Page 144 of State of Suspense

“Stand by. I’ll text you with the plan.”

“Will do.”

He texted six minutes later. FBI can pick her up on your go-ahead and transport her to our house. You would wait there until they arrive. They’d come in hot, so it won’t be long.

Got it. Let me see if she’s on board. This could be our big break.

Hope so!

A deputy let Sam back into the room to update the others about the plan to transport Amber to MPD headquarters.

Amber’s gaze darted nervously around the room. “So what does this mean?”

“We’ll get you out of jail and away from Willy’s reach so you can tell us what you know. If you cooperate fully with our investigation, the Assistant U.S. Attorney may be inclined to cut you a break. But that only happens if you’re truthful with us and if you give us information that helps locate the person or people who killed Forrester and shot Hill. Do you understand?”

Amber was trembling so hard, Sam wondered how she remained seated.

“Amber? Do you have information relevant to this investigation, and are you willing to share it with us to potentially reduce your sentence?”

“I… I’m afraid of people other than Willy, and I’m worried about my kids. They… They’re with my mother.”

“We’d do everything in our power to keep you and your family safe, but you’d be required to testify in court to whatever information you provide.”

She rocked in her chair, as if she’d been plugged into an electrical outlet.

Sam wanted to scream at her to move it along, that she had a million other things to get to and couldn’t wait all day for her to decide. But she bit her tongue, hoping Amber would agree to cooperate and point them in the direction of the shooter.

With so much riding on the information she could potentially provide, Sam gave her another full minute before she spoke up again. “I’m sorry to put a time limit on this, but we’ve got a lot of ground to cover today. Are you in?”

“You’re sure they won’t be able to kill me or my kids?”

“We can never guarantee that. All we can do is tell you we’ll do everything we can to keep you safe. One thing I’ll add is that you’ve already been in with us, on your own, for forty-five minutes. At this point, Willy would assume you’re telling us everything you know.”

Her already pasty expression became more so when that detail registered with her. “I’m in. I’ll cooperate. Get me out of here.”

“I’ll order your ride.”

Chapter Twenty-Four

When she and Freddie were back in the Secret Service SUV, following the FBI vehicle south on the Baltimore-Washington Parkway, Sam decided she wanted to see Avery.

“Let’s go to GW first,” she said to Vernon.

“Will do.”

She saw him glance at Jimmy. “Do you have to report all our movements to the higher-ups?”

“Yes, ma’am. In case we ever need backup, they’ll know where to find us.”

“Ah, I see. Not sure why I didn’t notice that before.”

Vernon smiled at her in the mirror. “Your job is to relax and enjoy the ride while leaving the details to us.”

“I’ll let you know when I start to relax and enjoy the ride.”

“We need to ramp up the beverage service, Jimmy.”

“A little vodka might do the trick.”

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