by Marie Force
The car slowed to a crawl and then stopped. Brant opened the back door. “Ready?”
“Let’s do it,” Scotty said.
His enthusiasm was contagious as Nick and Sam followed him out of the car. The crowd welcomed them with another deafening roar. He kept a tight grip on Sam’s hand as they waved to the hordes of people who’d braved the freezing cold day to catch a glimpse of the first and second families.
Nelson and his family were also walking the route in front of them.
Nick heard Sam say something and leaned in closer so he could hear her. “What?”
“I said it’s like being married to one of The Beatles.”
“Very funny.” He wanted to tell her she was exaggerating, but the crowd chanting his name and calling out to them as they walked by proved her point. Though they were surrounded by Secret Service and the parade route had been thoroughly inspected ahead of time, he couldn’t help but feel vulnerable standing in the middle of the vast avenue surrounded by tall buildings and people everywhere he looked. It would be so easy for someone to pick them off. So very easy.
He was waving to the people on the left side of the street when Sam pulled her hand free and took off running toward the right side of the street.
“Mom,” Scotty cried.
“Samantha!”
She darted between Secret Service agents, leaped over the metal barrier and tackled someone in the crowd. It happened so quickly, Nick barely had time to process that she was running for the crowd before she disappeared into it.
What the hell?
* * *
The thrill of the hunt had never been more thrilling than the moment she spotted Androzzi standing in the sea of people watching the parade. He’d tried to disguise himself with a hat pulled down over his hair, but those eyes. Those black eyes gave away his true identity. After hours of staring at pictures of him, she’d know those eyes anywhere. What an arrogant bastard he was to think he could blend into the crowd and get away with it once again. Not this time. He was not getting away this time.
Sam landed on top of him with a bone-crunching thud as the screaming people around them were pushed back by the force of their fall. Burning pain radiated from her knees, but she ignored that to remain focused on apprehending the man who’d killed Arnold.
He’d had nowhere to go to escape her with so many people nearby squeezed in around them. The fall knocked the wind out of him, which gave her just enough time to retrieve the weapon she’d strapped to her thigh.
She pressed the gun to the center of his forehead. “Don’t fucking move, you miserable excuse for a human being.” It took everything she had to resist the urge to pull the trigger and end him the same way he’d ended Arnold. But she didn’t do it. Rather, she waited the few seconds it took for the Secret Service to catch up to her.
In those few seconds, Androzzi looked up at her with those dark, cold eyes. “You haven’t won, bitch.”
She pressed the gun harder into his forehead and her knee into his gut, making him wince. “You don’t think so? Your days of hiding in plain sight are over.”
“Mrs. Cappuano!”
No, she thought. Right now I’m Lieutenant Holland.
Secret Service agents and other law enforcement personnel surrounded them, clearing the immediate area and taking Androzzi into custody. He fought them the whole way until one of the MPD Patrol officers hit him with a Taser, which took the fight out of him.
Seeing that, Sam finally exhaled. The whole thing had taken maybe thirty seconds—from the first instant she spotted him on the parade route to the arrival of the other officers. She’d been so laser-focused on him that she’d forgotten all about the inauguration or the parade or her role as second lady. In that moment, she was only Sam Holland, Homicide lieutenant, and she’d gotten the murdering scumbag who’d killed one of her detectives.
With the burst of adrenaline fading, Sam came out of it to find thousands of people watching her in shock and maybe awe. “Sorry, folks.”
“That was freaking awesome,” one guy said.
“Totally awesome,” the woman with him said.
“We’ve been looking for him,” Sam said.
“Is he the one who killed one of your officers?” an older woman asked.
“Yes, he is.”
“We’re sorry for your loss.”
“Thank you.”
“Mrs. Cappuano,” Brant said, his tone tense and harried. “Right this way.”
Secret Service Barbie, aka Melinda, looked on in shock. She’d probably never seen a second lady go crowd surfing before. Oh well, they needed to get used to how she rolled.
They led her through an opening in the metal barricades and into the car where Nick and Scotty waited for her.
Scotty beamed with pride. “Oh my God, Mom. You were like Wonder Woman! That was the coolest thing I’ve ever seen. You owned him.”
Embarrassed by Scotty’s praise she ventured a look at Nick, who was staring at her with a stony expression on his gorgeous face.
“Sorry about that. Today is all about you, but I saw him and I just… I acted.”
“What if he’d been armed?” Nick asked. “He could’ve killed you before you even got to him.”
“He couldn’t have gotten a gun in there. Everyone who was that close to the parade route went through screening.”
“What about a knife?”
“They would’ve stopped him if he had any kind of weapon. I knew he’d be unarmed.”
“I can’t believe you just ran into the crowd like that.”
“I couldn’t let him get away again, Nick! He killed Arnold, and he thinks he’s going to taunt me by standing right there in the front row like I’m not going to pick his ass out of the crowd and go after him? He thought I wouldn’t or that I couldn’t. Well, he thought wrong.”
“You’re bleeding,” Scotty said.
“What?”
“Your knees are bleeding.”
Sam glanced down to see that he was right. Her hose was shredded, as were her knees. Great.
Nick handed her his monogrammed handkerchief, the same way he had the night they first met when an asshole at a party spilled beer all over her. Now, like then, she didn’t want to ruin the creamy white cloth. “Take it, Sam.” In his voice she heard simmering fury.
Hoping to avoid a fight with her husband on the biggest day of his life, she took it from him and used it to mop up the blood that was running down her shins.
Nick pressed a button on the roof of the vehicle. “Hey, Brant? Mrs. Cappuano needs medical attention.”
“I do not. I’m fine. Go to the reviewing thing.”
“We’ll break free of the parade in a couple of blocks and get her to the ER,” Brant replied. Apparently, he took his orders from Nick not her.
“Thank you,” Nick said.
“That’s ridiculous,” Sam said. “It’s just a couple of scrapes.”
“You’re getting it looked at, and that’s final.”
“Wow. So now you’re the boss of me as well as the country. Where did it say that in the oath of office?”
“He’s right, Mom. Those are bad cuts and you need to make sure you didn’t break anything.”
Sam glared at Scotty, who grinned back at her.
“I’ll remember this the next time you need me on your side,” she said. “No more Switzerland for you, mister.” Her cell phone rang, and she took the call from Captain Malone.
“Holy, holy shit, Lieutenant.”
Sam smiled. “Hello, Captain.”
“The TV was on in the command center, and we saw the whole thing. That was the craziest freaking thing I’ve ever seen.”
“I got him.”
“Yes, you did. The TV people are going wild over
it. You just made yourself into the biggest celebrity in the country.”
“Yeah, well, um, okay. I don’t care about that. I got the guy who killed Arnold. That’s all that matters. How’d he get in there anyway?”
“I don’t know all the details yet, but from what we’ve heard so far he was under yet another assumed name. John Davidson this time.”
“Just another American citizen out to watch the parade.”
“Something like that. Are you injured?”
“Some cut knees and a couple bumps. Nick is making me go to the ER, but I’m fine.”
“Very well done, Lieutenant, although I’m sure the Secret Service will have a few words for you after that stunt.”
“I’m not under their protection, so let them say what they will.” As she said that, she glanced at Nick, who was glowering at her, so she looked away. She had no regrets. She’d do it exactly the same if she had it to do over again. “I’ll check in later.”
“Take a half day, Lieutenant. You’ve earned it.”
Sam chuckled, slapped her phone closed and dropped it into her coat pocket. Then she subtly hiked up her skirt and returned her service weapon to its thigh holster.
“Let’s talk about how you were armed on inauguration day too,” Nick said.
“I’m always armed. I never leave the house without my weapon. You know that.”
He had nothing to say to that. In fact, he had nothing at all to say as their motorcade broke with the parade route and headed toward the GW emergency room. They waited outside while the Secret Service went in ahead of them to clear the way for Nick and Scotty. By the time they took her in, Nick’s handkerchief was nearly soaked through with blood and the wounds on her knees were beginning to hurt.
Her phone rang repeatedly, but she ignored it. Nick’s quiet rage added to her anxiety. What was he mad about exactly? That she’d taken the focus off him on his big day? That wouldn’t be like him, but she wouldn’t blame him for feeling that way. It was always about her and her job in their marriage. Today was supposed to have been about him and she made it about her—again.
She’d taken a foolish chance going after Androzzi, but he’d eluded arrest so many times before that she couldn’t miss the chance to take him down.
The car door opened. “Are you able to walk, Mrs. Cappuano?” Brant asked.
“Yes, I’m fine.”
“Right this way.”
“I certainly know the way. I’m a frequent flier here.”
Nick and Scotty followed her into a waiting room overflowing with people who burst into applause at the sight of her and her family.
Sam smiled awkwardly at the people and was guided right back to a cubicle where her old pal Doctor Anderson waited for her. “We meet again,” she said.
“Her knees are bleeding bad,” Nick said, “and she mentioned some bumps.”
“We’ll take good care of her. You know the drill, Lieutenant.” He dropped a gown on the table. “Everything off.”
“Why? I cut my knees and banged my hip. Why does everything have to come off?”
“We need to give you a thorough exam to make sure you aren’t injured anywhere else. The quicker you cooperate, the quicker you’ll be out of here.”
“Do what they say, Mom. We’ve got a parade to get to.”
Her son was really racking up the points today. “Everyone out.”
“I’ll stay,” Nick said. “Scotty, go with Darcy, and we’ll find you when we’re done.”
The agent assigned to Scotty was waiting for him outside the cubicle.
Before he left the room, he gave Sam a kiss on the cheek. “Behave, will you?”
“Who’s the mom here?”
“Sometimes, it’s gotta be me.”
Sam laughed at the cute smile that accompanied the comment. She could hardly argue with the truth.
When they were alone in the room, Nick helped her out of her coat and unzipped her dress. As it slid down her body, he said, “Aw, Christ, Sam. You’re all banged up. Again.”
Her entire left side was bruised, possibly from connecting with the barrier as she went over it or perhaps from crashing onto the sidewalk. She wasn’t really sure what she’d hit on the way down. “I’m fine, so you can stop being pissed with me now.”
He wrapped the hospital gown around her and tied it closed. “I’m not pissed.”
“Yes, you are. I’m sorry if I ruined your big day and took the attention off you—”
“Is that what you think? Are you insane? I could care less about the attention. That guy could’ve killed you in a matter of seconds when I was only a few feet away and powerless to do anything to protect you. I hope you never have to know how that feels.”
“I’m sorry. I never want you to feel that way, but he was standing there almost taunting me to come after him.”
“Why not tell the agents that surrounded us? They could’ve apprehended him.”
“Because that’s not their job! Their job is to protect you and Scotty. They never would’ve left you to go after him, and besides, how would they know, in that mass of people, which guy I wanted them to grab? And in the time it took me to tell them, he would’ve been long gone. I had to get him, Nick. I had to get him for Arnold and Gonzo and Arnold’s parents and all the women he sold into slavery. I had to stop him.”
“What you did was incredibly brave, but it was also incredibly reckless.”
“Maybe so, but I’d do it again in a New York minute.”
“And you wonder why I don’t sleep at night.”
Sam unbuttoned his overcoat and slid her arms around him inside his suit coat. “I’m sorry to put you through what I put you through. I thought I’d lost my edge after Stahl.”
“Safe to say your edge is just fine.”
“And isn’t that good news? Isn’t that what you said you wanted?”
He looked down at her, his eyes blazing with love and frustration and aggravation, but the love… The love was all she saw. “You are going to be the death of me.”
“Nah.” She curled her hand around his nape and brought him in for a kiss. “I make your life so much more interesting than it would’ve been without me.”
He finally flashed a smile that broke up the knot of anxiety that had formed in her gut when she realized he was mad at her. There was nothing she hated more than being out of sorts with him. “You can say that again.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
X-rays showed no broken bones, to Sam’s great relief. Her relief was short-lived, however, when the doctor started cleaning the wounds on her legs. She wanted to scream from the pain. “Are you using fucking battery acid or does it just feel like that?”
“Hang in there,” Anderson said. “We’re almost done.”
Sam clung to Nick’s hand while the cleaning seemed to go on forever.
“Good news,” Anderson finally declared. “No stitches required.”
By then, Sam was sweating and breathing hard and nauseated from the pain.
“I’ll write a script for some pain meds.”
“Don’t bother,” Sam said through gritted teeth. “I’ve got some left over from my last visit.”
“All right then. You’re going to want to keep those wounds clean and dry for the next few days. Change the dressing once a day or more if needed. Do you still have antibiotic ointment?”
“Yes.”
“Use that on them twice a day, and make sure you get your frequent-flier card punched on the way out. You must be due for a free visit by now.”
“Hardy-har-har.”
“That joke never gets old. By the way, I saw what you did on the TV in the doctors’ lounge,” Anderson said. “That was some badass shit. I’m glad you got the guy who killed your detective. I knew him
a little bit from seeing him around here, and he was a good guy.”
“Yes, he was.”
He handed her his card. “Call me if it gets swollen or starts to look infected. Okay?”
“I will. Thanks.”
Anderson shook hands with Nick. “Mr. Vice President, I feel a little more hopeful for the state of our union with you in office. Don’t let us down.”
“I’ll do what I can. Thanks for taking care of Sam.”
“I’d say it’s my pleasure, but…”
Nick laughed. “She’s not the best patient.”
“No, but she’s a damned good cop, and we’re lucky to have her on our side. You all take care.”
Left alone in the exam room with Nick, Sam took a minute to catch her breath following the painful treatment. After four miscarriages, invasive infertility treatments and a litany of injuries, she ought to be used to pain by now, but doctors and needles and the smell of hospitals always made her sick.
“You ready to get out of here, babe?”
“Yeah.” She sat up, slowly and painfully. The old gray mare was definitely not what she used to be back in the days when she could tackle a perp and go dancing the same night.
Nick helped her into her clothes, forgoing the hose that he had trashed.
“Do I look hideous?” she asked, thinking of the room full of people who had recognized them on the way in.
“You’re not capable of looking hideous.” He straightened her hair and dabbed at the space under her eyes with a tissue. “There.”
“I want to say one thing.”
“What one thing do you want to say?”
“I’m really, really glad we got Androzzi, but I’m really, really sorry it interrupted your big day.”
“I’m glad you got him too, and I don’t give a shit about the interruption of the big day. Today was already a great day because I got to spend all of it with you. The part that upset me was you taking yet another crazy chance with your own safety.”
“I know, and I’m sorry, but—”
He laid a finger over her lips to stop her. “No apologies. I’m already over it. You’re fine, so I’m fine.” Kissing her softly, he said, “Let’s get out of here.”
