“Yeah, for sure. It was the thing my mother was most afraid of when we were growing up—one of us going missing.”
“It’s a parent’s worst nightmare.”
“Definitely. Were you told that our team is assisting the MPD?”
“Yes, Nick just told me that, and I’m so grateful. You know what else I’m grateful for…”
He glanced at her in the mirror. “What’s that?”
“That this can never happen to my kids because of you guys. I wish every kid had dedicated Secret Service agents keeping them safe like mine do.”
“I wish they did, too. Might get some societal pushback on that, however.”
“Yeah, probably. People get itchy about being watched. I’m wondering when Scotty will start chafing. He’s probably already wishing he could be running the streets with his friends.”
“You wouldn’t let him do that, even if his dad wasn’t the president.”
“No, I wouldn’t, and frankly, I’m shocked that Ethan was allowed to at eleven.”
“They don’t know what we know. If they did, no one would let their kids out of their sight until they were fully grown.”
“Which isn’t feasible, so where’s the line?”
“I don’t know, but letting them run loose in this city isn’t safe.”
“I can’t bear to think of the hundreds of things that could’ve happened.”
“Try to stay focused on what you know and not get too far down that road.”
“I just gave my sister that same advice.”
“You should take your own advice.”
“Q is right,” the female agent said. “Follow the evidence, and don’t get ahead of yourself.”
Normally, Sam would want her name and story, but tonight, she didn’t have the bandwidth for anything more than searching for Ethan. “I’ll try. Thank you, guys.”
“Wish there was more we could do,” Q said as he pulled up to Tracy’s home, where numerous vehicles from the MPD were parked outside.
She took a calming breath, hoping to settle her out-of-control nerves, and released it before letting Q walk her in to see what Archie had for her. Inside her sister’s home, she came face-to-face with Captain Michelle Ruiz, who headed the Emergency Response Team, including Missing Persons.
They’d worked together on a recent case, and Sam had picked up on animosity from the other woman that she still didn’t understand, as they’d never worked together before. Ruiz was about five-seven, with a curvy figure and curly brown hair. Her dark eyes were hard, though, which was something Sam recalled from their earlier interactions.
“Captain.”
“Lieutenant. What can I do for you?”
Sam thought quickly about what she could say that would keep her from being shown the door by someone who didn’t want her there. “I’m here to see Lieutenant Archelotta, who asked me to come by to answer a couple of questions on behalf of the family.”
“He’s upstairs.”
Sam waited for her to step aside. “Thank you.”
“I hope I won’t have a problem with you on this case.”
“Excuse me?”
“I can’t help but notice you called in IT and your sergeant is here, as if your squad is working this case.”
