“Agreed, but...the chief can’t keep cutting her breaks when she screws up, or he’ll have issues with other officers crying favoritism. She doesn’t need that any more than he does. She won’t see it this way, but he’s doing her a favor by digging in on this. If he relents, everyone will say it’s because of who she is to the chief, who her father is, who her husband is, and she’d hate that.”

“Yeah,” Avery said. “She would.”

They were met by Detectives McBride, Tyrone, Carlucci and Dominguez when they arrived at HQ, where the three arrested men were being booked.

“Freddie,” Jeannie McBride said. “He’s all right?”

“We’re not sure yet,” Malone said. “He was unconscious when he was brought out. They roughed him up pretty good.”

Carlucci sighed audibly. “He has to be okay.”

Dominguez put a comforting arm around her partner. “Is Elin with him?”

“She’s with the lieutenant, and they’re on their way to GW. In the meantime, we have work to do. What do we have on Troy Hamilton?”

“Archie is dumping his phone,” McBride said, “and Crime Scene is still there. Dr. McNamara is conducting the autopsy. They both said they’ll have more for us in the morning. We had one witness who saw someone running away from Hamilton’s home earlier, but he wasn’t able to give us too many details other than that he saw the person around three-thirty. Archie’s team is reviewing our cameras in the area and we’re working with the company that provides the security at Hamilton’s house to get footage.”

“Crime Scene is also processing Cruz’s car,” Tyrone said.

The sergeant overseeing Central Booking let them know the three men were available for questioning.

“Get them into rooms,” Malone said. “McBride and Tyrone, you take one. Carlucci and Dominguez take the second. Hill and I have got the third. Let them think the others are talking. You know what to do.”

“Don’t bother,” Conklin said grimly when he joined them. “They’ve lawyered up. They’re not talking.”

* * *

“BRANT, WE NEED to get to the GW Emergency Room right away,” Nick said.

“Oh, um, I don’t think that’s a great idea, sir.”

“We’re going. With you or without you.”

Sam reached for Nick’s hand and smiled up at him. “Thanks.”

His jaw pulsed with tension as he nodded. She knew how much he hated the restrictions his new job put on his ability to move freely.

Elin had been sobbing since she heard that Freddie was hurt. “Can we go? I want to be there when he arrives.”

“You guys go ahead,” Nick said, his frustration apparent in every word. “I’ll be right behind you.”

“I’ll take you all,” Brant said. “I just hope you can find a job for me somewhere after I lose this one.”