Sam gave him a withering look. Other than his mother and maybe his girlfriend, Sam was fairly confident that no one knew him better than she did. “Shall we examine the evidence?”

“Here’s a big idea—let’s not.”

“Come on, Freddie. What gives?”

“It was a rough night. That’s all.”

“Did she get to you?” she asked of Carmen.

“Of course she did. She’d just lost her husband and has two little kids to think about in a country that’s not home to her. Her kids are American citizens, so she’s torn about what to do now that Willie is gone. We talked some while we waited for her family to get there. It was... It was a long night.”

And her sensitive partner would’ve been more affected than most by the young widow’s grief. “It was good of you to stay with her, Freddie. Way above and beyond the call of duty.”

He shrugged off her praise, as she’d known he would. “Someone had to stay with her. All her friends abandoned her after her husband missed the ball.”

“She was hurt by that.”

“Extremely. The wives and girlfriends stick together, especially during the season when the guys are on the road so much. I got the impression that the other women had been a lifeline for Carmen as she raised her kids far away from her home and family. And then when she needed them most...”

“They deserted her.”

“Yes.”

“It’s a sucky situation all the way around.”

“I wish there was more I could do for her.”

“Helping to find her husband’s killer will go a long way toward getting closure for her.”

“I can’t believe you used the word ‘closure.’ You hate that word.”

“True.” She hated the word because there was never really closure for the families of murder victims, who lived in the shadow of violent crime for the rest of their lives. “We do what we can for them. We do the best we can.”

“I know.”

The best he could do wouldn’t be enough for him, Sam suspected, vowing to keep a close eye on her partner over the next few days. They walked a fine line between their professional and personal relationships, and somehow managed to keep the balance. At times like this, however, she tended to think of him more as the beloved little brother she’d never had than the partner she’d trained and nurtured for years now. Not that she’d ever tell him that...

They rolled into Montgomery County and arrived in Potomac, one of the wealthiest towns in the country.

“I can’t get over the real estate out here,” Sam said. “Can you imagine living in a house like that?” She pointed to a Tudor monstrosity that would’ve occupied a full city block in the District.

“Not in this lifetime.”