Waiting

Gilmer raised his reading glasses to look at the pad.

“What’s this?” he asked.

Riley opened her mouth to say …

“It’s my letter of resignation from the program.”

But instead, different words came out of her mouth …

“I, Riley Sweeney, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States …”

To her alarm, she realized …

I’m reciting the FBI oath of office.

And she couldn’t seem to stop herself.

“…that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same …”

Gilmer pointed to the legal pad and asked again …

“What’s this?”

Riley still wanted to explain what it really was, but the words of the oath continued to pour out …

“… I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion …”

Gilmer’s face was morphing into another face.

It was Jake Crivaro, and he was looking angry. He waved the pad in front of her face.

“What’s this?” he snarled.

Riley was surprised to see that nothing was written there at all.

She heard all the other interns murmuring aloud, speaking the same oath but in a confused jumble of voices.

Meanwhile, she was nearing the end of the oath …

“… I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God.”

Crivaro seemed to be seething now.

“What the hell’s this?” he said, pointing to the blank yellow paper.

Riley tried to tell him, but no words came out.

Riley’s eyes snapped open when she heard an unfamiliar buzzing sound.

She was lying in bed next to Ryan.

It was a dream, she realized.

But the dream definitely meant something. In fact, it meant everything. She’d taken an oath, and she couldn’t take it back. Which meant she couldn’t resign from the program. It wasn’t a legal problem. It was personal. It was a matter of principle.

But what if I get kicked out?

What do I do then?

Meanwhile, she wondered—what was that buzzing sound that kept repeating over and over again?

Still half-asleep, Ryan groaned and muttered …

“Answer your damn phone, Riley.”

Then Riley remembered the cell phone she’d been given yesterday at the FBI building. She fumbled around on the side table until she found it, then scrambled out of bed and carried it out of the room and shut the door behind her.

It took her a moment to figure out which button to push to take the call. When she finally succeeded, she heard a familiar voice.

“Sweeney? Did I wake you?”

It was Agent Crivaro, sounding none too friendly.

“No, of course not,” Riley said.

“Liar. It’s five o’clock in the morning.”

Riley sighed deeply. She realized she felt sick to her stomach.

Crivaro said, “How long will it take you to get awake and dressed?”

Riley thought for a moment, then said, “Um, fifteen minutes, I guess.”

“I’ll be there in ten. Meet me outside your building.”

Crivaro ended the call without another word.

What does he want? Riley wondered.

Is he coming here to personally fire me?

Suddenly she felt a rising wave of nausea. She knew it was morning sickness—the worst she’d experienced so far during her pregnancy.

She let out a groan and thought …

Just what I need right now.

Then she rushed to the bathroom.