He put his arms around her and kissed her. “Be careful with my cop. She means everything to me.”
“Take good care of my family. They mean everything to me.”
“I gotcha covered, babe. Don’t worry.”
“I’ll try to call the Littles before bedtime.”
“I won’t promise it in case it doesn’t happen. We’ll be fine.”
Sam had to pull herself away from him. “Love you.”
“Love you too. Be safe.”
“I will.”
Henry opened the door and nodded to her, probably wondering who she thought she was, running around without her own detail.
She walked down the ramp to the sidewalk, where Freddie and Jeannie waited for her.
“All aboard,” Sam said.
They got into the tricked-out black BMW retrofitted for her as a surprise from Nick. Sam joked that she could survive a nuclear explosion in that car, but it wasn’t far from the truth. She used her flashers to get them across the city as quickly as possible, but Sunday-night traffic was light to begin with.
Sam took a call from Captain Malone when they were about five minutes out. “What’s up?”
“Heard we caught a new one and was just checking in.”
“Not sure what we’ve got yet. I’ve got Cruz and McBride with me, and we’re almost there. We were on the way back from seeing Gonzo.”
“Let me know what you’ve got when you can.”
“Will do. Can we talk tomorrow about Gonzo?”
“What about him?”
“He’s about to accept a deal on misdemeanor drug charges.”
“I heard about that.”
“And you’re okay with it?” Sam had to remind herself that going ballistic with her boss wasn’t the best idea.
“I’m not thrilled with it, but it’ll take care of the problem and allow him to keep his job.”
“Without any chance of ever being promoted again? That’s complete bullshit, and you know it.”
“I do know it, but I also know there’re people within the department who aren’t going to let this go, and he’s better off to plead than have it become an even bigger deal. Especially right now when his sobriety is fragile. I talked to him. This is what he wants.”
“It’s freaking infuriating that he’s having to put up with this shit because of people who’re coming at me. This doesn’t even have anything to do with him.”
“He’s the one who scored pain meds on the streets, Sam. Not you.”
“You know as well as I do that the only reason he’s having to plead this out is because of Ramsey’s beef with me.”
“It might’ve come to light without Ramsey.”
“No one else is looking for shit to pin on my team.” Sam wasn’t sure how to process the sheer rage she felt at this drug charge putting the brakes on Gonzo’s career.
“I’m sorry. I agree it’s unfortunate. But it is what it is. While I have you, I wanted to remind you of the commanders’ meeting at zero eight hundred tomorrow.”
“I’ll be there.” They were meeting with Special Agent in Charge Avery Hill and others from the FBI about the upcoming investigation of the department. “This job is nothing but nonstop fun lately.”
“That’s what we’re all about. Check in after you’re done at the scene.”
“Will do.” Sam closed the phone and wished it wouldn’t be such a hassle to get a new one, or she might be tempted to hurl it out the window.
The GPS on Freddie’s phone guided them to the exact address, a palatial house surrounded by public safety vehicles and gawking neighbors. Why did the neighbors always gawk? Sam wanted to ask them why they were so curious about murder.
“Get Patrol on the neighbors. I want them nowhere near here.”
As she got out of the car and made her way around the vehicles that blocked the driveway, she heard one of the gawkers say, “That’s the VP’s wife!”
“No pictures,” she said to the man who was reaching for his cell phone. Sam was always concerned about saying or doing something that would embarrass Nick in his position as VP, but sometimes she just didn’t care. She was so pissed about the situation with Gonzo that she probably shouldn’t have been let out of the house. But alas, murder didn’t wait for her to be in the right mood.
“What’ve we got?” she asked the female officer who met them at the yellow tape line. Sam noted her name tag read Phillips.
“Virginia ‘Ginny’ McLeod, age fifty-six, found in the garage by her husband, Kenneth, when he returned home from playing golf.”
“Where is he?”
“In the kitchen with my partner. I instructed him not to touch anything and to remain seated at the kitchen table