“I do want to thank you for calling me in here tonight. I would’ve hated to have missed this.” I pulled the generic Dom/sub contract from the folder and placed it on top. “You may want to shred this before Maura arrives. We don’t want her to know what a pencil dick she married.” I waved my fingers as I turned to leave. “This time, I’ll be the one running along. Goodbye, Parker.”

I WOKE THE next morning to the ringing of my cell phone. MAURA CRAVEN flashed on the screen.

“Maura,” I said sleepily. “What’s happening?”

“Victoria, I’m sorry to call so early, but you need to get to Memorial Hospital right away.”

My tired mind was suddenly wide awake. “God, Maura, is it my mother?” How would Maura Craven know about my mom?

“What? No, Victoria, it’s Parker. He’s very sick. The doctors don’t know what’s wrong, but they want to monitor everyone who’s been in contact with him.”

“Jeez, Maura, I’m sorry.” I sat up, assessing my body. After only a moment, I decided that I wasn’t ill; as a matter of fact, even my ass felt better. “I feel fine.”

“Parker felt fine yesterday morning too. Now… oh… Victoria, now he can’t even breathe. His hair is falling out, and they have this tube thing in his throat. It’s awful.” I heard her holding back the tears.

Oh, just like Stewart. “Maura, how are you?”

“I’m beside myself, but physically, I’m well. Well, for now at least, but the doctors are monitoring me. Please come. Trish said you weren’t with Parker long, but if you start to have symptoms, maybe they can catch it early.”

“I was five feet away.”

“Was he coughing?” Maura asked.

“Yes,” I admitted.

“Victoria, please come, I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

I closed my eyes. “Thank you, Maura. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

Travis drove us to the hospital in silence, both keenly aware of our roles in this tragic chain of events. As the SUV approached the hospital, Travis reached out and touched my leg. “The fucker deserved this.”

I nodded. “I know. I don’t feel bad for him; maybe I should, but I don’t. I’m not relishing the idea of facing Maura, but one day she’ll realize she’s better off without him.”

“And his pencil dick,” Travis added with a lopsided grin.

“Yeah, and his pencil dick.”

“I had no idea it would work this fast,” Travis said as he searched for a parking spot.

“Me either. I think the other one takes longer. I don’t exactly remember.”

“The other one?”

“It’s a red liquid. I think if it’s ingested, it works slower. The symptoms are noticeable, like the hair loss, but once it’s in the system it can’t be stopped. I used the powder. Val said it was toxic, that even a little was disastrous to the immune system. I may have overdone the amount I put in the gloves.”

Travis looked at me, his gaze narrowing. “I’m glad the doctors are going to watch you. Are you sure you’re feeling all right?”

I covered his hand that was still on my leg and sighed. “I am; even my ass feels better. If Parker got that sick, that fast, I think I’m in the clear.” Then I thought about Travis. “You didn’t touch anything… you’re not feeling ill, are you?”

He shook his head. “No, like I said yesterday, I was going to clean up, but I decided to just leave it and get to you at the hospital.”

“And you’re feeling…”

“Mrs.… Victoria, I’m feeling well.” He parked the SUV. “May I escort you to the infectious-disease unit?”

“Oh, Mr. Daniels, does that line get you laid, because it’s uniquely intriguing?”

“No, believe it or not, it’s the first time I’ve used it. However,” he said with a gleam in his dark eyes, “I may hold on to it. You never know when it might come in handy.”

“Indeed.” I pressed my lips together and searched for my mask of concern: the one I’d worn for months while nursing my dying husband. With the recent revelations, I felt less self-assured about what I’d done. As we walked through the doors of the hospital, I wondered if it was time for karma to bite me in the ass.

With my façade securely in place, we arrived at the nurses’ station. “Excuse me. I’m Victoria Harrington, Mrs. Craven called—”

The nurse’s eyes widened. “Yes, the doctors would like you to come back. We have an area with others. It’s a makeshift isolation.” She looked to Travis. “I’m sorry, sir. It’s only for those people—”

“I was with Mrs. Harrington at Mr. Craven’s office last night,” he declared.

“Oh, and your name?” she asked as she checked her list.

“My name is Travis Daniels.”

“Sir, I don’t see—”

I turned my gray eyes toward the woman before me. “Ma’am, why would he lie? Will this makeshift isolation be that enjoyable that you have to stop the crowds from entering?” I obviously wasn’t making a friend, but I also wasn’t ready to be alone with Parker or anyone else without Travis.

“No, ma’am. It’s just that by allowing Mr. Daniels entry we may be unnecessarily exposing—”