Chapter Twenty-one
The dog and pony show made Taylor want to barf, but it was necessary for the FBI to alert the media and public at large that a killer had been brought to justice and another cold case solved. Especially since it involved Senator Jarvis. Hence the large press conference currently underway in the first floor conference room of FBI headquarters, Assistant Director Cunningham laying out the details to the standing-room-only crowd.
The only good thing about the press conference was that Taylor was squished in next to Matt. He’d complained all the way to his place, where she’d helped him clean up, and then to the Hoover building, but she’d given him her best puppy dog eyes and he’d finally agreed to stand behind the podium with her. Little did he know her real reason for wanting him front and center with her. When Meredith had balked again at allowing him to stand with the rest of the cold case team, Taylor had simply pulled Matt along with her anyway.
Beck and the others were packed in like sardines with her. Thank goodness Leo was nowhere in sight.
Licking his wounds, no doubt.
Taylor gave herself a mental high-five.
Matt’s body heat warmed her left arm and back. He smelled amazing and her fingers itched to touch him. Thanks to a phone call she’d snuck in earlier, his bosses were part of the crowd gathered in the room, so she forced herself to keep her hands to herself.
At the podium, Cunningham droned on, a dozen different local and national news reporters making notes as he informed them about the outstanding work the Bureau had done in uncovering Felicity Jarvis’s killer and shutting down Ros’s illegal adoption ring.
Taylor couldn’t keep from coughing loudly, since it was actually Grey’s team, along with her, Matt, and the sisters who’d managed to put the pieces together and shut it down. She could just imagine Mitch watching this on TV and cursing out Cunningham while he nursed the bump on the back of his head.
“You look beautiful,” Matt whispered in her ear, his breath sending goosebumps down her neck.
He’d changed into a sharp blue suit that brought out his eyes even more than usual. He’d gone sans tie and left the top button of his steel gray dress shirt undone. He’d refused to wear the sling and she’d given up arguing with him since she’d hate the darned thing too.
Taylor couldn’t help it. Her hand went right to Matt’s and gave it a squeeze.
Thank God he was here with her. That he was alive.
I’m lucky.
For once, it didn’t seem like a sacrilege to think that. For once, she didn’t need a scotch to numb her. Her life had been a series of unfortunate events, but there had been good stuff too. Her job, the families she gave closure to, the children she saved. While her own family may have drifted apart after Isabel’s disappearance, she’d managed to reunite many families with their missing relatives.
Like Walt and his son.
Taylor had already initiated calls trying to quietly work out an arrangement between Walt and his son’s adoptive parents, the Mercers, so that all parties could get to know each other. The boy—James—was an innocent party in all of this. Taylor had insisted that there was no way in hell she was letting Walt or anyone in the Bureau turn this reunion into a circus. His identity had been kept confidential for now, and Walt and the Mercers were working out an arrangement so that Walt could meet the boy.
For now, the Mercers appeared to have been victims as well. All they knew was they’d paid a boatload for a private adoption that appeared legal.
Taylor had to admit she was mildly impressed that Walt hadn’t insisted on jerking James out of his stable home, but he’d done the right thing and was taking things slow.
“Where is Senator Jarvis?” a female reporter in the front row asked, drawing Taylor’s wandering mind back to the present. “You said his son is alive. Where is he? Who is he living with? Will he be returning to the senator’s home?”
Cunningham gave the crowd his fake smile, one that was meant to convey patience but really meant he was annoyed. Taylor had seen it more times than she cared to count. “I’d like to introduce the head of our cold case division,” Cunningham said, “Special Agent Taylor Sinclair. She’ll be able to answer your questions.”
Way to put me in the line of fire.
Taylor felt Matt squeeze her fingers before she released his hand and stepped to the podium.
Flashes went off. The reporters slid forward in their seats, piranhas waiting for their next morsel of juicy meat.
Taylor had been here before in the media spotlight, under their scrutiny. There really was no need for Cunningham’s introduction, since every one of the reporters had been present for Taylor’s press conferences in the past. It had always given her a sense of accomplishment to stand before them and announce to the world that she had reunited another family, or at least given them much needed closure.
This press conference made the previous ones pale in comparison. It was career-making, just like the case.
At the end of the year, Meredith would be heading to the New York office to take over a division there. Cunningham had already offered Taylor Mer’s position.
“Thank you all for being here today,” Taylor said. She was so ready for this. A big smile spread across her face. “To answer your question, Senator Jarvis is requesting privacy at this time. When he is ready, he will make a statement. When that will be, I can’t say.” She paused a second and looked over at Matt, standing so proudly beside her. Her breath caught and she turned back to the microphone. “You know,” she said, “one of the reasons I became an FBI agent is because my younger sister, Isabel, was kidnapped when we were kids. She was never found, and even though I was only nine at the time, I’ve always felt responsible for not stopping the man who took her.”
She had to stop a moment and clear her throat.Breathe. “I’ve never shared this story because it has always been a personal demon for me, driving me to find Isabel and all the children who go missing each and every year. As an agent, I’m expected to keep a professional distance with every case. I’ve found that difficult to do, because in many ways, every missing child is my sister, every cold case is hers. They are all important, just like she is to me. I take them all very personally.”
Now the reporters were hanging on her every word. Some were scribbling notes, others were intently holding their phones and recorders in the air to catch her story.
