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Chapter Twelve:
Wright knew she needed to give Reid some space. It would take time to mourn Maeve. She just needed to be patient and hope for the best.
There was plenty going on in her life. Aria was starting to walk, and it was a whole new world of experiences. Amy was getting serious with her boyfriend Tom. Little things like buying a car after spending most of her adult life riding the rails was its own challenge. Things were in a constant state of motion, and Wright sometimes felt like she barely had a chance to catch her breath.
Amy announced one day she was moving in with Tom in a month.
"Are you going to be okay living alone with Aria?" she asked.
"I'll be fine," she said. "I'll miss you. Aria will miss you. But we'll be fine."
"You know I love you like a sister?" Amy said. "I'll always watch out for you."
"Amy, nothing will separate what we have. Good luck on your new adventure."
She hugged Wright.
"Thank you for understanding."
…
"Second chair on your first crime family case," Blake Landon said. "How exciting."
"I have learned to treat every perp like every other perp," Wright said. "To treat them any differently gives them more power."
"They say you are one of the smartest prosecutors in DC," he said. "I can see why."
"I'm touched," she said.
"Smile for the cameras," he said as they walked up the courthouse steps.
Wright tried no to make a face. This was going to be a long trial.
"Luck Shawn," Shawn O'Brian was on trial for the murder of a lawyer in the Geno mob family. He was creepy-looking guy with a shock of blond hair and studded teeth. Wright refused to show any weakness throughout the trial as she passed notes to Landon. Every once and a while she'd find him staring at her with an unnerving smile on his face. She brushed it off. Wright needed to stay focused.
O'Brian was one of the rare defendants who chose to take the stand in his own defense. His lawyer Dilan Kilian did his best to make him look smarter.
"You know better than to off an Italian mob lawyer," he said. "Right?"
"Lawyers are beneath me," he said. "If I am going to have non-physical confrontations, it would be with the man himself. Not some underling."
"Nothing further," Kilian said. "Your witness."
"Mr. O'Brian, is it true you have no alibi for the night of Rocco Geno's death?"
"Before, I answer that question, I'd like to say that Ms. Wright has a lovely daughter. Their hair is almost the same shade of red."
Wright tried not to look perturbed. She refused to let her hands shake as she stared straight at him. Her insides were in knots.
"How would you know that Mr. O'Brian?" Landon asked, not missing a beat.
"Social media," he said.
"Ms. Wright is not on social media."
"How would you know?" he asked with a grin.
"It's government policy," he said. "Your Honor, the defendant is lying."
"You won't find her in time," he said checking his watch.
"Shawn what did you do?" Killian exploded.
"You're fired Dilan, you were a crappy lawyer. This is a message from the O'Brian crime family: You mess with us; we mess with you back."
Wright was on the phone with Aria's daycare.
"Your mother came to pick her," the receptionist said. "She said it was going to be a 'nana and me' surprise day."
"My mother is dead!" she shouted.
"So will your daughter be too," O'Brian shouted. "A sacrifice for the cause."
Landon grabbed him by the collar and pulled him out of the chair.
"What did you do?" he screamed.
"I'm never going to tell," he said with a smug grin.
Landon threw him back into the stand.
Wright dialed Reid.
"I'm on a case," he said.
"My daughter has been kidnapped!"
"Chloe, I'm working on averting another nine-eleven," he said. "I wish I could help, but I can't."
Wright slammed the end button.
"So, your friend can't help," O'Brian said smugly.
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. It was either bash his head in with a chair or find his weak spot.
"Mr. O'Brian," she said standing up. "You have a half-sister, Molly. She has been in and out of jail for shoplifting and drunken disorderly conduct. She recently tussled with a DEA agent when they searched her place for drugs. At the time the prosecutor declined to press charges, as it was a single slap in the face. I can convince her to toss Molly in the federal slammer. She may even share a cell with Veronica O'Dell."
"You wouldn't," he said as the color drained for his face.
"You're threatening to murder my daughter D-Bag," she said. "If I can find a way to lock up your mother for not paying her heating bill on time, I will."
He shrugged.
"I should have gone after his wife," he said. "Pin Elly up bloody would have gotten a rise out of him."
Landon slapped him.
"I didn't see anything," the judge said.
"Someone give me a phone," O'Brian said.
Wright handed him hers and she held her breath as he dialed.
"Get the bag off the child, the prosecutor's threatening Molly. The broad isn't bluffing. Get it off and drop her off at the nearest fire station."
He hung up.
"She's going to be at the Southern Street fire station. Happy?"
She stared at him hard.
"This isn't over."
Wright rushed out of the courtroom.
…
Aria only had minor bruising around her neck. She was lucky, phenomenally lucky. Another minute and she might have been dead.
Wright wouldn't let Aria out of her sight. Her little girl seemed okay and was her usual cheerful self. She wondered how much mental scaring there was and how she would recover from it.
Given the rest of the week off, Wright stayed busy with projects around the apartment.
There was a knock on the door.
"I'm sorry," Reid said.
"I know," she said. "You're not my G-Man and I handled it on my own."
"I really wanted to be there for you, I swear."
"When you need me, I push heaven and earth to be there for you. When I need you, it isn't as important."
"You know that's not fair," he said.
"I know," she said.
"Are we okay?"
"We will be," she said. "I need to return to my daughter."
"I'm sorry," he said.
"I know," she said as she closed the door.