Page 202 of State of Suspense

“I thought he’d be older.”

DEA Agent Kevin Kavanaugh, Derek’s brother, came in and took a seat. He nodded to Sam.

She gave him the barest acknowledgment. If he’d had his way, she and her team would’ve been cut out of the Vincent bust, even though they were the ones who’d found him when the DEA had failed to do that for years.

Lieutenant Cooper from Narcotics entered the room, sneaking in a coffee and a brown bag that probably contained his breakfast. The man was revolting.

Over the next hour, the judge heard from Gonzo, Kavanaugh, Cooper and Leslie Lawton, the wife of rival drug dealer Riggs Lawton. Leslie had been given immunity and federal protection in exchange for her testimony against Vincent and the other members of his organization who faced charges. She testified about how Vincent had stooped to selling laced product to try to run the Lawtons out of business. To hear Leslie tell it, she and her late husband, Riggs, had been trying to help those who’d become addicted to opioids.

Reliving the frantic, gut-wrenching week that’d followed Spencer’s sudden death was brutal for Sam. She could only imagine how Angela must’ve felt.

In the end, the judge ruled there was ample evidence to support the prosecution of the case and set a trial date for late September. She banged her gavel to end the proceeding.

For a long moment afterward, Angela stared straight ahead, as if processing everything she’d heard.

“Are you okay, Ang?”

“I think? I mean… It’s still so unbelievable. That people died because one dealer wanted to push another one out of business.”

“It’s sheer madness,” Tracy said in her usual blunt fashion.

Angela looked at Sam, her eyes brimming with tears. “Even though you didn’t testify here, I know you’re the one who led the charge in finding these people and making them pay. The kids and I will always be thankful for everything you did. You saved other lives. There’s no question about that.”

“I’d give anything to have Spencer back.”

“The initiatives Nick is pursuing in his memory will help a lot of people and keep his legacy alive. That means a lot.”

“The media will want me to say something outside. Is that all right with you?”

“Of course.”

“Spencer’s family won’t mind?”

“Not at all. They want the same thing I do—for his life and death to help others, and you’re our best spokesperson for making that happen.”

Sam was too choked up to speak, so she nodded.

Their group walked out together and stood behind Sam as she spoke for all of them. “Today, we took a big step forward in getting justice for our beloved husband, father, son, brother and brother-in-law and many others who were lost due to what we believe was a deadly scheme perpetrated by Sal Vincent and others. This’ll be a long road, but we’ll be here for every second of it, until every person responsible for these murders is sentenced to prison.”

She stepped away from the microphone and hugged her family members before sending them on their way.

Tracy and Mike would walk Angela to her car, and Tracy promised to check in with their sister later.

Sam sent them both a text when she was back in the SUV. Let’s have a WH sleepover next weekend. I think we could all use the time together. What say you?

Tracy replied first. We’re in!

God yes, Angela said. The kids will be so excited.

Excellent. Celia will be back by then, too. She wouldn’t want to miss it.

Perfect, Tracy said.

Having the plan for quality time with her sisters and their families made Sam feel better. She hoped it did the same for them. Sometimes it was hard to believe the way life went marching forward after losing their dad and then Spencer. Skip, who used to remind them that their closest friends in the world were the people in their own home, would tell them to stick together and soldier on, so that’s what they would do. As long as they had one another, they would find the way forward.

Chapter Thirty-Four

Sam spent the next two days picking apart every detail of the plan for Sunday, looking for gaps that might invite disaster but not finding any. The plan was airtight and ready for execution.

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