“How Christopher’s plot was all for naught. I wish I could’ve seen his face when Nick announced he wasn’t going to run for president in the next election.”
“Right?” Gonzo said. “Imagine going to all that trouble, getting caught and charged with felonies that’ll put you away for life, and it was all for nothing.”
“I hope he’s suffering the way he made Peter suffer,” Sam said.
Nelson had paid a man to torture her ex-husband, hoping to get information he could use against her and Nick. Peter had been a vindictive, horrible, no-good excuse for a man, but for whatever reason, he’d protected her in the end, and for that, she’d always be grateful. Thinking about him and how he’d plotted to keep her and Nick apart for six long years after they first met always turned her stomach.
“Anyway. Enough about all that. Have you heard anything about what time Mike’s arraignment will be?”
“I heard it’s at eleven thirty,” Gonzo said.
“Do you think I should be there?”
Gonzo rubbed the stubble on his jaw as he thought about that. “Your presence might make it seem more important than we’d like it to be.”
“True. I really hope Devon gets the charges dropped. This is the last thing they need on top of everything else.”
“Agreed. I’ll keep you posted.”
“Thanks, Gonzo.”
Sam unlocked her office door, turned on the lights and was firing up her computer when Captain Jake Malone appeared in her doorway. At about six feet four inches, he filled the doorway. As usual, the gray-haired captain was in uniform that included the white shirt worn by lieutenants and above.
“Could I have a moment, Lieutenant?”
Sam waved him in. She always had time for her boss and mentor who’d also been one of her father’s closest friends. “How was your weekend?”
He closed the door and took a seat. “It was… Well…”
Her spine tingled with a sensation that had her sitting up straighter. “What’s wrong?”
“I wanted to let you know that I’ve been diagnosed with prostate cancer. I found out Friday afternoon, which made the weekend stressful.”
Shocked and dismayed, Sam got up to go around the desk to sit in the chair next to his. “How bad is it?”
“They think they caught it early, and treatment should be effective.”
“Well, that’s good news.”
“I have to have a PET scan in the next couple of weeks to determine if it’s spread, but my doctor is optimistic that it’s still localized.”
Sam was stricken with fear at the thought of losing this man who’d been such a giant in her life. She rested a hand on his arm. “I, um, is there anything I can do for you or your family?”
“No, we’re good, but I wanted you to know why I might be in and out over the next couple of months. The other captains will cover for me as needed.”
She nodded as she struggled to process what he was saying. “Do you… Are you in any pain?”
“Nope, but I’m told the radiation therapy will wipe me out for a while. Not looking forward to that.”
“So no chemo?”
“Not unless something shows up on the PET scan.”
Her mouth had gone dry, and her hands were suddenly sweaty, so she withdrew her hand from his arm.
“Sam.”
Startled out of her spiraling thoughts, she glanced at him.
