“I will, but you should give Nick a heads-up.”

“Yeah.” Jeez, be careful what you wish for. Sam had wanted Nicoletta out of their lives, which was why she’d asked Avery to take a low-level look at her. She’d expected him to find something, but this… This would be a huge embarrassment to Nick. Damn it.

“I’ll be in touch,” Avery said as he left her office.

“What was that about?” Gonzo asked when he came in.

Sam updated him on the Ramsey situation and how he was facing federal felony charges. “Close the door.” When the door was closed, Sam told him about Nicoletta.

“Yikes. Does Nick know you asked Avery to investigate her?”

She shook her head, eager to get out of there for the night. “I didn’t want to bother him with it if it turned out to be nothing.”

“I think you’d better bother him with it—sooner rather than later.”

“I was afraid you’d say that.”

Work kept Nick busy late into the night, so Sam never got a chance to talk to him about what Avery had told her. After a restless night, Sam received word at six a.m. from Detective Matt O’Brien that they’d located Richard Day/Kent and were bringing him in. “Pleasant sort of guy,” Matt said, sounding aggravated.

“Aren’t they all?”

“This one is more so than most.”

“Thanks for working all night to track him down.”

“Glad to have found him.”

After breakfast with Nick and the kids, Sam left for HQ, calling the U.S. Attorney’s Office on the way and asking to speak to an assistant USA.

“Please hold.”

The hold music was hideous. She needed to talk to Nick about providing funding to the U.S. Attorney’s Office to improve their music. That was better than telling him she’d sent the FBI after his mother, and she might be facing indictment for prostitution. That was just what they needed with everything on the upswing after his State of the Union address. She would make sure to get some time with him later to discuss that with him.

“Faith Miller.”

“Hey, it’s Sam Holland. Can you come by to witness an interrogation?”

“Which case?”

“A new one that I need to brief you on beforehand.”

“I’ll be there shortly.”

“Thanks.”

She’d no sooner put down the phone than it rang with a call forwarded from her extension at HQ. Freddie must’ve set that up. “Holland.”

“This is Kyle Atkins, the owner of Zénitude. I understand you came by yesterday, asking about Morgan and Angelo.”

“Yes, I did.” Since she wasn’t sure what his angle was, she said as little as possible.

“I was out on a boat offshore all day yesterday and only just heard about your visit. Can you tell me more about what you’re looking for?”

“We recently issued an alert about fentanyl-laced pain medication being sold illegally.”

“I saw that. Is that what you think happened to Morgan and Angelo?”

“We’re looking into their deaths and the sudden deaths of numerous other local residents with a possible connection to the same dealer.”