As she waited for a reply, Riley glimpsed something else alongside those bundles. It was the edge of a plastic object.
Riley reached for the object and picked it up.
It was a cell phonea simpler model than the one shed been given a little while ago. She realized that this must be one of those prepaid types that couldnt be traced to an owner.
A burner phone, she thought. That must be very useful for a drug operation.
Suddenly she heard a voice shout from the doorway
Sweeney! What the hell do you think youre doing?
Riley turned and saw Agent Crivaro, his face red with rage. Agent McCune had entered right behind him.
She held the phone out and said, I found something, Agent Crivaro.
I see that, Crivaro said. And your fingers are all over it. Give me that thing.
Riley handed the phone to Crivaro, who took it gingerly with a thumb and forefinger and dropped it into an evidence bag. She saw that both he and Agent McCune were wearing gloves.
She felt her face flush with shame and embarrassment.
I really screwed up.
McCune knelt down and looked into the space under the floor.
He said, Hey, Agent Crivaro! Get a look at this!
Crivaro knelt down beside McCune, who said, Its the cash weve been looking all over the house for.
So it is, Crivaro said.
Turning toward Riley again, Crivaro snapped
Did you touch any of this money?
Riley shook her head.
Are you sure? Crivaro said.
Im sure, Riley said timidly.
How did you find this? Crivaro said, pointing to the opening.
Riley shrugged and said, I was just walking through here and I heard a hollow sound under the floor, so I pulled back the rug and
Crivaro interrupted, And you yanked this board loose.
Well, I didnt exactly yank anything. It just sort of popped up when I touched it in a certain spot.
Crivaro growled, You touched it. And the phone too. I cant believe it. You got your prints all over everything.
Riley stammered, IIm sorry, sir.
You damn well should be, Crivaro said. Im getting you out of here before you screw anything else up.
He got up from the floor and brushed off his hands.
He said, McCune, keep the search team working. When you finish the rooms on this floor, keep searching up in the attic. I dont guess were likely to find much of anything else, but weve got to be thorough.
Ill do that, sir, McCune said.
Crivaro led Riley back downstairs and out to his car.
As they drove away, Riley asked, Are we going back to headquarters?
Not today, Crivaro said. Maybe not ever. Where do you live? Im taking you home.
Her voice choked with emotion, Riley told him her address.
As they drove on in silence, Riley found herself remembering how impressed by her Crivaro had been back in Lanton, and how hed told her
The FBI needs young people like youespecially women. Youd make a very fine BAU agent.
How things had changed!
And she knew it wasnt just because of the mistake shed made. Crivaro had been cold to her from the start today.
Right now, Riley just wished hed say somethinganything.
She shyly asked, Did you find anything in that other room across the hall? I mean, where the dumbwaiter used to be?
Not a thing, Crivaro said.
Another silence fell. Riley was starting to feel confused now.
She knew shed made a terrible mistake, but
What was I supposed to do?
Shed had a gut feeling back in that room that there was something under the floor.
Was she just supposed to have ignored that feeling?
She summoned up her courage and said
Sir, I know I screwed up, but didnt I find something important back there? Four agents searched that room and missed that space. You were looking for the cash, and I found it. Would anybody else have found it if I didnt?
Thats not the point, Crivaro said.
Riley fought down the urge to ask
Then what is the point?
Crivaro drove on in sullen silence for several minutes. Then he said in a quiet, bitter voice, I pulled a lot of strings to get you into this program.
Another silence fell. But Riley detected a world of meaning in those words. She began to realize that Crivaro had really gone out on a limb on her behalf, not only to get her into the program but also to serve as her mentor. And hed probably made some of his colleagues angry, perhaps by excluding intern candidates they might have deemed to be more promising than Riley.
Now that she thought of things that way, Crivaros cold behavior started to make sense. He hadnt wanted to show even the slightest bit of preferential treatment toward her. In fact, hed gone to the opposite extreme. Hed been counting on her to prove herself worthy without any encouragement from himself, and despite his colleagues doubts and resentments.
And judging from the looks and whispers shed noticed among other interns during the day, Crivaros colleagues werent the only people who harbored those resentments. Shed faced an uphill climb just to achieve even modest success.
And shed blown it all in a single afternoon, with one stupid mistake. Crivaro had good reason to be disappointed and angry.
She took a long, slow breath and said
Im sorry. It wont happen again.
Crivaro didnt reply for a few moments.
Finally he said, I guess you want a second chance. Well, let me tell you, the FBI isnt big on second chances. My last partner got fired for making the same kind of mistakeand he definitely deserved it. A mistake like that has consequences. Sometimes it just means spoiling a case so that a bad guy gets off free. Sometimes it costs someone their life. It can cost your own life.
Crivaro glanced over at her with a scowl.
So what do you think I should do? he said.
I dont know, Riley said.
Crivaro shook his head. I sure dont know either. I guess maybe both of us should sleep on it. Ive got to decide whether I misjudged your abilities. Youve got to decide whether youve really got what it takes to stay in this program.
Riley felt a lump in her throat, and her eyes stung and she blinked hard.
Dont cry, she told herself.
Crying was the only thing she could think of that would make things worse than they were already.
CHAPTER FIVE
Still stinging from Crivaros rebuke, Riley arrived at home a full two hours before Ryan did. When Ryan got there, he seemed surprised to see that shed gotten back so early, but he was too excited about his own day to notice how upset she was.
Ryan sat down at the kitchen table with a beer while Riley heated up macaroni and cheese TV dinners. She could tell that he was really buzzed about everything he was doing at the law firm and eager to tell her all about it. She tried to pay close attention.
Hed been given more duties than hed expecteda lot of complex research and analysis, writing briefs, preparing for litigation, and other tasks that Riley barely understood. He was even going to appear in a courtroom tomorrow for the very first time. He was only going to be assisting the lead attorneys, of course, but it was a real milestone for him.