“A connection has been established between the children based on our investigation thus far.”
“Hogan is your nephew, is that correct?”
“He is,” Sam said. “Needless to say, our family is enormously relieved to have him back safe and mostly sound. We’re very thankful to everyone who helped to look for them, including our partners at the FBI and U.S. Marshals, and we ask you to remain vigilant as we continue to look for Luna. If you see her, please contact law enforcement.”
“Is this related to you and your husband somehow?”
“Based on what we know so far, we believe it’s not related to our positions as president and first lady, but as I said, the investigation is ongoing.”
“Where did your sister and her husband think their son was yesterday?”
“They’d given him permission to go get pizza and play video games at the Wharf with Tomas.”
“By themselves?” the man asked as a follow-up.
“Yes.”
“How did they get there?”
“On the Metro.”
“Aren’t they young for that at eleven?”
“That’s not my decision to make for my sister, her husband or any other parent.”
“What do you think as a parent yourself?”
“I don’t judge the choices of other parents.”
“Ever?”
Sam took a step back, giving Malone the floor.
“Three white kids went missing,” a reporter asked, “and we’ve got the FBI and Marshals working the case. What do you have to say to the parents of missing children of color who seem to get a fraction of that effort?”
“First of all, Tomas Cambra is Hispanic, and second of all, we give our all to every missing-person case we investigate,” Malone said. “Some are higher-profile due to a variety of circumstances, but every one of them is important to us. Thank you for your patience tonight. We’ll have more for you in the morning.”
With his hand on her arm, Malone steered her toward The Beast, which was positioned outside the Emergency Department doors. As he turned her over to Brant, he said, “Get some rest. I’ll text you any updates. Come back when you’re ready to.”
“Thanks, Cap, for everything always.”
“You got it.”
Brant held the door for her to get into the car, where Nick waited for her with open arms.
He gathered her in close to him and held on as the car began to move toward home. “You did good out there. Most of the networks carried it live.”
“I hate that this has blown up into such a big story because of Ethan’s connection to us, but I hope all the publicity leads us to Luna.” She couldn’t bear to think of the potential long-term implications for all three kids.
“I do, too.”
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that about it being such a big story. I don’t blame you for any of this.”
“I know you don’t, but it’s just another example of the ripple effect. I was relieved to hear the investigation isn’t showing any connection to us.”
“Ethan said the father of the kid named Brecken was pissed that Brecken didn’t know Ethan was our nephew. He said they argued over that. He heard the father say, ‘You didn’t know he was the president’s nephew?’”
“Probably came as a big shock to them after my statement to the media last night.”
