“Hey, Brant,” Sam said when she ended the call with Lindsey. “Would you please let them know outside that Drs. Harry Flynn and Lindsey McNamara will be coming over shortly?”

“Sure, thing, Mrs. Cappuano. No problem.”

“Thanks.”

“Who was that you called?” Josh asked.

“The District’s Chief Medical Examiner, Dr. Lindsey McNamara. She’s a friend and a colleague. I trust her to be discreet.”

“I thought medical examiners worked on dead people.”

“Usually they do, but she’s also a medical doctor and handles DNA testing for us.” She glanced at the stairs. “I need to check on my husband. He’s not feeling well. I’ll be right back down.”

Sam went upstairs to the bedroom, where Nick was exactly where she’d left him. She placed her head on his face and was stunned by how hot he felt. Running back downstairs, she called Harry again and got his voicemail. “Harry, it’s Sam again. He’s scary hot. I’m worried. Let me know if you think I should take him to the ER.”

Sam’s phone rang, and she pounced on it, hoping it was Harry. “Mrs. Cappuano, this is Mrs. Perry at Eliot-Hine. The school nurse asked me to call to let you know Scotty’s not feeling well. He has a fever of one hundred point two. Is it okay if we send him home with his detail?”

Sam’s heart sank at the news that Scotty was sick too. While she’d rather pick him up herself, the agents could get him home faster. “Yes, please. Send him home.”

Chapter Three

CHAPTER THREE

SCOTTY NARROWLY MISSED throwing up on Sam when she met him on the sidewalk in front of the house. Fortunately, she saw what was happening and jumped out of the way in time for him to puke on the street rather than on her. She patted his back and took tissues from Darcy, one of his agents, to wipe his mouth when he was done.

“Sorry,” he muttered. His face was so pale he barely resembled her robustly healthy son.

“Don’t be sorry. You can’t help it, buddy. You okay for now?”

“I think so.”

Sam wrapped her arm around him to lead him inside. “How long have you felt lousy?”

“About an hour. I was fine and then my head was spinning and my ears were buzzing. Then my stomach started hurting, and I felt really hot.”

“Whatever it is, your dad has it too, and Harry’s on his way.”

Scotty closed his eyes and leaned his head against her. “Okay.”

“Oh my goodness,” Shelby said when Sam brought him inside.

“You need to get out of here while the getting is still good,” Sam said. “Whatever they’ve got is the last thing you need.”

“I can’t leave you to deal with this by yourself.”

“Yes, you can. Go, Tinker Bell. That’s an order.”