Page 115 of State of Retribution

“Thank you, Vernon.”

“I’m here if I can do anything.”

“That means a lot to me.”

“Sam.”

She turned to him.

“Stay strong.”

“I’ll try.”

George was working the door and had a smile for her as she came in and handed over her coat.“Afternoon, ma’am.”

“Afternoon, George.Is the president in the Oval?”

“No, ma’am.I believe he’s in the Situation Room.”

“Okay, thank you.”Bummed that he wasn’t available at the moment, she went upstairs to the residence and went straight to the liquor cabinet in the kitchen to pour herself a glass of vodka straight up.When that wasn’t enough, she drank straight from the bottle.She was still standing there, bottle in hand, when her mother walked in and stopped short, startled to see her there with a bottle of booze in hand.

“Sam!You scared me.What’re you doing home, and why are you drinking vodka straight from the bottle?”

“I take it you haven’t seen or heard any news today?”

“Not since this morning.I went right from Pilates to lunch with my friend Diana.Do you remember her?She’s your old friend Caroline’s mom.”

“I remember her.”

“Anyway, we got so caught up with chatting, I was running a little late to get here.I never took the time to turn on the radio.”Brenda put water on to boil and got a tea bag from the cabinet.“What’s going on?”

“I’ve been suspended from work for two weeks.”

Brenda gasped.“What happened?”

Sam’s phone rang, and she pulled it from her pocket.She signaled her mom that she needed to take the call.“Sam Holland.”

“Lieutenant, this is Celeste Sweeny, Lorraine Sweeny’s daughter.”

“Yes, hello.What can I do for you?”

“The story on the news… They’re saying you’ve been suspended by the department for two weeks.”

“Yes, I have.”

“What does that mean for my mother’s case?”

“My team is actively working on the case, and they’ll continue to do so in my absence.”

“We wantyouon it.You’re the best detective on the whole force, and everyone knows that.”

Her words had tears stinging Sam’s eyes.“That’s so very kind of you to say, but unfortunately, I’m not allowed to work on any cases during my suspension.The detectives on my team are outstanding, and I have every confidence they’ll continue to do everything possible to find your mother’s killer.”

“This is so upsetting on top of everything else.I told my dad after you were here the other day that I felt better knowing you were on the case.”

Sam winced.“Hopefully, I’ll be back on the job soon.In the meantime, I want you and your family to think about joining our grief group at headquarters.We meet on the second Tuesday of the month, and everyone is welcome.Our members have taken great comfort in being able to talk to others who understand this journey.”

“We’ll get there.Eventually.We’re still in the disbelief stage.”

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