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“I really appreciate this,” she said instead when I dug my jumper cables out of my trunk.
After three tries, I knew Ali’s battery was beyond a jump start. I had to get to the office and do damage control on the AP report, but I didn’t feel comfortable leaving her here alone.
“Look, come with me. I have a few things to take care of, and then I can drop you at your building.”
“But…my car.”
“Right. Let me put out some fires, and then we’ll go get you a new battery.”
“You don’t have to do that, Mr. Cope. I know you’re very busy.”
“It’s Cope, and it’s the least I can do after…”
“What?”
“I was a pretty major jackass about the salad.”
“I could’ve ordered something else. I was just past the point of no return.”
“Hangry?”
“Exactly.” She laughed. It was a beautiful sound. “So about the report…”
“Ali…right?”
She nodded.
“I’m happy to help you with your car, but as far as anything to do with the trial, I can’t talk about it. Especially to you.”
She turned her head so I couldn’t see her face. “Got it.”
It took two hours to get from the district court to the agency headquarters in Langley, and neither of us said another word. Once again, I felt like a dick for snapping at her, but she had to understand that even though she was in the car with me, it would’ve been better if we didn’t even know each other’s names.
I pulled into the underground parking. “I’ll try to be quick.”
“You really don’t have to do this.”
“I’m doing it, okay?” I got half a smile, and that was good enough for me.
“There are some public galleries you can roam around in,” I told her when the elevator stopped at the main lobby. “Just give me a few minutes, and then we’ll take care of your car.”
I left her in the lobby and took the elevator six floors up. The instant I got off, I knew shit had hit the fan. I didn’t even make it to my office before my boss, Kellen “Money” McTiernan, motioned me into his and slammed the door behind me. “What the fuck, Cope?”
There was nothing he or I could say that would change the present optics. “I’m as angry as you are, sir.”
I inwardly groaned when the team on the Warrick sting filed in one by one, followed by two people from the Office of Public Affairs. The last thing I needed was ten more people sticking their noses into this.
The bullshit response to the leak that would’ve taken me thirty minutes to craft if I were left alone—and that would’ve been with revisions—took the people in the room over two hours to do, and they still weren’t finished arguing about it.
I leaned back in my chair and looked at my watch, knowing I was forgetting something.
Ali.
“Shit!”
Every head in the room turned and looked at me when I stood and collected the crap I had spread out on the table. “There’s something I need to take care of.”
“Cope?” said McTiernan.