woman, the more she liked her. She gestured for her to lead the way into the SUV. “After you.” When she got in after Roni, she said, “Roni, meet Scotty. Scotty, this is my new friend, Roni.”
Scotty shook Roni’s outstretched hand. “Wow, you must be really cool, because my mom usually hates people.”
“And now I’m mortified,” Sam said, glaring playfully at Scotty. “You’re not supposed to tell people that.”
Roni laughed helplessly, and even though Sam wasn’t happy about Scotty spilling her secrets, she was thrilled to see Roni so delighted.
“I don’t hate all people, just the extra ones.”
“I gotcha.” Roni wiped laughter tears from her eyes. “And it’s so nice to meet you, Scotty.”
“You too. I'm very sorry about your husband.”
“Thank you. I’m very sorry about your grandfather.”
“Thanks. It totally sucks.”
“It really does.”
And right there, Sam thought, grief group was already spinning its magic for people who needed to know they weren’t alone with their losses. Roni asked Scotty about school, and they quickly bonded over their shared disdain for math. “My husband was a math genius. I used to tell him he was lucky I ever went out with him after I found that out.”
“I don’t know if I could do it,” Scotty said gravely. “I’d fear that our differences would be too great if my wife was a math geek.”
“He had other qualities that helped me forget about that one major failing.”
“My dad is a total school geek. He gets so mad when my mom and I diss on school, but he got straight A’s his whole life. He has no idea what the rest of us go through.”
“The struggle is real,” Roni said.
“So real. When he helps me with math, he makes it seem so easy. But I suck at it on my own.”
“Here’s a pro tip for you—sucking at math doesn’t mean you’re going to suck at life. Trust me on that.”
“My mom says the same thing.”
“And your mom ought to know. She most definitely does not suck at life.”
“But she did suck at math,” Scotty said, making them all laugh.
As they walked into HQ through the main doors, Sam marveled at the difference between daytime, when the press staked out that door, and nighttime, when the area was deserted.
“In case you don’t already know this, your kid is pretty awesome,” Roni said when Scotty preceded them into the building.
“Oh, I know. I can’t take any credit, though. We found him that way.”
“He’s adorable, sweet, articulate and funny as hell.”
“We love him madly.”
“I can see why.” Roni looked around at the MPD lobby. “So this is where it all goes down, huh?”
“Nah, this is the fancy part. Come see my pit.”
“You work in a pit?”
“That’s what we call the Homicide squad’s neck of the woods. Follow me, and I’ll show you.” Sam led her through the corridors to her home away from home. “Here it is in all its glory.” Her third-shift detectives, Carlucci and Dominguez, were just coming on duty and stood up from their desks to greet Sam.
“This is Detective Dani Carlucci and Detective Gigi Dominguez. My friend Roni Connolly.”
“Nice to meet you both,” Roni said, shaking their hands.
Sam thought her eyes were playing tricks on her when Gonzo walked into the pit for the first time in months. She went to hug her close friend and sergeant and introduced him to Roni.
Gonzo shook her hand. “Nice to meet you. I heard about your husband. I’m so sorry. I lost my partner to murder earlier this year.”
“I read about that. I’m sorry for your loss too.”
“It’s so good to see you here,” Sam said to Gonzo.
“It’s nice to be seen.” Gonzo hugged Scotty, Carlucci and Dominguez. “I figured I might catch the meeting tonight, if that’s okay.”
“That’s more than okay. We’d love to have you.”
“LT,” Carlucci said, “just so you know, when they tried to pick up Mandi McLeod, she was gone. Her roommate said she left shortly after you were there earlier and hasn’t been around since.”
“Damn it.”
“Detective McBride took the liberty of checking to see if she was with her brother, but there’s no sign of him either.”
Sam thought about that for a second. “Put out a BOLO for them. Alert local airport and train station security to be on the lookout for them. And let’s call Jesse Best,” she said, referring to the commander of the U.S. Marshals. When you needed to find someone, the marshals got it done. The “Be On the Look Out” alert was more specific than the