Page 206 of State of Suspense

After leaving the morgue, she pushed open the door and stepped into a brisk early April breeze.

Vernon stood by the SUV, waiting for her.

“Sorry for the delay. I stopped to say hi to Dr. McNamara.”

“Glad to hear she’s back.”

“It was nice to see her.”

“Are we still headed to Ninth Street?”

“Yes, please.”

Sam sat back with her head against the seat, trying to calm her mind and prepare to give whatever Nick needed at this meeting from hell. Most of all, she reminded herself she couldn’t whip out her rusty steak knife and stab the woman through the heart, no matter how much she deserved it or how much Sam wanted to.

“Everything okay?” Vernon asked.

“It will be after this thing at Ninth.”

“I heard at our briefing earlier why you’re going, and I was surprised.”

“The things we do for those we love.”

“Indeed.”

“And yes, I tried to talk him out of it, but hope springs eternal for him where she’s concerned.”

“Strange how that works, huh?”

“Very. If I had my way…”

“Don’t do anything that’ll cause more paperwork for all of us.”

Sam laughed. “That’s another thing my dad would’ve said, and I needed that right now. So thanks.”

“I do what I can for the people.”

“That is trademarked!”

His smile lit up his eyes as he looked at her in the mirror.

Sam was filled with emotion as they took the familiar streets to home. She’d lived in the Capitol Hill neighborhood for her entire life until they moved to the White House. As they turned onto Ninth Street, the line of Secret Service vehicles already parked on the street indicated that Nick had arrived first.

Her heart gave a happy leap at knowing she’d see him in a minute or two. That happy leap almost canceled out her anxiety about what might transpire with his mother.

Vernon held the door for her.

“Thank you for everything.”

“My pleasure.”

Sam smiled and squeezed his arm before leaving him to head into the place where they’d become a family. She glanced to her right, at the house three doors down that had been her dad’s home. The house was dark now, but the ramps in front of both homes were a reminder of what’d been lost. They should probably have them removed at some point, but that wasn’t something she wanted to think about today.

Brant opened the door to admit her.

“Evening, Brant.”

“Evening, Mrs. Cappuano.”

---