“Really? You are?” His relief was almost as comical as his embarrassment.

“Of course I am. She’s terrific. What would we have done without her the last couple of years?”

“No kidding. Thing I can’t understand is why she’d want to shackle herself to this?” With his eyes, he took in his useless body, the chair, the whole situation.

“She loves you. I think it’s that simple.”

“She’s not in it for the house or the pension, in case you wondered.”

“I didn’t.”

“Sure you did, because I’ve trained you to be as cynical as I am.”

“Well, maybe it crossed my mind for an instant, but listening to her talk about you…she’s genuine.”

“I think she is,” he said, seeming incredulous. “In fact, she wants to sign something that says she gets nothing, you know, after…”

“Which says to me she should get it.”

“See? That’s what I think, too. It wouldn’t bother you or your sisters if she got a cut?”

Sam stood up to rest her hands on his shoulders and brought her face down to his. “All I want is you, here with us, for as long as we can have you, for as long as you want to be here.”

“You haven’t forgotten, have you? About our deal?”

Sam thought of the prescription bottle she had stashed in a safety deposit box. “No.”

“And you’re still willing? If the time comes…”

Fighting back the sting of pain in her belly and her heart, she kept her voice steady when she said, “If the time comes.”

He released a long deep breath. “Good. Okay. Let me get back to this. I’ll report in if anything jumps out, Sergeant—or should I say Lieutenant?”

“Not quite yet.” She kissed his forehead. “Thanks for the help.”

“My pleasure.”

And she could see that it was. He seemed more vital, more alive in that moment than he had in a long time. She should’ve been bringing him into her cases on a more formal basis all along and vowed to do so going forward. His mind was as sharp as ever, and if using it gave him a reason to stay in the fight, then she’d use it and no doubt benefit from it.

Nick ended the call with Christina and stashed the cell phone he’d borrowed from Sam in his pocket. He rested against the porch rail and let his eyes wander up and down the quiet street. Some of the townhouses were painted in a variety of bright colors while others were fronted by brick or stone. The red brick sidewalks sloped and curved over tree roots. Black wrought iron gates added a touch of class to the Capitol Hill neighborhood.