Revenge is Sweet (A Samantha Church Mystery) by Betta Ferrendelli Page B
Authors: Betta Ferrendelli
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not after our conversation … maybe this was about something else. Maybe these are the same guys who came while I was in the hospital…
Sam minimized the e-mail, rose and began to walk slowly toward the stairs, stalling deliberately to give herself more time to think. She passed Nick’s office and glanced in. He was at his desk and she stormed in without an invitation, closing the door behind her. Nick had just taken a big bite from his sandwich. He looked at Sam as if to say ‘what are you doing here?’
“What the hell were you thinking?” Sam said, trying to keep the anger from her voice.
“What?” Nick said through a mouth full of food.
“There are two Grandview police officers upstairs waiting to talk to me,” Sam said, jerking her thumb toward the reception area. “Anne just buzzed me and asked me to come up.”
Nick looked at her and then began chewing. He shook his head slowly, studying her, wondering why he cared about what made this woman tick.
“You’re crazier than I thought,” Nick said and set his sandwich on a wrapper with a Subway logo on it.
He picked up his soda and took a quick drink. Sam watched the color of the straw as it filled with a dark liquid. He set the cup down and finished chewing the rest of the food in his mouth and swallowed.
“What’d you tell them?” she asked.
“Sam, for Christ’s sake, I didn’t tell them anything. I haven’t made a single call to anyone. Don’t go falling apart on me now. I don’t know why they’re here, but I know you’re not working on any kind of a story, so it can’t be because of something like that.”
Sam grunted and folded her arms tightly across her chest. He was being sarcastic now and she hated him when he acted like that. Sam was beginning to feel desperate. She turned and looked out a small window that paralleled his chair. The view gave way to a large group of cottonwood trees that were bare now except for a few stubborn leaves that had managed to hang on. The leaves dangled from the empty branches, moving slightly in the afternoon breeze. The sky beyond, covered in a thin flat layer of white clouds, was pale blue.
“Sam, I’m sure it has nothing to do with Wilson,” Nick said.
The softness in Nick’s voice surprised her and it brought her eyes back to his. He waited a moment, as if sensing her vulnerability.
“Sam, look, I am sure it’s nothing,” he said again. “Whatever it is, I haven’t said anything to anyone. I don’t like it one bit, and I don’t know how much longer we can sit patiently here without doing something, because we’ll have to do something soon…”
Nick’s voice trailed off as he shifted his attention to the calendar on his wall and studied it a moment. Sam looked with him. Wilson was due home on Saturday. It was Tuesday.
“I know,” Sam said, finishing the rest of his thoughts, “I know, Wilson’s supposed to be flying home on Saturday. It doesn’t give us much time.”
“Less than a week,” Nick said. “And, no, we don’t have much time, but I am with you on this, at least for now, and I can assure you that I haven’t called anyone.”
Sam studied Nick a moment, considering whether to say something about the latest e-mail, the one that seemed to assure her it was only a matter of time before they killed Wilson. She decided to wait and tell him until after she met with the police officers. She pushed herself away from the wall. She had kept them waiting long enough. “Okay,” she said. Sam reached for the doorknob, but stopped before opening it. She turned, looked at Nick and said, “I’ll let you know what they said.”
He nodded, taking another big bite from his sandwich. A piece of shredded lettuce dangled from a corner of his mustache, reminding her of the other morning when the jelly filling from his doughnut was trapped in about the same spot. “You have a piece of lettuce right there,” Sam said pointing in the general direction of his mustache.
She opened
Sam minimized the e-mail, rose and began to walk slowly toward the stairs, stalling deliberately to give herself more time to think. She passed Nick’s office and glanced in. He was at his desk and she stormed in without an invitation, closing the door behind her. Nick had just taken a big bite from his sandwich. He looked at Sam as if to say ‘what are you doing here?’
“What the hell were you thinking?” Sam said, trying to keep the anger from her voice.
“What?” Nick said through a mouth full of food.
“There are two Grandview police officers upstairs waiting to talk to me,” Sam said, jerking her thumb toward the reception area. “Anne just buzzed me and asked me to come up.”
Nick looked at her and then began chewing. He shook his head slowly, studying her, wondering why he cared about what made this woman tick.
“You’re crazier than I thought,” Nick said and set his sandwich on a wrapper with a Subway logo on it.
He picked up his soda and took a quick drink. Sam watched the color of the straw as it filled with a dark liquid. He set the cup down and finished chewing the rest of the food in his mouth and swallowed.
“What’d you tell them?” she asked.
“Sam, for Christ’s sake, I didn’t tell them anything. I haven’t made a single call to anyone. Don’t go falling apart on me now. I don’t know why they’re here, but I know you’re not working on any kind of a story, so it can’t be because of something like that.”
Sam grunted and folded her arms tightly across her chest. He was being sarcastic now and she hated him when he acted like that. Sam was beginning to feel desperate. She turned and looked out a small window that paralleled his chair. The view gave way to a large group of cottonwood trees that were bare now except for a few stubborn leaves that had managed to hang on. The leaves dangled from the empty branches, moving slightly in the afternoon breeze. The sky beyond, covered in a thin flat layer of white clouds, was pale blue.
“Sam, I’m sure it has nothing to do with Wilson,” Nick said.
The softness in Nick’s voice surprised her and it brought her eyes back to his. He waited a moment, as if sensing her vulnerability.
“Sam, look, I am sure it’s nothing,” he said again. “Whatever it is, I haven’t said anything to anyone. I don’t like it one bit, and I don’t know how much longer we can sit patiently here without doing something, because we’ll have to do something soon…”
Nick’s voice trailed off as he shifted his attention to the calendar on his wall and studied it a moment. Sam looked with him. Wilson was due home on Saturday. It was Tuesday.
“I know,” Sam said, finishing the rest of his thoughts, “I know, Wilson’s supposed to be flying home on Saturday. It doesn’t give us much time.”
“Less than a week,” Nick said. “And, no, we don’t have much time, but I am with you on this, at least for now, and I can assure you that I haven’t called anyone.”
Sam studied Nick a moment, considering whether to say something about the latest e-mail, the one that seemed to assure her it was only a matter of time before they killed Wilson. She decided to wait and tell him until after she met with the police officers. She pushed herself away from the wall. She had kept them waiting long enough. “Okay,” she said. Sam reached for the doorknob, but stopped before opening it. She turned, looked at Nick and said, “I’ll let you know what they said.”
He nodded, taking another big bite from his sandwich. A piece of shredded lettuce dangled from a corner of his mustache, reminding her of the other morning when the jelly filling from his doughnut was trapped in about the same spot. “You have a piece of lettuce right there,” Sam said pointing in the general direction of his mustache.
She opened
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