Fatal Reckoning (Fatal #14)(7)

“Lieutenant Holland noted that her father’s case is now considered a homicide investigation and anyone with information about the shooting should contact the MPD tip line.”

He recited the number and finished with “‘No piece of information is too small,’ Holland said.”

Darren glanced at her. “How is that?”

His unusually gentle tone had Sam taking a deep breath, determined not to break down in front of the reporter, who was often a thorn in her side. Today, he’d been a friend. “It’s good. Add something about how, in lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to the Metro PD Memorial and Museum Fund and give them the link. It’s on our website.”

“Will do. Green light to release?”

Sam glanced at her own home, where her son still slept, oblivious to yet another huge loss in his young life. Her next order of business would be to go home and tell him the news. She dreaded that.

“Sam?”

This would make the unimaginable official. “Green light to release.”





      CHAPTER THREE


WITH THE STATEMENT seen to, Sam placed a call to Detective Cameron Green, who answered on the second ring.

“Lieutenant, I just heard from Captain Malone. I am so very, very sorry. Your dad was a great man, and I enjoyed getting to know him over the last couple of months.”

“Thank you. I was wondering if you could make a call to the family business on our behalf.” Cameron’s family owned the Greenlawn Funeral Homes, which were highly regarded in the region.

“Consider it done.”

“It’ll be a big deal, so you might want to warn them.”

“Understood. Don’t worry about a thing. I’ll have someone at your father’s home within the hour to take care of everything.”

“I appreciate it.”

“If there’s anything else I can do, anything at all, please let me know.”

“There is one thing…”

“Name it.”

Sam debated whether it was the right thing, but in the end, she decided it wasn’t up to her to decide. “If you could track down Cruz in Italy and let him know, I’d appreciate it. Please emphasize I do not want him to come home, but I did want him to know.” Her partner, Freddie Cruz, was on his honeymoon, but he’d been close to her father.

“I’ll call him myself. What about Sergeant Gonzales?” Gonzo had recently checked into rehab to contend with an addiction to pain meds and PTSD from the shooting death of his partner, Detective A. J. Arnold, earlier in the year.

“Can one of you check with his fiancée, Christina, to see how we should handle that?”

“Will do.”

“Thanks, Cameron. If you need help, call on the others in the squad.”

“We’re on it. Don’t worry about a thing. I wish there was something I could say to you. I only knew him a short time, but I feel richer for having had him in my life.”

“That helps.”

“Call me if you need anything else.”

“I will.”

Sam closed the phone and ducked her head inside to let the others know that Darren had been given the statement, that someone from Greenlawn would be there shortly and she was going home to speak to Scotty. “I’ll be back.”

She was halfway down the ramp to the sidewalk when her sister Tracy called for her to hang on. Sam turned to face her sister.

“You don’t have to do all this yourself, you know.” Tracy smoothed Sam’s hair, tending to her the way she had for Sam’s entire life. Though Skip Holland had loved all his daughters fiercely, that he shared a special, deep bond with Sam, his youngest, was no secret to anyone.

“Yeah, I kinda do, so if you guys wouldn’t mind indulging me…”

“I don’t mind, and Ang won’t either, but you have to let us help you. We need that.”

“Fair enough. How pissed is Celia?”

“She’s shocked and grief-stricken. She won’t hold it against you.”

“As awful as it was, it was the right thing to do.”

“I agree, and he would too. I don’t know how he withstood it for as long as he did.”

“I need to go home and tell Scotty before he wakes up and sees it on his phone.”

“I called Brooke, and I have to pick up Abby and Ethan from a sleepover at Mike’s brother’s house. I’m dreading having to tell them.”

“Same. Poor Scotty has already had enough loss in his life.” After his mother and grandfather died when he was very young, Scotty had ended up in foster care before landing in a state home in Virginia, where Nick had met him on a campaign stop.

“He’ll be okay with all of us around to support him.”

Sam hugged her sister. “I’ll be back shortly. Make sure someone is with Celia, and we should call her sisters. And Mom.”

“I’ll take care of that.”

Sam nodded and left to go home. As she covered the short distance between her father’s home and her own, her phone rang incessantly. She let it ring. She couldn’t do another thing until she talked to Scotty.

Nate, the agent working the door, opened it for her. “My sincere condolences, Mrs. Cappuano. Your father was a wonderful man.”