him, but I want to anyway.”
Malone pondered what she’d said. “All right then, we’ll do it in the morning. But if it goes bad, I reserve the right to end it. That’s nonnegotiable.”
“I can live with that.” As they got back into the car, Sam was determined to make sure she got what she needed from Conklin before it went bad.
CHAPTER SIX
LATER THAT NIGHT, after they had dinner with the kids and got them off to bed, Sam and Nick watched a cable news panel dissect the story about President Nelson’s affair. Medical experts described the sort of treatment Gloria Nelson would’ve undergone to combat stage two ovarian cancer.
“What does it mean to the American people that Nelson would have an affair while his wife was having cancer treatment?” the host asked the panel.
“It certainly makes what was already a sordid story that much more so,” one of the female panelists said.
After thoroughly discussing Gloria Nelson’s private medical condition, the host moved on to an even more exacting recitation of what was known about Tara Weber, the woman at the center of the scandal. Video footage showed her being chased down a DC side street by reporters as she tried to leave her home.
“They need to get security for her ASAP,” Sam said.
“Brant said the Secret Service is hoping to coordinate something with her. Since her child could be the president’s son, he could warrant protection and thus she does too. They’re just awaiting approval from headquarters to make it happen, which could take a few days. Apparently, they’re demanding a paternity test before they’ll approve the request.”
“Wonder what the opposition will have to say about even more family members getting protection.” She was still furious that members of the other party had questioned whether the taxpayers should have to foot the bill to protect Aubrey and Alden after she and Nick took them in.
As the coverage continued, they learned that Tara Weber was thirty-five years old and a graduate of Cornell University and UPenn school of Law, that her newborn child was her first.
“Poor kid to be born into such a circus.” The dull, flat tone of Nick’s voice had her glancing at him in concern.
“Are you okay?”
“I’ve never been better.”
“What’re you hearing about all of this?”
“Well, Graham is thrilled, of course. He can’t wait for me to be president—and it doesn’t matter to him how it happens. Tomorrow, I have a breakfast meeting with Nelson that was already on the schedule when the shit hit the fan. He couldn’t see me today and hasn’t canceled the breakfast, so I assume that’s still on.”
“Ugh, what will you say to him?”
“What can I say? Gee, it was probably a dick move to have an affair in the first place, but especially while your wife of more than forty years was having cancer treatment?”
“You might not want to say that.”
“Right, but it’s what I want to say. I mean, who does that? I get that people cheat, and while I’ll never understand that choice, how do you do it while your wife is fighting cancer? It’s just disgusting.”
“It really is. I feel so badly for her, being dragged into this storm when things are already hard enough for her.” Sam swallowed before she asked the question she’d been wanting to pose all evening but hadn’t been able to bring herself to ask. “Do you think he’ll have to resign?”
“I don’t know.” Nick sighed deeply. “I was surprised he managed to survive what Christopher did, and he only held on because we gave him a pass. But this? It’s anyone’s guess. I saw Derek on the way out tonight, and he took me aside to tell me he’s still seriously thinking about resigning from Nelson’s team. From what he said, the entire staff is just revolted by this.”
“I can’t blame them. How do you continue to support him if you’re revolted by him?”
“That’s the very question I’ve been asking myself all day.”
Sam turned so she could see his face. “What do you mean?”
“Nothing says I have to continue to be his vice president.”
“You... You’re thinking about resigning?”
“Thought’s crossed my mind. Why should we twist in the wind waiting to hear whether he’s going to survive. I don’t want to be president right now, and you have zero desire to be first lady ever, so why stick around to wait for the whole thing to come down on me and us?”
“I never said I wouldn’t want to be first lady ever.”
He rolled his eyes. “Please. You would hate that. And you’d have to give up your job, which would make you hate me.”
“Nick... Seriously? You honestly think it’s possible for me to hate you?”
“If my job upends your entire life, then yeah, I think it’s possible.”
Sam sat back, astounded and more than a little hurt, especially after what he’d said earlier about her leaving him. “If that’s what you think, then you don’t know me at all. (A) I could never hate you. Ever. (B) When you signed on to be vice president, we both knew what we were taking on, that at any time you could be tapped to take the president’s place. I mean, that’s the primary role of the vice president. (C) I’ve always known that if you were promoted, I’d have to take a leave of absence from my job.”
“I don’t want you to have to do that.”
“I’d do it for you. How can you not know that?”
“You’d hate it.”
“Maybe I would, but I wouldn’t hate you. How can you say that? How can you even think that?”
“I’m sorry. Poor choice of words.”
“Extremely poor choice of words, which isn’t like you.” He almost always got it right, so when he didn’t, it was jarring, to say the least.
“I’m just so pissed with him. When I agreed to take this job, I had no idea we were going to have to deal with his murdering son and then his philandering. It’s bad enough contemplating all the things outside our control that could happen. But this... This is on him, and I’m fucking furious that he put himself—and me, by extension—in this position.”
“I don’t blame you for being furious. It’s a betrayal of his wife, his family, you and the rest of his team, the American people. But I don’t think you should quit.”
“Why not?”
“Because if he’s forced out, the country will need someone like you to step in and take over—someone strong and competent and worthy of the role.”
He shook his head. “I don’t want it to be me. I can’t even believe we’re back here again, holding our collective breath to see if he’ll be able to hang on. The last time wasn’t his fault, but this...”
“I know. As a man who believes in faithfulness and loyalty, this is hard for you to understand.”
“It’s impossible for me to understand. Gloria stood by him through everything. Hell, she’s more popular than he is. And this is how he thanks her for her unwavering support?”
Sam picked up the remote and shut off the TV. Anxiety only made his chronic insomnia worse, and more news wasn’t helping anything.
“I was watching that.”
“You’ve seen enough.” She curled up to him, wishing she had a magic wand that could take his mind off the scandal that threatened to engulf them both. “What can I do?”
He ran his fingers through her hair. “Snuggling with my beautiful wife helps.”
“Do you believe me when I tell you there’s nothing that could happen that would make me hate or leave you?”
“Nothing at all?” he asked with a hint of humor in his tone.
“Nothing that you would ever do.”
“I’m sorry I said that.”
“I’m sorry if I gave you reason to think it.”
“You didn’t. I’m not thinking clearly at the moment.”
“I hate that you’re so stressed out.” She raised herself up on one arm and peppered his chest with kisses. “I wish there was something I could do to take your mind off it.” She flashed her best vixen smile and drew a laugh from him as she kissed her way down the front of him, outlining each of his well-defined abdominal muscles with the tip of her tongue. “Oh, wait... I’m having an idea of something I could do that might help.”
His gorgeous eyes danced with amusement. “Do tell.”
“I’d rather show than tell.”
He twirled lengths of her hair around his fingers. “Don’t let me stop you.”
Smiling at him, she took his hard cock into her mouth and went for broke, taking him as far as she could and drawing a deep groan from him that pleased her greatly. For this moment, anyway, he wasn’t worried about becoming president.
* * *
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br /> DRIVING TO WORK in the morning, Sam stewed over the dark circles under Nick’s eyes that were indicative of another sleepless night, despite her best efforts to relax him. He’d promised to call after his meeting with the president, at which he planned to tell Nelson he was thinking of resigning. He might not follow through, but the president needed to know how revolted he was by what the man had done.
How the most scrutinized human being on the planet thought he’d get away with an affair was beyond her ability to comprehend. And what if the baby turned out to be his? Had he not given a thought to possible pregnancy? Although, how exactly would the president go about acquiring condoms?
The whole thing was so sordid, and at the heart of it was an innocent child whose birth would forever be tied to scandal.
While she waited at a stoplight, it occurred to her that they’d been so caught up in the Nelson business last night that she’d never mentioned to Nick that she planned to see Conklin today. It was probably just as well. The poor guy had enough on his mind without having to worry about her too.
She pulled into HQ and parked in the back, as she did so often these days, to avoid the media that camped out at the main entrance. Mostly they wanted to talk to her, but she gave them as little as possible. One of these days, she hoped they’d realize she would never speak to them about Nick’s job or her role as second lady. She was here to do her other job, and that’s where her focus would remain.
Before she went in, she took a minute to text Terry.
Nick is wound up over all this crap. Keep an eye on him. Let me know if I’m needed over there.
Like Nick did so often for her, she’d drop everything and run to him if he needed her.
Terry responded quickly.
Thanks for letting me know. I’m on it and will let you know if you should come by.
Thanks, Terry.
Wanting to cover all bases, she also placed a call to Lilia. Other than Nick, Lilia was the smartest Washington insider Sam knew, and she wanted her chief of staff’s take on the latest situation.
“Good morning,” Lilia said, chipper as always, even first thing.
