“Give us a minute,” Vernon said as he and Jimmy got out of the vehicle.
Sam sighed with frustration.“Who do they think is lurking here to get me?”
“Maybe the person behind the drones knows exactly what you’d do after people in your city are murdered.”
She gave him a perturbed look.“Quit talking sense.It pisses me off.”
Freddie laughed.“Duly noted.No sense allowed.”
“You don’t think my case is related to the drones, do you?”
“Not really, but the agents have to proceed as if anything is possible.”
“Yeah, I know that, but I don’t have to like it.”
“If I were you, I wouldn’t like any of this bullshit.”
Sam gasped.“Youswore, young Freddie!”
“Well, what’s a better word for someone attempting to send armed drones to an event full of kids?”
“‘Bullshit’ is a good start.”
“It just makes me so angry that people treat you guys so shitty.”
“That’s two swears in two minutes.”
“Technically, that was the same swear as the first one.”
She laughed.“That’s fair.”
“I don’t like the way you guys are treated when all he did was step up the way the Constitution intended after the president died.”
“It’s the nature of the office.Everything you do is under intense scrutiny.That’s the number one reason why I was so glad when he said he wasn’t going to run before Nelson died.I knew that would be the hardest part for me, to see people tearing him down simply because of the office he held.But knowing that would happen and living it are two very different things.”
“I can’t imagine what that’s like for you guys.”
“It sucks, but he mostly rises above it to do the job.I, on the other hand, seethe with outrage over the things people say and do.I mean, someone wanted tokillmy husband—not to mention me and our kids and almost everyone else we know.That’s tough to wrap your mind around.”
“You shouldn’t have to wrap your mind around such things.It’s outrageous.Thank God everything worked as intended and they were stopped.”
“That’s only part one, though.Finding out who sent them will be a lot harder.From what I’ve heard, there were no identifying marks on the drones, no recognizable parts or components.Whoever did this intended to never be caught.”
“I wouldn’t want to be them today with the full weight of federal law enforcement bearing down on them.”
“We both know it’s possible they might never be caught.They went to enormous lengths to make sure the devices were untraceable.”
“Criminals often make mistakes that trip them up.Let’s hope that happened in this case.”
Vernon returned to the SUV and opened the back door.“All clear.”
Sam wanted to say,I could’ve told you that, but kept the thought to herself because he was only doing his job, which was to protect her.“Thank you, Vernon.”
“Sorry about all this.I know it’s a pain in the ass.”
“No worries.”
They made their way into the building and climbed the stairs to the third floor, knocking on the door for apartment number 305.When the door opened, a young woman with dark hair and eyes stared at Sam as if she were seeing a ghost.Or a first lady.
