Nick waited until they were all inside before shutting the door. Molly looked up at Lena, a flash of irritation in her eyes. Into the phone, she said, "Baby, Mama has to go now, okay?" She waited a beat. "I love you, too."
Lena had not given Sara's nurse much thought beyond noticing her around the clinic, and it had never occurred to Lena that the woman was a mother. She was probably a good one, too – always calm, always there for her kids. She did not seem to have a selfish bone in her body. Some people were just made for that kind of life.
"Detective Adams," Wagner began. "We've selected you to go into the building."
Nick said, "I want to repeat that I'm against this."
Lena went on the defensive. "I know what I -"
"Not you," Nick interrupted. "Her."
"Wait a minute," Lena said, finally understanding what Molly had done. "She's going, too?"
Wagner provided, "We'll send you in as paramedics under the guise of offering medical assistance."
"You said Barry was probably dead."
Molly looked at Nick as she spoke. "Some of the kids could be hurt. Sara could need me."
Nick's mouth went into a straight line, and Lena wondered why he was so vehement. His objection seemed more personal than professional.
"Just for the record," Wagner began, "I'm a little hesitant to send you in, Detective, but Nicky assures me you're up to the challenge."
Lena bit back the defensive remark that wanted to come. Instead, she swallowed her pride and said, "If you're not certain…" She tried to find the words, struggling with her emotions. "If you think someone else is more qualified, then I'll step down."
"That's just it," Wagner answered. "There isn't anyone more qualified. If I send in one of my boys, the shooters will know immediately what's going on. I think our best plan of action is to send in both of you. They'll be more comfortable with women."
"Or they'll take you both hostage," Nick added. "Or just shoot you."
"He's right," Wagner said. "There's nothing to keep them from doing either or both." She crossed her arms. "Are you still so eager to get into that building?"
Lena did not hesitate. "Yes."
They all looked at Molly.
"Ms. Stoddard?" Wagner asked.
Molly exchanged a look with Nick. "Yes."
Wagner said, "Your resolve seems to have slipped a little."
"No." Molly stood. "I'm ready."
2:15 P.M.
Lena washed her hands in the bathroom sink of the Grant Medical Center. Her hands shook slightly, but that was nothing new. Her hands had been shaking off and on for the last two years, ever since she was abducted. Sometimes, Lena thought the shaking was because of the scars in her hands that her attacker had made, but her doctors assured her there was no nerve damage.
"You okay?" Molly Stoddard asked. She was watching Lena's hands like they told a story.
"I'm fine," Lena told her, snatching a paper towel off the roll.
"It's okay to be nervous," Molly said. "As a matter of fact, I'd feel better if you did."
"Right," Lena answered. She took the EMT uniform off the counter and went into a stall to change.
"I'm nervous," Molly said. She was obviously waiting for Lena to speak, but when she did not, Molly drew out an "O-okay."
Lena took off her jacket and hung it on the hook on the back of the stall door. She was unbuttoning her shirt when a knock came at the bathroom door.
Nick Shelton asked, "Y'all decent?"
Molly said yes as Lena said no.
"Sorry," Molly apologized, but Lena could already hear Nick in the room. She sat on the toilet, not wanting to be undressed with him in the room, even though there was a locked stall door between them.
"I wanted to say," Nick began, his voice sounding hesitant. "I just…"
"We'll be fine," Molly said, as if she knew exactly what was bothering him. Lena peered through the crack in the door and she saw that Molly had her hand on Nick's face.
Molly whispered again, "I'll be fine."
"You don't have to do this," Nick said.
"If I was in there and Sara -"
"Sara doesn't have two kids at home, and that's exactly what she'd be telling you now if she was here."
Molly looked Lena's way, and Lena stood to continue changing so they would not think she had been watching. Her pants dropped to the floor and she heard a muffled clank as the knife she always kept in her back pocket hit the tile. Lena looked out the crack to make sure Molly and Nick had not seen. They were still whispering, as if the fact that she was three feet away meant nothing. Nick clearly did not want Molly to go into the station. Lena couldn't blame him. There was no guarantee the shooters weren't looking for more hostages.
Lena opened her pocketknife and ran her finger along the sharp blade. The knife was little more than three inches long, but she could do some damage with it. The only question was where she could hide it in case the shooters frisked her.
Nick raised his voice to include Lena. "They capitulated too easily," he said. "Usually, hostage takers are unstable. They're emotional. You have to deal with them for a while, get their trust, before they make concessions. They're sending Marla out too soon."
Lena slipped on the pants for the paramedic's uniform. They were about one size too big, which was a better fit than she had hoped. She suggested, "Maybe they're hungry."
"There's something not right here," Nick insisted. "They obviously know what we're doing. They wouldn't have blocked the vents just for the hell of it. They knew we would have cameras and that standard operating procedure is to try the vents first. This could be a trap to get more hostages."
Lena slid off her sneaker and dropped in the pocketknife. She stepped back into the shoe, wiggling the knife around until it was snug against the arch of her foot.
"Lena?" Nick prompted.
"I know the dangers, Nick," Lena snapped, thinking he was treating her like a ten-year-old instead of a seasoned cop. She put on the white paramedic's shirt, which was tight across her chest. The badge over the pocket read MARTIN, and she wondered if Martin was a skinny guy or a flat-chested woman.
When she opened the door, Molly moved away from Nick as if they had been caught. Lena checked herself in the mirror, thinking that with the buttons stretched across her chest she looked like some slut out of a porn movie. Considering some of the Grant paramedics she had seen around town, she fit right in.
She told Nick, "I know you don't trust Wagner."
"Do you know why?" Nick asked, but he did not let her answer. "I know the rumor, but let me set it straight. I'm the one who hesitated. She didn't hesitate. She never hesitates. She's ice. And I'll tell you another thing." He gave Molly a meaningful look. "She doesn't like women."
Lena blew air out through her lips.
"It's true," Nick said. "She doesn't mind using them as bait. That's exactly what she's doing here, no matter what you think. That's what happened in Ludowici. She sent in a female cop and the shooters kept the woman. She was dead ten minutes later."
"Because you hesitated?" Lena asked. She could see the guilt flash in his eyes and she regretted her words – not because she didn't mean them, but because the situation was stressful enough without having Molly Stoddard pissed off with her, too.
Nick said, "This won't go down like you think. You've been on the job long enough to know something isn't right here. You feel it in your gut. You know that, Lena."
"I'll be outside," Lena told him, thinking it would be best to leave them alone. She walked out of the bathroom and ran into one of Wagner's men. He was built like a brick wall, and he grabbed her in surprise. His hands stayed on her body a little too long, and she pushed him back, trying not to show her anger. She walked toward Wagner, who was standing at the end of the hallway with a cell phone to her ear. She ended the call as Lena reached her.
Wagner said, "What's in your shoe?"